Thor Demonstrates the Core Difference Between Superhero Powers & GOD Powers

Contains spoilers for Immortal Thor #4!As Thor embarks on his newest saga, his powers have been given a perfect redefinition that makes it clear what makes gods so special in the Marvel Universe and shows that gods can do things that even other superheroes can’t. By highlighting the mythological aspect of godliness, characters like Thor can really be explored in new ways. As Thor’s latest story continues, these powers are sure to be expanded upon ever further.

One of the many interesting things about the recent series Immortal Thor (written by Al Ewing, penciled and inked by MartÍn Cóccolo, colored by Matthew Wilson and lettered by VC’s Joe Sabino) is its fascination with Thor’s divinity and what his godhood means both practically and philosophically.

The book takes the naming convention from Ewing’s previous series, Immortal Hulk, but uses the adjective in a completely different way. The series delves into the metaphysics of divinity as Thor and the reader learn more about what makes a god a god in the Marvel multiverse, and what lies above and beyond a god.

Thor Commands the Thunder (Literally)

One of the most fascinating complications to Thor’s power set that Immortal Thor brings is that, as the God of Thunder, Thor can literally talk to thunder, lightning and storms as if they’re sentient. This distinction gives a perfect mythological bent to Thor’s power set, giving a clear distinction between superhero powers and what a literal god can do. At a practical level, the most useful thing this redefinition of Thor’s powers does is that it provides differences between him and characters with similar power sets. Immortal Thor #4 illustrates this perfectly, comparing and contrasting Thor and Storm, who illustrates their power differences by also changing atmospheric pressure as well as calling lightning.

This new power begs the question: are thunder, lightning and storms actually sentient in the Marvel Universe? The answer is… maybe. In Marvel’s cosmology, abstract concepts like Death and Infinity have personifications, so why not thunder and lightning? It doesn’t even have to be that literal. Thor’s powers operate on the logic of mythology. In some mythologies, thunder is already a voice, lightning is a message from the gods. Divinity is its own logic. It’s the inexplicable nature of godhood that makes it so. If the gods made perfect sense to mortals, then they wouldn’t be worth worshiping, would they?

Thor’s Power Highlights That Gods are Creatures of Story

Part of why this works so well is that it also ties into the continued importance of stories to the Asgardians. Ewing himself redefined Loki as the God of Stories in Loki: Agent of Asgard #13 (written by Ewing, penciled and inked by Lee Garbett, colored by Antonio Fabela and lettered by Clayton Cowles). The very first words of Immortal Thor #1 reiterate this idea, with the series’ yet unnamed narrator — themselves imitating the poetry of real-world Norse mythology — noting, “The gods are creatures of story.” Thor conversing with thunder and lightning is only part of Ewing’s holistic approach to the intrinsic ties between godhood and story.