While Loki is easily the best villain in Thor's rogue gallery, Hela is right up there in the top three or four. She started out a little bland, just a generic god of death that wanted to expand her domain of souls more and more. There wasn't a whole lot of depth to her beyond just that, a fact that's changed in recent years.
Now she has a pretty well-rounded character, one that's always making her presence felt in some way. The very well-received Thor: Ragnarok helped bring her into the forefront more as well. As a character that's been around a while, she's a character that has a wealth of backstory. Here are the ten things you need to know about her.
10 She's Lost Her Realm & Power Before
This comes about due to Ragnarok being avoided thanks to Thor moving Asgard to Oklahoma. Because Thor revives many of the dead Asgardians that she'd hoarded in her realm, she loses much of her power base, and thus her realm. It forces her to reside in Las Vegas, of all places. Despite that, it hasn't made her immune to scheming as she often does, having helped her father with his ploy to get Thor banished from Asgard.
9 She's Stolen Part Of Odin's Soul
She manages to steal a part of him while he lay dormant in the Sea of Eternal Night. Not only did she steal part of it, but she also used that bit of soul to create an entity known as Infinity. Its mere existence began to upset the natural order of the world. It managed to defeat the All-Father, taking control of him. It took the combined might of Asgard, Thor, and Odin's own will to drive Infinity out, spoiling Hela's plans once again.
8 Tangling With X-Factor
While many heroes have their villains cross over with others, Thor's tend to be the one exception, aside from Loki. Since he's a god, mixing up his rogue gallery with some of the more human heroes would just lead to a heaping dose of plot induced stupidity.
Thankfully, Hela's encounter with X-factor didn't lead to that. She uses them for her own ends for much of the story arc, only being defeated by Darwin's ability to adapt. The mutant steals a part of her power and forces her cloak off, weakening her.
7 Her Glaring Weakness
Everyone has a weakness, some a little more glaring than others. For Hela, it's her cloak. Without it, she can be reduced to her true form, that of a half-dead woman. One portion of her body remains alive and well, but the only half is no more than a rotting corpse, unable to move or do anything. It's essentially an 'I win' button for heroes and a way for them to defeat her when she should win handily considering how powerful she is. It's not a bad thing to give to someone who is the literal goddess of death.
6 She's A Necessary Evil
While she's very much a villain, she's one that cannot be killed, a fact that even Odin was forced to admit when he struck her down to save his son, taking Thor's own words to force him to realize it. Much like Galactus, she must exist or the world would be thrown into a sense of chaos, as shown when she lacked a realm. You need a governing body for the souls who have passed on. You cannot have life without death, Hela representing the opposite side of the coin to someone like Odin.
5 Protector Of Souls
It's strange considering how evil she tends to be, but she seems to take her job fairly seriously. When the Disir were hunting and devouring Asgardian souls, Hela made a deal with Mephisto to house the souls in a part of his realm, making it the new Hel.
Usually, that'd be seen as just her trying to gain a power base for herself, but she seemed genuinely distressed by what was happening to the souls, even more so when it was revealed Mephisto had a hand in controlling them. She even transformed herself into a fortress as a means of housing them from harm.
4 She's Capable Of Stopping Mjolnir
This is on full display during Thor: Ragnarok when she easily bests Thor in their first encounter, doing away with Mjolnir with ease. The movie itself did a good job of showing the physical prowess that you don't often see in the comics as she relies more on magic. She can go beyond just stopping Thor's hammer, she can also redirect it, though never lift. That's the one thing she will forever be incapable of as she's never going to be worthy of such a feat.
3 Her Touch Is Fatal To Mortals
While she rarely meddles in human affairs, caring only for Asgardian souls, she's dealt with humanity on a few occasions. Most notably was the aforementioned X-Factor encounter, but she also traveled to earth as a means of drawing Thor out once. That's where this ability got its first bit of light, Hela killing a group of would-be thieves. With just the touch of her finger, she can kill a mortal, rendering them nothing more than a corpse. It helps put into perspective how powerful she is.
2 Sister To Fenris & Midgard Serpent
It may seem strange considering Fenris is a giant wolf, and the serpent is an equally large snake, and that's cause it is. Certain things tied to Norse Mythology are a little screwy, this being one of them. The explanation given is that because both Loki and Angerboda are shapeshifters, their children come out looking radically different. It's something you could somewhat buy though it doesn't make it any less strange that the goddess of death is related to a dog.
1 Had A Child With Thor
You wouldn't expect such a union to ever occur, yet in the Ultimate Universe, the two consummated a child named Modi Thorson. How this came about is Thor wanted to escape the underworld after having given his life to revive Valkyrie. Hela agreed to let him go under two conditions, she gives him an heir, and that another life replaces his. Thor agreed, and Modi was born. In a cruel twist of fate, the life given to bring him back ended up being Valkyrie.