Norse Mythology gets played very fast and loose in The Mighty Thor. Since its creation, the comics have mixed the myths with 19th-century Germanic romanticism, Shakesperean motifs and, of course, Superhero Tropes of the time. However, after (one presumes) a lot of corrections by mail, the writers did attempt to explain some of it by having the Norse gods be continually destroyed in Ragnarok and then reborn, with small differences between incarnations.
- Thor
- The original Thor was a bearded Fiery Redhead, which was symbolic to the Norse. Though Marvel didn't originate the idea
, their Thor is clean-shaven and blond, which meant something completely different to the Norse. (Though characters change their appearance often, and Thor has, on occasions, grown a beard, most notably whenever played by Chris Hemsworth) - Indeed, Thor's rugged beauty and universal popularity in Asgard seemed at first to make him a Composite Character between Thor and Balder. That's complicated by Balder himself being a character in the comics as well.
- Thor is portrayed as a noble, inspiring, modern hero but the Thor of myth doesn't really fit that label (he predates it). While he was indeed a well-doing protector of humanity who oftentimes showed restraint and craftiness, he was also an ill-tempered Blood Knight who almost killed the giantess Hyrrokkin for shaking the ground when she pushed Baldr's enormous funerary ship and had to be talked down by the other gods, and threatened to kill Loki for his insults in the "Lokasenna". This is eventually addressed in universe, as Thor is often portrayed that way in his younger days, and he has tried to change as the definition of hero has changed.
- Mjölnir
- In the comics, Thor can use Mjölnir to fly by hurling it and holding onto the strap of the lanyard. In Norse mythology, the hammer didn't have such capability and Thor relied on a chariot pulled by the goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr (which also appear in the comics) to travel long distances. In fact, a somewhat common occasion was Thor struggling to pass through bodies of water when on foot, something which he wouldn't have trouble with if he could go over them.
- Mjölnir is portrayed as an enchanted weapon that can only be wielded by those considered to be worthy and to whom it would grant the powers of Thor, which was eventually explained to be a spell made by Odin to teach humility to his son. However, Mjölnir in mythology didn't have any restrictions of worthiness, nor could it grant Thor's powers to anyone. In fact, it got stolen by the antagonistic giant Thrym in the "Þrymskviða" to demand a marriage with Freyja as ransom, with no mention of him using special methods to take it to Jötunheim. The only requirement for Thor to wield it was his pair of iron gloves Járngreipr, which the Prose Edda once says must not be missing for Thor to grip the hammer's shaft; even then, however, it isn't explained exactly how the gloves allow Thor to use Mjölnir, such as using them to better protect his hand when using the weapon or compensating for the short handle. Only the worthy being able to wield Mjölnir might have been influenced by Excalibur from Arthurian Legend, which in the versions where the sword was lodged in stone, can only be pulled by the rightful king of Britain. The inscription on Mjölnir even resembles a sentence in Le Morte d'Arthurnote
- In general, Mjölnir in Marvel Comics has many different abilities from the mythological hammer. While its exact set of properties isn't always clear, the weapon has been shown to manipulate matter, control souls, absorb and redirect energy, create wormholes, allow its wielder to fly and, due to Odin's enchantment, grant Thor's powers to anyone worthy to hold it, none of which Mjölnir can do in Norse myths. The opposite is true as well, as one of Mjölnir's forgers in the Eddas, Brokk, says the hammer is unbreakable, would never be thrown so far away that it wouldn't find its way back to its wielder's hand, would never miss its target, and could be so small that Thor could carry it in his shirt for transport if he wished to (possibly as a pendant)note . In the comics, while Mjölnir also always returns to Thor's hand, it isn't unbreakable, as it has been damaged or destroyed on several occasions (although by extraordinary forces), it isn't stated to never miss when thrown, and it is not able to shrink or otherwise very compact. On a minor note, its flat, cubic shape also differs from how Mjölnir is most famously represented in the majority of pendants from ancient Norse culture, in which its hammerhead has a curved shape meeting up towards an angle on the top.
- In Norse religion and folklore Thor was the mightiest or second mightiest of the Aesir, depending on who you asked. He may have been equaled by Tyr, when Tyr was king, before Tyr lost one of his hands, and he may or may not have been surpassed in strength by his son Magni. Thor was most certainly not the at best distant second to Odin that he typically is in Marvel Comics. Odin might have been king, but he wasn't even the second strongest Aesir, and reliant on the might of his spear Gungnir to a fault, while Thor without Mljonir was still one of the top three strongest beings in the universe, the hammer merely upgraded him to nigh unbeatable. This change was made partially because Marvel adapted the Roman/Greek gods first, and thus Odin became a "sky father" like Zeus, who was the mightiest of the Greek gods, or at least the mightiest of the Olympus 12 by a wide margin. Marvel writers have tried to reconcile this by having Thor inherit the "Odin Force" at several different points, using his father's power to greater martial effect, a possible future where "Old King Thor" becomes Odin's equal in power thanks to a "Thor force" and superior in battle thanks to having much greater fighting experience, and a particular Asgardian runes arc where Thor surpasses Odin's power and ends the cycle of Ragnarok, but Status Quo Is God so Odin always ends up regaining his top spot and can himself become more powerful with his "Destroyer" armor.
