Thor And Jane's Break-Up Confusion Is Way More Tragic Than You Realize

The first official Thor: Love and Thunder trailer plays on the apparent humor at the heart of Thor's relationship with Jane Foster, but the footage also reveals hidden tragic depths to their story. In her new role as Mighty Thor, Jane Foster is confident and almost blasé when it comes to discussing her history with the "Space Viking". Yet there is genuine sadness behind the comedic contrast between Thor's pining and Jane's matter-of-factness.

Throughout the first two entries in the Thor series, the divine protagonist's relationship with astrophysicist Jane Foster was a key narrative concern. After kindling their relationship in 2011's Thor, Jane played an even more central role in the follow-up Thor: The Dark World, becoming host to the Aether. Despite her previous prominence in the MCU, Jane canonically broke up with Thor after the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron – a development many external observers attributed to actress Natalie Portman's fractious relationship with Marvel. Jane Foster's return for Thor: Love and Thunder is a welcome return, both for audiences and the evidently lovestruck Thor.

Jane and Thor's reunion continues the light-hearted tone of director Taika Waititi's Thor series, with Jane casually referring to not having seen her ex for "three...four years". A flustered Thor responds that the actual period of time is no less than "Eight years, seven months and six days". On the surface, the two heroes' contrasting attitudes appear to be a humorous effort to undercut Thor's absurdly macho persona by portraying him as a desperate jilted lover. Yet the truth is far darker than it seems. This discrepancy in time actually highlights the fact that Jane was killed as a result of Thanos' actions in Avengers: Infinity War, vanishing out of existence along with half of all life in the universe. Thor's precise counting, coupled with the emotional trauma and weight of responsibility he felt after failing to stop the mad Titan, is yet another reminder to the audience that he still bears the scars of this episode. Beyond this, it provides the clearest indication yet that some of his original guilt about Thanos' success was actually tied to blaming himself for Jane's death.

Throughout Avengers: Endgame, Thor was shown to be a shadow of his former self, tormented by his inability to stop Thanos and save those closest to him. Most analysis rooted this depression in the destruction of his home and the deaths of his fellow Asgardians while under his leadership. Yet his encounter with Jane in the Thor: Love and Thunder trailer reveals that she was actually a key concern throughout his grieving process. The fact that he continued to keep a daily count of the last time he saw her highlights that she was always paramount in his thinking, haunting him just as much as his lost home and compatriots. This adds a more personal element to Thor's already heartbreaking story, revealing him to be even more emotionally complex than ever.

There are other significant factors behind the "Eight years, seven months and six days" line. As well as highlighting Thor's personal distress, it serves as a clever Easter egg for MCU enthusiasts, as this is almost the exact distance between the release of Thor: Love and Thunder and Thor: The Dark World – Jane Foster's last full MCU appearance. However, the emotional arc of Thor's character over the previous Phases of the MCU proves that this is much more than a clever in-joke for Marvel enthusiasts. His obvious obsession with Jane and inability to move on – despite very clearly leaving Earth and trying to start a new life – belies that, even after a dramatic physical transformation "from dad-bod to god-bod", there are aspects of his past that he cannot escape. While Thor: Love and Thunder seems to revel in the silliness that made Thor: Ragnarok such a success, it's equally clear from this seemingly innocent exchange that there is genuine sadness under the surface.

More: Thor: Love & Thunder Trailer Breakdown: 18 Story Reveals & Secrets

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