By Len Wein, Roy Thomas, Bill Mantlo, Walter Simonson, John Buscema, Jim Starlin, Val Mayerik, Virgilio Redondo, Rudy Nebres, Tony DeZuñiga, Tom Palmer, Chic Stone & various (MARVEL)
ISBN: 978-1-3029-0972-7 (HB/Digital edition)
This book includes Discriminatory Content produced during less enlightened times.
Once upon a time, disabled physician Donald Blake took a vacation in Norway, and stumbled across an alien invasion. Pursued and trapped in a cave, he found an ancient walking stick which, when struck against the ground, turned him into the Norse God of Thunder! Within moments, he was defending the weak and smiting the wicked.
Months swiftly passed, with the Lord of Storms tackling rapacious extraterrestrials, Commie dictators, costumed crazies and cheap thugs, but these soon gave way to a legion of fantastic foes and incredible, mythic menaces across a vast kaleidoscope of cosmic worlds where he battled with an growing cast of stalwart immortal warriors at his side…
Whilst the ever-expanding Marvel Universe had grown increasingly interconnected as it matured through its first decade – with characters literally tripping over each other in New York City – the Asgardian heritage of Thor and the soaring imagination of Jack Kirby had most often drawn the Thunder God away from mortal realms into stunning, unique astronomically distant landscapes and scenarios, but the late 1970s and encroaching 1980s saw him frequently returning to earth and Asgard as seen in these tales encompassing “Winter 1977” whilst primarily spanning cover-dates January to December 1978: a power-packed compilation re-presenting rousing sagas from The Mighty Thor #267-278 plus a brace of adult-oriented tales from Marvel Preview #10.
Before the cosmic catastrophe kicks off, passionate myth-maker Roy Thomas offers another revelatory, reminiscing Introduction, revealing his reasons for taking on The Thunderer at that time, after which action and drama resume with the final collaborations of Len Wein and illustrator Walter Simonson, whose combined efforts had already shaken the title out of its conceptual doldrums…
After All-Father Odin was kidnapped by aliens and drained like a battery until he died, he was rescued, resurrected and restored to an Asgard riven by conspiracies and conquered by Loki, Enchantress and The Executioner. Thor faced ultimate weapon The Destroyer before triumphantly saving everything and now in issue #267 (January 1978 by Wein, Simonson & DeZuñiga) we see the hero bound ‘Once More, To Midgard!’, following a rare moment of filial fondness, rather than the usual arguments with Dad.
Thor has been missing for quite some time and his absence has left Don Blake’s life in tatters until old colleague Dr. Jacob Wallaby arranges a job with Stark International’s Free Clinic. That good deed only leads to more chaos as deranged would-be super-criminal Damocles ruthlessly raids the hospital’s radiation lab in search of synthetic cobalt to power his new super-gun…
Before Blake can react, the smash-&-grab attack is over, leaving furious Thor to pursue the murderous madman, aided by Damocles’ guilt-fuelled sibling Bennett Barlow, who pays a heavy price for his civic service in concluding conflict ‘Death, Thy Name is Brother!’
The concentration on Earthly scale and situations continues in #269 as ‘A Walk on the Wild Side!’ sees a mysterious mastermind contract mechanistic mercenary Stilt-Man to secure a certain high-tech package. A raft of deadly upgrades prove pointless when the Thunder God stumbles upon the heist in the skies above Manhattan, but Thor has far more trouble facing the plotter’s power-packed partner Blastaar in middle chapter ‘Minute of Madness… Dark Day of Doom!’ The triptych of terror terminates in Thor #271 as – with the aid of Tony Stark, Nick Fury (I), S.H.I.E.L.D. and The Avengers – the Storm Lord confronts the true architect of destruction and imminent global domination in orbit ‘…Like a Diamond in the Sky!’ This epic includes cameos from Shang-Chi, Spider-Man, The Hulk, Human Torch, Nova, Daredevil and many more Marvel stalwarts, serving as big celebratory send-off for Wein & Simonson, as well signalling a major change of direction.
In #272 Thomas returned, with John Buscema & Tom Palmer illustrating ‘The Day the Thunder Failed!’ as the hero shares moments of humiliating childhood defeat with a crowd of kids. These incidents were all adapted from classical mythology and served as an appetiser to a mega-saga in the making, as TV reporter Harris Hobbs (who visited Asgard way back in Journey into Mystery #123) reappears, making Thor an offer he cannot help but refuse…
Still channelling tales from the Eddas – specifically about how Ragnarok would end the reign of the Aesir/Asgardians – #273 is set ‘Somewhere… Over the Rainbow Bridge!’ Although the journalist’s pleas to film a TV special in the Home of the Gods is sternly rebuked and rejected, wicked banished Loki has his own plans and smuggles in Harris and an entire film crew, triggering the beginning of the long-prophesied end…
If you haven’t actually read the original myths go do that. It will make you appreciate these clever riffs on the theme so much more as the secret history of Asgard and Odin’s plots are exposed in #274. With Loki on the loose, the story of how the All-Father sacrificed his eye to fiery seer Mimir for knowledge of the future is revealed, as are the dirty bargains Odin made to forestall inevitable, inescapable doom.
