Those Space Goats In The Thor: Love And Thunder Trailer Have A Comic Book Origin

The much-anticipated return of Taika Waititi to the Marvel director's chair is upon us with "Thor: Love and Thunder." Following his Oscar-winning black comedy "Jojo Rabbit," Waititi comes back to the Marvel Cinematic Universe to helm the fourth Thor-focused film in the franchise. Waititi previously directed the beloved "Thor: Ragnarok" in 2017, so there's already considerable hype surrounding the filmmaker's return to the character and his ever-developing storyline.

With the drop of the trailer for "Thor: Love and Thunder," dedicated Marvel fans might already spot some promising new comic book additions to the Norse god's cinematic treatment. Namely, two trusty animal sidekicks that haven't played a significant (if any) role in the Thor films so far—two powerful, cosmically-gifted goats named Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder. If you blink, you might miss their inclusion in the new trailer—but if you look closely at what's pulling Thor's chariot, you'll notice two distinctly caprine silhouettes.

So, what are these creatures, and what can we expect from their inclusion in "Thor: Love and Thunder"?

Though casual MCU fans may have never heard of these trusty four-legged companions, their first appearance in the Thor comics dates back to August 1976 in the "Thor Annual #5" issue. Since then, they've had over 50 appearances in the series, with Toothgnasher taking a bit more precedence in the storyline. This mostly has to do with a specific plot during The War of the Realms, in which Toothgnasher is fatally injured by the monster Mangog. Luckily, the goats possess the power of regeneration (so long as they don't have any broken bones), so Loki generously resurrects Toothgnasher and returns him to Thor. Seeing as there's no inclusion of the God of Mischief in the trailer for "Thor: Love and Thunder," it's unlikely that this incident will be recreated in the forthcoming film.

These mythical creatures also boast a few other cool capabilities. For one, they're actually able to damage the Mjolnir, Thor's insanely powerful hammer. Though it's constructed of Uru metal and fortified by Odin's magic, Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder's super strength can actually make a dent in the weapon. Perhaps their most important gift, though, is their ability to pull Thor's chariot at lightning speed, making inter-dimensional travel through the Ten Realms a piece of cake. Seriously, what can't these cool little hoofed creatures do?

Only time will tell how pronounced the role of Toothgnasher and Toothgrinder will be in "Thor: Love and Thunder." But one thing's for certain: there's no better time to dig into some back issues of the "Thor" comics ahead of the release of this buzzy new MCU project.