Marvel Pick Of The Week – October 1, 2014

Pick of the Week:

Thor 1, by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman

Though I could watch Chris Hemsworth all day long, I have never been that into Thor. I think he helps elevate good Avengers stories, but his solo title has always felt a little distant for my taste. Jason Aaron’s Marvel Now! relaunch didn’t make me love the character, but it was the first time I remember really enjoying a Thor book. The plots were exciting and thoughtful, and I had a good time. Then we got to Avengers Now! and the book took a giant risk. You know what I’m talking about. Muspelheim, my hairdresser had me in a shampoo chair a month ago and said, “So I hear Thor’s a woman now. What’s that about?”

At worst, this is going to come across as a culturally insensitive stunt for its own sake. I know people are refusing to read it based on how brash and public this turn is. But Aaron has told a good story this far, and I thought he deserved a shot.

All the fanboy rage was premature, gang. This is a great comic, and not just for the big gender swap. In fact, that part is a couple of pages at the end, where a woman sees dozens of male Asgardians try to pick up Thor’s magic hammer, decides all of their politics are outdated, and does a little Viking Sword-In-The-Stone. Yes, it matters that she’s a woman, but no, it’s not because she hates men. It’s an awesome scene, direct without being aggressive or blunt, and I look forward to seeing where she goes next. I won’t spoil her identity, but no, it’s not Angela.

Just as important as the sensitive way Aaron presents the passing of the mantle to a woman, he sets this in a really great comic book. The opening scene is a horror movie set at the bottom of the ocean, and man, that freaked me out, watching a submarine in the pitch black headed straight for a bunch of monsters. In addition to the tense action of the opening, we get to see Thor struggle to understand why he is no longer worthy to use his own beloved hammer, and the reactions of his family show complexity I am not used to seeing in Thor comics. The book is invested in an ageless being wrestling with a fundamental understanding of his identity. Thor may be replaced as a hammer-holder, but he becomes a character I really want to see again. Who knew that Jason Aaron could work his own Norse miracle with this?

Honorable Mentions:

Silver Surfer 6, for keeping a silly planet setup (everybody specializes in one profession, and they’re awesome at it, but their inflexibility can be exploited by plucky companion Dawn) realistic enough to tell a thoughtful story about appreciating one another. And also, for poop humor. Lots of poop humor. Because Dan Slott does not need your snooty approval.

Guardians 3000 1, for the enjoyable return of the fan-favorite 90’s Guardians of the Galaxy as depicted by Gerardo Sandoval, who draws like Humberto Ramos and Joe Madureira. These characters have never looked this good. Bonus points for sounding like a direct-to-video 80’s sci-fi movie.

Moon Knight 8, for the setup of having all the art represent a few live camera feeds and all the dialogue expressed in color-coded scripts on either side of the “monitors.” Yes, it’s trying very hard to be as creative as the Ellis/Shalvey run, and yes, this is sort of reminiscent of the boring times Bendis writes you a novel and has his artist draw you little pictures on the left half of the page. But they need to be trying very hard to follow the beloved first arc, and they’re much more fun than the Bendis novellas. Not a great comic yet, but not going down without a fight.

Death Of Wolverine 3, for this well-plotted, super-intense samurai fight between Wolverine and Kitty Pryde that is worth the price of the whole miniseries thus far. Fitting that on a book with this title, Charles Soule and Steve McNiven are KILLING IT.