ULTIMATE COMICS THOR #1 (OF 4)

Review by: TheNextChampion

What did the
iFanboy
community think?

404
Pulls
Avg Rating: 4.2
 
Users who pulled this comic:
WRITER: JONATHAN HICKMAN
PENCILS: CARLOS PACHECO
COVER BY: CARLOS PACHECO

Size: 32 pages
Price: 3.99

Jonathan Hickman has been on a bit of a roll lately. SHIELD has been a fantastic comic about the secret history of the Marvel Universe. Then you have Fantastic Four, where it is finally picking up steam with the amazing first issue of ‘Three’. Now we have the man do a weird comic if you think about it. Out of all the years the Ultimate universe been around, why do we need an origin for Thor now? Plus is Hickman the right choice? You would think this would be filled nothing with secret societies, bizarre concepts, and government conspiracies. Well you would be wrong dear readers!

This is a bit of a slow read at first, well at least once you get passed the crazy beginning. Hickman brings more insight into how Thor was ‘conceived’ in the Ultimate Universe but also shows us his life before going into that universe. It’s hard to figure out right now whether all of this Asgard stuff is pure imagination or not yet; but it’s fun trying to figure it out. I also think Hickman does a nice job with making this feel fresh considering there has been a lot of Thor stuff lately. Trust me, this reads nothing like JMS’s Thor or Gillen’s Thor at all. He still has the Norse mythology going with Ice Giants and other concepts like Runes. But for the most part it’s easy to understand and Hickman does give a good personality with Thor and Loki. Then you get the crazy stuff with Nazi’s, Baron Zemo, and the ridiculous final page image. If anything this issue is going to get crazy right away after all of this exposition.

Carlos Pacheco is a weird artist to consider for this series. Considering how Ultimate Avengers goes down, I didn’t think his hectic/action packed style would fit well in a Thor verse. But surprisingly it does, even though Hickman doesn’t give Pacheco a lot in terms of fighting here. Oh there are fights to be had, with Ice Giants and the brilliant opening two page spread; but for the most part it really is talking heads. With that though; Pacheco does a good job making characters feel new even if they’re already established. Loki and Balder looks nothing like their 616 counterpart and it actually makes it feels really fresh to look at. Zemo looks different too; but then again you can’t change much to a guy with a Purple mask.

This issue was a lot of fun to read. Hickman reconigured Thor’s origin just enough to make it feel fresh but not a completely different take on the character. The series is also going to get very wacky as far as I can tell with some of the plot points covered already. As long as Pacheco gets some good fight sequences to showcase his talents; then this is going to be a very fun mini to read.

Story: 5 - Excellent
Art: 5 - Excellent

Leave a Comment