Whosoever Holds This Hammer!

Ulik has fled into the sewers of New York City following his recent battle with Thor. Unwilling to admit defeat, the Rock Troll vows to have his revenge and begins plotting his next scheme to destroy the thunder god.

Little does Ulik realize that Thor has been banished after seemingly killing Loki and his human host, Eric Masterson, has been chosen to take his place.[1] As a storm rages outside, Masterson wonders why he has been chosen to fill Thor’s role as god of thunder as he believes he is unworthy. He is at the hospital waiting for word on his assistant, Susan Austin, as she was injured during the final battle with Loki. He is told he can visit her, but she is still in a coma and nobody knows when she will come out of it.[2] Outside Susan’s room he finds his friend Jerry Sapristi and her roommate Leena Moran. Despite the somber scene Moran hits on Eric before heading into see Susan.[3] Since all they can do is wait, Jerry suggests that Eric head home and get a change of clothes and clean himself up.

Outside, Jock Jackson and Mad Dog Rossitano of NYPD’s Code: Blue team are staked out in a squad car outside the hospital, just in case something happens. They are ambushed when Ulik comes out of the sewers and flips over their squad car. Seeing the attack from a window, Eric races off to change into Thor, even though he has no experience as a superhero he realizes that he has no choice.

Back outside, the rest of Code: Blue arrives and they place pylons for Rigger Ruiz’s new electrified stasis field. This allows them to jolt Ulik with enough electricity to incapacitate him.[4] Unfortunately, Thor arrives and leaps into the field causing it to short out and renewing Ulik’s rampage. In the ensuing battle, Ulik easily trounces the new Thor, demanding to know where the real thunder god is hiding. Realizing that he is wasting his time, Ulik decides to search for his enemy elsewhere. Wondering how things could get any worse, Eric receives a priority call from Captain America, asking Thor to come to Avengers Mansion right away. Unsure of how to handle this, Eric shields his face and tells Cap that Thor won’t be able to make it. Marcus Stone then tries to talk to Thor, but before he can, Eric decides to take off by hurling Mjolnir into the air and using it to fly.

However, Eric isn’t very skilled in using the weapon in such a fashion and he ends up crashing into a rooftop chimney a few blocks away. Frustrated by his lack of ability, Eric realizes that he’s going to need to shape up if he’s ever going to measure up to the true Thor. When Eric returns home, he sees that his Thor costume is in tatters and realizes that the look of it is just not him. Changing back into Eric Masterson, he goes digging around for Thor’s enchanted suit of armor. Unfortunately, all he is able to find is the helmet. He decides that it’ll have to do and then gets to work designing a brand new costume that will better suit him.[5]

Meanwhile, Ulik has retreated the meat packing district where he begins feasting on racks of beef being prepared for market. News quickly reaches the police who dispatch Code: Blue to deal with him.

At that same moment, Eric Masterson is waiting at a costume shop for his new outfit to be finished. It becomes ready just as a news report about Ulik’s rampage hits the news. With no time to lose, Eric slips into the change room and puts on his brand new costume. He then races to the scene where Code: Blue is already engaging the Rock Troll. Consumed with rage over the unfairness of his situation, the brand new Thor attacks Ulik savagely. However, Ulik knocks Mjolnir out of Thor’s grasp. Wrapping his cape around Ulik’s head to obscure his vision and pounds him into submission with his bare hands. Recovering Mjolnir from the ground, he sees the inscription “whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.” In light of his victory, Eric begins to believe that maybe he can fill in for Thor after all, at least for the time being.

Soon, Ulik is shackled in omnium handcuffs and taken into police custody. This time, Eric sticks around to talk to Marcus Stone. Stone has figured out that this is a brand new Thor and that the original one has gone missing. Marcus offers his aid in helping the new comer try and the real Thor. Deciding that he has spent enough time mourning his friend, Eric taps Mjolnir twice on the ground, making the storm come to an end.

Recurring Characters

Thor, Ulik, Enchantress, Code: Blue (Marcus Stone, Rigger Ruiz, Mad Dog Rossitano, Jock Jackson, Fireworks Feldstein), Captain America, Susan Austin, Jerry Sapristi, Peggy Carter

Continuity Notes

1. Thor seemingly slew Loki and was banished last issue. However, the situation is much more complex than it appears. The details:

   • Prior to his banishment, Thor was bonded to Eric Masterson in order to survive serious injuries, as seen in Thor #408.

   • Loki didn’t actually die, his soul ended up taking possession of Odin, shunting the All-Father’s soul into a soul shroud being held in Mephisto’s realm. See Thor #450-455.

   • Thor wasn’t banished someplace else, rather his essence was buried deep within Eric Masterson where it will remain until Odin pulls Thor free. See Thor #456-459.

2. Susan was struck by a mystic blast meant for Eric’s ex-wife Marcy and their son Kevin. She will remain in a coma until Thor #442.

3. “Leena Moran” is actually the Enchantress in disguise, as we learned in Thor #431. She has been living with Susan since issue #422.

4. Marcus Stone mentions how he had fought Ulik in the past. This was back in Thor #414, a battle that inspired him to form Code: Blue in the first place.

5. When Thor was cursed by a spell that made his bones brittle in Thor #373, he soon got to work building a new suit of mystical armor to keep him whole, as seen in issue #378. He wore it well until the curse was lifted in Thor #382. He then wore it sparingly since then as seen in Thor #386-389 and 407-408.

Topical References

• When designing his new costume, Eric Masterson decides that a new look is necessary because “after all it’s the ninties!” This is of course a reference to the decade this comic was originally published. Any indication of a specific date for all Modern Age stories should be considered topical.

• The TV in the costume shop is depicted as a CRT model that uses an antennae to pick up television signals. This should be considered topical as these styles of televisions are now considered obsolete.