Thor Odinson, God of Thunder Appreciation 2019

[JKtheMac]

Well Worthy Thor was disappointing. The Simonson story was pretty well crafted for the space, but did we really need stories between the pages of Thunderstrike or even JA’s Thor?

I am sure there is a nostalgic audience for the Thunderstrike story but for those like me who find nostalgia at best a distraction there is no reason for this story to exist aside from reminding people of his story. I guess it acts as marketing for Marvel Unlimited or long box diving. Comic store owners will probably love it.

Katherine Immonen and Tom Reilly tell an interesting tale with at least a reflective message about the meaning of the Jane story. Unfortunately it is a bit muddled and the dialogue could have done with another draft. It is also somewhat redundant because the ultimate message is one that Aaron was already developing at the time.

In general the art was the main reason to enjoy this. Hawthorne and Buscema do great work on the Simonson story, and the colours—which I presume have been done by Workman or Buscema but it isn’t clear which—evoke a fable like feeling that fits perfectly with the feel of the tale. The inking is especially exquisite and reminds us of that dying art.

It may be questionable why we need a Defalco/Frenz story but the execution doesn’t miss a beat. If we are going to have a story that fits between the pages of an older book then making it this authentic is an achievement in itself. Rosenburg’s colour work is perfectly executed too, in that old school style that is trickier to achieve than it looks here.

For me Reilly shines more than Immonen in the third story. O’Halloran’s colour work seems to divide audiences but I love his work, and Reilly’s characterisation and intent is second to none.

Overall I just wish the stories had been more compelling in their own right.

[CaptainMar-Vell92 of the Kree]

Well Worthy Thor was disappointing. The Simonson story was pretty well crafted for the space, but did we really need stories between the pages of Thunderstrike or even JA’s Thor?

I am sure there is a nostalgic audience for the Thunderstrike story but for those like me who find nostalgia at best a distraction there is no reason for this story to exist aside from reminding people of his story. I guess it acts as marketing for Marvel Unlimited or long box diving. Comic store owners will probably love it.

Katherine Immonen and Tom Reilly tell an interesting tale with at least a reflective message about the meaning of the Jane story. Unfortunately it is a bit muddled and the dialogue could have done with another draft. It is also somewhat redundant because the ultimate message is one that Aaron was already developing at the time.

In general the art was the main reason to enjoy this. Hawthorne and Buscema do great work on the Simonson story, and the colours—which I presume have been done by Workman or Buscema but it isn’t clear which—evoke a fable like feeling that fits perfectly with the feel of the tale. The inking is especially exquisite and reminds us of that dying art.

It may be questionable why we need a Defalco/Frenz story but the execution doesn’t miss a beat. If we are going to have a story that fits between the pages of an older book then making it this authentic is an achievement in itself. Rosenburg’s colour work is perfectly executed too, in that old school style that is trickier to achieve than it looks here.

For me Reilly shines more than Immonen in the third story. O’Halloran’s colour work seems to divide audiences but I love his work, and Reilly’s characterisation and intent is second to none.

Overall I just wish the stories had been more compelling in their own right.

Have you read my new thread on the Death of Jobber Thor?

Also Eric Masterson is a better character than Jane.

[JKtheMac]

Have you read my new thread on the Death of Jobber Thor?

Also Eric Masterson is a better character than Jane.

We just don't see eye to eye on these things. I have never really had a strong connection to Masterson, I adored Jane as Thor, and I never once bought into the "Jobber Thor" rhetoric. The closest we are likely to come to an agreement on the stories in this issue is that the Simonson one was a good short story with folklore roots and potential to be picked up in the future.

[CaptainMar-Vell92 of the Kree]

We just don't see eye to eye on these things. I have never really had a strong connection to Masterson, I adored Jane as Thor, and I never once bought into the "Jobber Thor" rhetoric. The closest we are likely to come to an agreement on the stories in this issue is that the Simonson one was a good short story with folklore roots and potential to be picked up in the future.

Eric struggled and has lots of doubts about himself being worthy of taking Thor's place. He was beaten by Ulik in his first sortie as Thor. By contrast Jane became immediatly skilled with her new powers and everyone quickly adored her while villains like Absorbing Man and Ulik are used as strawmen for fans of OG Thor Odinson.

