Marvel Age #1000: The Girl Who Hates Superheroes Review

 

Marvel Age #1000: “The Girl Who Hates Superheroes”

Writer: Jason Aaron

Artist: Pepe Larraz

Colorist: Alejandro Sánchez

Letterer: Joe Caramagna

Publisher: Marvel

Price: $9.99

Release Date: August 30, 2023 

 

Seventeen-year-old  New Yorker Jyl Talley lives in a group home for orphans and works two jobs while attending High School. One night, she turns the corner of a dark alley and finds Thor battling flying spider demons. Jason Aaron revisits his mighty Thor saga to deliver a compelling portrait of Jane Foster defying her cancer and how witnessing our heroes' struggles can empower our daily lives. 

 

Pop! Mighty Thor available at Funko.com

 

 

Art

Pepe Larraz and Alejandro Sánchez convey Jyl’s dark and gritty existence. She inhabits subways, dark alleys, and restaurant kitchens, but the teenager rarely studies the world around her. Thor's explosive battle transforms her existence in Marvel Age #1000. Breathtaking, transformative art shall smite thee as powerfully as it does Jyl.

 

To preview interior art for "The Girl Who Hates Superheroes" & other stories in Marvel Age #1000 see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Douglas Adams, the Universe, Abandonment and Thor

St. John, Douglas Adams' college, Cambridge, England

Life, the Universe, and Everything, the third novel in Douglas Adams Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series, sees the unraveling of the not-so-friendly foursome of Arthur, Ford, Trillian and Zaphod. Zaphod, the two-headed ex-president of the universe, decides there's some crucial facts that he's hidden from his conscious (collective) mind. So he wanders off after awhile, and is never heard from again. Likewise, when Arthur meets up with Trillian at a party, she seems cold and distant. Again, she leaves with someone else. This time it's Thor, the Norse god of Thunder. 

The way these two characters just drop out of the novel, as well as The Hitchhiker's Guide series at this point, without any sort of resolution to their individual plot arcs, seems weird. Then again, before this novel was published, Adams had an affair with novelist Sally Emerson while she was separated from her husband. After the affair ended, and she returned to her husband in 1981, Adams dedicated Life, the Universe, and Everything to her. So perhaps, the way Zaphod and Trillian abandon Arthur and Ford ties in with events in Adams' life, and the theme of abandonment I noticed in the first two Hitchhiker novels. 

 

The Round Church (next to St. John), Cambridge, England

 

Thor has been on my mind for many years now, as he plays a large role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies. My wife and I collected the comic for several years, after Thor Odin-son lost his worthiness to wield the hammer, and an Earth-woman, much to Odin's displeasure, took on the mantle of Thor. 

Recently, Neil Gaiman published the book Norse Mythology, in which he updated some of the  Norse myths about Thor and Asgard for today's readers. Dark Horse is currently adapting these stories in a comic book series. Thor's hammer hangs on my wife's keychain, and she has read Rick Riordan's series about the Norse gods. A print of the Marvel character Thor, taken from an original painting by my late friend comics colorist Justin Ponsor, hangs in our living room. So it's interesting to me that in a series that extrapolates so heavily on scientific concepts, Douglas Adams chose to make Thor, a character from ancient mythology, a character in two of his novels. 

Grantchester Common outside Cambridge, England

I wonder what attracted Douglas Adams to the Norse god of Thunder, and what he would make of the character as portrayed in the Marvel movies. Did he grow up reading the Norse myths about Thor like Neil Gaiman? Or did he grew up reading Marvel's Thor comics, and that was why he placed the Norse god in two of his books?

Dragon Dave

Thor Fights Ulfrin the Dragon

Given Thor's early popularity, it wasn't long before readers wanted to know more about him. This included his upbringing in Asgard. Stan Lee obliged readers with "Tales Of Asgard," short tales that accompanied "The Mighty Thor" in issues of "Journey Into Mystery." For Issue 101, Stan Lee offered "The Invasion of Asgard," one of a series of stories about how young Thor eventually gained his worthiness to hold Odin's Hammer. 

When Asgard is threatened with invasion, young Thor grabs his sword and heads off to the front lines. But Odin sends him back, deeming him not yet ready to fight beside him in battle. So Loki offers Thor another way to help out Asgard, by leading him down a secret tunnel. 

Thor doesn't hesitate to lend his strength to Asgard's defense.

Little does Thor know that Loki crafted this tunnel, or that he told the evil forces to use his secret tunnel to invade Asgard. 

There he meets Ulfrin the dragon, whose breath can transform Thor into a tree. 

