I've always liked Thor as a concept for comic books. It always seemed to me to be a fascinating blend of fantastical elements, interesting culture and characters, and super hero antics. While searching for recommendations, this run by J. M. Straczynski always came up, so I decided to give it a shot. Boy am I glad I did. This omnibus is fantastic!
First off, this book is accessible to all. You don't have to be very well acquainted with the history and lore of Thor as a comic book character, and that's really nice. It essentially starts Thor's story anew after Marvel killed him off in the actual Ragnarok from the awesome Avenger's Disassembled: Thor. Wandering in some dimension of non-existence for untold years, it's time for Thor to return from the dead, and boy does he. I won't give anything away, but J.M.S knows how to spin a fascinating yarn that would seem bizarre but really comes across as powerful and poignant. Thor retains his newly acquired wisdom that he attained from Ragnarok, and is all the better as a character for it. He is quiet, meditative, pensive, and it's fantastic. All of the mainstay Thor characters return, and all are very well written.
I really can't say enough how great the writing in this volume is. There is a much more meditative, pensive depth to this run on Thor than what we've seen in the many years he has been around as a character, and that focus really does compliment this type of story (just as stories that focus on the intimate, human interest aspect of Superman are the best. These two characters are pretty much invincible after all. How do you make them interesting and relatable? Like this). To balance this seriousness and poignancy, there's a lot of warmhearted humor that rips belly laughs from me often. Some complain about this run because its pace is very slow. Well, yes, it is. In fact, the first 4-6 issues pass by without much of any action. However, I found this run to be as compelling and impossible to put down as even the most action-packed Simonson story. It's all a matter or taste, but again, I must emphasize that this is a thinking man's Thor. That isn't to say there aren't times of huge, godly balls-out action, because there is (especially later on)! However, overall, this omnibus is stately, elegant, and meditative, and it is excellent.
The art is equally good, mainly taken up by the french artist Oliver Coipel. His drawings really compliment Straczynski's writing style. It's great. In some issues, another artists fills in and it can be a little jarring since the art style is so different from Coipel's. Note I didn't say it was bad, quite the contrary in fact, but it is very different. Overall, the art, especially combined with the very dynamic coloring, is very affecting. It also can't go unmentioned how awesome the cover art to each issue is. These are reprinted without text and writing to get in the way, and they are breathtaking. Mark Djurdjevic is known for this, but he really outdid himself with these covers. They are dynamic, glorious, and each should be blown up and framed. The art in this collection, all of it, is absolutely fantastic!
Is there anything wrong with this collection? Well, it really depends on your perspective. Because Marvel wanted to drag Thor into a crossover event (something I think is usually detrimental and stupid in the world of comic books, but still an opportunity for a cash grab, so DC and Marvel go for it, of course) and Straczynski expressly stated at the beginning of his run that he wanted to keep Thor separate from crossover events like that, the ending is very rushed. You can tell the extra large, final special issue was rushed to tie up all of the complex loose ends from throughout the story and this succeeds to some extent, but it really is impossible to do when in the context of the rest of the run. In short, the omnibus is all great but the ending. In fact, the ending to the overall story of this collection is truly done with Kieron Gillen's "Latverian Prometheus," which is very well written and provides a satisfactory conclusion to JMS' story arc. There is also a part early on where Thor confronts Iron Man for a past grievance. Suffice to say, Iron Man is once again a fascist punching bag allegory, and I think he deserves more respectful treatment and thoughtfulness from the writer than that. It has been a common problem for many writers in their handling of Iron Man ever since the crossover event "Civil War" happened. No wonder Matt Fraction had to "reboot" the character.
So in short, this is one of the best Thor stories to come out in years, alongside Roger Langridge and Chris Samnee's spectacular series "Thor: The Mighty Avenger," both volumes of which I highly recommend alongside this omnibus. To me, the great Thor runs are Simonson, Straczynski/Coipel, Langridge/Samnee, and Lee/Kirby. Any fan of Thor should pick this up without hesitation. Anyone who fancies themselves a comic book fan should also pick this up immediately. It is a fantastic work with a depth and pensiveness that are rare in comic books these days, and that really makes this a gemstone collection. Buy it, soak it all in, and enjoy the thoughtful, touching story it has to offer.
