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I think very highly of Thor Ragnorak (2017) and would never in a million years say anything negative about it. But there are some notes I have after watching it maybe 50 times. For those of you who perhaps may say that I am taking this a little too seriously, well, sure, of course I am.
And so a few things that felt a little wrong to me:
1. Why are Hela's warriors evil, demonic looking bastards? These are the ancient warriors of Asgard! They should be handsome if a little scarred and maybe worse for wear. Why would the predecessors of Vikings be ashamed of killing people and stealing gold? They did that all the time. That was their raison d'etre by all accounts. Well, of course there is an answer to this and it is straightforward. We are looking at Norse culture through our own, and if we are ashamed of our violent past (stealing the land and murdering the native Americans / first peoples, for example), then they should be as well. Simple enough.
2. From what I know of this period, I would expect a lot more drinking, a lot more hosting people in big halls with drinking, bragging and toasts, and a lot more riddles. They really liked their riddles, it seems to be a major part of their culture. Depending on who you believe it is even possible that riddles were a part of their religious beliefs (as we would call them, I doubt they would see them that way). See (1) for some entertaining theories on that whole topic.
3. As for Valkyrie being gay and Loki bisexual, well that is possible but with stern restrictions. One was expected to get married and have children, more or less, without exception. If you were male, it was OK to be bisexual as long as (a) you were married and had kids, and (b) you were on top. Seems a little weird, doesnt it, since if you are going to have a top, you pretty much are required to have a bottom, but whatever. I will let you read what Hallakarva says on these topics (2). The evidence on lesbians is far less substantial, presumably for all the usual reasons involving historical survival of sources (generally speaking, women and poor people are not well documented).
So what is our conclusion? Not much. Maybe it is foolish to look for such things in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? But they did such a great job with historical accuracy with Captain America!
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1. The White Goddess by Robert Graves
2. See The Vikings and Homosexuality by Hallakarva
https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/pwh/gayvik.asp
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