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In Avengers: Age of Ultron, when the Avengers retreat to Hawkeye's farm to recover, Thor steps on a child's toy, crushing it. The little girl looks up at Thor with confusion and Thor looks as if he has no idea how to deal with the kid. Then Thor storms out of the house. Captain America follows Thor asking what's up, and Thor replies that he is leaving to explore his vision because there is nothing for him at the farm house.

Thor could have been magnanimous with the kid in a way that projected his strength instead of apologizing. But Thor decided to awkwardly storm out.

Thor is marketed as a children's action hero, but he could not handle this kid.

Is Thor ever able to deal with kids? Or does this scene reflect a general inability to deal with kids?

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  • I think the scene could have been portrayed in a way better. I thought of the same way when I first saw it.
    – Jash Jacob
    Commented Jun 14, 2015 at 5:47
  • FWIW, the Asgardians live for thousands of year, but it's clear they don't routinely have hundreds of kids. And it doesn't appear that they are children for hundreds of years. So the fraction of Asgard which are children at any one time should be very small. Perhaps he's just not very familiar with how to interact with children.
    – ThePopMachine
    Commented Aug 25, 2021 at 15:44

4 Answers 4

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Is Thor ever able to deal with kids? Or does this scene reflect a general inability to deal with kids?

This is the only MCU instance of Thor dealing with a kid, and he had alot on his mind, so there is not enough reason to say he is unable to deal with kids. Thor is a very happy go lucky type of guy when there isn't important or dangerous things happening.

Comic thor on the other hand, loves kids to death. The mini series Thor and the Warriors Four (The kid superheroes, The Power Pack) is proof enough.

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    Great answer. I think the OP misinterpreted the scene.
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 13:40
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    "loves kids to death" - I'm not quite sure that's a very positive endorsement...
    – DVK-on-Ahch-To
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 22:35
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    @DVK, as in Thor will kill you to death if you touch those kids, or die trying.
    – user16696
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 22:43
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I believe that your interpretation of the scene is slightly off...

At that instance, pretty much all of The Avengers were still digesting the fact that Barton had a stable family no one knew of.

He accidentally crushed the toy, and in a Oops kinda reflex, he pushed it under the couch. This is a fairly child-like reaction, where children often try to hide their mistakes so as to not take the blame for it.

The scene was meant as a comic relief, and does not indicate that Thor is incapable of dealing with children. I believe it was merely a child-like response to avoid embarrassment.

He didn't want to look like the guy who breaks toys of the guy who is currently providing them a safe place to stay.

Apart from this, there is no reason to believe Thor is unable to deal with kids. As the answer mentions below, Comic Thor likes kids. And the scene in the movie doesn't show anything to contradict with this.

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  • +1 I had the same impression. It's pretty obvious given the fact that the MCU uses lots of comic relief gags that are just that.
    – Alfredo Hernández
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 7:10
  • @Stark07 I'd agree that the scene was funny - but it wasn't solely inteded as comic relief. There is a lot of symbolism in Avengers: Age of Ultron, this scene included, which shows us a God being reminded of the enourmous amount of power he has over humans and the responsibility he carries thanks to that. It is this that causes him to seek the Waters of Sight, in order to find out more about the vision that Wanda gave him earlier on.
    – Dr R Dizzle
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 8:48
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    @DrRDizzle - Not every scene is meant as an allegory. Some scenes are just there. I do admit there is some symbolism in the movie, but to interpret nearly Every scene as a symbol is just missing the point of the movie.
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 8:50
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    @DrRDizzle - He would've seeked the Waters of sight even without stepping on a child's toy. There is simply no way to link breaking a child's toy to a sudden epiphany of the waters. And continuing on your lines, what does Thor pushing the broken toy beneath a sofa symbolise?
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 8:53
  • @Stark07 This isn't me twisting in order to make something out of nothing - it's pretty much the only way you can interpret the scene which explains the sudden shift in Thor's priorities and attitude. I am certain that the symbolism here is intentional - this is Joss Whedon we are talking about.
    – Dr R Dizzle
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 8:53
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As I've discussed in my answer to another question here, the primary reason that Thor is a member of The Avengers is the overwhelming sense of responsibility he feels for Earth and it's inhabitants thanks to the fact that it was his initial immaturity that led to Loki attacking a smalll town in New Mexico in Thor, the Chitauri Invasion in The Avengers/Avengers Assemble and later the creation of Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

If you recall, earlier on in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Wanda Maximoff attacks several members of The Avengers with her powers, causing them to see a variety of hallucinations and visions. In Thor's vision, he finds himself being chastised by Heimdall (who claims he killed them all) before Thor's out of control lightning begins attacking everyone around him.

The scene in question shows us a God easily and accidentally destroying the property of an innocent (a home, no less) and being reminded of the enourmous amount of power he has over humans and the responsibility he carries thanks to that. It is this that causes him to seek the Waters of Sight, in order to find out more about the vision that Wanda gave him earlier on, and ties in very strongly with the themes of the film - namely, taking responsibilty for your actions, a theme that the rest Marvel Cinematic Universe has leaned on in the past.

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    This answer is too fantasy-symbology-allegorically heavy. And you are absolutely missing the part of the Vision that triggered the Vision. It wasn't about heimdall chastising him. In that vision Thor sees the infinity stones. That is what Thor seeked. You are missing the point.
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 10:52
  • @Stark07 Thor doesn't see the Infinity Stones in Wanda's vision, he sees them when he enter the Waters of Sight, after the scene in question. You have got the events of the film in the wrong order.
    – Dr R Dizzle
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 10:55
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    I suggest you re-watch the scene. It's a quick frame, but he does see it in that vision. It's just around the time he gets hit by that lightening bolt. I have literally just now re-watched the scene and it is most definitely there.
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 11:05
  • It's at the 51 minute mark in the movie. He sees the infinity stones, the Infinity gauntlet and Vision's eyes. It is most definitely there. I would be more than happy to send over the screen shots to you.
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 11:07
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    This snap is what causes Thor to seek the Waters of Sight for more answers. He has heard of them in legends, and now he sees them, and also Vision's eyes. He has no idea what it all means, and therefore goes off to find answers. Then he gets to see them in detail whilst in the water.
    – Stark07
    Commented Jun 12, 2015 at 11:11
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Thor doesn't dislike kids you must remember Thor stepped on a kids toy house and immediately reflected on jis vision about his home and loved ones in disarray. That's why he hesitated. As for him brushing it to the side i would have to agree with the others and say yes it was some sort of comic relief.

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