The Marvel Super Heroes · Season 1 · Episode 9
Chained Evil / Sandu, Master of the Supernatural / Enchanted Hammer
Synopsis
Bound in Asgard for his crimes, Loki manages to free himself of his Uru chains by calling Mjolnir to him via the connection of the metal. It seems he cannot raise a hand against Thor himself, so he reaches down to Earth for a puppet. His eye lands on Sandu, a carnival mentalist whose act is all patter and little power. Loki magnifies that meager gift a thousandfold. Sandu finds he can read minds, hoist buildings, and bend the world to his whim. The small-time huckster crowns himself a conqueror. He turns his stolen might on cities and armies alike, and sets his sights on ruling the whole of the Earth.
Thor answers the challenge. Sandu proves harder than expected and the thunder god finds himself chained beneath an entire building. Odin will not watch his son fall. Aid comes from Asgard, and a gift of enchanted strength tears Thor free of the wreckage. Sandu's undoing is his own greed. He strains every ounce of borrowed power against Mjolnir at once, and the effort burns his stolen gifts to ash. The mentalist is left an ordinary man again, and Loki is left to stew.
Reality Designation
This story takes place outside the main Marvel continuity: 600026
Reality numbers are Marvel's official designations.
Where a universe has no official number we follow the Marvel Database and use its Temporary Reality Number (TRN-1092). Where there is neither — official or temporary — at the time we watch it, we assign a Snark Industries number of our own (SI-001).
Characters in the Episode
The thunder god. Answers Sandu's rampage, is buried under a building, and is freed by Asgard's gift.
Jailed in Asgard. Powers Sandu a thousandfold to fight Thor by proxy.
Carnival mentalist powered into a supernatural conqueror. Undone by his own reach for Mjolnir.
The All-Father. Sends enchanted strength to save Thor.
Blake's colleague. On hand at the carnival for Sandu's act.
The guardian of The Bifrost. Misses Loki's escape
Handmaiden to Frigga, speaks to Heimdall
In-Universe Date
No date indicated. Contemporary setting for release date.
Comic Roots
Where the episode's people and places come from on the page.
Journey into Mystery #91 (April 1963), scripted by Larry Lieber over a Stan Lee plot and drawn by Joe Sinnott in what was his first Thor assignment. The premise is the engine of the whole early Loki formula: the trickster, penned up in Asgard and unable to strike directly, spots a nobody and pumps him full of power to do the dirty work.
This is the second Thor outing to run on a caged Loki scheming through others. Loki in his modern form debuts in Journey into Mystery #85 (Oct 1962, Lee, Lieber, and Kirby); Odin is name-dropped in that same issue and shows up in full in #86 (Nov 1962, Lee and Kirby). By the time Sandu comes along, the writers have their favorite loop: Loki loses, Loki gets locked up, Loki finds a loophole.
When Thor is pinned, Odin sends the Valkyrior down with an enchanted belt, and the story leans on the Valkyries' lesser-known role as Asgard's serving-maids rather than their battlefield fame. It is a nice, deep pull from the source myth.
Recommended Reading
Where to go next if the episode left you wanting more.
Everything on screen traces straight back to #91, including the belt's first outing. Then, The Asgardian court and the Valkyries carry directly on. The two issues read well as a pair.
Thor, Mjolnir, Jane Foster, Loki, and Asgard all begin here.
The Snark File
Easter eggs, callbacks and technical tidbits.
Gillie Fenwick
Credited for Sandu, is the same utility villain voice the series wheeled out for Baron Zemo and a long list of others
