Thor Unlocks Mjolnir's "Infinite Power" - Defining Exactly What "Worthy" Actually Means in Official Lore

Summary The Power Stone wielder infuses Mjolnir with infinite power, making it so powerful that it shatters Thor's wrist when he calls it back.

Mjolnir's enchantment extends to inanimate objects thanks to the upgrade, with Thor declaring floors "worthy" to stop it.

Since it was reforged, Mjolnir's enchantment now works according to Thor's judgment as All-Father.

The enchanted hammer Mjolnir is one of Marvel's most powerful weapons, but Thor just discovered there's a whole new level to its abilities. In a cosmic battle for the ages, Thor discovers how to give Mjolnir "infinite power," redefining its limits.

In Immortal Thor Annual 2024, Thor seeks out the Power Stone, which is currently in the possession of the heroic but dim-witted Otherone. When the Stone's former wielder the Champion of the Universe also arrives to claim it, Otherone uses his cosmic powers to imbue Thor's hammer with infinite power against his wishes. The upgrade increases Mjolnir's power a thousand-fold, actually making it way harder for Thor to use.

Otherone's powers are linked to his mental faculties - the more he clears his mind, the more power he can lend others. The more he uses his intellect, the more power he can siphon from them. By totally clearing his mind, Otherone begins making everything around him infinitely powerful, including both Mjolnir and the Champion (who was already a cosmic powerhouse capable of beating Juggernaut, Hulk and the Thing.)

The power upgrade makes the hammer's enchantment stronger and more literal, making it so that even inanimate objects fail the 'worthy' test.

Immortal Thor Annual 2024 #1 (2024) Writer: Al Ewing

Artist: David Baldeón

Colorist: Federico Blee

Letterer: Joe Sabino

Cover Artists: Salvador and GURU-eFX

Thor's Hammer Goes Haywire as Its 'Worthy' Enchantment Is Supercharged

Mjolnir Gains Infinite Power Thanks to Apex

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A more powerful Mjolnir sounds like an objective advantage for Thor, but it doesn't quite work that way. Mjolnir explodes with power when Otherone touches it, then proceeds to begin punching through floor after floor in the building they're in. The power upgrade makes the hammer's enchantment stronger and more literal, making it so that even inanimate objects fail the 'worthy' test. Thankfully, Thor is able to declare floors "worthy" to stop its fall, but when he calls Mjolnir back to his hand, it responds with such force that it breaks his wrist. Worst of all, Thor can't even attack the Champion directly, as the clashing of two infinite powers would put himself and everyone else on the planet at risk.

Thor eventually figures out that he can only wield such immense power by working small, creating a single drop of water that - when it hits Otherone - becomes a huge splash that wakes him up. Thor then manipulates Otherone's intellect-based power siphoning to de-power the Champion.​​​​

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This smart, 'logic puzzle' use of his god powers is characteristic of Thor's tactics in his Immortal Thor era. Having ascended to the position of All-Father, Thor now has the reality-altering might of Odin. His biggest challenge is no longer being powerful enough to smite his enemies, but finding ways to harness theoretically infinite power in useful, balanced ways.

Now renamed the 'Thor Force,' the power can alter reality on massive levels, but it quickly depletes Thor, forcing him to enter into a mystic sleep when he's expended enough of it.

Thor Is Learning to Handle Limitless Power as All-Father

The Thor Force Means He Can Do Anything... If He Figures Out How

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Immortal Thor spent its early issues exploring the nature of Thor's new power and its close bond to narrative, mythic thinking. Immortal Thor #2 showed how Odin gained his power, sacrificing his eye not for magical might but for knowledge. This knowledge allowed Odin to channel the 'Odin Force' - the ultimate power of creation that can do anything. Now renamed the 'Thor Force,' the power can alter reality on massive levels, but it quickly depletes Thor, forcing him to enter into a mystic sleep when he's expended enough of it. Thor has had to learn to fight smart in order to accomplish his goals without overextending and becoming vulnerable.

Related Thor Introduces a New God Power to Marvel Lore That's Too Disturbing for the MCU In Immortal Thor #10, the Odinson witnesses a new, god-level power that is way too disturbing for both the comics and the MCU.

Ewing uses the same logic as Thor tries to control an infinitely powerful Mjolnir. The image of Thor's hammer breaking his wrist might be funny, but it's the perfect metaphor for the God of Thunder's new status quo. As All-Father, Thor can now do anything, but that's not advisable in a universe where all his actions have consequences. Instead, Thor now has to figure out the exact right answer to every problem - his ability to wield infinite power relies on having the wisdom to narrow down the precise right route.

