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Thor Epic Collection
Thor Epic Collection, Vol. 4: To Wake the Mangog
From the darkened depths, rises a threat greater than any Thor has ever before faced. Mangog threatens to unsheathe the Odinsword and bring Ragnarok upon the Norse gods in this collection of Asgardian classics. And that's just the beginning! In Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's Thor there's always another cosmic adventure around the corner. Point in case: Ego the Living Planet vs. Galactus, the return of "Him"-the man who would come to be known as Adam Warlock-and the origin of Galactus! It gets personal, too, with a surprising revelation regarding Donald Blake, the return of Jane Foster, and the dramatic dance between Balder and the Norn queen Karnilla. COLLECTING: THOR (1966) 154-174 (THOR EPIC COLLECTION VOL. 4)
445 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 10, 2015
13 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
About the author
Stan Lee
7,567 books2,336 followersStan Lee (born Stanley Martin Lieber) was an American writer, editor, creator of comic book superheroes, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
With several artist co-creators, most notably Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, he co-created Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, Thor as a superhero, the X-Men, Iron Man, the Hulk, Daredevil, the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch, The Inhumans, and many other characters, introducing complex, naturalistic characters and a thoroughly shared universe into superhero comic books. He subsequently led the expansion of Marvel Comics from a small division of a publishing house to a large multimedia corporation.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 10, 2023
More great stuff from Lee and Kirby, though in retrospect, Thor could have used more comic relief beyond Volstagg.
December 14, 2021
Gets four stars mostly because the middle stretch of the book - is so good: Jack Kirby at full cosmic tilt, working off a four panel grid (and often even fewer) which means the story moves at rollicking speed and massive scale, bouncing from event to event in a gloriously chaotic way, with Vince Colletta’s thick, vibrant inks adding to the sense of comics bursting off the page.
Kirbyphobics will not be swayed, though. From a plot perspective this chunk of comics is a mess, a churn of impatient creativity - threats constantly appearing, then being resolved in a page or two as Kirby thinks of something else he wants to draw. Stan Lee is left racing to keep up with his frenzied collaborator, trying to give the sense that there’s a plan to all this.
Maybe there even was - it feels like these issues are set-up for a longer story of Thor’s cosmic exile and search for Galactus, with Balder and the Warriors Three tackling earth bound threats. That doesn’t happen: the cosmic plot is resolved with unseemly haste and the last few issues switch gears dramatically, with Kirby reined in and doing mediocre done-in-ones with a parade of the usual menaces (you know the game’s up when the Wrecker appears). There’s a palpable sense of everyone shifting down a gear and marking time as Kirby gets ready to leave and take his cosmic collages with him.
So this collection is brilliant in the middle, dull at the end. The beginning is also strong, though not as unfettered as the cosmic stuff. It has the last enduring creation of the Kirby years - Mangog, the angry orange beast with the power of, all together now, “a billion billion beings”! Here it’s Stan who manages to sell Mangog as a threat despite Jack’s very weird design and the outrageous plot contrivance of the ‘Odinsleep’ (a gift for later writers). Mangog illustrates the central problem of 60s Thor - more than any other of Marvel’s early heroes he’s a wrestling character, someone with an amazing look and colourful backstory whose job remains to get in the ring and grapple with other strong guys.
Kirbyphobics will not be swayed, though. From a plot perspective this chunk of comics is a mess, a churn of impatient creativity - threats constantly appearing, then being resolved in a page or two as Kirby thinks of something else he wants to draw. Stan Lee is left racing to keep up with his frenzied collaborator, trying to give the sense that there’s a plan to all this.
Maybe there even was - it feels like these issues are set-up for a longer story of Thor’s cosmic exile and search for Galactus, with Balder and the Warriors Three tackling earth bound threats. That doesn’t happen: the cosmic plot is resolved with unseemly haste and the last few issues switch gears dramatically, with Kirby reined in and doing mediocre done-in-ones with a parade of the usual menaces (you know the game’s up when the Wrecker appears). There’s a palpable sense of everyone shifting down a gear and marking time as Kirby gets ready to leave and take his cosmic collages with him.
