Destroyer (Thor)

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For other uses, see Destroyer (comics).
Destroyer
TheDestroyer.jpg
The Destroyer
Publication information
PublisherMarvel Comics
First appearanceJourney into Mystery #118 (July 1965)
Created byStan Lee (writer)
Jack Kirby (artist)
In story information
TypeWeapon
Element of stories featuringAsgard

The Destroyer is a fictional magical character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Usually depicted as an opponent of the Thunder God and hero Thor, it is in fact a suit of Asgardian armor animated by magic. The character first appears in Journey into Mystery #118 (Jul. 1965) and was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.[1]

Debuting in the Silver Age of Comic Books, the Destroyer is featured in over four decades of Marvel continuity and other Marvel-endorsed products such as animated television series, live-action films, video games, and merchandise such as action figures and trading cards. Due to trademark issues, at least one toy version of this character is marketed as Marvel's Destroyer.[2] The Destroyer appears in the 2011 live-action film Thor.

Fictional history[]

The Destroyer is an enchanted suit of armor forged by the King of the Norse gods, Odin. When it first appeared it was hinted that the Destroyer had been created as a weapon to face some dark menace from the stars. First seen in the Temple of Darkness in Asia, the Destroyer is used by Thor's arch-foe Loki against him. Animated by a nearby lifeforce, it battles Thor to a standstill, Loki is forced to intervene and stop the Destroyer using lethal force when Odin threatens to kill him. Thor then buries the armor under a mountain slide.[3][4]

The armor is briefly used again by Loki in a failed bid to kill Odin,[5] before being salvaged by Karnilla, Queen of the Norns, and animated by Thor's companion Sif, who attempted to use it to battle the villain the Wrecker when Thor was temporarily deprived of his godhood and powers. The Destroyer, however, attacks Thor, with the battle ending when Sif breaks her connection with it.[6]

Thor later offers the armor to the World Devourer Galactus, in exchange for releasing his current Herald, Firelord.[7][8] Galactus accepts, and the Destroyer acts as his Herald, detecting Counter-Earth for the entity before going on to battle the Fantastic Four.[9] The Destroyer is finally recaptured for reuse by Loki.[10]

When the menace from the stars is revealed to be the Celestials, Thor learns the Skyfather gods (Odin, Zeus, etc.) pooled their resources a millennium before to create the Destroyer as a weapon to stop the arrival of the so-called Fourth Host of Celestials. At the penultimate moment, Odin enters the Destroyer armor and then absorbs the life essences of all present in Asgard (with the exception of the absent Thor), growing to a height of 2,000 feet (610 m). The Destroyer then draws the Odinsword, and together with the Uni-Mind confronts the Fourth Host. The Celestials, however, dissipate the Uni-Mind and melt the Destroyer armor into slag, scattering the life-forces of the Asgardians.[11] The initiative of the Skymother goddesses pacifies the Celestials, and Thor revives his people via Odin by using a fraction of the gathered power of the other Skyfathers.[12]

Loki eventually finds the remains of the Destroyer and reforms it in a bid to destroy Thor, who has been reduced to pulp after a triumphant but destructive battle against the Midgard Serpent. The Destroyer, however, cannot kill Thor due to a curse induced by the Norse Queen of the dead, Hela which made his bones brittle and incapable of healing or dying.[13] Thor wrests control of the armor from the host—an enthralled Frost Giant named Siggorth—through sheer force of will and goes on to defeat Loki. The Destroyer - depicted as thinking and speaking for the first time - tries to take back control from Thor but fails. Wearing Thor's raiment and wielding his hammer Mjolnir, the Destroyer confronts Hela and forces her to restore Thor to human form.[14][15] The Destroyer is left in a crystal in Hela's realm, and is eventually animated by the goddess Lorelei. Lorelei battles several Asgardians and subsequently becomes trapped in the dimension of the Great Beasts.[16]

The Destroyer is later deployed by trolls, who empower it with the spirit of the villain Maestro, an evil future version of the Hulk. Unable to physically stop the Destroyer, the Hulk enters the armor on the mental plane- exploiting the fact that the Maestro is still technically him and hence 'tricking' the Destroyer into absorbing his soul as well- and banishes the Maestro back to his weakened original body.[17] Thor has two more encounters with the Destroyer, with the armor almost killing him on the first occasion and breaking his jaw on the second.[18][19] The armor is eventually retrieved by Loki and occupied by the entity Desak, although Thor—equipped with the Odinpower—decapitates it with one throw of Mjolnir.[20]

