Can Captain Marvel Really Beat Thor In A Fight?
Does "Earth's Mightiest Hero" have what it takes to go toe to toe with Marvel's resident God of Thunder?
Avengers: Endgame was recently released to the home market through Digital HD and, unsurprisingly, a commentary featuring directors Joe and Anthony Russo was included with the package. At one point in the commentary track, the directorial duo end up discussing Captain Marvel's (Brie Larson) eventual induction into the superhero team. During this conversation, Joe Russo subtly mentioned Carol Danvers could probably put the mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth) in his place, if she so chooses.
"It's interesting seeing the Avengers with Captain Marvel. I think that she dimensionalizes them in a really great way. Just from a pure power standpoint and what her abilities are," Russo stated (via ComicBook.com). "She is as powerful, if not more powerful than Thor, and you suddenly have hope again."
If there are two people on the planet who have been completely immersed in the intricacies of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it's the Russo Brothers, though some fans have taken umbrage with their idea that Captain Marvel could theoretically take Thor down in a one-on-one fight. But what does the MCU's source material — the thousands upon thousands of Marvel comic books — have to say about this hypothetical rumble?
It's difficult to track and compare the power levels of two characters that have been around in Marvel Comics for over 50 years, especially when you consider the fact that superheroes change in many ways, both drastic and minute, each time they are taken on by a new creative team. For her part, Carol Danvers has gone by four different monikers (Ms. Marvel, Binary, Warbird, and Captain Marvel) and had a slew of changes to her abilities set since her introduction as a supporting character for the original Captain Marvel way back in 1968. Meanwhile, in the past few years, Thor has struggled with the idea of his worthiness — something reflected in recent MCU pictures, especially Avengers: Endgame and his chubbier physique. He was unable to lift Mjolnir following the events of Marvel's 2014 crossover event Original Sin, eventually dropping the Thor name and going by nothing more than "Odinson" as he pondered his place in the universe.
Thankfully, Marvel keeps official statistics and attribute scores for their comic book characters on their website, with both Captain Marvel and Thor being no exception. Marvel rates their characters in six categories — Durability, Energy, Fighting Skills, Intelligence, Speed, and Strength — on a scale from one to seven. When it comes to the first three categories, Captain Marvel and Thor are neck and neck, getting the same scores for Durability, Energy, and Fighting Skills. Danvers has the upper hand when it comes to intelligence, beating Thor three to two, while Thor bests Captain Marvel in Speed and Strength by a full two points each. It's also worth noting that, according to Marvel's official statistics, Thor weighs an outrageous 640 pounds in the comics — which is something Chris Hemsworth certainly cannot pull off unless he decides to take Bro Thor to a whole new level.
Judging from Marvel's official stats, it would appear Thor has the advantage over Captain Marvel unless she turns the tide of battle with her leg-up in intelligence. However, the MCU has made several notable changes from the comics over the past decade: Hank Pym created Ultron in the comics, while Tony Stark and Bruce Banner did so in Avengers: Age of Ultron, and the Civil War arc in the comics centered around superheroes registering their true identities with the U.S. Government whereas internal strife was kicked off in Captain America: Civil War due the Sokovia Accords. That considered, maybe the Captain Marvel of the MCU really is more powerful than Thor — she did totally destroy one of Thanos' warships at the end of Avengers: Endgame without breaking a sweat, so it's definitely not out of the question.