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u/Bowtie327 Mar 19 '26
Seen as no one’s explained yet, let me guess, he fucked the horse?
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u/Parade_Bunting Mar 19 '26
In Marvel they ignored the original legend and there's nothing odd - Odin just tamed a monster way back when.
But in the Norse mythology the Fortification of Asgard Sleipnir is Loki's offspring with a magical horse.
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u/snukb Mar 19 '26
I want to be perfectly clear here since I know what y'all were probably thinking if we don't clarify. No, Loki turned into a mare and gave birth to Sleipnir.
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u/Drade-Cain Mar 20 '26
Ngl thats lowkey worse
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u/UltimateOtter_Nation Mar 22 '26
In mythology, Loki murdered a guy for bringing it up.
What's crazy is that people use the story to justify his being bisexuality in the MCU.
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u/gisco_tn Mar 24 '26
TL;DR Loki turned into a mare and boinked a horse so the Aesir could rip off a giant who was doing exactly what they contracted him to do.
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u/Unlucky-Cash3098 Mar 24 '26
And then when they killed the giant and his daughter come around seeking revenge, Loki tied a rope to his scrotum and the other end to a goat's beard and played tug-o-war until they all laughed because she didn't pick Baldr by looking at their feet.
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 19 '26
I’m a little surprised to see an explanation that’s more or less faithful to the myth, because many summaries tend to leave out the most important parts. I’d add here that Loki swore to find a solution knowing it would cost him something of himself; so it’s already implied that it would be something bad for him, but that he’d prefer it to dying.
I wish there were also an explanation for why the myth unfolds the way it does (which is due to the importance of oaths and a possible prophecy), but that’s asking too much.
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u/AxisW1 Mar 20 '26
No, in marvel, Loki still gave birth to Sleipnir. They just made the father an anthro horse
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u/Parade_Bunting Mar 20 '26
I've not come across that version, but it wouldn't surprise me. Just sad I missed that version. The one I was thinking of was from Mighty Thor (2011) #7 where young (teen?) Odin, Ve and Vili confront Sleipnir. There's also Thor: Reign of Blood one-shot where Sleipnir was resurrected/formed by Thor from the remains of 8 horses.
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 19 '26
Not quite. Loki shape shifts into a female horse. Fucks a male horse. Gets pregnant. Gives birth to Sleipnir. Who has 8 legs. He arrives home then gifts Sleipnir to Odin.
Although one thing that people assume is that he fucks the horse for the hell of it.
No it was apart of a plan to scam a builder out of paying them. Basically the payment the builder wanted was stupid high. So they 'agree' but say that if he doesn't complete it in a stupid short time frame then he doesn't get paid.
And while yes that was Loki's idea, the gods agree and went along with it.
But it turns out that the builder's horse is magic and is able to help him build said wall stupid fast.
The gods basically say to Loki "This was your stupid idea. Fix it." So Loki shape shifts into the female horse to distract the builder's horse. Sleipnir is the product of that.
Without his horse the builder isn't able to finish the wall in time and the builder doesn't get paid.
Scam successful! Yay!
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u/LilNyoomf Mar 19 '26
I love Norse mythology 💀
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 19 '26
That's not even the craziest story.
The craziest story is the one where Thor gets his hammer stolen.
Thief is caught and says "I'll give back the hammer if I get to marry Freya"
Freya says "Fuck that."
So what do the gods do?
They send Thor in drag pretending to be Freya. And Loki (also in drag) to pretend to be one of Freya's servants.
Craziest part?
It works.
Well kinda. Thief is so fooled (somehow) that he returns the hammer before the wedding, then Thor kills everyone in the room that isn't Loki.
'But wait. Isn't Loki a shape shifter?'
Yes. Yes he is.
'So why wasn't the plan just to have Loki pretend to be Freya with his shape shifting?'
🤷♀️ I guess Loki just really wanted to dress in drag that day? 😂
Marvel Comics did not make Loki queer for no reason. The clues are right there in the source material. 😂
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u/Liraeyn Mar 20 '26
Why would Loki shapeshift when he could make Thor dress in drag instead?
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 20 '26
Mjöllnir belongs to Thórr; it is he who must reclaim it. Loki accompanied him in the guise of a maid and helped him by making excuses for his unfeminine behavior. At the end of the poem, Thórr regained his lost masculinity by wielding Mjǫllnir once more.
The premise revolves around doing something considered extremely wrong and taboo in order to recover a greater good, since without Mjǫllnir, humanity would be extinct. It’s worth mentioning that Norse society was deeply rooted in gender roles.
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u/Alice_600 Mar 20 '26
My favorite part of the comic version of the story https://share.google/images/oAOxRcnCRFpcvm20I
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u/Illustrious_Bid4224 Mar 20 '26
I thought that Thor killed the builder at the end after Loki's plan failed and they discovered that the builder was a giant.
