For my money, Tom Hiddleston stole the film with Thor. His portrayal of Loki was spot on by being mischievous but also having a bit of a soul as well. Loki, in my mind anyways, isn’t pure evil. He’s just going along with ‘his’ nature and I mean when your labeled the God of Mischeif what else can he do? It’s why I like Kieron Gillen’s take on Loki because he doesn’t make him pure evil. He’s like, to make a Lost reference, Ben Linus. He’s somewhat evil but he’s only doing it for the greater good. The last, or first I should say, issue of ‘Journey Into Mystery’ was my POTW because it was down right perfect.

This issue is really no different. Gillen just ‘gets’ Norse mythology and ‘gets’ the various characters roaming around Asgard. If it isn’t Loki, then it’s Volstogg, but if it’s not either of those two then it’s the enviroment around them. It’s a bit generic that Gillen is doing the ‘Shakespear’ route when it comes to the Thorverse, but if it works for the tone of the book then what should I care? I like it that Loki is a kid, a lot more then just JMS turning him into a woman, because Gillen is making him learn to be a better person but also conflicting with his nature. There is also a lot of good humor involved even if it can be groan worthy by Volstogg.

Doug Braithwaite’s pencils really fit this book for me. It has a nice, painted feel to it and it feels like I’m looking at a ‘history’ of paintings involving the characters. If that makes sense (probably not). Props should go to colorist Ulises Arrola as well though. A nice mix of pink’s, violet’s, and red’s make me feel like I’m looking into a Norse world.

Another good thing about this comic, other then a few mentions and a Thor cameo, Fear Itself is no where to be found. That’s what makes this comic almost perfect for me. Gillen had to get Siege into the mix and it was a mix bag in his last run. This time Gillen has learned from his mistakes and is telling a pretty fun story involving Loki growing up. Even if it gets ridiculous with beasts and talking birds, Gillen is telling a nice coming of age tale. Now that he’s going to Hel though, we’ll see just how ridiculous Gillen can make this series be.