March 11, 2014

My Husband vs. Superheros

My husband, daughter and I just finished watching "Thor:  The Dark World" last night.  In the afternoon, I had had oral surgery to install a dental implant.  It turns out that baby teeth start re-absorbing their roots when you get older.  I was supposed to have the surgery at the end of March, but the poor little tooth wouldn't hold out that long and it was starting to constantly ache.  Thanks go to God for creating an opening for me yesterday.  That night, with Novocaine and high doses of Advil keeping the pain at bay, I decided to watch the movie, hopping it would be better than the first one.  I was disappointed by the first "Thor" movie because the plot was a little dicey, my expectations were pretty high because it was directed by Kenneth Branaugh and because I could not for the life of me believe that a smart scientist would fall in love with an arrogant, easily affronted, possibly not-so-smart guy, even if he had blond hair, blue-eyes and well defined muscles. The movie did not give a stirring defense of the love that developed between them and I believe that scientists are supposed to be attracted by brains, not brawn.

This movie was better, not just because Thor had really learned his lesson from the first movie and was less arrogant, but also because Loki had more lines and most of them were very funny.  It was great to see Rene Russo back in fighting form.  She has been a favorite actress of mine for her roles of making men the damsels in distress and for her gracious characters.  Kat Dennings continued to be the most charismatic female character in the story, adding both humor and gumption in recruiting an intern's intern.  And I loved seeing Christopher Eccleston ("Dr. Who", 2005) again and hearing his Northern England accent sometimes come through his Dark Elvish speeches.  Natalie Portman as Thor's love interest continues to be a bland, flat character, though this time she showed that she was a bit feisty by slapping both Thor and Loki, though Loki probably deserved more of a sucker punch.  Thor himself is definitely better in this movie, showing more intelligence, kindness, dedication to loved ones, even Loki and more in control of his anger.  However, the movie would have been much better if Stellan Skarsgaard, whom I love as Dr. Eric in the previous "Thor" and "The Avengers" movies,  had worn more clothes through his scenes.

I must confess, that if I were single and had a choice between Loki and Thor, I would choose Loki. I know, that is a totally anti-Christian response because we are supposed to love the good guy, not the evil one/morally ambiguous guy.  However, I have a weakness for funny men and I love the dark hair/blue or grey eye combination, which is far less common than blue eyes/blond hair.  If I have to choose between humor and well-defined pecs, humor wins hands-down every time.

And this is why I am totally grateful to God, because my husband has all that Loki has to offer in being incredibly funny.  And I love the fact that my husband's hair, which used to be dark, now more closely matches his grey/blue eyes.  Best yet, I don't have to feel conflicted about his character because he is a man after God's own heart, which is not to say that he is perfect, but that he is humble before God and is willing to listen when advice or constructive criticism is offered.  He has our family's best interests at heart and pursues them.  It is why I have been able to trust him with my life and be able to imperfectly submit to him as the leader of our family.  He is the type of man that I pray that my sons will grow up to be and that my daughters will marry someday.

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