Long Day’s Journey into Mystery

Wundagore Mountain

Following their battle with Gotesk and the Lava Men in New York, the Godpack, Thor, and Don Blake return to Wundagore Mountain.[1] There they are greeted by the High Evolutionary who has recruited his creations and the thunder god on a mission to stop his rouge creations the New Immortals.[2] Also joining this fight are the High Evolutionary’s other creations, the Animutants. Jimmy, the son of Jane Foster is also happy to see them back.

However, the happy reunion is cut short when they are suddenly ambushed by an army of Kronans, aka the Stone Men from Saturn, the first foes that Thor ever fought in the present day.[3] As Thor notes that the rock creatures look different from before, the High Evolutionary theorizes that they had been genetically altered and sent by the New Immortals to try and destroy him. As Thor and the Godpack fight back against the alien invaders and their giant robot, the High Evolutionary is injured in battle.

When Jane Foster races to his side she calls out to Don Blake to ask him to use his medical expertise to try and revive the unconscious geneticist. Thor then races to Blake’s side to keep him safe while he works.[4] The Kronans then unleash a massive dragon that begins attacking them next. However, Thor remembers this from his last encounter and tells the Godpack that it is only an illusion. Under Thor’s direction, Luminor uses his light powers to banish the illusion, ending its threat. The battle comes to a quick end after this and after the High Evolutionary is revived the Godpack tie up the surviving Kronans for questioning.

The aliens confirm everything the High Evolutionary suspected and decides it is now time to explain everything from the beginning. He explains that the New Immortals — Nobilus, Juvian, and Zon — were his first attempt at creating a new race of gods, with the hyper-evolved Count Tagar — one of his original New Men — they turned on him forcing the geneticist to return to Earth and create the Godpack to stop them. Recently, he received word from the Analyzer — a Rigellian Recorder that he had rebuilt to assist in his genetic experiments — warning him that the New Immortals were planning to attack.[5] The High Evolutionary was able to pinpoint the location of the Analyzer’s signal and insists that they race out to face the New Immortals before they can plan a brand new attack.

Soon the High Evolutionary, the Godpack, and Thor board the starship Wundagore II to meet their foes in space. As the ship is preparing for take off, Don Blake decides to tag along. For some reason, Jane Foster also decides to join along, leaving Jimmy in the care of the Animutants while she was gone. She explains to Don that she wanted to be there by his side, stressing that she means Don’s side and not Thor’s.

Asgard

These events are being witnessed by Sif through a mystical view screen as she deeply wants to know what her beloved Thor is up to, even though Odin has expressly forbid any kind of contact with Earth.[6] Leaving to see what her comrades are up to, Sif is pulled aside by Red Norvell, Odin’s chosen to replace Thor.[7] Red wants to finish their conversation from the day before and they go someplace private to talk.

They stop on a nearby ridge only to discover that it is the resting place for a dragon. The pair quickly work together to take down the creature so they can finally have their chat. Once again, Red expresses his feelings for Sif but says he won’t try to force her to love him like last time. He then asks if she would ever give him a chance as a romantic partner. Sif admits that she feels attracted to him, but explains that this attraction is due to Red sharing Thor’s essence and that she had a similar issue when Eric Masterson took over as Thor for a time.[8] She tells Norvell that there can be no love between them, but promises that she will be the friend he needs should want her as one. Red decides this is better than nothing and looks forward to their future friendship.

Deep Space

The Wundagore II has been tracking the Analyzer’s signal for many hours now. During this down time, Jane sees that Thor is in deep thought and asks what he is thinking about. The thunder god explains how easy it was for the Kronans to get past their security systems on Wundagore Mountain, something that would be impossible unless they knew the proper security codes. This is something that the New Immortals could not possibly know, since these codes were established after the High Evolutionary returned to work. This could only mean that they have a traitor in their ranks, but Thor has no idea who that can be.

Soon, they arrivate at their destination in the Orion constellation, however they find nothing out of the ordinary in this location. Suddenly, the computer systems on the ship begin to overload, starting a chain reaction that will blow up the entire ship. With no way to stop it, the High Evolutionary orders everyone into one of two escape pods. Nearly everyone manages to get to safety before the ship explodes. All except for Zefra who was caught in the blast of an exploding control panel and gets shot out into space when the main ship exploded. Luckliy, Thor is able to venture into the vacuum of space and rescue her before she can suffer any ill effect from the void.

