Clash With Quasar!

Hercules has come back into the life of Eric Masterson and has decided to help him train to be as skilled in battle as the real Thor.[1] However, the Olympian demigod is a terrible trainer and Eric quickly becomes so annoyed with him he switches back to his mortal form in order to stop their fight. Masterson tells Herc that he didn’t accept his offer for training just to get his brains bashed out and has decided to figure things out his own way.

This scene has been secretly observed by the Enchantress, who is interested in the new Thor. However, he escapes her view when reverting back to his mortal form. She decides to put these concerns aside for now as she has an job interview with Eric Masterson in her mortal guise of Leena Moran.[2]

Meanwhile, Hercules has gone to the apartment of Sersi, one of his fellow Avengers, to talk about his troubles getting the new Thor to accept his training. Sersi figures that perhaps getting someone else to help train Eric would work better and suggests the Avengers resident boy scout, Quasar, for the job instead.

At that moment, Leena Moran is meeting with Eric Masterson at his appartment to take over the job as his assistant while Susan Austin is in the hospital.[3] “Leena” uses her power of seduction to secure the job and tries to kiss Eric, as this will put him under her spell for all eternity. However, Jackie Lukus walks into the apartment to deliver some job bids that she finished for him. She is upset to see him apparently making the moves with another woman and figures this is the reason why he is tanking his business. Hurt that Eric is seemingly seeing another woman, she mentions that an imposing man has been looking around for him and hopes that it is his chippie’s ex-boyfriend so he can pound some sense into him.[4] Eric tries to explain what was really going on, but Jackie doesn’t want to hear it.

Meanwhile, Hercules has called a meeting with Quasar and tells him that Thor is under some kind of spell and it is up to them to free him. When the novice hero suggests that they summon the rest of the Avengers, Hercules says it isn’t necessary and crushes Quasar’s Avengers ID card in the palm of his hand. Since he has no reason not to trust Hercules, Quasar agrees to find Thor and deal with the situation.

By this time, Eric Masterson has gone to visit Susan Austin in the hospital, only to find that she is still in a coma. Her doctor, Gary Paretsky, tells Eric that there is a slim hope that they can heal her, but they will need to locate the long lost Doctor Donald Blake. Eric is shocked to hear the name of Thor’s former alter-ego. He knows that this is going to be impossible since Blake no longer exists.[5] As Eric returns home, he is unaware that he is being followed by the man who has been tailing him for the past few days. However, this mystery man loses Eric when a call from his Avengers ID card prompts him to run into an alley and change into Thor. When the stranger pursuing him catches up, Masterson is gone.

The call had come from Hercules, and when Thor meets up with him, the Olympian explains that Quasar has gone berserk and needs to be stopped and only Thor can accomplish this task. What they don’t know is that this conversation is being overheard by the Enchantress who decides to use this to her advantage. She manages to find Quasar before Thor does and uses her seductive skills to plant a kiss that puts him in her control. He is then sent to ambush Thor, who has agreed not to summon the Avengers, particularly since Captain America is not to happy with him right now.[6]

In the ensuing battle, Quasar attempts to separate Thor from Mjolnir by trapping the enchanted hammer in a sphere of quantum energy. However, the thunder god has enough strength to crush the sphere and free his weapon. As the battle rages, Hercules watches from the sidelines with glee as his plan apparent worked. However, he soon spots the Enchantress watching from across the way and realizes that she must be planning something.

Meanwhile, Quasar decides to stop playing with kid gloves and uses his Quantum Bands to create a massive sword. Luckily, when Thor blasts it with lightning, it causes feedback that breaks the spell the Enchantress had put on his teammate.[7] Searching for the evil seductress they find her fending off Hercules by creating a stone duplicate of the demigod. Now outnumbered, the Enchantress decides it is time to flee and teleports away in a puff of smoke. Comparing notes, Thor and Quasar realize that Hercules was also manipulating them into fighting each other and decide to repay him by leaving him tied up in a bow hanging off the Statue of Liberty’s torch. Thor and Quasar then shake hands and take off, leaving Hercules behind to figure out how to get free on his own.

Recurring Characters

Thor, Avengers (Quasar, Hercules, Sersi), Sif, Balder, Karnilla, Heimdall, Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Enchantress, Jackie Lukus, Susan Austin, Gary Paretsky

Continuity Notes

1. When Thor was banished in Thor #432, Eric Masterson was forced into taking up the role of thunder god. This will remain the status quo until issue #457.

2. The Enchantress has been posing as Leena Moran since Thor #422. The revelation of her double identity was made in issue #431.