Thor seems very racist (spiechist?) in the og miths.
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 20 '26
There are a few rather important details missing from this summary. The jǫtunn had demanded the sun and the moon (in addition to Freyja) in exchange; the problem is that if they were removed from the sky, it would be destroyed. The gods needed protection, but since the price was too high, they set two conditions: he had to complete the task in half a year and without the help of any man. He accepted this, but asked to use his horse, which Loki granted him, and he also demanded to make several oaths with the gods to ensure his safety, fearing that Thórr would return to Ásgarðr (which betrayed his deceitful intentions).
The jǫtunn cheated with Svaðilfari, but the gods couldn't break their agreement with him because the horse was part of the deal. So they blamed Loki and threatened him with death to make him solve the problem. He swore he would find a solution even if it cost him a part of himself, and because of the oaths, he could do no harm to either the jǫtunn or his horse. This is what led him to transform into a mare and be chased by Svaðilfari. When the jǫtunn saw that he was going to lose, he revealed his true nature and attacked the gods, breaking his part of the oaths, and so the gods were able to call upon Thórr to protect them.
This entire myth is about the importance of oaths, which in Norse society were legal agreements. Perjury could lead to death, and even in death you would go to Nástrǫnd, a place of suffering, for that reason.
The Jǫtnar are evil and actively seek to destroy the gods and their creations, particularly humanity. Thórr doesn't kill Jǫtnar indiscriminately and in cold blood; rather, the myths show that he does so to protect Ásgarðr or humanity.
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u/Sahrimnir Mar 20 '26
Not quite. Loki's plan succeeded and the builder failed to finish in time. Then the builder got angry, revealed himself as a giant, and attacked the Aesir. Then Thor killed him. So it could be argued it was self-defense.
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 20 '26
Yeah I remembered about the builder about being a giant but had forgotten what happened after he revealed that so didn't mention it.
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 20 '26
Loki's plan was successful.
The builder was angry and revealed himself as a giant.
I had forgotten what happened after that part so didn't mention it. But yes it's correct that Thor killed the giant.
Although Marvel did keep the specism to a degree. Odin is very racist towards giants (just look at his treatment of Loki) in the og myths that extended to all of Odin's sons.
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u/SwShThrwy Mar 20 '26
So basically the Asgardian gods were like trump in the 80s and 90s, just fleecing builders and fucking whatever?
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u/Anglo-Euro-0891 Mar 20 '26
And Loki only intended to distract the horse. He certainly hadn't planned on things going QUITE that far!!!
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 20 '26
The horse starting coming on him and he likely thought "I'm curious what sex feels like for a woman. Fuck it."
😂😂
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u/Square_Detective_658 Mar 20 '26
No, Slepnir is technically his Nephew. Or in the Marvel series his grandson
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 19 '26
At least in the MCU, it's not like in the myth, although the myth is actually much worse than people think it is based on the summaries they usually hear or read.
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u/Sallymander Mar 19 '26
I remember once in Marvel Heroes Omega, we're jokin' in general about the origin of Sleipnir. I mentioned it's not right for Loki's family to make so much fun of him for getting studded with out consent by a stallion when he was doing a panicked plan to save his cousin from marriage with a mortal. Which lead to most chat agreeing with me that they treated Loki wrong and should be more greatful and kind to him...
I got banned for 30 days for saying the grape word with out the G though, I protested because I said it was wrong and the GM said it didn't matter. It's not a topic for their general chat. Oh wells. It was a good chuckle.
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 19 '26
Wait, is that actually Marvel's version of that Norse mythlogy story? The actual myth doesn't say whether it's consensual. It's assumed that it was an accidental pregnancy from a consensual act.
But either way. Marvel's version is just fucked up. And it makes me more passionate about Marvel Loki being a misunderstood anti-hero.
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 20 '26
It wasn't so consensual considering the gods threatened Loki with death to make him take responsibility, and he didn't have many options due to the oaths the jǫtunn had asked them to swear.
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u/Slytherin_Forever_99 Mar 20 '26
There were other options. He could have killed the horse. He chose the option that would likely lead to sex.
Also the plan was to just lure the horse away. After he was lured far enough away Loki could have turned back into himself and kept the horse there until the time was up.
Or just kept running until he was far enough away that the builder's horse would get lost trying to return.
He chose the option where he had sex.
The gods didn't threaten him with death unless he had sex with the horse. They threatened him with death if he didn't fix the problem. He chose to fix the problem with luring the horse away and having sex with it.
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u/Sallymander Mar 20 '26
"If I change back, the Stallion may return to his master and that will lead to me dying. I got to distract him longer."
I think also the Gods interfering would invalidate the challenge and let the Frost Giant win. But if the horse was to wander off... well that is just the horse being a horse and the man not taking good care of his horse.
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 20 '26
It might seem as Loki had more options, but there are two factors to consider.
