Review: Thor Vol. 1- The Goddess Of Thunder

Quick Summary

Pros: The concepts in this volume are unique and help define this new series. The entire volume is engaging and fun to read. The main narrative builds up plenty of excitement for the future. The collection’s artwork is gorgeous and matches the creativity one would hope for from a book about Norse mythology.

Cons: Some concepts in the book’s opening chapter come about too suddenly.

Overall: This is a solid opening volume to a new era in Thor history. It starts by immediately shaking things up and christening a new Thor, a move that is interesting to see and that makes the comic feel unique. This change then heralds an engaging story backed up by beautiful visuals. The conclusion then leaves readers with plenty of mysteries to ponder and plenty of reasons to come back to the book. Anyone who likes unique Thor stories or who is interested in this period of Marvel history should check out this volume.

Story

Thor Vol. 1: The Goddess of Thunder, by Jason Aaron, is a wonderful start to a unique transition period in Marvel history. It sees the title of Thor passed from its traditional bearer to a mysterious newcomer. This provides a serious change of pace for the comic and opens the series up to a whole new world of potential. Plus, the book just tells a good story, one where action plays out in the present while a tense drama builds up in the background. The entire collection is worthwhile and is not something fans of Thor or Marvel should miss.

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The Goddess of Thunder is immediately recognizable for what it does to Thor as a character. It strips the mantel of Thor from Odinson and hands it to a mysterious, new woman. This is a pretty massive change that seriously shakes up the series and opens the door for all kinds of storytelling. A change like this fits well at this moment in time, after several volumes of more traditional stories, and serves to inject a fantastic level of excitement and energy into the comic. It makes it feel like anything could happen in this book and that readers are witnessing a moment of history as it all plays out.

Alongside all of this, The Goddess of Thunder simply tells a good story. It has a new hero test her abilities against a powerful enemy while an older hero begins to deal with a tragic loss. This allows for some triumphant victories and a serious change for Thor. Meanwhile, political maneuverings take place, as power shifts in Asgardia, Roxxon continues to grab power, and alliances are made and broken among Asgardia’s enemies. The entire volume is exciting and makes for an engaging read.

In addition, this storyline is a perfect setup for future volumes. The new Thor’s growing power, the old Thor’s altered life direction, plenty of schemes from villains, and the secret behind the new Thor’s identity reassure readers that there is a lot yet to come from this comic. I’m even more excited than before to see what is coming next and where this series will go.

If there is a downside to this volume, it is that a few changes come about rather suddenly. Over the course of a few dozen pages, Thor is defeated in battle, has his arm chopped off, and a new Thor appears to be more powerful than ever. It is a lot to take on at first and may deter some from the book’s opening chapters, though I do believe this feature improves as the volume progresses.

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Art

The artwork in The Goddess of Thunder is gorgeous all the way through. Russell Dauterman’s work is bold, bright, and highly imaginative. It helps bring the magical world of frost trolls, elves, and Norse gods to life, making the entire volume feel like an action-focused take on the concept of a fairy tale. In addition, character designs are crisp and aesthetically pleasing, as frost trolls look intimidating, Malekith looks devilishly powerful, and the new Thor fits in well with the rest of the Norse pantheon. All of this is then further enhanced by Matthew Wilson’s colors, which are critical in bringing out the diversity and imagination behind all of these designs. Honestly, the artwork throughout this volume is so great that it almost doesn’t need text accompanying it, as the visuals alone easily cover the price of admission for this book.

Continuity

Thor Vol. 1: The Goddess of Thunder is the first volume in a new Thor series. However, it directly continues the story from Thor: God of Thunder Vol. 4: The Last Days of Midgard (Review).

The story here continues in Thor Vol. 2: Who Holds the Hammer (Review).

This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:

• Thor lost control of Mjölnir during the Original Sin (Review) (Reading Order) event.
• Odin returned during Original Sin: Thor & Loki: The Tenth Realm (Review).
• Thor “died” back in the Fear Itself event.