Mighty Marvel Masterworks - Thor - Volume 3

 

Of course, being a fan of the original Norse legends, The Mighty Thor was certain to captivate my young mind. As a humble, lame doctor found a walking stick that transformed into a hammer that also turned Dr. Don Blake into a literal god of thunder (what young wimp did not desire a magical way to become a powerful hero?) Thor would go on to save Earth and Asgard many times over.

In this collection, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby combine their immense talents once again to bring us the other-worldly exploits of Thor. Whether he be on Earth, fighting super-powered humans such as Mr. Hyde, the Cobra, the Grey Gargoyle or the Absorbing Man, or in his homeland of Asgard facing the villainy of his half-brother Loki and his comrades, Thor faces his challenges as a god should. Loki continually attempts to sway Odin's favors from his beloved son, and sometimes temporarily succeeds, but the goodly Thunder God must always prevail.

There are times when the worlds collide in a way, such as when Thor must fight Odin's supreme weapon on Earth, the Destroyer (always wondered if this creation was the inspiration of DMZ's song of the same name) or when Loki send the Executioner and the Enchantress to terrorize Don Blake's love interest (and nurse) Jane Foster. There are also tales of the brothers in their youth and of various legends of Asgard in general.

Kirby is in top form here, with his imaginative visions of godly-living, and Lee's soliloquies are intelligent and heroic, as befitting a god, and the plots - sometimes based on the original myths - and the villains are always creative. Of course, it's not great art, but it is great comic book story-telling!