Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics, Review | Tagged: avengers, christian ward, fantasy, jason aaron, juggernaut, Marvel Comics, Mike Del Mundo, sci-fi, superheroes, thor

Thor #1 Review: A Storybook Fantasy for Superhero Fans

Thor is searching for the powerful artifacts spread across the globe when Asgardia exploded. This search has led him to a temple devoted to the rage demon Cytorrak in Thailand. Consequently, this has put him in the path of the Unstoppable Juggernaut, and Thor's new hammer is not yet ready.

In the follow-up story set far into the future, All-Father Thor and the Goddesses of Thunder seek to watch over the newly restarted human race when tragedy strikes. Then, Thor discovers a horrible truth on the far side of the universe.

Thor #1 takes some tonal notes from Taika Waititi's Thor: Ragnarok. There is significantly more humor in this issue than the past five issues of Jason Aaron's Mighty Thor. This isn't inherently a bad thing, as the humor isn't so overwhelming that it piledrives the tone. Plus, what Waititi and the Russo Brothers did with the God of Thunder in Ragnarok and Infinity War was brilliant, as it gave the Odinson a lot more personality. Injecting a bit of that into the books is honestly a good idea.

That brings us to the plot, which is a treasure hunt angle that follows up the events of the last few issues of Mighty Thor. We check in with a lot of characters like Odin, Freyja, and Jane Foster and see how they've adapted, reacted, and changed since we last saw them two months ago.

The fights are somewhat understandable truncated for time, but it does still feel a bit like having the rug pulled out from under you when you don't get to watch the entire fight against the Juggernaut. That's not even the most egregious case of this happening.

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Mike del Mundo portrays the first story while Christian Ward takes the second. Both do fine work. Their painted and ethereal style does an excellent job of giving the comic this storybook mythology quality, which fits the God of Thunder's comic perhaps better than any other book from the Big Two. The color work (Del Mundo had color assists from Marco D'Alfonso) matches this theme too, giving strangely wonderful blends of color throughout the book.

Thor #1 is a triumphant return for the Thunder God, giving him some new fun and personality while still maintaining the heavier tones and themes that have been inherent in Aaron's recent stories. The art of Ward and Mundo give the book a distinct visual identity that carries through both stories. I dug this one quite a bit, and I think others will too. Give it a read.

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