- "We were once the seat of absolute power in the cosmos. Our supremacy was unchallenged. Yet Odin stopped at Nine Realms. Our destiny is to rule over all others. And I am here to restore that power."
- ―Hela to the Einherjar[src]
Hela Odinsdottir was the Asgardian Goddess of Death and former Executioner of Asgard. Imprisoned in Hel for millennia by her father Odin, Hela was released from her prison in the wake of his death and went to restore her power over Asgard, while simultaneously engaging in a series of encounters with her younger brothers Thor and Loki. Gaining her power from Asgard, Hela planned to rule Asgard and create an Asgardian Empire. When all the people of Asgard refused to bow to her, Hela set about massacring Odin's armies and enslaving the people, while recruiting Skurge to be her own Executioner in the process. Eventually however, Thor returned with the newly formed Revengers and then reengaged Hela, which had then resulted in Loki unleashing Surtur, who then destroyed Asgard by finally causing Ragnarök and killed Hela as a result.
Biography
Rise and Fall
Conquests with Odin
The oldest child of Odin Borson, Hela served as her father's personal executioner and the leader of the Einherjar, helping to conquer the Nine Realms through violence and war. During their conquests, Odin rode his steed Sleipnir while Hela was gifted with her giant wolf named Fenris and used both Mjølnir and her own Necroswords as her main choices of weaponry. Odin, however, after realizing that bringing peace was the true way to unite the Nine Realms, saw Hela's over-ambitiousness, combined with her formidable power, as a threat to his peace that he had managed to create across the Nine Realms.[1]
Banished to Hel
Hela and Odin charge into battle together
Ultimately all of Hela's desires for ruling over more than simply Nine Realms had become too ambitious and attempted to take over the throne sometime after Odin became a peace-time king. Entering into a conflict against her father, Hela massacred many Asgardians within the Asgardian Palace and attacked Odin, who finally was forced to accept that Hela had grown too dangerous and was forced to battle her in the process, ultimately defeating his daughter in combat.
Hela ruling over the Nine Realms with Odin
Upon defeating Hela, Odin showed that he was incapable of killing her despite all she had done, so Odin was left with no other choice and banished her from Asgard by then imprisoning his only daughter within Hel for millennia with his life force acting as the lock to her new prison. Odin then proceeded to write her out of all Asgard's history, replacing the mural depicting her conquests within their throne room of his palace with images of Thor and Loki, his new children.[1]
Failing to Break Free
Hela battles against the Valkyries
Eventually Hela had attempted to escape from her imprisonment within Hel, seeking to continue her quest to take the throne of Asgard and enslave all the Nine Realms. Hela's attempt at freedom prompted Odin to send the Valkyries to stop her and ensure that she was unable to get free. As the Valkyrie charged forward atop of their steeds, Hela saw them coming and prepared to fight back.
Hela successfully massacres the Valkyries
Hela proceeded to use her Necroswords to slice down the Valkyrie as they charged towards her, quickly proving herself to still be vastly more powerful than the entire army of the elite warriors. Hela was successful in overpowering the Valkyrie and, with the exception of their leader Brunhilde, killing them all, however, she was overpowered when Odin intervened and reimprisoned, remaining in her prison for thousands of years, awaiting the death of her own father.[1]
Return to Power
Confrontation in Norway
Hela escapes Hel after an entire millennia
In the wake of the death of Odin, his power over Hela's imprisonment within Hel finally waned until there was no longer any force keeping her at bay. She stepped out of a portal-like gateway soon after and arrived in Norway on Midgard, the site of her father's death as she mused that she would have liked to see his death. Confronted by Odin's younger children who were waiting for her, Thor and Loki, Hela then mockingly noted that Thor did not look like Odin at all.
Hela catches and easily destroys Mjølnir
When Loki had attempted to make a truce with her, Hela sarcastically stated he sounded more like Odin than Thor did. Forgoing all civility, Hela authoritatively ordered both her younger brothers to kneel down before her, as she is their new queen of the Nine Realms. Thor then defiantly refused and instead chose to end their conflict quickly as he then promptly launched Mjølnir towards her, but as she had been the hammer's first wielder, Hela easily caught it still in mid-air.
