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Marvel's New Thor Will Be a Woman

Posted by Soulskill on from the time-to-test-hemsworth's-acting-chops dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Marvel Comics has announced that Thor, the thunder god whose story has been told in comic books, movies, and TV shows since the 1960s, will fall from grace, and no longer be able to wield his hammer Mjolnir. A brand new female character will take up the name Thor and continue the series. Jason Aaron, the series writer, said, "This is not She-Thor. This is not Lady Thor. This is not Thorita. This is THOR. This is the THOR of the Marvel Universe. But it's unlike any Thor we've ever seen before." Marvel's Wil Moss added, "The new Thor continues Marvel's proud tradition of strong female characters like Captain Marvel, Storm, Black Widow and more. And this new Thor isn't a temporary female substitute — she's now the one and only Thor, and she is worthy!"

56 of 590 comments (clear)

  1. I am Woman! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I am Woman, hear me Thor!

    That is all.

    1. Re:I am Woman! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      I am Woman, hear me Thor!

      That is all.

      You dirty Thor!

    2. Re:I am Woman! by rwa2 · · Score: 4, Funny

      The God of Thunder is at a particularly successful orgy and sees a good-looking woman wandering around in her toga. He puffs up his chest and proclaims to her, "Hi, I am Thor!"

      The woman looks back and says, "Ugh, yeth, I'm thor too, I'm thor all over."

  2. Ridiculous! by xfizik · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This is beyond ridiculous.

    1. Re:Ridiculous! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This is just lazy pandering. Do they have such little creativity that they best they can do is make a female Thor? This is as pathetic as the Hollywood remake movie spree of the last few decades.

    2. Re:Ridiculous! by sexconker · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Thor is a male god.
      Thor is an established character, based on the mythical Thor.
      Making Thor female is just a publicity stunt.
      Marvel can't create compelling original female characters, but that doesn't mean they should slap tits and a vagina onto existing male characters and hope they stick. What Marvel needs to do is realize that they can't create ANY compelling characters anymore, male or female, and fix that problem first.
      Everyone knows that the real Thor will be back once this "arc" finishes - saying something is permanent in comics is an insult to anyone who reads them.

      Alternatively, Han shot second.

    3. Re:Ridiculous! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Thor is a character in Norse mythology. Those stories are part of our cultural heritage. And in those stories, Thor is male.

      This change isn't done because it makes more sense. The Norse Thor didn't have any gender identity issues. This doesn't make the story more interesting or engaging. This is done exclusively as a gimmick to attract audiences of feminists and the obsessively politically correct.

      I think these are bad reasons for making this change to the story. I think there are plenty of opportunities to borrow female heroes from history (Joan of Arc? The goddess Athena?) to create brand new stories of feminine heroism. There is no compelling reason to give Thor a gender change. Its just a (destructive and stupid) attention grab.

    4. Re:Ridiculous! by ceoyoyo · · Score: 3, Informative

      Not the original poster, but I agree. I think it's great to have strong female main characters, on an equal footing with strong male main characters. But this ain't it. They're taking a character who is male, both in mythology and in their own storyline, and changing him into a woman. Why? Because they can't write female leads so they'll just take a male one and give him boobs? Because a female main character can't be successful without all the momentum gathered by that character being male for a thousand years?

      Ridiculous seems like a reasonable summary.

    5. Re:Ridiculous! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Hollywood is so lazy they will remake the movie "Junior" with a female character.

    6. Re:Ridiculous! by kruach+aum · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Making Thor a woman is like making Jesus a woman, Mjolnir a screwdriver, or Huginn and Muninn storks. It's like saying "I carpooled to work today" when you came by yourself on your bike, because you want to reclaim the word "carpooling" to refer to biking to work. You can do it, but that doesn't make what you say true. Thor's gender is such a significant feature of his established identity that to change his gender is to change his identity from Thor into Something-that-is-not-Thor. You can say that this new character is both Thor and a woman, but that doesn't make it true.

