Thor #6

Writer – Jason Aaron
Artist – Russell Dauterman
Colours – Matthew Wilson

The Odinson’s investigation into just who the new Thor is continues and it is finding him increasingly perturbed.  He has a list but even after he crosses someone off, he still thinks that it might be them, like Sif or Amora or whoever.  Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman take us on a journey into sadness when the Odinson heads off to talk to Jane Foster, his former love who is dying of cancer.  It is a very surreal moment as you do not often see a character in the Marvel Universe die as such.  Captain Marvel was one and more recently Foggy Nelson went through a bout of it though he managed to live.  It is a little upsetting to see Jane Foster as she is and most of that can be attributed to Dauterman’s exquisite pencils.  If she should pass, it will be quite the tragic moment and the passing of an era in this title for sure.  The book also gives us a glimpse into Dario Agger’s past which showed how he came to be The Minotaur and all just before making a deal with Malekith which should shake up the realms going forward.  It will most likely make things interesting for Thor as she may now have to patrol not only Earth, but Svartalfheim as well.  For someone new to the powers of the Thunder God and the whole superhero thing, it might be just a little too much for her, though it will be fun to find out.  The best moment of the book has to go to Freya though for confronting her husband over the use of his brother Bor and by placing him in a position of power.  She and the rest of the gods have had to put up with Odin’s bad attitude ever since he returned and you can tell it has not been sitting right with some of them.  It was definitely one of the more standout moments from any book to be released this week.  To top it all off, Aaron leaves us on an exciting cliff-hanger, ensuring we will come back next issue to see how it all plays out.

4 out of 5

Spider-Man 2099 #10

Writer – Peter David
Artist – Will Sliney
Colours – Antonio Fabela

The second part of the latest arc finds Spidey still having to deal with the Maestro who wants to get back to today’s time in order to enact whatever master plan he has.  In order to do that, the Maestro needs Miguel to fix the time machine, something Miguel of course will not do.  With the help of Strange though, Miguel manages to escape his cell and when he thinks everything might be going good, he does indeed fix said machine and escapes back to his own time to hopefully put the future back on track.  Of course, things are not always that easy.  This was a great little tale by Peter David and Will Sliney as David proves once again, that nothing is ever as it seems in a story that he writes.  Of course with the involvement of the Maestro, you know he is going to have an ace up his sleeve.  The man might be a monster, but he is an extremely smart one.  There were a couple of intriguing things in the book, one being the mention of Banner and how he has essentially been lost within the Maestro and thus, that knowledge which comes with him which is why the Maestro has never been able to get Doom’s time machine working.  It is only a mention, but a great little bit of characterization for a villain we rarely see.  The other really interesting moment in the book was the trophy room which we have seen before, but is always great to get back to in the hopes of seeing something new.  One of the big items was the Hulk-buster armour, which is going to be featured in the new Avengers movie so that was a given to be featured.  Other items included Cyclops’ new mask, Spider-Woman’s new costume, the Winter Soldier’s arm and of course The Hood’s cloak which the Maestro puts to good use.  Next issue should be a whole lot of fun with the ending David left us on.  Always a great time with Spidey 2099!

3.5 out of 5