Guesswork on 'Thor' Script

Marvel fans are eager to see or hear anything concrete on "Thor" which is set to begin production in January. In light of that and a few recent scoops, I have decided to do a little digging and conjecture of my own on the subject of Thor (a comic that I hold in very high regard). Warning the rest of this story is very spoiler heavy on things that may be involved with the Kenneth Branagh directed "Thor". Read at your own risk...

First off, let's start with what we know for certain. Kenneth Branagh is directing off a screenplay penned by Mark Protosevich, Zack Stentz and Ashley Miller. Which was said to be "Very very good," by comic scribe Brian Michael Bendis. From there however, things become a bit foggy. IMDB sites the synopsis for "Thor" as following: Partially disabled medical student Dr. Donald Blake discovers his heretofore unknown alter ego, the Norse warrior, Thor. AICN although calls fib and reports that Dr. Donald Blake is "not" in Kenneth Branagh's upcoming "Thor".

AICN went on to give a few spoilerific tidbits on the script from a "trusted" source. Those spoilers were later pulled from the site, which could only lead to speculation of their validity. Luckily (after a bit of digging), I found the original scoop and all of the juicy details on "Thor".

Before sharing the AICN spoilers, I thought it wise to share a synopsis that was reported by Russ Fischer at Slash Film a few weeks back:
The movie’s story sees the god of thunder Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions re-ignite an ancient war. As punishment, Thor is cast down to Earth and forced to live among humans. Once here, he learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends dark forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

Notice that in the Slash Film synopsis their is NO mention of Dr. Donald Blake. Now on to the real spoilers. AICN reports that "Thor" will open in Asgard with Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Warrior's Three (Ray Stevenson, Tadanobu Asano, Stuart Townsend) Sif (Jaimie Alexander) and Loki (Tom Hiddleston) meeting with Odin (Anthony Hopkins). Odin is later slain by Loki, who then takes Odin's throne and casts Thor out of Asgard to Earth. Thor lands in a remote desert, where he is discovered by Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and her mentor, a Norwegian professor of Cosmology (played by Stellan Skarsgard). The two have traveled there to study a strange cloud in the cosmos. From there, Thor convinces Jane Foster and her Professor that he is the Norse God of Thunder, which is very hard for the Professor (who grew up with Norse mythology) to deal with. From that point the scoop does not divulge much more info, but does say that the film closes with a massive battle between Loki and Thor showcasing their opposite styles of fighting. Finesse vs. brutal force!

While there is no real confirmation that the AICN scoop is true, it certainly seems like the best way for Marvel to keep things focused in the real world that they have already created with Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk. This story line is furthermore, dangerously close to the Ultimate Thor origins. In my opinion it also allows for director Kenneth Branagh to do away with the classic garb of Thor, which has always been something of a joke amongst Marvel fans and dawn the Ultimate look!

This report does still leave a ton of questions. For instance, what about Mjolnir (Thor's hammer )? If Thor is cast from Asgard by Loki what happens to Mjolnir? Does it fall to Earth with Thor? Does it become lost in the cosmos and Jane Foster helps Thor search for it? Is it bound in Asgard? What of the Warriors Three, Sif and Heimdall? Do they remain only in Asgard? Yeah, the Thor fan in me has my mind spinning, as it has been, since initially hearing Kenneth Branagh was directing.

Stay tuned for more news concerning "Thor" as news is sure to begin flowing shortly with shooting starting within two months.

What say you? Is their any validity to the AICN scoop? Do you favor seeing a Thor film focused on Earth over one on Asgard? Can their be a balance between the two? Strikeback...