Thor and Zefra joins the escape pod carrying Bliziana, Riger, Don and Jane. While the other pod contains the High Evolutionary, Luminor, Bellam, Loga, and Anak.[9] From here, the High Evolutionary suggests that they split up and search the area for sign of the New Immortals. Thor and Blitziana then use their lightning powers to power their ship so they can conduct this search. As they are looking, Don asks Jane if she meant it when she said that she joined the mission for him and wonders if it means that she still loves him. Jane tells him that her feelings for him were so long ago and that they were really for Thor and, right now, she is really confused.[10] Don responds to this by kissing her, which Thor sees over his shoulder and gives a look of concern.

Eventually, Riger is able to detect some kind of space warp and suspects that the New Immortals must be hiding on the other side. With no other options, they pass into the warp. The moment they do, Don Blake begins screaming in agony for some unknown reason. However, Blake knows the pain, it was the exact sensation that he felt the moment he struck the enchanted walking stick that allowed Thor to take over his life. Thor rushes to his side and Blake explains how he is growing weaker but feels as though he can draw strength by making physical contact with Thor. The thunder god reaches out his hand to help out any way he can and when the pair touch Thor suddenly feels something strange happening. Before he can pull away there is a bright flash of light and suddenly, Thor has vanished. Don Blake is also reinvigorated and realizes that he is not the real Don Blake.[11] However, he doesn’t know how that can be, or what happened to Thor.

On the other side of the space warp, the life pod appears before a massive artificial planet called New Wundagore. It suddenly opens up and sucks them inside via a tractor beam. They soon find themselves in a vast complex. There they are greeted by the New Immortals and an army of original New Men. Nobilus then gives the Godpack an ultimatum: Join them against the High Evolutionary, or die! Count Tager also warns them reveals their master plan: They have continued upgrading the Analyzer — evolving him if you will — into a vastly more powerful machine, the Deus Ex Machina. The machine will then be used to wipe out all life on Earth so that the New Immortals and New Men can claim it for themselves. As it turns out, the former Analyzer wasn’t an ally to the High Evolutionary at all, but was only pretending to help him in order to lure the geneticist into a trap. The Godpack however, refuse to betray their master and soon a fight breaks out between them, the New Immortals, and the New Men.[12]

Elsewhere, Thor finds himself trapped in a strange void but cannot break free under his own power. Little does he know that he is trapped inside Don Blake. As the battle rages on, Jane tries to get Don to do something to help save the world, reminding him that regardless of the fact that his life was stolen from him he always helped people. Hearing Jane’s voice from within Blake, Thor calls out and tells her to keep talking. As she pressures Blake to act, she says that the man she fell in love with out do what’s right. This convinces Don that he must do the right thing and free Thor. Suddenly, there is another bright flash of light and Don Blake is replaced with Thor. The thunder god tells her that the being claiming to be Don Blake is now gone for good, but now he is here to help save the Earth.

The thunder god then joins the battle, fighting Nobilus only to discover that the New Immortal has now mastered the ability to control lightning just like he does. Nobilus proves to be too powerful that neither Thor nor Blitziana can stop him. With the odds staked against them and Deus Ex Machina charging up his doomsday weapon, Thor realizes that they need something to turn the tide of battle. He abruptly leaves to seek out the power he needs to win.

Mephisto’s Realm

Even though Mephisto has been deposed by his son, Blackheart, not a lot has changed.[13] Case in point, in the deepest depths of this infernal realm, demons take pleasure in torturing the soul of Loki, who has been imprisoned in Mephisto’s realm for some time.[14] Although the experience is incredibly painful, Loki refuses to beg for mercy. Soon, Thor appears and fights off the demons. He offers to free Loki in exchange for his help in fighting the New Immortals.

Although Loki is now free, he refuses to leave as he does not want to be indebted to his hated step-brother.

New Wundagore

The battle between the Godpack, New Immortals, and New Men rages on, with the High Evolutionary’s escape pod finally catching up with the others and joining the fray. In all the pandemonium, nobody has been able to shut down Dues Ex Machina, who is getting dangerously close to reaching critical mass.

That’s when Thor apparently arrives to rejoin the fight. However, he is blasted from behind by Luminor who reveals himself to be the traitor among the Godpack. He was seduced by the New Immortal’s plans to make Earth their own and believes that it is his destiny. That’s when the traitor is blasted by a second Thor. When they look back at the first Thor on the ground, they discover that it was actually Loki in disguise. Quickly, Thor and Loki combine their powers against Nobilus, which nullified the New Immortal, allowing Thor to finally defeat him. Soon afterwards the other New Immortals and New Men are taken out.

With Deus Ex Machine about to unleash his world-killing weapon, Zefra asks the High Evolutionary what to do next, but sees him mourning by the side of the fallen Count Tagar. Without his guidance, the assembled Godpack and Thor do what only comes naturally — the blast the machine with their combined power. This is enough to destroy Deus Ex Machina, ending its threat to the planet Earth.