Now, as Sif leads home the long-missing goddesses of Asgard, mortal cameraman Roger “Red” Norvell beholds the Thunder God’s raven-haired beloved and is gripped by uncontrollable desire. Another prerequisite of The End then occurs as Loki orchestrates the death of Balder in ‘The Eye… and the Arrow!’…
‘A Balance is Struck!’ in #275 when Odin uses all his power to suspend the dying God of Light in a timeless state, pausing the countdown to Ragnarok. Loki meanwhile uses ancient spells and his step-brother’s Belt of Strength and Iron Gloves (created when the Prince was a child to help control and wield mighty Mjolnir) to become a new, very different Thor. The newcomer even seizes the mystic hammer from its enraged rightful owner as he beats the thunder god and abducts Sif…
Declaring in #276 ‘Mine… This Hammer!’, Red is barely aware he has killed his best friend for power. Loki and Death Goddess Hela meanwhile rouse all Asgard’s enemies to march on their hated foes. A ‘Time of the Trolls!’ seems to indicate the end has finally come, but the forces of evil are not the only devious schemers with an endgame in mind, and a monstrous plan is exposed whereby the All-Father has attempted to cheat the powers of prophecy and trick Ragnarok by creating a false Thor to die in the true saviour of Asgard’s place. All it required was timing, boldness and a few necessary (albeit unwilling) sacrifices…
With veteran Thor inker Chic Stone applying his stylish lines, #278 heralds ‘At Long Last… Ragnarok?!’ as all plots and perils converge with reality – the Nine Realms portion of it at least – battling doom to a draw as the apocalypse is deferred a while longer – but only after another tragic, valiant and ultimately futile demise. In the aftermath, the trueborn son of Odin cannot stand what has been done in his name and sunders all contact with his scheming sire…
To Be Continued…
That split would lead to an even more momentous and spectacular saga (which begins in the next volume) but this titanic tome ends on a rare treat stemming from the period’s growing love-affair with fighting fantasy. Cover-dated Winter 1977, Marvel Preview #10 was a monochrome magazine in Marvel’s mature-oriented line: free of Comics Code scrutiny and ostensibly the strictures of shared continuity. Although MP was an anthology/showcase title, other periodicals in the Marvel Magazine Group included off-kilter features like Howard the Duck, Rampaging Hulk and Tomb of Dracula.
Thor the Mighty almost joined that elite roster in 1975, and almost three full issues were prepared for a barbarian Thunder God vehicle before the plug was pulled. As a result, much material was sitting in drawers when the decision came to use one lead tale and a thematic back-up in the try-out title. Another story had already been modified and published as Thor Annual #5 (for which see Marvel Masterworks Thor #15)…
Behind a painted Ken Barr cover, frontispiece by Jim Starlin and illustration plates from Virgilio Redondo and Rudy Nebres, ‘Thor the Mighty!’ was scripted by Wein, with art by Starlin & DeZuñiga. The tale told of a time long past when Odin sent his rowdy sons Thor and Loki on a quest to secure a mystic Crystal of Blood threatening to erase all existence. The mission pitted his sons against seductive sorceresses, trolls ogres, giants, dragons and – as ever – each other…
The lusty yarn was backed up by an exploit of Hercules The Prince of Power when he was still half-human and sailing with Jason as an Argonaut. Here – courtesy of Bill Mantlo & Val Mayerik – the shipmates faced constant, mythologically-tinged peril on ‘The Isle of Fear!’ – but nothing like the political intrigue engineered by corrupt sponsor King Kreon of Pylos…
Augmenting this potent volume is the letters page editorial from Thor #272, house ads and a blockbusting original art gallery, beginning with Simonson sketches, layouts, pencils, fully inked covers, splash and story-pages (9 in all) and ditto for 14 pages from John Buscema, plus two more each from Starlin and Mayerik. There are also a double-page pin-up spread by young John Romita Jr. from F.O.O.M. #21 (Spring 1978) and an un-inked pencil art by Rich Buckler: a cover channelling the mighty Jack Kirby…
The tales gathered here may lack the sheer punch and verve of the early years but certainly prove that after too long calcified, the Thunder God was again moving to the forefront of Big Idea Comics Storytelling. Fans of ferocious Fights ‘n’ Tights fantasy will find this tome still stuffed with intrigue and action, magnificently rendered by artists who, gifted and dedicated to making new legends. This a definite must-read for all fans of the character and the genre.
© 2018 MARVEL.