Journey into Mystery #125

Jan 15

Jan 15 Journey into Mystery #125

When Meet the Immortals!

21 21 01 15 %h 32 30 2l7cs.png — Credits

Thor has traveled to Asia to stop the Demon, a powerful force that has been laying waste to villages and armies across the continent. Face-to-face with this menace, Thor discovers the source of the Demon’s power is one of the Norn Stones.[1] Although the two agree to a trial by combat, the Demon soon orders his armies to fire upon the thunder god. Thor has decided that enough is enough and he will put an end to this mockery here and now.

Meanwhile, somewhere in America, Hercules has arrived on Earth and has fallen asleep on a quiet mountain slope. His slumber is interrupted when he hears a train whistle and goes to investigate the source of the noise. At the bottom of the hill, he sees a passenger train has come to a stop because a tree has fallen on the tracks. Hercules comes down and offers the engineers his aid and they are stunned when Hercules lifts the tree off the tracks and tosses it aside with his bare hands. The crew is so grateful for Hercule’s assistance they allow him to ride the train into the city for free.

Back in Asia, Thor has tossed Mjolnir into one of the cannons operated by the Demon’s armies. The resulting explosion is enough to stun the Demon long enough for Thor to reclaim the Norn Stone. With this done, Thor teleports back to Asgard to return the missing stone, not wanting to get the job done so he can be reunited with his beloved Jane Foster. Thor braces himself for Odin’s reaction to the fact that he revealed his secret identity to Jane Foster.[2] At first, it appears that Odin is unphased by the fact that Thor revealed the truth to Jane Foster. However, when Thor attempts to leave, the All-Father orders Balder to slay Thor in the Ritual of Steel for betraying his orders. Thor refuses to participate nor will he allow anyone to stop him from returning to Earth. Thor soon finds himself having to fight through an army of his own people that have been summoned by Odin to stop the thunder god.

By this time, Hercules has arrived in New York City, and the story of how he had saved the train is causing quite the stir. Sitting at a restaurant, Hercules draws a mass of people who are interested to learn more about him and his great strength. Among those is a talent agent who calls his boss and recommends they cast this stranger in the role of their next Hercules film. That’s when a gang of thieves tries to rob the place but are quickly dealt with by Hercules.

The noise from the battle attracts the attention of Jane Foster who is being discharged from the hospital.[3] Thinking that only Thor has the power to deal with crooks like this, Jane goes down to the street but is surprised to see that it was actually Hercules that was responsible for stopping the robbery. As she approaches the Olympian, the talent agent is trying to convince Hercules to sign on to a movie deal. However, Herc becomes more interested in Jane Foster and shoves the agent into a wastebasket and leaves with Jane.

While in Asgard, Thor fights through the armies set against him. When he reaches the edge of the Bifrost Bridge, he finds Heimdall waiting for him. Not even the guardian of the Bifrost can keep Thor from escape back to Earth. In the aftermath of the battle, Balder offers to surrender his sword to Odin for his failure, but the All-Father tells the warrior that this is not Balder’s fault and begins observing his son’s activities on Earth.

When Thor finally finds Jane Foster he is shocked to see her in a diner eating a meal with Hercules. When he demands to know what is going on, Jane explains that she was tired of Thor always disappearing on her. When Hercules tries greeting the thunder god after the centuries since their last encounter, Thor shoves him aside, telling the Olympian to butt out of his affairs.[4]

When Hercules shoves Thor back, the two gods start coming to blows.

… This story is continued in Thor #126.

Recurring Characters

Thor, the Demon, Hercules, Jane Foster, Odin, Balder, Heimdall

Continuity Notes

Thor unknowingly dropped this Norn Stone on the ground when returning them to Asgard back in Journey into Mystery #120. It came into the Demon’s possession in issue #123.
Thor revealed his secret identity to Jane last issue. This was against Odin’s decree that he never reveals his true identity to Jane back in Journey into Mystery #90.
Jane was hospitalized for smoke inhalation in Journey into Mystery #122.
Thor and Hercules last encountered each other in Journey into Mystery Annual #1.

The Queen Commands!

Thor and Loki are leading a voyage across the ocean to try and find and stop whatever force is about to bring upon Ragnarok. Their ship has now come upon the domain of the flying trolls of Thryhem. As their ship is sieged by an army of flying trolls, Thor orders his valiant warriors to prepare for battle. While Thor, the Warriors Three, Balder and the others fight the insectile horde, Loki retreats to the bowels of the ship with Korda and Magrat. There they feed a number of potions into a stove and the resulting fumes cause the flying trolls to begin falling from the sky.

Loki boats over his victory, but Thor is none to happy because his step-brother’s actions have only angered the trolls even more. Moments later, another group of flying trolls swoops past the ship, carrying off Loki as their prisoner. The capture of Loki is relayed back to the troll’s leader, Queen Ula. As she planned, Thor is heading her way and she orders her minions to prepare a fitting welcome to the god of thunder.

… This story continues in Thor #126.