Warning: SPOILERS for Thor #6
The stars of the Thor films and the new Venom movie may not be connected just yet, but now that Marvel has merged Loki with the first and most powerful symbiote, he finally has the power to put a permanent end to the entire universe. In the comics, at least.
The twist of seeing Loki of Asgard claim the ancient ancestor of the Venom symbiote is just the latest delivered in Marvel's Thor series, revealing issue by issue how the Marvel Universe slowly dies millions of years in the future. After King Thor and the Cosmic Wolverine turned empty galaxies into their boxing ring, things seemed to take a turn for the better when Thor charged his hammer with the Phoenix Force and obliterated Doctor Doom, the last Marvel supervillain to survive.
Little did Thor know that on the other side of the universe, his brother Loki was becoming more powerful than ever before. Needless to say, Marvel fans won't want to miss a single second of The Birth of Symbiote Loki.
- This Page: Yes, Loki Just Claimed The First Symbiote
- Page 2: What You Need To Know About Loki's Symbiote
Loki Hunts For The Symbiote as... a Worm?
As we alluded to above, the galaxies-wide battle between Thor and Loki over the universe's need to die or be saved stole the spotlight (for obvious reasons). But through Jason Aaron and Christian Ward's leaps forward to the end of time, an odd "Interlude" was woven, in which Ego The Living Planet roamed space in search of life-- all life, any life. We won't give a full explanation of just how the living planet immortalized in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 wound up so corrupted and powerful. We'll only explain what comic readers knew at the time: that an evil, black, mystical sword found its way into Ego's possession, amplifying his power and hunger to astronomical levels.
RELATED: Venom Just Gave Birth to Marvel's Deadliest Symbiote
Given that Jason Aaron introduced that very sword, the glimpse of Ego in that state millions of years into the future was no surprise. The small green worm on his surface, mocking the Living Planet, however... that was a mystery. And as Ego tore himself apart trying to crush the tiny foe, the worm laughed, and whispered, promising never to stop unless the Living Planet agreed to its one demand. The worm wanted All-Black, The Necrosword that filled Ego's veins with black ooze. And after almost a century of torment, Ego agreed... and the worm returned to its true form, with almost nobody left alive in the universe to witness it.
Loki Claims The Necrosword, Marvel's First Symbiote
As the worm returns to its original form, the true significance of this "Interlude" is revealed. Loki Laufeyson has survived unbeknownst to his brother back on Earth, biding his time until he could acquire The Necrosword. The relic has only been revealed as a true symbiote, born of the God of the Symbiotes from a billion years ago in recent Venom comics. When the sword first appeared in Marvel's Universe and was consumed by Ego, it was already a weapon powerful enough to let a simple alien conquer all of the gods of the universe.
Now that All-Black has been revealed as the most powerful Marvel symbiote, and is in possession of Thor's brother... well, this is the closest fans will likely get to seeing a Venom-ized Loki. And unfortunately for what remains of life in the Marvel Universe, a psychic vision has already revealed Symbiote Loki going to war with King Thor for the fate of Creation.
Now... the stage is finally set. But just where did the first symbiote come from, and how much more powerful is Loki now that he's merged with Venom's great-great-great-grandparent?
Page 2 of 2: What You Need To Know About Loki's Symbiote
The Creation of All-Black the Necrosword
For new readers of Thor, or Marvel fans who haven't had Venom on their pull-list, the introduction of All-Black the Necrosword, the First Symbiote seems like an update to the Venom mythology that every fan should know about. But again, that revelation is only months old, which explains why movie fans aren't aware that Venom's famous logo is from the Symbiote God, not Spider-Man. A god named Knull who inhabited the abyss of Creation before the Celestial showed up to create Marvel's Universe. A god who pulled a blade from the living darkness to slay one such Celestial.
The blade was forged in the head of that dead Celestial, before Knull set out to slay all of the known universe. Eventually Knull would misplace the Necrosword, and decide that creating symbiote organisms from the same darkness would be a far better plan (even if the symbiotes would inherently fear the fire and banging sound of the forge that created their ancestor).
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But when we said Knull misplaced All-Black, we actually meant that it was taken from him by an alien named Gorr the God butcher - the famous villain of Jason Aaron's Thor: God of Thunder comic series. Using the Necrosword - assumed at the time to just be a mysterious black sword that kind of resembled a symbiote - Gorr defeated and enslaved every god and goddess in the cosmos, including Thor plucked from three different time periods.
Both the Thor series and Gorr himself were instantly marked as some of the best writing the character had seen in years, including the final showdown - where Thor realized Gorr had been taken over and turned cruel by the Necrosword, and merged with it himself (only temporarily, of course). Eventually Gorr was defeated, leaving the Necrosword to find its way to Ego the Living Planet.
The Venom series from Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman made the recent tweaks to the mythology, retroactively making All-Black a symbiote, as it appeared. Well, not just a symbiote, but The symbiote. A weapon powerful enough to defeat not one Thor, but three. And one which now resides in Loki's hand. If you're hoping that Loki has a plan other than becoming the most powerful villain to end the universe, we have some bad news. Symbiote Loki's coming battle with Thor has been predicted, prophesied, and anticipated for years.
The Symbiote Loki Has Been Predicted
As outlandish as this new Thor future has seemed at every new step, Loki merging with All-Black is actually the piece that makes it all fit together. Specifically, the vision seen by Ulysses of Thor and Loki's future as the final battle reached a fever pitch. At the time, seeing Loki attacking Thor with the All-Black in hand was a wild tease on its own. The same was true when Thor's granddaughters warped forward in time and witnessed the same battle in Mighty Thor: At the Gates of Valhalla (pictured above).
But frankly, knowing now that Thor is actually doing battle with a symbiote merged with Loki, and doing it after all other life in the universe has died or been extinguished takes this to a whole new level of insanity. Especially with the closing scene of Loki claiming All-Black officially ending the "Interlude" - meaning Loki's story is now on course to meet Thor's. Reading the signs, he plans to do it violently, too.
Will Thor be ready to battle Loki after getting an upgrade from All-Black, the First Symbiote? Or are Loki's words promising a true "end" destined to come true? Fans will have to keep reading the Thor series to find out. In the meantime, the fans dedicating their time to... artwork featuring Eddie Brock and Venom now have Loki to add into the mix. Even if Marvel Studios isn't interested in such a crossover anytime soon.
Thor #6 is available now from Marvel Comics.
MORE: How Loki Can Return in a Bigger Role For Thor 4
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