Thanos

Biodata

History

The Tesseract and the Battle of New York

Thanos sent Loki to Earth with the Chitauri army and a Mind Stone scepter to retrieve the Tesseract. As a safeguard, he also sent Mar-Vell aboard Sanctuary II, with orders to intervene only if Loki failed. Thanos warned against attacking Earth with his own warship, fearing retaliation from Odin and Asgard’s Bifrost 77 100.

Loki’s invasion failed, and Earth destroyed the Chitauri mothership. Thanos dismissed the army’s losses as insignificant and ordered Mar-Vell to retrieve both the Tesseract and the scepter. He promised to help Mar-Vell gain power among the Kree if he succeeded 102.

Encounter with Xia Yu

Thanos later encountered Xia Yu aboard Sanctuary II. Recognizing him as one of those who had ruined his plans, Thanos expressed curiosity about the Tesseract-like energy Xia Yu emitted. Their meeting turned into a fight: Xia Yu could barely damage Thanos, but his speed and repeated attacks on Thanos’s lower body frustrated him 142 143.

After Sanctuary II exploded, Gamora and Nebula returned to its wreckage to search for their adoptive father. His unusual constitution would allow him to survive in space for a long time 144.

Disappearance and return

News of Thanos and his legions eventually stopped circulating. During that absence, he plundered Nidavellir and forced Eitri to forge an Infinity Gauntlet by threatening the Dwarves. Despite Eitri’s compliance, Thanos slaughtered the other Dwarves and left the smith alive 336 394 395.

Thanos resurfaced alongside the Time Variance Authority. He and his fleet devastated Xandar, and he later killed the Collector and resumed massacres on planets selected by the Authority. His objective remained to collect all six Infinity Stones and wipe out half of all life to restore what he considered balance 387 398 414 419.

The Snap and death

Thanos confronted Gamora and persuaded her to accompany him by threatening her friends and sister. He sacrificed her for the Soul Stone and ultimately used a gauntlet bearing all six Stones to snap his fingers, leaving his hand withered from the backlash 421 423 425.

During his confrontation with Xia Yu, Thanos drove all six Stones directly into his chest in a desperate attempt to snap again. Unable to contain their energy, his body split apart; the collision with Xia Yu’s attack reduced him to ashes 425.

Other versions

A Thanos from another universe later arrived with Sanctuary III and fought Captain America, Tony Stark, Thor, and Xia Yu. More versions joined him, each carrying a gauntlet with five Stones. Xia Yu killed several during the battle, including the first arrival, whom he beheaded after stripping away his gauntlet 464 465 467 469 470 471.

Still more versions subsequently appeared from Sanctuary III vessels, forming an army of Thanoses equipped with five-Stone gauntlets 476.

Appearance

Thanos is a bald, purple-skinned giant with a prominent, folded chin 143 402 469.

• One version is described as nearly three meters tall and enormously muscular 464.
• He wears dark gold armor protecting his torso and a matching helmet 464.

Personality

Thanos is proud and regards himself as a warrior. Before fighting Xia Yu, he disdained using powerful personal weapons against opponents he considered beneath him. Xia Yu’s evasive fighting style and repeated attacks on his lower body nevertheless provoked him into anger 143 144.

He is ruthless in pursuit of his ideal: he repeatedly massacres populations and ultimately sacrifices Gamora for the Soul Stone. Although he considers slaughter a means of restoring balance, he is also capable of personal anger; after Xia Yu insults him, he threatens to kill every living thing on Earth 143 414 421 425.

Abilities & Skills

Physical strength and durability

Thanos combines immense strength with exceptionally resilient skin and muscle 143 465.

• Xia Yu’s full-strength punch penetrated the outer skin but was absorbed by the layers beneath it, leaving Thanos uninjured 143.
• The Vibranium-grade Heaven Reliant Sword managed only to nick his skin during their first fight 314.
• A later version recovered from Mjolnir strikes and lightning, though Captain America’s sustained attacks eventually drew blood 464 465.
• His constitution allows him to survive in space for a long time 144.

Combat skill

Thanos is a formidable close-combat fighter who has defeated powerful opponents with his blade 143.

• During their first fight, he caught Xia Yu by the wrist despite being driven back by a barrage of attacks 142 143.
• A later version overwhelmed Captain America with repeated blade strikes before Captain counterattacked with Mjolnir 464.
• He initially lacked a ranged attack while fighting Xia Yu without an Infinity Stone 143.

Infinity Stone use

Thanos can wield Infinity Stones through an Infinity Gauntlet, though their power places considerable strain on him 423 471.

• The Power Stone greatly increased a later version’s strength in his fight against Captain America 465.
• The Space Stone produced defensive shields and opened a portal through which other Thanoses arrived 465 467.
• The Reality Stone could change the state of matter or living beings 466.
• The original Thanos could not contain all six Stones in his body without the gauntlet; forcing them into his chest destroyed him 425.

Equipment

• Mind Stone scepter — Given to Loki for the Tesseract mission; Thanos later ordered it retrieved alongside the Tesseract 77 100 102.
• Sanctuary II — Thanos’s warship, assigned to Mar-Vell as a safeguard for the Tesseract mission and later destroyed following Xia Yu’s fight with Thanos 100 144.
• Overlord’s Heavenly Blade / Heavenly Blade of the Dead — A blade Thanos draws from the base of his seat aboard Sanctuary II; a later version wields a weapon called the Heavenly Blade of the Dead 144 464.
• Infinity Gauntlet — Forged by Eitri under coercion to control the six Infinity Stones. Later versions also carry gauntlets bearing five Stones 395 423 467.
• Sanctuary III — A personal vessel used by a later version; additional versions arrive with their own Sanctuary IIIs 464 467.

Relationships

• Gamora — Adoptive daughter whom Thanos raised from childhood. Their relationship was deeply conflicted; he ultimately sacrificed her for the Soul Stone 144 149 425.
• Nebula — Adoptive daughter who, despite hating Thanos, returned with Gamora to search the wreckage of Sanctuary II for him 144.
• Xia Yu — Enemy who thwarted his Earth operation, fought him aboard Sanctuary II, and later confronted him again. Xia Yu also killed several later versions of Thanos 142 425 469 470.
• Loki — Sent to retrieve the Tesseract with the Chitauri and the Mind Stone scepter. A later Thanos condemned Loki as untrustworthy when he joined the Avengers 77 468.
• Mar-Vell — Servant sent to retrieve the Tesseract if Loki failed, in exchange for promised power among the Kree and ownership of Sanctuary II 100.
• Eitri — Dwarven smith whom Thanos coerced into forging the Infinity Gauntlet before slaughtering his people 395.
• Time Variance Authority — Collaborators who enlisted Thanos in their effort to correct changes to the course of fate 387 414 425.