# Ragnarok (Netflix series) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted, netflix\ **Created:** [June 4, 2021, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581 "2021-06-04T01:41:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2021, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/21 "2021-06-09T18:22:24Z")
Well, it happened in the first few minutes when you don’t know the exact premise of the show. I didn’t make the connection when they first showed him and since they kept the old guy way in the background for most of season 1, I probably would not have until much later. So, yeah, still gotta go with a sarcastic thanks to Netflix. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2021, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/22 "2021-06-09T20:46:51Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > On the very first episode I had that on and when the one-eyed old man said something, the CC identified the speaker by name as part of the caption. Thanks Netflix! To be fair, they identify him as Wotan, not Odin, and that is the character’s name on the show, even publicly to humans. And it isn’t apparently a common name now, but it also isn’t completely unused. > **[NAMES - The Name Wotan : popularity, meaning and origin, popular baby names](https://www.popular-babynames.com/name/wotan)** > > All information about the first name Wotan. How common is the name Wotan. Popularity of the name Wotan in 39 countries, origin and meaning of the name Wotan ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2021, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/23 "2021-06-10T13:06:45Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > To be fair, they identify him as Wotan, not Odin, and that is the character’s name on the show, even publicly to humans. And it isn’t apparently a common name now, but it also isn’t completely unused. From the Norwegian Bureau of Statics name statistics for Norway: > Fewer than four people or no one has the name **Wotan** > > There are 3 329 men with **Odin** as part of their forename > There are 2 607 men with **Odin** as their only forename > > [Name statistics – SSB](https://www.ssb.no/en/befolkning/statistikker/navn) For comparison: > There are 23 460 men with **Knut** as part of their forename > There are 8 901 men with **Knut** as their only forename ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2021, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/24 "2021-06-10T14:04:52Z")
On a related note, Wotan doesn’t seem to be Odin any more than Magne was Thor. I thought in the beginning that the old gods were just in hiding. When it seems that they are actually being created anew by the seeress. So it seems to be a coincidence that a one-eyed old man named Wotan became Odin. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2021, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/25 "2021-06-10T14:15:31Z")
There might be some “function follows form” things going on here, but obviously the writers don’t feel they need to be fully consistent. Wotan turns out to become Odin. But “Magne” was actually the name of one of Thor’s sons. The mother of mythological Magne was Jarn **saxa**. And in Norse myth Ran and Vidar were both Aesir, so part of the same sub-pantheon as Odin and Thor. At least according to the sources we have available today. The original believers may not have felt the need to be consistent either, but their stories were filtered through poetry and then Christian scribes. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2021, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/26 "2021-08-20T20:15:29Z")
I’m bumping this because I’ve been wondering if Magne’s father is involved in the divinity business. In season 1 they show how he had old runes on his tools. Vidar refers to Magne’s dad while fighting at the climatic S1 finale. It kind of implies Vidar was responsible for the death of said father. They show a pic of dear old dad, but it was really to highlight Laurit’s familial estrangement even at an early age. It may be some kind of long-term prophecy that the family and town is following without knowing. ---
**Author:** ![Levolor\_the\_Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bc8723/32.png) [@Levolor\_the\_Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Levolor_the_Blind)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2021, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/27 "2021-08-20T20:23:44Z")
Your exactly right. Somewhere I read an article by Neil Gaimen about writing the dialogue for _Princess Mononoke_ and he talks about how he _wanted_ to write lines and how he had to in order to make the dialogue match the lip movements of the characters. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2023, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/28 "2023-08-24T16:27:32Z")
Season 3 of this has now dropped. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2023, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/29 "2023-08-24T18:05:02Z")
Thanks for the heads up. I enjoyed season 1, season 2 was not as good. Hopefully season 3 is back to season 1 quality of writing. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/30 "2023-09-19T16:10:04Z")
We just finished S3. It turns out that it’s the last season-- it ends clearly and decisively. Spoiler for the series ending: It turns out…all the God / Giant / Snake beastie stuff was all Magne’s imagination 🙄 There’s a scene where he’s looking through old ‘Thor’ comic books that clearly mirrored the things he had been experiencing. Then there’s a big climax scene toward the end where he is at his high school graduation, simultaneously experiencing the ceremony and his imagined final ‘Ragnarok’ battle in his head; interspersed with flashbacks about his being diagnosed with psychological issues in the past. He finally throws off his imaginary world and decides to embrace adulthood and throw away childish things when his girlfriend takes him back, and he then throws out his old comic books. Not since ‘Lost’ has a series had such a stupid, disappointing ending, in my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/31 "2023-09-19T16:18:25Z")
> [@solost](#): > > Not since ‘Lost’ has a series had such a stupid, disappointing ending, in my opinion. Agreed. ---
**Author:** ![Oswald\_Bastable](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oswald_bastable/32/214_2.png) [@Oswald\_Bastable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oswald_Bastable)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2023, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/32 "2023-09-19T19:23:20Z")
Agreed too. ’It was all a dream’, should not be a credible ending for any writer past the age of 10 ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/35 "2025-10-09T07:43:29Z")
I never did get around to watching season 3, and after just reading the blurred spoiler I’m glad I didn’t waste my time. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/36 "2025-10-09T17:19:28Z")
The third season was not worthwhile right from the beginning. I didn’t finish it and am glad about it. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2025, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/37 "2025-10-09T17:21:53Z")
You chose wisely. ---
**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2025, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/39 "2025-11-03T19:28:27Z")
I’m actually in awe of how bad the ending of the series was. It was so bad that it retroactively made the entire series suck. It’s a shame, because it was _so good_ before they gave us that ending. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2025, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/40 "2025-11-04T19:39:38Z")
Yeah, I was actually glad that someone accidently spoiled the ending for me. ---
**Author:** ![Coriolanus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/coriolanus/32/18769_2.png) [@Coriolanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coriolanus)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2025, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/41 "2025-11-06T02:29:08Z")
My wife appreciated it more than me. If things have been spoiled, her take is her that “Everything happened in the Norway that we know and love, yet since he was taking meds all those things happened In his head, and he overcame learning difficulties as well which he overcomes in the real world as well.” Myth as imagination yet not fantasy in our time. She really liked it so doesn’t have those “Lost regrets” I replied Annie Hall really occurred in New York City, yet was just the imagination of Alvy Singer. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2025, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/42 "2025-11-07T15:20:27Z")
> [@Hypno-Toad](#): > > Yeah, I was actually glad that someone accidently spoiled the ending for me. Me too. I had stopped at season 2 and forgot that season 3 had come out. I’ll just make up my own, better, ending now. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2025, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581/43 "2025-11-07T15:26:08Z")
In my mind, Thor and Friends defeated Loki, the Jotums, and their beasts in a massive fight up in the mountains that no one else saw (except maybe one mortal girlfriend, who stood in for the audience). Afterwards, they slowly “un-became” gods and settled down to a mortal life with their shared memory of saving the world. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ragnarok-netflix-series/943581.md?page=1)