Richard Gratton's Fantastic Reads 4 U

Mighty Thor #7
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Release Date: 05/25/16

Not everyone is a fan of Jane Foster as the god of thunder, but I am. Jane Foster as Thor is a work of genius that has yet to be fully explored. Her human frailty and more to the point, her battle with cancer – which makes her frailty that much more current and relevant – is diametrically opposed to her identity as Thor. Couple this with the gorgeous art Russell Dauterman has been producing month after month and Jason Aaron's fantastic writing, and Marvel has the makings for magical creativity for the foreseeable future.

So what the hell happened the last two months?

I thought issue #6 was bad, but #7 was even worse. The art was awful. The story was okay – and I'm being generous by saying that. The portrayal of the Odinson as Thor in the Viking era was despicable. I would blame the entire editorial staff for green-lighting this two issue story. The concept for the story was interesting at first, but as the execution – pun intended - of the story played out I couldn't wait to finish reading it, so I could read something I might actually enjoy.

I was not impressed at all with Rafa Garres' art in issue #6, but issue #7 was almost embarrassingly bad. I can only guess that Garres was chosen to draw these two comics because his art initially gives the impression of cave drawings and a more barbaric time, which is somewhat appropriate for the Viking era. But as the story progresses from issue #6 to #7, there are points where I couldn't figure out what was in the panels other than muddled lines and smears of color.

I am a big fan of the Incredible Hulk, and the Viking Hulk concept intrigued me. I liked his origin, but the rest of the story is appalling. Does Mr. Aaron need to portray the Odinson Thor as an alcoholic womanizing bastard? Do fans need – or want – to see a drunk Thor vomiting because he has had so much to drink; and then later, carousing with whatever women he can find while literally dumping as much mead as he can on his mouth and letting the excess run down his cheeks and face because he can't swallow it all at once? Could it be that Loki, the crowned Prince of Lies, is spinning the story to make Thor look bad? Even if this is the case, the story is in bad taste, especially in light of recent criminal cases involving sexual assaults on college campuses in the current media. Whether a lie perpetrated by a jealous half-brother or not, how can Marvel justify portraying a heroic character like Thor in such a manner?

I am disgusted that this story came to print as it did. As a subscriber to Mighty Thor, I am disgusted two issues of my subscription have been wasted on this. I expect more. I demand more.

Scale of Awesomeness: 0 out of 10