Overview[]
The Norse God of Thunder, the Mighty Thor is renowned for bringing the hammer down on evil doers! The heroic Warrior Prince of Asgard, he has battled across the Universe and numerous worlds for centuries; defending not only his homeworld of Asgard but his adopted home of Midgard (Earth). With his godly strength and durability, Thor is a master combatant who wields the invincible war hammer Mjolnir, with the power to command the storms in battle that only he alone is worthy to wield.
In the 2011 film Thor, he is portrayed by Chris Hemsworth who has gone on to reprise the character in several feature films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Background[]
Thor is a major superhero based on the comic book character published by Marvel Comics. He debuted in Journey into Mystery #83, published in August 1962 and was created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber, and Jack Kirby who based the character upon the mythological Norse deity of the same name who was the God of Strength, Lightning, and Thunder.
Journey into Mystery #83 (Aug 1962) Introducing the Mighty Thor!
Having just created the Incredible Hulk; the strongest human being alive a few months earlier―Lee decided that in order to top it, he would need to create someone even more powerful. He ultimately had a breakthrough and decided that his new creation couldn't be a man but something even more powerful ... a God. Lee also decided to delve into more obscure mythical gods than Roman and Greek mythological figures and chose Thor of the Norse Legends whom Lee had always pictured as resembling blonde Vikings with large horned helms.
Originally portrayed as lame physician Donald Blake who is taking a vacation to Norway where he witnesses the arrival of an alien scouting party. He is attacked by the scouts and loses his cane in the process. He is forced to take shelter in a cave only to be trapped when the aliens trigger a cave-in. Blake improvises a walking stick seemingly abandoned in the cave and proceeds to try and find a way out. However he soon realizes that he is trapped and will soon die from starvation and thirst. Out of frustration, he strikes the stick against the wall and the stick is transformed into Mjolnir and Blake is transformed into the body of the Mighty Thor!
Blake discovers that Mjolnir has a strange inscription on it which proclaims that whoever so holds it and if they be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor and that he can change back and forth between his form of Donald Blake and Thor by slamming the cane or Mjolnir against the ground. He also discovers that by throwing Mjolnir, it will always fly back to his hand but he cannot lose contact with Mjolnir for extended periods else he will revert back to his crippled mortal frame.
With his newfound godly strength and power of the storms along with the indestructible war hammer, Blake successfully defeats the alien scouts and send them fleeing. Blake decides to claim the hammer for himself and to use it for good, having numerous adventures and inadvertently drawing the attentions of Thor's old enemy Loki who secretly backs the creation of numerous pawns such as the Absorbing Man, the Wrecker and the Wrecking Crew, and the Enchantress to combat him. Thor also finds himself battling mortal threats such as the Radioactive Man, Mr. Hyde, and the Cobra and becoming a founding member of the Avengers.
Thor Rocks!
It was later retconned that Donald Blake never existed and was merely a creation of Odin who had grown concerned over his son's overweaning arrogance and to teach Thor true humility, Odin deliberately stripped him of his powers and memories before placing him in a frail and physically handicapped mortal body. Odin subsequently arranged for Blake to be compelled to seek out Mjolnir and after a time, restored his lost memories.
However Odin did his part too well as Thor found himself divided between his life as a Prince of Asgard and his life as Donald Blake on Earth, his friendship with the other Avengers, and the love of Blake's nurse, Jane Foster. He would frequently find himself drawn back to Earth over and over again, forsaking his royal responsibilities to serve as Midgard's Champion.
As the Mighty Thor, he has continued to serve as a major comic character throughout the Marvel Universe for decades; often in both his own title and guest starring as a member of the flagship Avengers titles as well. He has also been adapted in numerous animated television programs and films during this period as well.
Major Plots[]
Thor is the member of the Asgardian race, one of the oldest and longest living species in existence. Their homeworld of Asgard exists in a separate and distinct dimension which is linked to several others including Midgard (Earth) known collectively as The Nine Realms.
The Asgardians have evolved with enormous strength, durability, and longevity and have developed incredibly advanced magical arts. The Crown Prince of Asgard, Thor is the son to the King of Asgard, Odin and his wife, Frigga and had a fairly idyllic childhood alongside his (unknowingly adopted) brother Loki.
Loki's jealousy over Thor being the 'favored' son of Odin and admired by the other Asgardians have caused a rift between the two and they have become bitter archenemies.
In Thor's youth, the Asgardians interacted heavily with Midgard, often battling their enemies the Frost Giants. Their power led the primitive Norse culture to believe them to be Gods and worshiped as deities including Thor who was referred to as God of Thunder thanks to his mighty warhammer Mjolnir and was regarded as one of the most powerful beings in the Universe with his godly strength and power to command lightning.
Sometime in the 20th Century, Odin comes to the conclusion that Thor lacks humility and strips him of his godhood, vanishing him before casting his hammer Mjolnir on Earth. When the Asgard defeated the Frost Giants in 965 A.D., they withdrew from Midgard. Thor continued having many adventures alongside his foster brother Loki, the Lady Sif, and the Warriors Three. It was soon decided by Odin that he would step down and crown Thor as the new King of Asgard. However, Loki was troubled by Thor's recklessness and impetuous nature which he saw would threaten the stability of the Nine Realms. As a result, he schemed to delay the coronation.
Personality and Traits[]
Appearances[]
Films[]
- Thor (2011)
- The Avengers (2012)
- Thor: The Dark World (2013)
- Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
- Doctor Strange (2016)
- Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
- Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Trivia[]
- Although several notable actors auditioned for the role of Thor, the final two were Chris and Liam Hemsworth; ironically both of whom are brothers similar to the film's Thor and Loki. Fortunately, neither have such an acrimonious relationship and Chris admitted that he found it "funny" that they were competing for the same role.
Quotes[]
- "Brother, whatever I have done to wrong you, whatever I have done to lead you to do this, I am truly sorry. But these people are innocent. Taking their lives will gain you nothing. So take mine and end this." ―Thor Odinson to Loki; Thor
- "I would rather be a good man than a great king." ―Thor Odinson; Thor: The Dark World
Other Versions[]
- Thor (Marvel Super Heroes)
- Thor (Spider-Man & His Amazing Friends)
- Thor (Return of the Incredible Hulk)
- Thor (Fantastic Four)
- Thor (Incredible Hulk)
- Thor (Super Hero Squad)
- Thor (Ultimate Avengers)
- Thor (Next Avengers)
- Thor (Hulk Versus)
- Thor (Planet Hulk)
- Thor (Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes)
- Thor (Ultimate Spider-Man)
- Thor (Thor: Tales of Asgard)
- Thor (Avengers Assemble)
- Thor (LEGO Marvel Super Heroes)
- Thor (Agents of S.M.A.S.H.)
- Thor (Marvel Disk Wars)