Thor’s status as an original Avenger paints a large target on his back. His days in the MCU could be winding down, and Thor: Love and Thunder may have provided a bright red flag.
Like a dense fog, mystery hangs over the only two Phase Six movies Marvel Studios has made public, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars. Past the titles, all that has been revealed is that these two films will be the final chapters of The Multiverse Saga starring Jonathan Majors’ Kang the Conqueror. What will happen between now and then is anyone’s guess.
One thing we can safely assume is there will be a new Avengers lineup. After all, three core members of the original team are gone. As Marvel moves from Thanos and The Infinity Saga to Kang and The Multiverse Saga, it makes Phases Four and Five transition periods as the all-new, all-different “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes” come together to wrap up The Multiverse Saga.
Before the new team arrives, we must say goodbye to the last remnants of the first squad, beginning with Thor.
The secret ingredient is Love
The biggest warning flag waving over Thor’s time in the MCU is Love. As we saw in Thor: Love and Thunder, he adopted Gorr’s daughter as his own, and they were off to a whirlwind adventure before the credits rolled. The father-daughter duo will surely have fun times ahead, cracking skulls with their magic weapons before taking on Kang in Phase Six, right? Don’t get your hopes up.
Word to the wise for all the would-be MCU superheroes: don’t have kids. If you do, it spells doom. On the plus side, you get a cool, dramatic death scene where you’ll sacrifice yourself for your kid and sometimes the rest of the universe. It’s a continuing theme in the MCU. The most famous of course is Iron Man. Tony Stark introduced his daughter, Morgan, in Avengers: Endgame. By the conclusion, he snapped away Thanos and his army, but at the cost of his life. Then again, it may have been worth it for Robert Downey, Jr., who got to bring Iron Man’s story full circle by making the sacrifice that was foreshadowed a decade ago in Avengers.
The pattern extends to adopted children as well. Remember Youndu? Played by Michael Rooker, the Ravager took Peter Quill under his wing instead of delivering the would-be Star-Lord to Ego the Living Planet. In the final act of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, he uttered the film’s two most memorable lines: “I’m Mary Poppins, y’all!” and the tear-inducing, “He may have been your father, boy, but he wasn’t your daddy.” Then he launched himself into space, giving his life to save Quill’s.
It doesn’t stop there. Scarlet Witch’s downfall began when she used her magic to create kids for herself and Vision. After giving up her dream family life and breaking the hex she had cast in WandaVision, Wanda Maximoff harnessed the power of the Dark Hold to find Billy and Tommy elsewhere in the Multiverse. During Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the Dark Hold drove her mad, and she went on the rampage. When she finally saw what the mystical book had done to her, she chose to sacrifice herself rather than basically steal her variant’s life and children.
This seems to be the case for all the Marvel parents. Wait, you say. Doesn’t Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) have a daughter in the Ant-Man franchise? He’s not dead. You would be correct…for now, but there are numerous rumors and theories that he will bite the CGI dust in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
In the comics, Scott died at the hands of Scarlet Witch during her mental breakdown and attack on the Avengers in Avengers: Disassembled. While he was not involved in Wanda’s MCU rampage, the plot of his next movie hints at disaster. Kang kidnaps Scott’s now-teenage daughter, Cassie, and holds her hostage in the microverse. With speculation that Cassie will follow her comic roots and become a Young Avenger, it could lead to our current Ant-Man sacrificing himself to save her from the time-traveling Conqueror.
It’s not restricted to heroes, either. Earlier this year, Gorr the God Butcher, Thor’s chief rival in Thor: Love and Thunder, went on a bloody campaign to rid the universe of gods when his prayers to save his daughter went unanswered. He was then on a quest to find Eternity at the center of the universe, who was turned into a magic wishing well for some reason. When he reached her, he had the options of wishing away all the gods or saving himself. Instead, Gorr took the noble third choice and brought his daughter, Love, back from the dead.
That brings us to Thor. As Gorr lay dying, he made Thor promise to look after Love. Just before the credits rolled, and in grand Taika Waititi fashion, the God of Thunder became the Thunder Dad after seemingly adopting Love. In the immortal words of Elvis Pressley, that spells t-r-o-u-b-l-e.
The writing on the wall is clear: children are the first sign that a character is about to die. Looking at you next, Hawkeye.
