Thor #291
When Gods Have Joined Together!
Thor has returned to Olympia, the home of the Eternals. His search to learn why Odin was seen bowing to the Celestials a millennia ago has let to his exile from Asgard with no answers.[1] There he meets with Zuras, patriarch of the Eternals, who still intends to form the Uni-Mind and attack the Celestials directly. Thor tries to make Zuras reconsider but this falls on deaf ears. Soon all the Eternals gather around their leader and merge together to become the massive Uni-Mind and head off into space to attack the Celestial starship outside Earth’s orbit.
No sooner are they gone does Odin appear with Zeus and an army of Olympians to destroy Olympia. Zeus and his followers are eager to destroy this land because many of the Eternals have been mistaken for the Olympians in the past and he considers them nothing but pretenders.[2] However, Thor refuses to allow them to attack the home of his allies, even if this means fighting his own father.[3] Hercules tries to get Thor to stand down given their past friendship, but the Asgardian thunder god refuses to do so. With Odin not caring if his son is harmed in the confrontation, the Greek gods begin laying waste to the Eternals home. When Thor attempts to stop them, Odin uses his magic to force his son to revert back to his mortal form of Don Blake, making him powerless to stop the destruction.
The damage done to Olympia causes the central tower that is used to create the Uni-Mind to being to shake. This causes the Eternals to lose cohesion and they return to their city and separate from one another. There is a tense moment between Zuras and Zeus, where the Eternals demand that the intruders leave. However, Zeus calls Zuras a pretender to his glory and strikes the Eternal’s patriarch. This leads to all out war between the force of Olympus and the Eternals.
Meanwhile, back in Asgard, Sif continues monitoring the Warriors Three who were ordered by Odin to do battle with Fafnir the dragon. The trio found themselves overwhelmed and are about to be destroyed when they are suddenly rescued by the three Young Gods, humans transformed into gods by Odin some time ago.[4]
Back in Olympia, the battle rages on with many Eternals fighting their Grecian counterparts. In particular, the so-called Forgotten One and Hercules. The Prince of Power is furious that the Forgotten One had stolen his glory of his twelve labors many centuries earlier.[5]
On the sidelines, Don refuses to stand by and let the Eternals fight alone and prepares to tap his walking stick on the ground. Odin saves him the trouble by changing him back into Thor. Thor then attacks his father, demanding answers to the mysteries he has been trying to unravel. Insulted that his own son would attack him, Odin defends himself and refuses to answer anything, saying that he deserves nobody an explanation for his actions.
As the battle rages on, victors soon begin to emerge on both sides of the conflict. In on corner, Ikaris wins a battle against Ares, the Olympian god of war. While on another, the speedsters Hermes and Makkari duke it out, with former proving the fleeter combatant.[6] The battle is less decisive in other places with Thena and Athena still in a draw. At that same time, Karkas and Ransak the Reject hold their own against the legion of Yellow Crested Titans brought to the battle, while Sersi uses her powers to make the Olympian foot soldiers believe they have been transformed into wood.
Elsewhere on Earth, the allies of the Eternals wait for some word of what is going on. In New York City, Margo Damian waits to hear word on the status of her father, archeologist Daniel Damian. While contained with in a Celestial dome placed over ancient Aztec temples, Daniel wonders why Ajak left his post watching over the Celestial known as Arishem the Judge and wonders when his friend will be back.[7]
Back at the scene of the battle, a number of Eternals try to rush Zeus when he orders his people to slay their foes. They are easily blasted aside, prompting Zuras to fight the Olympian patriarch one-on-one. Not far away, the battle between Thor and Odin rages on. The thunder god demands answers from his father, but the All-Father refuses to explain himself. He tells Thor that he doesn’t understand the stakes of what is going on. Firing a bolt of energy from Gunganir, Odin fells his son. Standing over Thor, Odin is poised to make a fatal blow. He wishes he doesn’t have to kill his son for a second time. Unfortuantely, there is no choice in the matter because he made a bond stronger than one between father and son.[8]
Recurring Characters
Thor, Eternals (Zuras, Ikaris, Thena, Makkari, Valkin, Sersi, Ajak, Sprite, Forgotten One, Aginar, Uni-Mind), Karkas, Ransak the Reject, Odin, Zeus, Hercules, Ares, Hermes, Athena, One Above All, Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Fafnir, Young Gods (Harvest, Genii, Brightsword) Margo Damian, Arishem the Judge, Daniel Damian
Continuity Notes
Thor was shown this vision by the Celestials in Thor #288. He quested to Asgard for answers in the following issue.
It’s interesting to note that Zeus and Zuras once were amicable with one another. Having met in the distant past the two made a pact with Zuras’ daughter Zura renaming herself Thena after Athena, one of Zeus’ daughters. This was all detailed in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Deluxe Edition #9’s profile on the Olympians.
Here, Zeus comments that Thor is even more audacious than when they last met. This story refers readers to the events of Thor Annual #8. However, that story took place in the distant past during the Torjan War. Zeus and Thor have met many times in more modern times as early as Journey into Mystery #124.
The three Young Gods were created back in Thor #203 when Odin drained the power of Ego-Prime to transform three ordinary humans into gods. This is part of a long running scheme to create a new race of gods to prove humanity’s potential to the Celestials, as will be revealed in Thor #300.
According to Grecian mythology, Hercules was responsible for accomplishing 12 feats that were considered astonishing for the era. The fifth of which was cleaning the Augean stables of King Augeas. This task was claimed to have been done by both Hercules and the Forgotten One over the years. Incredible Hercules #116 clarifies, stating that Hercules started the (pardon the pun) herculean task, it was the Forgotten One who got the job done.
Makkari makes an off the cuff comment that he always believed Hermes — aka Mercury — was a myth created from people mispronouncing his own name. Makkari was yet another Eternal mistaken for a Greek god in the past. It’s later revealed in Marvel Universe #4-7 that Makkari actually went by the name Mercury for a time, as detailed in Red Raven Comics #1.
Daniel Damian has been trapped inside the Celestial dome since he first discovered these Aztec temples back in Eternals #1-3.
It will later be revealed that Odin has allegedly killed his son in a similar fashion a millennia earlier as we will learn in Thor #296.