Thor fights the villains as long as he can, but soon Ulfrin's breath begins transforming him into a tree. Thankfully, Odin hears the noise created by Thor's defense. He leads his army toward the disturbance, where they turn back the invaders. Outside Ulfrin's influence, Thor reverts to his original form. 

While Thor believes he's failed Asgard, Odin praises him to his valor. As a reward, he allows Thor to have another go at his hammer. In the past, Thor has failed to lift the hammer, or at most, hauled it a few inches above the floor. This time...

While contemporary issues offer sophisticated storytelling and great artwork, these early stories helped me understand Thor's origin better. In his "Tales Of Asgard" series, Stan Lee fleshes out Thor's childhood, and gives us a better understanding of Asgard's rich heritage and its relationship to Earth. Marvel has no doubt "rebooted" its storytelling universe several times in the past. Thus, Modern readers often find these early stories superfluous. But, as someone whose knowledge of Thor began, for the most part, with the recent movies, these early issues gave me a greater appreciation for the character.

If you'd like to discover for yourself Stan Lee's original conception of Thor, Odin, Loki, Don Blake, Jane Foster, and other marvelous Marvel characters (both mortal and immortal), treat yourself to The God of Thunder, volume 1 in Marvel's epic collection of The Mighty Thor. That is, assuming that you are "worthy" of reading it...

Dragon Dave

Thor Vs. a Dragon, a Robot, and Rock Men from Saturn

In Marvel Comics' "Journey Into Mystery" Issue 83, published in August 1962, handicapped American physician Donald Blake picks up a gnarled wood walking stick, and transforms into the Norse god Thor. After learning to wield his new weapon, the mighty hammer Mjolnir, he acknowledges his responsibility to his fellow humans by launching himself into battle against an invasion force of Rock Men from Saturn.

The Rock Men transform their mothership into a dragon. This scares Earth's normally brave fighter pilots, who eject from their jet planes.

On the ground, Thor sees that the dragon is mere illusion, and so he takes on the Rock Men from Saturn in hammer-to-hand fighting. Earth's lesser gravity increases the strength of the Rock Men, but when Thor proves a more fearsome adversary than anticipated, they activate the weapon they've held in reserve.

Several times the height of a human, the fighter-robot advances.

Thor stands in his path, looks up at his giant opponent, and swings his mighty hammer.

Thor is the first human the Rock Men have directly battled. They can't help but wonder if more humans are like him. 

In reacting to their first impressions, the Rock Men emulate the NATO fighter pilots, and make a mad scramble for their ship. Thus, when the military arrives...

It's easy to see how the mighty Thor could defeat a Dragon, a Giant Robot, and the Rock Men from Saturn. It's equally easy to understand how NATO soldiers might not envision a crippled man like Donald Blake as Earth's greatest warrior. Appearances can be deceiving, and first impressions often flat-out wrong.

The story also begs a question. Could Jane Foster, suffering from cancer, sneak away from her sick bed occasionally to grasp the hammer Mjolnir, transform into Lady Thor, and battle the Dark Elf Malekith, Frost Giants, and Dario Agger, the sometimes-minotaur CEO of Roxxon Energy Corporation? Odinson's quest to discover the identity of Lady Thor continues today, when THOR Issue 7 hits the stands. To prove your worth, make picking up your copy of this top ten reader-rated Marvel comic a priority. But please, first demonstrate your responsibility to your fellow humans by finishing and filing your income taxes. 

Dragon Dave

For more classic Thor action, check out The Mighty Thor: The God of Thunder, volume 1 in Marvel's Epic Collection series on the mighty Norse god.

Lady Thor: The Case For Jane Foster

In Marvel Comics' "Journey Into Mystery" Issue 83, written by Stan Lee and published in August 1962, Don Blake picks up a gnarled wooden walking stick. The stick transforms into a hammer, and he transforms into the Norse god Thor. While thrilled to have overcome his handicapped status, and wield this new power, he ponders how his life will change.

He sits down on the grass, sets down the hammer, and recalls what he knows of the apparently-not-so-mythological god.

Moments later, he discovers he has returned to his normal frail self. The hammer Mjolnir has likewise changed back into a walking stick. He wonders what caused him to revert to a powerless handicapped man. Then he thinks back to the inscription on the head of the hammer.

When he touches the stick, he and the stick once more transform into Thor and Mjolnir. Obviously, he has a lot to learn, if he wishes to control and maintain his new persona. He practices using the hammer, and discovers powers most mortals could only dream of wielding. He also discovers a way to control his transformations.