Thor, incredulous, declared such a thing impossible, but Hela cruelly sneered that he had no idea of the possibilities that await, followed immediately by her proceeding to destroy the hammer with her bare hands and restoring her headdress. In a state of surprise and panic, Loki ordered Volstagg to take him and Thor back to Asgard where he believed they would be safe from Hela's homicidal rage, which Thor desperately attempted to stop from happening, but was too late.
However, as the Bifrost Bridge was opened, Hela had swiftly followed them, leaping through the light of the Bifrost after the two, where she knocked Loki out of Bifrost Bridge to another location after catching and throwing back his knife when he had tried to defend himself. She then proceeded to chase Thor, subduing him and knocking him out of Bifrost as well. Assuming the two princes of Asgard had died, Hela continued towards Heimdall's Observatory immediately after.[1]
Siege of Asgard
Hela finally returns back into Asgard
Emerging into Heimdall's Observatory, Hela had immediately begun regaining her powers as she then encountered the Observatory's two guardians, Volstagg and Fandral, who demanded to know who Hela was. Ignoring their demands, Hela simply responded by promptly executing the Warriors Three soldiers in cold blood without a second thought.
Hela prepares to finally return into Asgard
Observing the murders from a distance was Skurge, who knelt down as Hela approached him and claimed that he was merely the janitor as he tried to protect his own life knowing he was no match for Hela. Declaring him to be a smart boy who also likely had good survival instincts, the Goddess offered him a job before crossing the Rainbow Bridge that led to Asgard, smiling as she considered the power that would soon be coming her way, with Skurge following her.
Hela stands against Asgard's entire army
Upon reaching the city's entrance, Hela found Hogun and the entire armies of the Einherjar waiting for her. Hela then calmly revealed her identity before announcing that Odin was now dead, along with both Thor and Loki, making her the sole heir to the throne. Hela then gave the soldiers the chance to become her allies only for Hogun to state they would never recognize her as their leader as he then led the entire army of the Einherjar in charging towards her.
Hela slaughters the army of the Einherjar
The disappointed Goddess simply commented on how she thought the Asgardians would have been happy to see her before she then proceeded to summon her Necroswords and engaged the army in combat, using her powers of telekinesis and weapon manifestation to slaughter them as well as destroy several Asgardian Skiffs. Having smashed Hogun through a wall, Hela managed to overpower every soldier attacking her until the ground was littered with corpses.
Hela prepares to finally execute Hogun
When the last of the army was taken down and slaughter, Hela took great pleasure as she slowly made her way through the courtyard, relishing in her reawakened bloodlust as a horrified Skurge followed her in silence. Hogun made a final attempt to stop her, demanding that she return back to Hel and attempting to avenge his friends, only for Hela to cut him down easily with a spear through his chest before deciding to finally return into Asgardian Palace at long last.[1]
Rebuilding the Army
- "What have they done to you? With the Eternal Flame, you are reborn. I've missed you. I've missed you all."
- ―Hela to Berserkers[src]
With its armies wiped out, Asgard remained defenseless allowing Hela to finally retake the throne for herself. Upon arriving back inside of the Asgardian Palace, Hela saw the ceiling was decorated with a mural of Odin ruling the Nine Realms in peace. Disgusted, Hela then destroyed the mural of her father above it, revealing the original behind it which showed herself and Odin using violence to conquer the Nine Realms.
Hela explores Odin's Vault for his treasures
Noting that the armies of Einherjar were once buried underneath the palace, Hela and Skurge then broke into Odin's Vault to look upon the treasures he had hidden away inside there. Upon arriving inside however, Hela declared the Infinity Gauntlet displayed there as being a fake, before calling the Casket of Ancient Winters a weak object and viewed the Crown of Surtur as smaller than she thought it would be while making her way down the Vault's long corridor.