    7. Re:Ridiculous! by Noah+Haders · · Score: 4, Interesting

      keeping with tradition I assume she'll be a sexy thor with big b00bs that are popping through her skimpy outfit. positive role models ftw!

    8. Re:Ridiculous! by kruach+aum · · Score: 5, Funny

      What part of "And this new Thor isn't a temporary female substitute — she's now the one and only Thor, and she is worthy!"" is ambiguous to you? If she is the one and only Thor, and she is a woman, then Thor is now a woman. That's how the transitive relation works.

    9. Re:Ridiculous! by Desler · · Score: 5, Interesting

      You are using archaic myths to justify misogyny.

      Right, because slapping big tits on a female character to appeal to creepy nerds is the height of enlightenment and anti-misogyny.

      Taking a historic Superhero character and making it a woman is a good thing. The industry needs fewer people like you, and more young girls.

      Sure, it would be if she wasn't made to have the same ridiculous and unrealistic body proportions that no woman can live up to. Same with not having your female characters just be simply riding the coattails of a popular male character. If they really believed the nonsense they are spewing they would have created an original character without ridiculous things like the huge tits. As it is, this is just comics sexism disguised as "empowerment".

    10. Re:Ridiculous! by Bardez · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I think that you are mistaking misogyny for something else.

      Misogyny: "dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women"
      Misogyny: "hatred, dislike, or mistrust of women."
      Misogynist: "a person who hates women"

      There are female superheroes, so you couldn't be saying that there the statement indicated that there should not be any of those. And Thor was a male god in the mythos, so are you saying that not changing the mythos is hating women? Perhaps you meant that they were speaking in defense of continuity? Or do you instead mean that they are transexualophobes? (what exactly would be the word?)

      Either way, my takeaway from your post is that if anyone were to say that George Washington did not have female reproductive organs, they must be a misogynist.

      --
      Perception is the thin dividing line between reality and fiction.
    11. Re:Ridiculous! by mvdwege · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Right. So an alien being posing as an Asgardian God? No problem.

      The power of said alien being manifesting in ordinary mortals? No problem.

      Said being a member of a team with among others a Forties soldier who survived decades of being frozen and a man turning into a monster? No problem.

      Incarnating as a woman? HERESY!

      --
      "I know I will be modded down for this": where's the option '-1, Asking for it'?
    12. Re:Ridiculous! by medv4380 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      No, he's using the comic industries status quo to explain that everything always goes back to how it was. Peter dies with Doc Oc taking over his body, and then the Superior Spiderman arc is done and Peter is Peter once again. Another example being Wonder Woman loosing her title, and powers so they could put a blonde in the title for a bit so they could Kill Wonder Woman Artemis without Killing Wonder Woman Diana. Anyone who thought that was permanent doesn't read comics. So what we have now is Thor has lost his title and some woman is worthy to wield the hammer. She'll be Thor up until the end when the Arc Kills Her, which would be why they wanted Thor out of it. If she's lucky she'll have increased the audience and they'll save her and give her a unique title, maybe. Don't mistake Comic Book Cynicism for Misogyny. They're not the same.

    13. Re:Ridiculous! by machineghost · · Score: 3, Interesting

      RTFM. Thor does not become a female (and neither does Obama). The only thing that changed is who the comic book "Thor" focuses on (its now a different mortal who has Thor's hammer than it was in the past). It's like if a woman put on a cape, took the batmobile out for a spin and called herself Batman. If the comic book called "Batman" focuses on her then for all intents and purposes she "is" Batman ... but it doesn't mean Bruce Wayne got a sex change.

    14. Re:Ridiculous! by viperidaenz · · Score: 4, Informative

      Freyja would be the goddess of fertility and Eir the goddess of healing
      Thor is the god of thunder and battle

      They should have created a new character instead of taking one based on a Nordic god and made it a woman.
      Like Thruer, Thor's daughter.
      When you take someone's place you take their responsibility not their name.

