Thor: Ragnaroks

Thor (1998) (Single Issues) #80-85

by Michael Avon Oeming, Dan Berman (Contributor), Scott Kolins (Illustrator)

Collects Blood Oath #1-6, Thor (1998) #80-85, The Saga of Beta Ray Bill #1-6. Three Asgardian epics in one legendary volume! In a tale from Asgard's glory days, Thor stands beside his brothers-in-arms when the Warriors Three are put on trial for murder - and ties himself to their fate! Years later, the end is nigh for the gods - and only Thor and his Avengers allies might be able to stave off Ragnarok, the end of all things! But will the Odinson be Asgard's savior, or the architect of its downfall? And will noble alien warrior Beta Ray Bill escape the end of one world - only to face the end of his own? Bill must face a creature of who turns his enemies to dust to fuel the stars! Can he save his people from cosmic immolation?

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

385 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 18, 2017

About the author

Michael Avon Oeming is an American comic book creator, both as an artist and writer.

His 1998 comic book Bulletproof Monk was made into a film of the same name.

The previous mentioned collaborations are The Mice Templar from Image Comics, which he draws and co-authors with Bryan J.L. Glass,[1] and Powers from Icon Comics which he draws, and sometimes co-authors, with Brian Bendis. His creator-owned projects include Rapture, on which he collaborated with his wife, Taki Soma,[2] and The Victories, both for Dark Horse Comics.

As of 2010, he is employed as a staff member of Valve Corporation, working on Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress 2 and Portal 2 webcomics.

Reviews

[Alejandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Antecedent, event and aftermath of Ragnarok!


This TPB collects “Thor: Blood Oath” #1-6, “Thor” #80-85, and “Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill” #1-6.


The general rating is an average sum of each rating per featured story.


Creative Team:

Writers: Michael Avon Oeming & Daniel Berman

Illustrators: Skott Rollins & Andrea Di Vito


BLOOD OATH

Rating: **** ( 4 stars )

This is a story set in the ol’ days of Thor, when he was still using a human disguise as Dr. Donald Blake and being friend of Jane Foster, both medical doctors working together…

…in a trip visiting Asgard, Thor finds out that the Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun and Volstagg) are under trial for accidentally murdering Holth, a shape-shifting giant, that while in the form of a whale was harpooned by the three Asgardians.

Thor accepts not using Mjolnir, his enchanted hammer, while doing a journey along the Warriors Three, through several divine realms (Nordic, Greek, Egyptian and Japanese) to get several ítems as a compensation to the father of the fallen giant.

This is an adventures full of fun and thrilling fights, along with surprising cameos, and where you learn several key facts about the birth of the Asgardian mythology that they were useful to have in mind during the Ragnarok event.


RAGNAROK

Rating: ***** ( 5 stars )

Odin is dead.

Frigga is dead too.

Loki is attacking the whole realm of Asgard to take control by force, using weapons forged in the same way as Mjolnir.

Thor is forced to become king of Asgard under these dire circumstances, but losing for unknown reasons of the Odinforce.

However, this isn’t your regular Loki-Thor clash over the future of Asgard.

This is Ragnarok.

You can bet that Thor’s friends from other realms like Captain America, Iron Man and Beta Ray Bill are willing to risk their own lives to help the new king of Asgard to battle Loki’s hordes, but…

…Ragnarok is something only for Asgardians.

And Thor will have to make the most epic pilgrimage to get again the Odinforce to be the really and indisputable god of gods of Asgard…

…but Thor doesn’t have idea of how much that can cost to him…

…and also what involves to really stop such event as Ragnarok.


STORMBREAKER

Rating: *** ( 3 stars )

Beta Ray Bill was casted out of the Ragnarok for his own safety, and it couldn’t be better (or worse) timing since the new world of the Korbinites (an alien species that created Beta Ray Bill to be their champion and saviour), is under the threat fo something that it was supposed to Ashta, a Korbinite myth about a world killer…

…and while it’s not Ashta…

…it’s certainly a world killer…

…Galactus with his current herald, Stardust.

And while Beta Ray Bill, is reunited with his trusty Skuttlebutt, never was so overwhelmed with menaces since the Priests of the Korbinites have unleashed something previous to Beta Ray Bill, also Stardust will liberate another ancient menace…

…and the life of Beta Ray Bill won’t be the same anymore!

[Sud666 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thor Ragnarok is a collection of three stories all centered around an epic final clash. The first two stories are superb (5 star material) and the last story is simply good (4 star).

Thor Blood Oath

This was excellent! The Warriors Three have inadvertently killed a Giant King's son (who they thought was a whale..long story) and now they must make a blood amends or lose their life. Thor volunteers to help in the quest, but the catch is he can not use Mjolnir in combat (he can use it to fly and transport them). The quest means they have to:
(1) Bring three apples from the branches of the World Tree guarded by a Giant Eagle
(2) The skin of the pigs from Olympus belonging to Dinysus, guarded by Hercules
(3) The Spear of Chulain from Ireland guarded by its namesake
(4) The Sword Grasscutter in Japan guarded by the dead
(5) To climb to the top of the Tomb of Toth and call to the gods. The Guardians of Toth require silence and will not allow them to call.

What ensues is a wonderful exciting and damn funny story. Parts of it made me smile and Mr. Oeming deserves credit for a great tale. These adventures were a perfect blend of action and great humor though never descending into the morass of slapstick humor. It was a great Thor and Warrior's Three tale. The art is excellent and the facial expressions of their faces when things go wrong are priceless. The introduction of different pantheons was also well done and shows that even gods, Thor and his kin, must tread lightly when dealing with other deities. Superb story! HIGHLY recommended.

Thor Ragnarok

An excellent dark tale. It is the Ragnarok story Arc from Thor. Loki brings about Ragnarok and Thor fights his final battle. Great art and a well written tale. Also a superb example of art and a solid plot.

Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill

This was the weakest story and, even then, it is still a good story. It tells the story of Beta Ray Bill after he returns from the events of the previously mentioned Ragnarok storyline. The whole alien storyline and Bill's people really didn't stir my interest. But it was not a bad tale and the artwork is quite decent.

A wonderful collection of three Thor story arcs. Two excellent and one not bad. A great volume for any Thor fan. The first story alone is worth it.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a nice sized book with a lot in it. 18 issues which made for 3 stories. So let’s break this down.

Thor: Blood Oath - 3.5 stars
The Warriors Three are the cause of an accidental death and are now being judged for it. Thor gets thrown into this judgement as well. The plaintiff, if you will, doesn’t want them killed but wants them to go out and retrieve some items that are supposed to be impossible to get. So Thor and the Warriors Three set out on the quest to gather said items. I’m always a sucker for a good quest. This was pretty fun.

Thor Disassembled #80-85 - 2.75 stars
Without any knowledge of the book, I assumed this would be my favorite story. Turns out it was my least favorite. Loki has acquired some powerful weapons and allies and seeks to take over Asgard. There’s a lot of death in this one. Almost has some War of the Realms vibes. The story started out decent enough but unraveled towards the end. It just switched from high action and became kinda of boring. The end tried to be poetic with this long over explained scenario which just came off confusing.

Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill - 4 stars
This was my favorite out of the bunch. Bill’s people find their temporary planet they call home for now under attack from Galactus and his herald Stardust. Bill and Stardust get into a huge battle only to have to team up to face a whole new threat. This book shows off Beta Ray Bill’s and Stormbreakers awesome power. I could definitely read more Beta Ray Bill stories. The art was pretty solid throughout the book as well.

Overall 3.4 stars

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Disassembled/Ragnaork and Stormbreaker stories are good, but Blood Oath is a little boring. The high point of Blood Oath is when Thor takes on Hercules

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've always been interested in the story of Ragnarok as I knew what happened in the movie was not accurate (even though it was fun). So when my friend bought this, I of course borrowed it right away to see what was going on.

This was a fun one. I finally got to see Loki as the villain everyone describes him being. He's hell bent on taking over Asgard and will let nothing stop him. He sets out to remake Asgard in his image but everything goes wrong when Thor finally realizes what must happen for the universe to survive.

We get to see a few other Avengers show up, but not many as this focuses solely on Thor and his people. We do get to see more of the Warriors 3 which I thought was nice as I was finally able to see their connection (I've only seen the movies so all this is new).

At the end there was an entire section devoted to Beta Ray Bill which is apparently Horse Thor (cause why not). I had never heard of this character so I was just along for that ride, but I found myself really enjoying his story. It was very heartfelt and sad.

Very interesting introduction to Thor comics lol

[Trevor · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collects Michael Avon Oeming's short Thor run. It consists of three stories: Ragnarok, which depicts the final destruction of Asgard; Stormbreaker, which is about Beta Ray Bill trying to save his own people from destruction while mourning Asgard; and Blood Oath, a prequel about Thor and the Warriors Three going on a quest to collect magic items and appease the wrath of a giant.

They're all pretty good. Oeming is clearly a fan of Norse mythology and incorporates a lot more of it into his comics than most Thor writers do.

[Roberto Diaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The three stories in the Thor mythos by Michsel avon Oeming (Victories) are collected in this volume. BLOOD OATH give us a glimpse into the joyful careless days of the Odinsonnand friends, RAGNAROK gives us is last days before CIVIL WAR, and THE SAGA OF BETA RAY BILL dives in what happenend to the titular character after he was removes from the battle at argard. Is good collection of stories about the las days of pre-Stacynski version of Thor. A good sendoff, if not essential.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Blood Oath stories really dragged for me, it was hard for me to get through it (hence why it took me so long to finish this collection) but I liked Ragnarok and Stormbreaker. I feel like this is a much harder read compared to other Thors/other Marvel stories, but it is definitely an essential read.

[Omar · Rating 3 out of 5]

6.7 ok
Horrendous start for this comic in the first couple of thor issues. After that it hits a solid spot and nails few good fight sequences. The beta ray bill issue in this was by far the best one tho it was still weak and had its flaws. Overall most ot this book was boring and really dragged. Expected an epic battle for ragborak but didnt recieve. Just hold up a 3 star.

[Ramona Lazar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read it with my daughter... She loved it... Well, she loves everything related to Thor...

[Gerry Sacco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good collected trade. The art from front to back is wonderful. I enjoyed how it looped a lot of the Norse lore into the story, along with adding a few surprise cameos. Solid read that makes Thor feel as epic as he should.

[Nathaniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll admit my view of this collection is colored by the JMS run that took place after this. The JMS run got me into Thor comics and is heavily informed by the events of Ragnorok, so I had a certain expectation for how this event would happen, and that expectation wasn't quite met. If I was reading this at the tail end of Jurgens' run instead, my feelings may have been very different. That said, I'll get into my specific thoughts on each story separately.

Thor: Blood Oath: It was fun to start this volume off with a realm-trotting adventure highlighting the brotherhood of Thor and the Warriors Three. There's a lot of epic poem, legends of old vibes with this story. I really liked seeing the different worlds and creatures in each realm, and each one felt totally unique from the others. The Warriors Three and Thor have a good repoir, and each of them gets to have at least one big moment. The fact that Ragnorok is coming in the next story takes away from some of the tension (pretty much everyone has to make it out of this if they're in Ragnorok), but Oeming still manages to pull off some strong character beats that almost make you forget about that. The artwork by Scott Kolins is a highlight of the entire volume, rivaled only by the cosmic art of Stormbreaker. All this said, I do wish the concept introduced at the beginning about all life being connected was more thematically present through the story. It pays off decently well at the end, but I felt this sentiment was pretty absent through most of the actual quest. Also, with how many stops the Warriors Three have to make in this six-issue mini, the mid-story fight goes on a little too long. All this said, I'm glad to have read it, and it was nice to have a lighter story to start off with before the end of all things.

Avengers Disassembled: Thor (aka Thor: Ragnorok): Ragnorok should have been a longer story, with more issues to flesh out its ideas and give more weight to its character deaths. With the scale of a situation like this, I think ten issues for the main event (and maybe even a few one-shots) would have been much better. After all, this isn't just the end of an Avenger, it's the end of his entire section of the Marvel Universe. Sadly, since there's only six issues covering this massive event, several characters die either off-panel or without any weight to their demise. The very first casualty of Loki's attack happens with such disregard I laugh thinking about it. I respect that Oeming and Berman are going for a large-scale epic akin to the literature of old, but I would've much rather had a personal, raw end to Thor's universe than one that prioritizes plot. Indeed, the story gets better as it goes because it slowly focuses more personally on Thor. With Thor front and center, struggling against fate and what he should do in the face of Ragnorok, you finally feel the weight and stakes of everything. His final showdown with Loki was fantastic, and Thor's final action is a moment worthy of this epic conclusion. I am mixed on Thor's decision regarding Syrtr and the fate of Asgard, but I can overlook it enough to still enjoy the grand finale. Overall worth the read just to see the Ragnorok storyline, but make sure to adjust your expectations.

Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill: My personal favorite of the set, Stormbreaker successfully executes what I wanted from Ragnorok: an end of the world story grounded in personal stakes and perspectives. You feel for Beta Ray Bill from start to finish, and each loss on his side comes as a devastating blow. I also enjoyed the snippets of Beta Ray's people preparing for the end, anchored once again in one character's perspective you really grow to care about. The art is fantastic, bringing to life large-scale action sequences and palpable emotion. The pencils and coloring on a certain cosmic being Bill fights were gorgeous to look at. You might say the ending is a bit out of the blue, but it was nice seeing Bill reach a new status quo with parallels to Thor. You could also say Bill loses too much, that the story borders on pure cruelty, but I think things rounded out well enough in the end.

