I watched Thor late last night. You know, the Chris Hemsworth Marvel flick.
I always liked Thor as a Kid in the Sixties and seventies and have done ever since.
His appearance on the cover of the 1968 Fantastic Annual cemented his Godly status for me. It was one of my favourite annuals and the initial strip where he battles Magneto's submarine has stayed with me.
In fact I still have a copy of the annual, which I picked up years ago at a Car Boot sale.
I never dressed up as Thor as a young super hero probably because I don't think Thor outfits were in UK shops. You could get Batman clobber allover the place including and most importantly toy shops, the main source of all things childish back then.
The thing that Thor did have that I wanted badly was his hammer.
I could never say its name - Mjölnir - and still can't confidently get my chops around it. I imagine many people have this problem as Thor's hammer seldom comes up in everyday conversation these days. Or could that be a general lack of interest in the Thunder God? We should at least mention his hammer on Thursday, the very day named after him!
But I digress. I had Knight's swords, Secret Agents' pistols, Roman shields, Batman's pistol and a huge plastic toy club.
No Thor's Hammer though. It would have made such a great plastic toy. I can see it now in a large bag with a fabulously Asgardian header card where Loki lurks near the price tag.
That hammer may have swung the tide of battle for me in my eternal struggle with the forces of the dark, my older brothers. Mjölnir would have shut them up!
As it was I had to rely on my Daniel Boone play set, my Secret Sam spy case and my Johnny Seven in holding back the evil horde!
Did you ever dress up as Thor or have any Thor things readers?
Glad to hear I wasn't the only kid to struggle with saying the name of Thor's hammer, Woodsy. T'was a tricky one for a mere mortal, by thunder :)
ReplyDeleteThor was an immortal wasn't he Tone. I assume he could never be killed?
DeleteYep Woodsy, Thor was immortal... sadly, I was the small morsel of a mere mortal who couldn't say 'Mjölnir' properly :)
DeleteMere Mortal? Mere Morsel? Immorsel or immortal? I'm getting as thor head!
DeleteI used to play at being Thor when I was a kid. I had a homemade hammer (piece of sponge - from a toy named 'Zip-Zap' [I think] - and a stick with the thongs painted on). Sometimes, when a few of the local kids were bored with their usual pastimes, they'd deign to play 'superheroes' with me. I also had a long, gnarled branch which served as Don Blake's cane, and I explained to my compatriots about Blake stamping the hammer on the ground to effect his transformation. If I was Blake, I held the hammer behind my back, and whipped it into view upon stamping the cane, which I then hid behind my back (and vice versa). The other kids always copied me with the stamping motion and my imitation of the sound of thunder when I changed, obliging me to say "No, no - it's only Thor who does that. Captain America and Iron Man don't stamp canes or hammers on the ground." My explanations fell on deaf ears, as every time I changed between identities, they imitated my motions and sound effects. Thinking back on it now, maybe they were just ripping the p*ss, eh?
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, you can get a good copy of Thor's uru mallet (not the kid's sound effects one) from Forbidden Planet for about £13. One is hanging on my wall at the moment and it looks the biz. In fact, that reminds me of a typically self-indulgent tale for my blog concerning one of my hammers (I've got two big ones - boasting again), so keep your eyes peeled for that, Woodsy.
You really were a super Kid weren't you Kid? Those Thor games you had with your mates sounded quite sophisticated/ And yes, an old bathroom sponge would make an excellent hammer head! Its odd that the modern Thor movies have dispensed with Thor's Don Blake persona unless I've missed something. I shall keep an eye out for hammer time on your blog too!
DeleteIn the first movie, someone (forget who) borrowed a doctor's white coat or ID badge with the name Don Blake on it, so there was a nod in Blake's direction at least.
DeleteI think it could be Chris Hemsworth himself that Kid ie. Thor as he tries to get his hammer in the middle of SHIELDS plastic base with Hawkeye watching him from a crane.
DeleteThor must be one of Marvel's top five characters do you reckon Kid?
DeleteI'd reckon so, Woodsy, although I'm not so up to speed on the status of Marvel characters these days. Incidentally, wrote that Thor/Hammer post, don't know if you saw it.
DeleteJust read it Kid. A fabulous story and what a great memory you have for details. I wish mine was like that. Sounds like you were in the minority with your super powers. I had the same issue with football mad mates. All I wanted to do was play monsters! With a memory like that you should write a book!
DeleteHave a look on Entertainment Earth under "Thor" in the themes section.Their standard replica is 10 dollars American.But I think you'll get a kick out of their "giant" foam replica(the handle alone is about a meter long)at almost 200 dollars! or perhaps you would like a Mjolnir coffee mug?
ReplyDeleteha ha, great stuff there Brian. Steaming hot Mjolnir coffee eh? I bet you end up with a thor tongue!
DeleteI'm such a klutz the darn thing would fly back at me and zonk me on the head!! I don't want Thor's hammer! LOL
ReplyDeleteha ha! that's the boomerang version ed!
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