7

In the film Thor, Odin casts a spell on Mjolnir and strips Thor of his power. He then banishes Thor to Midgard (Earth). On Earth, Thor is seemingly just a strong and durable human. Later in the film, he becomes worthy, and regains control of Mjolnir. This then grants him his full power set and control over Mjolnir.

My question is, prior to this, could Thor control lightning all on his own? Or is this purely an ability of Mjolnir?

1
  • 4
    Possibly complicating this idea, the enchantment says that the worthy individual will be granted the power of "Thor", not Mjolnir.
    – phantom42
    Mar 14, 2015 at 19:28

3 Answers 3

7

Thor does not need Mjolnir to call lightning, cause storms or summon winds to his command. The power to command the weather is within him. In the Marvel Universe, Mjolnir is a focus of the power, not necessarily the source.

  • Odin does not cast a spell to render Thor mortal, he strips away his fragment of the Odinforce which gives all Asgardians their fantastic abilities
  • As the Norse god of thunder, Thor can summon the elements of the storm (lightning; rain; wind; snow) and uses Mjolnir as a tool to focus this ability, although the hammer cannot command artificial weather, only natural. He can cause these weather effects over the world and destroy entire buildings; by whirling his hammer he can lift entire buildings with the wind. As the son of the Earth goddess Gaea, Thor has shown some control over the Earth.

  • REF: Lee, Stan; Bernstein, Robert (w), Sinnott, Joe (p), Sinnott, Joe (i). "Thor and Loki Attack the Human Race!" Journey Into Mystery 94 (July 1963)

  • That said, in the Marvel Universe, Odin possesses the ability to withdraw greater powers from Thor (and likely any Asgardian) he wishes since all of their powers and abilities come down to them through Odin the same way Odin acquired his powers from his brothers Velli, Ve and and their father Bor.

  • When Odin banishes Thor to Midgard, on more than one occasion he has withdrawn some or even all of Thor's abilities depending on his level of pique. When Thor is first banished to Midgard for arrogance in Journey into Mystery, he is in the form of the handicapped Doctor Donald Blake and unaware of his divine heritage or gifts.

enter image description here

  • Thor's father Odin decides his son needed to be taught humility and consequently places Thor (without memories of godhood) into the body and memories of an existing, partially disabled human medical student, Donald Blake.

  • ODIN: "You! Lack! Humility! And humanity! You are supreme in your power and your pride! The lessons you need so profoundly can never be learned by a god of thunder -- thus I cast you out -- thus shall you shed your godly trappings -- no longer art thou God of Thunder! Thy memory too shall I strip bare! Then go -- for life anew awaits -- on Midgard..."

  • After becoming a doctor and on vacation in Norway, Blake witnesses the arrival of an alien scouting party. Blake flees from the aliens into a cave. After discovering Thor's hammer Mjolnir (disguised as a walking stick) and striking it against a rock, he transforms into the thunder god.

enter image description here

  • Later, in Thor #158, Blake is revealed to have always been Thor, Odin's enchantment having caused him to forget his history as The Thunder God and believe himself mortal.
4
  • 4
    OP is talking MCU not 616
    – user16696
    Mar 15, 2015 at 5:26
  • Seeing the MCU is a derivative media of the canon Earth-616 universe it is likely the underlying material and backstory are the same unless we're told differently. In the MCU, there is no Donald Blake identity. Thor is sent to Earth as a punishment and stripped of his powers but not his fighting prowess. Since no mention of any major difference is noted, his ability to make storms is HIS not Mjolnir's but it can be taken away by Odin since all Asgardians share a measure of their lifeforce through Odin's primal energy, the Odinforce. Mar 15, 2015 at 5:46
  • "In the MCU, there is no Donald Blake identity." There is, at least, a quick nod to this identity when he they tell Coulson that Thor's name is "Donald Blake" (Jane's ex's name).
    – phantom42
    Mar 16, 2015 at 14:44
  • @phantom42 - yep, also the name tag on the shirt Thor first puts on. Or, as Jane puts it: "Good with patients, baaaaad with relationships."
    – Omegacron
    Mar 16, 2015 at 16:34
2

Thor: Ragnarok spoilers ahead:

Although even Thor never realized it, he can control lightning on his own. enter image description here During Thor: Ragnarok, after Mjolnir is destroyed, Thor occasionally exhibits some glimmer, or I should say sparkle of ability. But at the climax of the movie, Thor has a vision of Odin, which tells him "That hammer was to help you control your power; focus it. It was never your source of strength." This realization allows Thor to fully use his power to then defeat Hela and save the day.

2
  • 1
    "This realization allows Thor to fully use his power to then defeat Hela and save the day." He didn't use his power to defeat Hela. Apr 29, 2018 at 23:40
  • That doesn't mean the same thing, and besides none of this has any relation to the question.
    – J Doe
    Apr 30, 2018 at 6:46
1

''are you the god of hammers? the hammer was to help you focus your power it was never your source of strength'' - Odin

2
  • 1
    Hi, welcome to SF&F. This is alluded to in the first answer and directly quoted in the second. Please don't post new answers unless you have something new to add; this is barely an answer anyway, since it doesn't provide the context of the quote.
    – DavidW
    Nov 24, 2020 at 23:53
  • Whilst of course this quote answers the question. It would be better if you edited this beyond literally just the quote and also included where the quote comes from.
    – TheLethalCarrot
    Nov 25, 2020 at 0:01

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.