Hela takes the power of the Eternal Flame
Although Hela became briefly interested in the Tesseract, she still focused her attention on the Eternal Flame which she declared was the greatest of them all. Placing her hand inside the fire, Hela took the flame into her hand before turning to Skurge and offering him the chance to see what true power looked like. Hela then summoned one of her Necroswords and used it to smash through the floor of the Vault, revealing the secret tomb which was hidden underneath.
Hela resurrects her army of the Berserkers
Leaping all the way down inside of their secret tomb, Hela explored the legions of dead Asgardian soldiers buried there and discovered the corpse of Fenris, much to Hela's horror and sadness. Hela then proceeded to use the power of the Eternal Flame to resurrect Fenris and the fallen soldiers, turning them into her Berserkers. As all of the soldiers and wolf came before her, Hela welcomed them into her new army while claiming that she had missed all of them.[1]
Promoting Skurge
Hela decides to make Skurge her Executioner
With her entire army of Berserkers by her side, Hela finally retook the throne of Asgard only to discover that the Asgardians themselves were beginning a revolution against her and were attempting to break into the Asgardian Palace to dethrone her. Wishing to show her true strength to all of these rebels, Hela dubbed Skurge as her Executioner, gifting him with a Bloodaxe which she had created.
Unbeknownst to both Hela and Skurge, however, Heimdall had just recently returned into Asgard and had successfully stolen his former sword, Hofund from Heimdall's Observatory. As Hela and Skurge had arrived at the Observatory with the Berserkers, Hela realized that the sword was gone, noting that it controlled the Bifrost Bridge, which prevented Hela from conquering the Nine Realms as she had been planning to do for years, which had greatly enraged Hela.[1]
Hunt for the Sword
Hela and Fenris threaten all of the Asgardians
- "Some misguided soul has stolen the Bifrost sword. Tell us where it is or there will be consequences. Bad ones. Well?"
"You... Well? Executioner?" - ―Skurge and Hela[src]
Discovering the disappearance of Hofund, Hela set about punishing the people of Asgard with her Berserkers until Heimdall had finally surrendered the sword. With the Asgardians gathered before her, Hela ordered Skurge to give them all one final chance before she chose one woman at random from within the crowd of terrified innocents for Skurge to then execute with his Bloodaxe, while Hela and Fenris watched all this terror unfolding before them with delight.
Hela attempts to locate the hidden Asgardians
Hela's plan eventually worked as one of the men in the crowd finally stepped forward and confessed to the sword's location in order to save the woman. Hela and her Executioner then located the Hidden Stronghold where Heimdall and the remaining Asgardians opposed to her rule were hiding out. Hela proceeded to use her Necroswords to destroy the doorway to the Stronghold, only to discover that they had fled shortly before her arrival having sensed her coming.[1]
Duel in the Asgardian Palace
Hela discovers Thor waiting to challenge her
However, while both Hela and Skurge had just been searching for all the Asgardians who had escaped them, Thor and the Revengers had returned to Asgard in order to evacuate its people and fight Hela. Thor went inside the throne room and awaited Hela's arrival, banging Gungnir on the ground of the Asgardian Palace to summon her. Hela arrived soon after as she expressed her surprise that Thor had survived falling out of the Bifrost Bridge during their last encounter.
Hela demands that Thor get out of her throne
Hela and Thor then discussed Odin and his many faults, with Hela noting how Odin covered up every problem, he would cast it out, continuing that he had told them both they were worthy. Hela then claimed that Thor had never known his father had his best, noting that during their Subjugation of the Nine Realms, Hela and Odin had drowned entire civilizations in blood before he chose to rule in peace. Thor accepted Hela's rage but insisted that she could not rule.
Hela furiously fights against her brother Thor
As Thor and Hela quoted Odin's message that the wise king should never seek out war, but must always be ready for it, they charged at each other and engaged in a fierce battle for Asgard. With Thor now armed with Gungnir and the power of Odinforce, he furiously battled against his sister, who was able to absorb many of the blows without being badly wounded, before claiming to have expected more and unleashed her own power, launching Thor across the palace.