- The original Thor was a bearded Fiery Redhead, which was symbolic to the Norse. Though Marvel didn't originate the idea
- Sif:
- Sif's signatures were her long golden hair and demure demeanor. The Marvel version is a Xenafied brunette. This is explained by saying that her hair was initially blond, but was changed after Loki cut it off. In the original story, Loki had the dwarves forge her a wig of pure gold, and that is the golden hair she is known for. She was never brunette in any of the original lore.
- Sif's whole identity in recorded texts is predicated on her roles as fertility figure and Thor's wife: her very name is a word relating to familial ties (cognate to a plural Norse word for your inlaws, and Modern English sibling). And she's passive in the extant myths (the hair thing may be a metaphor for farming: harvest this year's grain, and invest time and resources in the replacement crop, in which case she'd symbolise soil.) Having her fighting is even weirder than Aphrodite/Venus, since the latter's ephithet of "Aphrodire Areia" was all about that.
- Loki:
- Loki is Odin's adopted son, rather than his blood brother, as he is in the myths (and ergo he should be Thor's step-uncle). Loki is also a Trickster God in the original mythology, rather than an outright bad guy. However, his relationship to the gods becomes increasingly antagonistic over time, and he ends up fighting against them during Ragnarök.
- They also got some of his parentage wrong. Loki is known as Laufeyjarson in the original myths, but not because Laufey is his father like in the comics. Laufey is actually the name of his mother, and Loki's father is named Fárbauti instead. The reason why Loki is referred to by a matronymic rather than by the more traditional patronymic is unknown — it could be that Fárbauti disowned Loki, passed away or was an absent father, Laufey was of a higher social hierarchy than Fárbauti and better-regarded by the Aesir, a symbolism of Loki's trespassing of gender roles, and/or a preference for poetic alliteration, but regardless, Laufey is explicitly his mother.
- For decades Loki was portrayed as Thor's Arch-Enemy, or alternatively Loki's arch enemy was said to be Dark Elf King Malekith the Accursed. In surviving Norse accounts Loki's arch enemy on the side of the gods is Heimdal, while his foe on the other is the fire giant Logi.
- Odin has several differences from his mythological inspiration, mainly in terms of personality. In Norse mythology, Odin is often portrayed as a wise and cunning god who sometimes engages in questionable and somewhat dishonorable actions to achieve his goals, such as using disguises, theft, and trickery. For example, in the "Hárbarðsljóð", an Odin in disguise insults Thor and boasts to his son about his sexual prowess, his magical abilities, and the wars he stirred, and in the Prose Edda, Odin steals the Mead of Poetry from the giant Suttungr through disguises, shapeshifting, seduction, and tricks. In contrast, in Marvel Comics, he is portrayed as a more benevolent, honorable, and glorious warrior-king who largely lacks the The Trickster traits he has in myth. Additionally, his desire for hoarding knowledge and attempting to change fate is diminished in the comics. His association with magic is also less explored, whereas in the myths, it was one of his main symbols alongside poetry, war, and wisdom.
- The Giants:
- The Frost Giants are often portrayed as monstrous blue-skinned humanoids of immense height, with the average giant being around twenty feet/6.1 meters tall and human-sized giants like Loki being the exception. However, despite 'giant' being the most common way to translate the Old Norse word "jötunn" ("jötnar" in plural), not all giants in Norse mythology were necessarily gigantic; there were indeed immense ones such as Ymir, the primeval progenitor of the jötnar, Jörmungandr, the serpent so massive that it encircled the world, and Skrymir, the mountain-sized disguise used by Útgarða-Loki, but in some other cases their descriptions don't specify notably large sizes. In fact, the exact distinction between gods and jötnar isn't very clearly defined in Norse myths, as many times they intermarry and giants like Skadi became Aesir. Furthermore, in Norse myth, while there were many truly monstrous jötnar (such as Fenrir, Jörmungandr, and Týr's nine-hundred headed grandmother), there were also giants associated with great beauty, like Gunnlöd and Gerdr.
- With rare exceptions, like Loki, Hela and Utgard-Loki, the Giants are often depicted as thuggish, uncivilized, brutal, simple-minded, and weak in magic, preferring violence and brute strength over strategy and spellcraft. In Norse mythology, however, while they were indeed strongly associated with fundamental, chaotic and tough forces of nature, the giants were just as well-known for sorcery, trickery, cunning and shapeshifting, as many jötnar like Utgarða-Loki, Gríðr, Gróa and Þjazi outwitted, challenged or helped the Aesir with their skill in magic, which rivaled or even surpassed that of the gods. Notably, the Norns were giantesses who shaped the course of fate. Furthermore, a few jötnar were also quite smart, sagacious and eloquent, with the jötunn Vafþrúðnir being nearly as wise and knowledgeable as Odin and only narrowly losing a battle of wits against him — Odin himself on several occasions sought or stole knowledge from the Giants, most notably stealing the Mead of Poetry from Suttungr and taking out his eye for a drink from Mimir's well of wisdom, who is implied to be a giant according to some scholars. The portrayal of giants in general as always dim-witted, barbaric, relatively less powerful and easy to outwit only becomes stronger in Scandinavia in post-medieval folklore, in which they are frequently interchangeable with the modern ideas of trolls (who exist as a separate race in the Marvel universe).
