Review by C.J. Bunce
Was Chris Hemsworth a one-hit wonder as Thor? In director Kenneth Branagh’s first attempt at bringing Thor to the big screen, Hemsworth hadn’t quite embraced his character and audiences hadn’t completely fallen for the big lug yet. But after The Avengers he was closing in on the charismatic persona, one that probably saw its pinnacle in Thor: Ragnarok. How did he get there? Retrace his journey in The Art of Marvel Studios’ Thor: The Dark World, just released from Titan Books and available here at Amazon and coming to bookstores next month.
The Art of Marvel Studios’ Thor: The Dark World is the seventh of 24 books in its re-sized, re-issued MCU library coming from Titan Books (check out our review of earlier books in the series here at borg). The key distinction of this book from other volumes in the series is (1) the creators’ challenges in adapting a historical, mythical Norse character previously adapted into comics into something that made sense with the other Marvel superheroes in a modern, cinematic setting, (2) a focus on character costumes and key props, and (3) concept designs of new worlds the audiences hadn’t yet seen.
For this volume behind-the-scenes accounts include interviews with key players including production designer Charles Wood, head of visual development Charlie Wen, visual effects supervisor Jake Morrison, special effects supervisor Paul Corbould, executive producers Craig Kyle and Victoria Alonso, property master Barry Gibbs, and concept artist Jackson Sze.
One pull-out section gives readers a close look at the Book of Yggdrasil, the prop audiences didn’t get a close look at in the movie. One spread shows the updates to Mjolnir for this movie, and much of the book shows concept art paintings of all the characters–heroes and villains.
Key sections address the visualization of new worlds and sets for MCU fans, including Vanaheim, Svartalfheim, and Asgard. Other sections expand on the look and development toward final designs of The Marauders, the Vanir, and the many Dark Elves.
Writers Marie Javins and Stuart Moore and book designer Jeff Powell share samples of the different ways the production created storyboards. This is the story where Jane Foster and Thor’s roles are reversed from the first Thor film–the book discusses decisions related to bringing Jane to Asgard from a visual standpoint. Comic book artist Andy Park returns to this installment of the library with input on the comics and interpretation as prepared for the film. Charlie Wen wrote the foreword and Charles Wood the afterword.
With less new Marvel movie and TV content, nostalgia for these films continues to grow. Fans of Hemsworth, the Marvel character Thor, and the Infinity Saga will not want to miss The Art of Marvel Studios’ Thor: The Dark World, available now in hardcover with colorful jacket art here at Amazon.