That's why i'm not a fan of Jason Aaron's run. That and changing Thor's and Odin's characterisation and powers to make his story work. He turned Thor into the Avengers' Yamcha.

[Paradox_Nihil]

and the colours—which I presume have been done by Workman or Buscema but it isn’t clear which—evoke a fable like feeling that fits perfectly with the feel of the tale.

Tamra Bonvillain did the coloring.

[JKtheMac]

Eric struggled and has lots of doubts about himself being worthy of taking Thor's place. He was beaten by Ulik in his first sortie as Thor. By contrast Jane became immediatly skilled with her new powers and everyone quickly adored her while villains like Absorbing Man and Ulik are used as strawmen for fans of OG Thor Odinson.

That's why i'm not a fan of Jason Aaron's run. That and changing Thor's and Odin's characterisation and powers to make his story work. He turned Thor into the Avengers' Yamcha.

He is just not my cup of tea. No judgment. As I said earlier I am sure there is an audience for that specific brand of nostalgia. But I am not part of that audience. Apart from the convincing execution of the story I found nothing to sell me on it. I am certainly not going to revisit that run anytime soon.

Why use that as an excuse to run down another writer?

[Wall-Crawler]

The story by Walter Simonson was very good as expected, but Tom DeFalco gets the prize for this one, his Eric Masterson story was pretty good, his handling of Eric was very well done and with proper respect to the original character, showing how being Thor is not easy and a huge responsibility.

[Cronus]

.... I never once bought into the "Jobber Thor" rhetoric.

Yes, your love of Aaron's Jane/Thor abomination is the exclamation to this statement.

[CaptainMar-Vell92 of the Kree]

The story by Walter Simonson was very good as expected, but Tom DeFalco gets the prize for this one, his Eric Masterson story was pretty good, his handling of Eric was very well done and with proper respect to the original character, showing how being Thor is not easy and a huge responsibility.

I miss the Code Blue team.

[CaptainMar-Vell92 of the Kree]

Yes, your love of Aaron's Jane/Thor abomination is the exclamation to this statement.

There are also people who like the Star Wars Prequels and Dragonball GT unironically.

I think Jane would have been received better if Thor was left in comic book limbo like what Defalco did when Eric took the mantle, instead of keep showing what a pathetic loser he is compared to Jane, ignoring that he was once capable of defeating the Juggernaut and base form Hulk with just his fists.

[Intothevoid]

There are also people who like the Star Wars Prequels and Dragonball GT unironically.

I think Jane would have been received better if Thor was left in comic book limbo like what Defalco did when Eric took the mantle, instead of keep showing what a pathetic loser he is compared to Jane, ignoring that he was once capable of defeating the Juggernaut and base form Hulk with just his fists.

I think that's the real problem, when Aaron started taking shots at Thors fanbase and tried to 1 up Jane Thor in comparison to Thor, like how the hammer never moved as well with him as it did with her, how she is a better Thor, etc... I try to look at what other writers did in similar situations for instance when Amadeus Cho took over being the Hulk from Banner, Greg Pak never disrespect Banner in any situation, he even had some time shenanigans where Cho traveled in the past and met Banner Hulk and they had a cool moment that ended with Banner being the correct one when he told him "you only think you have the monster in control but you don't" after Cho endangered a bunch of people with his actions and he never once took a shot at Hulks core fanbase, strawmaning them or whatnot even though he knew that there would be large portions of fans that would not be happy with Banner no longer being the Hulk. Aaron would never write anything like that Jane Thor is perfect and infallible, there was nothing she could learn from Odinson who has THOUSANDS of years of wisdom and experience being a god and using the hammer, no this middle aged facebook mom is a better Thor than he ever will be apparently, like just a load of bullcrap.

I really hope Cates takes Thor into a new direction and the sooner we forget about Jane the better, hopefully she barely ever makes an appearance.

