Toothgnasher

Origin

In his youth, Thor, young, stubborn, prideful and strong was egged on by the words of his brother Loki, that he needs to prove himself by breaking the toughest beasts that could not be broken. These beasts were of course referring to the lords of the goats, Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder, two mystical goats that would not bend, nor bow, to any human, elf, troll or god. Thor attempted and failed to break either animal, usually due to his source of bridle not being able to withstand the vigor required to the task of taming Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder. Seeking to resolve this, Thor enlisted the aid of expert dwarves to create the magical bridle the Bregd Thrall. With this new bridle Thor now had to deal with the issue that neither Toothgnasher nor Toothgrinder would cede if their counter part was allowed to be unrestrained and so Thor in his naive ingenuity caught and broke both majestic goats at the same time before then riding his two steeds back to Asgard, Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder finally having a master.

Creation

The Marvel version of Toothgnasher was adapted by Steve Englehart, and John Buscema, inspired by the Norse mythological creature of the same name. It first appears alongside its constant companion Toothgrinder in Thor #339

Major Story Arcs

Journey Into Mystery

Volstagg retells the story of how Thor captured and broke in Toothgrinder and Toothgnasher to a younger Loki who no longer has memory of his past experiences. Loki then goes on to use the magical bridle Bregd Thrall for his own purposes. he would later ‘burrow” the two goats to help pull himself from the roots of the World Tree, then later to pull the Hel Wolf and later Volstagg himself from their hidding place in the roots, also.

The goats play a prominent role in “New Mutants” #82-85. The Midgardian heroes had come to Asgard and uncovered a plot by Hela to invade Asgard and slay Odin when he was in his weakened Odinsleep. Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder are convinced of the danger by Volstagg’s chilldren. Together, the group gain valuable allies by traveling far. Such as Balder, Karnilla and the forces Karnilla represent. Later, on the battlefield, the goats are seen subduing multiple enemies.

Powers and Abilities

Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder have the ability to travel at faster than light speeds, whether by ground or air, and they both have the capability to travel though the cold and harsh vacuum of space as well. Their strength is sufficient to carry passengers in a chariot at high speeds. They will regenerate from injury, their flesh, possessing a strong healing factor, as long as their bones are not broken. Being of Asgardian physiology it is likely they are considerably denser than normal goats. They have a degree of sentience and thus can communicate with each other and also their master Thor.

Physical Characteristics

• Height: 6’1
• Weight: 1700 lbs
• Eyes: Solid Brown
• Hair: White

Alternate Realities

Earth – 726633: Thor The Mighty Avenger

Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder aid their master Thor, in various ways, from ferrying him and Jane Foster to various spots around the globe, to taking Thor and the Warriors Three on a pub crawl.

Earth – 12591

In this reality where zombie nazis have taken over the earth thanks to Loki, the all father Odin is turned into a zombie, and as such even Toothgrinder and Toothgnasher are now zombies. Them seem to be the master plan behind the zombies scheme to travel across dimensions, as they have a ship attached to them. They are considerably larger in this reality, as they have feasted on the zombified Odin and as such inheriting much of his power. Even though as a general rule zombies can’t and won’t eat other zombies, as Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder are goats, they can and will eat anything.