The Hero and the Hammer!

Thor has arrived at Avengers headquarters on Hydrobase to announce his return to his teammates. There he witnesses who he thinks is Captain America, but in a different costume. Deciding to determine if this is his old friend, Thor attacks Cap, who easily defends himself and confirms to Thor that this is indeed his old friend. With this out of the way, Cap has the Avengers work to clear the rubble created during their battle with the Super-Adaptoid.[1] With all the heavy lifting done, Thor is about to pound it into the ground when Captian Marvel stops him. She points out that Hydrobase is an artificial island and his actions could sink their base.

With the work out of the way for the time being, most of the Avengers depart to go about their personal lives. The only members remaining on the island are the Black Knight who has lab work to conduct, as well as Cap and Thor.

Meanwhile, back in Asgard, the kingdom is under siege from the forces of Seth, the Egyptian god of death. The invaders are able to attack thanks to a portal linking their domains, however their surprise attack is quickly repelled by the warriors of Asgard. However, Balder knows that this is only the first of many more attacks and once again wonders what has become of Thor.[2] While in Seth’s domain, the death god prepares his armies for another attack on Asgard. That’s when he is visited by his lieutenant, Grog the God-Slayer who informs him that Thor has appeared on Earth. Seth then dispatches Grog to deal with the thunder god.[3]

Cap takes this opportunity to tell Thor that he has changed his identity — now simply going by “The Captain” — after the United States government forced him to give up his Captain America identity when he refused to work exclusively for them.[4] When Thor offers to fight to get Cap’s old identity back, Steve tells him that he doesn’t want to undermine the government. Cap is more concerned about Tony Stark. Tony had recently gave Steve a new shield to replace the one that he lost to the government. However, Tony — as Iron Man — has since attacked a government facility. Cap knows why Tony did it, but doesn’t agree with his methods and doesn’t want to be indebted to him over the shield and asks for Thor’s help to sort things out.[5] Thor finds himself divided about this as he and Tony Stark have been friends for years.[6]

Thor becomes upset because the world of mortals continues to go through changes that have left him confused. As he blows off steam, the thunder god is suddenly ambushed by Grog and an army of Seth’s warriors. Thor is outnumbered but he is soon joined by his fellow Avengers, the Captain and the Black Knight. As the Knight disables a massive tank, Thor and the Captain fight off Grog’s legions. In the thick of the battle, Thor has been separated from Mjolnir and Grog tries to lift the enchanted weapon. However, the hammer cannot be lifted by anyone with is unworthy. When his men manage to restrain Thor, Grog then turns his attention to the thunder god and begins pummeling him with energy from his power lance.

Seeing that Thor is in trouble, the Captain leaps to Mjolnir in the hopes of somehow getting it back to its master. Seth’s minions pile onto the Captain but he manages to lift Mjolnir and use its power to fight them off. However, Cap doesn’t feel comfortable wielding such power and quickly tosses the hammer toward Thor. Thor fights off his attackers and then strikes Grog so hard he is pounded through Hydrobase. This causes the island to begin flooding and while Seth’s forces retreat, the three Avengers scramble to try and repair the damage. They quickly hammer the ruined tank into the hole and Thor summons down lightning to melt it to slag, plugging the hole and saving Hydrobase from sinking.

In the aftermath of the battle, Grog is recovered and the Black Knight and Cap prepare to take him to the Vault. Cap tells Thor that he is going to Los Angeles to confront Iron Man. Thor takes the opportunity to apologize to Cap for having doubts about him after seeing the changes he has underwent. However, seeing Steve lift Mjolnir has convinced him that the Captain is — as always — pure of heart and wishes him luck.

This whole scene is observed by Seth from his domain. He is disappointed that Grog failed, however he still believes he can achieve victory because death always wins in the end.

Recurring Characters

Thor, Avengers (The Captain, Black Knight, She-Hulk, Captain Marvel, Sub-Mariner, Doctor Druid) Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Marrina, Stingray, Tony Stark, Seth ,Grog the God-Slayer

Continuity Notes

1. The Avengers fought the Super-Adaptoid in Avengers #286-290. Captain Marvel takes issue with the Captain taking command because she was nominated as the Avengers leader in issue #279, a role that she has been struggling to fill.

2. These portals have begin appearing since Asgard became unmoored from the dimensional axis following the destruction of the Bifrost Bridge in Thor #351. Thor when MIA while trying to get back to Earth in Thor #387. The Bifrost will eventually be repaired in Thor #426.

3. Here, Seth states that Odin has gone missing. The All-Father seemingly perished battling Surtur in Thor #353, he is actually a prisoner of Seth as we’ll learn in issue #398. Seth states his motivation for attacking Asgard as revenge against Thor for amputating his right hand, this happened in Thor #241.

4. Steve Rogers was forced to give up the Captain America identity in Captain America #332. He will be the Captain until issue #350 of that series.

5. Tony Stark constructed a new Adamantium shield for Steve in Captain America #339. Since then, Tony Stark has been on a mission to destroy all Starktech that has gotten into the hands of other armor wearing heroes and villains, even entire government agencies, see Armor Wars in Iron Man #225-232. Captain America witnessed this first hand when Iron Man attacked the Vault to disable Guardsmen armor in Iron Man #228. Captain America will confront Tony over this in Captain America #341.

6. Thor and Iron Man were founding members of the Avengers dating back to the first issue of that series. However, the two become especially close after they figured out each other’s secret identities in Avengers #113.