Thor #800 Review
800 issues is still a landmark achievement in the comic book industry. It’s extremely rare for a book and a character to have such long lasting impact within the world of comics. And yet Thor #800 finds itself in an interesting place, how do you celebrate Thor, when Thor is dead? For this may be Thor #800 but this is still the story of The Mortal Thor and Al Ewing’s tale. Now, along with Kieron Gillen and Chris Condon, three stories are laid out before us of a past, a present, and potentially a future story of Thor.
In many ways, this issue is an ending and a new beginning. Sigard Jarlson’s battle with The Midgard Serpent finally reaches its climax with the soul of Thor on the line, while Odin and our ever-unreliable narrator Lucky (who in no way is a certain God of Mischief) finally join the fray. This issue is pretty much a perfect summarising of the themes of The Mortal Thor, because while yes, there is a big fight, it’s more about the tale surrounding the fight and the emotions behind it. Sigard Jarlson is just a man with an ordinary hammer, he cannot fight something like the Midgard Serpent, and yet Al Ewing once again delivers a wonderfully poignant issue. It’s no secret that one of the big bads of Ewing’s Thor is the monstrous corporations that run more of our society every year and Ewing faces that idea head on this issue. In a world that is controlled by the few how can just a man with a hammer fight against that and Ewing completely nails the answer.
Of course, Ewing doesn’t achieve this alone. Pasqual Ferry has been an absolute gift for this series, having drawn Thor back in the Matt Fraction run, Ferry absolutely knows how to combine the giant cosmic scale of Thor’s world and how it interacts with ours and the more emotional moments that Ferry draws perfectly. Some of his expressions specifically in this issue are phenomenal for getting across emotion in a still frame. Matt Milla also continues career high work; the contrast this story relies on from the cosmic and the mundane only have the impact they do because of Milla’s colour pallet.
But this is an anniversary issue, so we have more than just one story of Thor to discuss, Kieron Gillen makes his triumphant return to Thor since their much-celebrated run on Thor and Journey into Mystery in the late 2000s and early 2010s and it fits like an old glove. A tale of Mjolnir from its perspective tackling the age-old question of what it means to be worthy. In 5 pages, Gillen gives a lovely tale throughout the history of Thor as Declan Shalvey gives some truly stunning images that are nothing short of mythic.
And finally, we come to our final tale. A strange one by Chris Condon and Jesse Lonergan set in an alternative universe in the far future, a murder, a mystery and a question. What if? This is an interesting tale to look at because it feels like a prologue to something, A new What If…? title? Chris Condon taking over Thor after Ewing finishes? Something totally new? That I do not know but what I can say is I am certainly interested. Jesse Lonergan absolutely pulls out something that is both stunning and dripping with atmosphere, I cannot say where this tale goes, but I get the feeling it has only just begun.
In many ways Thor #800 exemplifies the best of what Thor as a title has become, it tells tales larger than life that yet are also deeply human, exploring the daily struggles that we all face in different ways. 800 issues on it’s clear why Thor still resonates with us and why his story
continues and seemingly will do for many ages to come.
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