The Asgardian god Balder takes control of the armor when Thor was on a quest to locate his missing people,[21] with villain Doctor Doom later using a copy of the Destroyer armor to attack the Asgardians.[22]

After Thor loses the ability to wield Mjolnir,[23] and the hammer is claimed by an unknown woman,[24] Odin dispatches the Destroyer - animated by his brother Cull the Serpent - to reclaim it.[25] Queen of the gods Frigga forces Odin to withdraw the Destroyer when she confronts him with the knowledge that he has essentially become the villain with his unprovoked attack.[26]

Powers and abilities[]

The Destroyer is forged from an unknown and enchanted metal. The Destroyer armor possesses superhuman strength, stamina and is practically invulnerable. It is capable of energy projection, matter manipulation and when lowered the armor's visor can fire a disintegration beam.

Although the Destroyer can act independently for brief periods,[14] the construct is typically lifeless until animated by the life-force of a sentient living being. Once animated, the Destroyer retains a rudimentary base personality that will eventually subvert the host unless the latter is a particularly strong-willed individual.[4][14] Odin is also capable of casting a spell that can force the animating persona from the armor and deactivate it.[4]

Other versions[]

  • During the Secret Wars storyline,[27] the villain the Maestro seeks the Destroyer armor, now guarded by the 'Ancient One', an elderly version of Rick Jones.[28]

In other media[]

Television[]

The character appears in:

  • Episode 6 of the "Mighty Thor" segment of The Marvel Super Heroes (1966).
  • Episode 26 ("Powerless") in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes (2010 - 2012).
  • Episode 12 ("Itsy Bitsy Spider-Man") in Season 2 of the Ultimate Spider-Man animated series (2013).
  • The Destroyer appears in the Avengers Assemble animated series, voiced by Maurice LaMarche (in "The Doomstroyer"),[29] and by Jim Meskimen (in "A Friend in Need").[30]
  • The Destroyer appears in the Guardians of the Galaxy animated series.[citation needed] In the episode "Stuck in the Metal with You", the Destroyer was found on the planet Retsemaw where Destroyer was part of a peace deal between the Spartax and the Asgardians. Rocket Raccoon activates Destroyer during the Guardians of the Galaxy's fight with the Black Order and easily defeats them. The Destroyer armor is brought to Knowhere where the Guardians of the Galaxy hope that the Broker would help to figure it out. When a bar patron insults, Rocket Raccoon uses the Destroyer armor to attack. Rocket Raccoon soon loses control of the Destroyer armor causing Drax the Destroyer to fight Destroyer until Loki shows up on Knowhere. Loki then controls the Destroyer armor to attack the Guardians of the Galaxy. With help from Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon was able to break Loki's control on the Destroyer armor to use to defeat Loki. The Destroyer armor then takes Loki back to Asgard. In the episode "Asgard War Part One: Lightnin' Strikes", the Destroyer armor accompanies Thor's group to Spartax as part of the war between Asgard and Spartax. As Rocket Raccoon obtains the information they need from the Destroyer armor that involves Loki stealing back the Cosmic Seed from , Loki takes control of the Destroyer armor in order to attack Thor. In the episode "Asgard War Part Two: Rescue Me", the Destroyer armor accompanies Thor and Angela into helping the Guardians of the Galaxy rescue Star-Lord from Thanos.

Film[]

  • The Destroyer appears in the 2011 live-action film Thor.[31]

Video games[]

  • The Destroyer appears as a boss in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance.[citation needed] Loki's mind inhabits the armor after tricking the superheroes into releasing the Destroyer. In addition to possessing great strength and power, the Destroyer is invulnerable to all attacks. Only by having the Destroyer fire a concussive blast at the crystal containing Loki's body can both characters be defeated.
  • The Destroyer armor is an unlockable costume in Thor: God of Thunder, which acts as a prequel to the film.[citation needed] Thor retains his red cape while wearing the Destroyer armor.
  • The Destroyer is featured as a boss in the Facebook game Marvel: Avengers Alliance and later on can be unlocked as a playable character.[citation needed]
  • The Destroyer appears in Lego Marvel Super Heroes.[32]
  • The Destroyer is a playable character in Marvel: Future Fight.[citation needed]
  • The Destroyer is a playable character in Lego Avengers.[citation needed]
  • The Destroyer appears as a boss in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order, voiced by Liam O'Brien.[33] When the Red Skull and Hela attempt to take over Asgard, Hela transfers Red Skull's soul into the Destroyer armor which proves to be nearly invincible until Odin shows up to destroy the Destroyer.