Hela proves herself to be the superior warrior
With her power considerably stronger than Thor's, Hela managed to grab her brother by the throat and pinned him against a gold pillar, claiming that the difference between them was that she was Odin's firstborn and the rightful heir to the throne and the true savior of Asgard, all while Thor was nothing. Hela then threw Thor across the palace and, despite Thor putting up a strong fight, Hela was easily able to overpower him and knock him down to the floor.
Hela manages to cut out one of Thor's eyes
Despite Thor still desperately trying to fight back against her, Hela merely drew her Necroswords and sliced him across the stomach, causing him to drop onto his knees. Hela then commented that her victory was so obvious even a blind man could see it before slashing at Thor's face, resulting in the loss of one of Thor's eyes. Seeing this, Hela merely winced before then commenting that without one of his eyes Thor finally looked a lot more like their father had done.
Hela grins as she vastly overpowers Thor
Dragging him onto the balcony, Hela forced Thor to watch on as her undead army of Berserkers as well as Fenris assaulted his allies and the remaining Asgardians, including Heimdall, on the Bifrost. Hela began tormenting Thor, claiming she would soon take Hofund and unleash her army on the Nine Realms despite Thor's efforts, however she then witnessed the arrival of Loki on the Statesman with several Sakaaran gladiators including Korg and Miek had come to help.
Hela is hit by Thor's massive lightning bolt
But even with of those reinforcements, Hela's army was still slowly overwhelming them as she continued taunting Thor by claiming to be the goddess of death and asking what he had been the god of. Thor, however, experienced a vision of Odin offering up his wisdom. Thor then unleashed a massive lighting blast, destroying a balcony of the Royal Palace and temporarily stunning Hela. He then leaped down to the Bifrost to fight off Hela's Berserkers and save his people.[1]
Battle of the Rainbow Bridge
Hela stepping back onto the Rainbow Bridge
Having eventually recovering from Thor's incredibly powerful blast of lightning, Hela arrived onto the Rainbow Bridge, where she had then discovered that her army of Berserkers had been overpowered, due to the arrival of both Loki and the Sakaaran Rebellion. As Hela took her time walking back to the Bridge, she was challenged by Thor and Valkyrie who were discussing how they could possibly hope to defeat Hela, who was clearly more powerful than any of them.
Hela is furiously attacked by the powerful Thor
Realizing they were attempting to get the Asgardians to safety, Hela made were move towards them as Thor charged himself up with his lightning. Seeing this, Hela then launched Necroswords at him, which Thor was able to destroy in midair before attacking Hela. While Thor furiously slashed at Hela with his twin swords which were now both charged up with his lightning, these attacks had almost no impact as Hela simply backed away before launching Thor over her shoulder.
Hela manages to block all Valkyrie's strikes
However, just as Hela got back to her feet, she was then attacked by Valkyrie who had slashed at Hela with her Dragonfang, attempting to avenge the Massacre of the Valkyrie. Hela was still able to block all Valkyrie's blows, taking no damage as she threw Valkyrie aside, only to immediately be attacked by Thor once again. Hela had continued launching her Necroswords at Thor, but he simply destroyed them all in midair, before landing his heavy lightning blow against Hela.
Hela refuses to let all the Asgardians escape
Eventually, Hela struck Thor hard in the shoulder with a Necrosword before focusing on fighting Valkyrie. During this, Thor told Heimdall to escape with the remaining Asgardians, only for Hela to see this and throw him aside. Unwilling to allow all the Asgardians to escape with their lives, Hela launched several massive Necroswords out from the water which pierced the underside of the Statesman, causing it to be unable to leave as even more Berserkers then began attacking.
Hela nonchalantly executing the Executioner
Just as the Berserkers had reached the Statesman and cut down the guards, Hela was betrayed by the Executioner who refused to allow all his people to be slaughtered. Using Des and Troy, the Executioner began gunning down the Berserkers, destroying the Necrosword and allowing the Statesman to escape from Asgard. Upon witnessing this betrayal, Hela launched a single Necrosword that pierced through the Executioner's Asgardian Armor, as he fell onto the ground dead.[1]
Destruction of Asgard
Hela watches while the Asgardians escape
With all the Asgardians now escaping onboard the Statesman due to the actions of the Executioner, Hela was then called out by Thor who demanded that they end their fight once and for all. Turning away from Valkyrie to face her brother, Hela was told that if she wanted, she could have Asgard, although Hela refused to believe that Thor was not playing his games with her, which she claimed would never work and noted that Thor stood no chance of being able to defeat her.
