Follow

    Executioner

    Character » Executioner appears in 318 issues.

    Skurge is an Asgardian warrior and one time enemy of Thor. For a long time, he was being used by Amora, the Enchantress, however, he earned redemption when he sacrificed himself to save countless souls from Niflheim. He occasionally gets a free pass from Valhalla to continue proving his heroism.

    Short summary describing this character.

    Executioner last edited by SlamAdams on 12/17/23 07:20AM View full history

    Origin

    No Caption Provided

    Skurge is the illegitimate child of a Storm Giant and an Asgardian goddess from Skarnheim. He was bullied for his diminutive size compared to the other Storm Giants, and he worked through his emotions by becoming the best warrior he could be. He earned his moniker as the Executioner by slaying the giants of his father's race. His life was that of isolation and loneliness until he met Enchantress, who seduced him into becoming her enforcer. She had originally enlisted him to kill Jane Foster, so that she could have Thor's human alter ego, Donald Blake, all to herself. Upon learning Donald was Thor, Skurge made a deal to return Jane for Mjolnir. Thor accepted knowing Skurge would be unworthy of lifting it. Enchantress would punish him for this betrayal.

    Major Story Arcs

    Master of Evil

    After attacking Thor, Odin banished Skurge and Enchantress to live out their days on Earth. Finding themselves in a strange world, they seek out a new ally in Baron Zemo. Together, they became the Masters of Evil, recruiting more villains to join them in their constant quest against The Avengers, who defeat the Masters time and time again.

    Banishment

    Seduced by another woman
    Seduced by another woman

    Sick of their Earthbound banishment, Skurge and Amora tried to return to Asgard by invading it with the hell of a troll army. The Asgardians repelled them once again, banishing the duo to a barren Netherworld. There, Skurge was seduced by a new magic woman, Casiolena, who whisked him away from Amora. She enlisted him as leader of her legions to protect her home realm.

    A jealous Amora would seduce the Black Knight into being her new consort and manipulated him into attacking Casiolena’s realm for her. Skurge easily defeated the pair and locked them in the dungeon. It wasn’t until The Defenders wandered into the realm and were also locked up that they earned an edge. Combining their might to break out, Amora was able to hit Casiolena with a magic blast, shaking Skurge loose from her thrall.

    The pair teleported away together, abandoning Black Knight.

    Return to Asgard

    Lieutenant of Asgard
    Lieutenant of Asgard

    Amora and Skurge once again try to force their way back into Asgard with an army of suits of armor animated by Amora’s magic. Thor and the Warriors Three were currently away from Asgard, leaving the realm in the protection of Balder the Brave and Karnilla the Norn Queen. Balder disguised himself to investigate the army but was unimpressed by the animated armors. Skurge and Amora caught him, forcing Karnilla to come to his rescue. While Amora and Karnilla dueled with magic, Skurge fought Balder.

    Skurge and Amora were defeated, but this was part of the plan. The bodies of Skurge and Amora vanish as if illusions while Thor returns from his adventure, angry at Balder for falling for such a trick. This version of Thor eventually proves to be a trick form Loki, who was working with Skurge and Amora to reclaim the throne of Asgard for himself.

    To keep this power, Loki must rid Asgard of Odin, so he directs Amora and Skurge to take his sleeping body in exchange for being made lieutenants of Loki’s court. While Thor went to save his brother, he sent the Warriors Three to protect Odin. Loki took advantage of the fight between Skurge and the Warriors by causing his lieutenants to fall into a fire pit in the ensuing chaos.

    Death

    Skurge on the Gjallerbru
    Skurge on the Gjallerbru

    Skurge grew weary of his alliance with Amora. Looking for a new path, he volunteered for a war party that Thor was putting together. They would march into Hel to free souls that Hela had been keeping captive. Hela was impressed by Skurge’s villainous path and offered him a spot on the Naglfar, the ship of the dead. She went as far as creating an illusion of Amora to try and appeal to him. Skurge did not like this much. He used his axe to rip a wormhole next to the ship that led to the heart of a sun. The resulting blast destroyed the ship and his axe.