In the aftermath of the battle, Loki reminds Thor of their agreement: In exchange for his help, Loki will not menace the Earth ever again so long as Thor doesn’t interfere with his plans for Asgard. Thor assures him that he has nothing to worry about as he has renounced Asgard and it can defend itself. This is satisfactory to Loki who has to go because he has other schemes to hatch and he teleports away. With their mission complete, the High Evolutionary sets a course for home. However, despite the fact that it is all over Thor still has some unanswered questions: If the man they all thought was Don Blake was really an impostor, who was he really, and what happened to the real Don Blake?

Recurring Characters

Thor, High Evolutionary, Godpack (Anak, Blitzaina, Bellam, Loga, Riger, Luminor, Zefra), Simbus, Sif, Balder, Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Red Norvell, Loki, Kronans, New Immortals (Lord Tagar, Nobilus, Juvan, Zon), Deus Ex Machina, Jane Foster, Don Blake, Jimmy Kincaid

Continuity Notes

1. The battle with Grotesk and the Lava Men happened last issue.

2. The High Evolutionary created the New Immortals back in Thor #422-424. After a time they betrayed him forcing him to flee back to Earth where he created the Godpack to eventually fight them. The betrayal and the creation of the Godpack was covered in Thor #472-473.

3. Thor’s first modern age battle was with these aliens in Journey into Mystery #83. They were called the “Stone Men From Saturn” because that’s where they were originally believed to have come from. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #5 explains that these aliens actually come from the planet Ria and that they used Saturn as their staging ground for an invasion of Earth.

4. Don Blake makes an offhand comment about using what he learns about the Godpack and High Evolutionary to restart his medical practice. This speaks of the rather complex situation involving Blake:

   • It was revealed in Thor #479 that, instead of creating a false identity for Thor when he was exiled to Earth over a decade earlier, he used a real human named Don Blake to be a vessel for Thor.

   • When Thor proved himself worthy, Odin influenced Blake to go on Vacation in Norway, leading to Thor’s first battle with the Kronans in Journey into Mystery #83. When Blake first struck the enchanted walking stick to turn himself into Thor, it actually separated the two of them. Odin spirited the real Don Blake away, while Thor assumed his mortal identity for years.

   • Eventually, Odin told half truths to Thor when he explained how he was both the god of thunder and Don Blake. Leaving out that he was actually spiriting Thor away to prevent Ragnarok, and that Blake was a real person. This half truth was told to him in Thor #159.

   • More recently, in Thor #475, Thor found the secret cavern where Don Blake has been apparently kept in suspended animation for this entire time. Since then Blake has been trying to rebuild his life with little success. However, there is more to Blake than is apparent right now, but we’ll get into that in a moment…

5. The Rigellian Recorder was rebuilt in the Analyzer in Thor #422. His purpose was to help the High Evolutionary to gather information on the birth of a new Celestial a task they undertook in Thor #424.

6. Odin made this decree after Thor turned his back on Asgard in Thor #472 and doubled-down on this order in issue #479.

7. Red originally usurped the power of Thor to try and win the heart of Sif way back in Thor #276-278. In reality, he was following through with a plot orchestrated by Odin to prevent a Ragnarok level crisis form happening at the time by sacrificing Red as a replacement Thor, this fulfilling the prophecy that Thor would die, but also circumventing it so the true Thor could prevent the twilight of the gods. More recently, Odin recovered Red from Valhalla and reinstalled him as Thor’s replacement, as seen in Thor #478.

8. For a time Eric Masterson was bonded to Thor from Thor #408 through 457. From issue #432 onward, Thor was exiled deep into Eric’s subconscious leaving the mortal to assume the role of Thor. While on a mission to rescue Odin’s soul from Mephisto’s Hell, Sif and Eric kissed, as seen in Thor #453. From that point on and until Eric relinquished Mjolnir to Thor in issue #459, Sif struggled with feelings she had for Masterson that she couldn’t understand, as she initially despised him.

9. Anak uses the word “clobber” a word he picked up from the Thing back when the Godpack met the Fantastic Four in Fantastic Four Unlimited #9.

10. Since Journey into Mystery #84, it was a long established fact that Don Blake and Jane Foster loved each other. When Thor took over his life, he too loved her. They had a will-they-or-won’t-they relationship until Thor revealed in his identity to her in Journey into Mystery #124. He then petitioned Odin to allow them to be married, Odin would only consent to this if Jane proved she was worth to be a goddess. She flubbed the test in Thor #136 and was ushered out of Thor’s life. Eventually she married Keith Kincaid in Thor #336, had her son Jimmy sometime after Thor #372, and eventually separated from Keith before issue #475.