- The Giants are generally much meaner and more destructive than in Norse myth. While they were certainly foes of the gods and brought destruction to the order through Ragnarök, represented untamed and dangerous forces of nature and were considered threats to humanity, they had a much more important, helpful and complex role in mythology than simply of one-dimensional evil antagonists. Not only were most Aesir (like Odin, Thor, Heimdall, Týr, Magni, and Loki) direct children of jötnar, but some gods were jötnar themselves, like Skaði. Furthermore, many gods (like Freyr, Thor, Njörd and Odin) had relationships or even marriages with giantesses, and, in the myths, it was from Ymir's body that the gods fashioned the world, and two giants were the ones to ride around the earth as day and night. Giants like Gróa and Gríðr also helped the Aesir against wicked Giants, with the former helping Thor to remove whetstone fragments from his head after his battle with Hrungnir, and the latter giving important gifts to help Thor to fight against Geirroð and his daughters. In short, rather than the giants being a mostly Always Chaotic Evil race, there were as many giants who were either neutral or actively helped the gods and the natural order as there were monstrous giants with foul motivations.
- In Norse Myth the Jotunn were distinguished between mountain, frost and fire tribes. Depending on who you ask, there might have even been sea giants. In Marvel comics though there are ice giants, storm giants, and fire demons, who are omnicidal maniacs. In Norse Myth Sutur was the only omnicidal fire giant, with the rest just being antagonistic to individual humans/aesir at worst.
- The relationships between the gods are a real rat's nest.
- Balder isn't portrayed as Thor's brother in older comics, just his friend. Later stories rectify this and explain that he was raised to believe he was a foundling.
- Hoder is said to be Thor's cousin in some comics. In the myths, he's Odin's son (Balder's twin brother, in fact) and would have to be Thor's half-brother.
- Frey is portrayed as Idunn's brother and Freyja's father. He was actually Freyja's brother and Idunn's... it's not clear, but by some accounts her uncle. note
- Heimdall and Sif are portrayed as siblings, which isn't said or implied in myth. While Sif doesn't have a recorded parentage, Heimdall is stated in a handful of sources to be the son of nine sisters and, in the Prose Edda, Odin, which would make him Thor's half-brother.
- Instead of the Aesir-Vanir war there is instead an Aesir-Angel war, and not even with the angels from any Abrahamic or even tertiary related Hebrew tradition, which have been adapted into Marvel but barely interact with the main setting, Asgard was instead fighting against lawyer friendly transplants of the Image Comics angels from Spawn, and instead of a prisoner exchange and peace treaty they are instead exiled even further from the main setting than Marvel's previous angel group already was.
- The comics have several original characters replacing or sidelining most of the Norse pantheon in the mythological side of Thor's supporting cast — The Warriors Three, Amora, Angela, Lorelei, Aelsa, Skurge, Karnilla, Kelda, Leah and Laussa are all creations made by Marvel that are not based on any specific Norse figures. Meanwhile, side-characters based on Scandinavian gods and giants are oft-forgotten minor characters who lack many of their original traits and seldom get the same importance and narrative prevalence as original characters despite their position in Asgard in the myths. For example, Frey is one of the most widely-attested gods in Norse mythology and gets featured in several recorded myths, but in the comics, he has only appeared ten times in four decades, most of which as a Bit Character or in flashbacks. The same can be said for Mimir, Njord, Skadi, Bragi, Idunn etc..
- Amora the Enchantress is based on Freyja, who was indeed an enchantress, and very beautiful but she was never evil. And what kind of name for a Norse goddess is Amora, anyway? Freyja shows up later as a separate being.
- The Dark Elves in the Prose Edda have been speculated by scholars to be alternate names for the dwarfs. In the comics, they're different species. (Dwarves are definitely synonymous "Dark Elves", and may or may not be the same thing as the "Black Elves", depending on who you ask. To the Norse, Dok usually referred to skin, as in bruises, while svart usually referred to hair, like Raven Hair, Ivory Skin. Both Dokalfar(Dark Elves) and Svartalfar(Black Elves) were consistently distinct from the "Light Elves").
- Whether or not Dwarves and Dark/Black Elves are separate or not, the reason the Light Elves are separate from whichever you think their counterpart should be is because the Aesir took over Alfeim and gave it to Frey as a present, after they got Frey in a prisoner exchange to end the war with Vanheim, causing the elves there to take after Frey's attributes. Naturally none of this is even given a mention, given Frey barely exists in Marvel comics.
- Overall, the comics are more inspired by the 19th-century Germanic romanticization of Norse myths and old English and Shakesperean motifs than by the original extant sources. Several motifs, such as winged and horned helmets, which were never used in the Viking Age, are included, and Thor is depicted as clean-shaved and blonde rather than red-bearded, like in the painting Thor's Fight with the Giants.
