Marvel One-Shot: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer

Marvel One-Shot: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Thor's Hammer is a short film set before the events of Thor. S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson is driving through New Mexico toward the site where the hammer Mjolnir has landed, under orders connected to Nick Fury. He pulls into a service station to fuel up and buy a snack, and while he is inside the minimart, two armed robbers burst in. They demand the cash from the night clerk and the keys to Coulson's car, and he hands over both without argument. What the pair do not realize is that the quiet man in the suit is far more capable than his appearance suggests, and the robbery ends very differently from how they expected.

The short runs four minutes and was directed by Leythum, whose only other directing credit is the Marvel One-Shot The Consultant, released the same year. Eric Pearson wrote the screenplay, and Kevin Feige, Danelle Hand and Jacob Mosler produced for Marvel Studios. Clark Gregg leads the cast as Coulson, a role he had already established in Iron Man and Iron Man 2, joined by Jessica Manuel as the clerk and Jeff Prewett and Zach Hudson as the two robbers.

On IMDb the short holds a rating of 7.1/10 from around 12,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 6.9/10 from roughly 600 votes, indicating solid approval on both platforms.