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The Necrosword, the sinister weapon wielded by Gorr the God-Butcher in Thor: Love and Thunder, is explained in the movie as an ancient weapon that can kill gods, passed down to different wielders since the dawn of time (we're paraphrasing just slightly, but that's the gist).
And technically, that explanation lines up with the Necrosword's comic book origins. But as you might expect, the weapon has a much deeper history than is shown in the film - with ties to an unexpected Marvel villain who has already (sort of) appeared in the MCU.
We're talking, of course, about Venom, the symbiote villain/anti-hero who has been the subject of two solo movies through Sony, and who appeared to briefly jump into the MCU in one of the post credits scenes of Spider-Man: No Way Home and even leaves behind a little dash of symbiote.
In comic books, All-Black the Necrosword (the weapon's full name) was forged by Knull, an ancient god of darkness who also created the Klyntar, the symbiote species of which the Venom symbiote is a part.
Knull recently menaced the entire Marvel Universe in the crossover event King in Black, in which his symbiote army spread across the Earth and engulfed portions of New York in total darkness (more on that in a moment).
From here, we're getting into minor spoiler territory for Thor: Love and Thunder, so beware if you haven't seen it yet.
Though the creator of the Necrosword is never named in Love and Thunder, and there's no mention whatsoever of the weapon's comic book connections to Knull and Venom, there is an unnamed presence or force behind the ancient sword, demonstrated by the voice which calls to Gorr to lift the Necrosword in the film's opening scene, and the dying god who tells Gorr that the sword has "chosen him" and that he is "cursed."
And of course, there's the implication that Gorr is being controlled by some kind of force within the Necrosword, which seems to lift when it's destroyed in the film's climax. The relationship between Gorr and the Necrosword is - we'll just say it - a little bit symbiotic.
Then there are the creatures Gorr summons with the Necrosword in the film, which bear a striking resemblance not just to spiders with their spindly legs, but to some of the dragons and other monsters summoned by Knull in King in Black (we said we'd get back to that).
In comic books, All-Black is indeed handed down from wielder to wielder, manifesting not as a recognizable sword, but as a shifting mass of black tendrils forming a blade - similar both to some of Gorr's powers in Love and Thunder, but also to Venom's symbiote abilities.
It also sometimes appears as a blood-red sword, as seen in the hands of Knull and Venom in some of the images above.
The Necrosword also has an even deeper history with Thor himself in comic books, with the God of Thunder having first encountered the blade in ancient Viking times - and even, in one version of his final adventure, facing off against none other than Loki wielding the Necrosword.
Interestingly enough, that story, Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic's King Thor, also heavily features Thor's granddaughters, the so-called Goddesses of Thunder, whose parents and other grandparents have never actually been identified.
As for the Necrosword's current Marvel Comics whereabouts, well, interestingly enough, it's wielded by Eddie Brock who became the king of the symbiotes in the conclusion of King in Black.
So what does all this mean for the MCU?
Well, maybe nothing - though it is interesting how much Venom-like iconography makes its way into the film despite no apparent connection to the Necrosword's origins with Knull (though the dead god from whom Gorr takes the sword, seen only in passing, does bear a slight resemblance to Knull's armor).
That said, the Necrosword, though shattered, seemed to have some property to revive itself - so could it somehow factor into a future film, or even another type of Multiversal crossover?
In the Marvel Universe, anything is possible - and comic books say it's even likely.
Eddie Brock, the most famous Venom host, is just one of the best Venom hosts of all time.
