Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor, Vol. 15

Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor #15

by Len Wein, John Buscema (Illustrator)

Writer Len Wein lifts Mjolnir aloft and rallies forth the armies of Asgard! When the Time-Twisters seek to destroy Earth, Thor embarks on an adventure with Zarrko the Tomorrow Man. It's a battle through time (with dinosaurs!) that will impress you to the end! Then, Thor fights the Firelord in the jungles of Latin America...and only Jane Foster can save him! The Warriors Three ramble off on a solo adventure, while Thor returns to Asgard to face the one and only Mangog! COLLECTING: THOR (1966) 242-254, ANNUAL (1966) 5, MARVEL SPOTLIGHT (1971) 30 AND MATERIAL FROM MARVEL TREASURY EDITION (1974) 10

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Comic Book

282 pages, Hardcover

First published March 29, 2016

About the author

Len Wein was an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Thing and Marvel Comics' Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men (including the co-creation of Nightcrawler, Storm, and Colossus). Additionally, he was the editor for writer Alan Moore and illustrator Dave Gibbons' influential DC miniseries Watchmen.

Wein was inducted into the Will Eisner Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2008.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great volume of what I refer to as the ‘Buscema Years’ of Thor. While Len Wein’s stories aren’t always excellent this is more than made up for by Big John Buscema’s muscular, dynamic artwork.

John’s work is embellished for the first part of this volume by Joltin’ Joe Sinnott until Tumultuous Tony Dezuniga takes over. Sinnott and Dezuniga’s styles are very different; if anybody out there doesn’t understand what an inker brings to the mix, this book is a masterclass.

The Buscema years were my first introduction to Thor, all those years ago, and in many ways they remain the definitive take on the character for me. Rereading these issues is a true delight.

My next book: Black Cat vol. 4: Queen in Black

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the Thor Masterworks series - utterly timeless classics.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know Thor is a big screen hit now but these stories are the ones I grew up on. The Thor of the comics is a different guy that the movie one. A big more grim and serious I think. I enjoy reading these old comics I enjoyed growing up. Recommended

[Tobin Elliott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ah, Marvel comics in the 1970s. Big dumb fun.

I picked this up because it had the very first Thor comic I ever read, back when each visit to the spinner rack offered up more and more enticements for a stupid kid with an extra quarter in his pocket. (If you must know, it was The Mighty Thor #242, "When the Servitor Commands!", released September 9, 1975, just a few short days before my 13th birthday).

Thor, for whatever reason, has always held a special place for me. Maybe it was the hammer. Maybe it was the Shakespearean speech. Maybe it was Volstagg. I don't know, but I do know that, coming back almost fifty years later to these stories again, unlike a lot of other stuff from that time, I still enjoy the hell out of these.

A big part of that is the art by John Buscema, especially when Joe Sinnott is inking his pencils. Len Wein, while never a shocking talent, could show flashes of brilliance (such as his Swamp Thing work for DC), and here, he's obviously having a lot of fun, though, seriously count how many times Thor's all "yea, verily, I doth go forth to smite yon wretchedly evil villain" and Jane's all, "I'm coming with you, darling (and yes, there's a crap-ton of darlings in there)" and Thor says no, and Jane reminds him of the fact that she's sharing her body with Sif, and Thor relents.

Like, every couple of issues!

Overall though, while none of these stories are groundbreaking, they were enough to capture the mind of that almost-13-year-old, and they're still good enough to make this 60-year-old smile.

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm sure I've said this before but Thor was not among the many comics I read when I was a kid. You can't read Marvel without at least knowing a little about the other characters in the Marvel Universe but aside from that peripheral knowledge I knew very little about Thor. It surprises me at just how enjoyable this character can be.

[Mark Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Len Wein’s story arcs here are first rate. And John Buscema’s art I think is just as dynamic as Jack Kirby’s.