From the end of the Viking era until recently, Heimdall has suffered from being one of the least interesting of the Norse gods. Sure, back in the day, he cuckolded three guys, but for a thousand years now, he's just sat around and waited for a chance to blow his horn. Yes, he's basically the Norse equivalent of Little Boy Blue.
But no longer! Now, Mr. Sexypants himself — Idris Elba — is playing Heimdall in the upcoming movie Thor. Now, I think we can all agree that Thor is going to be terrible, deliciously terrible, but filled with hot men strutting around looking like crosses between members of a biker gang and vending machines (see here for Elba doing his best to emote in his vending-machine state). But if you are a little-known, long-neglected god, this is your chance to change people's perceptions of you.
Just try this, if you're in a place with people. Just say out-loud, "Oh, Stringer Bell" and take a look at the reactions of the people around you. I think you'll find that, among fans of The Wire, Elba's character is considered amazingly attractive and badass. Not bad qualities to have associated with yourself, if you're a god, right?
