Marvel Theory: Odin Was Searching For The Infinity Stones Before Thanos

Following the events of Thor: Ragnarok, there is a lot of evidence to suggest that Odin was seeking all the MCU Infinity Stones way before Thanos, and for no less sinister reasons. As an Asgardian, Odin had been living in the MCU for several millennia before finally facing his mortality in Thor: Ragnarok. It was around the time of his death that the MCU revealed quite a lot of information about Odin and his long life before Thor was a twinkle in his eye, including what looked like a quest to obtain the most powerful artifacts in the MCU.

The King of Asgard was always a morally gray character and famously ruthless, which makes his intentions with the Infinity Stones concerning. While it is unlikely that he would have committed the mass genocide that Thanos accomplished, it is a lot harder to see Odin act as “dispassionately” in his goals as Thanos did. As for what those goals were, the clues in Thor: Ragnarok suggests that it was his instinct as the MCU’s God of War that prompted his search to begin with, as he sought to use them as a weapon to subjugate the Nine Realms – a goal that is anything but dispassionate.

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Odin’s Conquest Of The Nine Realms Set Up His Infinity Stones Quest

Odin And Hela’s Dark History Is Incredibly Important

Thor: Ragnarok revealed that Odin was a far more bloodthirsty individual in his younger days than he was in his old age. Instead of seeking stability through peace in the Nine Realms, Odin was more willing to attain it through force. To achieve this, Odin would have been seeking a weapon unlike any other in his arsenal. After all, despite his military successes in the conquest of the Nine Realms, winning wars against the Frost Giants of Jotunheim and the Fire Giants of Muspelheim couldn’t have been easy. Instead, the war could have ended with a snap of the fingers or a few tactical uses of the Infinity Stones’ power.

Odin’s willingness to stop at nothing is exhibited in Hela herself, whose power was second only to his own. Her ruthlessness, however, is on an entirely different level, as evidenced by her disdain for the peace her father sought before he resolved to exile her. Odin’s willingness to unleash his daughter on the Nine Realms – a god capable of wiping out Asgard’s elite Valkyries (save for Brunnhilde) – is evidence of the kind of power he was willing to wield to establish his Asgardian Empire. Thankfully, this single-minded pursuit was ultimately tempered, perhaps owing to Odin’s more compassionate side.

Either way, Odin’s conquest was a bloody period of his life that he later came to regret. Burying evidence of his war alongside Hela goes to show how his blood lust was something that weighed on him heavily. In the heat of the moment, however, Odin would have had every reason to seek out the Infinity Stones to help him in his pursuit of power, and another clue that he did so was also buried in his vault.

Odin’s Fake Gauntlet Is A Spiteful Trophy

Why Did Odin Value A Fake So Highly?

The presence of a fake Infinity Gauntlet in Odin’s vault indicated a few things about the King of Asgard. For one, it showed that he was aware of their presence and power, given the pride of place the replica had in his vault. It also indicated that he wanted it to be seen despite it being fake, perhaps out of vanity. Most importantly, however, the presence of the fake Infinity Gauntlet suggests that he did indeed hunt for the stones – especially following Hela’s reaction to seeing it.

It is somewhat surprising that Hela is so certain of the Gauntlet being a fake given that she has spent millennia in Hel. While it stands to reason that she, a fellow Asgardian, would be aware of the Infinity Stones’ existence, the idea that she knows exactly what the real deal looks like is less believable. Instead, it seems as though Hela knows that the Gauntlet is a fake because she was privy to Odin’s failed hunt for the collection.

It is more likely that Hela was present as Odin placed the fake gauntlet in the vault out of hubris. If Hela was an integral part of Odin’s more bloodthirsty days, then she would have been around for his hunt for the Infinity Stones to help achieve their goals. Hela’s certainty of the Gauntlet’s artificiality, then, indicates that she knows that Odin tried and failed to accumulate them himself. It also suggests that the Gauntlet itself was commissioned by him.

Odin’s Quest Would Explain The Plans For The Gauntlet

Eitri’s Gauntlet Design Already Existed Before Thanos…

The fake Gauntlet in Odin’s vault gave rise to a big MCU plot hole that can be explained by his hunting for the Infinity Stones before Thanos. The plot hole in question concerns how the fake Gauntlet looks identical to the Gauntlet that Thanos commanded the Dwarves of Nidavellir to forge, despite it being eons older. The only way this can make sense is if the Dwarves had already constructed a gauntlet for Odin, the one that sits in his vault, and used those plans to construct an identical one for Thanos.

This would mean that Odin had commissioned the Dwarves to construct a gauntlet capable of holding all the Infinity Stones. The most likely reason for this would be because he intended to use it, before failing in his hunt for the stones (or quitting) and deciding to use it as a prop instead. As for how it came to be that Odin’s hunt failed, this could be explained by the King of Asgard’s capacity for good, after all.

How Close Odin Came To Possessing The Stones (& Why He Stopped)

Odin Changed Massively After Imprisoning Hela

Odin likely did, at one time, possess the Space Stone as it was left with a Norse cult on Midgard, in Tønsberg. It is also confirmed that his father, Bor, once possessed the Aether – AKA the Reality Stone – after he took it from the Dark Elves and had it buried on a distant world. With that in mind, Odin would have been distinctly knowledgeable about the Infinity Stones, and even aware of the precise location of at least two of them.

If Odin was aware of the stones – especially the Space Stone – then his hunt could have borne significant fruit if he had continued to hunt for them in earnest in a bid to wield them against his enemies. Yet at some point, Odin’s blood lust gave way to compassion, and he brought a halt to the conquest and, apparently, his hunt for the stones. This could have occurred as his knowledge extended to what getting a hold of every stone would entail.

While Thanos showed the “strength” necessary to meet the requirements for obtaining the Soul Stone, this could be where Odin drew the line. For all his faults, Odin has been shown as a loving father and husband – even if his parenting methods are questionable. It isn’t hard to see that the requirements to acquire the MCU‘s Soul Stone – namely, the sacrifice of a loved one – was something that Odin could not bring himself to do. The fact that he could not kill Hela, and instead banished her to Hel, lends itself to this idea, which would have brought an end to his hunt for the all-powerful Stones.