Avengers: Infinity War Theory - Did Odin Try To Gather The Infinity Stones?

Avengers: Infinity War is, all things considered, probably the best Marvel film to date. Undoubtedly, the primary reason for that is Thanos, easily the best villain (and arguably the best character) the MCU has seen so far. The film revolves around his quest to collect all the Infinity Stones, and in doing so basically achieve omnipotence. He’s not only one of the most layered, complex and understandable big-bads of the franchise, but also one of the strongest.

But, what if there was someone even stronger than Thanos who sought the Infinity Stones first? A conqueror with power still greater than the Mad Titan who had the completed Gauntlet almost within their grasp?

What if Odin, the leader of Asgard and father of Thor, had his sights set on universal domination, and aimed to use the Infinity Gauntlet to achieve his power hungry ends? Let’s explore.

3. Odin's Dark Past

First, we need to examine Odin’s past and what we learn of his dark history in Thor: Ragnarok.

We learn from Hela that Odin used to be a conqueror. He and Hela lead a brutal conquest across the universe, conquering multiple realms. We know this is true, and not just Hela’s own twisted account of events, as shown by the original mural on the ceiling of the Throne Room of Asgard.

It not only shows the brutality of Odin’s aggressive invasions, but also that he revelled in it. Like a true tyrant, Odin displays the victims of his insatiable quest for domination in a mural in his own throne room. Doesn't it seem like in his power hungry conquest, Odin would seek any means to greater power? What about the greatest power? Surely, the Infinity Stones have tempted him if he'd have known they existed. And what do you know, he did!

Bor, Odin’s father, hid the Reality Stone (in the form of the Aether) during the first war with the Dark Elves. As successor to the Throne of Asgard, Odin would certainly have known where it was hidden, and what the Aether truly was. There is no chance Odin wouldn't have been aware of the Stones, and the power that they hold.

Odin's desire for the Infinity Gauntlet is also supported by the fact he literally has one in his Trophy Room! Sure, it's a fake, (more on that later) but let's not forget that the dwarves of Nidavellir, who are closely associated and protected by Asgard, have the plans and capacity to make an Infinity Gauntlet. It’s very apparent that Odin has the means to create an Infinity Gauntlet if he needed too, and why would he have the dwarves draw up plans if he hadn’t at one point considered using one?

One final point, The Space Stone (in the form of the Tesseract) was hidden in a nordic village on Earth. The Nordic people worship the Asgardians as they visited Scandanavia in the past, so it’s implied that the Asgardians themselves hid the Space Stone on Earth. Therefore it’s extremely likely Odin possessed the Space Stone at some point.

But the, if Odin coveted the Infinity Stones, why hide one on Earth? Well, that brings us to the next Stone Odin acquired, and the one that changed everything: The Soul Stone.

We know that The Soul Stone requires a sacrifice of someone you love to obtain it. We also know, as the Red Skull tells Thanos, that it offers a certain type of ‘wisdom’.

Now, taking a break from Odin for a second, let's examine the Soul Stone's effect on Thanos. After Thanos’ acquisition of the Stone, he seems a lot less viscous in battle than before, only killing Vision (which he had to do to get the Mind Stone) despite the fact that he could have, very easily, murdered everyone on Titian and Wakanda that stood in his way.

In fact, he seems to go out of his way not to kill anybody he doesn’t have to. Obviously, he’s still trying to wipe out half the universe, but he seems a lot less savage about it (remember how brutally he messed up the Guardians on Knowhere before he had the Soul Stone?)

The reason for this is evident: The wisdom the Soul Stone grants is empathy. Understanding of the people around you. Their feelings. Their hopes and emotions. In short, their souls. This is reinforced by Thanos’ consoling words to Scarlet Witch after killing Vision: saying he understands what she feels, ‘more than anyone’. Naturally, we assume that it’s Thanos empathising with Scarlet Witch’s loss after losing Gamora just hours before. But what if he truly understood her pain, more than anyone, as he was made to feel it by the Soul Stone?

Returning back to Odin, in order to obtain the Soul Stone, he would have needed to sacrifice someone he loved. Who, we might ask, could the tyranical conqueror possibly sacrifice to obtain the stone? The man who killed and tortured his way to rule over nine realms. Is there anyone we've seen in the MCU he loved enough at the time to sacrifice for the Stone?

In fact, the answer is yes. Odin sacrificed his first wife, Hela's mother. Remember, she and Thor are only half-siblings, and we never hear anything of Hela's mother across the films. Why? Because she was dead before the first Thor film took place.

And so we find Odin, invader and dictator, Hela by his side, poised to extend his rule across the universe. But, we know that's not how the story ends. So what happened after his acquisition of the Soul Stone?