    15. Re:Ridiculous! by Chas · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I'm sorry, but I think sexconker is right.

      This is a gimmick.
      They're going to turn Thor into a guy with a vagina and do some crude stab at "gaining understanding of the female condition".
      In short, it's pandering of the worst and creepiest sort.

      While I'm not a woman, I'd find this sort of treatment both idiotic and insulting in the extreme.
      Since I'm a guy I just think it's idiotic and creepy.

      --


      Chas - The one, the only.
      THANK GOD!!!
    16. Re:Ridiculous! by Culture20 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Marvel can't create compelling original female characters

      I disagree. Aunt May has a mysterious side that is only hinted at in the comics. On a more serious note: Rogue, Moonstone, Songbird (screaming mimi), Emma Frost, Mystique, AoA Blink, She-Hulk, and plenty of other women have compelling stories (and no, She-Hulk isn't just tits on a Hulk). Granted, Ororo, Jean Grey, Sue (Storm) Richards, and Alyson Blaire are all pretty boring, but there are equally boring male super heroes (actually, their respective significant others: T'Challa, Scott Summers, Reed Richards, Longshot).
      Actually, now that I think about it, the current time-displaced Jean and Scott from the past are interesting.

      that doesn't mean they should slap tits and a vagina onto existing male characters and hope they stick.

      I agree with this 100%. They can get away with it when it's not an established character (Spider-Woman [all three of them] isn't Spider-Man. She-Hulk isn't Hulk, Lady Bullseye isn't Bullseye, Namorina isn't the Sub-Mariner), but altering an established character arbitrarily (and badly; Thor just recently went through a long disgraced period and regained his honor. Leave the poor godling alone for a while). Maybe give Lady Octopus a chance to be Peter Parker for a while? That should sit well with the fans.

    17. Re:Ridiculous! by Kjella · · Score: 5, Informative

      Thor is never female in that story, he's cross-dressing pretending to by Freyja in full bridal dress and veil using her clothes and jewelry with rocks for boobies to fool clueless giants. The entire setup is extremely humiliating for Thor and he's not at all identifying with or acting feminine and only Loki saves him through clever excuses. The only one to get a peek under the veil is Trym the giant king looking to get a kiss and quickly reconsiders. When Thor is handed the hammer during the wedding ceremony he goes on a slaughter killing Trym and all his kin for what he's had to endure. Nothing in the ancient tales suggests he's anything but a male and masculine god.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    18. Re:Ridiculous! by Darinbob · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Why not have a comic based on Sif? Or another female Asgardian?

    19. Re:Ridiculous! by Daemonik · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Actually, I think that traditionally the comic book shop has been a very hostile environment for women. The average comic book nerd never believes women read comics in the first place and treat them like idiots. Then it just devolves into yet another place where guys with no sense of boundaries just treat them like shit.

      Statistically, women buy the digital comics more than men do, because it separates the comics from the comic store experience.

      Also, a character doesn't have to be non-sexualized to be popular with women. Women like sex. What the characters have to be are honest portrayals of women, emotionally, sexually and physically, and not some teen boy wank fantasy though.

    20. Re:Ridiculous! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

      >Sure, it would be if she wasn't made to have the same ridiculous and unrealistic body proportions that no woman can live up to.

      How is that different than male superheroes? I've seen some differences in how women and men were portrayed in comics, but this is not one of them.

    21. Re:Ridiculous! by brit74 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      It has more to do with the blatant pandering. Hell, if this is your argument, then we might as well turn all superheros female in service to women's empowerment because all of them have unrealistic superpowers.

    22. Re:Ridiculous! by Tom · · Score: 3, Interesting

      You are using archaic myths to justify misogyny.

      Are you for real?