3. Susan Austin was seriously injured by Loki in Thor #432. She will remain in a coma until she receives a life saving surgery in issue #442.

4. The man in question has been looking to talk to Eric since Thor #435. In issue #438 reveals that this is Bobby Steele, the new husband of Eric’s ex-wife Marcy. The reason he’s looking for Eric is to announce his intentions of adopting Eric’s son, Kevin, as his own.

5. In order to teach Thor humility, Odin once banished him to Earth in the mortal guise of Doctor Donald Blake. Once he had learned his lesson, Odin subtly led Blake to the place where Mjolnir was hidden so he could reclaim his heritage. Although Blake at first believed he merely transformed into Thor, it was later revealed to him that he was actually Thor himself, see Journey into Mystery #83 and Thor #159. Thor gave up his Donald Blake identity when the enchantment that triggered these transformation was transferred into Beta Ray Bill’s hammer Stormbreaker, per Thor #337-339. Blake wasn’t just some fabricated identity, but a mystical construct that continued to exist even after being abandoned, as we’ll see when he appears again in Thor (vol. 3) #1.

6. Cap isn’t impressed that Thor allowed the Absorbing Man and Titania to go free after they promised to go straight. This happened last issue.

7. Here, Quasar mentions how his Quantum Bands were trained to prevent mind control from being used against him. However, he clarifies that it only worked on science based methods and was powerless against magic. Quasar created this protection for himself in Quasar #10 after he was kidnapped by the Kree operatives Doctor Minerva and Captain Atlas.

Topical References

• During the battle between Thor and Quasar, Quasar uses his Quantum Bands to create nunchucks out of Quantum Energy. This prompts Thor to refer to him as a “second rate Steven Seagal”. This comic was published during the height of Seagal’s career when he was a fairly famous action hero best known for his use of martial arts. This should be considered a topical reference now because Seagal is now much older, overweight, and not as spry as he used to be. Google “Steven Seagal carrot” and you’ll see what I mean, you’re welcome.

Now Begins… Sword Quest!

Sif and Balder are embarking on a quest to search for the missing Thor, who had been banished by Heimdall after seemingly killing Loki.[1] To this end, they have sought out the help of Karnilla, the Norn Queen and Balder’s lover. Although she has not love for Asgard or Thor, Karnilla agrees to help the man she loves anyway. She allows Balder and Sif to borrow the Norn Stones for their quest as their magical powers will aid them in their perilous journey, but also allow them to track Thor’s essence.

With the Norn Stones in hand, the pair return to Asgard where the inform Heimdall of their intentions. At first, Heimdall considers this treason but when Sif passionately supports Thor and chastises her brother for so harshly punishing Asgard’s greatest champion. Realizing that his sister will search for Thor out of love, regardless of the rule of law, he decides to allow her to do so anyway. With that he wishes Sif and Balder luck on their mission ahead. Heading out, the pair stop at the Bifrost Bridge to bid farewell to the Warriors Three, who have been stationed there as guards since Heimdall took rulership of the kingdom while Odin sleeps.

They then use the Norn Stones to teleport to where Heimdall may have banished Thor. They appear in Hel and quickly discover that someone has taken possession of the Destroyer armor. Confronting the two intruders, the Destroyer vows to destroy everything in its path, starting with them.[2]

Recurring Characters

Sif, Balder, Karnilla, Heimdall, Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Destroyer

Continuity Notes

1. As stated above, Thor was banished in issue #432. The situation in question is quite a bit more complicated than it appears to be:

   • After saving Asgard from a Ragnarok level threat in Thor #425-426, Odin went into the Odinsleep and put Heimdall in charge during his absence.

   • After Loki was seemingly slain in issue #432, Heimdall chose to banish Thor. Eric Masterson got Thor’s powers as the pair had been bonded together since Thor #408.

   • However, Loki didn’t really die. Instead his soul took over Odin’s body and the All-Father’s soul was shunted into a soul shroud owned by Mephisto. This won’t be revealed and Odin will remain a prisoner until the events of Thor #450-455.

   • While everyone believes that Thor was banished to some other dimension, in reality, Heimdall merely subdued the Odinson’s personality and he is in fact still merged with Eric Masterson, as will be revealed in Thor #456-459.

2. The Destroyer armor has been trapped in Hel ever since Thor used it to battle Hela and have her remove a curse he had place on her back in Thor #373, as seen in issues #381-382. Thor #440 reveals that the Destroyer is possessed by the spirit of Lorelei, who was killed in Thor #402.