Classic Review: Marvel Masterworks- The Mighty Thor Vol. 17
Quick Summary
Pros: Thor’s adventures on Earth are more exciting and interesting than they usually are. The volume’s main storyline is very tense and has a clever conclusion. The final Thor/Loki story is a great demonstration of the duo. The artwork is wonderful in nearly every chapter.
Cons: Some new story elements are approached in ways that feel rushed or forced. The Hercules story is pretty lackluster.
Overall: This volume makes a few mistakes but these mistakes are vastly outnumbered by the volume’s successes. Fun clashes on Earth, real Norse myths, an expansion of Thor’s universe, and a tense trip to Asgard all make this a collection worth reading. Plus, the entire book is backed up by some amazing artwork. Readers with a penchant for Norse mythology or who are looking for Thor stories with a specific interest in that topic should consider reading this book.
Story
Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 17, by Len Wein and Roy Thomas, is an exciting collection of Thor stories. The opening chapters detail exciting events on Earth that allow Thor to show off his position as a defender of Midgard. Then, the following stories dive into real Norse myths and build up to a wonderfully tense conclusion. There are some places where the storytelling suffers a bit and one of the chapters, focused on Hercules, isn’t that great. However, as a whole, this volume works out well and should please most fans of this era in comics.
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The Mighty Thor Vol. 17 starts with a few chapters that take place on Earth. In the past, Thor’s earthbound fighting has, mostly, involved smaller threats that fail to pose a serious threat to the God of Thunder. However, here, he is forced to face off against foes that are either powerful on their own or have weapons that make them a threat. These stories still aren’t quite as exciting as his cosmic adventures but they are better than some of his earlier fights in Midgard.
After these earthbound stories are told, it doesn’t take long before a change of scenery takes place. The majority of The Mighty Thor Vol. 17 takes place on Asgard, where numerous aspects of Norse mythology are added to the Marvel Universe. One of Thor and Loki’s real adventures is retold, the female members of the Norse pantheon are finally brought into the fold, and the prophecy of Ragnarok becomes more well-defined. Including more real-world mythology makes Asgard’s history richer and adds to the characters involved. However, in some places, the addition of these real legends feels rushed and forced, weakening their current appeal.
Out of all these added legends, the prophecy of Ragnarok takes most of the volume’s time. Throughout most of the read, it appears as if Ragnarok is just around the corner. This threatening premise makes it feel like these seemingly unstoppable gods are in serious danger and keeps the reading tense. I also enjoyed the way Ragnarok ended up being thwarted and thought it was a clever way to detail the Norse apocalypse without ending the lives of these beloved characters.
Finally, the volume closes with stories from Marvel Preview #10. The first is an amazing Thor/Loki story that really nails the unique dynamic between these two brothers. The second is a pretty lackluster Hercules story that feels a bit all over the place.
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Art
The Mighty Thor Vol. 17 continues the artistic successes of its predecessors. Walt Simonson kicks the volume off with some striking chapters on Earth. He depicts a great cast of villains and makes the conflicts with them feel as dynamic as one would expect. Then, John Buscema takes over as the collection moves the story to Asgard. Here, Buscema shows off his refined talent with the Norse gods. His creativity is immediately apparent, as a fantastic cast of new characters is introduced, and his style is as skilled as ever, as the battles and emotions all shine. No matter who is depicting the events of this volume, they all look great.
The Mighty Thor Vol. 17 is also notable for containing a black and white Thor story with art from Jim Starlin. This chapter is excellent from start to finish. Starlin’s creative pencils and amazing approach to page structure make this story truly come to life. After reading this chapter, I was left wanting more and was sad to discover a series with art like this was considered but, ultimately, never came to be.
Continuity
Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 17 continues the story from Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 16 (Review).
The story here continues in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 18 (Review).
This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:
- Stilt-Man’s armor was destroyed back in Champions #12, collected in Champions Classic: The Complete Collection.
- Captain America fought Stilt-Man back in Captain America #191, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Captain America Vol. 9.
- Blastaar fought the Human Torch and the Hulk in Marvel Team-Up #18, collected in Marvel Masterworks: Marvel Team-Up Vol. 2.
- Thor #271 makes a visual reference to the Fantastic Four’s struggle with the Baxter Building. This problem is detailed in Fantastic Four #191, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Fantastic Four Vol. 17.
- Thor’s Belt of Strength was last seen in Journey into Mystery #91, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 1 (Review).
- A note in Thor #276 indicates information about Thor’s palace was given back in Thor Annual #5, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 15 (Review).
- Flashback images in Thor #276 show:
- Loki working with the Silver Surfer in Thor #193, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 9 (Review).
- Loki and Karnilla working with the Destroyer in Thor #150, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 6 (Review).
- The Mangog’s entrance in Thor #154, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 7 (Review).
- Thor took a reporter to Asgard back in Journey into Mystery #123, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 4 (Review).
- The prophecy behind Ragnarok was mostly detailed in Thor #200, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 11 (Review).
- Loki’s adoption was shown in the backup story from Journey into Mystery #112, collected in Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 3 (Review).
- The end of this volume mentions the Celestials. These beings are a major plot point from The Eternals by Jack Kirby Vol. 1 (Review) and The Eternals by Jack Kirby Vol. 2 (Review).