Thor #353
Doom II
Asgard
Thor has been defeated on the shattered remains of the Bifrost Bridge, while Odin has been frozen in a prison of ice created by the Casket of Ancient Winters.[1] It seems that nobody is left standing to stop Surtur from setting the Twilight Sword ablaze and bringing about the end of the universe. However, this turns out to be an illusion created by Loki, who has finally joined the fight since the destruction of everything will cramp his plans to one day rule Asgard. Despite the trickster god’s efforts, he is blasted out of the sky by Surtur and, upon Loki’s defeat, the real Eternal Flame becomes visible again.
England
Roger Willis has been desperately trying to reconstruct the Casket of Ancient Winters. He has one piece left to reassemble when he is suddenly ambushed by the last of Malekith’s dark elves and is forced to flee for his life. Luckily, the Human Torch has returned to rescue him and the two make a hasty retreat in the Fantastic Four’s high-speed ship. Along the way back to New York, Roger glues the final piece together. This causes the Casket of Ancient Winters to completely repair itself and traps the eternal cold unleashed upon the Earth to be trapped inside it once more.
Asgard
As Roger finished his repair job the ice that has been imprisoning Odin is suddenly called back to the Casket, freeing the All-Father. Thor has also revived at this time and knocks Surtur away from the Eternal Flame with Mjolnir. Odin then stands side-by-side with his two sons — Thor and Loki — for the final battle against the fire demon.
As the battle rages, Frigga and the children of Asgard are still trying to make their way to safety at a nearby mountain chalet. Their path has been barred by a troll who demands Frigga hand over one of the children to eat or he will kill them all. Luckliy, the nimble footed Grunhild manages to get behind the troll and stabs him with her knife. When the troll tries to attack her, Grunhild leaps out of the way of his swinging ax. The blade then punches a hole in the bridge causing the dimwitted troll to fall to his death.
Back in the city, Surtur grows frustrated with Odin and his brood and uses his power to rip a hole through the ground to his domain of Muspelheim. If the flames spewing up from the ground come into contact with the Eternal Flame, their power will mix enabling Surtur to ignite his sword from a distance. While Odin uses his body to shield the Eternal Flame, Thor uses Mjolnir to bring down a torrential storm to put the flames out.
The Sahara Desert
Beta Ray Bill has led the legions of Asgard and their allies through a portal from New York to the Sahara, Surtur’s beachhead on Earth. There they are joined by reinforcements led by Balder and Karnilla the Norn Queen. As the warriors pen the demons under the path of the massive portal to Muspelheim Beta Ray Bill recruits She-Hulk, Hercules, and the Vision to help him topple the massive gate on the monsters, sending them back to their home dimension and destroying the gate at the same time.
Asgard
Surtur can sense his warrior’s defeat and this causes him to pause long enough for Thor to throw Mjolnir and knock the Twilight Sword from the demon’s hand. Odin then uses his power to grow to tremendous size so he can battle the monster one-on-one.[2] Over powering Surtur, Odin drives the demon and himself into the fissure in the ground. Once they have plunged into the flames the crack suddenly seals itself ending Surtur’s threat to all existence. However, the abrupt disappearance of Odin causes Thor and Loki to cry out for their father.[3]
Recurring Characters
Thor, Odin, Surtur, Loki, Roger Willis, She-Hulk, Human Torch, Avengers (Captain Marvel, Scarlet Witch, Hercules, Vision), Frigga, Beta Ray Bill, Balder, Karnilla, Enchantress, Hrolf, Gunnar, Gunnhild, Arngrim
Continuity Notes
The Bifrost was shattered by Surtur in Thor #351. It will be restored much later in Thor #426.
Odin mentions how he and his brothers, Vili and Ve, previously merged together to do this in battle against Surtur many centuries earlier. See Thor #349.
Although it appears as though Odin has died here, he is actually captured by Seth, the Egyptian god of death and will be found alive in Thor #398-400.
