History ComicBook / Thanos

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: Due to his devious and calculating mind, Thanos knows when a risk or setback is too great and it's a better time to retreat. There are also certain opponents he would rather avoid, if at al possible (such as The Hulk); although he has the power to put of a fight or even defeat them, sometimes it's just not worth the time or risk.

The inevitable. [softreturn]

* {{Expy}}: Thanos was based on Creator/DCComics' ComicBook/{{Darkseid}} -- his creator has admitted it, though the two characters don't have much in the way of similar goals: Darkseid wants to rule the universe, while Thanos is generally only interested in killing everyone in it in order to impress Death.
** Jim Starlin's original intention was to base him on Metron, another one of Jack Kirby's New Gods, until editor Roy Thomas convinced him to rip-off Darkseid instead. There are a few elements of Metron, however, as the design of his original helmet and his [[CoolChair hovering throne]], similar to Metron's Mobius Chair.

Claimed his first victim at the age of eight, which first introduced him to the love of his life, Mistress Death. Infatuated, it became Thanos's obsession to win over her black heart, which generally resulted in more killing. The Titans naturally didn't take kindly to this, and exiled him after he tried and failed to kill his dad and take over the throne. They probably regretted not giving him his wish and uniting him with his one true love later since after traveling the Universe and claiming all power within his reach, he returned to Titan and let them have a taste of [[NukeEm his nuclear revenge]], killing all but a few survivors — his mom being among the dead.

->''"I am Thanos of Titan. I have conquered worlds. I have bent reality around my will. Men cower at the mere mention of my name. And now... now you have imprisoned me... mocked me... disrespected me. And here you stand, ready to take advantage to my condition. Ready to finish me. Well, if I am to fall, I will die showing you all that Thanos will not be disrespected. Thanos is still a conqueror. Thanos is still a warrior. Thanos is still a god. And you will either bow or be broken"''

* BadassFingerSnap: Thanos, at the very peak of his godlike powers, makes half the Universe's population vanish in ''Infinity Gauntlet'' by snapping his fingers. (Now you know where the famous DownerEnding of ''Infinity War'' comes from.) In some of the supplement comics, snapping his fingers is the most common way that he uses the Infinity Gauntlet also.

After setting up shop on the nearby Earth, he would inadvertently create two of his life-long enemies, including his arch nemesis: Drax the Destroyer. After possibly being spotted by a human family, he killed them, only for the sole survivor to become Moondragon and her father to be turned into Drax. Imprisoning Drax, he caught the attention of Iron Man, who answered his calls for rescue. Earth has also provided him with a number of other of his regular foes, including Adam Warlock, the Silver Surfer, and ComicBook/CaptainMarVell ([[NamesTheSame not]] [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} that one]], mind you). These and more would be involved in stopping him from obtaining the Cosmic Cube and from using the six Infinity Gems (Then known as the 'Soul Gems') in a quest to destroy all the stars in the galaxy in his latest scheme to win over the heart of Mistress Death.

* BadassFingerSnap: Thanos, at the very peak of his godlike powers, makes half the Universe's population vanish in ''Infinity Gauntlet'' by snapping his fingers. In some of the supplement comics, snapping his fingers is the most common way that he uses the Infinity Gauntlet also.

Born on Titan, moon of planet Saturn, home to the Titans, a faction of Eternals that left the Earth thousands of years ago. Thanos is one of two sons of the rulers of the Titans: Alars, also known as Mentor, and his wife, Sui-San. However, he was born a mutant, which gave him an appearance closer to Deviants, the Eternals' sister race and sworn enemies. This made his life miserable, gave others reason to bully him, while his brother, Eros, was loved by all. On the other hand, the mutation also granted him vast strength and durability, far greater than any of the other Titans; and his ability to wield cosmic energy was second-to-none.

