Diana of Themyscira: warrior, princess, demigod, heroine. Much of Wonder Woman's illustrious
legacy in comics has had her act not just as savior to the little man, but also as arbiter
and conscience for her fellow heroes when they fall short of the task at hand. It's
no overstatement to describe Wonder Woman as an ultimate avatar of justice and peace,
motivated by a pure desire to right wrongs and help literally anyone in need. So surely
she'd be worthy enough to lift Thor's hammer Mjolnir, right?
"Of course, of course… of course."
Heck, a surface-level comparison between Thor and Wonder Woman suggests that the Amazonian
may actually be more worthy to wield the hammer than the God of Thunder. For one, Thor's trigger
finger is itchier than Diana's, while Asgardians in general tend to be more morally gray than
the Amazons of Themyscira, too. Setting aside the obvious corporate barrier between the
two characters, it's definitely worth asking: just how well could Diana measure up to the
standards of Mjolnir? Well, let's take a deeper look. The exact words on Mjolnir read:
"So Whosoever holds at this hammer, shall be worthy to possess the power of Thor."
No greater context is really available besides the content of comics canon, which is slippery
on its best day. Objectively bad people have used Mjolnir in the past Loki, for example,
though he had help from a spell that allowed him to circumvent the rules. And then there
was the time the Mad Thinker's Awesome Android was permitted to wield Mjolnir. While inherently
unqualified to use the hammer on fair and square terms, the Android used his ability
to copy others' qualities and made himself worthy. He didn't copy Thor's powers though,
instead mimicking his innate character, though he could only do this for an hour at a time.
But all this still suggests the mystical hammer is flexible to technicalities. It's also clear
that the rules of the hammer can be changed based on individual circumstances and that
its definition of "worthiness" isn't strictly limited to whether or not a character is lawful-good
or not. Just look at the hammer's MCU history. As the man who enchanted Mjolnir in the first
place, Odin literally defined what worthiness is to the hammer inspired largely by Thor's
misguided actions in his first movie. Thor, of course, then had to prove his worthiness
based on that set of standards. But this also means that the hammer's rules aren't necessarily
set in stone. And sure enough, like many tropes surrounding the usage of magic in pop culture,
the rules around using Mjolnir legitimately are just vague and loophole-filled enough
to permit a whole bunch of extenuating circumstances.
For example, in the comic JLA/Avengers, from back when Marvel and DC could do crossovers
like that, Superman himself was permitted to raise the hammer but only for one fight,
and he was unable to pick it up again once hostilities ceased. That's probably a fair
deal, too while there are times when Superman needs a little boost for a good cause, he
probably shouldn't be able to casually haul such a weapon around. After all, he does tend
to get it in his head that he's the only real arbiter of truth, justice, and the American
way.
But what does that mean specifically for Diana and her potential ability to lift Thor's hammer?
Well, think of it this way: no matter what, Wonder Woman is an inherently good person
who is selflessly devoted to the notion of justice so there's no reason to believe she
wouldn't be able to lift it in times of need. And this is backed up by a comic event, too,
albeit a non-canon one.
In 1996, DC and Marvel ran a short crossover series entitled Marvel Comics versus DC. In
this story, Diana picks up Mjolnir after it appears through a wormhole. But after hoisting
the hammer and appreciating the power it imbues upon her, Wonder Woman decides it actually
isn't fair to use the hammer during the fight she's in with Storm. So she relinquishes Mjolnir
and loses the battle as a result.
The truth here seems to be that Wonder Woman can lift Mjolnir, but she's actually too good
for it, and will voluntarily discard it because the abilities it gives her are impermissibly
powerful. And that's about as worthy as you can get, isn't it?
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Looper videos about your favorite
superheroes are coming soon. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you
don't miss a single one.