Hela being struck down by Thor's lightning
To Hela's surprise, Thor acknowledged that he would not be able to defeat her, pointing back to their Asgardian Palace and claimed that he knew who could. Hela then watched in horror as Surtur emerged from the Palace, having been given his Crown by Loki and regained full strength. Before Hela could react, Valkyrie then stabbed her from behind with Dragonfang and Thor then unleashed his lightning strike that sent her through the Bifrost Bridge and into the water below.
Hela attempting to fight back against Surtur
As Surtur fulfilled his destiny to cause Ragnarök, destroying Asgard by burning it to the ground and proclaiming himself to be Asgard's doom, Hela refused to allow the source of all of her power to be lost, launching out the water on her massive Necroswords. Determined to destroy Surtur before Ragnarök could come true, Hela had launched every Necrosword she had at Surtur but caused almost no damage as he had still continued to burn down everything below him.
Hela is obliterated by Surtur's Twilight Sword
Unable to stop Surtur's rampage, Hela was then defenseless as she witnessed Surtur lift up his Twilight Sword high above his head and prepared to fulfill his destiny once and for all. Hela then looked on in horror as Surtur plunged the massive blade down, impaling Hela and completely obliterating her body. Surtur's blade continued down into the core of Asgard, causing the realm to be destroyed in the massive explosion, incinerating any possible remains of Hela into oblivion.[1]
Personality
Hela has a raging, impatient, volatile, and supremely ambitious personality, which makes her prone to killing or maiming anyone who stood in her way. However, much of this is masked by a casual confidence and appearance of friendliness, such as when she returned to Asgard, she casually murdered Volstagg and Fandral, but then offered Skurge a job as if nothing had happened. During Asgard's violent conquest of the Nine Realms, she was an effective and brutal wartime leader due to these traits, and therefore essential to Odin's conquest being a success. However, when Odin transitioned into a peace-time King, he realized that Hela could not, for her ambitions had grown out of his control, and her formidable powers made her a threat to his new society. Indeed, Hela rebelled against Odin and hence, he banished her from Asgard, and later imprisoned her personally when she revolted against him.
After her freedom, she immediately conquered Asgard with little effort, and Heimdall himself described her as being so power-hungry that, if she could access the Bifrost Bridge, she would conquer all of the Nine Realms and even the entire Cosmos. Though Thor acknowledged Odin's paternal deficiencies, during a heart-to-heart confrontation between him and his sister, he still confessed he believed that their father's decision to imprison her instead of letting her rule was an accurate one - Hela made it clear that she would exterminate her entire nation if they stood in the way of her resuming her conquests. She even went as far as to state that she was neither a Queen nor a monster, but the Goddess of Death, which in turn revealed that she was quite content to rule over a dead nation of dead soldiers completely loyal to her.
Hela was also extremely resentful of her imprisonment at the hands of her own father, Odin, whom she was initially loyal enough to willingly execute his will, and even help him conquer the Nine Realms, although she would eventually rebel after Odin grew to become a benevolent king. She gleefully mocked at his death, and openly expressed her wish to have been able to see it herself. However, it was evident that she still felt a high level of betrayal from Odin due to her imprisonment, for she was quickly angered by the concealing murals that displayed only Odin, Thor, and Loki, as well as his peaceful conquering of the Nine Realms. In fact, she was so provoked by them that she immediately threw her swords at those false images, shattering them to reveal the truth of Odin's violent deeds.
