15 Ways The MCU Improved Marvel Mythology

Thor's character in the comics has been some of the most convoluted in Marvel lore. His origin has been retconned multiple times and explained away as either Loki or Odin's manipulations, but one thing has remained constant: a strict and often ironic adherence to the Nordic source material.

While the aesthetics of Asgard were more space-age than the vikings may have imagined, the mannerisms, behavior, language, and relationships of the gods and realms were exactly in accordance to Norse mythology. This includes things like Hela being Loki's daughter, Odin's eight-legged horse being his nephew, Sif being a humble housewife, and the nine realms being physically held together by the world tree Yggdrisil.

The movies wisely made the move to distance themselves to these elements for the sake of both modern conventions and narrative. Loki and Thor are now brothers instead of uncle and nephew to make the dramatic tension between the two more realistic. Sif became a badass warrior because that's more interesting.

Hela became Thor and Loki's long-lost sister because it's easier than explaining how Tom Hiddleston can have Cate Blanchett as a daughter. The nine realms are not separate dimensions united by a physical plant, but just a loose collection of planets scattered throughout space connected by the Bifrost Bridge.