Character profile
Valkyrie
Brunnhilde
She decides who Valhalla gets. Try not to qualify.
Biography
Brunnhilde leads the Valkyrior, the shieldmaidens who carry Asgard's honoured dead to Valhalla, which means she has spent millennia looking at mortals and calculating whether they will die well. She sees a person's death before she sees their face. It has not made her cheerful, but it has made her the single most reliable warrior in Marvel's Asgardian roster.
Her Earth career started with an insult. The Enchantress stole her image to manipulate the Avengers in 1970, and the real Brunnhilde only arrived in Defenders #4, where she promptly became the team's sword arm for its entire original run. She has fought alongside the Avengers, held the line during Ragnarok cycles, and been briefly succeeded by Jane Foster, who took up the title after her death and made it her own.
Vital statistics
- Real name
- Brunnhilde
- Also known as
- Brunnhilde, Samantha Parrington, Chooser of the Slain
- Species
- Asgardian
- Place of origin
- Asgard
- First appearance
- The Avengers #83 (December 1970)
- Created by
- Roy Thomas, John Buscema
- Affiliations
- Defenders, Valkyrior, Asgard, Avengers, Secret Avengers
- Groups
- Heroes Asgardians
Power grid
Intelligence3
Strength5
Speed3
Durability5
Energy3
Fighting6
Rated 1–7 on the classic Marvel power-grid scale.
Powers
- Asgardian Physiology
Superhuman strength, durability and stamina on the Asgardian scale, plus centuries of longevity.
- Death Sight
Brunnhilde perceives the approach of death and can see the manner of a mortal's end.
- Dragonfang
Her enchanted sword cuts nearly anything and has never been broken in combat.
- Master Swordswoman
Millennia of training make her one of the finest blade fighters in the Nine Realms.
- Winged Steed
Aragorn, her flying horse, carries her between realms and into battle.
- Soul Transport
As a Valkyrior she can carry souls to Valhalla and interact directly with the dead.
Abilities
- Battlefield command
- Asgardian lore and history
- Horsemanship
- Riding out cosmic apocalypses without complaint
Weaknesses
- Asgardians can be killed by sufficient force
- Bound by oaths and honour codes
- Her spirit has been displaced into mortal hosts more than once
- Little patience for subtlety
Comics history
The Enchantress first used the Valkyrie identity as a disguise in The Avengers #83, a story better remembered for the Lady Liberators than for its accuracy. The genuine Brunnhilde debuted in Defenders #4 in 1973, courtesy of Steve Englehart and Sal Buscema, and became a core Defender for the rest of that book's original run.
For decades her spirit was housed in mortal bodies, most notably Samantha Parrington and Barbara Norriss, a complication Marvel used to keep her in the human world between Asgardian stories.
Jason Aaron's Thor run rebuilt the Valkyrior mythology, and after Brunnhilde's death during The War of the Realms, Jane Foster took up the mantle in Valkyrie: Jane Foster by Aaron, Al Ewing and CAFU. Brunnhilde has since returned, because Asgard's relationship with death is negotiable.
MCU appearances
| Title | Year | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Thor: Ragnarok | 2017 | Tessa Thompson's debut as Valkyrie |
| Avengers: Endgame | 2019 | Leads New Asgard |
| Thor: Love and Thunder | 2022 | King of New Asgard |
On screen
Allies
- Thor
- Doctor Strange
- Hulk
- Jane Foster
- Hercules
Enemies
- Enchantress
- Hela
- Loki
- Malekith
Weapons & equipment
- Dragonfang sword
- Spear
- Shield
- Aragorn the winged horse
- Valkyrior armour
Trivia
- The Valkyrie who debuted in The Avengers #83 was the Enchantress in disguise, not Brunnhilde.
- The real Brunnhilde first appeared in Defenders #4 in 1973 and stayed for the whole original run.
- Dragonfang was carved from the tusk of an extradimensional dragon and given to her by Doctor Strange.
- Her spirit spent years inhabiting mortal hosts, including Samantha Parrington and Barbara Norriss.
- Jane Foster took over the Valkyrie mantle after Brunnhilde died in The War of the Realms.
- Tessa Thompson's version was written as openly bisexual, making her one of the MCU's first explicitly queer leads.
Famous quotes
I have carried better men than you to Valhalla. You will not be joining them.
I see how you die. It is not glorious. Change it.
Asgard is not a place. It is whoever is still standing.
Timeline
- 1970
The Enchantress debuts the Valkyrie identity as a disguise in The Avengers #83.
- 1973
The true Brunnhilde appears in Defenders #4.
- 1970s
Serves as the Defenders' primary combatant throughout the original run.
- 2019
Dies in The War of the Realms; Jane Foster takes the mantle.
- 2017
Tessa Thompson debuts the role in Thor: Ragnarok.
- 2022
Rules New Asgard as King in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Gallery
Poster art is generated from each character’s signature palette. Drop official art into assets/images/ and set the img field to swap it in.
Related characters
Frequently asked
Who is the real Valkyrie?
Brunnhilde, leader of the Valkyrior. The character who first used the name in The Avengers #83 was the Enchantress in disguise; Brunnhilde herself debuted in Defenders #4 in 1973 and has held the title ever since, with a stretch where Jane Foster carried it.
What are Valkyrie's powers?
Standard Asgardian strength, durability and longevity, elite swordsmanship with the enchanted blade Dragonfang, a winged steed named Aragorn, and the Valkyrior's ability to see and escort the dead.
Is Valkyrie related to Thor?
Not by blood. She is an Asgardian warrior and long-time ally who has fought beside him for centuries, and in the MCU she rules New Asgard after he steps back. The relationship is comradeship, not family.