Gorr vs. Thanos: Who Would Win & Why?

Thanos has been the absolute powerhouse supervillain in the MCU so far. However, with Thor: Love and Thunder introducing Gorr the God Butcher, the Mad Titan is finally getting some competition for the spot of the most powerful MCU supervillain. We don’t know MCU Gorr’s powers, but if we compare the comic versions of Gorr and Thanos, who would win, and why?

Gorr the God Butcher would destroy Thanos in most of their fights. The Necrosword puts Gorr on a completely different power level. However, the Mad Titan achieved features nobody thought he could, so he could potentially defeat Gorr under the right circumstances.

It’s not all black-and-white in this matchup, as both characters have distinct advantages. For instance, Thanos has much stronger natural physiology and is far more intelligent, but Gorr with the Necrosword is exponentially more powerful, so he’d be more likely to win. Let’s dissect the matchup to get an answer as close to objective as possible.

Physiology

Most MCU fans think that Thanos is only powerful due to the Infinity Gauntlet. However, that couldn’t be further from the truth. The Mad Titan is one of the mightiest beings in the universe, even without a single Infinity Stone.

Thanos is an Eternal from Titan, imbued with the Deviant Syndrome. The Syndrome caused his physique to change – his skin turned purple and caused Thanos’ body to grow exponentially stronger but appear stumpy. 

He was teased and bullied for it, so Thanos dedicated his entire life to finding ways to become as powerful as he could be: be it physical strength, intelligence, energy, or psionic abilities. And, he very well succeeded, becoming nigh-invulnerable to damage, strong enough to match the Hulk in a fistfight, and a genius, even for Eternal standards.

On the other hand, Gorr was a humanoid alien of an unknown species, living on an unknown, desolate, poor planet that fought for survival in a harsh, desert environment. The people of Gorr’s planet were incredibly religious, praying to gods to help them. It never happened, though. Instead, Gorr’s entire family died, and he was an outcast because of his hatred of the gods.

One day, Knull, the God of Symbiotes, fought some gods as they fell onto Gorr’s planet. Knull’s connection to All-Black the Necrosword – the first Symbiote – broke, and it bonded with Gorr. Gorr used it to kill the fallen gods and, with his brutal newfound power, vowed to kill every god in existence. He became one of the msot powerful creatures in the universe.

That being said, his natural physiology was nothing special before bonding with All-Black. He was merely a mortal humanoid alien. Without the Necrosword, Thanos could probably kill Gorr with a hard slap. With the Necrosword, we’re talking a whole different story, but in terms of pure, natural physiology, Thanos beats Gorr, and it’s not even close.

Point: Thanos (1:0) Gorr

Powers

Now, this is where things shift in Gorr’s favor. Thanos has an incredible array of superpowers: superhuman strength, speed, stamina, durability, agility, reflexes, psionic abilities, bionic enhancements, telepathy, telepathic resistance… The list goes on. And still, it’s nothing compared to what Gorr can do.

All-Black the Necrosword is the first of all Symbiotes that Knull had ever created. It’s powerful enough to decapitate a Celestial with a single strike – and its powers are only amplified with rage and hatred that its wielder is feeling.

It gave Gorr the power and strength to kill millions of gods and withstand unfathomable amounts of damage. Even if the God Butcher gets hurt, he can regenerate quite easily in a matter of minutes, hours, or days, depending on the severity of the injury. He moves at speeds close to lightspeed and has reflexes that are virtually unforeseen.

However, his biggest power comes from All-Black’s ability to manipulate the living abyss and form all kinds of constructs – wings, weapons, armor, etc. The matter manipulation grew so strong at one point that the Necrosword started consuming the universe itself, and Gorr merged with it completely, becoming All-Black the Necroverse.

In Thor: God of Thunder #2, Gorr claims he had once tortured a god of torture. He’s unfathomably powerful, and despite all of Thanos’ powers and skills, the Mad Titan is no match for the God Butcher – not without the Infinity Gauntlet.

Point: Gorr (1:1) Thanos

Intelligence

Now, if we’re talking about an intellectual battle, this is where Thanos trumps Gorr, hands down. We have genius human characters in Marvel Comics, like Tony Stark, Dr. Bruce Banner, or Reed Richards. However, Thanos is a genius not for human standards but for Eternal standards, who are naturally incredibly more intelligent than humans.

He’s virtually a super-genius, prolific in countless scientific fields, as well as in mysticism, occult knowledge, and even magic. On the other hand, Gorr was never considered to be a literal genius – especially not without the Necrosword.

