The Return of Thor

Last year Marvel finally returned one of it’s most powerful, and popular heroes in the Asgardian Thunder God Thor. His return was inevitable, but one had to wonder what he would be like when he did. The answer was a more classic Thor: being merged with Donald Blake so he could walk among humans also. Blake was also the first host that comes to everyone’s mind when Thor is mentioned, so it was a smart move.

To me Thor’s return is a good thing for multiple of reasons, and Marvel was going to do it for sheer economic reasons if nothing else. So let me explain why I like his return.


Earth has its most powerful hero back
To me Thor is one of the most powerful characters in Marvel, and the most powerful on Earth all things considered. If you look at the other heroes/villains of space, think about who there is. Gladiator of the Shi’Ar (who he defeated while Eric Masterson, a.k.a. Thunderstrike, was still new to the whole thing), Silver Surfer who roams space, Thanos of the Titans, Super Skrull of the Skrulls, Ronan of the Kree. All extremely powerful beings that only the heavy hitters could hope to defeat. But how many characters does Earth have like that? Comparing him to the other most powerful characters on Earth as I see things:

Sentry- incredibly powerful, but a head case to say the least. Sentry has power that rivals even the cosmic characters, if not even greater, but his head isn’t in the game so to speak. He’s always at odds with himself and the Void who gave him his powers, so he is constantly holding back and not always reliable.

Hulk- Hulk is one of the most powerful beings if nothing else for his strength and durability. But Hulk is also a loner and rarely agrees to fight along side anyone. Despite Marvel’s attempts to portray him as having unlimited power, I don’t think anyone outside of Hulk fans, the Marvel big wigs (a.k.a. idiots) see things that way. If it comes to betting on Hulk or the Thanos or Surfer, Hulk isn’t getting my vote.

Iron Man- despite being one of the most powerful heroes, Marvel refuses to write him that way. He peaked in the 90’s before the dreadful Crossing saga, and hasn’t been portrayed as powerful since. Every suit seems to be less powerful than the last for some reason. That and just about every Marvel writer is using him as a punching bag anymore (refer back to the “idiots” comment).

Phoenix- Dead (or not, who knows, she may be alive this weak and dead the next again)

Wolverine- despite Marvel’s best attempts at making him an uber-powerful character that can survive anything and kill anyone, I don’t think anyone will ever see him that way except fanboys who have no common sense.

Most of the other super powers are villains like Magneto or Apocalypse, who rarely fight on the side of good. So enters Thor, the unlimited power of a God and the mind to wield it.

Also, since his return, Thor has the powers of both Odin and Gaea, making him even more powerful than before. Plus, after the fiasco of Ragnarok is quite mad and isn’t holding back like he used to.


The Return of Asgard and the Asgardians
Though never a major player normally, Asgard and the Asgardians have always been there in their own world, ready to do some damage. Loki of course is back (as inevitable as Thor’s return) and the rest are returning from their human forms. Though rarely used outside of Thor or the Avengers comics, it adds more options for the writers are Marvel, and could always lead to a major event. Not to forget that Odin was considered a major force in the cosmic scene, and that can’t be ignored.


A Personality as tough as the guy who has it
When it comes to most of the heroes, they always hold back. Whether they don’t want to severely hurt someone or kill them, fear their powers may go out of control or lose their sanity, few actually let loose. Thor has not been like this much. He has always been tough as nails in mind and body, and rarely holds back. He had the mental toughness to do anything and the raw power to carry it out. Plus he always had an aggressive edge to him: he was overwhelming powerful, fought as such and had little trouble wanting to deal that final blow. Few heroes have this attribute (Punisher, Hulk and Wolverine are the only ones that come to mind) and though a ton aren’t needed, there need to be more than just a few.


Now, where the return of Thor going to lead to? Only time will tell that, but I think you can expect big things from him in the future, and for him to play a major role in the upcoming Secret Invasion saga (which Marvel hopefully wont screw up like Civil War and World War Hulk). Rereading Thor #1, Donald Blake shows Thor a world where he doesn’t come back, which is a ruined city landscape piled up with bodies. This could have been an actual hint he will have a serious impact on Secret invasion, but of course it all also just be an in general statement.


Finally, I want to say I am a fan of the new costume. The recent trend of things, not just at Marvel, but in society in general, is having a modern look of a retro item (think the new muscles cars, Cyclops uniform in comics just as a few examples). Thor’s costume fits right in, looking like his original costume with the silver disks on the chest, winged hat and boots. I think the black and silver scheme looks a lot better than the blue and gold scheme though, giving it a more serious tone. The base costume looks t be a chain mail of sort, with small cubic plating on most likely a mesh or cloth base.

The only thing I don’t really like though are the wristbands. There is too much silver on the arms, making it distract from the rest of the costume. The only design change I would make would be either to enlarge the bands to go closer towards his elbow, or create new gauntlets for him along the style of the boots. That way there is no drastic change in the appearance, but it would correct the small problem.