Written by Kieron Gillen
Illustrated by Doug BraithwaiteFEAR ITSELF TIE-IN
Loki has assembled his team for his secret mission in the shadow of FEAR ITSELF. Now, he just needs his equipment. Is there anyone Loki won’t won’t turn to get the power he needs? SPOILERS: No, probably not. The question has to be whether the young boy has the guile to survive turning to them, and whether the promises he makes to secure the chance of a tomorrow will only ensure that the tomorrow will see Asgard as black as a cinder.
Kieron Gillen writing Asgardians! I love Kieron Gillen writing Asgardians!
Let’s talk about why after the jump.
There are very few cases where I will read a company-owned comic and think to myself, “Gee, this writer and/or artist should just do the book forever.” There are only a few cases I can think of off the top of my head in current comics that fit that bill, such as Hickman on the Fantastic Four, Fraction on Iron Man, Jason Aaron on Wolverine and Brubaker on Captain America. However, right there currently at the top of the list, is Kieron Gillen writing anything Asgardian related, because as long as Kieron Gillen is writing something with Gods being Godly and mixing his knowledge of mythology with his wit, there will always be a comic I want to read on the shelves.
This issue features Loki finally getting his band together before with all of his assembled players and toys before finally launching his personal assault against the Serpent. It’s very intriguing to see how the past couple issues have coyly tied together, leading all the characters to their formation in this issue. What had once been a series of curious tasks from Loki now paint a very clear picture, and things are just getting heated up. Gillen proved previously on Thor that he has a great understanding of Loki as a lie-smith, who can cleverly use double-speak and careful planning to get the perfect outcome.
Reading this entire arc so far is like watching master magicians Penn and Teller perform a card trick. You think you understand what they’re doing up until the last second, where all of a sudden a nail gun or some other crazy device is being used or they’re shooting each other with guns. This is Loki’s gambit and Gillen’s strengths: leading us on until the last second, and then promising that a sword is going to get swung and someone’s going to get hurt, effectively enticing us to come back for more. Kid Loki is effectively the best Asgardian around right now, and amidst callbacks to his previous run and the work Fraction did before Thor split off into two, Gillen has created an incredibly fluid and evolving story where the reader actively feels like their faith is being rewarded (specifically because it is). That’s ultimately the book’s greatest strength: the longer you’ve been reading Thor (at least in terms of the JMS relaunch, I suppose), the more entertaining it gets issue after issue.
It certainly helps that the book has the wonderful Doug Braithwaite to illustrate it’s pages. Following up on his wonderful work on Gillen’s previous Thor run, Braithwaite has a style that is absolutely perfect for a title centered around Asgard. Braithwaite’s artwork exhibits a classic tone akin to the lush illustrations you’d find in an average mythology book, but refined for a comic book. As much as Gillen shifts his writing to fit a more classic mythology, Braithwaite is working in step alongside to make the mythic dreams a wonderful reality in the pages of this book. As fictional as it is, the book really establishes what comic books are: a modern mythology. Just as the Norse pagans had their folklore, so too do we have our superheroes, and it is in no short thanks to Braithwaite’s excellent illustrating that the modern mythology is able to come to life.
Obviously this won’t last forever. I mean, Kieron Gillen couldn’t possibly write an Asgardian-centric book forever, could he? Forever is a long time. But until we hit forever or something close to it, I’m more than excited to get this book once a month. It is the Asgard book that has every element I want to read about at play: clever and sharply written dialogue, and intricate and unclear plot (that will become clear over time), and – as an event tie-in – elements that enhance upon the main storyline without me being required to read this book to “get it.” This is certainly a book that keeps getting better with every issue, and will assumedly stand up over just about every other title available quite soon if it keeps going at this pace. And with this entire endeavor starring an overly clever Loki spinning a wonderfully tricky web of lies, Gillen can count on me spreading the gospel on a monthly basis.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy, buy, buy!