I mean, he is quite old, with over three thousand years of combat experience and millions of gods slain, but he was never an intellectual genius. The experience surely made him more cunning and smart in combat strategy and planning, but if we compare Gorr and Thanos based on intelligence alone, the Mad Titan trumps the God Butcher.

Point: Thanos (2:1) Gorr

Weapons

Thanos doesn’t usually wield any weaponry, apart from a double-bladed sword and armor. Sure, he had the Infinity Gauntlet at one point, but one can’t consider it to be his normal weaponry or equipment. He does have a huge army, though, and incredible gadgets. Plus, in the comics, Thanos can shoot energy blasts powerful enough to knock Galactus on his butt.

That being said, none of those weapons comes close to Gorr’s Necrosword. All-Black is a conscious being and one of the most powerful weapons in the entire universe. The power level would be more comparable if Thanos had the Infinity Gauntlet. However, it’s not his regular weapon or piece of equipment, whereas All-Black is always with the God Butcher.

The Necrosword beats any army, weapon, or gadget that Thanos has, which is why Gorr gets the clear point in this category.

Point: Gorr (2:2) Thanos

Fighting Skills

Thanos is a masterful combatant, both with weaponry and in hand-to-hand combat. He fought and beat the Hulk in a fistfight, held his ground against Odin, and much more. And, I didn’t even mention his fantastic strategy and planning skills. He’s a masterful tactician, which is how he managed to collect the entire Infinity Gauntlet. Also, he has a huge army that he leads perfectly.

On the other hand, Gorr’s fighting skills stem from his connection to the Necrosword. All-Black has incredible lust for the blood of gods and helps Gorr defeat any god he encounters. With over three thousand years of experience, Gorr managed to decimate literally millions of gods, which is a clear testament to his amazing combat skills.

Perhaps he wasn’t as trained in battle as Thanos, but the experience and skill required to butcher millions of gods certainly puts him in the same category as the Mad Titan. For that, both characters get points.

Point(s): Gorr (3:3) Thanos

Best Features

Finally, it all comes down to what they were capable of doing at their best. We all know how spectacular Thanos was as a fighter. He held his own against Odin before eventually losing. Also, Thanos managed to collect the entire Infinity Gauntlet, giving him the power to snap his fingers and wipe out the universe if he wanted to.

There was also a storyline called the Infinity Ending, where Thanos defeated The One Above All and became the Supreme Being – the controller of all reality, all existence, and all creation. However, it’s a non-canon storyline written by Jim Starlin, the guy who created Thanos in the first place.

Opposingly, Gorr is a guy known as the God Butcher. With the help of All-Black the Necrosword, he killed millions of gods. That alone is an incredible feat – but there’s more. The guy defeated a young Thor, the regular Avenger Thor, and Old King Thor, all at the same time.

For reference, Old King Thor has the power of the Destroyer, Thor, and Odin combined, and he outmatched a moderately-fed Galactus alone. And, even he couldn’t defeat Gorr at his best – not even with the help of two other Thors. On the other hand, Thanos held his own but was eventually losing to Odin alone.

Finally, at his strongest self, Gorr and All-Black grew so powerful that they started feeding on the very fabric of the universe, devouring it in a large dark hole made of the living abyss. They were called All-Black the Necroverse and would easily consume the universe – and beyond – had they not been stopped.

Overall, Gorr’s Best features trump Thanos’ best features, especially if we only consider canon. He accomplished things Thanos could only dream of, and for that, he gets the point in this category.

Point: Gorr (4:3) Thanos

Gorr Vs. Thanos: Who Wins?

In the end, Gorr wins against Thanos in a tight battle. Thanks to the Necrosword, Gorr was simply way too powerful for millions of gods he had slain, let alone Thanos. To add to it, the more gods he killed, the more powerful he and the Necrosword became. Despite all Thanos’ powers, he simply can’t match the God Butcher. Well, at least power-wise.

However, we’ve seen Thanos accomplish incredible things simply because of his incredible intellect. He’s much smarter than Gorr, and under the right circumstances, he could certainly find a way to defeat the God Butcher. 

For instance, if he finds a way to separate Gorr from the Necrosword, it’s bye-bye for the alien. It’s easier said than done, I know, but if anyone could figure it out, it’s Thanos.

Ultimately, I’d give Gorr a clear advantage based on sheer power, so he’d win most of the time, but underestimating the Mad Titan would be a big mistake. It wouldn’t be an easy fight, and Thanos would certainly have his chance against the God Butcher.