There’s a plethora of Marvel movies and shows out there. With a catalogue that extensive, there’s bound to be a few weak links. After Marvel’s most recent release Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings received some critiques on Twitter (even though the film had a huge opening weekend), a bevy of fans stepped in to defend the movie by naming what they thought was the actual worst Marvel movie: Thor: The Dark World.
Originally released in 2013, Thor: The Dark World holds the dubious honor of being the lowest-rated Marvel film on Rotten Tomatoes with only a 66% approval rating. By comparison, all but a few Marvel films have at least an 80%. So when Twitter fans started wondering what the worst Marvel movie was, it’s no surprise that the Thor sequel was a popular pick. (Even CinemaBlend has listed it as the worst Marvel movie.)
Thor 2 began trending when some Twitter accounts posted negative reviews of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. User @PoorlyAgedStuff posited that Shang-Chi could be Marvel’s first flop. However, many fans jumped to the film’s defense:
Okay 1 that movie [Shang-Chi] is amazing and 2 they said first as if thor 2 doesn’t exist - @SoberFallen
Ouch. This user has a point, however. Compare Thor: The Dark World’s Rotten Tomatoes rating to Shang-Chi’s, which is currently sitting pretty at 92%. The film also broke box office records with the biggest Labor Day opening weekend of all time.
Unfortunately for Thor 2, once the ball started rolling, it didn’t stop. Fans’ support of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings had sparked a discussion, and Twitter was not letting up. Fortunately for Marvel fans, some of the responses are hilarious - like Twitter user @DCsDoctorFate’s response to this criticism of Marvel movies:
The MCU could drop 5 hours of static and critics would rave about it being a ‘triumph of storytelling, filled with quirky, humorous and fascinating characters, that transcends the trappings of the superhero genre. Best MCU show so far’ - @Blksad_1
Forget a slow simmer - Thor: The Dark World was getting roasted. Some fans compared Thor: The Dark World to the popular Disney+ series Loki, which promoted the fan-favorite character played by Tom Hiddleston from second banana to leading man.
Is it weird that I think the season of Loki is better than all of the Thor movies? - @CloudsAether
Maybe not all of the Thor movies (Ragnarok, anyone?), but it’s definitely not weird, Twitter user @CloudsAether. After all, Loki has always been a highlight of the Thor storyline, and many fans were disappointed with his portrayal in The Dark World.
In addition to The Dark World, another common choice for worst Marvel film was The Incredible Hulk. But just how bad was the Edward Norton movie, anyway? This Twitter user says it best:
I wouldn't even force my worst enemy to watch Hulk and Thor 2 - @IntregridOW
Whether Thor: The Dark World is the worst Marvel movie or not, there’s plenty of good Marvel content out there for fans to enjoy - nearly every entry in the Marvel library is available to stream now on Disney+ (yes, even Thor 2).
