- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Marvel Comics (July 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0785112677
- ISBN-13: 978-0785112679
- Product Dimensions: 15.2 x 2.5 x 20.3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,455,349 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Second Avenger,
By
This review is from: Thor Masterworks Vol. 1 (Hardcover)
This volume reprints the first 18 stories of the Mighty Thor from `Journey into Mystery' #83-#100 from August 1962 to January 1964. Also included are the first four episodes of `Tales of Asgard'. Only the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk had seen regular publication before Thor - Spider-Man had also appeared in August 1962, but didn't get his own title until 1963. And O.K., Hulk's first series had been cancelled, but he was the first Avenger published, followed by Thor. Don't believe the Hollywood Hype. The stories are primarily by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, with various assistants on scripts and inks. This isn't the Fantastic Four, or Spider-Man. The stories are not the top-of-the-range you get further into the series, but have a period charm, and are one of the foundations of the Marvel Universe. Modern readers might not find them an interesting read, but old hands will remember what it was like when Marvel were only #2, but tried harder.
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The first Mighty Thor stories in "Journey Into Mystery",
By Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (VINE VOICE) (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)
This review is from: Thor Masterworks Vol. 1 (Hardcover)
After Stan Lee created the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk with Jack Kirby and the Amazing Spider-Man with Steve Ditko, he and Kirby came up with the Might Thor. Lee kept trying to come up with somebody bigger, better and stronger than the Thing and the Hulk and was struck with the silly notion of Super-God. But Lee had been hawking Marvel's comics as providing a 20th-century mythology and it suddenly occurred to him that maybe he could do a series feature a god as a comic book superhero. Turning to the Norse mythology of the Vikings, with their tales of Valhalla, Ragnarok, the Aesir, and eternal Asgard, Lee came up with Thor the Thunder God.This first volume of the Marvel Masterworks series devoted to Thor collects "Journey Into Mystery" issues #83-100. Most of the early stories are plotted by Lee, but scripted by Larry Leiber (his brother as it turns out to be) and drawn by Kirby (with Joe Sinnott and Dick Ayers providing the inks). What is interesting here is to reconsider the problematic element of Thor's origin in "Journey Into Mystery" #83. Lee thought it would be difficult for the average comic book reader to identify with a Norse Thunder God (especially one with long blonde hair, blue tights, and a winged helmet). So he created a secret identity with the old cliché of the frail and feeble Dr. Donald Blake, who is limping around Norway one day on a walking tour when he sees alien invaders from Saturn made of stone. Trapped in a cave he finds a secret chamber and a gnarled wooden stick. When Blake strikes the stick against a boulder it changes into a hammer and Blake becomes Thor. Fortunately the hammer offers an explanation: "Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of...THOR" (yes, it has the dot-dot-dot). By issue #85 when Loki shows up, Lee starts availing himself of the rich aspects of Norse mythology, which makes the whole bit of the lame doctor turning into Thor a bit much. Eventually it would be revealed that Odin had turned Thor into a handicapped mortal to teach his son a lesson in humility, but that necessary revision was a long time in coming. Instead we have the standard superhero love triangle where Blake likes his nurse, Jane Foster, but she likes Thor. Meanwhile, beyond Loki, Thor's great arch nemesis, the villains are all have the same problem: they are going up against a god. The Human Cobra (#98) and Mr. Hyde (#99) e above average villains, but do they really have a chance against the god of thunder? Radio-Active Man (#93) and Lava-Man (#97) have shots, but they are rather boring. Then there is the Carbon Copy Man from Outer Space (#90), who is the bottom of the barrel, and mixing and matching mythology with Merlin (#96). Clearly when Thor is dealing with Loki and other Asgardians the stories are much, much better. The gulf between the stories grounded in Norse mythology and those without is magnified in "Journey Into Mystery" #97 when Lee and Kirby started doing the "Tales of Asgard" shorts. Many times during this period the main Thor story did not match the five-page "Tales of Asgard" story at the end. This was also where Kirby's artwork reached a new level: compare "Journey Into Mystery" #83 with the "Surture the Fire Demon" short from #99 (i.e., the first and last examples of Kirby's art in this volume), and you will see what I mean. But until the Lady Sif shows up, these Thor comic books are just treading water. Note: Later issues in this reprinted color collection are scripted by Robert Bernstein and drawn by Joe Sinnott and Don Heck.
1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Kirby's Favourite Son,
By
This review is from: Thor Masterworks Vol. 1 (Hardcover)
The Mighty Thor was one of comic book genius Jack Kirby's favourites of all the characters he created for Marvel. Why? Because with Marvel's first family, The Fantastic Four, Stan Lee always tried to control Kirby's story lines whereas, with the less commercially successful Thor, Lee was happy to leave Kirby alone to do pretty much whatever he wanted. At least, he did later in the run. In the very early tales Lee provided the plots, which is why they are so corny. Fortunately, Kirby's superb artwork more than makes up for the dodgy nature of the first few stories. Towards the end of Kirby's run, Lee did begin to interfere heavily in the plotting of Thor, providing yet another reason why Kirby left Marvel and moved to DC Comics.
As a bonus, Marvel have included the Thor back-up stories, 'Tales of Asgard,' in the Masterworks series. These were plotted entirely by Kirby, the early ones in this volume drawing directly on Norse legend. After the first few, they are inked by the great Vince Colletta, whose scratchy style perfectly suits these magical sagas of the Old Gods. Note that I refer to Kirby as Thor's creator, not Stan Lee. Why? Well, Kirby had written and drawn three previous stories featuring the character of Thor, one of which also featured Thor's magical hammer. Kirby therefore has previous 'form' with the character. Lee doesn't. Indeed, in his two decades in the comics industry, Lee never created a single memorable character before he teamed up with Kirby. And can anyone name a character Lee has created since Kirby left Marvel in 1969? I can't. Whereas Kirby went on to create the entire Fourth World saga at DC, followed that up with Jack Kirby's the Demon and Kamandi: Archives - Volume 1 (DC Archive Editions), went back to Marvel and produced Eternals By Jack Kirby Book 1 TPB, and continued to create scores of new characters for both comics and animation studios more or less right up to his death in 1994. Stan wrote great dialogue, but Kirby was a far more prolific creator of stories and characters. By the way, Kirby's Fourth World saga was, in many ways, a continuation of his work on Thor. One of his last Thor stories dealt with Ragnarok, the death of the Old Gods of Asgard, while the Fourth World saga opens with the same theme as a prelude to the creation of the New Gods of the Fourth World. Check out Jack Kirby's Fourth World Omnibus, Volume One Incidentally, the stories in this collection were my first introduction to paganism back in the 60s. I particularly love Kirby's portrayal of Odin: white hair, flowing beard, flying eye-brows, piercing glare. A father figure for all time. Thanks Jack! Now, Marvel, how about an Omnibus collection or two of Kirby's Thor? And maybe you could print it on matt paper and not that 'orrible shiny stuff you use in Masterworks that makes the colours look so garish? Without the shiny paper, I'd have easily given this 4 stars, maybe 5 ...
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