So this collection is brilliant in the middle, dull at the end. The beginning is also strong, though not as unfettered as the cosmic stuff. It has the last enduring creation of the Kirby years - Mangog, the angry orange beast with the power of, all together now, “a billion billion beings”! Here it’s Stan who manages to sell Mangog as a threat despite Jack’s very weird design and the outrageous plot contrivance of the ‘Odinsleep’ (a gift for later writers). Mangog illustrates the central problem of 60s Thor - more than any other of Marvel’s early heroes he’s a wrestling character, someone with an amazing look and colourful backstory whose job remains to get in the ring and grapple with other strong guys.
May 3, 2023
All-Father hath grabbed Thine fate by the Hammer Supreme! Beginning with the climactic rise and rumble with the Mangog, then delving deeper into the history of Thor as we reveal that - gasp - Odin has been pulling the strings on the whole Don Blake sham all along! Then an extended battle with Galactus that pulls Living Planet Ego into it, ending possibly the most spectacularly cosmic chapter in Kirby's Thor.
He's not done yet, though: The cosmos move now to enforce the celibacy of not only Thor, but Balder the Brave as well, whose lament for Karnilla Odin brushes off as the Olympian God Pluto decides to kidnap Sif. Yet another suitor for her shows up immediately after - Him! (yeah, Adam Warlock, but the comedic effect of literally "Him" in this love triangle shenanigans is priceless)
By this point, it has almost become a comedy - or something else. Of course Thor defeats Him, and of course Thor is punished, for some dumb reason, by guess who? After wrapping my brain around this entire narrative, it begins to look more and more like a Sisyphus or Prometheus story, where our hero is forced to save the universe again and again while being constantly crippled, restored, and forever chastely separated from love by his Father Odin, who always forgives Loki and takes naps at the worst times.
This must have had some kind of hold over the imagination of Jack Kirby. It is hard not to see the comparison to Ben Grimm, who occupies a similarly trapped embodiment in a much more familiar and domestic type scenario - the trapped male in society. Thor would then occupy the spiritual, internal side of that struggle - whatever it represented - to Kirby, at least so it would humbly seem to this reader.
In any event, the artwork of Thor is beyond fantastic, even when it's less consistent, as towards the end of this volume when Kirby was on his way out (Crypto-Man's suit powering device gets a really cool one page, though). And by 'beyond fantastic', I do mean that yes, I find this to be visually and narratively far more compelling than the Clobberin Time quartet. I admire the whole of Thor more than any individual part, which was a great surprise to me, as I'm usually more of a sci-fi, less of a superhero guy. But this is something closer to a myth, or again, a fantasy, that is overflowing with it's vivid and forever vigorous symbolism.
For Asgard!
For the Realm Eternal!
He's not done yet, though: The cosmos move now to enforce the celibacy of not only Thor, but Balder the Brave as well, whose lament for Karnilla Odin brushes off as the Olympian God Pluto decides to kidnap Sif. Yet another suitor for her shows up immediately after - Him! (yeah, Adam Warlock, but the comedic effect of literally "Him" in this love triangle shenanigans is priceless)
By this point, it has almost become a comedy - or something else. Of course Thor defeats Him, and of course Thor is punished, for some dumb reason, by guess who? After wrapping my brain around this entire narrative, it begins to look more and more like a Sisyphus or Prometheus story, where our hero is forced to save the universe again and again while being constantly crippled, restored, and forever chastely separated from love by his Father Odin, who always forgives Loki and takes naps at the worst times.
