Darth Vader vs. Thor

Darth Vader is one of the most beautifully written and complex villains to hit the big screen. 

He not only has the tragic backstory aspect, but he is incredibly strong and adaptable. All attributes that make him a joy to behold.

With a character as powerful as Darth Vader, it is only natural that he be compared to other powerful characters in the media. One particular comparison that’s buzzing around the Star Wars communities is between the Sith Lord and Thor. 

Who would win? What makes the pair different? Keep reading as we do a deep dive into these two characters. 

Who Is Darth Vader?

Darth Vader wasn’t always the ruthless Sith Lord that we know today. He first began his career as a Jedi Padawan. 

One who showed such amazing promise that he earned the moniker of the “Chosen One.”

Although he technically began his Padawan journey at a later age than everyone else (age nine), he quickly climbed the ranks of the order. 

Going by his given name at that time, Anakin became a Jedi Knight in a mere ten years, while the majority of the other Padawans took twice that time to complete training. 

From there, Anakin advanced and became more and more impressive as time progressed. So much so that, while he was still a Knight, he was appointed to the Jedi High Council as a proxy for Emperor Palpatine. 

He was the first, and only, recorded Jedi Knight to play a role on the council. 

Understandably, being so gifted at a young age caused some of these attributes to go to his head. Leading him to believe that he was entitled to certain things, such as becoming a Jedi Master. 

What he didn’t account for was that the Jedi Masters did not trust him, especially Mace Windu. Therefore, he was barred from advancing to the status of Jedi Master. 

It’s common chatter among the Star Wars communities that Mace’s actions may have been one of the contributing factors that caused Anakin to fall to the dark side. Still, this wasn’t exactly true. 

Generally, it was Anakin’s gullibility and conflicted mental state that led to his rejection of the Jedi Order and ultimate acceptance of the dark side. 

From that point on, Anakin became the ruthless, God-tier Dark Lord we know today. Definitely deserving of the title of the greatest movie villain of all time.

Who Is Thor? 

On the other hand, we have a literal god, by the name of Thor. This Norse god of thunder is a descendent of Odin. He wields his trusty hammer, and as the god of thunder, he seemingly has control over lightning, thunder, and storms. 

Of course, with a deity so powerful, there is no doubt that a cinematic version would be brought to light. The most prevalent one being Thor Odinson of the Marvel Universe. 

For continuity’s sake, the Marvel Universe attempted to keep Thor as close to the original story of the Norse god as possible. 

Thor belonged to a race known as the Asgardians, and because he was the son of the all-powerful Odin, he was worshiped by vikings.

Equipped with his Uru hammer (Mjolnir), which serves as his vessel for channeling all the godly energies that make him a beast, Thor can use techniques that are unattainable to most. So it’s no wonder he earned the title, “Mightiest Warrior in the Ten Realms.” 

Eventually, Odin witnessed all the irresponsibility, impulsiveness, and immature behavior that his son was engaged in; so he banished him from the heavens. This ended with Thor living on Earth, or as they called it, Midgard, as a mortal medical student under the name Donald Blake. 

What’s more, “Donald’s” memory was wiped, so he had no recollection of his previous life as a god. It wasn’t until Donald settled down and learned to be humble that his memory of being Thor, as well as his godly abilities, were restored. 

From that point on, Thor dedicated his life to defending the Earth, and he did so by founding the Avengers, otherwise known as, “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.” 

Thor did not do this alone; he co-founded the Avengers with Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk, Hawkeye, and Black Widow.

Darth Vader vs. Thor: Who Would Win?

The potential battle between the Dark Lord, and the Norse god, would be one for the ages. These two would theoretically produce an explosive battle that would most likely have a lot of collateral losses and damage. 

That said, let’s take a look at these two characters with respect to each other, to ultimately decide who would win. 

Strengths

Beginning with the Sith Lord, Darth Vader has proven himself to be an impeccable swordsman and Force user. He was merciless when it came to his kills and took pride in the work that he did.

Darth Vader was so dedicated to his goal of gaining power that he would stop at nothing to achieve this goal. He no longer took the well-being of his former Jedi comrades into account and had no problem annihilating them if need be. 

This is evident in the tragedy that was Order 66. Not only did Darth Vader lead the charge against the Jedi Order, but he was brutal and paid no mind to whom he was killing. 

