Hello and welcome to another week of comic book greatness right here in Ye Olde School Café! Ya know, we here at ComicAttack.net are privileged to have a forum to relay these great stories, news blurbs, etc., but I feel I’d be doing a disservice to myself and to this great country if I didn’t say thank you to all the veterans out there that make our freedom possible! OK, that being said, let’s jump back into the world of Asgard and the mighty Thor! Last week in part 1 we saw Loki trick a news reporter, Harris Hobbs, into hiding inside a machine built at Stark Technologies. Then, Loki also tricked Thor into taking the machine to Asgard for safe keeping. At that point, Loki revealed himself as the Asgardians reeled in shock at the presence of humans in their homeland. Loki then told everyone in shouting distance that he intends to bring about Ragnarok, and the death of all the gods!
As Loki is trying to instill fear in everyone, Thor approaches him with bad intentions, but being the crafty dude he is, he quickly transforms into a rat of all things and hides under a statue. All of a sudden, Odin appears on his creepy horse, Sleipnir, and tells his people where he has been (secret mission). Odin tells them how he visited Mimir for advice, but Mimir demands payment and Odin plucks out his own eye and tosses it in the fire! He then travels to Hel, and consults an old witch named Volla. She tells him that Balder will die and Ragnarok will commence. The meeting is then broken up by a cameo from Hela, who then threatens Odin. Odin returns to Asgard to the loving arms of Frigga, his wife. He tells everyone about his adventures in Hel and that he picked up Hoder along the way. As Odin is telling everyone about his adventure, Sif and Thor have a moment together. In a dark corner, the cameraman, Roger, is jealous of the moment they’re having, but that won’t be a problem until later.
Meanwhile, Balder is talking to the Warriors Three about his invulnerability. He tells them to give it their best shot at hurting him and they comply. Arrows, spears, whatever, it all either doesn’t find its way or can’t even scratch him. Loki is lurking and tells Hoder that he should join in the fun, so he gives the blind archer a bow and arrow that Loki says he made especially for him. Balder coaxes Hoder to shoot, and he does. Balder is then struck with an arrow made of mistletoe wood. This is the only thing that can harm him, and it strikes Balder’s heart. As he lurches to the ground, Thor runs to his aid, but it is too late. Balder, the key to Ragnarok, is dead, and nothing can seemingly stop it.
As Thor is just about to give Loki a beating, Odin intercedes and tells Thor that they don’t have the time to quarrel, as they must now prepare for the horde of beasts that will be coming to kill everyone. Odin also orders Hermod to go to Hel (haha) to investigate what may be done to win back the soul of Balder the Brave. Hermod swiftly departs, and the humans are scratching their heads about what will happen next. They plot to still film everything that is going to happen, and their first stop is to film the corpse of Balder. As they do, Sif enters and talks with Roger about earthly customs. Roger then tries to put the moves on her and she snaps out on him and tells him off. This infuriates Roger, and as he walks away he’s approached by Loki. Loki tells him he can be like Thor if he would allow him to use him for a sinister purpose. Roger agrees, and the two disappear.
Odin then appears and begins to rally the troops for the oncoming battle. Hoder begs Odin to kill him to atone for his sin. Odin tells him to forget that and be ready to play his part in the war ahead. As this is going on, Loki is rallying his troops as well. Trolls, dwarves, and every other evil being in the nine realms to get ready to attack. Having heard Loki’s lies, Thor swoops in and the two start a huge brawl, and Loki actually gives Thor a bit of a beating. Thor then summons his Belt of Strength (yes, it’s really one of his weapons) to aid him in his fight. He finally gets the upper hand on Loki, but the army of trolls and dwarves then jump into the mix. Thor manages to beat them back long enough to gather Hobbs and his crew and fly back to Asgard. While there, Odin tells Thor that he must make a sacrifice to save Balder. Odin then transfers the Odinforce to Balder, which allows him to stay in a coma rather than be taken totally by Hela. He then slouches to the ground and Thor is left wondering how they can stave off Ragnarok without the mighty hand of Odin!
Come back next week for the awesome battle and conclusion to this great story of Thor and Asgard. Nobody does this kind of story better than Roy Thomas, and the artwork by the great John Buscema is awesome as well! See you next week!
Billy Dunleavy
billy@comicattack.net
