Saturday, November 12, 2011

Fear Itself #7.2: Thor

(Sorry to be running a bit late today, friends - had a family medical emergency to deal with, but all is well now.)

When major events (death, destruction, etc.) happen in comics, it usually takes a while before they're "corrected" and the characters involved are brought back to life, returned to normal or otherwise restored to the staus quo.

That's why the "sequels" to Fear Itself have been surprising - they're wasting no time explaining what "really happened."

This time around, it's Thor's turn. (And here's your last chance to turn away if you haven't read the Fear Itself series, as I'm about to mention what happens at the end. I won't spoil this issue, but I can't always help spoiling older comics - sorry.)

The end of Fear Itself followed along with Thor's predicted fate at the end of Ragnarok, facing his death while defeating the Midgard Serpent.

I thought they'd get out of this death because, at the end, the Serpent apparently doesn't die (I think). But instead the story takes a surprising (and more abstract) turn. A new character is introduced, Asgard gains new leadership and only one character smells a rat.

Credit writer Matt Fraction with an original and clever new direction for Thor (maybe).

The art is by Adam Kubert and Mark Roslan, and it's terrific (as always), with great character designs, sprawling landscapes and several emotional scenes.

Of the two issues (so far), the story gyrations here may not be easy to follow, but they're actually easier to accept than those in issue #7.1 (of that makes sense). I'm looking forward to seeing where Thor goes from here.

Grade: A-

No comments: