Somebody's been Jossed. It might be me.
Well, I finally saw the Avengers. I'd watched some cast interviews and read some fanfic and I decided that I wanted to see the movie on the big screen. I'm thinking I saw a totally different different movie than most folks, including the cast. Help me out here, have I been jossed?
Loki as supervillian - I'm not buying that so much. I think he was snagged up from his fall at the end of Thor by some greater power who tortured him, forced him to run the invasion which Loki decided to turn to his advantage and use as an escape attempt. He gets get given the staff by some alien (I don't recognize said alien & opinions differ on who it is?) in a scene where said alien tells a third party that he - Loki- is ready. Then he shows up in the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility looking positively ill. His eyes are red and his face is covered with sweat. He takes over Dr. Selvieg and Hawkeye, does the snag and grab but he staggers on his way to the escape vehicle and rubs his back after he gets in it.
During scene in Loki's lab, he kneels down to talk to the alien again. Loki has created an illusion of himself in the full armor get that he wears when he's at his worst. Using the armored illusion, he reports into the alien. I think the dialog line - that he is going to want the soothing taste of sweet pain - indicates that Loki has been tortured. But then alien comes over the relative space where Loki's body actually is and Loki flinches when he's touched by the alien. So his illusion fails with this alien, and probably has been failing right along, thus stripping Loki of one of his preferred weapons.
Now off Loki and Hawkeye go to obtain the iridium. Eyeball extraction scene - ewww. Moving on to the Kneel before Me scene, once again we have Loki in the armored get-up, posturing for all he's worth about making people kneel before him. But the rant about freedom makes me think it's a case of he's protesting too much because he's lost, or fears he may lose, his own. If people are ants beneath his boots, why would he care about subjugation/worship?
Obviously he gave up entirely too easily, but did you notice that his illusions were flickering? Like static interference. I'm again arguing there's some serious damage inflicted on Loki beside the self-inflicted pain, suffering, heartbreak and loneliness he's put on himself with his doubts about himself.
I think he looked worried when his brother showed up and he claimed to not care for the thunder that comes after the lighting because hope hurts and he has some faint hope that his brother might actually pay attention when he tries to tell him about the invasion and the villian, who I believe tortured him. His eyes looked as though they may have filled with tears when Thor is yelling at him. As if he wants to quit but doesn't dare. Unfortunately, he doesn't get Thor's comprehension before the other avengers show up to fight over custody of him. But he waits quietly, through the fight. Clearly everybody understands Loki has permitted himself to be taken into custody for a second time.
Can I say that was a wonderful conversation he has with Natasha? Verbal fencing, counterthrusts, feints, lunges. OMG. (It's enough to make me take fencing lessons. I think I need to learn saber.) Was he acting when he lunged at her? Or had she stung him just a bit because she has a chance, however small, of making some amends? And he believes he can't or won't. I'm not sure if Natasha's cognitive re-set is what set Hawkeye free or if Loki just let him go.
And she makes the leap of intuition to the Hulk, just enough to incite the Hulk to make an appearance. Loki wants Hulk in action because he's the guy who will take Loki down, which I think was goal from the beginning. Seriously, think about it.
Why is Loki heading to the Stark tower? He didn't need to go there. The invasion was already under way, the door was open. If he wanted he army to take over the Earth, all he had to was sit back or take out some avengers. But he keeps going back to the Stack tower. Why? Other than he needed to get his staff there for Dr. Selveig's back door to close the gateway. Which brings me to another thing - the back door. Do we have an evil supervillain who has taken over folks enough to make them act against their most basic orientation but who fails to notice major sabotage by the main person building the gate? An otherwise really smart guy? I got my doubts on that. I think that Loki wanted the back door, wanted Selvig to use it to defeat the invasion long enough for Loki to get the crap beaten out of him by Hulk. He needs the Hulk to defeat him substantively enough to get hauled back to Asgard. I presume he thinks that no punishment Odin is likely to mete could be possibly be worse than continuing his association with whoever-it-was. Otherwise there's no reason for Loki's repeated trips back to the tower. The invasion was underway, he'd told the alien to send it all. He dropped the staff within reach of Dr. Selvig & Natasha. Then I think Loki clearly provoked Hulk, he knew he was basically indestructible. He even used that line on Thor just before dumping him out at 30,000 feet.
And chained & muzzled Loki? Really? No resistance to speak of. Those 3 feet chains were not only meaningless as significant restraint devices, they were a handy-dandy strangling line or impact weapon. He voluntarily took hold the gizmo to return to Asgard. Yeah he got a push from Thor going into the circle. But he just took what Hawkeye & Natasha were dishing out. I seriously hope he got that drink.
Not that I'm all "Poor Loki." There is some real, gleeful evil being done by him. And OMG, the body count. But I got the sense it was being done out of despair, not ambition. Could he have chosen otherwise?