      The norse mythology is radically gender-equal compared to most other ancient mythologies, especially among the western ones. It has plenty of strong female characters to offer.

      Taking a historic Superhero character and making it a woman is a good thing.

      No, it's ridiculous, stupid and if I were a feminist, I'd probably hate it. What would be a good thing is to create an original female character, one that's not a sidekick or off-shot, but a fully-fledged character in her own rights, with none of the stupid revealing-armour-that-is-worthless-in-a-fight-but-makes-your-boobs-look-bigger nonsense.

      Turning a male character into a woman is probably the most idiotic non-solution you could come up with.

      Did you know Thor was the god of fertility, healing? Did you also now they aren't changing the Myth, just a comic character?

      That is what makes it doubly stupid. If this were a pure comic book character, the dissonance would be much less.

      --
      Assorted stuff I do sometimes: Lemuria.org
    23. Re:Ridiculous! by Kjella · · Score: 3, Insightful

      This is a modern comic inspired by Norse mythology, not a retelling. The old Thor was a stout red head, the next was a blonde pretty boy, the new will be a buff woman. Big deal. Time changes things. It's not like this is the strangest story arc to take place in comics.

      Oh, it wouldn't be nearly the most fucked up story from the old sagas either - Loki is a shape changer and the mother of an eight-legged horse for starters - but trying to use the old lore to justify this particular story line doesn't work.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    24. Re:Ridiculous! by optimus2861 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Do they have such little creativity that they best they can do is make a female Thor?

      Yes.

      Marvel Comics lost its creativity many years ago, probably no later than the time that the first Spider-Man movie debuted in the theaters (though I'd say a good 5-7 years prior). Ever since then, they 'shuffle the deck chairs' around, but nothing ever sticks. The characters always eventually revert to status quo. They make much, much more money from their licensing than they ever will on the comics, and they really don't want to kill that golden goose. Thor will be back as his usual self by the time Avengers 2 hits theaters. Bank on it.

    25. Re:Ridiculous! by electrosoccertux · · Score: 3, Insightful

      right, because keeping with mythology traditions is pandering....

    26. Re:Ridiculous! by Tuidjy · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The few comics I read are mostly Humanoid/Vertigo, so I'm not familiar with the original armor... But if it is any less practical than the armor displayed on that screen, it must consist of a funnel channeling all blows to the heart of the wearer.

      Lets see.

      Openings between the helmet and the shoulder pads, to divert blows to the neck. That gorgeous hair must flow!

      Pauldrons coming short of protecting the shoulders. Can't hide too much skin!

      Armpits completely exposed. Those curves must be seen!

      Boob mounds channeling blows towards the center of the chest. What's the point of having a female character if you're not going to draw boobs?!

      The stomach is completely exposed. Even the cloth has a belly window, to make sure that no attacker has any doubts about the entrails being vulnerable.

      Frankly, it is sickening that anyone would call this travesty practical... Female armor should looks like male armor, with slightly different proportions, to account for different shoulder/hip/chest ratios. Once the padding is on, most of the differences are smoothed over.

      Expensive and late period armor that can afford the added weigh would have a single bulge on the chest - to divert the blows, not two to channel them where they would do the most harm.

      --
      No good deed goes unpunished...
    27. Re:Ridiculous! by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 5, Insightful

      The whole point is that it is not a new character. It's a cheap attempt to pander to the entire "diversity" and feminist angle by taking something very stereotypically masculine, and slapping a vagina on it, while trying to retain the old associations. That's why it's so offensive and demeaning to precisely the category it's trying to address - their female Thor is showcasing "equality" by taking masculinity and saying "look, females can have a part in all that goodness, too!". So in effect they end up reinforcing the stereotypes - a "strong, independent female character" is, apparently, a female pretending to be male. As opposed to a female being herself.

      And don't even get me started on the whole chainmail bikini angle here, which is also quite prominent.

