BRAGI
Real Name: Bragi
Occupation:
God of music, poetry and eloquence
Legal Status:
Citizen of Asgard
Identity: The general populace of Earth is unaware of the existence of Bragi
except as a mythological character.
Other Aliases:
Master of Poets
Place of Birth:
Hnitborg in Jotunheim
Martial Status:
Married
Known Relatives:
Odin (father),
Gunlod (mother), Idunn
(wife), Balder,
Thor, Heimdall,
Hermod, Tyr,
Vidar, Vali (half-brothers), Freia
(mother-in-law), Nanna,
Sigyn, Sjofn,
Lofn, Syn
(sisters-in-law), Suttung (grandfather), Baugi (grand-uncle), Gilling
(great-grandfather, deceased)
Group Membership: The Gods of Asgard
Base of Operations:
Asgard
First Appearance:
(historical) Inferior Five #4, (modern) Marvel Fanfare I #13
History: Bragi is the son of Odin, Ruler of the Gods of Asgard and Gunlod, a
giantess. Gunlod had been made by her father, the giant Suttung, protector of
the mead of poetry, which had been made from the blood of the slain god, Kvasir.
Odin met her in Hnitborg, her mountain home, to steal the mead to give to the
Asgardians. He seduced Gunnlod to do so and she gave birth to Bragi, Odin’s
son. As an adult, Bragi became a god in the Asgardian Pantheon. He fell in love
and wooed the goddess Idunn and later took her as his wife.
In recent years, Bragi vanished in search of
inspiration to recite at All Father Odin’s Great Mid-Summer Celebration. As
Idunn searched for him, she encountered the Warriors Three and they split up to
look for him. They learned that Bragi had tried to acquire songs from the
dwarves, giants and daughters of Aegir, but they all turned him down and sent
him to Yggdrasil to search for inspiration. Racing to Yggdrasil separately, they
came on the scene to hear frantic screaming as Bragi trapped in the form of an
eagle was about to be eaten by a snake. They
saved his life, but Bragi repented that he still had no song for Odin. Upon
hearing of the adventures that Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg had experienced in
looking for him, he then realized that their exploits in searching for him were
more than enough to celebrate about.
In recent years, Bragi and Idunn took on
mortal lives of a free-living Greenwich couple in New York named Bragi and Iduna
Stockwell when Odin hid the Asgardians on life to protect them from Seth
manipulating Yggdrasil. Balder, Sif and Heimdall meanwhile regained enough of
their memories to restore the identities and restore the Asgardians. Bragi,
however, later lost his life as Loki attempted to conquer Asgard. To defeat
Loki, Thor met with the Norns and severed the strings, which kept Asgard in
repeating cycles of Ragnarok. However, the Odin-Force in the form of a young
child recreated Asgard along with its inhabitants shortly thereafter.
Height: 5' 10”
Weight: 410 lbs.
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Brown
Strength Level:
Bragi possesses the normal strength level of an Asgardian male of his size,
height and build who engages in extensive regular exercises; he can lift (press)
25 tons under optimal conditions.
Known Superhuman Powers: Bragi possesses the conventional physical attributes of the Asgardian gods. Like all Asgardians, he is exceptionally long-lived, but he is not immortal like the Olympian gods. He has not aged since reaching adulthood and cannot die by any conventional means. He is immune to all Earthly diseases and is resistant to conventional injury. If he were somehow wounded, his godly life force would enable him to recover with superhuman speed. It would take an injury of such magnitude that it dispersed a major portion of his bodily molecules to cause him a physical death. Even then, it might be possible for a god of significant power, such as Odin or for a number of Asgardian gods of equal power working together to revive him. Bragi also possesses superhuman strength and his Olympian metabolism provides him with far greater than human endurance in all physical activities. (Asgardian flesh and bone is about three times as dense as similar human tissue, contributing to the superhuman strength and weight of the Asgardian gods.)
Bragi also has certain undefined mystical
abilities to manipulate magic. He can enchant the sound of his voice to attract
gods and mortals and to alter his form into animals such as when he transformed
into a bird. The full range of his abilities are unknown.
Abilities:
Bragi has exceptional singing skills and poetic talents. He can also play a
lyre.
Comments: Since Odin has a great knowledge of poetry, some scholars in mythology
see Bragi as just another facet of Odin’s personality rather than a separate
entity.
It is unknown as to whether the Braggi of
Journey into Mystery I #118 is meant to be this Bragi or not. There is also a
reference to a god named Bragi in Conan The Barbarian #18, but since this would
occur before the birth of the Asgardian Gods, any connection between the
Asgardian Bragi and the Hyborian God would be slim at best.
Bragi’s great-grandfather Gilling was a giant killed by the dwarves Fjalar and Galar who were otherwise also noted for killing the Vanir god Kvasir and mixing honey with his blood to create the mead of poetry.
CLARIFICATIONS: Bragi is possibly not
to be confused with:
Updated: 05/14/06