As a result, approximately 99% of the Jedi Order was wiped out. The majority of the kills were at the hand of Lord Vader himself. 

Needless to say, his vast experience, along with the enhanced strength his suit gave him, made Vader a force to be reckoned with. 

Comparatively, Thor being a God meant that he had the world of godly power at his disposal. He certainly had superhuman strength, speed, endurance, and resistance to injuries. 

In addition to this, Thor had Mjolnir, his hammer, which granted him control of tempests and their products.

Among his other amazing attributes, the most notable one would have to be his unwavering dedication to crime-fighting. When he has a goal in mind, he works tirelessly to ensure it’s accomplished. 

A perfect example of this is when Thor fought valiantly against Thanos despite all the odds being stacked against him. Of course, this strong conviction made him a confident, decisive, and overall outstanding leader.

Weaknesses

Regardless of how impressive Darth Vader was, he was not infallible. 

In fact, for someone with as many accolades as Lord Vader had, he also had a plethora of weaknesses. For one, Darth Vader was gullible and controlled by his emotions. 

To such an extent that his emotions were the main reason he made the switch to the dark side. 

Just before becoming the lord of all that is dark, Anakin Skywalker formed a connection with Emperor Palpatine. This is because Palpatine made Anakin believe that the dark side would be the way to save the lives of his loved ones, particularly his wife, Padme. 

Unfortunately, by thinking with his emotions, Anakin was too blind to see that Palpatine was just using him to push his agenda for power over the galaxy. 

Apart from his emotional problems, a major limiting factor for Darth Vader is his suit. 

It’s quite ironic that the suit built to save Darth Vader’s life is the same thing that could potentially end it. 

For instance, his entire suit is powered by electricity. Therefore, if he were to use Force Lightning (or get hit by it), he could potentially short-circuit his suit, a blow like this could potentially be fatal. 

On the other hand, there is a literal god, Thor, who is immune to earthly diseases. Still, this doesn’t mean that he is impervious to weaknesses. 

One weakness that stands out is his hotheaded nature. Thor was quick to anger and would easily take offense to battlefield barbs. 

This is dangerous because it could cause him to lash out at his enemies, subsequently making an already bad situation far worse than it needs to be. 

Yet another, and arguably the most pressing weakness of Thor, would have to be his tendency to underestimate some of his opponents. 

Whilst confidence is a great asset, having too much can be a downfall. For instance, when he first met Iron Man and Captain America, Thor seriously misjudged their strength simply because they were human. 

He ended up realizing his mistake when the two humans proved they were able to hold their own against him. 

Who would win?

As for who would win in this hypothetical fight between Darth Vader and Thor, it can be deduced that Thor would probably emerge victoriously. 

In spite of the fact that Darth Vader is unquestionably powerful, he does have a plethora of injuries that require him to wear a life support suit. A suit that has affected his mobility as well as the Force techniques he could use. 

Then we have Thor, who is a god and has the ability to fly. That, coupled with his superhuman speed, already puts Darth Vader at a disadvantage. 

What’s more, Thor is the “God of Thunder,” so it’s quite likely that a strike like Force Lightning would be ineffective on Thor. It’s far more likely that this power would simply end up killing Darth Vader instead of hurting the Norse god.

Furthermore, Thor has a long list of attacks that Darth Vader is unlikely to have a counter for since he hasn’t previously encountered them. 

We must also keep in mind that Thor has Mjolnir. If Darth Vader were to Force Choke Thor, he could simply throw his hammer at him. Thus, Vader’s concentration being broken, evidently disrupting his connection to the Force. 

Conclusion 

Darth Vader is one of the most exceptional villains in the film industry. He is not only cold-hearted in his craft, but he is also masterful in the way he executes each attack. 

His tendency to go above and beyond for his cause, as controversial as it may be, is impressive in its own right. 

Similarly, there’s Thor, who has strengths that transcend those of human beings. Not only could he control storms and their by-products, but he also has the strength, speed, and the tenacity of a god.

All things considered, if Darth Vader were to fight Thor, chances are the Sith Lord would lose. 

Not only would he not have had the techniques to counter some of the Norse god’s attacks, but Vader’s suit would have limited his speed, putting him at a massive disadvantage against the flying son of Odin.