This must have had some kind of hold over the imagination of Jack Kirby. It is hard not to see the comparison to Ben Grimm, who occupies a similarly trapped embodiment in a much more familiar and domestic type scenario - the trapped male in society. Thor would then occupy the spiritual, internal side of that struggle - whatever it represented - to Kirby, at least so it would humbly seem to this reader.
In any event, the artwork of Thor is beyond fantastic, even when it's less consistent, as towards the end of this volume when Kirby was on his way out (Crypto-Man's suit powering device gets a really cool one page, though). And by 'beyond fantastic', I do mean that yes, I find this to be visually and narratively far more compelling than the Clobberin Time quartet. I admire the whole of Thor more than any individual part, which was a great surprise to me, as I'm usually more of a sci-fi, less of a superhero guy. But this is something closer to a myth, or again, a fantasy, that is overflowing with it's vivid and forever vigorous symbolism.
For Asgard!
For the Realm Eternal!
October 11, 2024
This is a late run of Jack Kirby’s art and storytelling on The Mighty Thor series; this volume reprints issues #154 through #174, the bulk of which is—unfortunately—inked by Vince Colletta, although there are a few issues by George Klein (most famous for inking Superman, pencilled by Curt Swan), and a nice run by Bill Everett. This is really “Kirby Unleashed,” and features his attempt at telling Galactus’s origin (in fact, lots of Galactus in this volume), alongside the Mangog means Ragnarok story arc, plus Thor tussles with “Him,” aka Adam Warlock. Stan Lee’s dialogue and captions are particularly flowery, but Kirby’s art has seldom been more dynamic and there are lots of full-page illustrations and big panels (like four per page seems to be the average). Unfortunately in this time period, Marvel publisher Martin Goodman decreed no more continued stories, so the last few issues of this run are one-off stories and not particularly great ones. In about six months, Kirby would leave Marvel and Thor would be taken over by first Neal Adams and then settle into a long John Buscema run, so this is the King’s last gasp on a character who will forever be linked with his 1960s Marvel work, alongside Fantastic Four and Captain America.
February 13, 2022
More excellence from Jack Kirby and Stan Lee.
By this point in time, the Marvel Universe has grown substantially.
In this volume we see Balder the Brave, the Warriors Three, Mangog, the origin of Galactus, and the return of the Wrecker. Also significant are the return of Him (later known as Adam Warlock), Pluto, Ego the Living Planet, The Rigellians Tana Nile and the Recorder. Lesser light characters are also seen such as the Crypto-Man, the Thermal Man (both actually robots).
Lee’s verbose exposition and editor’s footnotes will help new readers not feel too lost.
The dramatic dialog, especially the heavy Shakespearean syntax of the Asgardians will seem dated to some, but it does give weight to the stories.
This was a time where Asgard was featured very prominently in Thor’s life, and we see more Sif and much less Jane Foster.
I love the Marvel versions of the Norse myth characters in spite of the massive deviations from ‘canon’ mythology.
A very good volume!
By this point in time, the Marvel Universe has grown substantially.
In this volume we see Balder the Brave, the Warriors Three, Mangog, the origin of Galactus, and the return of the Wrecker. Also significant are the return of Him (later known as Adam Warlock), Pluto, Ego the Living Planet, The Rigellians Tana Nile and the Recorder. Lesser light characters are also seen such as the Crypto-Man, the Thermal Man (both actually robots).
Lee’s verbose exposition and editor’s footnotes will help new readers not feel too lost.
The dramatic dialog, especially the heavy Shakespearean syntax of the Asgardians will seem dated to some, but it does give weight to the stories.
This was a time where Asgard was featured very prominently in Thor’s life, and we see more Sif and much less Jane Foster.
I love the Marvel versions of the Norse myth characters in spite of the massive deviations from ‘canon’ mythology.
A very good volume!
March 20, 2024
3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.
These early Thor Epic Collections are getting better with each volume. While it still suffers from some contrived plot points, the stories have gotten more compelling, the stakes are high and the Kirby art is on form.
