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February 7, 2011

One-Shot At Greatness #45 Marvels Comics: Thor

Filed under: One-Shot At Greatness — Doorman @ 9:01 am

Because publishers want you to buy their product every month, comics are typically serial in nature. However, occasionally (and more often nowadays than ever before) publishers launch a comic title that is only meant to last for one issue. While ongoing series often have multiple chances to hook in new readers, the comics highlighted in this ongoing investigations only had One-Shot At Greatness!

Marvels Comics: Thor #1Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Date: July 2000
Cover Price: $2.25
Writer: Ty Templeton
Artist: Derec Aucoin

In 2000, Marvel published a series of one-shots that revealed what Marvel Comics would be like in the Marvel Universe.

*Warning! Plot Spoilers Below*

Just like the Thor we’ve come to know, this Thor fights criminals with a lightning-summoning hammer and a speaks in a manner different than our every-day lanuage. But, when he gets back to his home base, we discover that his speech is actually quite normal – he puts on a show in public. And, the lightning coming from his hammer is actually an electronic charge.

His real name is Donald Jolson, and he’s actually the second person to become the crimefighter named Thor. Owen, the first Thor, bequeathed the name, costume and weaponry to his youngest son after a battle with the Destroyer (controlled by Owen’s brother, Vi) permanently damaged his leg. Now, the Destroyer is being controlled by Don’s older brother, Leonard. And, you can bet that Len’s not too happy that he was passed up for the Thor position. Can this new Thor defeat the one foe his father could not?

There’s a lot packed in here. First, they’ve got to cover the origin of the first Thor and how his powers work. Then, they’ve got to establish how the position of Thor was handed down to Don, upsetting his older brother, Len. All this set up goes towards the payoff – a showdown between the brothers!

Ultimately, it is fun to see how closely this mirrors the Thor mythos we’ve come to know, incorporating the relationships with his father Odin and his jaded brother, Loki. And, while this does give a “real-world” feel to how creators in the Marvel Universe might portray Thor, it does take away the root of what makes Thor stories enjoyable – the grand mythology behind it all. This version offers no feeling of storied mythology and turns the story of Thor into just another average super-hero tale.

On Ebay: Marvels Comics | Thor | Ty Templeton | Derec Aucoin
On AtomicAvenue: Marvels Comics

2 Comments »

  1. […] One-Shot at Greatness #45 Marvel Comics:  Thor from Cyberspace Comics […]

    Pingback by LAST WEEK on the ‘net | Ty Templeton's Art Land — February 13, 2011 @ 3:55 am

  2. […] One-Shot At Greatness #45 Marvels Comics: Thor from Cyberspace Comics […]

    Pingback by LAST WEEK on the ‘net: Feb 4-10 2013 | Ty Templeton's ART LAND!! — April 1, 2013 @ 1:54 pm

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