    With the souls under their protection, the war party tries to cross the Gjallerbru bridge while being pursued by Hela’s army. Thor attempted to hold the bridge and buy the war party time, but Skurge forced him to continue on, taking his place. Armed with nothing by two Earth M16s, Skurge valiantly held the bridge, not allowing a single enemy to set foot on it, at the cost of his life.

    Executioner of Hel

    Skurge and Balder patrol Hel
    Skurge and Balder patrol Hel

    When Angela learned that the slave pits of Hel were filled with the Angels of Heven, she decided to violently overthrow Hela and release her sisters. Unfortunately, Hela proves to be a very popular goddess of the underworld. Skurge joins fellow fallen Asgardians Tyr and Balder in the land of the dead to protect her. They failed though, and Angela became the new Queen of Hel. She only kept the throne long enough to free her lover, Sera, from the slave pits. After which, Angela gave the crown to Balder. Skurge stuck around as his right hand man.

    He and Balder outfitted a truck with weapons and defenses and raced around all of Niffleheim protecting it from the Sindr and her fire demons, a prelude to the War of the Realms. During one of the fire demon raids, Skurge and Balder came across Thor and Loki, who attempted to teleport to the frontline of the war. With help from Balder’s brothers, they repel the most recent raiding party and reunite with Karnilla and Tyr to plan their next step. They decide to steal the rumored weapon of Sindr to turn on her. Unfortunately, the weapon turned out to be Hela and the Fenris Wolf.

    After a brief fight, Loki suggested that Hel and Balder marry, thus sharing the throne and uniting the forces of Hel against Sindr. Balder’s lover, Karnilla, would not have it. She took his place as Hela’s wife and forced Balder back into the land of the living. Sindr, of course, targets the ceremony, but during the festivities Thor had recruited the Valkyrie to join their side against her, helping Skurge and the others repel yet another fire demon raiding party..

    Asgardians of the Galaxy

    No Caption Provided

    Skurge was recruited from Hel by Kid Loki (a variation of Loki that should not exist). He was promised the chance to save lives rather than take them, a new life for Skurge. He was placed on a team led by Angela made of warriors who would not betray her to Odin or Thor. They needed to stop space pirate, Nebula, from summoning the Naglfar, an armada of the soulless bodies of Norse gods left behind after countless Ragnaroks.

    Unfortunately, they were too late, and Nebula was continuing to use the Naglfar Beacon to summon soulless gods from alien pantheons across the cosmos. They tracked her the best they could, eventually catching up with her on Earth. They attack her while she is trying to manipulate Thor. After Kid Loki distracts her with illusions of Gamora, she tries to escape, leaving behind the beacon. Thor entrusts it to Angela and her team, who intend to hide for safekeeping. Before they could though, they are called back for the War of the Realms.

    War of the Realms

    Volunteering to save Annabelle
    Volunteering to save Annabelle

    When Malekith kicked off the War of the Realms, Skurge and the rest of his team returned to Asgard to join the fight. Asgard was seemingly abandoned by everyone but Heimdall who gladly took the Naglfar Beacon and the shard of the Bifrost that powers their spaceship. Heimdell was trying to reassemble the Bifrost to give them an edge against the Dark Council. For now, he had enough to send the team to Earth.

    Unfortunately, Valkyrie was stuck down in battle. As she was bonded to Annabelle Riggs, the heroes were unsure of what happened to her without Valkyrie. Clea askes Annabelle’s girlfriend, Ren Kimura, to join her on a search for Annabelle, which Skurge, Thunderstrike, and Throg volunteered to accompany them into the dangerous mists surrounding Valhalla. This is where Annabelle was deposited after Valkyrie’s loss. Skurge and the others were forced to fight through restless souls to rescue her.

    in Valhalla
    in Valhalla

    They rejoin Angela on the battlefield in Kenya, where the Angels who sided with Malekith had them on the ropes. After being hit with a number of Angel arrows, Skurge used the teleportation ability of his axe to get Angela to Heven, a view he never thought he would have. It took all his strength to hold his portal open while Angela uses the Beacon to call the soulless gods into her service against the Angels.

    Much to his surprise, when he finally succumbed to his injuries, he awoke in Valhalla and not Hel, having earned a warrior’s death.

