Thor
Thor is the Asgardian god of thunder and a hero on Earth. He possesses godly strength and a supreme control over lightning and other meteorological phenomena. Through his signature hammer, Mjölnir, he is capable of flight and other remarkable feats. He is the son of Odin and stepbrother of Loki.
In modern times, Thor has been embodied by Dr. Donald "Don" Blake,[1] an American physician who found a magical cane in a cave in Norway—upon tapping the cane to the ground, it transforms into Mjölnir and Blake into Thor. Blake's identity as Thor is tied to the hammer: if it leaves his grasp for sixty seconds, he returns to his human form. Blake's nurse is Jane Foster; the two share a tense, mutually unrequited romantic relationship, due to Odin forbidding Thor from loving a mortal. Thor is a founding member of the Avengers.
Biography
Ancient times
- Full article: Biography of Thor, pre-1962
Thor is the true-born son and heir of Odin, the Allfather of the Norse pantheon, and has existed for millennia. In his youth, Thor dreamed of becoming a powerful warrior like his father, and especially inheriting his father's mighty hammer Mjölnir. He eventually earned this right, proving his mettle through many perilous adventures in his youth.
Thor's status just prior to being embodied by Don Blake is unknown, other than that he was absent from Asgard for some time prior.[2]
1962-1963
- Full article: Biography of Thor, 1962-1963
Mild-mannered American physician Donald Blake embodied Thor in late 1962 after discovering Mjölnir in a Norwegian cave, and it was in this altered form that Thor began to fight the forces of evil on Earth, including his ambitious brother Loki on several occasions. Other villains included Radioactive Man, Lawrence Zaxton, and the Tomorrow Man. Blake also developed feelings for his nurse, Jane Foster, but Thor's father Odin forbade him from pursuing the love of a human. In late 1963, Thor aligned with a group of other heroes—the Hulk, Iron Man, Ant-Man, and the Wasp—to take down Loki once more. They formed a superteam known as the Avengers that would go on to defend Earth in countless iterations for decades to come. The Hulk would leave the team shortly after its formation, straddling the line between hero and menace.
1964
- Full article: Biography of Thor, 1964
In 1964, Thor/Don Blake's struggle to balance his dual identity—in particular his love for Jane Foster and his duty to Odin—became acutely challenging. Odin's position on Foster softened somewhat near the end of the year, when a plot by Loki nearly brought about her death at the hands of the Cobra and Mister Hyde. During another attack by Loki later in the year, Thor allied with the sorcerer Doctor Strange. Two other malicious Asgardians, the Enchantress and Executioner, also did battle with Thor. The World War II hero Captain America, frozen in ice for twenty years, recovered and joined the Avengers, helping the group fight off the Hulk and Namor the Sub-Mariner. The Avengers developed their own group of nemeses in the Masters of Evil, and also crossed paths with heroic teams like the X-Men and Fantastic Four.
See also
- Thor on Wikipedia
- Thor (Earth-199999)