Thor #6 // Review
Thor #6, written by Donny Cates, with art by Nic Klein, and colors by Matt Wilson, brings "The Devourer King" arc to a stunning conclusion that will leave your jaw on the floor. Previously, a weakened Galactus came to Asgard to ask for help from Thor to defend the universe against the "Black Winter." As the cosmic threat loomed, Odinson saw no choice but to help the world devourer find and consume five unique planets containing energy that would power up Galactus enough to take on the Black Winter one-on-one. Taking on the position of his enemy's herald, and accepting his gift of the power cosmic, Thor became more powerful than he had ever been before. Unfortunately, the road trip got off to a rocky start, as Galactus proved to be much less concerned with the lives of the people living on the planets they sought than Thor. The simmering tension between the two finally boiled over when Galactus decided to immediately consume the last world upon finding it, killing all of its citizens. Thor looked to take all of his anger out on his new master but was interrupted by the arrival of the Black Winter. After a brief confrontation, the cosmic storm-given-life revealed that it was not there to destroy Thor's universe, as it had previously done to Galactus'. Instead, it was there to kill the world devourer, himself, because he is the herald of the Black Winter. Now, Thor must decide what side to take before--nope, wait, he's definitely immediately siding with the Black Winter to deliver Galacus'tus head on a plate. Enjoy the fight, folks.
If you thought Cates' story had a great concept but meandered a little in the middle, then this is the action-packed conclusion you've been waiting for. Though there's not much to the story this issue, the excitement and weight of Thor's actions in this chapter are almost too much to bear. Thor, at his most powerful, makes a decision that will rumble throughout the halls of this title for years to come. Hopefully, Cates has many issues of fallout planned, because the repercussions of this plot cannot, and should not, be brushed aside easily.
As this story arc started with a status quo change for everyone's favorite thunder god, so it concludes with one, as well. Cates seems to have some exciting plans for where he wants to go with the story, even hinting at it a little within this issue, but he does leave the readers wondering what could possibly come next that would even be a threat to the current Odinson. It seems inevitable that he will have to walk back his own story progression or conceive of something so ridiculously powerful to oppose Thor, that it would be ludicrous to even imagine a fight between the two.
Klein is at his strongest this issue, and that's saying a lot, considering his solid work on Thor, so far. He is not the obvious artist for a cosmically epic grand adventure book but combined with the dazzling colors of Matt Wilson, it's hard to imagine anyone else bringing this story to life.
In the end, this was an exciting and shocking conclusion to Cates' first Thor arc, and it sets up the rest of his run perfectly. If you're not intrigued about what he has in store for Odinson after reading this issue, your vital signs should be checked. This title is history in the making, and if you're a Marvel fan, you'll want to stick around to be on the front lines of it monthly.
