The Mighty Thor #1: Spoilers and Discussion

[JKtheMac]

The Mighty Thor! A new volume for a new chapter in the tale Aaron has been telling since Thor: God of Thunder.

spoilers:

We open in a hospital room, with Jane Foster receiving chemotherapy for the cancer that is slowly overtaking her body. The pain and the transformation are expressed first in words, then in the image of Jane huddled cold and frail under blankets. She casts a professional eye on the figures around her and reflects on the junk food satiated, sleeping figure of Volstag as a ‘co-worker’ and nominated driver back to her home in Asgardia. At one end of the room the TV is showing ‘Roxx News’ and by it we are introduced to the ‘Roxxon Meteorological Embitterment Program’ orbiting Earth and controlling the weather for a fee. A disembodied blue hand outside the station heralds the arrival of a rain of Elven corpses from Alfheim. The most prominent bearing a scarified message on his exposed chest “So Begins the War of Realms”. The corpses smash into the station and cause it to break apart. The central hub plummets towards Earth. Recognising the danger Jane calls Mjolnir to the ally besides the hospital and transformed into the strong healthy Thor she flies to Washington DC. Here the falling station is on a collision course with the Lincoln Memorial and Thor brings it down safely in the reflecting pool while the Avengers watch on. We learn during the transformation to Thor, the chemotherapy drugs are rejected from her body, counteracting the treatment. Pausing only to advise a Roxxon employee on his life choices (and paying no heed to Iron Man) she retraces the path of the station back into space where she witnesses the dead elves and recognises the touch of Malekith. Collecting Volstag as Jane Foster, she returns to Asgardia,where every spare foot of building seems covered with Thor wanted posters. Jane and Volstag take their respective places in the Congress of Worlds where we learn Odin has pulled Asgardia further from Midgard both physically and politically. He is pursuing an isolationist policy over the conflict between Alfheim and Svartalfheim while remaining absent and holed up in his castle. After the congress, Jane visits Freyja who has been imprisoned by Odin and they discuss the conflict and how Thor should concern herself with Alfheim’s plight rather than Freyja’s. Freyja tells Jane that she should be resting but walking home Jane can only ponder the image of Thor on the posters and transforming once more, she flies to the Bifrost where she tries to convince Heimdall to allow her passage to Alfheim. She is confronted by Cul Borson and his Thunder Guard seeking to arrest her with prejudice. Meanwhile, in the dark reflection of Asgardia that is The Yawning Void, Malekith is holding court in the Dark Council. The council is composed of Agger from Roxxon, Ulik king of trolls, a delegation from Muspelheim who are also on the congress, and towering above them Laufey. Agger is disappointed by the loss of his space station but Malekith compares this to the wealth he is mining in Svartalfheim and argues for the inclusion of Loki in their council. By way of introduction and as a token of faith Malekith suggests he murder Thor.

end of spoilers

Please forgive me if I pause after that synopsis before I start any discussion. I am fatigued by all that weird spelling. Feel free to kick off any discussion in the meantime.

[MindofShadow]

So real Thor doesn't show up in this at all ?

pooop

[JKtheMac]

So, Loki with stuble. Is he really as bad as he says?

Is the cancer analogy beeing stretched over the war, with Odin and the nine realms being the denial of Jane, and her body at war with itself?

Jane seems to be using a kind of self sacrificing utilitarian philosophy. Denying her own health for the greater good. This can't last for many reasons.

Odinson is missing, and possibly doesn't want to be found, what is he up to?

Odin, Cul and Asgard's policy as a reflection of politics in the face of terror. Hmm.

Lincoln Memorial as target. Can't be a coincidence, sounds like a theme developing.

[JKtheMac]

So real Thor doesn't show up in this at all ?

pooop

I am sure you could have phrased that as a discussion point. All I will say is Thor is right there on nearly every page. You might recognise her from the hammer, the lightning, and her heroism. And, for the visually orientated her helm, armor and cape.

[BlitheringToot]

I am sure you could have phrased that as a discussion point. All I will say is Thor is right there on nearly every page. You might recognise her from the hammer, the lightning, and her heroism. And, for the visually orientated her helm, armor and cape.

