Well, I don't think it was JUST played for laughs; I got the point, I just am not sure that was the best way to get it across.
To echo TAC's post in one of the Dream Theater album threads, I might be suffering from undue outside influence. I'm really sort of bummed about the Olympics this year. I LOVE the Olympics, and have historically watched them - summer and winter - in their entirety. Even the lesser-known and/or made-up sports. The gymnasts with the ribbons; the synchronized swimming. But EVERYTHING is about "message" these days. EVERYONE has their protest and their truth and their this and their that, and I'm getting numb to it. I finally stopped watching the Olympics outright because every broadcast moment was seemingly spent trying to find the "angle", the "humanity". But these are supposed to be the best of the best on the biggest stage, once every four years. There's no do-overs. No second chances. Jim McKay telling us about the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, with the ski-jumper falling off the ramp and ripping down the ABC OLYMPICS sign. Back to THOR, THE GOD OF FRIGGIN' THUNDER, I mean, if my politicians can't be heroes, if my athletes can't be heroes, and now I can't even rely on my SUPERHEROES to be heroes, then WTF? I get it; that's a one-dimensional way to look at things, but it's how I looked at that part of that movie while watching it. Who knows? Maybe I'll watch it again and think differently.