Packaged as serious business. In truth it's surprisingly funny - with feminist subtext both subtle and in your face. This doesn't hinder 'Thor, Vol. 1: The Goddess of Thunder' from being a fun, action-packed comic book. It is one of Marvel's most groundbreaking and important titles coming out, along with the new 'Ms. Marvel' series.
Before going any further, I'll say that before this I had not read any 'Thor' comics. My knowledge of the character comes from the Marvel movies, plus the variations of Norse mythology. Still, more women getting recognition as their own superheroes in comics was something I had to check out, and I knew this change to such a renowned and iconic character was a huge risk for Marvel to take. Unsurprisingly, it did get some backlash from (mostly) male fans who still want everything to revolve around them and reflect their lives and experiences, and who pretend that none of the half of the human race reads comics or wants to see more female heroes. I wanted to support the idea of a female Thor, however, so I bought this book with my own money. This one small change may be a stepping stone towards people finally growing up and accepting that change may be scary, but it has to happen for both fiction and reality to evolve - for the better, for everyone. If Marvel can achieve outstanding success with a Muslim Ms. Marvel and an African American Spider-Man, then a woman Thor in retrospect shouldn't be considered such a stormy risk to begin with.
And as it turns out, you don't need to read the previous 'Thor' stories to get what's going on in 'The Goddess of Thunder'. You can still enjoy it, which is a relief.
Basic rundown of 'The Goddess of Thunder' is: Thor - Odinson - has been disgraced. He is no longer worthy to wield the hammer Mjolnir due to some undisclosed whispered words from Nick Fury. No one - not even King Odin, the hammer's creator - can lift it while it's stuck on the moon like Excalibur. It seems that a mighty hero and Avenger is lost, along with Asgard.
Then, out of the blue, a mysterious woman appears on the moon and lifts Mjolnir - new rules are ingrained in the stone, and she is deemed worthy. This new warrior storms forth to save the earth (Midgard), Asgard and other realms from Frost Giants and the Dark Elf Malekith. There is also an evil businessman who turns into a minotaur; Avengers making a cameo appearance being iced by the Giants; Odin plotting against the female Thor for "stealing" Mjolnir; witty banter; and male Thor riding a goat at the bottom of the sea.
Thor also hates that someone else has what was his for so long, and he does fight female Thor for it. However, unlike his father, he changes his viewpoint when he sees how Mjolnir works with and responds to the newest chosen one. He even gives her - in front of all of the good guys - the official name of Thor. Not Lady Thor, nor Thora, and definitely not Thorina or Thorita. She is Thor - the one and only, for she has proven worthy of the name.
Afterwards Odinson makes for a rubbish detective and tries to find out the identity of the new Thor (one of his suspects is Loki - this comic has a great sense of humour). Odin does not accept this change. He represents a male who stubbornly refuses such a change as gender in a hero, no matter how good the woman is, and even when she's not being seditious but simply trying her best with a heavy title now placed on her shoulders. Odin will go so far as to make idiotic decisions, and ends up as much of a villain as Malekith.
Change is good. As is shown with female Thor.
In the first volume the reader does not find out her true identity (she wears a mask), nor why she was chosen to wield Mjolnir. But her personality shines through the colourful pages. Not only is her design fantastic, but even without her awesome weapon she is capable, witty, warm-hearted, humourous, and she kicks arse. Her modern-language thought balloons in contrast to her more archaic speeches implies that she is from earth. She can take down monsters and sexists in one go.
This Thor is rather like Xena, Warrior Princess. I love that she isn't merely a distaff counterpart to Thor - she is her own person, and fights using the hammer quite differently from male Thor. No borrowed identity here; she is here to stay.
Female Thor is also one of the few heroines I've seen who steals a kiss from a male lead. One of the funniest moments in the comic is when this is followed up with her saying, "Still think I am your mother?" The response: "I certainly hope not."
New Thor may be a bit of a mystery for the moment, but this is undeniably her book, with panel trips to see how the old Thor is doing - possibly done to please the old-school fanboys.
Some responses to the terrible criticisms of a female Thor do make it into the volume, and her fight with Crusher Creel in issue 5 is the most on-the-nose of all. But addressing the issue of sexism via a Take-That against it may have been needed when the controversy was so big. I laughed at Crusher Creel complaining that there're less "manly" superheroes nowadays, thanks to feminists. Female Thor's competence as a warrior and her saying that feminist is not a four letter word are much needed step-ups as well.
Other feminist ideas come from Freyja, male Thor's mother and a prominent female figure in Asgard and the whole comic. When she ruled as the All-Mother in Odin's absence, everything went well. Only when her husband returns as the All-Father do things go awry again. Freyja is compassionate but tough, smart, level-headed, and not afraid to speak her mind - to hell with her "place" in society. She has a sarcastic streak to her as well. The All-Mother has a meaningful conversation with female Thor at the end of the volume, which isn't just a warning about Odin and his new goal to make Thor's life extremely difficult from now on. So 'The Goddess of Thunder' passes the Bechdel test.
Traditional gender roles being challenged is also shown with Odinson at his most vulnerable, and him admitting not only a thunderous change in his life, but his own limitations. A woman bests him at his classic skills and he accepts this, like a real man. He is no less a man without his hammer, but he will be by his own self-pity. Odinson is left crippled in more ways than one, and he has to keep moving forward without fighting like he used to in the old days.
I love the artwork, too. Great colour schemes, action and character expressions. It changes in the last issue, but it isn't jarring and still looks very nice.
Flaws include wanting to see a bit more of Thor herself as a focus in her own book, rather than on the controversy and mystery of her from the point of view of the other characters. More action and power from her please! Though I'm sure there will be in the next volume. There's also the amount of times the words "worthy" and "unworthy" are said. I know they mean a big deal in context, but it gets comical after a while, and I'm not sure if that's the intent. It's like how the words "honour" and "hope" are overused in other works of media.
'Thor, Vol. 1: The Goddess of Thunder' is entertaining stuff. Colourful, grand, funny, mythological, high-octane action - it is the beginning of something mighty, I'm sure.
Final Score: 4/5
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