Mighty Thor 15 & 16 The Asgard/Shi'ar War - Spoilers

[Nix Uotan]

We get a few hints. The prayers seem fatalistic, the deities seem very overbearing and severe, draconian even. Possibly uncaring. Maybe we will get more.

I liked the added detail like the Starmother and Father of Light business and the M'Kraan Palace where the Guard can actually meet the Shi'ar gods. I was just hoping like new deities in their pantheon so I'm hoping the next issue does do that as I love it when they flesh out these existing alien races.

That's understating it. Every aspect of their culture, from goverment to social norms, is based upon their religion. And at the core of that is the marriage of their two prime deities Sharra and K'ythri. The mythology was that they were gods at war but their conflict destroyed the galaxy and were forced to marry, creating a new stronger Shi'ar world and finding love in the process. This is why the Shi'ar Empire expands the way it does, they view themselves as not simply conquering other worlds but marrying them through war, integrating their cultures and growing stronger. Representatives from these worlds are then included in the Shi'ar High Council on Chandilar and also put forth their strongest warriors to join the Imperial Guard.

There are downsides to these close theological ties too though. The cultural emphasis on marriage through war has made subjects like art and homesexuality extremely taboo within the Imperium. Lilandra was seen by traditionalists as weak due to her prioritizing peace over conquest and expansion.

Also the M'Krann Crystal is tied into the Shi'ar origin myth as it was a gift from K'ythri to Sharra for their wedding. For the Shi'ar it's also the resting place for the dead and the home of the Phoenix, which they also have a complicated history with.

Very nice summary! 👍

[JKtheMac]

I have been trying to think if there have been any other references to belief equalling a deity's power in Marvel continuity. I revisited Jurgens to see if this theme was developed as part of his Reigning story, but that doesn't seem to cover it.

There were a lot of stories in the nineties that used the idea that the less worshippers you have the less powerful you are as a god. The one that always sticks in my mind was the otherworldly quest in Thundercats. The idea doesn't quite work in Marvel continuity where many deities have power without belief, although one could build a theory based upon cultural relevance rather than reverence. (This is a possible underlying theme with the way Odin is being portrayed but until that gets teased out in the text we can't be sure if it is deliberate.)

[DDM]

Great summary, thanks. I was only dimly aware of a small portion of this. What are the main comic references where this can be found, I would be interested in looking at some of it. I mainly know about them from early X-Men which doesn't get into this level of detail.

A lot of this background actually came from the Warren Ellis Starjammers miniseries in the mid 1990s. I'd highly reccommend it, great Carlos Pacheco art and the villian setup is a pretty interesting counter to the Shi'ar. They're a militaristically athiest alien species calling themselves the Uncreated, who purportedly killed and devoured their own god.

[JKtheMac]

A lot of this background actually came from the Warren Ellis Starjammers miniseries in the mid 1990s. I'd highly reccommend it, great Carlos Pacheco art and the villian setup is a pretty interesting counter to the Shi'ar. They're a militaristically athiest alien species calling themselves the Uncreated, who purportedly killed and devoured their own god.

Ellis is almost a complete blind-spot for me. I need to read more of his work. Apart from his Moon Knight, Astonishing X-Men, his newuniveral books and FreakAngels I have read nothing, and those are not really cited as his stand out works. I need to read Planetary at some point. I really don't want to try rereading Transmetopolitan, I read the first couple of issues and it reminds too much of why I didn't like the nineties much.

[MindofShadow]

I have been trying to think if there have been any other references to belief equalling a deity's power in Marvel continuity. I revisited Jurgens to see if this theme was developed as part of his Reigning story, but that doesn't seem to cover it.

There were a lot of stories in the nineties that used the idea that the less worshippers you have the less powerful you are as a god. The one that always sticks in my mind was the otherworldly quest in Thundercats. The idea doesn't quite work in Marvel continuity where many deities have power without belief, although one could build a theory based upon cultural relevance rather than reverence. (This is a possible underlying theme with the way Odin is being portrayed but until that gets teased out in the text we can't be sure if it is deliberate.)

I need to re-read the god butcher ending again, but didn't present day Thor get a power up because all the gods across time were praying to Thor?

[JKtheMac]

I need to re-read the god butcher ending again, but didn't present day Thor get a power up because all the gods across time were praying to Thor?

Yes. I read that as a mythological thing. Something you sometimes see in hero narratives representing social backing of the hero, but I guess it amounts to the same thing.