“That’s for saying feminist like it’s a four-letter word, creep.” 

Read my reviews of issue #1, issue #2, issue #3, and issue #4.

“The mysterious all-new Thor has taken Midgard by storm. But if her enemies have their say, her reign as the Goddess of Thunder will be a short one. Prince Odinson is making a list and checking it twice. All-Father Odin is so desperate to see Mjolnir returned to Asgard that he will call on some very dangerous, very unexpected allies. And the Absorbing Man and Titania are just up to their usual tricks. Namely, robbing banks and crushing anyone who dares get in their way.”

Last time, the God of Thunder confronted the Goddess of Thunder and REALLY wanted his hammer back, but after seeing Mjolnir respond to her in a way that it never responded to him, he conceded that she was worthy. The two worked together to make Malekith back off, but he’s got more tricks up his sleeve.

This issue opens with Odin being SUPER unhappy about Mjolnir being “corrupted and stolen,” and ordering the Goddess to be brought to justice. Meanwhile, in Manhattan, she’s fighting a giant rock golem (Crusher Creel). Crusher serves as a voice for all the skeptics toward Thor being a woman who were (are?) out there. He uses some language which insinuates sexual assault toward her, but she kicks his ass completely. After she beats Crusher up, his wife, Titania, shows up, and isn’t happy someone other than herself broke her husband’s jaw. She says, “Thor? Thor’s a woman now? Like the for-real Thor? She ain’t called She-Thor or Lady Thunderstrike or nothing like that?” which, again, echoes the sentiments of many before the comic was published. Then something awesome happens between them that I won’t spoil, but I absolutely loved.

Meanwhile, Odin is still pissed, and Freyja and previous Thor (pThor from now on) are trying to tell him to calm down, that the hammer is hers now by right. He basically throws a tantrum for the entire issue and it’s insufferable. Cul Borson, God of Fear and all-around super-creepy-looking guy, shows up in the middle of one of these tantrums. pThor asks what he’s doing there, and Odin reveals that Cul (his brother) is reformed and joining the court as the royal inquisitor and minister of justice. Now it’s pThor’s turn to be pissed off, because Cul previously tried to murder him and attack Midgard. Odin doesn’t even want to respect the process of appointment. I don’t know if he’s always like this or what, but I REALLY don’t like him.

Later, pThor approaches Lady Sif at the bar, where she reveals she’s been drinking alone ever since he left her bedside “like a bilgesnipe with its tail in flames;” pThor says that’s not how it went. They toast to each other wistfully. I really enjoyed this scene, because it showed Sif as both upset that he left her and able to cope with being around him in her own spitfire way – their relationship is interesting, and I hope we see more of it as the series goes on. We see pThor with a list of who else could be behind the mask. I only recognized a few names – Jane Foster, Lorelei, Sif, and Loki – but I assume the comic will now follow both his detective work and Thor’s protection of Midgard.

Elsewhere, a conversation takes place between Freyja and Thor, with Thor thinking to herself, “I have to be very careful around her. I know how sharp she is. She can’t learn my secret. No one can learn my secret.” Freyja doesn’t seem to be too interested in her secrets, but does want to warn her of all the bad stuff coming her way. I really adored this scene of them together, and I’m SO curious as to Thor’s identity – especially as her own thoughts are still in common language/font instead of Asgardian. Back at the bar, pThor brings up Fury’s whisper, which we still don’t know the contents of.

I enjoyed the new artist – the comic loses none of its detail, and there are a lot of truly gorgeous pages. There seemed to be a lot more dialogue in this issue, which I really appreciated. There weren’t any letters to the editor this time, which is too bad. I’ve been enjoying them.

Written by: Jason Aaron
Art by: Jorge Molina
Cover by: Russell Dauterman
22 pages
Get it on Comixology, Marvel Digital, or at your local comic shop for $3.99.