Friends and Lovers

Thor has left Asgard on a mission of self discovery. As he sails into space he discovers that his new friend, the Valkyrie, has appeared on his ship. She tells Thor that she appeared because he needs her to be there.[1] When he asks how she got here, Valkyrie says it is unimportant and asks him to speak to her of his problems. Thor explains that over the last few years, his life had been fragmented and he feels as though bits and pieces of his personality have been ripped away.[2]

Meanwhile, back in Asgard, Sif finds it out of character that Thor would cancel their wedding and leave Asgard without saying goodbye. Since nobody in Asgard will help her, she uses to Norn Stones to seek out someone who owes her a favor.

Back aboard Thor’s ship, the thunder god has finished explaining how his experiences with Don Blake, Beta Ray Bill, and Eric Masterson has left him suffering an identity crisis. Hearing all this, Valkyrie says the blame for all of this falls squarely on Thor’s father, Odin. Thor agrees and as his anger grows he begins unleashing a powerful storm as he vows to never let this happen to him again.

At that same moment, on the new home world of the Korbinites, Beta Ray Bill watches as his people continue to try and unsuccessfully lift his hammer, Stormbreaker.[3] That’s when Sif appears and asks Bill to help her find Thor. Bill agrees to help Sif and since nobody else has been able to lift Stormbreaker, recovers the weapon and regains his powers. Sif then uses the Norn Stones to teleport them to Thor’s location. They are taken to a baren world of rock and lava where they find Thor. Bill decides to speak with Thor alone. However, when he approaches the thunder god he is attacked. He refuses to listen to reason and and pummels Beta Ray Bill before striking him so hard he is sent into space.[4]

Witnessing this brutal beating, Sif realizes that Thor is suffering from the warrior’s madness. When Thor begins approaching her, she tries to reason with him. However, when she sees the rage in his eyes she realizes that it is dangerous to remain and uses the Norn Stones to teleport away.

With Sif gone, Valkyrie reappears and congratulates Thor for standing up to the people responsible for his current identity crisis. The thunder god revels in what he has done and vows that he will only serve himself from this moment forward.

Recurring Characters

Thor, Valkyrie, Sif, Beta Ray Bill

Continuity Notes

1. Valkyrie appeared to Thor for the first time last issue. As we’ll learn in Thor #469, she is a figment of his imagination and the personification of his growing madness.

2. This is referring to all the times he was merged with others or had his identity taken over by others. They are:

   • When Thor needed a lesson in humility, Odin banished him to Earth in the mortal guise of Donald Blake for years until he learned his lesson. Thor was able to regain his powers but limitations to them had to juggle his life with that of Don Blake for years. Ultimately, he broke free of this cycle when the enchantment that allowed him to change into Blake was transferred to Beta Ray Bill’s hammer, Stormbreaker. See Journey into Mystery #83, Thor #159 and 339.

   • Beta Ray Bill was not only able to lift Thor’s hammer and obtain his power, but as I said above, he was also given his own hammer and similar powers. See Thor #336-339.

   • More recently, Thor was bonded to Eric Masterson and had to share a life with him from Thor #408 until issue #432 when the thunder god was banished to Eric’s subconscious. He was finally freed and separated from Masterson in issue #457.

3. Bill’s people fled their home world after it was destroyed by Surtur’s fire demons in Thor #336. Bill was transformed into a cyborg to protect his people and find a new home world while everyone was in stasis. This led to his encounter with the Asgardians and the acquisition of Thor-like powers mentioned above. Eventually, he found his people a new world in Thor #442. However, the Korbinites wanted a new protector now that Bill’s mission was complete. Bill complied by surrendering Stormbreaker for someone else to try and lift.

4. Bill isn’t rescued by Sif — kind of a dick move on her part — but he will appear next in Silver Surfer (vol. 3) #79, and 81-82.