[CaptainMar-Vell92 of the Kree]

I think that's the real problem, when Aaron started taking shots at Thors fanbase and tried to 1 up Jane Thor in comparison to Thor, like how the hammer never moved as well with him as it did with her, how she is a better Thor, etc... I try to look at what other writers did in similar situations for instance when Amadeus Cho took over being the Hulk from Banner, Greg Pak never disrespect Banner in any situation, he even had some time shenanigans where Cho traveled in the past and met Banner Hulk and they had a cool moment that ended with Banner being the correct one when he told him "you only think you have the monster in control but you don't" after Cho endangered a bunch of people with his actions and he never once took a shot at Hulks core fanbase, strawmaning them or whatnot even though he knew that there would be large portions of fans that would not be happy with Banner no longer being the Hulk. Aaron would never write anything like that Jane Thor is perfect and infallible, there was nothing she could learn from Odinson who has THOUSANDS of years of wisdom and experience being a god and using the hammer, no this middle aged facebook mom is a better Thor than he ever will be apparently, like just a load of bullcrap.

I really hope Cates takes Thor into a new direction and the sooner we forget about Jane the better, hopefully she barely ever makes an appearance.

Jane has always been an important figure in the Thor mythos, i don't think she will stop making appearances as a supporting character. Funny how Aaron ignored that she ditched her husband and son when she heard Donald Blake was back during JMS run.

Also, Hulk has always been Greg Pak's pet, so it was obvious he wasn't going to mock the character and his fanbase since he himself is a big fan of the character.

[Intothevoid]

Jane has always been an important figure in the Thor mythos, i don't think she will stop making appearances as a supporting character. Funny how Aaron ignored that she ditched her husband and son when she heard Donald Blake was back during JMS run.

Also, Hulk has always been Greg Pak's pet, so it was obvious he wasn't going to mock the character and his fanbase since he himself is a big fan of the character.

She can appear, but i really want her to stay away from Thor/Mljonir stuff as much as possible. Even the Valkyrie stuff is pushing it for me.

Sure, although i will say his Hulverines stuff was a pretty big letdown, he kinda used Hulk there as a tool and Wolverine also, just to prop up Clayton. So he isn't infallible when it comes to Hulk but the point i am trying to make is i have never seen him try to mock the fanbase of insert a character in the story to literally represent the strawman version of Thors fanbase like Aaron has done with Absorbing Man and Ulik. That was highly unprofessional and only reflective of a writer that has a very thin skin.

[CaptainMar-Vell92 of the Kree]

She can appear, but i really want her to stay away from Thor/Mljonir stuff as much as possible. Even the Valkyrie stuff is pushing it for me.

Sure, although i will say his Hulverines stuff was a pretty big letdown, he kinda used Hulk there as a tool and Wolverine also, just to prop up Clayton. So he isn't infallible when it comes to Hulk but the point i am trying to make is i have never seen him try to mock the fanbase of insert a character in the story to literally represent the strawman version of Thors fanbase like Aaron has done with Absorbing Man and Ulik. That was highly unprofessional and only reflective of a writer that has a very thin skin.

I don't know how Jane became Aaron's waifu to the point of making her an asgardian warrior with her own series. I guess he's a big fan of Natalie Portman.

Also, friendly reminder of this well put but depressing rant.

[Intothevoid]

I don't know how Jane became Aaron's waifu to the point of making her an asgardian warrior with her own series. I guess he's a big fan of Natalie Portman.

Also, friendly reminder of this well put but depressing rant.

I watched that video before. I actually have my own theory that the reason that all of a sudden and out of nowhere sometime in 2014 IIRC Thor was now a woman, Hulk was now an asian kid, Captain America was a black dude, Iron man was a black girl, etc... was some higher up from Disney picking up the phone calling Marvel editors and telling them to change all these characters genders and races because they want to keep making Marvel movies for DECADES to come and they can't do it with the same characters, they want to keep constantly changing them. Some characters worked, some did not. Which is why Natalie Portman(who plays Jane Foster) is now going to be Thor just like in the comics, Sam Wilson is taking over the mantle of Captain America from Steve Rogers, but characters that failed like Cho Hulk and Riri Williams are probably not gonna get their cinematic debut any time soon.