    28. Re: Ridiculous! by Dixie_Flatline · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Nice to see the fake nerds are out in force today.

      Apparently none of you whiny children has ever heard of Beta Ray Bill, an orange skinned alien that was considered worthy of wielding Mjolnir (though he eventually ended up with his own hammer, Stormbreaker). He was Thor. He's a goddamn dude from another planet, and you're complaining that Thor can't be a woman?

      Thor in Norse mythology never fought the fucking Hulk or ate shawarma at a local restaurant either. Or lived in the USA. The story is MADE UP. The Marvel version is twice as made up. Try to get a grip. The story goes wherever it needs to.

      http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki...

      Beta. Ray. Bill. Get with the cannon, fakers. Or shut the hell up. Both are good.

    29. Re:Ridiculous! by dbIII · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why not Thor as a lazy Panda!
      I don't really get this since I thought Thor was supposed to be a paticular person and not the job of whoever picks up the hammer, green lantern style.

      However, a young female Thor type has already been done in the animes Nanoha A's and Nanoha StrikerS. Her hammer has a rocket assist.

    30. Re: Ridiculous! by Algae_94 · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Was Beta Ray Bill actually referred to as Thor when he had Mjolnir? I do not recall if he was or not.

  3. Congratulations? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    Congratulations to a comic book company for changing a male character from very old mythology into a woman.

    Perhaps they can next make a comic book with Jesus as a woman?

    1. Re:Congratulations? by i+kan+reed · · Score: 4, Insightful

      They also made Thor come from space, speak English, made Asgard not an afterlife, and changed all sorts of other details.

      What makes this change particularly galling to you?

    2. Re:Congratulations? by jimmifett · · Score: 4, Funny

      Don't be a fool, Jesus is obviously a velociraptor!

      Look forward to the Velocirapture!

    3. Re:Congratulations? by Zumbs · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Asgard wasn't an afterlife, it was a different "realm", like Midgard (Earth), Miflheim, Jotunheim and the others.

      Both Valhalla and Folkvang were located in Asgard. Both were most certainly afterlives!

      --
      The truth may be out there, but lies are inside your head
    4. Re:Congratulations? by KiloByte · · Score: 5, Funny

      He went extinct for your sins.

      --
      The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
  4. Tales of Asgard... by seven+of+five · · Score: 4, Funny

    In related news, Odin will become a transgender drag queen with a flair for theatrics. Loki, however, will remain low-key.

    1. Re:Tales of Asgard... by savi · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Actually, in Norse myth, it was Loki who was fairly transgender, often taking on female form in order to have sex with male creatures (such as an enormous stallion). He gave birth to monstrous demons from these encounters, including Sleipnir, Odin's eight-legged horse.

    2. Re:Tales of Asgard... by SuricouRaven · · Score: 4, Informative

      Loki, proto-furry.

  5. Another comic book gimmick by C0R1D4N · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Just another comic book gimmick like female Robin, and gay minority Spiderman. Comic books can't go more than a few months without having to completely change everything around and "spice things up". Just try following a single title for more than two years.

  6. It makes sense by plopez · · Score: 4, Insightful

    One more opportunity for a character with big bazoombas and skimpy clothes to pander to their core reader base.

    --
    putting the 'B' in LGBTQ+
  7. Thordis! by just_another_sean · · Score: 3, Informative

    One of the early What If? comics Marvel put out was about Jane Foster finding Thor's Hammer instead of Don Blake. There is a hilarious summary of it here. Not sure if it's the earliest example of Thor as a woman but's its gotta be close!

    --
    Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
  8. The hammer is my penis? by Overzeetop · · Score: 5, Funny

    Wait, no...that's a different show.

    --
    Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
  9. In other news, DC Comics announced by david.emery · · Score: 4, Funny

    The renaming of its famous comic book and TV character, "Wonder Person."

    Chris Hemsworth and Lynda Carter are reportedly in talks to assume the other's iconic role. No word yet if they're planning to share costumes.

