Figuring out what makes a god in the MCU so Gorr the God Butcher doesn’t have to

polygon.com:

In Thor: Love and Thunder, the heroes go up against a new villain: the vengeance-minded supernatural assassin Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale). As his name implies, Gorr’s whole schtick is killing gods, a mission he took on for himself after the god he worshiped wouldn’t lift a finger to help him in his time of need. With his dark, shadowy Necrosword, Gorr is on a quest to kill every god ever, because as far as he (or we) can tell, they’ve done nothing to help their followers, or even to marginally make the multiverse a better place.

Since Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is a god himself, he disapproves of Gorr’s murder spree, especially when he and other survivors of the destruction of his home, Asgard, become Gorr’s next targets. Thor mourns some of the gods Gorr has killed, and seeks help from some who haven’t been targeted yet. The wide range of beings he encounters in the process brings up a question that haunts the MCU, especially as these mythological deities become more and more central to the movies: What the hell makes a god in the MCU?

[Ed. note: Some broad story spoilers ahead for Thor: Love and Thunder.]

Doesn’t Thor: Love and Thunder answer this question? you might ask.Gods are just the immortal entities that mortal species worship across the universe, right? Ah, if only it were that simple. Here’s one complication: When the Asgardians were first introduced in 2011’s Thor, they were presented as aliens.

Back in the early days of the MCU, the movies stayed away from mystical and magical elements. All the powers and action centered on technology, science, and interplanetary aliens, which were supposed to feel more serious and cool and grown-up than wibbly-wobbly fantasy. The “magic” of Asgard used to be just