The Midgard Serpent | |
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Thor and the Midgard Serpent battle on the cover of Thor #380 (Jun. 1987). Art by Walt Simonson. |
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Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | Marvel Tales #105 (Feb. 1952) |
Created by | Stan Lee (writer) John Buscema (artist) |
In-story information | |
Place of origin | Earth |
Notable aliases | World Serpent;Jormungand;Fin Fang Foom |
Abilities | Superhuman strength & stamina Generates fire and poison |
The Midgard Serpent, sometimes called the World Serpent, is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Gerry Conway and John Buscema and first appears in Thor #200 (June 1972). The Midgard Serpent is based on the creature of the same name from Norse mythology, and is also referred to by the name "Jormungand".
Contents |
Publication history
The Midgard Serpent first appears as a character in the title Marvel Tales[1] and then reappears in the Bronze Age of Comic Books in the title Thor. As in Norse mythology, the Marvel version of the Midgard Serpent is the nemesis of Thor. The seer Volla makes a prophecy that Thor will battle the Midgard Serpent during the Twilight of the Gods - Ragnarök. Although the god will successfully kill the creature, he will only walk nine steps before dying from wounds carrying its deadly poison.[2]
Thor has two encounters with the creature that reflect the Norse myths. The first a visit to the castle of the Storm Giant Utgard-Loki, who excels in the use of illusions. Challenging Thor to lift his pet "cat" - actually the Midgard Serpent - the Thunder God lifts all but one of the cat's feet off the ground, a feat which terrifies the Storm Giant.[3] The second encounter occurs when Thor decides to cheat fate and kill the creature. Taking a fishing boat with the giant Hymir, Thor uses the head of an ox on a chain to draw the Midgard Serpent to the surface of the ocean. Although the creature takes the bait, the character is unable to deal the killing blow as Hymir, fearing for his life, cuts the chain.[4]
Being aware of the prophecy regarding his son's death, Odin (King of the Norse gods) cheats fate during a false Ragnarok by replacing Thor with a surrogate known as Red Norvell, who dies battling the Midgard Serpent. The prophecy fulfilled, Thor drives off the creature.[5] The Midgard Serpent reappears briefly when a group of Odin's enemies feed the Golden Apples of Idunn, intended for the Norse Gods, to the creature, intending to weaken the gods before an attack. Thor imprisons the creature and forces it to return the apples.[6]
The character appears on Earth, disguised as the monster Fin Fang Foom and after the deception is revealed battles Thor to the death. The presence of the Midgard Serpent on Earth causes time to stop for everything except the two opponents. Although Thor finally kills the creature, his body is pulped, as the character was at the time suffering from the Curse of Hela (Thor's bones become as brittle as glass but is unable to heal or die) [7]
The Midgard Serpent is released from Hel (the land of the dead) by the Asgardian warrior Kurse to use against Thor, who is swallowed by the creature. Together with ally Beta Ray Bill, Thor blasts free of the creature's stomach and kills it a second time.[8] The Midgard Serpent is apparently resurrected in the title Avengers by sorceress Morgan le Fay, who summons the creature to Earth to distract superhero team the Avengers while she abducts heroine the Scarlet Witch.[9] The Midgard Serpent reappears briefly in the second volume of Thor during the events of Ragnarok.[10]
Powers and abilities
The Midgard Serpent normally exists in ethereal form around the Earth. A huge serpent, the character has superhuman levels of strength, stamina and can generate both fire and poison.
References
- ^ Marvel Tales #105 (Feb. 1952)
- ^ Thor #200 (June 1972) & seen in #294 (Apr. 1980)
- ^ Thor #272 (June 1978)
- ^ Thor #273 (July 1978)
- ^ Thor #274 - 278 (July - Dec. 1978)
- ^ Thor #325 (Nov. 1982 - Jan. 1983)
- ^ Thor #379 - 380 (May - June 1987). Thor "resurrects" himself by taking mental control of the Destroyer and forcing Hela to recreate his body and free him from her curse. See Thor #381 (Jul. 1987)
- ^ Thor #486 - 488 (May - July 1995)
- ^ Avengers vol. 3, #1 (Feb. 1998)
- ^ Thor #80 vol. 2, (Aug. 2004)
External links
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