Thor Is Marvel’s New God of Fire, Whether He Knows It or Not

Warning! Spoilers for Thor #23 ahead!

The Mighty Thor holds many titles in Marvel Comics, among them All-Father, God of Thunder and Avenger, but he may be adding a new moniker to the list: God of Fire. Though he has not officially been named such, his increasing dependance on flames and his connection to the fiery Phoenix Force could signal a new direction for the Asgardian hero.

Marvel’s “God of Hammers” arc has concluded and Thor is yet again on the precipice of change. These past few years have been demanding for the Asgardian Avenger in many ways, but the primary trial has been his relationship with Mjolnir. Once his faithful weapon, the powerful artifact crafted a body out of lighting and declared itself God of Hammers. Thor has found a way to finally quell the sentient storm, but in doing so displays what could become a new level of power altogether. 

Written by Donny Cates with art by Nic Klein and Matt Wilson, Thor #23 opens on a younger Thor training with Mjolnir while his father gives guidance from the sidelines. It’s a tender moment that makes Odin’s decision to sacrifice his portion of the Odin-Force to Thor so much more impactful in hindsight. Now bolstered with the “Thor-Force” and wielding the Bifrost Blade, Thor transports Mjolnir to the heart of Nidavellir, the star forge, and here begins the unmaking of mighty Mjolnir. “It’s the heat of a billion suns,” he warns the wayward warhammer. “Unraveling everything that you are. Boiling the enchantments that my father gave to you.” But something about the display indicates that Thor might actually be manipulating that heat directly, and if so, it could mean that he’s about to become the god of another element entirely.

It’s completely within reason that Thor could be manifesting some pyrokinesis, especially with the recent revelation that his birth mother may not be Gaea the Earth goddess, but the Phoenix Force itself, which took a human host in order to form Midgard’s very first Avengers team. Odin was among those gathered, and he seemed to kindle a special connection with the Phoenix. It wasn’t long before the two became seasonal lovers, casting no small amount of reasonable doubt on Thor’s parentage. 

There is another, slightly headier way that this change could be justified. When young Thor asks his father if he can die, Odin replies that death as Asgardians can experience it would only elevate him to “what I have always been…a legend.” This opens a fascinating line of questioning: could Asgard and its inhabitants be mythic even in the Marvel Universe? Because if so, that would mean their histories, personalities, and properties could change as more stories about them are told. 

The image of the God of Thunder crushing the instrument with which he calls on that element by commanding the furor of another is exactly the kind of thing that would reshape his legend. The Asgardian King is already leagues more powerful than he has ever been before, but Marvel’s writers seem determined to keep pushing his limits. And should the Phoenix Force’s claim prove veridical, Thor may have a new path to blaze as the God of Flame. 

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