Awww, clever troll is clever.

[chamber-music]

I noticed Doctor Strange looked like Cumberbatch in this issue.

[MindofShadow]

I am sure you could have phrased that as a discussion point. All I will say is Thor is right there on nearly every page. You might recognise her from the hammer, the lightning, and her heroism. And, for the visually orientated her helm, armor and cape.

Oh god, you are one of those...


I am more worried about the character who went by THOR for decades... aka real Thor not Jane. Marvel kept saying he would be in this book so... hence my "poop" comment. I don't plan on buying this series unless Thor is a reoccuring character. Guess i'll wait on next issue

[JKtheMac]

I noticed Doctor Strange looked like Cumberbatch in this issue.

Yes Dauterman seems to be admitting this on his tumblr. It is only subtle but it seems to be drawn with his profile as reference.

[JKtheMac]

Oh god, you are one of those...

Probably.

I am more worried about the character who went by THOR for decades... aka real Thor not Jane. Marvel kept saying he would be in this book so... hence my "poop" comment. I don't plan on buying this series unless Thor is a reoccuring character. Guess i'll wait on next issue

He is referenced in passing but it didn't make my synopsis. I suspect he will take less of a role for a bit so you may want to skip this whole experience for a while. But you will be missing out, this is great comics in the mold of early, 'Fawcett's Captain Marvel gets an adult twist', Kirby stories.

[king of hybrids]

Oh god, you are one of those...


I am more worried about the character who went by THOR for decades... aka real Thor not Jane. Marvel kept saying he would be in this book so... hence my "poop" comment. I don't plan on buying this series unless Thor is a reoccuring character. Guess i'll wait on next issue

they mention that Thor's missing, either since he and hyperion were revived by the end of SW, or since Odin went bugnuts, Heimdall's looked for him but he doesn't wat to be found. presumably the penny's dropped about whatever Fury told him.

as for the explantion of why being thor is killing her: it makes some sense. mjolnir might not be listening to asgardian commands, but its still only meant to work with either asgardian biology or those who have sufficient enchantments by asgardians.

[Hypestyle]

Does Mjolnir turn into a stick for Jane? What is this talk about the hammer having a personality?

[jphamlore]

Other than Angela ruling Hel and thus possibly no ship made of human nails carrying the dead, it would appear Aaron is following as closely as possible a modern day interpretation of the Ragnarok myths from Norse mythology. Evil on Midgard, the weather possibly being disrupted, an alliance of everyone against Asgard, Odin isolated and scheming who knows what, a dying hero ... it is almost Wagnerian.

I still think the way this type of story goes, when Malekith is defeated, the big threat will turn out to be Dario Agger and Roxxon. If Aaron wants a story that can lead to a crossover, even with other media, Roxxon is the direction to go.

[JKtheMac]

Well, Malekith is playing both sides against the middle, like a typical villain in a political story. His aims are not as lofty as he claims because the only way to benefit from that approach is to take advantage of the chaos. As to Agger being the big bad, I am not sure there is a villain as such, just a loose collection of antagonists with their own disparate agendas.

[JKtheMac]

Does Mjolnir turn into a stick for Jane? What is this talk about the hammer having a personality?

That is not evident in this issue no. Jane as Thor does tend to anthropomorphise it, and that is quite natural for a named weapon. There is a very long tradition of weapons having their own story. I suspect Mjolnir responds differently to different manners of use. Jane treats it as if it has a personality, and the magic reflects that approach.

[JKtheMac]

as for the explantion of why being thor is killing her: it makes some sense. mjolnir might not be listening to asgardian commands, but its still only meant to work with either asgardian biology or those who have sufficient enchantments by asgardians.

Well how the hammer and its inscription works cuts to the whole point of Aaron's story. I believe he is suggesting that the explanations and even the intent of Odin and the Asgardians are not wholly adequate as an explanation. The magic stemmed from Odin but his magic comes from a universal source and he may not be able to shape it fully. Now the All-Mother is also part of the mix, and in the fragmented mythology of the Norse people that puts a different spin on things. One that is so open to interpretation that Aaron could lead us anywhere.