Apart from her ambitiousness, Hela's most prominent feature would be her overwhelming confidence; during her first encounter with her brothers, before crossing swords with them, she already made it clear that she viewed them as inferiors who were no match for her, and she later also demonstrated no fear at all when confronting Asgard's army. Though she subsequently proved her point by crushing Mjølnir with only one hand and slaughtered the entire Asgardian army with ease, Hela's hubris also turned out to be her downfall - she underestimated Thor's wisdom, which ultimately led to her being destroyed by Surtur.
Hela is not completely without mercy. The only time she shows mercy is when people agree to serve her or do not stand in her way. When she displayed her overwhelming power, she asked Hogun, who survived her initial onslaught if he was willing to change his mind. Even though Skurge displayed cowardice upon their first meeting, Hela decided to mentor him. However, Hela lacks attachment and will kill anyone who betrays her, even Skurge without hesitation.
Powers and Abilities
Powers
Asgardian Physiology/Supernatural Empowerment.: As the eldest child of Odin, Hela had tremendous superhuman abilities and supernatural powers, which are far superior to those of almost other Asgardian, even Thor, with her still being more powerful than Thor even after he acquired his full powers. Heimdall even claimed that Hela was capable of taking over the cosmos with her powers. Among the few beings powerful enough to surpass Hela's tremendous power are Odin and Surtur at full power. As the firstborn of Odin, Hela has a supernatural connection to the realm Asgard and can draw power from Asgard itself to perform incredible supernatural abilities. Hela can manifest various physical structures out of thin air, ranging from weapons to ground structures to even her own armor. She can even draw power from Asgard to enhance her natural abilities.
Hela crushing Mjølnir with her hand
- Superhuman Strength: Hela possesses tremendous levels of superhuman strength as the oldest child of Odin, which allowed her to single-handedly wipe out all of the Valkyries, with only their leader barely surviving, despite their leader being powerful enough to almost rival the likes of Thor and Hulk, and to even easily catch Mjølnir with one hand after it was thrown at her with full speed and keeping it from returning to Thor's hand, before crushing it in her hand with no visible effort, in spite of it being one of the most powerful weapons in existence, causing it to explode in a blast of lightning. Hela later slaughtered the Warriors Three and the combined might of the Einherjar with ease. Furthermore, she proved to be easily stronger than Thor, who was also a child of Odin in two of their three battles, as she easily overpowered Thor, who showed considerable difficulty in fighting Hela while she showed no strain, and Hela was one of the few strong enough to inflict significant damage to her nearly invulnerable younger brother with ease, as she can effortlessly lift him off his feet and throw him around as well as cause him pain. Even with Thor having gained his full powers, Hela still proved to be too strong for him and she managed to fight and stalemate both him and Valkyrie, who she repeatedly knocked away easily.
- Superhuman Durability: Hela's body, much like that of Thor, appears nigh-invulnerable, only to a much greater degree, which allowed Hela to catch Mjølnir without injury. Hela was even unharmed after grabbing a handful of the Eternal Flame, impaled through the torso with Einherjar's sword and stabbed with Gungnir by Thor without her body or her clothing being damaged, and emerged completely unharmed after a fully-empowered Thor hit her with massive lightning bolts. Indeed, only the revived and fully powered Surtur's Twilight Sword was able to crush her, thus sending the Goddess of Death into oblivion. Apart from Surtur, Odin was the only being capable of doing any significant harm to Hela, as he was able to beat and seal her away.
- Superhuman Speed: Hela can move at exceptionally high speeds, as she was fast enough to easily slay several Einherjar before they could even react and was able to easily keep up with and consistently outpace Thor and Valkyrie in combat, as well as even being fast enough to catch Mjølnir with one hand.
- Superhuman Agility: Hela naturally possesses greater agility, dexterity, balance, and body coordination than that of a human, and even most other Asgardians, with her managing to dodge and outpace Thor and Valkyrie's attacks for the majority of her battles with them and easily jump through a crater and land fully on her feet.
- Superhuman Stamina: Like all Asgardians, Hela's musculature produces considerably less fatigue toxins during physical activity than the musculature of humans or normal Asgardians, allowing her to defeat numerous Asgardians, as well as fight against the combined might of Thor and Valkyrie without tiring.
