Eric Masterson: Thor/Thunderstrike Appreciation 2018

[Zero Hunter]

[The Cool Thatguy]

I loved the relationship Eric had with Bloodaxe, in that his enemy knew his secret ID, but all he knew is that they were someone close to him

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

Thor #457 Jan 1993
"Final Gauntlet!"
Eric undertakes the Gauntlet of the Grim Guardian; He enters his own subconscious,

and faces past foes as well as past loves;

Sparky guides him though, and he faces the Grim Guardian;
The Guardian is himself, who represents his anger, and wants to keep the power of Thor;
Eric embarrasses him and accepts him, and the Guardian vanishes;
He finally finds Thor trapped in a castle, and when he touches him, there is a brilliant flash of light and they are both free;

Thor gives Eric Mjolnir so that he can protect Earth, while Thor will stay in Asgard, and asks Sif to marry him, which she accepts.

Script by Tom DeFalco, pencils by Ron Frenz, inks by Al Milgrom

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Thor #458 Jan 1993
"To The Victor...!"
With the true Thor residing in Asgard and engaged to Sif, Eric returns to earth as Thor to continue his heroic exploits;

Eric encounters Shatterfist and is plagued by the thought that now he can be killed he met the villain in the future
circa Thor #440 and learned that he would not die until after he met his foe in the present;
Eric goes to Avengers Mansion where he meets Sif who is really the Enchantress in disguise;

Amora sends Eric to Asgard to "rescue' the real Sif from Thor;

Thor and Eric battle.

Script by Tom DeFalco, pencils by Ron Frenz, inks by Al Milgrom

[Hypestyle]

So what happened to the mace? I'm surprised that nobody mentions this in the current mighty Thor arcs with Jane.

[Zero Hunter]

So what happened to the mace? I'm surprised that nobody mentions this in the current mighty Thor arcs with Jane.

Kevin Masterson still has it the last I knew. He is Thunderstrike now even if no writers seem eager to use him.

[McFarlane's Green Hulk]

This run is on my summer nostalgia reading stack -- along with "Operation: Galactic Storm".

[Ghostwise]

Love Thunderstrike, it seems unfair with the revolving door of death in the Marvel Universe, Eric hasn't gotten another chance

The end of his book went out of its way to have Eric's soul processed away as that of an ordinary person, though.

Incidentally, big Thunderstrike character profile.

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Thor #459 Feb 1993
"What Price Victory?"
Eric Masterson and Thor battle

until they regain their reason;

Eric gives up the Thor identity but Odin arranges for him to become Thunderstrike.

Continued in Thunderstrike #1.

Script by Ron Frenz (plot) and Tom DeFalco (plot, script), pencils by Ron Frenz, inks by Al Milgrom

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There was something special about Eric-Thor, and it seems relative to the Jane-Thor story that's been going on. From what little I've seen, Jane just seemed too confident and capable holding that hammer. Eric on the other hand... He did it RIGHT. He was anxious. He lacked confidence. He did a fantastic job of showing what it would be like for an Everyman ordinary guy to suddenly weild the power of a god. He did his best to live up to the legacy and never took it for granted... because he was standing in for a GOD!!!

Wonderful concept.

Yeah, it was.

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Thor #391 May 1988
"The Madness of Mongoose" First appearance of Eric Masterson.
In New York, Thor as Sigurd Jarlson looks up his old boss Jerry to see about work;

On site, he is attacked by the Mongoose, who is sent by an unknown master;
With Spider-Man's help, Thor drives him off, but during the battle, Eric Masterson is hurt badly;

Before escaping, the Mongoose knocks out the support pillars, but Thor manages to support the entire building while Spider-Man braces it so it won't collapse.

Script by Tom DeFalco, pencils by Ron Frenz, inks by Brett Breeding

[phantom1592]

HAH!!! I JUST picked that book up last week at flea market for cheap. I was pleasantly surprised to see it was a 'First Eric Masterson' book

[Nomads1]

Has this Kevin version of Thunderstrike shown up anywhere after the mini-series? I'd like to read more about him.

Peace

[Nomads1]

Thor #391 May 1988
"The Madness of Mongoose" First appearance of Eric Masterson.
In New York, Thor as Sigurd Jarlson looks up his old boss Jerry to see about work;

On site, he is attacked by the Mongoose, who is sent by an unknown master;
With Spider-Man's help, Thor drives him off, but during the battle, Eric Masterson is hurt badly;

Before escaping, the Mongoose knocks out the support pillars, but Thor manages to support the entire building while Spider-Man braces it so it won't collapse.

Script by Tom DeFalco, pencils by Ron Frenz, inks by Brett Breeding

Frenz and Breeding where a really kick-ass art team.

Peace

[616MarvelYear is LeapYear]

That they were, yes.