So in the very first scene of
The Avengers, and not having seen
Thor yet, I decided that I like Loki. This decision was made entirely because I noticed that, although it is immediately obvious that he is the designated villain of the movie, he doesn't smile like villains usually do (at least, not like villains in the sorts of movies I watch). Normally villains have "evil" smiles that don't involve the eyes, unless it's to make the eyes look creepy, like the lovely Dr. Octavius in Spider-man 2. But Loki has such wonderfully expressive eyes that crinkle at the corners when he smiles, like he really means it. So on the basis of that alone, I was already sort-of-rooting for him two minutes into the movie.
And then I was like "C'mon, give me Robert Downey Jr." for the next however long it took him to show up, and then I observed that Mark Ruffalo is really adorable which makes his Banner all the more awesome, and at some point I noticed that Hawkeye has really nice-looking arms. And I was greatly amused at all the one-liners, particularly the
( Avengers spoilers (but if anyone wants to see it and hasn't yet, what are you waiting for?) )But, Loki. After having seen it twice (and still having not seen
Thor yet), he's still undeniably my favorite. Followed by Iron Man, who is followed very closely by Thor. I'm not really sure
why he's my favorite. In that movie alone, as a villain he doesn't have many redeeming qualities; he kills a number of people and shows no hesitation or remorse at any point. But the more I saw of him, the more I was struck by how much he's not a
chessmaster or
magnificent bastard type, and how he really doesn't hide his emotions or his motives at all. He pretty openly expresses fear when he realizes what the lightning strikes near the plane are signifying, and open enjoyment when things go his way; he makes it clear to his brother what he's doing, what he wants, and why he wants it; and unless I'm forgetting something, I don't think he ever outright lies to anyone about anything, which seems odd for a trickster god. Also, he never hides away from the front line. In fact, it seems like he wants at least some version of a clean fight, rather than a victory-by-any-means war. So at least I have some recourse from having to admit that I like him because I think he's cute.
And then I finally watched
Thor tonight. Oh my goodness. Thor's own thread of the story is nice if just a bit bland, and I would have liked a little more insight into his actual turning from "aggressive idiot" to "person who actually thinks before doing things," but it is nice. But Loki's side of the story? When you think about it, he's really the one who
( spoilers. )I hear there are deleted scenes on the non-rental DVD (wtf), so I'll have to get my hands on those before I form any final opinions, especially since it is now three in the morning and I have to work tomorrow. In closing, then, Tom Hiddleston is
pretty awesome, and
poetic, even: "Loki's eternal predilection is to dance on the fault lines of villainy and redemption." *_*