The Good

In THOR: GOD OF THUNDER's first story arc, the Avenger was facing a character powerful enough to slaughter Gods and even potentially remove them from existence. In the next story, the son of Odin was challenged by a dark Elf, Malekith, who went jumping from realm to realm, creating fear and ultimately gaining power. Each arc has provided Thor with an obstacle no mere human could ever hope to tackle and has sent him travelling across the cosmos. However, what happens when Thor's biggest threat is a greedy CEO who's above the law and is harming Midgard, the place Thor aims to protect?

You definitely have to give Jason Aaron credit for hitting the God of Thunder with an all-new kind of obstacle. This isn't someone he can simply hunt down and pummel with Mjolnir... at least not yet, that is. Seeing as this is a jumping on point, the whole issue is dedicated to two things: establishing the plot and giving us a stronger connection to Roz Solomon, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s environmental scientist and Thor's potential love interest. Everything is paced out very well and, considering his previous scripts with this series, it should come as no real surprise that it's well-written, too. There's a few good jokes in here (love the bit with Coulson) and, because it's a pretty absorbing chapter, it'll feel like a quick read when all is said and done.

This new story, The Last Days of Midgard, also marks the return of future Thor. Aaron provides a fine connection between the two eras but reserves the big surprise for what comes at the end of King Thor's story. It's definitely a powerful hook and, given Thor's dialogue just moments early, it'll be interesting to see where things go from here. There's about a 99.9% chance that final splash page will make you want to purchase the next issue.

THOR: GOD OF THUNDER #19 also sees the return of artist Esad Ribic (now with colorist Ive Svorcina). Ribic's character work is strong and strives for a more realistic approach, but where he really shines is with truly magnificent moments. Be it landscapes, effects or just flat-out jaw-dropping scenes in the script, Ribic does a spectacular job filling the pages with awe-inspiring material and a sense of grandeur. There's two phenomenal splash pages that are sure to keep your eyes focused on the them for quite some time. Just like Ribic, Svorcina seems to really thrive with the bigger moments. You almost feel submerged with the characters during the underwater sequence and the exterior shots of Earth with the sun's light barely peeking out -- modern are future -- are beautifully brought to life. It's a bit of a spoiler, but the way future Earth feels unfocused really hits us with how arid the planet has become.

The Bad

Ribic's artwork doesn't feel quite as consistent as it was in the debut story and some of the character work -- most notably facial expressions -- seem not as strong as what we've previously seen from him. Also, the first splash page doesn't feel like it warrants a whole page. Sure, the moment itself is pretty cool, but for us, it's not all that epic, especially when compared to the other splash pages and what we've seen in the series so far. It definitely looks like it would have been just as effective with only a panel that takes up half a page or so. Minor gripe: I would have had no idea that's Agent Coulson if Roz didn't say his name.

Personal gripe: maybe it's because there wasn't enough time, but it's always distracting whenever the background is taken out of a panel and it's just characters talking while surrounded completely by white. So much effort is made to pull us into these fictional worlds, so when that happens, it tends to totally shatter the illusion.

The Verdict

THOR: GOD OF THUNDER #19 is a jumping on point and I strongly recommend you do just that. While opening chapters can often feel overburdened by exposition and info dumps, Aaron's able to set the stage without ever letting go of our interest. That's thanks to some swift pacing, sharp writing, and of course, some legitimately grand artwork by Ribic. Seriously, you don't even need to be a Thor fan to fall in love with this series.

What I thought would happen, did happen so taking that out of the equation, I would say this issue succeeded in setting out what it needed to do. Considering it's the beginning of a new story arc, there's always going to be the impression of things being rushed and this is not an exception. We got to know the bad guy, we got to see Roz in action (somewhat) so what's left is to look forward to where this is going. Plus, it was nice to see another character which has been missing for some time. Cameo appearance, true, but still fun.

I do have to say, I was excited to read future Thor. If anything, that was what got my attention most - I did not see that coming (the ending) and that's awesome.

Still loving this series.

The whole God butcher, God bomb Thor story was one of my favorites from last year, hoping this book returns to those heights

Question to anyone who has read this... Is this a good jumping on point to start reading the series?

@humanrocket said:

I couldn't be a reviewer. I would rip my hair out after just a handful of these questions.

@humanrocket:

Yes this is exactly a good starting point, but for the love of god almighty please PLEASE buy the god butcher/god bomb arcs in trade it's one of the best thor storylines ever if not THE best

@falconer: errr ummm good for you???

@movieartman: I'll see if I can find those in trade form thanks for the answer ill pick this up right now.

@humanrocket: If you had actually read the review you would've had your answer.

@falconer: ummm okay

This was a solid start for this new arc. My biggest gripe, the last three pages with Old Thor looks like completely rushed, and even worse, unfinished art. I really hope that doesn't become a trend.

I viewed it as their way of presenting the harsh atmosphere.

I'd like to lie and say you get used to it, but you really don't. Anyway, thanks for pointing out that question is answered (twice!) in the review, though :D

Really love this run.

Dang it! Now I'm excited for the next issue.

This is sad. Instead of stuttering "ummmm" and "errr" try reading or at least look at the pretty picture with HUGE #1 at the top. Don't act like the person calling you out was in the wrong.

@movieartman: I just bought those two last week and started it last night. It is truly amazing and how Jason has such an amazing handle on three different versions of Thor is truly a testament to his writing abilities.

Thought this issue was brilliant, Roz Solomon is becoming a new favourite character already, and wow those splash pages were jaw-dropping.

I was bored out of my mind until the last few pages. They were so awesome.

1st of all the question I asked was not if this is a jumping on point I asked whether or not if it was a GOOD jumping on point. Last weeks Captain America issue was a jumping on point but most people said it was NOT A GOOD jumping on point because the issue focused on Jet Black and the aftermath of Dimension Z so readers who want to get into the comics would be very confused. I wanted to know if this was a good jumping on point for readers who did not read any of the prior issues. 2nd I don't appropriate snarky responses so I will reply back with snarky replies my rule of I'll treat you the way you treat me. 3rd I would really appreciate it if you would not try to get overworked over a topic that was already taking care of by the user that have already commented above I am over it so don't try to start something.

@humanrocket: ummmm errrrrr uhhhhhh okkkkkkk...

I just read that issue yesterday. I did'nt read this series before, but the Cover Artwork and the synopsis got me really interested and DAMN, that was really entertaining for me.

For me, it was a quite good jumping on point. yeah, I feel like I don't know how far the relationship of Thor and Solomon went so far, but let's be real: it's not hat hard to guess and with that series with that kind of long history you always don't have an utterly perfect starting point unless you pick up the first issue from the 60ies. I know the character basics from my childhood comicreading experiences and other series i read now. So in my situation, this is a fully adequate jumping on point.

The good thing thing that i read #19 kinda late was that I could read the next issue directly after that and now I'm even more hooked.

@k4tzm4n: Even though it was a totally exciting read for me, I'm getting some of the points you critize. That scene pictured in the splash page you mentioned really didn't seemed to be worthy of beeing a splash page. It was awesome art nonthetheless. I have a feeling that it was a sketch which Ribic did just for fun in the beginning and maybe Aaaron liked it that much that he proposed to use it for his script?

I would'nt have recognized Coulson, too.