The world of Thor is inherently larger than life. Grounded in cherry-picked details of myth, peopled with literal gods endowed with nigh-immortality bolstered by storytelling metaphysics and All-Father naps, the stories told within the bounds of the Asgardian framework rarely concern themselves with humanity, humility, or mortality. It’s rare to feel as if the characters are ever truly at risk, so the stakes are set cosmically high. Ragnarok and god-butchers, stories set at the end of time, near the heat death of the universe, these are the contemporary framing of Asgard—all things too large to bother we paltry humans with, too large to tangibly touch upon our basic human fears.
Marvel Comics
For these reasons, Jane Foster’s elevation to a moving piece of the mythology has been one of the most invigorating innovations to have occurred in the pages of Thor in decades. Her turn as Thor brought godhood in direct conflict with mortality as she grew weaker and weaker, her cancer treatment resetting with each hefting of the hammer.
Marvel Comics
Her current role as Valkyrie is a natural evolution of that purpose, as she becomes the only Asgardian force currently embroiled in the struggles of humanity—she is the only God-like being who sees us in the Marvel Universe. Endowed with a power wholly centered on witnessing the frailty of human life, Jane Foster is the lone benevolent force in the myriad Marvel pantheons, the only one looking inward instead of out.
Marvel Comics
Jane Foster and The Mighty Thor is a misleading title for Jane’s most recent outing. The Thunder God is, thankfully, barely vital to the narrative, whisked away mysteriously as inciting incident. This leaves Jane as our central force, our narrative center, of one of Asgard’s endless fantastic battles, and while she isn’t speaking directly to humanity’s trouble here, she is undeniably the only human heart in the story—the only one fully endowed with a sense of inherent kindness in the face of eternal intrigue.
Marvel Comics
Compelled to find Thor in the mysterious Splinter Lands—a metaphysical space loosely attached to the mystic realms like Asgard and Limbo—Jane’s journey is one of self-confrontation, of introspective cleverness. Hers is a thoughtful journey while armies march on Asgard. Rúna, the other Valkyrie, is called to battle there, and the differences between their actions perfectly illustrate the cross purposes of the immortals and humanity.
Marvel Comics
It shouldn’t be a surprise that this terse, immaculate narrative is written by Torunn Grønbekk, who continues to write a vital and powerfully compassionate Jane Foster. Grønbekk’s handling of Jane has been immaculate, and her handling of the other Asgardian assets veer far afield from the current Thor book, which has been more interested in the reinvention of Thor himself than of the kingdom’s peoples.
Grønbekk’s clear and precise understanding of the characters in this toolbox means that these are not only definitive stories of Jane and Rúna, they are also stories with fully realized supporting cast. Sif, Enchantress, Ares, and even Volstagg feel more true in their brief scenes here than they might be in the hands of other writers.
And the reintroduction of Dreamqueen—for the first time since the tedious middle period of the original Alpha Flight—is inspired and exciting.
Marvel Comics
Not all the glory should be laid at Grønbekk’s feet, of course. Michael Dowling’s work here is expressive, bold, and adventurous; no character, no matter how nameless or background, feels any less unique and realized than any other. Background demons in limbo, faceless dark elf marauders, or Rúna’s rockabilly girlfriend, all of them deftly and considerately rendered.
Jane Foster and the Mighty Thor is an expertly crafted—if brief—book. It stands as proof of Jane’s continuing value to a franchise that sometimes feels eager to be rid of her. If we continue to get these types of stories by these impeccable creators, the Asgardian legacy will never feel as cold, distant, and inhumane as godhood demands.
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