Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Thor God Of Thunder #14Thor: God of Thunder #14
Marvel Comics
Aaron, Garney & Svorcina

"The Accursed" arc rolls into the second issue and provides an entertaining and dense read. What Aaron manages to do (and do well) in this issue is introduce a motley cast of characters, while pushing the evil threat forward and have the two forces square off in a fairly large scale battle. The book is still getting under way in its arc so there is plenty more to come. This is a fun read.

The comic opens with a faction of Dwarves and Elves meeting up to discuss the Dark Elf, Malekith, and his murderous path. The banter during these first few pages is terrific. It sets up the situation well and it's entertaining and funny. These pages could have been total throwaway but with the way it's executed it's extremely well done.

Next we check in with Malekith and his next prey. This gives the reader the ruthlessness of the villain and it provides a glimpse into his motivations. I enjoyed this short scene but I'm not sure it was setup properly.

The bulk of the book is of Thor and friends rounding up a posse to hunt down Malekith. Thor is stopped because the task is to be a joint effort. Aaron then introduces a cast to accompany Thor that includes a Light Elf, a Dwarf, a Giant, a Troll and a Dark Elf. This feels a little too Lord-of-the-Rings-like but it was enjoyable nonetheless.

The book concludes with the Thor-led party seeking out the Dwarf-Elf contingent only to find Malekith in what turns out to be a fun and bloody battle.

The book is a very solid read. It stops short of being outstanding because the story is still just starting out. With so many new characters getting thrown into the mix in this issue there really isn't much room to explore before throwing them into a battle. On the other hand I love that Aaron isn't taking his sweet time to get to the action.

Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle ReviewsThe artwork is outstanding. There are some panels that are epic and grand that it truly is poster-worthy. The inks have a lighter touch to them but it helps to give the colors some room to stand out against the pencils. The book looks lovely and once the action starts the art takes over the comic book.

Thor is a fantastic read. Aaron is taking this book in a direction that allows him to tell grand tales that occur on the fringes of the Marvel Universe and that is a welcome shift from the Avengers stories. This issue brings together more characters to take on Malekith but it doesn't resolve the arc. This is going to be a fun arc to read and I can't wait for the next three issues to come out.

3.5 out of 5 Geek Goggles