THOR #48
"By Fire Born, Part III of V"
Neutral (4/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Dan Jurgens
Pencils: Joe Bennett
Inks: Tom Palmer
Colors: Avalon Studios
Letters: Comicraft
Editor: Tom Brevoort
Price: $2.25 US/$3.75 CAN |
Thor has had a lot going for it lately... strong plotlines that brought out the title character's humanity, significant alterations to the status quo and some strong art from Tom Raney. Sadly, none of those elements are to be found in this issue. This stands out as a rather ordinary story at best, with little suspense and cluttered art. Hopefully, this drop in quality will be fleeting.
Jake Olson, once again imbued with the power of the Asgardian Thunder God, faces off against the Grey Gargoyle and god-killer Desak. What he doesn't know is that he's tapped into aout half of the real Thor's power (thanks to the Enchantress's interference), and his timing sucks, since the new monarch of Asgard must do battle with a gang of Frost Giants.
Bennett and Palmer to try and elicit memories of the John Buscema's work with the title character. Some panels certainly do remind me of his work, but overall, the figures are too squat and the backgrounds too crowded for the homage to really take root. The Desak design's powerful Tom Grummett/Jack Kirby riff really does come through, though. Also, to give credit where it's due, this issue boasts a couple of strong two-page splashes that capture the larger-than-life nature of the various characters nicely.
The core plot for this issue really doesn't really boast much in the way of suspense. Tarene's "death" is hardly convincing, and such scenes seem to pop up every time the Grey Gargoyle plays a part in a Marvel Universe story. And though I rathed enjoyed the Desak character concept when it was first introduced, it seems to be the character is implausibly blind to the possibility that not all of his targets might merit execution.
Also hard to swallow is Thor's quick acceptance of the Enchantress's "help." I thought we were seeing a more mature, wiser Thor now that he's assume the Asgardian throne, but his failure to see Amora for the manipulator and liar that she is just doesn't make all that much sense. Neither does his fellow warriors' constant questioning of Thor's loyalties and priorities. Hopefully, once the "By Fire Born" story arc comes to end, Jurgens will get this book back on track.
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