Guess What? The Next Thor Will be Female

Marvel has just announced that the next Thor will be female, and she will be written into the upcoming series of comics currently being created by Jason Aaron. Marvel’s decision to turn Thor into a woman may seem like it’s an original idea, but I’m not so convinced that Marvel isn’t simply following a trend.

Apple First

Apple has recently begun targeting women with the creation of various sports devices meant to be paired with iOS. All you really have to do to see how Apple is focused on the female athlete is look at a few recent Apple commercials. The fitness industry is a billion-dollar one, and Apple is at the center of fitness tech with women leading the pack. If Apple is catering to women (and other companies are too, no doubt), why shouldn’t Marvel get in on this trend?

Women are getting into lifting more and more, and things like mud races are filled with female competitors. So, it’s a natural progression for Marvel to make one character (and maybe more to follow) a female. Plus, women have slammed Marvel in the past (and currently) for their portrayal of females in scantily clad outfits. But, Marvel’s demographics are changing. Boys still read comic books, but there’s a whole new crop of girls that read comic books too, and Marvel wants to target that market.

Morphing Thor

It’s one thing to create new characters that take on a different gender, but it’s another thing to change the gender of a comic book legend like Thor. Some purists are protesting this change by stating that Thor shouldn’t suddenly become female, and others are praising Marvel for this switch. The fact that Marvel has made such a shocking announcement has spurred some gamers to wonder, too, if video game characters might soon be getting a gender makeover.

There are, of course, plenty of female video game characters like Lara Croft that do some serious damage when it comes to being rough and tough. But Marvel’s move to change Thor from a male to a female is the first of its kind. You may soon see a female Mario popping up in a video game store near you, or you might find that some developers simply start to create new female characters. Either way, this Marvel move is surely a marketing one, but it’s also a move that will please a lot of Marvel’s female clientele.

Is It Necessary?

It seems somewhat odd, though, that Marvel would change Thor into a woman when there are plenty of Norse goddesses that could completely rule the pages of a comic book series or become a popular gaming character. Why would Marvel choose to switch Thor’s gender instead of creating a series based on a goddess that already exists? It might have been a marketing department decision, or it could be that female fans everywhere will cheer at the thought of Thor turning female – tough call.

Thoughts?