  10. Imagination? by infogulch · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Are we so unimaginative now that it's not possible to come up with and build new characters? Existing characters have to be completely substituted, just to piggyback on the established lore and history?

    And for what? To satisfy some new gender-equality metric? Seriously, I know it would take time and effort, but surely you can come up with a compelling unique story for a woman without them having to be propped up by a different character's previous popularity.

  11. Outfit by tekrat · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Let me guess... This new female Thor will wear a skimpy outfit, and much less armor than the previous, male Thor. But this is objectification is somehow empowering to women...

    --
    If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
  12. Weird by The+Grim+Reefer · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I'm all for strong women. Hell, I have an 11 year old daughter. So I like the idea of her having strong role models. But this is a little weird considering the comic book character is based off of the male god of Norse legend by the same name. And why is this a "fall from grace" as TFS states? And why can't (s)he wield Mjolnir?

    While I'm asking, why is it that most of these comic book "strong women" have a pair of double D boobs (at minimum) falling out of their outfits? I don't care how skilled a women is, she ain't gonna be fighting worth a damn in 5 inch 'fuck-me-heels' with her ass and boobs falling out of her costume.

  13. They have gone further before by Gramie2 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Does no one else remember Beta Ray Bill from Walt Simonson's run in the '80s (the golden age for Thor and large swathes of Marvel, in my opinion). Beta Ray Bill was able to wield Mjolnir and Thor's power even though he was a vaguely-humanoid alien.

  14. Re:I've heard elsewhere this Ultimate Universe by KozmoStevnNaut · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Also shown here in the only true comic about Thor (and friends and foes), the Danish "Valhalla" comic by Peter Madsen. None of this Marvel junk, please.

    http://i.imgur.com/87zorZg.jpg
    Notice that Thor is shown in accordance with Norse mythology, as a stout man with red hair and a bushy beard. No fair-haired prettyboys here!

    http://i.imgur.com/46TT17b.jpg
    "How many times must I tell you? Don't touch my stuff!"

    Best comic ever.

    --
    Eat the rich.
  15. Oblig Penny-Arcade - Black Heimdall by netsavior · · Score: 5, Informative

    We already did this... Even a racist clock is right twice a day

    In Marvel Lore, anyone who is worthy may wield the hammer and gain the power of thor... this has included

    A horsefaced dude (beta ray bill who now wields a dupe of the hammer, sorta)
    A frog named Throg
    it has also been wielded by Storm (who is a woman) and Captain America.

    This is a non-story, and not the first time a woman has wielded Mjolnir.

  16. Re:Wonder what this will do for the movies by captjc · · Score: 3, Funny

    You mean you never heard the old Viking tales of how Thor and Kaptein Amerika fought to control the rampaging monster known as the GrÃnn Raseri Mann all for the affections of the goddess Freyja? I remember there being a Shieldmaiden, Sort Enke. I believe it has something to do with how Vikings got their shields. It was all apart of the ancient Agenter Skjold saga.

    --
    Slow Down Cowboy! It's been 1 hour, 47 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment
  17. Re:Please, enough. by Darinbob · · Score: 3, Funny

    Groucho-Marxist.

  18. Proud tradition by jandersen · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The new Thor continues Marvel's proud tradition of ...

    ... completely ignoring things like historical background, common knowledge and elementary logic.

    Being Danish, it has always irked me, that this cartoon 'Thor' is portrayed as a tall, sledge-hammer wielding body builder with lanky, blond hair, full body wax and a placid temperament; the traditional thunder-god, son of Odin and married to Sif, was red-haired and -bearded (and generally hairy as a man would be), foul-tempered and wielded a hammer, mjolnir, that was famously short-shafted. I suppose a busty, female 'Thoretta' isn't really all that much further from the original. It just another American, plasticky product, like 'He-Man' and 'Power Rangers'.