Origin

This hero is worthy.

Eric Masterson was a humble architect who stumbled upon a fight between Thor and the Mongoose, who was using a new high tech laser which had proven dangerous even to Thor. When Mongoose stood over Thor and was about to deliver the killing blow, Eric grabbed Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, without thinking and charged at Mongoose. Unimpressed, Mongoose proceeded to blast Eric, nearly killing him. However, the distraction allowed Thor to recover and defeat Mongoose.

Feeling guilty for what happened to Eric, especially since he had shown such courage, Thor begged Odin to save Eric's life. Odin instead merged the two together, similar to how Thor was bonded with Donald Blake. Later, when Loki attacked and Thor killed him, Odin banished Thor as punishment, leaving Eric whole again, but with Mjolnir and the powers of Thor. Eric began a long quest to find Thor and bring him back, even traveling to Mephisto's realm, where he saw a bag with a glowing image of Thor on it before he was brought back from Mephisto's realm by Doctor Strange.

Eventually, Eric discovered that Thor was not banished to Mephisto's realm, but inside his own mind. He also learned that Loki had manipulated Odin into banishing Thor, and when the truth came out, Odin restored both Thor and Loki to their own bodies. Finally free, Thor decided to remain in Asgard, but allowed Eric to keep Mjolnir and be Earth's protector. However, when the Enchantress manipulated Eric into attacking Thor over Sif, Thor defeated Eric and took back Mjolnir, but since it was not Eric's fault, he asked Odin to create a weapon for Eric. Thus the enchanted mace, Thunderstrike, was created.

Eric took Thunderstrike back to Earth and continued to act as Thor, but when he was soundly thrashed by Bloodaxe because Thunderstrike bestowed on him lesser strength and powers than Mjolnir, he decided to change his name and costume to prevent Thor's reputation from being tarnished. As he was confronted by police after his first outing with his new identity, he responded to being called Thor with, "No. He's the other guy. My name is..er..Thunderstrike." when he couldn't think of anything better.

Powers

Thunderstrike wields an enchanted Asgardian mace also called Thunderstrike. Normally, the mace appears as a walking stick, but when Eric strikes it on the ground and wills it, he is changed into an Asgardian male, with super strength, stamina, and limited invulnerability., although he is not as strong or tough as Thor. His mace can't control weather as Mjolnir can, but it can create portals, fire blasts of energy, create blinding light, and allow him to fly. He is also completed healed when changing between his mortal self and his godly self. As part of the Avengers, Eric was able to train with Captain America and became a competent hand-to-hand fighter.

The Life and Death of Eric Masterson

Thunderstrike had a short series, only 24 issues, but he had some pretty wild adventures along the way. He had a slugfest with Juggernaut but eventually talked him down and they parted on friendly terms. He helped Crusher Creel, the Absorbing Man, convince Titania to give up crime so they could get married and settle down. Creel even considered Eric a friend, giving him the nickname "Sparky". Thunderstrike also teamed up with Luke Cage and Spider-Man on separate missions. Bloodaxe was a regular villain throughout Thunderstrike's career, eventually being defeated and revealing that Bloodaxe was actually Eric's love interest, Jackie Lucas. She had succumbed to the ruthless nature of the Executioner's Axe, another enchanted Asgardian weapon.

Throughout most of his series, Eric was followed and later aided by Stellaris, who developed a crush on him. However, she left Earth after the Absorbing Man had a mental breakdown trying to absorb her powers and Seth, the god of death, tried to destroy her but couldn't because she wasn't truly alive. During their fight with Seth, he put the mark of death on Eric, which remained even after he had transformed back into his normal self. Throughtout all this, he also had to deal with important personal issues, like keeping his job, trying to spend time with his son, Kevin, training with the Avengers, trying to live up to Thor's reputation, and even worrying about insurance and who would pay for the damage he caused as Thunderstrike.

At the end of his series, when things were at their worst, Eric succumbed to the power of the Executioner's Axe, which transformed him into a menacing shadow of himself. With axe and mace in hand, he attacked and killed Seth's physical form in their dimension. However, Captain America witnessed what he thought was cold-blooded murder and the Avengers were called in to stop Eric. But with the power of both Asgardian weapons, he proved too much for the Avengers to handle. When Thor arrived on the scene, Eric said, "Hey, buddy, you've got to stop me." However, Even Thor could not defeat Eric while he was under the influence of the axe. Realizing that his friends could not stop him and that he would probably kill them all, Eric began to fight the bloodlust and control of the axe. Aided by the spirit of Akivasha, the original owner of the axe, Eric managed to turn Thunderstrike against the Excecutioner's Axe, destroying it in a tremendous explosion. When the dust settled, nothing remained of the axe, the mace, or the man.

Eric had destroyed the evil of the Excecutioner's Axe, at the cost of his own life. He found himself in a viking great hall and Thor greeted him, explaining that for such courage and honor Eric had been awarded a place in Valhalla, the viking heaven. But it was not what Eric wanted, and so Odin came and led him into a glowing doorway of light, telling Thor that he should honor Eric's wishes and keep him alive by remembering his life and deeds. Thor returned to Earth and visited Eric's grave. He grieved for his fallen friend and as he said goodbye, he lifted his hammer to the sky and lightning struck the headstone, leaving the same words that had been carved into Eric's mace, words as true in our world as they were in his.

Rest in peace, Eric Masterson. You will be missed.