Since the "Thor" film series is the only Marvel movie that has experienced director changes three times in a row, the new movie will be considered a standalone both from tone and story.
Although fans enjoyed the "Thor: The Dark World," the movie was recorded to have performed expectedly average. Partly to blame was the change of directors, which in turn affected the fluid continuity of the film series. So, instead of fixing the issue, Director Taika Waititi developed a film with a story that stands alone from the first two.
The plot of the upcoming third installment will be based on the literary piece "Ragnarok." However, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) version will lean more on a real-world setting, which will portray the Asgardians as technologically advanced people.
From the trailers released, fans will see Loki returning as well, but will a much lighter character mindset. In the first movie, Loki belonged to Thor's team along with Sif, Volstagg, Fandral, and Hogun. However, the dynamics of this Asgardian team was only seen briefly during their fight with the Ice Giants of Jotenheim.
Although there is no sign of the team in "Thor: Ragnarok," Loki will be teaming up once more with his brother. This will come after Thor finally takes over the gladiator pits from the Grandmaster.
Thor appeared in the end credits of "Doctor Strange," which told fans that he is searching for Odin and that the Thunderer has caught the attention of the Sorcerer Supreme. Apparently, Thor's presence on Earth at that moment is somehow disrupting the mystical flow of things.
How Thanos will acquire an Infinity Stone will also be explained in the upcoming film. The last trailer also showed Thor battling the fire demon Surtur. Comic book fans know that this may signal the debut of either Thunderstrike (Erik Masterson) or Beta Ray Bill, which would make sense since Valkyrie has finally joined the MCU.
At the end of the film, it is hinted that Loki will play a huge part in Ragnarok as well as connecting the story arc of the "Guardians of Galaxy" with the "Avengers."