Practice makes perfect, and soon Don Blake will be able to hold and use the walking stick without instantly transforming into Thor. A single tap on the ground is all that is needed to transform. However, in order to retain his appearance as Thor, he must not release Mjolnir, or sixty seconds later he will return to ordinary Donald Blake. Obviously, this wouldn't be a good thing to happen during battle. 

In THOR issue 6, written by Jason Aaron and published last month, Odinson seeks out Jane Foster to see if Mjolnir could have transformed her into Lady Thor. When he finds her in a hospital bed on Asgard, suffering from breast cancer and attended by healers, he decides it cannot be her, and marks her off his list of the women who might possibly have learned to wield Mjolnir. 

What do you think of Odinson's decision? Is the candidacy of Jane Foster as impossible as he believes? For if Donald Blake can be transformed from Thor into a cripple, couldn't Jane Foster, suffering from cancer, could temporarily take up Mjolnir with a consequent change in appearance, then revert to her former sickly status? 

Dragon Dave

P.S. To read more of Thor's early adventures, and written by Stan Lee (He's sublime!), pick up The Mighty THOR: The God of Thunder, Volume 1 in Marvel's new Epic Collection series of books on this hero. (He's divine! Or, at least semi-divine!)

Lady Thor: The Case Against Jane Foster

The beautiful Jane Foster in "Thor: The Dark World",
courtesy of artassylum.com

In the recent movies, Thor loves the human woman Jane Foster, much to his father Odin's displeasure. In Jason Aaron's new comic series, a mysterious woman has taken over Thor's mantle. At first, he thought she had bewitched him, and attempted to wrest Mjolnir back from her. But when she exhibits an impressive mastery over his former hammer, he decides Mjolnir has truly rejected him and consigns its ownership to his past. In fact, he's so impressed by the manner in which she wields the hammer that he gives her his name. Henceforth, she has the right to be called Thor, and he shall be known solely as Odinson. 

Still, he wishes to know her true identity.

As Lady Thor wears a mask, Odinson begins a quest to discover her identity. In doing so, he emulates another mythological character who wears red: that great figure of charity, joviality, and an acknowledged master of elves. Santa Claus! (Okay, perhaps he's not so jolly, and his belly doesn't shake like jelly, but go with me on this). And just like Santa, he makes a list, and he checks it, well, perhaps just once, at least for now. After all, it shouldn't take too much work to figure out who Mjolnir thinks isn't naughty, but is really nice. Right?

Part of the fun of reading the new THOR series is guessing the identity of the woman behind the mask. As a newbie to Thor comics, I don't know half of the women in Odinson's past. But I had a suspicion. Jason Aaron takes some of his cues from the recent movies, using movie villains like the Frost Giants and the Dark Elf Malekith in his stories. Behind her mask, might this new Thor be his lady love, Jane Foster?

THOR issue 6 seems to slap down my hopes in the most comprehensive manner possible. Odinson visits Jane Foster in a room in Asgard. She is attended by healers, as she suffers from a very human disease: breast cancer. Despite the healers' ability to banish it, Jane Foster refuses any magical treatment, vowing to beat her disease with human technology and willpower, or die in the attempt. As Odinson stands beside her sickbed, Jane asserts that he is more than his hammer. He is still a good man, a worthy man, a valiant hero. Even if Mjolnir has rejected him, he should not give up his name to anyone. 

In fact, if he doesn't reclaim his name soon, she threatens to him another: Lord Thunderbritches.

With a heavy heart, Odinson consigns her to the healers' care. Then he crosses her name off the list. In her present condition, for Jane Foster to wield Mjolnir seems impossible. Thus, Jason Aaron shows up my guess of Lady Thor's identity as ridiculous and ignorant. It's just as well that guessing about Lady Thor's identity is only part of the fun of reading this new series. Actually, it's hard to feel even a little disappointed. You see, I'm enjoying the journey, and in no hurry to reach the destination. 

Dragon Dave

Related Internet Links
Art Assylum's picture of Jane Foster & Thor

Thor Vs Identity Theft

In Marvel Comics' "Journey Into Mystery" Issue 83, published in August 1962, we meet Donald Blake, an infirm medical doctor.  

In a small village, he overhears a fisherman tell his neighbors of the strange rock people he has seen. While the locals take no notice of the man's ravings, Donald Blake decides to check out his story.

Before he can return to the village to confirm the fisherman's story, the rock men see him hobbling away. When the rock men fire their guns at him, Don Blake trips, and his cane falls into the ocean. He crawls into a cave, where he finds...

In need of the walking aid, he picks it up. Suddenly...

And not only does the old gnarled walking stick transform, but Don Blake's appearance also alters.

