Even months before it was actually confirmed, it was pretty obvious that Thor had no real place in Captain America: Civil War. That film was rooted in political intrigue and manipulation of trust; Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is really more of the Mary Poppins of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, not really worrying so much about the day-to-day and just popping in whenever he’s needed the most. To remain true to the character, there was no scenario in which Thor did not just roll his eyes and head back to Asgard until the whole thing had blown over.

But just because Thor sees himself above the events of Civil War doesn’t mean he wouldn’t have liked to be asked. This is the main premise of Civil War: Team Thor, a short film that shows the God of Thunder bumming around Australia with a friendly roommate named Daryl and way too much time on his hands.

The film originally debuted back at Comic-Con International and has finally found its way onto the internet for the enjoyment of all. Since Thor isn’t distracted by the need to punch his friends in the face at an airport, he has time to ask the big questions. What are the Infinity Stones? Who is Thanos? Why does Bruce Banner keep waking up in cutoffs after a Hulk rampage if he never wears cutoffs to begin with? This last one comes with a cameo by Mark Ruffalo that might very well be the highlight of the short.

And while this might ostensibly be a Marvel short, Civil War: Team Thor is a Taika Waititi film through and through. Anyone who has seen What We Do in the Shadows will recognize the mockumentary style humor and the charming blend of superhuman bravado and every day boredom. Daryl, Thor’s roommate who teaches him how to email Iron Man and Tony Stark, bears a striking resemblance to the extremely popular Stu from What We Do in the Shadows, another IT employee who just sort of accepts the wonder of it all at face value. As the stakes continue to raise in the Marvel universe, it’s nice to see that a director like Waititi can bring a little bit of levity back into the fold.

Thor: Ragnarok hits theaters on November 3, 2017.

 

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