All photos courtesy of The Walt Disney Company

Considering how much I’ve rhapsodized about The Avengers and Tom Hiddleston’s Loki here at the Geek Chic column, I didn’t have to think twice about seeing Thor: The Dark World by myself when I wasn’t able to wrangle any friends to accompany me. (Besides, I kind of like going to the movies alone. Although my loud guffawing sometimes garners me a weird look or two.)

Ushered in by previews for the next installments of Captain America, The Hunger Games, and The Hobbit trilogy, Thor: The Dark World was already a cornucopia of fandom love before the film even started.

I laughed, I cried, I marveled at the glory that is Chris Hemsworth’s shirtless body, I screeched at people around me not to leave right at the start of the ending credits. (It’s a Marvel movie, people! There will always be at least one post-credits scene. If you’re paying more than $10 to see a movie, why not get your money’s worth?)

Thor: The Dark World stars Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Natalie Portman, Christopher Eccleston, Stellan Skarsgaard, Kat Dennings, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Idris Elba, Rene Russo, and Anthony Hopkins. (It also briefly features Chris O’Dowd from The IT Crowd!)

Table of Contents

Know Your Geek: About Thor: The Dark World

• Thor: The Dark World was directed by Alan Taylor, who has directed several episodes of HBO’s Game of Thrones. It is the 8th installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
• This sequel to 2011’s Thorpicks up right where The Avengers (2012) left off: Thor has returned to Asgard and is tasked with restoring peace to the Nine Realms. Meanwhile, his brother Loki has been imprisoned for his usurping scheme.
• The supervillain du jour is Malekith, the leader of the Dark Elves. The forces of Asgard defeated Malekith thousands of years ago and hid away his source of power, the Aether, a red blob of Magic Jell-O powerful force that converts all matter to darkness.
• For five thousand years, the Aether passed out of all knowledge. But something happened then that the Aether did not intend: it was discovered by the most unlikely creature imaginable — an astrophysicist, Jane Foster, of the planet Earth. (Okay, I’ll get off my Lord of the Rings soapbox now.)
• Malekith and his army sense that the Aether has been found and seek to reclaim it so that its power can be unleashed during The Convergence, a rare event in which all Nine Realms are aligned.
• When Thor discovers that the Aether has invaded Jane’s body, he brings her back to Asgard. With the help of both Earthling scientists and Asgardian warriors, they embark on a quest to defeat Malekith and destroy the One Magic Jell-O to Rule Them All Aether once and for all.

Outfits Inspired by Thor: The Dark World

Ready to leave Midgard behind and travel to the mighty realm of Asgard? Grab hold of a strapping demigod and check out these five looks inspired by Thor: The Dark World!