Merchandise[]

  • The Destroyer was included as a chase variant in the 15th wave of Toy Biz's 6" Marvel Legends action figure line.[citation needed]
  • A figure of Destroyer was released in wave 39 of the Marvel Minimates line.[citation needed]
  • Destroyer was released in the Battle for Asgard's Vault 3-pack from the Marvel Super Hero Squad line, packaged with figures of Thor and Loki.[citation needed]
  • Two figures of the Destroyer were released in Hasbro's 3.75" Thor: The Mighty Avenger movie tie-in line. Additionally, an 8" figure was released in that same line.[citation needed]
  • The popular strategy miniatures game HeroClix, by , has featured the Destroyer in two of its sets, Hammer of Thor and the Avengers Movie set.[citation needed]
  • Funko released a bobblehead for the Destroyer based on the 2011 Thor movie. It was only available in certain Bethany Beach, Delaware stores unboxed in mint condition.[citation needed]

References[]

  1. ^ DeFalco, Tom; Sanderson, Peter; Brevoort, Tom; Teitelbaum, Michael; Wallace, Daniel; Darling, Andrew; Forbeck, Matt; Cowsill, Alan; Bray, Adam (2019). The Marvel Encyclopedia. DK Publishing. p. 109. ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
  2. ^ Hasbro.com - Inferno Marvel's Destroyer
  3. ^ Journey into Mystery #118-119 (Jul. - Aug. 1965)
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Thor Annual #2 (Sept. 1966)
  5. ^ Thor Annual #2 (June 1966)
  6. ^ Thor #150-152 (Mar. - May 1968)
  7. ^ Thor #224-225 (June - July 1974)
  8. ^ Thor #228 (Oct. 1974)
  9. ^ Fantastic Four #172-174 (Jul. - Sept. 1976)
  10. ^ Thor #264-266 (Oct. - Dec. 1977)
  11. ^ Thor #300 (Oct. 1980)
  12. ^ Thor #301 (Nov. 1980)
  13. ^ Thor #380 (Jun. 1987)
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b c Thor #381 (Jul. 1987)
  15. ^ Thor #382 (Aug. 1987)
  16. ^ Thor #437-441 (Oct. - Dec. 1991)
  17. ^ Incredible Hulk #461 (Feb. 1998)
  18. ^ Thor vol. 2, #1-2 (Jul. - Aug. 1998)
  19. ^ Thor vol. 2, #36 (June 2001)
  20. ^ Thor vol. 2, #79 (Jul. 2004)
  21. ^ Thor vol. 3, #5 (Jan. 2008)
  22. ^ Thor #605 (Jan. 2010).
  23. ^ Original Sin #7 (Aug. 2014).
  24. ^ Thor vol. 4 #1 (Dec. 2014)
  25. ^ Thor vol. 4 #7 (June 2015)
  26. ^ Thor vol. 4 #8 (July 2015)
  27. ^ May 2015 - Jan. 2016. Marvel Comics.
  28. ^ Future Imperfect 4 - 5 (Aug - Sept). Marvel Comics.
  29. ^ "The Doomstroyer". Avengers Assemble. Season 1. Episode 10. September 22, 2013. Disney XD.
  30. ^ "A Friend in Need". Avengers Assemble. Season 3. Episode 15. September 11, 2016. Disney XD.
  31. ^ "Exclusive: First Look At The Destroyer From THOR!". Retrieved 2010-07-24.
  32. ^ http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/jpdqdo/lego-marvel-super-heroes-e3-2013--character-walkthrough--cam-
  33. ^ "MARVEL ULTIMATE ALLIANCE 3: THE BLACK ORDER". behindthevoiceactors.com.

External links[]

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