The Mighty Thor by Walter Simonson, Vol. 2

Thor by Walter Simonson

by Walter Simonson, Sal Buscema (Illustrations)

Few people have ever left their mark on one character quite the way Walter Simonson has. His work on the Mighty Thor swept the Norse God of Thunder to heights never before seen and rarely achieved in his wake. Spanning epic tales of heroism and treachery, love and war, Simonson's work is often considered the definitive Thor. From the majesty and mystery of fabled Asgard to the gritty streets of New York City, Thor was never the same. That is the mark of a true visionary. This second volume continues the collection of Simonson's epic run. COLLECTING: Thor 346-355

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Fantasy, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

240 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2013

About the author

Walt Simonson is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for a run on Marvel Comics' Thor from 1983 to 1987, during which he created the character Beta Ray Bill. He is also known for the creator-owned work Star Slammers, which he inaugurated in 1972 as a Rhode Island School of Design thesis. He has also worked on other Marvel titles such as X-Factor and Fantastic Four, on DC Comics books including Detective Comics, Manhunter, Metal Men and Orion, and on licensed properties such as Star Wars, Alien, Battlestar Galactica and Robocop vs. Terminator.

He is married to comics writer Louise Simonson, with whom he collaborated as penciller on X-Factor from 1988 to 1989, and with whom he made a cameo appearance in the 2011 Thor feature film.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dark elf named Malekith seeks The Casket of Ancient Winters, which is in the hands of a mortal named Eric Willis. Can Thor prevent Malekith from getting the Casket and releasing his master, Surtur, on Midgard?

Thor by Walter Simonson, Volume 2 contains issues 346 to 355 of Simonson's revered run on Thor. And it's pretty spectacular.

I'll get my one gripe out of the way first: this book is stuffed to the gills with long-winded Asgardian dialogue.

Now that that's out of the way, this was, as I said, pretty spectacular. Simonson manages to convey an epic scope without using tons of full page spreads and his art is more heavily detailed from other comics of the same time period. AND he managed to make the deadlines every month despite being the writer AND the artist. You can feel his love for Norse sagas and comics in general on every page.

The story is much bigger than my teaser conveys. Malekith wants to free Surtur so Surtur will set the Nine Worlds ablaze. Once the Casket of Ancient Winters is open, it's all Thor, Beta Ray Bill, and the assembled might of Asgard and the Avengers to stop Surtur and his numberless horde. It's an epic battle between good and evil that rivals old Norse sagas and it is not without consequences.

Lots of stuff from the Thor movies was pinched from Simonson's run, like Malekith and Surtur. It could even be argued that parts were used to craft the template that a lot of Marvel's bigger movies use: hordes of disposable foot soldiers for one group of heroes to grapple with while Thor goes after the big guns. Odin and his sons facing down Surtur with the rainbow bridge destroyed and Earth being overrun by Surtur's minions is one of my favorite moments in the run so far.

Walter Simonson's Thor run is one of the best runs of the 1980s and this volume is a prime example. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

[Μιχάλης · Rating 5 out of 5]

To κόμικ αυτό το ανοίγεις και από μέσα από τις σελίδες ξεχύνεται epic metal μουσική. Και όταν λέω epic metal, δεν εννοώ Europower φλωριές αλλά τουλάχιστον Manowar.
Συνεχίζει από εκε΄΄ι που τελειώνει ο πρώτος τόμος με το Ragnarok & Roll όπου οι θεοί της Aasgard πολεμούν τις ορδές του δαίμονα της φωτιάς Surtur. Επική ιστορία, πολύ μακριά από τα συνηθισμένα υπερηρωικά κολάν (θυμίζει βέβαια τα πιο κοσμικά κόμιξ του Jack Kirby) γεμάτη με συναισθήματα, αλλά και με όλα εκείνα τα απαρχαιωμένα gimick (πχ χαρακτήρες που προλογίζουν κάθε τους ενέργεια όσο πολεμούν) που όμως εδώ δε μοιάζουν παλιά, απλά νοσταλγικά και ταιράζουν με τον επικό χαρακτήρα της ιστορίας.

Αν ποτέ θελήσετε να διαβάσετε Thor οι πέντε τόμοι με τις ιστορίες του Simonson είναι αυτές που πρέπει να πάρετε.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this is how you tell an event story. Walter Simonson continues to knock it out of the park with his amazing Thor run. The multiple moving pieces set up in the last volume all come together in this one into a fantastic epic story. This run continues to deliver on the hype. Some of the best comic book storytelling of all time. A must-read for comic fans.

[Adam Spanos · Rating 3 out of 5]

This trade starts with a war between Asgardians Surtur. After that war ends then some smaller scale stories begin. Personally I enjoyed the smaller scale stuff much more than the Surtur material. For some reason I got bored of the underdrawn and overdone demonic army, and the whole war just dragged on. I hate to call it Simonson's worst material, but it was the least entertaining. Luckily after that ends, some great great material follows.