The Hulk is on the chopping block, too
While we’re on the subject, we might as well address the Hulk situation. After his brief appearances in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, it has given rise to a new batch of Green Goliath rumors. When last we saw Professor Hulk, he was on a Sakaarian spaceship on his way to who knows where (but at least they have excellent intergalactic cellphone reception).
It’s safe to assume he’s being escorted back to Sakaar, where he reigned as the Grandmaster’s champion between the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Thor: Ragnarok. Why would he willingly go back there? The prevailing theory is that Hulk has a son waiting for him there, and that could coincide with an important comic story arc.
At the conclusion of World War Hulk, readers discovered Hulk’s half-Sakaarian son, Skaar, was alive and well. He eventually comes to Earth to challenge his dad, and that could be where things are headed. Judging by the other characters who have kids in the MCU, Hulk’s possible son may mean the end is nigh for the Green Machine.
Out with the old
Endgame was the end of an era for Marvel Studios. Not only did it wrap up the 10 years of The Infinity Saga, but it closed the book on the first Avengers lineup. Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow left behind Clint Barton when Natasha Romanoff traded her life for the Soul Stone on Vormir.
That set up the grandest finale of them all that ended when Iron Man made his memorable exit. Then came Chris Evans’ curtain call, though he more or less retired and had a married life with Peggy Carter. The only thing that saved him from death’s clutches was not having any kids, at least none seen onscreen.
After Infinity War and Endgame set the emotional bar so high, Marvel will need to dig deep into its bag of tricks to leave viewers in tears. There’s no better way to accomplish that feat than by taking away a couple of fan-favorite characters, namely Thor and possibly Hulk.
As I pondered in “Will the MCU’s Original Avengers Return for The Kang Dynasty?,” Marvel could have a moment just as big as Cap’s famous battlecry in store for Phase Six: the return of the original Avengers. Killing either Thor, Hulk, or both would make it a full party (minus Hawkeye) when Earth’s defenders return from the Multiverse to help the heroes turn the tide. At the end, Thor could be welcomed into Valhalla by his everlasting love, Jane Foster, and the two could spend a blissful eternity together.
The next Thor
As Marvel establishes its new generation of heroes to take up the Avengers mantle, it’s clear that the new faces are filling slots defined by the 2012 Avengers. Sam Wilson has brought honor back to the star-spangled spandex by hoisting the shield as the new Captain America. As established in Black Widow, Natasha’s sister, Yelena Belova, is the new Black Widow. Then there’s Kate Bishop, who is Barton’s Hawkeye successor. Riri Williams will make her MCU debut in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever before assuming the Iron Man mantle in her Disney Plus show, Ironheart. As for Hulk, Mark Ruffalo has all but let the cat out of the proverbial bag by saying that Bruce Banner has passed the torch to She-Hulk. That leaves only Thor’s godly spot on the roster.
Love
Filling those large Asgardian boots is no easy task. Thor has become much of the MCU fandom’s favorite character since Infinity War, and you’ll need someone worthy of the powers of the God of Thunder to fill his position. The most obvious choice is his adopted daughter, Love. Armed with powers of her own along with apparently being worthy of wielding Stormbreaker, she would seem to be the leading candidate for the job. Since The Multiverse Saga’s main villain, Kang, is famous for time travel, it wouldn’t be hard to age her up so that she’s a more believable Avenger.
Hercules
Another solid candidate is the Prince of Power, Hercules. While we have only seen him in cameo during the Love and Thunder mid-credits scene, his mythological demi-god status makes him the ideal replacement. In the comics, he has been an Avenger since the 1960s. In fact, the comics have presented him as more of a lovable-but-dim-witted brute who means well compared to the serious Thor. Since he already emulates the MCU Thunder God, Herc would fit perfectly on practically every level.
Jane Foster
Although Jane may have died in Love and Thunder, there’s no bigger joke than death in the comic book circles. It wouldn’t be a stretch for Marvel Studios to resurrect the Goddess of Thunder, who could then fill that final slot. She also died in the comics version of that event, and she was later brought back as Valkyrie, which could be another avenue for Marvel. Either Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie or Jane as a resurrected Valkyrie could do the job.
Beta Ray Bill
The most fun option would be a character yet to be seen in the MCU: Beta Ray Bill. He was teased with his likeness on the Grandmaster’s Tower in Ragnarok, but we haven’t actually seen him in the CGI-rendered flesh. Having him arrive on the silver screen to take up either Mjolnir or his comics-accurate weapon, Stormbreaker, in Thor’s stead would be worth cheering.