11. As we’ll learn next issue, this isn’t the real Don Blake but a mystical doppelganger. See, when Odin stashed Blake in the cave, Sigyn — furious at Odin for imprisoning her husband Loki — attempted to kidnap Blake and use him as blackmail against Odin. Unfortunately, she ended up accidentally killing him instead. In order to cover this up, she used her magical power to create the mystical construct, and that’s who Thor found in the cave years later. See, I told you we’d get back to this!

12. Here, Loga mentions how Nobilus was made with DNA taken from Thor when he was tainted by Loki’s evil. See in Thor #398-400, Loki gave Thor a portion of his power to save Asgard from invasion from Seth. He retained this connection in order to strike at Thor from within. It was while he was tainted by this evil that the High Evolutionary stole a DNA sample in Thor #408. Thor eventually exorcised this evil essence from his body in issue #412. Still, this tainted DNA was used in Thor #422 and it has been theorized that this is the cause of Nobilus’ instability.

13. Mephisto was seemingly slain by Blackheart in Ghost Rider, Wolverine, Punisher: Dark Design #1. However, Mephisto would eventually reconstitute himself and reclaim his domain before his appearance in Fantastic Force #18.

14. Loki allowed his physical body to be destroyed in Thor #432 in an effort to take over Asgard by possessing Odin’s body. The plan worked until Eric Masterson (as Thor) and his allies rescued Odin’s true soul. Mephisto took Loki’s back to Hell with him after Odin was restored and there Loki has remained ever since. See Thor #450-455.

As Shadows Gather…

Volstagg has been called on an mission with the Warriors Three on the behest of Odin. This has deeply upset Hildegund who is not happy with the amount of time her husband is spending away from home. Fandral and Hogun are deeply uncomfortable hearing this argument. Volstagg sheepishly insists to his wife that this is an important quest given by the All-Father himself and he cannot shirk his duty. He then quickly leaves with his two companions as his wife shouts after him.

The pair are feeling the pressure and demands of Odin that have been mounting ever since the threat of Ragnarok have been renewed and Thor having abandoned the kingdom in its time of need.[1] When they meet with Odin their “special mission” is actually some time off and Odin tells the Warriors Three to spend the next few days relaxing by camping in the mountains outside of Asgard. They follow their orders, although Volstagg is concerned that his wife won’t be impressed when she finds out the news. As they make their way up the mountain, none of the three heroes notice that they are being followed by a cloaked figure that lurks in the shadows.

That night, they set up camp and Volstagg talks about how grueling the married life with children can be and envies the fact that his friends are single and beholden to nobody. As it turns out, Fandral is actually envious of Volstagg’s stability, saying he would gladly give up his endless sea of casual lovers if the right woman came by and asked him to settle down. When they ask Hogun if he ever gave thought of getting married and starting a family of his own, the grim one ponders it for a moment and answers with a simple “no.”

The following morning, the trio are awoken by a sudden earthquake, prompting them to head out and investigate its source. They soon come upon a massive dragon making its way to the city. The pair try to stop the monster but it is much stronger than they are and can breath fire. Despite this, they continue fighting against the impossible odds. Eventually, the person following them reveals himself to be Odin and says he is responsible for this monster. He then uses his magic to revert the “dragon” back to its original form: an ordinary frog. Odin explains that this was all a test to make sure that the Warriors Three were ready at a moments notice to act should Ragnarok strike out. They then ride into town where everyone celebrates the return of the Warriors Three, all except for Volstagg’s wife Hildegund. Seeing the strain that he has been causing on Volstagg’s marriage, Odin dismounts from his horse and tells Hildegund how brave a fighter her husband was and how he is an asset to the kingdom.

This brings Hildegund to tears as she suddenly finds newfound pride in her husband. She then invites Hogun and Fandral over for dinner that evening. As they expected, the moment Volstagg sits down to dinner he brags about how he — over everyone else — was the most brave and valiant warrior in their battle against the dragon. As usual, Fandral and Hogun indulge Volstagg’s exaggerated account of events to pass.

Recurring Characters

Warriors Three (Fandral, Hogun, Volstagg), Hildegund, Odin

Continuity Notes

1. Thor had a vision that Ragnarok was coming (again!) in Thor #372. Rather than stay and help prepare he noped out to go live on Earth. The Asgardian’s worries of Ragnarok prove to be moot when the WorldEngine later tricks Yggdrasil to think it had already passed, as seen in Thor #391.