* KarmaHoudini: Almost all the time under Jim Starlin. He killed over a hundred people on his own planet, razed several galaxies and then ultimately half the Universe, and didn't suffer any real consequences. (if you don't count Death refusing to love him or being immensely fickle)

* ''[[VideoGame/LEGOMarvelSuperHeroes]]'' (DLC)

* Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse
** ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}''

** ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron''

* ''[[VideoGame/LegoAdaptationGame Lego Marvel Superheroes]]'' (DLC)

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperHeroSquadShow''

->''"Am I not Thanos?! Did I not butcher the woman who gave me birth, who forced me into this hell called life? Is not the wake of my passing crimson with the blood of my enemies and allies alike?! Death is with me every second of the day!"''
-->-- '''Thanos''', ''ComicBook/TheInfinityGauntlet'' #2

[[quoteright:305:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thanos_infinity_2245.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:305: Are you really certain you want to stop him? What makes you think you ''can''? [[note]]Pictured: Thanos ''[[GodzillaThreshold before]]'' getting the Infinity Gauntlet.[[/note]]]]

The avatar of Death. [softreturn]

The Mad Titan. The avatar of Death. The inevitable.

Claimed his first victim at the age of eight, which first introduced him to the love of his life, Mistress Death. Infatuated, it became Thanos's obsession to win over her black heart, which generally resulted in more killing. The Titans naturally didn't take kindly to this, and exiled him after he tried and failed to kill his dad and take over the throne. They probably regretted not giving him his wish and uniting him with his one true love later since after traveling the Universe and claiming all power within his reach, he returned to Titan and let them have a taste of [[NukeEm his nuclear revenge]], killing all but a few survivors - his mom being among the dead.

* AdaptationalNiceGuy: In the Cinematic Universe he is a full on WellIntentionedExtremist who kills in name of avoiding an overpopulation crisis, instead of being in love with Death or wanting to take over the universe.
* AdaptationalWimp: In the game ''Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series''. In the comics, especially the ones written by his creator, Jim Starlin, Thanos is strong enough to quickly subdue powerful hero teams like the Avengers and the Annihilators even without the use of mystical Macguffins and he also prefers using his cunning than just brute force. In the game he struggles fighting the Guardians, has a sloppy and unrefined fighting style and [[spoiler:he's killed by Rocket's laser cannon.]]

** [[http://villains.wikia.com/wiki/Rot The Rot]], the main antagonist of ''Avengers: Celestial Quest'', the child of Thanos and Lady Death, and EldritchAbomination extraordinaire, though Thanos wasn't aware of it's existence at first and he sent one of his Thanosi clones to help Death and the Avengers to deal with it instead of meeting it in person.

* AntiVillain: Post ''ComicBook/TheInfinityGauntlet'', some would argue that for a while he became somewhat of a NobleDemon or even an AntiHero. [[note]]However, even at this time, he slaughtered a planet of warriors for sport[[/note]] This varies wildly depending on who is writing him, as many writers still depict him as an traditional EvilOverlord.
* ArchEnemy: To Drax the Destroyer, Moondragon, Captain Marvel and sometimes, ComicBook/AdamWarlock. And maybe the ComicBook/SilverSurfer too. He's also a fairly constant foe of the entire MarvelUniverse... including [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption himself.]]

* AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: In ''Infinity Gauntlet'', after defeating Eternity, who is the living embodiment of the universe, Thanos leaves his physical body to become an astral entity and one with the universe itself. This however gave Zombified Nebula the opportunity to take the Gauntlet with the Infinity Gems for herself.

* KryptoniteFactor / ManOfKryptonite: Drax the Destroyer in his latest incarnation (since ''Annihilation'', to be precise).

* KarmaHoudini: Almost all the time under Jim Starlin. He killed over a 100 people on his own planet, razed several galaxies and then ultimately half the Universe, and didn't suffer any real consequences. (if you don't count Death refusing to love him or being immensely fickle)

In [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse film]], Thanos made a surprise appearance in TheStinger of ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', where he was revealed as [[ManBehindTheMan the mastermind behind]] Loki's plan to conquer Earth (portrayed there by Damion Poitier). He then appeared in ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy'', ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron'', ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'', and ''Film/AvengersEndgame'', portrayed by Creator/JoshBrolin.

* BattleInTheCentreOfTheMind: Back in the 70's, in Captain Marvel, he had one with Drax the Destroyer and Moondragon. With [[https://dorkforty.wordpress.com/2013/12/03/cosmic-baby-cosmic-jim-starlins-thanos-saga-part-one/#prettyPhoto rather mind-screwy]] effects.