- Longevity: Due to her connection to Asgard and to Hel, Hela is immortal and will not die, so long as the realm of Asgard exists.
Hela launching her swords at her enemies
- Weapon Manifestation: Hela can manifest various weapons out of different parts of her body, though she would usually generate Necroswords, daggers, spears, and axes. These weapons are incredibly durable and sharp, enough to not only instantly kill the likes of the Warriors Three and Skurge, but also even pierce right through Thor's nigh-invulnerable body, with Hela thus gouging his right eye out with a Necrosword and pierce his back with a blade from her elbow. She also manifested the Bloodaxe, which she then gave to Skurge. While pursuing Thor and Loki through the Bifrost Bridge, Hela conjured a triangular shield on her forearm to take the impact of Thor's punch, causing it to break apart. Hela later launched oversize blades into a large gate to a secret cave where the fleeing Asgardians were hiding, allowed her to bring it down by pulling the blades down along with the gate.
- Structure Manifestation: Hela could manifest metallic, blade-like structures from the ground surrounding her, as seen when she attempted to prevent Loki's spaceship containing the Asgardians from launching from the doomed realm, and later when she attempted to gain elevation during her short battle with Surtur.
- Armor Manifestation: After being freed by Odin's death, Hela was able to repair the damage to her clothing and make her headdress appear and disappear from her head. Her armor enhances her already tremendous durability and allows her to block strikes from weapons as powerful as Gungnir, which glanced off of her armor in a shower of sparks. Hela's cape is also highly durable as she was able to use it to block attacks from several Asgardian Skiffs.
- Necromancy: Hela, as the "Goddess of Death", demonstrated being able to resurrect her allies, using a handful of flame from the Eternal Flame and tossing it against the ground to create a huge blast of green infernal energy. As such, she was able to revive her pet wolf Fenris and her Berserkers after discovering their corpses under Odin's Vault. She has ruled in the realm of Hel, where the souls of those who died without being honored are driven to.
Abilities
- Master Combatant: Hela was an immensely formidable and deadly warrior in both armed and hand-to-hand combat, as she was the original owner of Mjølnir and the chief of the legion of Asgard as well as Odin's Executioner. Her skills are so tremendous that she easily managed to single-handedly slay the entire Einherjar army of Asgard, as well as swiftly slay all of the Warriors Three who were among the greatest warriors of Asgard. Indeed, Hela's combat skills are shown to be superior to even Valkyrie and Thor who are immensely skilled and powerful Asgardian warriors in their own right, as she could quickly overpower Thor in their first confrontation and ultimately beat him in their second without much effort, even gouging out Thor's right eye with her Necrosword, as well as having easily defeated Valkyrie in battle while she single-handedly slaughtered the Valkyries. She was even able to fight both the full-power Thor and Valkyrie on equal grounds for a prolonged amount of time and even slowly gained the upper hand, with only Loki's sudden resurrection of Surtur and beginning of Ragnarök allowing them to defeat her. Only Odin was ever able to defeat Hela in battle, having been the one who cast her out of Asgard and imprisoned her in Hel.
- Sword Mastery: While Hela usually prefers to fight with her bare hands and telekinetically hurled weapons, she is also a tremendously skilled swordsman, typically wielding the Necroswords. Indeed, Hela's skills allowed her to easily slaughter all of Asgard's Einherjar and Valkyries.
- Expert Leader: As the Chief of the Legion of Asgard and Odin's Executioner, Hela was known to be a very effective and brutal leader, with her skills in leadership being essential in Asgard's violent conquest of the Nine Realms.
Equipment
- Helmet: To be added
- Mjølnir: Hela was the first owner of Mjølnir as the Executioner of Asgard and King Odin's first-born, until she was imprisoned in Hel by her own father. After her banishment, it was passed down to Thor, until she herself destroyed it after Thor threw the weapon at her upon her freedom.
- Necroswords: Hela is capable of manifesting Necroswords from her body, which she usually uses as throwing weapons but she also is exceptionally capable with using these swords for melee combat. These swords are more than strong and durable enough to instantly kill the Warriors Three each with a single stab, and even harm Thor.
