For a medium which sometimes faces undue criticism, comics recently got a boon with the introduction of a new Thor, this time the main character being portrayed as a woman. It seemed as though comic fans were mostly split on the new direction for the character, but it drew in a lot of interest from elsewhere as well, which was likely Marvel’s plan to gain new readers. The story follows the end of the Original Sin where Nick Fury whispers something to Thor and ends up causing the god of thunder to lose the ability to pick up his fabled weapon. He rests on the surface of the moon where his hammer lies valiantly but unsuccessfully refusing to leave until he can pick up his hammer.

Anyone expecting to read Thor #1 and to see the new female Thor is action is likely going to be disappointed. Instead this first issue plays out in the same formula that made the “Who Shot J.R.?” episodes of Dallas so popular back in 1980. For those who are unfamiliar with the show or that story arc, the manipulative patriarch of the family was shot and left for dead at the season ending cliffhanger in 1980. Fans that turned back in for the fall season were disappointed only to know that J.R. had lived, not who had killed him. The same dynamic is at play here. Fans or the curious that laid down their money to find out about the new Thor will likely be disappointed in this sense. There is indeed only one full panel of the new female Thor, and not much in the way of explanation as to how this actually happened. There are some good clues here as to what happened, and fans will be able to debate it, but for now there is lots in the way of questions and not much in the way of answers.

The end result is nonetheless satisfying. The direction of this book is one which has enough of substance to generate enough interest in it for a few months to come, as long as it can deliver on the much promised story to explain all of the changes. Fans of the medium might be resistant to change and might find that this is a strange direction, but if they give it a chance they will find enough of value here. Indeed though as an only occasional reader of Thor, this first issue does make me curious about what is to follow, and if there are others like me then Marvel has succeeded at what it was going for.

Story: Jason Aaron Art: Russell Dauterman
Story: 8.5 Art: 8.0 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy