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Marvel Movie Minute Season Four: Thor • Minute 041: So it's Odin's magic that makes the frosty baby look Asgardian?

Thor 041: So It’s Odin’s Magic That Makes the Frosty Baby Look Asgardian?

Minute Forty-One: From Frosty Baby to “Tell me!”

Austin TichenorJoining us on the show to discuss frosty baby Loki and the Shakespearean argument between Odin and Loki is Austin Tichenor, creator of The Shakespeareance, co-artistic director of The Reduced Shakespeare Company and producer & host of the Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast.

In the forty-first minute of Kenneth Branagh’s 2011 film Thor…

  • We see elements of King Lear in here, but Austin also points out elements from Henry IV Parts I and II, particularly conflict between Hotspur and Prince Hal.
  • There’s certainly an element of big acting that works so well in Shakespearean heightened language, and we certainly see that when Loki screams “Tell me!”
  • Austin calls it the intensity of intention, which we definitely see.
  • When Odin told young Thor and young Loki about how they’re both born to be kings but only one gets to be king, was he debating if he would tell Loki about his heritage?
  • Being born to be king paired with identity is such a core part of Shakespeare’s plays.
  • Yet no one debates if this type of hereditary monarchy should still exist.
  • Tom Hiddleston and Anthony Hopkins deliver such strong performances here.
  • So at this point, where do Loki and Odin feel about who is next in line for the throne? Does Loki think this frost giant past has removed him from the line?
  • Or is Loki thinking about the possibility of being king of Jotunheim, the place he just nearly destroyed with the raid?
  • But Odin had to have seen what terrible king Thor would’ve made, right? That being said, do you give the throne to the god of mischief?
  • There is a bit of Caliban from The Tempest in Loki too.

We do talk about the frosty baby, at some point, right?

  • How does Loki feel knowing that he was slaughtering Jotuns earlier?
  • We bring in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Henry VI in as well. And Cymbeline too!
  • How much of Odin rewriting his own history are we getting in this conversation? So much feels retconned.

We finally talk about the frosty baby.

  • We talk about the Loki baby, who starts as a frost baby and changes at the hands of Odin to normal looking. So that’s his spell we guess?
  • Was baby Loki abandoned? Left in a temple? A bit of both? Or is this all just from Odin’s perspective?
  • The lighting in this scene is stunning, as is the production design.
  • Do the marks on the frosty baby change over time?
  • The idea of masters of magic still confuses us – Odin’s in this category now for sure.
  • Does Loki know what he wants to hear from Odin?
  • Odin freezes when Loki confronts him. Truth versus comfort. It’s a tough line for a parent.

From King Lear to Henry IV Parts I and II to The Tempest to Richard II, we cover all sorts of Shakespearean elements in this minute – plus a frosty baby – with Austin. Tune in!

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