If I were to Grade Plotlines:

Surtur Vs. Asgard & Earth- C-

Thor and Tiwaz- A+

Thor Vs Seduction- B+

[Tobin Elliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simonson's art seems a little more rushed in this run, and I think he may have been struggling with the deadlines, judging from the odd guest inker and, in the case of the last issue, guest penciller.

But his writing remains on point. And he's got a lot of stuff going on here. Simonson doesn't write a simple one and done issue, or even a two or three issue arc. He writes epics that span multiple issues, while also setting up what's to come after this epic ends.

Honestly, his storytelling is so refreshing, both from a character standpoint, as well as from his avoidance of the "villain of the issue" plotlines. He sees that the pantheon of characters in this series is a rich vein to be mined. Sif, in particular went from "But Thor! You must let me come on the adventure! I'm a warrior too, remember?" to "Screw you. I'll do my own thing, and show you all what a real warrior looks like."

But he's reinventing all the characters. There's noticeable changes to Odin, to Loki, to Balder, to Volstagg, to Sif, and...yes, to Thor himself.

I only hope the quality of the writing continues.

[Brook · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first time I've read the Surtur Saga, and I really enjoyed it. The build up and ultimate confrontations reminded me of the American Gothic story arc in the Swamp Thing.
Certainly seems that some of Simonson's content here effected the recent Thor: Raganarok movie.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not even at the halfway point of Simonson's run on Thor, and it already feels like an epic. I'm especially enjoying Beta Ray Bill's first adventures, a character I've loved since I first discovered him in the 90's Silver Surfer series.
I left the most recent Thor film disappointed that they still have yet to introduce Balder The Brave into the movie universe, and these two volumes have made me miss his presence even more. I suppose adding a third sibling to the mix of Thor and Loki may make things more confusing for he average movie goer.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Top drawer Thor done-in a bit my stiff dialog and is slightly emotionless. Great art though. And LOVE the new computerized color job. Wish Marvel would do that with all their reprints!

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second collected volume of Walter Simonson's work on Thor is probably the best. This edition sees the culmination of numerous stories that Simonson had been building to, most prominently the attack on Asgard by Surtur.

The resulting battle highlights Simonson's strengths in writing Thor. Seeing Thor take up arms with his father and brother against a calamitous threat is one of my favorite moments in the character's history, and that's a credit to Simonson's build and execution.

Early events in the book can be a bit slower in their unfolding. Simonson's dialogue and characterizations may not leave much room for subtlety, but he knows how to pack some real punch onto a page, and that's perfect for Thor. He's also able to have fun with Asgardian prose without making it overly dense or cumbersome, which some writers struggle with.

And while it's the big scenes that are the main attraction here, we do get a nice epilogue of sorts with the final included issue, one that speaks to Thor's humanity and briefly introduces a fun new character.

The new coloring in these volume releases is a great credit to Simonson's original artwork as well.

This is the peak output of a writer who really understood his character and what made it work, and anyone who enjoys Thor as a character should absolutely pick this up, as well as the prior volume that builds up to it.

[Appoline Piotrowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably the best mix of mythology and comics in the entirety of Thor's history. Walter Simonson is a mythology nerd - it takes one to know one - and he blended wonderfully with the superhero-side of things. The style is that of an epic (and dare I say even theatrical, with characters describing what happens on page with too much emphase to pretend to be anything than larger-than-life?) The characterization is perfect, Thor being less of an oaf as people tend to think when they think of the character, there's a slyness in Odin that sets him apart from "just another Zeus-like father figure" and Loki's perfect, his motivations oscillating between "for the lulz" and "for the evulz". And that's without mentioning Balder, the Warriors Three, Beta Ray Bill, etc. I'm just a tad disappointed by the 'remastered colouring', as the 80s colours had their charm. But that's just nitpicking.
A must-read, I say!

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never been a huge Thor fan, but these stories are mostly excellent. The Malekith arc wasn't the most exciting, but once Surtur finally took the stage, everything was incredibly exciting until the end. It's easy to see after reading these why the run is so revered as Simonson's writing and art work so well for making Thor interesting and engaging. The recoloring in these books is also acceptable, I'm not sure why so many trades need to be recolored by Marvel and DC but it isn't jarring to look at or doing a disservice to the original art.

[L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I must say this was pretty epic. All those storylines I was kind of complaining about in the previous collection now come together and make sense. I can see something like this being the inspiration for Kevin Feige to bring these stories to life.

The ancient fire god Sutur has an axe to grind with Odin. The battlefield is Earth. Everyone is called in to help: Beta Ray Bill, the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, even villains who realize they are in danger as well if they don't help defeat the giant demon with the conveniently placed flames around his hips.

[Lucas Lima · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok, this is were this run get serious and it's amazing.

