Hercules vs. Thor: Who Is Stronger, Son of Zeus or Son of Odin?
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The world of Marvel Comics has allowed us to see our fair share of different powerhouse gods from different mythical and legendary pantheons. Of course, we know that two of the most prominent pantheons come from the Greeks and the Norse. These pantheons are represented by Hercules and Thor, who both have a rivalry with one another in the world of Marvel. But who is stronger between Hercules and Thor, and who won most of their fights?
Strength
As the myths and legends say, Hercules has strength levels beyond imagination, and he has always been regarded as the strongest out of all of the Olympian gods and possibly even all of the gods in Marvel. His strength has never been truly calculated, but his upper limit is often stable as he has no power-ups that would allow him to gain more strength, unlike the Hulk. In fact, Hercules once defeated the Abomination with a single blow, and that’s not something that even the Hulk is normally capable of.
Thor is one of the strongest superheroes in Marvel and is often said to be the mightiest of all Asgardians. His strength is so great that he can lift more than 100 tons or even more than that, as there has never been a defined upper limit to his strength. He can go toe-to-toe with the Hulk and other powerhouses, although the Hulk is often considered stronger than him.
While Thor can go up against some of the strongest characters in Marvel, Hercules has the advantage in terms of raw strength. Thor, however, can still match Herc’s strength occasionally.
Hercules 1, Thor 0
Durability
Because he drank from the goddess Hera’s breast milk when he was still an infant, Hercules is invulnerable to almost any kind of physical damage and can withstand some of Marvel’s most powerful energy-based attacks. It is often said that almost nothing can hurt him and that the only way to kill him is if his molecules are dispersed enough. Other than that, he is almost impossible to hurt or kill.
Thor is often considered to be invulnerable to any damage because he is the mightiest of all of the Asgardian gods, as he can withstand almost any attack from the most powerful characters in Marvel Comics. In fact, Thor has been able to survive cosmic-level attacks coming from some of the strongest beings in the universe, including the likes of the Celestials and Knull. This means that his vulnerability is nothing to scoff at.
Hercules and Thor are just about the same regarding how invulnerable they are to damage. That’s why we can’t really tell who is more invulnerable.
Hercules 1, Thor 0
Powers and abilities
While he may be a god, Hercules has almost no powers because he has always been regarded as a strength-based character whose specialty lies in his ability to pummel and beat down his opponents using his physical strength. There are many different godlike characters with powers and abilities that tend to be unimaginable. Still, not all of them are capable of the same kind of physical feats that Hercules has achieved.
As his title suggests, Thor is a god of thunder because he can control thunder and blast powerful lightning bolts. His thunder-based attacks are so strong that they can damage godlike and cosmic characters. Thor, due to his status as Odin’s son, is also capable of magic and enchantments, albeit on a limited level. And Thor can fly by using Mjolnir or any of his other weapons.
The thing about Thor is that he has powers and abilities that Hercules can only dream of having. His control over Thunder is so great that he can hurt characters who are supposed to be invulnerable. And this is why he takes this round.
Hercules 1, Thor 1
Fighting skills
Hercules is one of the greatest fighters in the Greek pantheon of gods and is often considered the best hand-to-hand fighter out of all of the gods. While he can and does use weapons, Hercules prefers to use his raw strength when fighting different opponents. He excels in Greco-Roman wrestling and is one of the best in the Greek boxing style. As such, there aren’t a lot of different characters who can match Herc’s strength and skills as a fighter.
There is a reason why Thor is the mightiest Asgardian, as his might also extends to his ability as a combatant. He may rely on his weapons a lot as he wields powerful godlike weapons like Mjolnir and Stormbreaker. Still, Thor is also a superb hand-to-hand fighter capable of dominating opponents quite easily. He has shown the ability to match the combat prowess of some of the best fighters in Marvel but isn’t at the level of the likes of Captain America and Black Widow in terms of pure fighting skills.
Even though Thor relies a lot on his weapons, he has always been able to match Hercules regarding their fighting skills. That’s why we can’t conclude who is the better fighter between them.
Hercules 1, Thor 1
Feats
Hercules overcame his 12 labors both in the myth and the storyline of Marvel Comics. While he hasn’t had the same kind of feats that the other great heroes of Marvel have, Herc has been able to prove himself up to the task of fighting incredibly powerful foes, including the Chaos King, who is often considered one of the strongest characters in Marvel history. As such, as far as his feats are concerned, Hercules is no slouch and has beaten some of the greatest threats in Marvel.
On top of the fact that he has always had enough strength to go up against the Hulk and Thanos, Thor has also been able to defeat cosmic-level beings. In one storyline, he defeated Galactus, although Big G was hungry then. But Thor, empowered by the Odinforce, was also strong enough to go up against someone as strong as Knull, considered one of the strongest primordial entities in Marvel Comics history.
In terms of feats, Thor beats Hercules ever so slightly. Thor has always been one of the most accomplished Marvel characters and has had more comic book storylines written about him.
Hercules 1, Thor 2
Hercules vs. Thor: Who wins?
As you can see, Thor has the advantage over Hercules in terms of his powers and his feats, even though Hercules has always had the physical advantage. This was always the theme in the comics, as Thor could trim the gap between them using his command over thunder. Of course, there has never been a comic book storyline wherein Thor decisively came out on top against Hercules, as the fight was often cut short due to interference or some other reason. But they both have victories over each other, even though such victories were never conclusive.
Who do you think would win this fight? Let us know in the comments below!
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