Thor #181 — Nick Peron

May 2

May 2 Thor #181

One God Must Fall!

21 21 05 02 %h 02 57 nv4ww.png — Credits

Loki has swapped bodies with Thor, which has resulted in the thunder god being banished to Mephisto’s realm while the trickster ruins his reputation on Earth. To save Thor’s life, Sif has recruited the Warriors Three. When they arrive in Mephisto’s domain they discover that the Lord of Darkness has trapped Thor in a block of ice.

The four warriors try to fight Mephisto, but the demon uses his magics to toy with them. Thor can only watch helplessly while thinking of the circumstances that led to his being trapped in Hell. While Mephisto is busy with the Warriors Three, Sif tries to shatters Thor’s icy prison with her sword. Knowing that this won’t work, Thor uses Loki’s magic to send her sword flying into the next of a nearby fire creature. As he predicted, this monster then attacks his frozen form, melting the ice with the flames that surround its body. Finally free, Thor vows to use all the power at his command to free himself and set things right. Mephisto boasts that all is lost for the thunder god as he knows that Loki — using Thor’s appearance — is now threatening the United Nations.

On Earth, Loki has appeared before he UN Council and orders them to make him the ruler of Earth or he will rain destruction down upon them. Unfortunately, the members of the council refuse to be threatened and vow to fight “Thor” no matter what. Before Loki can start attacking them, Balder appears and challenges him to battle. During the battle, Balder mocks Loki for not having the skill to effectively use Thor’s powers in battle. Angered, Loki lets slip that he has taken over Thor’s form, foiling his own schemes to ruin Thor’s good name.

Back in Hell, Thor places Sif and the others in protective force fields so he might face Mephisto alone. Thor has figured that a physical battle will not work against the demon and so he uses Loki’s magic to shrink his body so that his very soul radiates out as powerfully as possible. The sight of such a pure hearted soul sickens Mephisto who allows them to leave his domain in order to get the offending goodness from affecting his domain.

The five Asgardians are then returned to the Bifrost Bridge, where Thor tells Sif to inform Odin of what has transpired while he goes back to Earth and face his step-brother in battle. As it turns out, Odin has emerged from his chambers and already knows what’s been going on. However, the All-Father refuses to step in, confident that Thor will succeed on his own.

When Thor arrives on Earth, he uses Loki’s magic to teleport himself and his brother to a nearby construction site where they can battle without harming any innocent bystanders. There, Thor tricks Loki into throwing Mjolnir, imbedding it in a concrete wall. Attacking Loki, Thor then keeps his brother away from Mjolnir for sixty seconds. This causes the enchantment that reverts Thor back to Donald Blake to kick in. The sudden transformation also reverses the body swap. Quickly, Donald Blake races to regain his walking stick and transforms into Thor again. With his scheme in ruins, the battered Loki vows to get revenge and teleports away.