Thor 5"s Darkest Story Setup Just Became A Dangerous Reality In The MCU

:0:1

Summary

The release of The Marvels has set up multiple upcoming MCU movies, including Thor 5, which could be the darkest Thor story yet.
The events of the Siege run of comics provide a solid foundation for a war on New Asgard in Thor 5, with the Skrulls now inhabiting New Asgard - both of whom could come under fire based on President Ritson's statements against "off-world species".
Thor 5 could potentially fix the biggest criticism of Thor: Love and Thunder by shifting the tone to a darker and more serious story, potentially involving an all-out war that roughly adapts the Siege storyline.

With the recent release of The Marvels comes a potentially dangerous story setup for the upcoming Thor 5, and it might be the darkest Thor story the MCU could tell. The MCU has a habit of setting up plots for other movies in its connected cinematic universe, and it looks like The Marvels has set up multiple upcoming MCU movies - among them being the newest Thor sequel. While details on Thor 5 remain scarce, it was recently confirmed that Taika Waititi will not be involved in the project, which could suggest that this movie will be taking a different, darker tone than its predecessors by adapting Siege.
The events of the Siege run of comics saw Norman Osborne attempt to consolidate the significant amount of political power he had been able to amass by fabricating an excuse to start a war with earth-bound Asgard. This unlawful declaration of war culminated in a huge battle between iconic heroes and villains, including Thor, Spider-Man, Captain America, and Iron-Man. Clearly, this means that a Siege adaptation in the MCU will be utilizing creative license in the absence of the latter two characters (in addition to many others); but the foundations for a war on New Asgard are pretty solid thanks to a series of events in The Marvels.
The Marvels' Just Made Siege The Most Likely Thor 5 Story

As the heroes of The Marvels went about circumventing Dar-Benn's apocalyptic plans, they attempted to rescue as many of the Skrull refugee inhabitants of the planet of Tarnax as possible. Though they could not rescue the entirety of the colony, a large contingent was nonetheless ferried away and left in the capable hands of King Valkyrie, who proceeded to take them via Bifrost to New Asgard on Earth. The problem, however, is that they may have jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.
Marvel's decision to make New Asgard the Skrulls' place of refuge has dark connotations. Secret Invasion ended with President Ritson's drastic decision to declare all "off-world species" enemies of the state, with all aliens now being designated enemy combatants. Presumably, this directive will be emulated by other countries. After all, the Skrulls were revealed to be secretly inhabiting every corner of the globe during the events of Secret Invasion. The fact that Skrulls now inhabit New Asgard as well is going to be a problem for New Asgard, made yet more complicated by the fact that the Asgardians themselves are also officially considered an "off-world species."
Secret Invasion Already Set Up Siege For Thor 5 Close Secret Invasion PG-13 AdventureDramaActionSuperhero
Release Date June 21, 2023 Cast Samuel L. Jackson , Ben Mendelsohn , Emilia Clarke , Cobie Smulders , Olivia Colman , Christopher McDonald , Carmen Ejogo , Kingsley Ben-Adir , Martin Freeman , Don Cheadle Seasons 1 Secret Invasion's concluding events that saw Ritson declaring war on all aliens carries more weight than just a war on Skrulls. While the comics had Norman Osborne declare war on New Asgard, it's plain to see that the off-world inhabitants of New Asgard fall under the banner of Ritson's sweeping designation. It's already clear that a potential big-screen adaptation will not follow Siege's plot to the letter due to many participants (including the ultra-powerful Sentry) not being present in the MCU. Still, the President's declaration of war and the Skrulls' recent proximity to New Asgard makes Marvel's setup feel notably apparent.
This direction is further hinted at by Thor: Love and Thunder's conclusion. The fact that New Asgard's youth were last seen being trained for combat after having already cut their teeth on Gorr's shadow monsters lends credence to the idea that war is on the horizon. Needless to say, the notion that the children will be involved is especially dark, yet carries with it an implication that could help absolve the Thor franchise of its recent sins by moving the series in a new direction.
Why Siege Could Fix The Biggest Criticism Of Thor: Love & Thunder Close Thor: Love and Thunder PG-13 ActionFantasyAdventure Sci-FiSuperhero
Release Date July 8, 2022 Director Taika Waititi Cast Christian Bale , Russell Crowe , Tessa Thompson , Chris Pratt2 , Natalie Portman , Karen Gillan , Chris Hemsworth Runtime 118 minutes Despite Thor: Ragnarok's triumph in treading the fine line between comedy and drama, Thor: Love and Thunder drew substantial ire for its over-reliance on comedic elements. The movie helped to reduce Thor to a punchline rather than an almighty founding member of the Avengers, which also jarred with Christian Bale's beautifully macabre portrayal of sympathetic villain Gorr the God Butcher. That's not to mention the way it struggled to navigate the darker elements of its story in the form of Jane Foster's battle with terminal cancer. Siege, which would involve an all-out war with the largely peaceful inhabitants of New Asgard and Skrull refugees, could no doubt shift that tone.
This isn't the only way in which Thor 5 could help rectify past mistakes, either. The gravity of Marvel Comics' Secret Invasion run was not done justice in the MCU miniseries of the same name. After stifling the designs of the violent Skrull general, Gravik, the fact remained that Skrulls populated half of the earth. Yet while Skrulls are antagonists in the comics, the same can't be said of the Skrulls in the MCU, who are still largely persecuted - particularly in light of Ritson's Anti-Alien Act. Thor 5 could therefore deliver on the full-scale subversive war, as it flips the script and paints the Skrulls as good guys, allowing the adaptation to go for a fresh take on the original.
Key Release Dates