Thor #1 doubles down on the notion that the world will always need a Thor, but that a Thor will always need his (or her) hammer. That’s a problem for Thor Odinson, who is currently missing his hammer, Mjolnir, the ancient Asgardian weapon that was hurled into the sun (along with the Mangog) by his predecessor, Jane Foster, the Mighty Thor. The issue follows up on Thor Odinson’s demand to meet with the dwarves of Nidavellir from the end of Mighty Thor #706 to build hammers -- so many hammers. True to his word, there are hammers to spare in Thor #1, and the bludgeon he currently wields sounds truly, undeniably badass.

That hammer is the Hulk-Smiter. It’s perhaps not as traditional or eloquent a name as Mjolnir, but it’s a good one, nonetheless, that serves to reference years and years of scuffles between the two most powerful Avengers -- Thor and the Incredible Hulk. Historically, Thor and Hulk have squared off many, many times, with neither hero ever really coming out on top. The rivalry even made its way to the big screen with Thor: Ragnarok, which dove deep into the relationship between the two godlike Avengers, both of whom make up for their lack of brains with a terrifying amount of brawn.

The introduction of the Hulk-Smiter feels like a timely one, as the Incredible Hulk has received a significant upgrade into the Immortal Hulk, a force as unstoppable as he is unkillable. The issue even gives a sneak peek at how powerful a weapon like Hulk-Smiter could be, as Thor uses another hammer to easily take on the Juggernaut, one of the most durable villains in all of the Marvel Universe, whose name can barely be uttered by comics fans without appending “the unstoppable” to it. With the Hulk more terrifying than ever, the introduction of the Hulk-Smiter could be alluding to a showdown between Thor and his old frenemy.

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Of course, there’s no telling just how effective Hulk-Smiter would be should push come to pummel. After all, it still comes from a batch of hammers that included another, nameless hammer that broke to pieces when it connected with Cain Marko’s armored face. It’s one thing to call a mythical hammer woven with Asgardian spells “Hulk-Smiter” and another thing completely for said hammer to actually smite a Hulk. That hammer is all Thor has going for him at the moment, though, as the rest of the dwarf-made hammers all perished when he dealt with Juggernaut and his disciples of Cyttorak.

History is also not on the side of Hulk-Smiter, unfortunately. The hammer joins a long line of weapons that were built to deal with one thing and one thing alone: An Incredible Hulk gone out of control. Each of those weapons was built painstakingly for that one purpose, some even by the Hulk’s alter ego, Bruce Banner. None of them have proven to be terribly effective at their goal.

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The most recent example would have to be Hawkeye’s deadly arrow from Civil War II. That arrow hit its mark and, to its credit, it did kill Bruce Banner before he was able to transform. For a little while, at least. That’s likely because the arrow was created by the only man in the world who knew the Hulk and his physiology well enough to create such an effective projectile: Bruce Banner himself. Unfortunately, that killing blow came with consequences, chief among them being the Immortal Hulk and a newly-ostracized Bruce Banner who is on the run in Al Ewing’s Immortal Hulk #1. The story solidifies Hulk’s new immortal status, which is cause to wonder if Hulk-Smiter would stand a chance against the seemingly unkillable creature.

Look deep enough into Marvel Comics canon and you’ll find evidence of a mechanical being called the Hulk-Killer, a synthetic humanoid created by the Leader and later reactivated by General Thunderbolt Ross, Hulk’s long-time nemesis, to fulfill its titular purpose. In classic fashion, the Hulk-Killer might have completed its task if it weren’t for the great Achille’s Heel of villain-built weaponry from the 1960’s -- faulty wiring. It’s believed that the Hulk-Killer was, in fact, powerful enough to kill any Hulk, but maybe only after a reboot or two. This is Silver Age Hulk, though, so it might be unreasonable to assume that the same rules apply to 2018’s Hulk. It certainly would seem reasonable for the Immortal Hulk to tear through a puny robot these days, huh?

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Then there’s the most famous Hulk deterrent of them all, Tony Stark’s Hulkbuster Armor, a mechanical suit designed to be deadly enough to take on the Hulk should the hero go on a rage-fueled rampage. The armor was popular enough to make its way into the Marvel Cinematic Universe for Avengers: Age of Ultron and has seen numerous iterations throughout the comics. In most cases, the armor is enough to beat down the Hulk but not outright kill him, which doesn’t seem to be its purpose anyway.

Whether Hulk-Smiter turns out to be the tool Thor will eventually need to score the killing blow on the Immortal Hulk, or if it’s just another hammer on the road to reforging Mjolnir, remains to be seen. Regardless, if the hammer is able to down the Hulk permanently then it may go down in history as Mjolnir’s better. Decide for yourself in Thor #1, available in comic books stores now.