Mjolnir was so 2017.
The mystical hammer was vaporized by the villainous Hela in Thor: Ragnarok, leaving Marvel’s God of Thunder in quite the predicament as we approach the release of Avengers: Infinity War.
But fear not, for the Norse god will be packing some serious heat later this year, as all signs point to Thor replacing Mjolnir with Jarnbjorn. It’s the Wrecker of Worlds; a Dwarven-forged battle axe that first featured in Marvel’s comics back when the hero was deemed unworthy to wield his precious hammer. And while a few toy leaks have given us a rough idea of what the weapon will look like, we’ve now got our first real glimpse at it thanks to some promo art.
Down in the gallery below, we actually get to see Thor holding the weapon, and from what we can tell, it won’t be named Jarnbjorn. Instead, it’ll go by Stormbreaker (which, in the comics, is what Beta Ray Bill uses) and is actually some kind of hammer-axe hybrid (again, like what Bill wields). Not only that, but this photo would seem to confirm the theory that at least part of it will be made from Groot’s arm, which is certainly interesting.
Look a little closer, too, and you’ll also notice that the God of Thunder is wearing a battle armor that’s a lot darker than the one seen on him in Ragnarok – perhaps another visual cue that Infinity War will be a more somber affair. It featured in Vanity Fair’s recent 10-year photo shoot, as well, which brought together the leading heroes of the MCU for an epic (and historic!) cover.
Thor isn’t the only Avenger poised for an upgrade, either. In the aftermath of Spider-Man: Homecoming, we know that Tom Holland’s Peter Parker will be suiting up as the Iron Spider, while we fully expect Tony Stark to be bringing along some new enhancements of his own when the lights go down on May 4th. Oh, and did we mention Cap will have an upgraded shield, as well?
Getting back to the God of Thunder though, and after raking in roughly $850 million worldwide, Thor: Ragnarok has undoubtedly cemented its place in the Marvel pantheon. It sets the stage quite nicely for Avengers: Infinity War, too, given that one of its post-credits scenes showed the almighty Sanctuary II (AKA Thanos’ gargantuan warship) looming into view.