Thor Used Mjolnir To Invent His WEIRDEST Attack Ever

Screen Rant

By Andrew Craig

Published May 17, 2020

In Thor's first year, he's still figuring out this whole hero business, and when communists are stealing scientists, Mjolnir's got just the trick.

In one of Thor’s first issues, his hammer Mjolnir is so powerful that just by rubbing it really quickly, he can create enough static electricity to blind his opponents. In these early days, Mjolnir was such a focus of Thor’s power, that it also created shock waves, dug tunnels, and held the key to his secret identity.

Journey Into Mystery #87 is where this plays out, just issues after Thor’s debut in #83. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby are the powerhouses behind this 1962 classic. Larry Lieber is on the masthead as well with a script credit. In this story, American scientists have been “defecting” to work for the communists, but Thor suspects they’re being kidnapped. His alter-ego, Donald Blake, is a scientist himself, so in order to lure the culprit, he decides to spread the word that he’s working on something top secret.

“Finally, after days of fake experimentation”, Blake/Thor is ambushed by a fake photographer, flown across the world, and imprisoned with all of the other missing scientists. The communist command is trying to brainwash them in order to harness their talents. Luckily, the cane Donald Blake uses to walk around came along. After he strikes the ground with it once, the cane changes into Mjolnir, while he’s instantly transformed into the God of Thunder. In an attempt at a non-lethal attack, this is when he rubs his hands rapidly across the hammer, blinding the soldiers who have come to interrupt his escape.

Movie fans know Thor best as an Olympus-meets-Shakespeare family story, but in this early version, he’s brought down to Earth far more. Donald Blake is a totally normal guy, hiking around Europe, when he finds a staff hidden in a cave. Striking this staff on the ground grants him the powers of Thor. As he’s discovering more and more of this heroic identity (and as the creators are), Mjolnir continues to be the source of tricks and abilities that give him the edge over evil-doers. In #87 alone, Mjolnir digs a tunnel; blasts through a wall with a shock wave; spins up a whirlpool; brings a massive thunderstorm (two strikes on the ground); and creates a blinding field of static electricity. Chris Hemsworth mostly just smashes stuff.

However, at this point in Thor’s history, and definitely for the MCU, the reason fans like him is that he doesn’t have a secret identity. In fact, it’s almost hard to imagine the Thor on screen pulling it off. Donald Blake’s character was always struggling with the trope of a secret identity, anyway. He even fell into a romantic triangle when his assistant/crush Jane Foster developed feelings for Thor. Over the years, the character has changed drastically, and even if it raises questions about whatever happened to Donald Blake, it’s impressive that the essence of the Thunder God - and the super cool powers of Mjolnir - have carried through.

Next - It's Official: Thor Is Going To Lose His Hammer, Mjolnir