Warning: SPOILERS for Thor: Ragnarok are ahead!
Thor's latest standalone adventure came with the most personal losses. Along with Surtur destroying Asgard and Thor losing his eye while battling Hela, the God of Thunder's trusty hammer, Mjolnir, was also destroyed by the Asgardian goddess of death early into Thor: Ragnarok. But by the movie's climax, our esteemed protagonist learned from Odin's spirit that he didn't need Mjolnir to fully channel his thunder and lightning abilities, and now he's more powerful than ever. However, going into Avengers: Infinity War, Thor still finds himself without a weapon, but there's a theory now floating around the interwebs following the release of the first Infinity War trailer that Thor will obtain an axe during the course of the movie, which will require him to go to Nidavellir, the realm of the dwarves.
To provide some context, back in February, Marvel posted a video highlighting Avengers: Infinity War beginning production, and one piece of concept art that was included showed Thor and Rocket Raccoon fighting side by side. While the weapon in Thor's hand wasn't fully shown, it was clear by the handle that he wasn't holding Mjolnir, giving us our first clue that the hammer wouldn't be around much longer. Since Thor Odinson has been wielding the axe Jarnjborn in the comics for the last several years, it was theorized that he would pick up such a weapon during Avengers: Infinity War. After all, even with his enhanced abilities, there are still battles where more traditional weaponry is necessary.
Which brings us to the first Avengers: Infinity War trailer, where the moment below was shown at a little over the halfway point.
Aside from Thor clearly being in pain and a ridiculous amount of energy erupting behind him, it's unclear exactly what's happening here. However, we have to remember that in the trailer, we only see Thor in space, whether it's this strange location or aboard a spaceship. Let's also not forget that in Thor: Ragnarok's mid-credits scene, the ship carrying Thor, Loki, Korg, Valkyrie and Asgard's citizens was intercepted by Thanos' much larger vessel, and we know nothing good will come from that. Case in point, the Infinity War trailer showed what looked like Asgardian bodies strewn about right before Loki was seen holding up the Tesseract. Clearly things are about to go horribly wrong for Thor, but he won't be without allies for long, as he's seen at the end of the preview meeting the Guardians of the Galaxy.
So how do all these pieces fit together? Well, in the Marvel Comics universe, the dwarves are among the most skilled weapons forgers in the universe, and it was at Nidavellir that Mjolnir and several other notable Asgardian weapons were created. With Mjolnir gone and Thor looking defeated in the Infinity War trailer, it's possible that after his encounter with Thanos, the God of Thunder will head to Nidavellir to forge a new weapon for himself. He may go on this mission solo or with the Guardians of the Galaxy, though I think the likelier is the latter option; not just because we've seen artwork of Thor and Rocket Raccoon together, but because it would be weird if Thor only shared a few minutes with the Guardians together, and then they went their separate ways.
In any case, if that moment above is Thor using a space forge (or whatever its proper MCU classification is) to create his new weapon, we're betting it will be the axe. As for why he's having to take part in this process, I'm have two theories. One, the area where the dwarves once forged weapons has been abandoned, requiring Thor to take matters into his own hands. Two, in order to properly forge the axe, Thor must put himself through personal struggle or sacrifice, hence why he looks to be in agony.
Although Avengers: Infinity War features most of the major MCU heroes fighting Thanos and his forces, it stands to reason that it will take a while for them to all come together. So even though we're expecting Thor to reunite with Earth's Mightiest Heroes, it's certainly plausible that before that happens, he'll need to go on another journey and forge that axe so that he's properly prepared to face the Mad Titan and avenge his fellow Asgardians. We here at CinemaBlend will keep you updated on any new information that either lends credence to this theory or shoots it down.
We'll find out what Avengers: Infinity War has in store for Thor and the rest of the MCU heroes when the movie is released on May 4, 2018. To find out when next year's other blockbusters will be released, browse through our 2018 premiere guide.
