History
According to Norse legends, Heimdall and his sister, Sif, were birthed from nine mothers who personified the sea. Renowned for his heightened perceptions, he was appointed by Odin to act as the sentry of Bifrost, the Rainbow Bridge, after besting Gotron the Agile and Agnar the Fierce in a contest. In duty's name, Heimdall has acted a number of times to keep even his own friends and allies, such as Thor Odinson, from entering Asgard against Odin's orders.
As part of plan to appease the cosmic Celestials, Odin sent Heimdall and Kamoor the Small to Earth to gather three mortals, Chi Lo, Carter Dyam and Jason Kimball, whose hidden powers were awakened by Ego-Prime, a portion of ego the Living Planet, elevating them as Young Gods. Heimdall also served on a mission alongside Thor, Odin, and the Warriors Three to rescue Sif and Karnilla from imprisonment within the Dark Nebula. Later, when Surtur and his demons assaulted Earth, all Asgard's enemies were sent to oppose him, only Heimdall and Odin staying behind to guard Asgard. Surtur defeated Heimdall and shattered Bifrost before being defeated by Thor, Loki, and Odin, seemingly at the cost of the latter's life. With the bridge shattered, Heimdall continued to serve Asgard as a soldier and entered an unsteady romance with Amora the Enchantress. Shortly thereafter, the Ennead (Egyptian) death god Seth waged war against Asgard, and Heimdall was injured b arrows during the fighting. Odin returned and rallied the Asgardians, who with the Black Knight (Dane Whitman)'s aid, narrowly prevailed. After Odin next entered his Odinsleep, he appointed Heimdall to lead Asgard in his absence, granting him a portion of the Odinpower. As his first act, Heimdall restored the Rainbow Bridge and appointed the Warriors Three its interim guardians. When Thor slew Loki in battle, Heimdall hesitantly banished Thor within the mortal Eric Masterson's mind, in accordance with Asgardian law, which forbade Asgardians killing one another. He also granted Masterson Thor's power to defend Earth in Thor's absence. Unbeknownst to any, Loki's soul came to inhabit Odin's body through a deal with the Hell-lord Mephisto. When "Odin" woke from his sleep, he declared Heimdall a traitor, exiling him to the demon Nightmare's dimension. Although Amora soon rescued him, Heimdall was left near death. After Masterson, Sif, and Balder recovered Odin's soul and returned it to its body, Odin restored Heimdall, who resumed his duties as Bifrost's guardian. Later, when the World Tree Yggdrasil was tricked into believing Ragnarok had occurred, Heimdall and the Asgardians were cast into mortal forms, Heimdall into the identity of Donald Velez. Seth sought to destroy them in their weakened states, but the gods slowly rediscovered their true identities and banded together to defeat him.
After Odin's death battling Surtur, Thor became Asgard's new monarch and moved Asgard to Earth to solve all the mortal world's ills. Heimdall sensed catastrophes on Earth for Thor to remedy until Thor was shown the error of his approach and restored Asgard to its proper place. Soon after, Loki assembled Asgard's enemies and brought Ragnarok to the realm, shattering Bifrost and killing Heimdall in their first assault. Asgard was destroyed in the subsequent war, and the Asgardians exiled to mortal forms; Heimdall became New Orleans native Ezra. After Thor returned to life from a limbo-like dimension, he found Ezra and used his hammer to free Heimdall, who guided Thor to other dormant Asgardians. When Thor was later exiled for inadvertently killing his grandfather Bor, Balder became Asgard's monarch and moved the Asgardians to Dr. Doom (Victor von Doom)'s Latveria at Loki's suggestion. It soon came to light that Doom was vivisecting Asgardians in his experiments, and Heimdall joined Asgard's forces to oppose the villain. The returning Thor forced Doom's retreat, and the Asgardians returned to Oklahoma. Soon after, Norman Osborn led HAMMER, the Initiative, and his Dark Avengers in a siege of Asgard, severely wounding Heimdall. The Avengers and Thor arrested Osborn and routed his forces, but Asgard's landmass was destroyed in the struggle. Heimdall subsequently recovered from his wounds, and remains a valued warrior.Attributes
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Powers
Abilities
Strength
Weaknesses
Paraphernalia
Equipment
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Transportation
See Also
- 255 appearance(s) of Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 6 appearance(s) in handbook(s) of Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 26 minor appearance(s) of Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 5 mention(s) of Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 4 mention(s) in handbook(s) of Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 28 image(s) of Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 10 quotation(s) by or about Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 1 victim(s) killed by Heimdall (Earth-616)
- 2 item(s) used/owned by Heimdall (Earth-616)
Links and References
References
- ↑ Journey Into Mystery #506
- ↑ Mighty Thor Vol 2 #703
- ↑ Siege #2
- ↑ Mighty Thor Vol 2 #2
- ↑ Savage Sword of Conan #40
- ↑ Thor #475
- ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z Vol 1 14