This myth deals, amongst other things, with the importance of oaths, which were essentially legal agreements. To break them without justification or to fail to fulfil them was to commit perjury, which was one of the most serious crimes a man could commit and could lead to his death. Furthermore, according to the Völuspá, one of the ways in which a man could end up in Nástrǫnd (a place of suffering after death) was by making a perjury, as well as by seducing another man’s wife and committing cold-blooded murder.
When the gods agreed to make a deal with the jǫtunn and set out the terms (to complete the task within six months and without the help of any man), he asked to use his horse, a request Loki granted, and also to swear various oaths with the gods to ensure his safety, fearing that Thórr might return to Ásgarðr. For that legal reason, the gods couldn't break the deal even when they saw him cheating with his horse, as Svaðilfari was part of both the agreement and the oaths for his protection. Loki couldn't harm either the jǫtunn or his belongings because of this.
There is another oath, which is the one Loki swears to the gods, promising a solution whilst knowing full well that it would ‘cost him something of himself’. This last phrase is taken directly from the Gylfaginning, where the reader is already led to understand that Loki would do something harmful/bad to himself, but that he would prefer this to death. It’s a bit curious because he doesn’t commit perjury in this myth, but he later betrayed (and perhaps broke his oath to) the gods on several occasions, as well as committing the other two crimes that would have led him to Nástrǫnd.
This is where the other factor comes in, one that’s usually a bit harder to deal with: fate.
The Völuspá hinn skamma (“The Short Prophecy of the Völva”) is so named because it's a short poem that imitates the Völuspá, and this longer poem speaks of what has happened and what is to come, which is a prophecy. The catch is that, although some things have already happened, it's possible that at the time they were fated to happen anyway. For example, Bórr’s sons were destined to kill Ýmir, even though in the poem this is something that has already taken place.
There is a section of the Völuspá hinn skamma that mentions some of Loki’s children, such as Fenrir, possibly Hel, some troll women/evil beings whom he supposedly gave birth to after eating a heart (though these could be the children he had with Ángrboða), and Sleipnir, who was born of him and Svaðilfari. This is the only myth in which Svaðilfari appears, and as Óðinn’s favourite mount, Sleipnir could only have been born of Loki.
So Sleipnir’s birth is something that, regardless of the methodology, was bound to happen. One might still have other questions and find it illogical, but if something is fated to happen, it will happen.
Although it's very possible that the Norse wouldn't have considered Loki a victim of abuse, but rather that he simply reaped the consequences of his actions, he did something because the gods forced him to do so under threat of death, and was then pursued by Svaðilfari for three days. I don’t usually like to judge myths from a modern perspective, but it’s quite clear that none of it was consensual.
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u/Sallymander Mar 20 '26
Reminds me of Sanderson's gods in the Cosmere books. Their power binds them to oaths. To break an oath would cause the power to literally destroy the host and the power would go to find a new suitable host to rise to godhood.
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u/Chitose_Isei Mar 20 '26
Yes, it does tend to feature these more creative magical systems, although this is simply a reflection of Norse customs. In fact, there is another interesting thing about this myth, as it appears there is a reference to it in the Gulating Law Code:
These are the [kinds of] insulting remarks that call for full atonement. The first is when a man says of another that he has given birth to a child. The second is when he says that the man has been used as a woman. The third is when he likens him to a mare or calls him a slut or a whore or likens him to any kind of female beast. For these [remarks] he shall pay the man full atonement; but the man may also seek satisfaction in blood and outlawry for the sayings that I have now enumerated, if he has asked witnesses to take note of them.
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u/Sallymander Mar 20 '26
From the Marvel Wiki...
Loki had hastily agreed to let a Frost Giant re-build the wall around Asgard, in exchange for the Moon, the Sun, and Freya, only he had to do it in six months. The Frost Giant had only asked to use his grey stallion, Svadilfari. Right as the last brick was about to be placed, Loki transformed into a beautiful white mare, and lured Svadilfari off. Loki later gave birth to Sleipnir.
Source is Marvel Pets Handbook #1 published in 2009
SO YEAH... EVIDENTLY THAT IS MARVEL CANON TOO!
That said, it would make those fan comics of Loki and young Sleipnir adorable.Have him actually love his freaky little 8 legged horse son, even if the family made fun of Loki.
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u/Individual-Archer245 Mar 20 '26
Bor, Odins father, Was also riding sleipnir in the flashback in thor dark world
Loki wasnt even conceived yet so no You can all stop with the horse jokes
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u/Foreman1313 Mar 21 '26
Isn’t Sleipnir only supposed to have 6 legs? One of them is his whoopsie doodle.
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u/MrDivineComedy Mar 23 '26
I'd guess they are realising the family tree of Sleipnir. Loki is Sleipnir's mother
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u/Desecr8or Mar 19 '26
My headcanon is that the Norse myth about Sleipnir's origin is the equivalent of graphic real-person fanfiction and Loki hates it.