The Mangog story for which the book is named was one of the highlights. A unstoppable being that is comprised of the rage of billions of souls that were slain by Odin has escaped his prison to unleash Ragnarok!
Other highlights include a multi-part epic pitting Galactus against Ego the Living Planet, the origins of Galactus, the explanation of the Don Blake / Thor relationship and Thor vs Adam Warlock. Some other familiar villains also make short appearances in this book, such as Loki, the Wrecker, Pluto and Ulik.
I enjoyed this book better than the first 3. Hopefully this trend continues with the next volume.
These early Thor Epic Collections are getting better with each volume. While it still suffers from some contrived plot points, the stories have gotten more compelling, the stakes are high and the Kirby art is on form.
The Mangog story for which the book is named was one of the highlights. A unstoppable being that is comprised of the rage of billions of souls that were slain by Odin has escaped his prison to unleash Ragnarok!
Other highlights include a multi-part epic pitting Galactus against Ego the Living Planet, the origins of Galactus, the explanation of the Don Blake / Thor relationship and Thor vs Adam Warlock. Some other familiar villains also make short appearances in this book, such as Loki, the Wrecker, Pluto and Ulik.
I enjoyed this book better than the first 3. Hopefully this trend continues with the next volume.
June 17, 2022
Similar to the rhythm of the previous volume, the 150s & 160s of Thor are some of the highest cosmic peaks King Kirby ever attained, absolutely stunning to read, but the 170s are the mediocre returns of Thor to earthly superheroics. Gems include Ulik wakes Mangog, Thor summons a wounded Sif, “Thor says thee nay!”, Balder frees the Legion of the Lost, Odin lifts the veil, Galactus v. Ego, Ego gives the Wanderers sanctuary, Thor defends Recorder 211, Thor & Sif v. Hades in the future, Karnilla haunts Balder, Warlock thirsts for Sif, Thor goes berserk on Warlock, Loki fears Galactus, & Thor v. Galactus
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2022
You can find this one in the pages of The Mighty Thor #154-157
The Mangog, a beast so terrible that Odin himself fears him. Mangog is the result of the anger of a billion billion warriors, a race that was eradicated by Odin long ago. Now it's been awakened and it seeks the destruction of Asgard.
We see the Asgardian army, the warriors three and Thor himself try to fend off this unstoppable foe and fail.
Thor however is no one to give up so easily and shall always fight to the very end in order to protect his people and the ones he loves.
The Mangog, a beast so terrible that Odin himself fears him. Mangog is the result of the anger of a billion billion warriors, a race that was eradicated by Odin long ago. Now it's been awakened and it seeks the destruction of Asgard.
We see the Asgardian army, the warriors three and Thor himself try to fend off this unstoppable foe and fail.
Thor however is no one to give up so easily and shall always fight to the very end in order to protect his people and the ones he loves.
June 15, 2021
Wow, I knew I wasn't setting a blistering pace with this book, but I didn't realize it had taken me two months to read. It was actually a really good book. The sci-fi stuff in the early chapters seems a bit of a weird fit for the mythology-based Thor, but the big scope of Galactus vs. Ego The Living Planet is pure Kirby - although Odin's obsession with Galactus peters out anticlimatically. Still, most of the book is a big-time fun.
June 29, 2025
I've found Thor to have become one of my favorite silver age comic series and this volume helped solidify that. there's some solid storytelling here accompanied by some classic Kirby artwork to create some overall really good work.
April 26, 2019
I actually liked this, even though it wasn’t as dense as some of the other Marvel comics from the 60s and 70s.
June 10, 2023
Outstanding Lee/Kirby collaboration of epic proportions fitting for the god of thunder.
October 30, 2024
More Kirby and Lee silver age Thor stories. I didn’t realise how many times Odin was used as a deus ex machina.
February 6, 2020
Mangog? Galatcus? Him? Even the Wrecker was awesome! What a fun collection!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews