Valkyrie: Jane Foster, Vol. 1: The Sacred and The Profane

Valkyrie: Jane Foster

by Al Ewing, Jason Aaron, Cafu (Artist)

Jane Foster is back! For years, you knew her as Dr. Jane Foster, one of Thor Odinson's most steadfast companions. Then you knew her as Thor, Goddess of Thunder, who took up the mantle when no other hero was worthy. Now Jane takes on a new role as Valkyrie, guide and ferrywoman to the dead! But her days of battle are far from over - especially when the Marvel Universe's deadliest shot gets his hands on the sword of a god! With the Asgardian weapon Dragonfang, Bullseye has the power to kill a deity in a single stroke - and he's about to prove it. Jane must learn a hard lesson: Not every death can be prevented. But who's next on Bullseye's list - and what is the assassin really after?

COLLECTING: VALKYRIE: JANE FOSTER (2019) 1-5, MATERIAL FROM WAR OF THE REALMS: OMEGA (2019) 1

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Superheroes, Fantasy, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 22, 2020

Reviews

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is after Jane finishes being Thor and becomes the new Valkyrie! It's pretty fun times but honestly I wasn't super impressed. The Bullseye stuff was great, and jane herself is both cute and funny, but the main storyline feels like its jumping around all over the place. The art sometimes was great, and other times just okay. Overall a 3 out of 5. Cool followup, might check out volume 2.

[Artemy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jane Foster is back, baby! The best Thor may not be Thor anymore, but her superheroing adventures continue as she takes on the mantle of Valkyrie. With Jason Aaron and Al Ewing co-writing the book is an absolute blast, reminiscent of those good old early days of Jane Foster Thor. Cafu’s artwork is fantastic, too. I’m a bit sad to find out that Al Ewing will be leaving the series in the next arc, but I have hope for the new co-writer to be just as good and that the series will last for a while — Jane is a wonderful character and she deserves to have her own book on the stands.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh... Your... God. I think I might have a new favourite comicbook!

OK, OK, hyperbole aside, it's probably too early to make that statement but I absolutely loved this one. It's great to have Jane back and her new heroic persona rocks. I love her new power set and her new roles in both her identities suit her down to the ground. It was nice seeing Annabel Riggs again, too. I'm so glad she hasn't been completely forgotten about after the original Valkyrie's death. There were some other nice guest appearances, too, and the artwork is absolutely stunning. This book has definitely hit the ground running!

The highlight, though, is definitely the talking winged horse. It was Al Ewing's idea to give him a Yorkshire accent and I absolutely love it! I do keep expecting him to break into the Four Yorkshiremen sketch, though...

[Oscar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jane Foster as Valkyrie pretty cool!

[Logan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This volume is finally on GR after ages of waiting! Here is my original review:

I was really excited about this series but was sadly disappointed by it. To start off with the positives, the artwork is really stellar and is one of my favourite aspects of this series. I also really enjoyed the first issue as it was really a good start to a series that just hasn't kept my interest. From issue 2 the story and writing were just boring to me and I just couldn't get into it. They try to make Jane Foster like Peter Parker in the sense that she struggles to balance her work life with the life of a superhero (they even make reference to that in the book), not that there is anything wrong with that, but it just didn't keep me invested. I do like Jane Foster, I loved the period where she was the Marvel universes Thor and I am excited for the new Thor movie. As for this, it's just not for me!

[Tiag⊗ the Mutant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jane Foster reads so much better as Valkyrie than Thor. I thought Jason Aaron and Al Ewing teaming up for this series was an odd choice, but they absolutely nailed it, the pacing was perfect, the dialogue was fun, and the villains were all really cool, with the best Mephisto I ever read, I'd like to see more of Grim Reaper too, he looks badass. Artwise this is a contender for the best book of the year, Cafu has some serious skills, and the coloring is off the charts.

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

I sort of like this new start for Jane Foster, mostly because I've developed an affection for the character during her run as Thor, but the writing here is borderline two-stars for me. It is mostly directed at fanboys, with deep continuity references that will probably drive away casual readers drawn to a female lead character. The humor is corny. Mr. Horse is simultaneously ridiculous and growing on me.

I'll probably check out the next volume.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fresh off her run as the Mighty Thor, Jane Foster is back as the lone Valkyrie, tasked with ferrying the souls of the dead to their relative afterlives. But the dread lord Mephisto has other ideas, and tasks a Valkyrie of his own to kill Jane and steal her job before she even finishes her first day!

The premise of this book is brilliant. The execution is brilliant. The journey that Jane is on is, you guessed it, brilliant. With both Al Ewing and Jason Aaron firing on all pots, was it ever going to be anything else? Their knowledge of the Marvel Universe and the characters that inhabit it help change the Asgardian status quo in some nuanced ways that echo out into the other Thor-related books, and they even manage to draw in some characters I don't think anyone has acknowledged except their creators, which is nice (looking at you, Annabelle Riggs).

The art's phenomenal as well. CAFU's is the lead artist, who is in the same camp as Jesus Saiz and Javier Pina in terms of visuals. The jam session issue has contributions from the ever-brilliant Frazer Irving, Ramon Perez, and Cian Tormey which make for a fun mix as we tour the afterlives.

The Sacred & The Profane is the title of this book, but I'd go with The Brilliant & The Beautiful, personally.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really nice first volume on the whole, with some outstanding art.

[RG · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little bit too all over the shop. I guess maybe the two authors kinda makes things a little to hard to maintain complete ideas

[Jesse A · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story and writing was fine. My biggest issue with this was the art. It just couldn't quite decide where it wanted to be. Between ultra realistic and cartoonish. Unfortunate.

[Khurram · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have never been a big Jane Foster fan, till War of the Realms. Jane was one of the characters that was hit the hardest, and sacrificed the most. Including still carrying on when her own powers were killing her.

This books starts from War of the Realms Omaga. Jane discovers her new powers and purpose. If the title of the comic you know what it is so I don't think that is a spoiler.

The book contains issues 1 -5 of Jane/Valkyrie's adventures. I like that she mentions Spider-man as he is the perfect example of the more Spider-man is hailed a hero the more Peter Parker is labelled a flaky and unreliable. The same template holds here.

I really like the artwork as well, even though it is not my favourite art but I do appreciate the idea of different artwork for different realms.

This is a very good setup book, with lots of interesting ideas for things to come. Also Valkyrie is getting noticed though there are probobly a couple of lists she would want to be left off.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jane Foster: Valkyrie is smart and fun, two solid Marvel writers clearly having a good time. It suffers from being the first volume in a new series, with each issue drowning in voiceover, including unnecessary re-introductions to the characters every few pages. The villains are a bit B-level and random, though the authors ultimately tied the plot into Valkyrie's reason for being quite tidily.

You'll love Valkyrie's horse. Easy break-out star of the series. The art's great, especially in the "Heimdall's marvelous mystery tour" issue. I'll tune in for future adventures, which hopefully feature less VO.

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Start But Typical Mantle Inheritance

Jane Foster went from being Thor to the Valkyrie. Now she's getting used to her new job with powers and responsibilities. Definitely got potential to be great after a tussle with the Grim Reaper. She's got a few cast members who grow on you too. Like her new supervisor in the morgue. But for villains she's gonna need support. I like how Mephisto makes a great foil, but so far it's just not enough.

[Kyle Dinges · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I read somewhere about this series getting canceled early, which seems stupid because Jane Foster has been a much more compelling character at Marvel than Thor for the last 4 years. This first volume is fun, well written, and with good art. My instinct is that if you liked Aaron writing Foster as Thor in the main series, you'll probably like what you get here from Aaron and Ewing. The idea of turning her into Valkyrie seems to be a nod that they recognize there needs to be a way to keep the character as an important part of the universe. I thought it worked.

[Dimitris Papastergiou · Rating 1 out of 5]

Started out all good and exciting and then we had to do with fucking Bullseye and Heimdal... not only that but Bullseye being all godlike... I mean, the whole thing was a facepalm to begin with.

Anyway, boring plot and cringy dialogue.

Good artwork!

[Marcus Leong · Rating 5 out of 5]

“DOES THA LIKE APPLES?”
MR. HORSE! The MVP here.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have become a huge Jane Foster fan. But that doesn't matter. The story is what matters, and I am really enjoying this one.

[Jaq · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable birth story of a whole new side to Jane Foster. Loved the Horse!

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh? Meh? Ok- so I may have skipped 5 essential volumes of Thor related comics leading up to the birth of this series. But, having read and thoroughly enjoyed the first few volumes of Mighty Thor starring Jane Foster Thor, I thought I could dive right into this latest Jane iteration and all would be awesome. However, my enthusiasm died on like page 10 when Jane (as Valkyrie) comes up against a team of rollerblading villains. 😂 Oh, Marvel- so many of the fight scenes I see in recent comics are with these ridiculous throw away villains that are no better than flimsy props. And when Bullseye shows up- his motivation for destruction is so weak, it’s boring. I am not a fan of these pointless 1 shot stories with unimaginative villains. Give me an awesome story arc and a villain or challenge with some depth, please!
I have been a fan of Mephisto in the past, so I did enjoy his appearance and his story of wanting to control the Valkyrie is a bit more interesting.
Jane Foster is transformed into the last Valkyrie and has this badass All Weapon, death vision (I did think this was clever), and winged horse that she has to keep from her landlord—I mean, this set up has SO much potential. But, unfortunately, it didn’t come out of the gate strong, the humor falls short, and Mr.Horse, with his Cockney equivalent of a Vanir accent, doesn’t pack the punchline that I think Jason Aaron was shooting for.

Also- what the heck? Why do Heimdall so dirty??

Thor story arcs being a favorite of mine, I’ll keep reading most likely, to see if Aaron can salvage this hot mess.

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 5 out of 5]

I became a big fan of Jane Foster as Thor - this felt like a genuinely refreshing take on the character and certainly a serious creative effort that can't just be dismissed as a diversity play or whatever critics have tried calling it. And that was a very satisfying and complete arc of story, even if it ended with Jane giving up the mantle of Thor.

This new Valkyrie book thrusts Jane Foster into a new role in the Asgardian pantheon and continues to treat the character with such love and care that I'm already on-board for this new adventure. Defining the difference between being Thor versus being Valkyrie as the difference being a god and the other fulfilling job is an interesting take on things and one that nicely defines the direction Jane needs to take.

Her new all weapon is a great addition to things and it'll probably take a while before she fully comes into her new abilities as Valkyrie versus the strength-based approach that came with being Thor. There's a greater subtlety at work here and more often than not she needs to think her way through problems and not just beat things up, which has always been one of Jane's strengths, even when she was thor.

This first volume is a solid adventure that debuts her character well and already has her teaming up with Dr. Strange and even facing off the trickery of Mephisto. I enjoyed it from cover to cover and can't wait for the next book.

[Emmett Spain · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short, easy read, this title picks up after War of the Realms and sets a fresh path for Jane Foster. The art is dynamic, the colours are vibrant, and the script crackles with the energy of two writers having fun.

[Guilherme Smee · Rating 4 out of 5]

No pós-Guerra dos Reinos, com o fim de todas as Valquírias de Odin, Hela e do Valhalla, Jane Foster é abençoada com um bracelete que pode se transformar em diversas armas e acaba assumindo o papel de a nova e remanescente Valquíria de Asgard. O volume engendrado por Jason Aaron e cumprido por Al Ewing traz muita diversão e aventura. Mesclando personagens da Marvel tradicional como o Mercenário com outros, do lado místico e sobrenatural da editora como Heimdall, Annabelle Higgs e Doutor Estranho, acabamos entendendo um pouco do novo papel dessa nova Valquíria no Universo Marvel. Preciso também abrir um parêntese para para falar da arte do desenhista espanhol CAFU. Sua arte ocupa quase todas as edições compiladas neste encadernado. Seu trabalho fica em um limite entre o artesanal e o digital, entre o superficial e o tridimensional e isso confere a ela uma qualidade de uniqueness que nos faz reconhecer seu trabalho no ato. Acho realmente uma pena terem assassinado a Valquíria durante a Guerra dos Reinos, mas também gostei da seleção de Jane Foster como uma nova Valquíria, mantendo por perto aquela que nos encantou tanto com a Thor. Uma Thor, aliás, muito melhor do que o Odinson, que fica perdendo braços e olhos e se provando indigno tanto de aventuras quanto de publicações, já que Jane sempre vendeu mais que ele. Mesmo sabendo que o próximo volume será o último de Jane Foster: Valquíria, espero que ela tenha angariado seu lugar no Universo Marvel e nos corações dos leitores.

[FrontalNerdaty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picking up after the events of Jason Aaron’s epic Thor run/ War of the Realms Valkyrie wastes no time in establishing Jane Foster’s latest foray in to the world of super heroes. Building on her time as Thor and imbued with a new set of powers (and a talking horse) this series opened with Jane having to adapt quickly to her new life (whilst trying to balance her ‘normal’ life) and featured a bevy of characters such as Doctor Strange, Bullseye and more. It’s a decent opening and I’m intrigued to see where Al Ewing takes the character. Jason Aaron left some big shoes to fill but Ewing has already shown he understands Jane and her motivations. I’m down for more!

[Nadja · Rating 4 out of 5]

*read as single issues*
I really liked Jane Foster as Thor and so I was very excited that she now has her own series again although in a different role. I quite enjoyed these issues. They mostly deal with Jane finding out how to deal with this new role, she learns about her new powers and gets a new sidekick (Mr. Horse who is great) and has to somehow balance her new responsibilities with everything else that goes on in her life. I thought the story was interesting with some good villains and of course Jane is a great character. The art is also beautiful. So overall a really solid read.

[Mark Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another amazing Norse based story from Jason Aaron. The All-weapon that Jane Foster wields is a true beauty in these panels, and Mr. Horse actually makes me laugh each time I read his dialogue. I highly recommend reading this story even if you didn't touch War of the Realms, which this story takes place directly after.

The starting and finished dates I have noted are for the single issues #1-5, no this TPB collection.

[Vladimír · Rating 3 out of 5]

Prvé dva zošity boli fantastické avšak potom to začalo byť na môj vkus trochu nekonzistentné. Rozumiem, že to malo fungovať ako úvod do sveta po War of the Realms a do sveta Valkýr, avšak ústredná linka bez zaujímavejšieho záporáka ma moc nebrala. Dúfam, že v ďalších príbehoch to Aaron s Jane Foster poriadne rozbehne.

[Tris · Rating 4 out of 5]

that was actually pretty cool. the only thor stuff i've read is jason aaron's jane foster thor and now i'm realizing i didn't even finish that. anyway i knew enough to not get lost while reading this although it got a little weird in the middle with heimdall. i loved jane as thor and she's even cooler now!

[Lucas Savio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uma grata surpresa esse encadernado com roteiros do al ewing e jason aaron que faz um roteiro que te prende diferente e outra edição que estava vendo do loki, ambos pós guerra dos reinos porem assim aqui prendeu muito mais. A arte do Cafu é estupenda de linda e toda a mitologia e a jane conhecendo das valquírias é muito bom além da representatividade aqui!!! Gostei demaiss

[Megan Farve · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Jane as Lady Thor, but I’m not sure how I feel about her as a Valkyrie. I loved the concept, it’s just that I feel like they keep pushing her into positions of power. No, forcing.

But did they have to take Heimdall from me? Again?!