'Thor: Ragnarok' was one of the best movies of 2017 and majorly snubbed by the Oscars

There have been action comedies, and superhero comedies. But none have been as inventive as "Ragnarok."

"Wonder Woman" and "Logan," also superhero movies deserving of Academy Award nominations — "Logan" was nominated for best adapted screenplay and I've written about "Wonder Woman's" best picture snub before — shook the superhero genre as well, but "Ragnarok" did so in a different way.

"Wonder Woman" proved that a female-led story works, and doesn't even need to focus on a woman's figure to do so. "Logan" proved that a superhero movie can work as a serious, character-driven drama.

"Ragnarok" does the opposite of what "Logan" did. The movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe work because they're fun — even the worst ones, with the exception of "Iron Man 2." "Ragnarok" embraces its absurdity and goes further than any other director would take it. Not even "Ant-Man" went this far, and it is about a man who can control ants.

"Ragnarok" made what would be serious, less-than-thrilling action sequences in any other superhero movie some of the funniest moments in recent cinema memory. And by exploring existing characters like Thor, Loki, and the Hulk/Bruce Banner from this new perspective, it made them more interesting ... especially Thor who, before this film, was a bit vanilla.

Thanks to Christopher Nolan's exemplary "Dark Knight" trilogy, superhero movies started this trend of trying to be really, really deep and good. Most movies trying to do this failed.

"Ragnarok" has a lot of elements that could have made it bad, things that would have been awful had it gone in a more expected direction: a giant dog, a zombie army, a guy made of rocks, a ship made for sex parties, and a rainbow bridge. But instead, they work.

"Ragnarok" isn't deep, and that's a good thing. It gives you everything you want out of a Thor movie, but with an 80s-inspired twist, and a lot of laughs.

For years, people have been fighting for Hollywood and the Oscars in particular to embrace diversity.

While there has been some slow improvement, there's still a lot of work to be done, especially in large-scale movies that typically feature a predominantly white cast.

And even though “Ragnarok” takes place in fictional planets and realms, it represents the world we live in, like all movies should, no matter how far from reality they are. "Ragnarok" proves the power and authenticity of diversity through Tessa Thompson's character, Valkyrie, the first black female hero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Valkyrie, though she's only in one film, has more depth than many other women in the MCU: even Black Widow. And she has more depth than many women in cinema. She's thoughtfully written, never objectified, and not placed into the story desperately. This representation is one of the reasons why so many people connected with the film, especially Thompson's character, and her brilliant performance helped.

This actually might be one of the movies Cate Blanchett is in that hasn't been an Oscar contender.

"Ragnarok" would've worked without the two-time Oscar winner (and four-time nominee), but her presence as Thor and Loki's evil sister Hela makes the film even better. No one in "Ragnarok" really deserved an acting nomination — not that their performances were bad, but they weren't a match for Michael Stuhlbarg in"Call Me by Your Name," who didn't even get nominated.

But the casting from Blanchett, to Goldblum, to director Taika Waititi's voice as the rock-man Korg, can't be overlooked. Since there isn't an Oscar for ensemble casts, a fair share of movies with big ones often get nominated for best picture or even win it, like 2005 best-picture winner "Crash," which is much worse than "Ragnarok."

“Ragnarok” is no “Blade Runner 2049.” But it stands out visually, even down to its marketing and design of characters like Surtur, Korg, and Miek.

“Ragnarok” is one of the most memorable films to come out of 2017. And it's certainly more stunning — both visually and just as a movie — than James Cameron's "Avatar," which managed to win three Oscars, and was nominated for six.

Hela’s costume, the planet of Sakar, the colorful reinvention of the usually gold and boring Asgard, and even Thor's new short hair made the movie worthy of visual effects and costume Oscar nominations, if not wins.