Looking at the book as a whole, Oeming is a little old school when it comes to his writing, so your mileage will vary on that front. Also, "Ragnoroks" is a bit of an odd title, as it consists of one Ragnorok, its aftermath, and a prequel story. Perhaps the volume should have just been called "Thor by Michael Avon Oeming," as it's basically a collection of his work on the character. Overall, it is worth checking out if you're a Thor reader, but if you're not traditionally a fan of this character it probably won't win you over.

[Matt Sautman · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I enjoyed this collection, I don’t feel as if the Blood Oath and Stormbreaker stories are as strong as Ragnarok itself, although Stormbreaker is stronger than Blood Oath. All of the stories are fun, but I don’t come away from this collection with the same kind of philosophical intrigue I receive from many of the other Marvel collections I have read. Ragnarok does an excellent job meditating on cyclical existence and transcending that cycle. As a fan of Beta Ray Bill, I hoped to enjoy Stormbreaker more, but the story feels more like an action title than a serious exploration of diasporic identity, religion, and government. I do enjoy that both Ragnarok and Stormbreaker intersect. Blood Oath seems more out of place.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Collects three separate Thor stories. The first is a mythic quest to help the Warriors Three pay a wergild for killing a giant. Thor fights Hercules and wrestles a pig. Good times. The second is Ragnarok. Ends up carrying Loki's head around for a while like I'm sure Odin didn't carry Mimir's. I didn't really understand that one. There might be beings that eat the energies of the creation and destruction of the nine realms? And they might have something to do with the fates? Lot of death and dismemberment. The third is Beta Ray Bill's fight to save his people from Galactus and Asteroth. That was charming.

Physically a difficult book. Very heavy and would have benefited from a binding-side gutter.

[blueygurl2016 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having never read Thor before, this was a fun introduction. Blood Oath was actually kinda funny. Volstagg had some comic relief moments. Him having the drinking contest with the eagle was pretty funny. There were some interesting theology connections to be made in the Thor Ragnarok comic if you would look for them, lol. I liked the Beta Ray Bill one better than I thought I was going to. I was pretty sure I was gonna dnf it when there was no Thor but Bill grew on me. I love him now. He’s just so wholesome and cares about his people wholeheartedly.

[Nate Meadows · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read many Thor comics so this was a pleasant change. It was interesting to see Marvel's take on the Norse stories. I found them both as inaccurate as I expected and surprisingly faithful at the same time. This book is composed of three tales: Blood Oath (a comedic romp filled with retellings of obscure stories), Ragnarok (much darker than the movie), and Stormbreaker (a decent story of the strange being known as Beta Ray Bill). A hodgepodge for sure, but one that worked.

[L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

(This took some digging on GR to find the book I read.)

You've got three sagas in this collection. The first one has Thor and his Warriors Three going on a mythical quest to gather magical items. It's okay although I'm not a fan of the artwork. The second saga is the end of Thor's world. Talk, talk, talk, talk. The third story is of Beta Ray Bill and at least he's punching his way to justice. Give me more punching, less talk. Didn't care for direction it took.

[Matt Kaiser · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

This book is basically 3 stories: the Warriors Three on trial for murder, Ragnarok, and Beta Ray Bill’s sort of “Ragnarok” story.
The first one is kind of fun because it includes a lot of different artifacts and characters from diverse cultures, but it’s also set up by a pretty dumb premise and the “moral” of it is kind of weak.
The real Ragnarok one had some cool parts as well, but suffers from the same poor overall writing that makes the story a little flimsy.
The Beta Ray Bill one is cool and probably has the fewest noticeable plot holes, but is not free of them and still isn’t incredibly meaningful.
Overall, this is a fun read and has cool characters and insane cosmic levels of power on display, but you have to turn your brain off a little bit to really enjoy it.

[Sherlock Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sooooo good even tho it’s different from the movie. I️ loved it.

[DOUGLAS J BERRY · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweeping and epic

A great collection of ragnarok ,the death of gods and a climatic end of beta ray bill. Volstag loses a lot of weight. Plenty of material.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thor Disassmbled by Oeming is the star here. It's a very well-down ending for the character, and the "Those Above All" was kind of inspired, and ended up in Al Ewing's Loki run.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Epically weird, particularly the third story here about Beta Ray Bill, which is one of the most over-the-top, out there cosmic story I've ever read in a Marvel book, and that's saying something...

[Yashvijay Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first story was pretty good, I liked how we ventured across all these different mythologies and got to see the great warriors from all of them. The second story was good too-this is the one where rune-king thor first appears, but neither story was really great. The third story was decent, Beta Ray Bill isn’t very interesting to me but it was still entertaining.

3.5 stars

[Logan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great artwork, but not a very compelling story next to the other graphic novels I've been reading. I'd spend the time on other material unless you really love Thor/Norse mythology.