Mortal Thor vol. 1: No Gods, No Masters

In the last volume, Thor died!  He died so hard that this series had to be relaunched as “Mortal Thor” and he’s (almost) nowhere to be seen here.  You know who is here to be seen?  One Sigurd Jarlson, a bulky Swede who struggles with his English and tries his best to be a good man, even if the world seems against him at this time.  Yet he has friends, including the mischievous scamp Lucky, who always seems to know the right thing to do or say, and he has a hammer as well.  The question is whether or not it’s the right tool for the job at hand when The Serpent comes knocking along with his Society.

While it’s a little disappointing to see that writer Al Ewing’s “Thor” run, like his “Venom” run, had to be refreshed halfway through, it gives me hope that we’ll be able to see it through to its intended ending.  For all of us established fans, that is.  If the purpose of this mid-run relaunch was to get lots of new eyes on this series then you’d think Ewing would have gone for a more action-packed opening.  I say this because the first three issues of this volume are a slow burn that intrigue more than they excite.  It isn’t really until the final issue, when the nature of Sigurd’s worthiness becomes a problem and the threat makes itself known that things start to catch fire.

What about the fourth issue between those two?  That one is concerned with catching the reader up on what’s happening to Asgard now that it’s been cut off from Midgard and nobody can remember it or its inhabitants.  It’s a solid bit of setup pitting Thor’s son Magni against Ulik the Troll as Amora schemes to play them both like fiddles.  Juann Cabal illustrates this issue and it’s solid rather than his usual “fantastic,” and not quite as striking as the lithe and precise work of Pasqual Ferry in the main issues.  In short, what’s where is good enough to keep established fans of Ewing’s run reading it, even if I’m not feeling a real obligation to get anyone who hasn’t started on it to do so right  now.