Unleash the thunder with Thor, Folio’s latest in the Marvel Heroes series, showcasing the world’s mightiest Super Heroes. Witness the debut of the thunder god’s nemesis Loki in legendary comic books by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Walt Simonson.
‘So prominent did the son of Odin become that readers of every age were asking, "Who’s stronger, Thor or the Hulk?"’
Roy Thomas, from his Introduction
Behold a storm of comic-book creativity in Thor, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the hammer-wielding thunder god. Once again, Folio teams up with former Marvel Editor-in-Chief Roy Thomas, who selects and introduces 12 exemplary tales of mythological mayhem. Showcasing the talents of comic book legend Stan Lee, and including artists Jack ‘The King’ Kirby, Walter Simonson and more. These stories come scanned directly from the original comics, along with an immaculate replica of Thor’s 1962 debut book Journey Into Mystery #83. Sheathed in a signature slipcase stamped with a hammer icon and endpapers designed and illustrated by modern Marvel master John Romita Jr, this is the latest instalment in a series of themed collections focusing on some of the world’s most iconic Super Heroes, from Captain America and Spider-Man to the Incredible Hulk.
Bound in blocked cloth and paper printed with a design by John Romita Jr
Binding and slipcase design inked by Scott Hanna and colored by Peter Steigerwald
Prelims set in Miller with Benton Sans as display
288 pages printed in 4-colour throughout
Endpapers printed with a design by John Romita Jr
Cloth slipcase blocked with a design by John Romita Jr
Inspired by the ancient Norse sagas, Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Larry Lieber conceived the character of a feeble mortal doctor who – with a tap of his walking stick – could transform himself into the bellicose son of Odin, wielder of the magic hammer Mjolnir. Brought to life by the hyperkinetic art of Jack Kirby, working from a script by Larry Lieber (Stan’s younger brother), Thor debuted in the anthology title Journey Into Mystery #83. First published in the summer of 1962, this seminal comic book has been recreated as an immaculate replica included with this collection. This facsimile also includes three rarely seen tales by yet more legendary Marvel creators: Marie Severin, Don Heck and Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko.
‘Journey Into Mystery #83 established a caped, be-costumed stalwart closer to the ideal of a classic 1940s Super Hero than were the Hulk or the Fantastic Four.’
Roy Thomas, from his Introduction
Discover the first appearance of Thor’s malevolent adopted brother Loki from Journey Into Mystery #83, freed from his mystic prison to wreak havoc in New York City. Other classic grudge matches included in this collection are Thor’s devastating duels with the Hulk and the Greek god Hercules, the latter an immortal battle royale that launched the first issue of Thor in 1966. Also uncovered are stories by acclaimed writer-artist Walt Simonson, including ‘Doom!’, the first tale from the creator’s famed four-year run on the character. Simonson was responsible for bringing a now-familiar humour to the thunder god’s adventures in tales such as 1986’s ‘Thor Croaks!’, in which the mighty son of Odin finds himself transformed into a pugnacious frog! Concluding this collection are more sombre tales from modern-era Marvel, including the debut of a former love-interest turned thunder goddess. A collection of truly mythic proportions, Thor brings incredible battles, cosmic encounters and surreal humour from one of the most epic characters in the Marvel pantheon.
‘Trapped by Loki, the God of Mischief!’ – Journey Into Mystery #83 (October 1962)
‘The Mighty Thor Battles the Incredible Hulk!’ – Journey Into Mystery #112 (January 1965)
‘Whom the Gods Would Destroy!’ – Thor #126 (March 1966)
‘Like a Bat Out of Hel!’ – Thor #362 (December 1985)
‘Thor Croaks!’ – Thor #364 (February 1986)
‘Mjolnir’s Song’ – Thor #380 (June 1987)
‘Diner’ – Thor (2007) #2 (October 2007)
‘The God Butcher: A World Without Gods’ – Thor, God of Thunder #1 (January 2013)
‘If He Be Worthy’ – Thor (2014) #1 (December 2014)
Roy Thomas has been a writer and often editor in the comic book field since 1965, when he gravitated to Marvel to become Stan Lee’s assistant and protégé. He succeeded Stan Lee as Marvel’s editor-in-chief in 1972, and was only the second person to script a Spider-Man story. He has been at the forefront of the comics industry for much of his life and is credited with co-creating, amongst other characters, Wolverine, Vision, Carol Danvers, Ultron, Iron Fist, Red Sonja, Ghost Rider, Nighthawk, Banshee and Valkyrie. Thomas is currently editor of the fanzine Alter Ego, and in 2011 was elected to the Will Eisner Hall of Fame.
Stan Lee (1922–2018) – born Stanley Martin Lieber – was born and raised in Manhattan, the son of Romanian-Jewish immigrants. He became an assistant at Marvel’s precursor Timely Comics and was promoted to editor before he was 19. In 1961 he co-created The Fantastic Four #1 with artist Jack Kirby. The comic revitalised the Super Hero genre and helped establish the so-called Silver Age of comics. Lee went on to co-create numerous other characters including the Hulk, Spider-Man, Thor, Iron Man and many more. He served as editor-in-chief at Marvel Comics until 1972 and has since made dozens of cameo appearances in Marvel movies. He is widely regarded as one of the key architects of the Marvel Universe.
Larry Lieber (1931– ) was born in Manhattan, the younger brother of Stan Lee (né Stanley Martin Lieber). He studied art at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and wrote and illustrated numerous (uncredited) strips for Marvel forerunner Timely Comics. Returning from service in the US Air Force during the Korean War, Lieber continued to write and draw sci-fi and romance comics for Timely. Working from concepts developed by his older brother, Lieber scripted the debut issues of several Marvel icons in the early 1960s, notably Thor, Iron Man and Ant-Man. He eventually left Super Heroes in 1964 to begin a nine-year run writing and pencilling the Marvel Western Rawhide Kid, the title for which he is best remembered. He went on to work on various other Marvel projects including Captain Britain for Marvel UK and popular newspaper strips featuring the Hulk and Spider-Man. Lieber received San Diego Comic-Con’s Inkpot award in 2003 and a Bill Finger Award in 2008 for excellence in comic-book writing.
Jack Kirby (1917–94) – born Jacob Kurtzberg – was born and raised in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, the son of Austrian-Jewish immigrants. Self-taught, he began working in animation and comic books and co-created Captain America (with regular collaborator Joe Simon) for Marvel Comics’ predecessor Timely in 1940. Following service in the Second World War, Kirby worked at various comic book publishers before returning to Marvel, where he co-created the Fantastic Four in 1961. Several more iconic co-creations followed, among them Thor, the Hulk and Iron Man. A pivotal figure of the so-called Silver Age of American Super Hero comics, Kirby developed an explosively kinetic art style that continues to influence comic book culture the world over. He was aptly nicknamed ‘The King’.
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