- "But this... the Eternal Flame. Want to see what true power really looks like?"
- ―Hela to Skurge[src]
Hela unleashing the Eternal Flame's power
- Eternal Flame: Hela utilized the power of the Eternal Flame to resurrect her undead warriors as well as her loyal pet Asgardian wolf, Fenris.
- Bloodaxe: Hela conjured this weapon, but never used it, rather lending it to Skurge for his job as her executioner.
Facilities
- Asgardian Palace: Upon returning to Asgard, Hela seized the Asgardian Palace by slaughtering the Einherjar who were defending it. She took possession of the palace and revealed the old frescoes depicting the Subjugation of the Nine Realms which had been hidden by Odin to be replaced with more peaceful images. As the Queen of Asgard, Hela seated on the Asgardian throne room, where she was later confronted by her brother Thor, who had returned from Sakaar to stop her and unleashed his powers to throw Hela down an edge of the palace.
- Odin's Vault: Having conquered Asgard, Hela got access to Odin's secret vault, where she reclaimed the Eternal Flame. She then smashed the floor to find her deceased Berserkers and Fenris and used the powers of the flame to bring them back to life.
Relationships
FamilyAllies
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Enemies
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Trivia
- In Norse mythology, Hela is the illegitimate daughter of Loki. She was raised in the care of Asgard for a time until she was appointed as ruler of Hel and Niflheim by Odin. In the comics, as implied in Kieron Gillen's Journey into Mystery #645 (2012), she was Leah of Hel, the girl who was created with ancient magic by Kid Loki, and was sent to the ancient past and left there to grow up as Hela.
- Additionally, the Marvel Cinematic Universe's version of Hela presents some elements of Gorr the God Butcher, a vengeful killer of gods who has the power of the All-Black the Necrosword,[2] and Angela, Odin's firstborn who has been the Queen of Hel in the comics.
- Hela is the first female main antagonist in a Marvel Cinematic Universe film.
Behind the Scenes
- Hela has originally conceived as the main villain of Thor: The Dark World, instead of Malekith.[3]
- To prepare for her role as Hela, Cate Blanchett studied Capoeira, a Brazilian martial art.
- Cate Blanchett accepted a role in Thor: Ragnarok to please her children, who are Marvel comics fans. Blanchett's eldest son Dashiell John Upton suggested she take the role of Hela, saying it'd be a career boost.
- One of the film's producers, Brad Winderbaum had described Cate Blanchett's performance as "an incredible performance. She's really scary and really charming. She’s very easy to watch, very fun to be around. But very murderous and horrible at the same time". In addition, he also explained that Hela's rumored appearance in Avengers: Infinity War was uncertain.[4]
- Charlize Theron was considered for the role of Hela.
- Zoë Bell was a stunt double for Cate Blanchett in the role of Hela.
- Alice Lanesbury was a stand-in for Cate Blanchett in the role of Hela.
- Tamara McLaughlin was a stand-in and a picture double for Cate Blanchett in the role of Hela.
- Cate Blanchett mentioned that she was interested in returning to play Hela, stating: “there’s always a way back” before adding “but I’m sure there’s always a way forward, who knows? I never say no to anything.”[5]
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 Thor: Ragnarok
- ↑ Hela Is A Mix Of The Classic Character and Gorr The God Butcher In 'Thor: Ragnarok'
- ↑ Hela Was Originally the Villain for ‘Thor: The Dark World’: Kevin Feige Talks ‘Thor: Ragnarok’
- ↑ Avengers Infinity War news: Is Cate Blanchett's Thor Ragnarok villain Hela involved?
- ↑ Cate Blanchett Thinks ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ Villain Hela Could Return and Become Good
| Preceded by: - |
Executioner of Asgard Hela Before 20th Century |
Succeeded by: Skurge |
| Preceded by: Loki |
Ruler of Asgard Hela 2017 |
Succeeded by: Thor |
External Links
Hela on Marvel Database- Hela on Wikipedia
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