Is It Good? Thor #2 Review

Lady Thor is here and all we really care about is who the hell she is, but will we get an answer? Will we found out how the hammer can change its inscription and more importantly, is it good?

Thor #2 (Marvel Comics)

Last issue, Thor lost an arm, nearly off panel oddly, and Lady Thor grabbed a fistful of hammer. Thor was fighting Frost Giants that were attacking a Roxxon underwater exploration lab. They were after a skull and Thor paid for it, more than likely because he didn’t have his trusty hammer to beat them senseless. Both stories connect more or less in this issue and we get a bit more info on Lady Thor (who will be henceforth called Thor proper) but above all else lots of action.

Talks like Thor but is way more confused.

Writer Jason Aaron nails a few things in this issue, first of which is the concept of the hammer as a character. Thor talks to it and seemingly gets some kind of answers, albeit it doesn’t actually speak to her. It’s clear Aaron is going to be giving the hammer more to do outside of beating things, which is an exciting concept. Being a magical object it pretty much can do whatever the writer wants it to and considering the new Thor doesn’t know exactly what it takes to be the god of thunder, it’ll be neat to see her figure it out with little nudges from the hammer itself.

Ooh, interesting!

The plot of this issue is solid (although it would have been nice to check in with guy Thor at some point) as we have a hero who’s figuring it out as she goes along. That’s great fun, and it’s neat to see her fighting Frost Giants and wondering out loud if she’s as badass as guy Thor ever was. Outside of this we are reminded of Roxxon and their leader’s jerkish nature, Malekith’s arrogance and the general stupidity of Frost Giants. It’s a lot of fun.

The art by Russell Dauterman excels at details and weight, which reminds me of Frank Quitely’s work. His layouts use very jagged, long panels, which help express size and speed when it comes to Thor against the Frost Giants. Nearly every page had a panel that was turned a bit and not straight; at first I thought this was a story element, but upon closer examination I think it’s just a random way to convey energy. There were three that didn’t have these angled panels and on these pages it’s typically a quieter moment, so his choice to use them so often seems to be for kicking things up a notch.

Clue!

Is It Good?

I think anyone who digs reading about a hero who’s not used to the rules and power will dig this book. The mystery of who Thor is under the mask remains and clearly isn’t a priority, but damn am I giddy to see more about Mjolnir’s ability to communicate with Thor.