COMIC BOOKS: Thor & Loki: Blood Brothers

Dean Poling, The Valdosta Daily Times, Ga.
·2 min read

Aug. 13—Maybe it's because the movie "Thor: Love & Thunder" was so silly.

Maybe it's because I like Norse mythology.

Maybe it's because Marvel online is offering discounted digital copies of "Thor" comics right now.

Whatever the reason, I find myself reaching for "Thor" comics lately. Comics that are still fun but take the thunder god a little more seriously than the latest movie.

"Thor & Loki: Blood Brothers" is one such book.

Though it should be titled "Loki & Thor" because Loki takes center stage here while Thor spends most of the featured story chained and imprisoned.

Writer Robert Rodi never explains how it happened but the story opens with Loki having finally vanquished Thor, Sif, Heimdall and the Warriors Three. A defeated and humiliated Thor is paraded through the streets. Loki rules Asgard. The other Norse gods bow to him. He's had some help from Karnilla the Norn queen. Hela wants Loki to hurry up and execute Thor so she can have his soul.

Loki learns that getting what he always wanted isn't a dream come true. Heavy is the head that wears the crown.

Rodi incorporates plenty of history from both the Marvel Comics version and actual Norse mythology in telling this tale. He delves into the psychology of the Loki-Thor relationship, scripts riveting adventure and dramatic court intrigue and brings the right amount of humor to the story.

That alone is worth the price of admission — even more so given the discount price, but you will want to visit these pages for the bold brushstrokes of artist Esad Ribic's painted pages. Each panel of each page is a painting. Each painting underscores every aspect of this multifaceted story. Readers will want to linger on each page, drinking in Ribic's powerful art.

The collection contains the full "Thor & Loki" miniseries as well as early Thor and Loki meetings by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and other encounters by other Marvel creative teams.

"Thor & Loki: Blood Brothers" is a few years old but it highlights what is best about a Thor story and the power of great comic book storytelling.