Why Thor Is the Best Avenger

Even in the face of certain destruction, one Avenger has repeatedly demonstrated the willingness to get right back up and run head first into battle. Sure, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers have been a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe longest, but no one embodies what it means to be an Avenger more than Thor Odinson, the nearly immortal demigod that loves Earth and the people that live on it.

Despite his initial hesitance of joining the team, Thor's had the most character development out of any of the original superhero squad. As opposed to the Asgardian's arrogant beginnings, the character is now the one Avenger unafraid to put the rest of the team on his back in dire situations.

Let's look at the situation pragmatically. Out of the original six Avengers, Thor is the lone character not even from this realm -- yet he's here willing to do whatever in his power to protect mere mortals from whatever danger befalls them. The Asgardians could be off fighting Frost Giants or Fire Demons, or freeing another realm from the tyrannic Dark Elves, but he's drawn to Midgard to protect those that are likely the lowest in the pecking order in the Nine Realms. There are certainly bigger fish to fry across the cosmos, yet he's here protecting mankind.

In the face of certain annihilation at the hands of Ultron, the Asgardian puts his life at risk going on a mission he knows nothing about, all in an attempt to gain better knowledge about the situation at hand and approach it from a strategic vantage point.Thor's side mission in Avengers: Age of Ultron — which many fans might see as unnecessary and bloating — gave the Avengers their first inkling of what the Infinity Stones were capable of, when it was revealed the Mind Stone was directly powering the android that soon came to be Vision.

In fact, Vision very well could have ended up a terrifying villain if it weren't Thor's sudden understanding of the power source. Thor's also directly responsible for bringing the character to life, giving the Avengers one of their strongest heroes in the never-ending fight for the world

Of course Thor's sacrifices don't stop there. Even in the midst of losing everything he ever cared about, the Asgardian put on a brave face to take on Thanos again. In a matter of days, Thor lost it all -- he watched his father fade away into nothingness, the dominion he ruled over was destroyed as he looked on, and his brother was killed in front of his very own eyes as he lay helpless.

Yet here's Thor, putting his life on the line in Avengers: Infinity War in order to power the needed facilities to craft a Thanos-killing weapon. He pushes himself to the brink of death just so that the Avengers might have a chance. Then, moments after his near-death experience, he teleports himself right into the middle of a raging battle, demanding to fight the very person the rest of the world is running away from.

From the beginning we saw of the character in Thor, where he was one of the most arrogant characters in the universe, Thor has since developed into a badass, humble — or at least, certainly more humble than he's been — warrior who's willing to risk whatever it takes to protect those he loves. The Asgardian has lost more than anyone else in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and yet, he continually shows up to put his best foot forward.

The character may not be perfect, but that's the thing. The Avengers are a group of heroes, each with their quirks and flaws, and his remaining flaws is what makes Thor human in the most important ways. His continued dedication to a planet he has no obligation to care for and his continued life-risking measures for the greater good is what makes him the best Avenger in this ever-expanding shared cinematic universe.

Welcome to Earth's Mightiest Week! From April 22nd to April 26th, ComicBook.com is celebrating the culmination of the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far with a series of exclusive articles, lists, arguments, and more. If you'd like to check out some of our other offerings from this week, you can click the image above.