Before Simonson, the only mythological stuff that on Thor's comics on locations and his villains. On this one, we see the real thing. We see the legend coming through the pages. It's really good.

Still "wordy" as hell, but this run is really the most important on the God of Thunder's history. Jane is still in my heart for her Jason Aaron's run, but you can't turn your face for this one. On to the next one!

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

DOOOM! This volume features more Beta Ray Bill, always welcomed, and Surtur's attack on Asgard in an effort to ignite his sword Twilight with the Eternal Flame. The flame has been housed in the city to prevent just such a thing. Lots of enjoyably dramatic splash pages.

This may be a COVID lockdown-influenced nostalgia read, but I'm really okay with that.

[Lavell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Artwork: impressive, Story: Great. First, I've lost this trade paperback currently. I've read it and enjoyed it a great deal. Surter and devil at least one of many is involved in a war with Asguard and he has the power to conqueror it. This trade was phenomenal and I miss it. It will turn up someday.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume got off to a slow start, but once it gets going, it's a masterpiece. Simonson brings together story elements from the start of his run for a saga that carries the scope of a crossover. He manages a number of storylines and a large cast with great skill, and fits in character work alongside the big action and adventure sequences.

[Avril · Rating 5 out of 5]

To get around my vow not to buy any books in 2018, I cunningly bought this copy as a gift for a friend and read it very carefully to keep it as pristine as possible. It is as good as volume one; I’m loving this run on Thor.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perfectly fine. It seems like this must be a crazy big story in the history of Thor, but it also seems like a story that recurs.

There isn't that much charge to the whole thing, except in the epilogue

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

An epic example of what comics can do! Simonson shows why he is the GOAT and why his run on Thor is THE definitive story. An epic story of Ragnarok full of thrills, twists, and epic moments, a must read for any comics fans.

[Tim Omstead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome artwork and great story.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Timo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do admit that this is a well crafted epic and art to back the story up, but to me these stories digging up from god mythology are just stupid.

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again, the "remastered coloring" here is like what that Italian lady did to the Ecce Homo.

[Holden Strausser · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quasi-interesting Norse superheroics hampered by obtuse artwork and unremarkable dialogue.

[Nate]

Epic stuff. This volume is split between two arcs: Thor’s battle with Malekith over the Casket of Ancient Winters, and an all hands on deck clash with Surtur and his demons as he attempts to bring forth Ragnarok. This latter is a fantastic, sprawling five issues that bounces from Asgard to New York to the Sahara Desert. There’s some awesome moments and lines of dialogue here; how cool is it when Odin, Thor, and Loki face down Surtur on the rainbow bridge? And then, Simonson caps it off with a touching epilogue that’s the best single issue of his run so far. Up until this point, Thor has been a likable but bland hero. This issue (355) gives him more dimensions and sets up what I think is a wonderful character arc for him.

Oh, and Simonson’s art looks great. He sure can draw!

[Scott Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best Thor stories are always more focused around Asgard then Earth. Simonson does a marvel here with the climax of the Surtur story that he'd been building from the first page of his run. The movement off Earth and into the Science-Fiction/Fantasy realms of Faerie, Asgard, and Muspelheim, the use of a wonderful combination of what Simonson himself terms Marvel and Norse Mythology--and ooooohhhhh that art! I remember seeing Simonson books when I was first collecting almost thirty years ago and It's the look I remember, one of the best Thor's seen, and there have been some very good pencilers since.

Part of what I loved about this first long arc was Simonson's wonderful use of other Asgardians the stories/plotlines focused on Odin and on Balder the Brave in particular. Fascinating stuff, and Balder's wrestle with what's happened to him is one of those stories that legitimately goes deeper than just "see bad guy, punch bad guy" which can be fun but is the stuff of mundane rather than great comics. There is nothing mundane about the work Simonson does here.

[Sam Poole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, dramatic, full of great characters and great character moments and truly outstanding art, sound effects and lettering. Issue #355 with Thor and his great grandfather was moving. The whole
Battle with Surtur is a climax to a story building since we first met Beta Ray Bill. the hordes of
Demons, stories from Odin (about basically
Merging into a mech with his brothers!!!), Sif
And Beta Ray Bill returning, a resolution to Donald Blake, the avenging trio of Loki, Odin and Thor five these stories a meld of high fantasy drama, Marvel style humor, jaunty adventures and strong character development. Ps- volstagg and hogun in Macy's. Yes. ✌

[Alex Sarll]

Wonderful fun, interspersed with moments of genuine pathos, from the era when superhero comics were just starting to become readable (though traces of the bad old days of exposition and recap remain). I wish the recent film, in using Dark Elf monarch and prick Malekith, had also retained the idea here that his base is in that mystical realm, "the Cotswolds of England". They were filming in Britain anyway, after all.

[e]

wow this actually made me ship beta ray bill/sif

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comic about dudes yelling and hitting each other as hard as they can.