In the past, Thor explained that Mjolnir was intended for "the tip of Asgard's spear" - a hero who faces down evil from across the Ten Realms.

Thor's 'Worthy' Enchantment Used to Be Defined by Odin

The Hammer Was Meant for 'The Tip of Asgard's Spear,' Not Just a True Hero

For much of Thor's existence in Marvel lore, it's been unclear what being 'worthy' actually entails. Thor is a deeply moral but egotistical warrior, often making mistakes without losing the ability to lift the hammer. At the same time, almost none of Earth's heroes have been able to lift Mjolnir, despite giving their all to save innocents and stand against evil. Meanwhile, when Nick Fury sowed doubt in Thor's heart about whether gods were good for humanity, Thor immediately became unworthy, despite remaining heroic.

One of the best explanations came in Thor #15​​​​​​​ (Donny Cates and Michele Bandini), when Thor explained that Mjolnir was intended for "the tip of Asgard's spear" - a hero who faces down evil from across the Ten Realms. That explained why other heroes might not meet the 'worthy' threshold - their area of operation just wasn't large enough. However, whatever 'worthy' used to mean, now it means something different.

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In its new, reforged form, Thor is the absolute master of what "worthy" means in relation to Mjolnir's enchantment.

Thor's Enchantment Has Changed Forever

As All-Father, Thor Decides Who and What Are Worthy

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In 2023's Marvel's Thor Annual #1, Thor reforged Mjolnir after it was shattered into pieces. He did this using his own power as All-Father, effectively recreating the hammer anew as a different entity to the version Odin created. Previously, worthiness was decided by Odin's enchantment, which had warped and evolved over millennia thanks to the living cosmic storm contained within the hammer. However, the hammer is now Thor's creation, and its enchantment follows his judgment, not Odin's.

Thor shows in his battle against the Champion that he can now 'declare' anything he wants as worthy and the hammer's enchantment will obey. This isn't solely due to Otherone's influence - in Immortal Thor #5, Thor pulled the same trick with the evil god Toranos. Toranos is a more ancient, more absolute version of the mythic archetype that Thor descended from, and has a purer version of his powers. Thor couldn't win on power alone, so he allowed Toranos to claim the hammer, then declared the elder god 'worthy.'

Related Thor Confirms a Forgotten Family Member Can Lift Mjolnir... Because They're STRONGER Than Its 'Worthy' Enchantment Thor’s family has no shortage of heavy hitters, but one ancestor of his might be the most powerful of all the Gods, even though he’s barely appeared.

In that case, Thor flipped the usual way the enchantment works - rather than losing control of Mjolnir, Toranos was bound to the principles that make someone 'worthy' in Thor's eyes. Suddenly, Toranos was forced to hold back and to reckon with his many evil deeds, eventually surrendering because he couldn't reconcile his villainous past with his new 'worthy' concerns. In its new, reforged form, Thor is the absolute master of what "worthy" means in relation to Mjolnir's enchantment. He's able to declare others worthy, so far both in the form of forcing Mjolnir to accept them and forcing them to live up to the mantle as long as they're holding it.

While heroes like Captain Marvel or the Human Torch have set abilities and can experiment by testing their limits, Thor is a conceptual being - he is inherently linked to magic, and the 'rules' that define him can be bent and broken if he approaches them in the right way.

Thor's Powers Are Now All About His Godly Wisdom

It's a New Era for the God of Thunder

Immortal Thor has placed a lot of emphasis on the mythic nature of Thor's power and very being - as a god, he is connected to conceptual thinking and language in a way that makes his powers far more versatile and variable. While heroes like Captain Marvel or the Human Torch have set abilities and can experiment by testing their limits, Thor is a conceptual being - he is inherently linked to magic, and the 'rules' that define him can be bent and broken if he approaches them in the right way. This is how Marvel has pretty much always treated Loki, and now Thor's promotion to All-Father is forcing him to embrace the complexity that has long defined his sibling.

As he just proved while dealing with the ridiculously overpowered Mjolnir, Thor is now in control of the hammer's 'worthy' enchantment, and the mythic nature of his godly wisdom means that he can do almost anything as long as he does it the right way. As Marvel's All-Father, Thor's power is still limited by his wisdom in applying it, but that's the only limit he has left.