| The Midgard Serpent | |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| First appearance | Marvel Tales #105 (February 1952) |
| Created by | Stan Lee (writer) Jack Kirby (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Full name | Jormungand |
| Place of origin | Earth |
| Notable aliases | The World Serpent,Fin Fang Foom |
| Abilities | Extreme strength and stamina Fire and venom generation Illusion projection |
Jormungand, also known asthe Midgard Serpent andthe World Serpent, is a character appearing inAmerican comic books published byMarvel Comics. The character, based on the serpentJörmungandr fromNorse mythology, first appears inMarvel Tales #105 (Feb. 1952), in the period between theGolden Age of Comic Books and theSilver Age of Comic Books.
The Midgard Serpent debuted inMarvel Tales #105 (February 1952) and was later tied firmly to Marvel continuity in theSilver Age of Comic Books inThor #127 (April 1966). As in Norse mythology, the Marvel version of the Midgard Serpent is thenemesis of the Thunder God, who has two encounters with the creature – the events based directly on mythology – inThor #272-273 (June–July 1978).
An attempt to cheat the fatal prophecy made regarding a final battle between Thor and the Serpent occurred inThor #274-278 (July–December 1978), although the creature returned inThor #325 (November 1982-January 1983). A "larger than life" battle between Thor and the Serpent was depicted inThor #379-380 (May–June 1987), with writer-artistWalter Simonson using asplash page to depict the creature's size, and then full pages to demonstrate the battle between the pair.
Although killed, the Serpent wasresurrected inThor #486-488 (May–July 1995), and featured inThe Avengers vol. 3 #1 (February 1998) before reappearing inThor vol. 2 #80 (August 2004).
The Midgard Serpent first appears when a scientist draws what he believes to be venom from a statue of the creature, the liquid becoming a deadlysolvent.[1]
In the realm ofAsgard, the seerVolla makes aprophecy thatThor will battle the Midgard Serpent duringRagnarök after it surfaces from the ocean. He will succeed in killing it, but die from its venom immediately afterwards.[2]
Thor has two encounters with the creature that reflect the Norse myths. The first is a visit to the castle of the Storm GiantUtgard-Loki, who excels in the use ofillusions. Challenging Thor to lift his pet "cat", who in reality is the Midgard Serpent, the Storm Giant is terrified when Thor lifts all but one of the cat's feet off the ground.[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 anox on a chain to draw the Midgard Serpent to the surface of the ocean. Although the creature takes the bait, Thor is unable to deliver the killing blow as Hymir cuts the chain.[4]
Being aware of the prophecy regarding his son's death, Asgard's kingOdin cheats fate during a false Ragnarok by replacing Thor with a surrogate known asRed Norvell, who, after gaining the power of Thor and his hammer, dies battling the Midgard Serpent.[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. It is used as a bridge by Tyr and Loki's army. Thor imprisons the creature and forces it to return the apples.[6]
The character appears on Earth disguised as the monsterFin Fang Foom after some Giants summon him using one of them as bait on a giant fishing rod. After the deception is revealed, the Midgard Serpent battles Thor to the death. He attacks Thor in a park still disguised as Fin Fang Foom, but does not recognize Thor, who is wearing his Asgardian armor. After apologizing and talking to Thor, Fin Fang Foom says if Thor can lift his big toe, he will battle the "super hero" (Thor) away from the city. Thor is able to lift his big toe and rides him away from the city. When he realizes he does not know his foe's name, Thor tells him. The presence of the Midgard Serpent on Earth causes time to stop for everything except the two opponents and other mythic creatures. Although Thor finally kills the creature,Hela curses him with brittle bones.[7] Thor "resurrects" himself by forcing Hela to recreate his body and free him from her curse.[8]
The Midgard Serpent is released from Hel (the Norse land of the dead) by theAsgardian warriorKurse to use against Thor, who is swallowed by the creature. Together with allyBeta Ray Bill, Thor blasts free of the creature's stomach and kills it a second time.[9]
The Midgard Serpent is apparentlyresurrected byMorgan le Fay, who summons it to Earth to distract the superhero team the Avengers while she abducts theScarlet Witch.[10] The Midgard Serpent briefly reappears during Ragnarök.[11]
During theSecret Wars storyline, King Loki, an alternate timeline variant of Loki, frees the Midgard Serpent from Hel to attack Asgard.[12]
InThor (vol. 6),Donald Blake kills the Midgard Serpent, steals its power, and combines it with theOdinforce to transform into a Serpent hybrid.[13][14]
The Midgard Serpent normally exists in anethereal form around Earth. A huge serpent, the character has immense strength and stamina, can generate both lethal fire andvenom, and project powerful illusions. He can cause earthquakes by flexing his coils around Earth.[15]
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