[ad_1]
The fourth film in the Thor franchise, Thor: Love and Thunder (directed by Taika Waititi), finally sees the return of Jane Foster (Natalie Portman). Her absence, though played off with jokes, was noticeable in Thor: Ragnarok but with the film taking the franchise in such a different direction from what audiences had seen so far, it wasn’t as noticeable as it could have been. But Thor: Love and Thunder not only brings back Jane, it gives us a chance to see Mighty Thor on the big screen.
Mighty Thor is a version of Jane Foster imbued with the power of Thor (Chris Hemsworth). She’s a relatively new addition to the Marvel Comics canon, first appearing in 2014. Jane Foster wields Mjolnir and assumes the title of “Mighty Thor” taking on all manner of alien and supernatural powers in her own superhero journey. Though she takes her name (and hammer) from Thor, their powers are not exactly alike. Jane’s Thor brings some new ideas to the table through the implementation of her powers.
Jane Foster’s story in Thor: Love and Thunder is, in broad strokes, similar to her origin story in the comics. She’s been diagnosed with cancer, and it’s not looking great. Jane has always been a strong-willed woman with her heart and mind devoted to science. But science is failing her. Her cancer has reached Stage 4 and the chemotherapy is doing little to help. In these dire straits, Jane remembers the legends surrounding Mjolnir and the variety of powers it can imbue in the wielder, including good health. So Jane sets off to New Asgard to find the broken pieces of Thor’s old hammer. And when she arrives, Mjolnir answers her call.
Love and Thunder’s Mighty Thor shows off her moves for the first time in a fight against Gorr the God Butcher’s (Christian Bale) shadows. She flies through the shadows blasting them with electricity or giving them a good old smack with Mjolnir and drawing the attention of the real Thor, setting the story in full motion. Her first battle puts all of her new abilities on display, by all accounts she’s a near carbon-copy of Thor, but as the film unfolds we learn her abilities are not as straightforward as they seem.
How Do Jane’s Powers Differ From Thor’s?
Well, like Thor, she’s got incredible speed, stamina, and agility. She can dodge and flip through enemy ranks like no one’s business. She also has Thor’s same sense of physical strength and durability. She’s able to punch hard enough to send someone through a car but also has increased defense that would let her shrug off the same move. Mjolnir also grants her the power to fly while holding it much as it did for Thor.
Mighty Thor also possesses Thor’s most iconic ability: the power to manipulate electricity by summoning lighting and storms. She can call down a storm of lightning to rival the OG and fry multiple enemies at once using the broken pieces of Mjolnir as conduits.
While Mighty Thor’s powers are generally pretty similar to that of the Thor we all know and love, Mjolnir makes a big difference in how those powers are implemented. After Ragnarok, Mjolnir is in pieces and this allows Jane some more versatility with the weapon. She can use it as one cohesive unit, all the pieces making one hammer, or she can send off the individual chunks to rain onto her enemies like deadly hail. Like Thor, she can command Mjolnir to move at will – to an extent. She can move the pieces at will so long as she stays with Mjolnir because unlike Thor Odinson, her power is not innate. Jane can only wield the power of Thor while holding Mjolnir thus when she releases it she not only loses her powers but transforms back to her normal self and the effects of her cancer take hold again.
Is Mjolnir the Cure or the Problem?
Jane sought out Mjolnir in the first place after remembering that its powers are said to, among other things, increase stamina and vitality. Science has come up short in her battle against cancer, so Jane hopes to use Mjolnir’s magic and see if that can help her instead. In the film, when Jane holds Mjolnir she transforms physically. She looks healthy, her hair turns a golden blonde, and her strength increases tremendously (plus she gets a cool outfit). Despite the way it makes her look however, Mjolnir is not curing her cancer. It’s accelerating it. The film doesn’t go out of its way to explain this, but the comics help to shed light on the situation.
Jane Foster has been undergoing chemotherapy for months when we catch up with her at the start of Love and Thunder. Her books of mythology speak of Mjolnir’s health buffs but the one it doesn’t mention is that it purges all toxins from her body–including chemo. So though the hammer gives her temporary access to incredible strength and power, its purging capabilities are indiscriminate and end up expediting the spread of her cancer. Though they don’t say it outright in the film, they do say that using Mjolnir has been causing her health to deteriorate faster, and thus it seems likely the comics’ explanation remains true in the films.
Mighty Thor’s powers are much the same as Thor’s in a general sense, but they’re all influenced by the caveat of her abilities being tied to Mjolnir itself. Mjolnir is held together through her power, and they are both on borrowed time. She has the strength, speed, stamina, durability, flight, and dexterity that makes Thor such a force to be reckoned with all while still having the mind of a world-renowned genius. Jane can summon storms and rain lighting on her enemies but every single action she takes comes at a personal toll. Mighty Thor’s power is not an infinite resource as it seemed to be for Thor, it’s a trade of her own life force for power. So long as Jane holds her grip on Mjolnir she is near-invincible, but she cannot maintain that grip forever. Jane Foster’s powers as Mighty Thor are incredibly strong, but they are finite.
Check out more mighty stories about ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’:
[ad_2]
Original Source Link