    Beta Ray Bill’s Wingman

    Skurge found the lack of guns in Valhalla disappointing and was often quite bored. Sometimes he would visit the living world in ethereal form to watch over his old friends. After a victory, he saw Beta Ray Bill and Sif get steamy, but Sif ultimately rejected Bill since he was stuck in his ugly warrior form. Brokenhearted, Skurge asked the Valkyries to allow him to join Bill on a quest to find Odin and request he forge Bill a new weapon so that he may transform back and forth once again. Luckily for Bill, Skurge knew where he was.

    Raiding Skuttelbut's armory
    Raiding Skuttelbut's armory

    Skurge led Bill to an alien bar where Odin was drinking his woes. Unfortunately, Odin claimed to not have the power to imbue the weapons with that kind of power anymore. He suggested Bill get himself an available weapon already imbued with the magic: Twilight, the Sword of Surtur. So, Skurge joined Bill into Muspelheim to claim it. It was a long arduous journey through monster-infested territory, but they finally made it.

    Bill’s ship, The Skuttlebut, was severely damaged, and the A.I. that controls it needed Skurge’s help to fix it, leaving Bill to challenge Surtur on his own for the sword. Bill fought bravely, but he nearly failed until Skuttlebut, having its energy levels back to normal, transformed into a large rail gun for Skurge to kill Surtur with. With Twilight now in Bill’s possession, Skurge’s mission was complete, and the Valkyrior came to collect him before he could escort Bill home.

    Escaping Valhalla

    Because Skurge’s original death was holding the bridge at Gjallerbru, a death destined for Thor that Skurge usurped, his fate was now wound with Thor. A side effect was that he had prophetic visions of Thor’s new destiny, dying holding yet another bridge. Skurge confided these visions with Odin and conspired to escape Valhalla. Having passed on the Odinforce to Thor, Odin no longer had the ability to send Skurge back to the living world, however, there was a back door. If Odin was to kill someone in Valhalla, they would resurrect and need to earn their spot in Valhalla again. Skurge agreed in order to help Thor, but they had to make his death look like murder or else the rest of Valhalla might seek death at Odin’s hands to return to the land of the living.

    Powers

    Thor vs Skurge
    Thor vs Skurge

    Superhuman Warrior: As an Asgardian/Storm Giant hybrid, Skurge possesses enormous superhuman strength and is likely the strongest Asgardian after Thor, Odin and Hela.

    • Invulnerability: Executioner's skin and muscle tissue are superhumanly dense, more so than an average Asgardian. He is able to resist ballistic impacts of up to .50 caliber machine gun fire and temperature extremes from 100 below zero to 2000 degrees Fahrenheit.
    • Stamina: He is virtually inexhaustible, not tiring after any physical exertion. He is immune to all Earthly disease.
    • Super Senses: The Executioner has the visual acuity of a hunting falcon able to see at a 100 feet what a normal human can see at 10 feet.

    Blood Axe: The Executioner wields a double bladed axe with a three foot handle and blades two feet wide. The axe is so massive, that it weighs approximately 280lbs.

    • Teleportation: With the axe he can cleave inter-dimensional passages that can transport himself and others to other realms or dimensions. He can also use the axe to open small rifts to other dimensions which permit inter-dimensional energy to pass through, such as blazing stellar fire or intense cold.
    • Magic Immunity: The axe is also capable of destroying illusions created by magic.

    Character Profile

    No Caption Provided
    • Height: 7'2"
    • Weight: 1,100 lbs
    • Eye Color: Blue
    • Hair Color: Black
    • Citizenship: Asgard, Jotunheim
    • Place of Birth: Jotunheim
    • Marital Status: Single
    • Occupation: Warrior
    • Known Relatives: Unnamed Storm Giant father, unnamed Skornheim goddess mother
    • Distinguished Features: Scalp tattoos, goatee

