The Mighty Thor #5 Review
What happens when a giant Odin fights a giant like Galactus? One hell of a cosmic head butt!
The Mighty Thor #5
The Asgardians are still putting up a fight on Galactus. Meanwhile, Thor and Silver Surfer fight on Mars. Surfer realizes that Thor is wounded and is curious where that has come from. Speaking of the mystical seed that Galactus looks to devour to satiate his hunger, Loki has managed to steal it from its protective armor – the Destroyer. Loki manages to return to the opening of the maw. There, he repels down into the pit to replace the seed. Back at the main fight between Odin and Galactus (who are using more of a mental warfare than anything else), things are starting to boil over as Odin lashes out, head butts the world devourer and send them both falling to Earth. Odin enters his hibernation just as Galactus makes the decision to take all of Earth for his meal.
This is yet another solid story that’s drawn beautifully from Matt Fraction and Olivier Coipel. There are real stakes here. If the seed is meant to free the Asgardians from their destinies, losing it to Galactus’s intestines is not an option. And without a doubt, this series is featuring Thor being Thor. He’s proving his mettle to all comers. Sure, he’s typically buddies with Silver Surfer, but if you come to Asgard demanding you hand something over that has always been yours… You probably should be ready for a huge fistfight.
Yeah, there’s a lot of battling in this series. But don’t confuse that with this series being “dumbed down”. It’s fairly obvious that Fraction and Coipel are having fun with this series. I’ve mentioned it before, but Fraction is infusing a lot of personality into the characters. While I’ve always loved Thor for all he was as a character, it’s actually been really cool to see him act more realistic. Does he always have to be a character that speaks in Shakespearean language and always talk about battles and the whatnot? No, at the very least, he shouldn’t. Why can’t we see him express his feelings about his opponent, friend or foe?
While staying true to what Thor is in relationship to the Marvel Universe, Matt Fraction seems keen on the idea of exploring the more barbarian aspects of the Thunder God. It might actually bring the character more closely in line with the stories from ancient Norse mythology. He’s a bit of an unstoppable force who is supremely confident in his own strength and abilities. It reminds me of another famous barbarian – Conan. It’s clear that Coipel’s art has some Conan influences from the way Thor looks to how he draws the confidence in his face. None of this has been a bad mixture for me.
A COMIC BOOK BLOG RATING
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Wonderful art from Coipel and great script from Fraction. This series is a ton of fun. | Definitely heavier on action than anything else, but that’s not too bad of a thing. |
| Rating |
1 Comment
Maybe I’m more of a sucker for action than I thought, but I freaking loved this issue! I remember you writing somewhere that one of the things that first drew you to reading Thor was the epic/cosmic scale of the stories, etc. I couldn’t help but be reminded of that while reading this issue. The scenes with Odin and Galactus, especially, were jaw-dropping. So glad I jumped on board with this new series. It’s become one of my favorites.