Thor: Vikings (Max) [Paperback]

Garth Ennis (Author), Jeff Youngquist (Editor), Glenn Fabry (Illustrator)

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Marvel Comics; illustrated edition edition (April 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785111751
• ISBN-13: 978-0785111757
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.6 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #617,747 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Marvel's better titles in recent years, September 7, 2005

By 

J. Higgins (Jessup MD) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Thor: Vikings (Max) (Paperback)

I have followed the Thor series off and on since encountering it as a kid back in the late 60's, but I was quite stunned to see this shockingly offbeat, but utterly engrossing, take on the Thor universe from Marvel's "mature" imprint, Max. This series is as graphic in its depiction of violence as I've ever seen from a mainstream publisher and even underground grue legend S. Clay Wilson will feel like he's been outdone in some areas ! But no matter how over-the-top the violence is, it's integral to the storyline, in which a boatload of Undead vikings arrives in NYC to loot, rape, and murder to their heart's content. Thor's initial encounter with Jaeckelson, the viking leader, is memorable in its brutality and leaves the reader feeling like they've been punched in the stomach. The ensuing chapters detail Thor's collaboration with other Marvel universe heroes, and their efforts to defeat the onslaught. They also introduce some memorable new characters that I, for one, would like to see appearing in a sequel (?) at one time or another.

Glenn Fabry's artwork, while sometimes a bit awkward in rendering human forms in action, succeeds quite well in capturing the apocalyptic tone of the story. Whether focusing on up-close action involving hand-to-hand combat, or aerial battles that offer a relatively drastic change in perspective, the immediacy of the struggle between Thor and his adversaries is effectively communicated without being so cluttered or self-consciously "artistic" that the reader is left peering at the page and trying to puzzle out exactly what's happening. In light of how pervasive the cartoony, expressionistic style of comic art is nowadays, Fabry's straightforward, realistic draftsmanship is exactly what's required to give Ennis's plot the graphic intensity it needs.

Forget the overwrought, encrusted, heavy-handed melodrama so typical of much of Marvel's output over the past two decades. Thor: Vikings is an unadorned battle between good and evil and never shies from revealing how violent and cruel such a primeval conflict can be. The intensity of the conflict is relieved every now and then by some black humor, but upon finishing the book there was no avoiding the feeling that I'd just been treated to the Battle Royale of the Marvel universe.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A breeze, December 30, 2005

By 

Itamar Katz (Ramat-Gan, Israel) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thor: Vikings (Max) (Paperback)

Thor: Vikings is very far from being the best Garth Ennis (Preacher, Hellblazer, Punisher) has to offer; it's an insignificantly entertaining action comic at best. Still, it shines with Garth Ennis's bleak and self-aware sense of the absurd, and even if it lacks severely in plot and characters, it's still a fun read, written with some wit and humor, with some wonderfully crafted action sequences. Ennis clearly had lots of fun with Vikings, and he completely let go with the absurd and ridiculously bloody violence and gore that he so loves.

The simplistic story is helped along by fantastic artwork by Glenn Fabry. Fabry is one of the most crafty masters of anatomy in the field (he even wrote a couple of instructive books for drawing muscles and human forms) and his highly detailed and sensitive art compliments the action scenes; it works particularly well in the wide, crowded panels, where Glenn gives as much attention to each and every bloody detail as he does to the overall compositions. The page layouts are fantastically dynamic, and all of that makes Thor: Vikings a quick and fun read that grabs hold of the reader and doesn't let go till the last pages. It's far from being a masterpiece, and it's certainly among Garth Ennis's lesser creations, but it's worth the effort for fans of Ennis's and of Thor's, and for those who enjoy well crafted and highly violent fight sequences.

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ultra violent vision of Thor from the great Garth Ennis, April 6, 2004

By 

N. Durham "Big Evil" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Thor: Vikings (Max) (Paperback)

Collecting the five issue mini-series by our favorite mad Irishmen scribe Garth Ennis (Punisher, Preacher); Thor: Vikings finds the classic Marvel hero defending modern day New York City from an immortal clan of blood thirsty vikings. The storyline and presentation is pure Ennis style mayhem: loads of bloody violence combined with an outrageous sense of dark humor; a combination which made his works on The Punisher, Fury, and Preacher so sucessful. The art by Preacher cover artist Glenn Fabry is more than solid artwork, though Darick Robertson (who did the art for Ennis' Fury and the recent Punisher: Born) would have been a better choice to illustrate all the bloody carnage. While Thor: Vikings is a great read to be sure, it doesn't strike the same gold as Ennis' previous works, but it doesn't try to either. All in all, fans of the great Garth Ennis should check this out.