So, have I been jossed? Did anybody else see this movie?
Loki as supervillian - I'm not buying that so much. I think he was snagged up from his fall at the end of Thor by some greater power who tortured him, forced him to run the invasion which Loki decided to turn to his advantage and use as an escape attempt. He gets get given the staff by some alien (I don't recognize said alien & opinions differ on who it is?) in a scene where said alien tells a third party that he - Loki- is ready. Then he shows up in the S.H.I.E.L.D. facility looking positively ill. His eyes are red and his face is covered with sweat. He takes over Dr. Selvieg and Hawkeye, does the snag and grab but he staggers on his way to the escape vehicle and rubs his back after he gets in it.
During scene in Loki's lab, he kneels down to talk to the alien again. Loki has created an illusion of himself in the full armor get that he wears when he's at his worst. Using the armored illusion, he reports into the alien. I think the dialog line - that he is going to want the soothing taste of sweet pain - indicates that Loki has been tortured. But then alien comes over the relative space where Loki's body actually is and Loki flinches when he's touched by the alien. So his illusion fails with this alien, and probably has been failing right along, thus stripping Loki of one of his preferred weapons.
Now off Loki and Hawkeye go to obtain the iridium. Eyeball extraction scene - ewww. Moving on to the Kneel before Me scene, once again we have Loki in the armored get-up, posturing for all he's worth about making people kneel before him. But the rant about freedom makes me think it's a case of he's protesting too much because he's lost, or fears he may lose, his own. If people are ants beneath his boots, why would he care about subjugation/worship?
Obviously he gave up entirely too easily, but did you notice that his illusions were flickering? Like static interference. I'm again arguing there's some serious damage inflicted on Loki beside the self-inflicted pain, suffering, heartbreak and loneliness he's put on himself with his doubts about himself.
I think he looked worried when his brother showed up and he claimed to not care for the thunder that comes after the lighting because hope hurts and he has some faint hope that his brother might actually pay attention when he tries to tell him about the invasion and the villian, who I believe tortured him. His eyes looked as though they may have filled with tears when Thor is yelling at him. As if he wants to quit but doesn't dare. Unfortunately, he doesn't get Thor's comprehension before the other avengers show up to fight over custody of him. But he waits quietly, through the fight. Clearly everybody understands Loki has permitted himself to be taken into custody for a second time.
Can I say that was a wonderful conversation he has with Natasha? Verbal fencing, counterthrusts, feints, lunges. OMG. (It's enough to make me take fencing lessons. I think I need to learn saber.) Was he acting when he lunged at her? Or had she stung him just a bit because she has a chance, however small, of making some amends? And he believes he can't or won't. I'm not sure if Natasha's cognitive re-set is what set Hawkeye free or if Loki just let him go.
And she makes the leap of intuition to the Hulk, just enough to incite the Hulk to make an appearance. Loki wants Hulk in action because he's the guy who will take Loki down, which I think was goal from the beginning. Seriously, think about it.
Why is Loki heading to the Stark tower? He didn't need to go there. The invasion was already under way, the door was open. If he wanted he army to take over the Earth, all he had to was sit back or take out some avengers. But he keeps going back to the Stack tower. Why? Other than he needed to get his staff there for Dr. Selveig's back door to close the gateway. Which brings me to another thing - the back door. Do we have an evil supervillain who has taken over folks enough to make them act against their most basic orientation but who fails to notice major sabotage by the main person building the gate? An otherwise really smart guy? I got my doubts on that. I think that Loki wanted the back door, wanted Selvig to use it to defeat the invasion long enough for Loki to get the crap beaten out of him by Hulk. He needs the Hulk to defeat him substantively enough to get hauled back to Asgard. I presume he thinks that no punishment Odin is likely to mete could be possibly be worse than continuing his association with whoever-it-was. Otherwise there's no reason for Loki's repeated trips back to the tower. The invasion was underway, he'd told the alien to send it all. He dropped the staff within reach of Dr. Selvig & Natasha. Then I think Loki clearly provoked Hulk, he knew he was basically indestructible. He even used that line on Thor just before dumping him out at 30,000 feet.
And chained & muzzled Loki? Really? No resistance to speak of. Those 3 feet chains were not only meaningless as significant restraint devices, they were a handy-dandy strangling line or impact weapon. He voluntarily took hold the gizmo to return to Asgard. Yeah he got a push from Thor going into the circle. But he just took what Hawkeye & Natasha were dishing out. I seriously hope he got that drink.
Not that I'm all "Poor Loki." There is some real, gleeful evil being done by him. And OMG, the body count. But I got the sense it was being done out of despair, not ambition. Could he have chosen otherwise?
So, have I been jossed? Did anybody else see this movie?