A few months ago, during a fight in Earth orbit, Thor's hammer Mjolnir slipped from his hand and fell to the Moon. In the days that follow, a group of people gather on the air-filled section of the Moon formerly inhabited by the supremely powerful Watcher. These people come not only from Asgard, but also from Earth, thanks to SHIELD's spaceships. They watch Thor struggle and strain, but despite all his strength of muscle and will, and his familiarity with Molnir, he cannot pick up the hammer. Finally Thor's family convince him to return to Asgard and rest. Shortly thereafter, a woman picks up Mjolnir, Thor's hammer of power, and her appearance is likewise transformed. 

After all this time in his possession, the loss of his hammer traumatizes Thor. Imagine something so central to your self-image being suddenly ripped away like that. Consider how losing all that power and ability, in a second, would make you feel.

Talk about Identity Theft! 

Reeling from this loss, Thor Odinson vows to discover the identity of the woman now wielding Mjolnir. There's only one problem. Once he was ordinary physician Donald Blake, a handicapped man who needed a cane to walk. Whoever picked up Mjolnir, If this woman was equally transformed by contact with his hammer, then her new physical appearance might bear no correlation to the way she has looked in the past. But then, if quests to reclaim one's honor, sense of purpose, and fabulous weapons of power were easy, we wouldn't cherish those stories like we do.

What are your favorite quest stories? What aspects of the stories make them important to you?

Dragon Dave

P.S. To discover how Thor lost Mjolnir, read the graphic novel Original Sin by Jason Aaron. To follow Thor Odinson's quest, read the new THOR comic book series, also written by Mr. Aaron.

Star Wars 3 & THOR 6: Three Amazing Covers

Last Wednesday was a big day in comics. After work, my wife and I drove to the store to buy two of that day's releases: the latest issues of Star Wars and THOR. Both were penned by Jason Aaron, which makes him the author of two of Marvel's top ten titles.

There was another cover available for Star Wars 3, but we liked the one above. I love my old Marvel Star Wars comics from the late 1970s and early '80s, but this cover demonstrates how sophisticated comic book art has grown in the intervening years.

Remember that variant cover I couldn't find for Rocket Raccoon 8? Well with THOR 6, we found a nice variant depicting the new lady Thor in action. Then again, had that not been available, we would have been perfectly happy with the regular cover, which tantalizes readers with all the women who could possibly have taken up Thor's mantle.

One benefit of buying Marvel comics is that most include a free digital edition, so you can read the story again online (which we often do). In the case of THOR 6, even though we purchased the variant cover, we can admire the regular cover all we want online. I don't know about you, but that seems like the best of both worlds (such as, say, Midgard and Asgard). 

What do you think? Couldn't you just spend all day admiring these beautiful Marvel covers?

Dragon Dave

P.S. We weren't alone in picking up these two issues on their release day. The website Bleeding Cool ranked them 1st & 4th among Wednesday Warriors like us.

P.S.S. What? My wife and I are warriors? Too cool!

Related Dragon Cache entries
A Woman Called Thor

Related Internet Links
Bleeding Cool ranking and comments

A Woman Called Thor

In "If He Be Worthy" (Thor No. 1 December 2014), writer Jason Aaron takes us to Roxxon Seabase. Ships sent to investigate seismic activity disappear, and as the staff deploy their attack sharks, they see blue giants marching toward them across the ocean floor. 

Meanwhile, on the moon, Thor has spent the last few weeks kneeling over his hammer. In a recent battle, he lost the ability to lift it, and although he tries and tries, he cannot pick it up. Nor can his father Odin lift it, even though he crafted this magical weapon for his son. 

His mother Freyja attempts to comfort Thor, but he shrugs off her efforts, and returns to Asgard to find a new weapon.

Meanwhile, Malekith the Dark Elf arrives at the underwater base. It appears that he is in league with the Frost Giants. If ever humans needed a hero, it is now.

And so we shall have one. The inscription on the hammer reads "Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor." Lightning swirls around the hammer as a hand grips it, and burns the letter S into its side, transforming "he" into "she."

In "If He Be Worthy," writer Jason Aaron, artist Russell Dauterman, and colorist Matthew Wilson welcome us to a new era of the hero named Thor. Through utilizing villains like the Frost Giants and Malekith from the recent Marvel movies, they pull us into the more sophisticated and extensive world of Thor comics. The man we know as Thor promises to still be involved their new series, but who is this new woman who wields his hammer? 

Thankfully, Thor No. 2 arrives in stores today. By Odin's beard: I can't wait to read it!

Dragon Dave