    Other Media

    Television

    • Executioner appears in The Mighty Thor portion of The Marvel Super Heroes.
    • Executioner appears in The Super Hero Squad Show, voiced by Travis Willingham. Due to the child-friendly status of the show, he is referred to only as "Skurge". Due to Enchantress' crush on Thor, Executioner attacks Thor only to be defeated.
    • Amora and Skurge in Avengers: EMH
      Amora and Skurge in Avengers: EMH
      Executioner appears in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes. In the episode "Thor the Mighty", Executioner accompanies Enchantress when she goes to the Isle of Silence to free Loki. In the episode "Some Assembly Required," he and Enchantress attack the Avengers after Bruce Banner thwarted Enchantress' mind-control on Hulk. Both of them are defeated, but managed to get away. In the episode "Living Legend," Enchantress and Executioner appear in Arnim Zola's lab where he pins down Arnim Zola while Enchantress proposes an offer to Baron Heinrich Zemo. In the episode "Everything is Wonderful," Executioner was with Enchantress and Baron Heinrich Zemo when they approach Wonder Man for the opportunity to help them destroy the Avengers. In the episode "Gamma World" Pt. 2, he was with Baron Heinrich Zemo, Enchantress, Wonder Man, and Crimson Dynamo when they find Abomination in the desert. In the episode "Masters of Evil," he assists Baron Heinrich Zemo's title team in capturing the Avengers one by one. When Hawkeye, Black Panther, and Ant-Man free the Avengers, Executioner ends up defeated by Ant-Man before Enchantress' magic gets the Masters of Evil back to Arnim Zola's secret lab. He guards the door that Enchantress goes in where she makes contact with Loki. He is later defeated and sent to Prison 42, and is one of the prisoners who helps back against the Annihilation Wave.
    • The Executioner appears in the Ultimate Spider-Man episode "Run Pig Run!" voiced by Travis Willingham. He reappears in Part 1 of the "Contest of Champions" arc, where he, Beetle and the Abomination are sent by the Grandmaster to capture Spider-Man. In Part 4, he teams with Doctor Octopus and Absorbing Man to battle the Collector.
    • Skurge appears in "What if...Thor Was an Only Child?" the seventh episode of the first season of the Disney+ streaming service What If...?

    Film

    Karl Urban as Skurge
    Karl Urban as Skurge
    • Executioner makes an appearance in the animated direct-to-video film Hulk vs. Thor.
    • Skurge the Executioner appears in Thor: Ragnarok, portrayed by Karl Urban. In the film, he is introduced as the new guardian of the Bifrost Bridge after Heimdall becomes a fugitive. When Hela arrives on Asgard and kills both Fandral and Volstagg, Skurge agrees to become her enforcer in exchange for his own life. Hela gifts him with an axe and names him her executioner as she conquers Asgard. Despite this, he is shown to be conflicted with this role, and during the final battle, he abandons Hela to escape with some Asgardian refugees. However, when Hela attacks the refugee ship, Skurge turns against his former master and fights off her monsters, ultimately sacrificing his life to allow the Asgardian citizens to escape.

    Video games

    Executioner in Avengers Alliance
    Executioner in Avengers Alliance
    • Executioner appears as a villain in the video game Marvel: Ultimate Alliance voiced by Peter Lurie. He is a member of Doctor Doom's Masters of Evil. He and Enchantress will battle the heroes before Balder is freed. In battle, he attacks the player's heroes while the Enchantress casts a spell on them. He and Enchantress have special dialogue with Thor and Spider-Woman. During the dialogue with Thor, Enchantress asks Executioner if he is jealous of her love to Thor.
    • Executioner appears as a boss character in Marvel Avengers Alliance.

    Merchandise

    Marvel Legends
    Marvel Legends
    • Bowen Designs released a statue of the Executioner.
    • Skurge was featured in the HeroClix figure game.
    • Executioner was featured in Diamond Select's Minimates line as part of a two-pack with Enchantress.
    • Executioner was featured in The Classic Marvel Figurine Collection from Eaglemoss Publications.
    • Hasbro released an Executioner figure in a two-pack with Enchantress as part of the 3.75 inch Marvel Legends line.
    • The movie version of Executioner was featured in Hasbro's Marvel Legends line as part as part of a two-pack with Hela.
    sizepositionchange
    sizepositionchange
    positionchange
    positionchange
    positionchange
    bordersheaderpositiontable
    positionchange

    This edit will also create new pages on Comic Vine for:

    Beware, you are proposing to add brand new pages to the wiki along with your edits. Make sure this is what you intended. This will likely increase the time it takes for your changes to go live.

    Comment and Save

    Until you earn 1000 points all your submissions need to be vetted by other Comic Vine users. This process takes no more than a few hours and we'll send you an email once approved.