Thor (vol. 2) #83 — Nick Peron

May 12

May 12 Thor (vol. 2) #83

Ragnarok, Part the Fourth

Asgard has fallen and Ragnarok has begun. With many of his friends and allies dead, Thor has been leading the last of Asgard’s warriors on Loki’s trail of destruction. The trial led them to Vanaheim where they clashed with Loki’s forces. The Fenris, which tries to attack Thor directly. Luckily, Beta Ray Bill has answered the call to battle and pummels the monster with his enchanted hammer, Stormbreaker. So furious is Bill, that the lightning he generates is enough to burn the flesh off of Fenris’ bones.[1] When seeing that Bill has done causes the remaining Troll army to flee the scene.

With the battle over, Thor tells Bill about how his parents are dead and Loki has formed an army to destroy all of Asgard.[2] Bill has brought a healing device and uses it to restore Thor’s strength. Back on his feet, Thor orders Volstagg to prepare a funeral pyre for Valkyrie, who died in battle.[3] Bill has a brief reunion with Sif, and is surprised to see that she recently lost her left arm in battle, but she assures him that somethings have not changed.[4]

Thor then has a private council with Bill, Thor has decided to finish the fight on his own and asks for Bill to act as leader over the surviving members of Asgard, to rule over them until the end. Thor has decided that his people shouldn’t meet their end in a far away land, but in the kingdom the lived. Bill is touched, but says that he doesn’t belong among the gods. Thor disagrees, pointing out that he has lived a double life as both an Asgardian and in the mortal world. Bill has earned his right to be among the gods.[5]

Meanwhile, a funeral is being held for Brunnhilde. Sif talks about how she returned from Midgard to be there with them during the final battle.[6] Sif says that Valkyrie asked her to take leadership of the Valkyrior and wield her sword, Dragonfang, if she fell in battle. Sif now takes up that honor and vows to avenge Valkyrie as well as her departed brother, Heimdall.[7]

At that same time, Thor and Bill assess their losses in the last battle. Among the deceased, was a child who defended the old and orphaned alike and died a hero This reminds Thor of Magni, the son he had in another life. He laments the loss of his boy and wonders why the Odinpower has left him when they need it the most.[8] Suiting up in his enchanted armor, Thor addresses the remaining survivors and tells them that Bill will lead them in his absence, while he seeks out Loki for the final battle. Volstagg leads in a cheer as Thor leaves in his chariot pulled by Toothgasher and Toothgrinder.[9]

Thor travels to Hildstaf, that overlooks all of Asgard. There he enters a state of meditation in the hopes of gaining new wisdom. He also thinks about happier times, such as when he formed the Avengers.[10] He also thinks about his parents and mourns their losses, particularly that of his mother, who died without him by her side. That’s when avoice speaks out to him. It is the spirit orphaned boy who sacrificed his life for the others. The boy is being carried in by Hugin and Munin, his father’s ravens. Speaking with the apparition, Thor realizes that it is actually the embodiment of the Odinpower. It tells him that its power fails to come to him because Thor has not yet how to use it responsibly.

The spirit then leads Thor on a journey to Yggdrasil, the World Ash Tree. Along the way, it tells how Odin didn’t become a true god until he used his power and wisdom to craft the world after felling the Frost Giant, Ymir.[11][12] At the tree’s roots they find Ratatoskr, the squirrel that lived in the tree and shared its stories with dragon that feed on the roots and explains how the two brought about their own undoing. The power tells Thor that there will come a twilight to the gods. They soon arrive at the well of Mimir, a fountain of great knowledge, however the fountain is dry. The Odinpower tells Thor that just like his father, he will have to make a sacrifice. Thor knows what he means and plucks out one of his own eyes and tosses it down the well. When nothing happens, Thor feels he made a mistake until he realizes he needs to make a bigger sacrifice than his father and plucks out his other eye as well.[13]

Suddenly, the well fills up with water to the point where it is overflowing. Drinking deep and washing his eyeless face with the waters, Thor begins seeing the history of Asgard play out before him. The creation of the universe, the death of Ymir, the Odin and his brothers creating the Earth and Asgard. Thor being born, becoming worthy enough to lift Mjolnir, Donald Blake finding the walking stick hidden in the cave. The memories flash on and on, and he witnessing his father perishing in battle with Surtur on two different occasions.[14] Suddenly, it all becomes clear to him, Thor has lived these events over and over again. Ragnarok isn’t the end of everything, it is just the end of a cycle that starts all over once it is completed.[15]

The Odinpower confirms that this is the truth and that with death comes renewal and Thor will need to sacrifice his life in order to be reborn!

Recurring Characters

Thor, Beta Ray Bill, Sif, Volstagg, Valkyrie, Fenris, Hugin, Munin, Toothgasher, Toothgrinder, Ratatoskr

Continuity Notes

Although the Fenris is seemingly slain here, the creature will be back in Thor (vol. 2) #85 to play its part in the final phases of Ragnarok.
Odin died well before this crisis, back in Thor (vol. 2) #40 during a battle with Surtur. It’s odd that Thor is bringing this up, since Bill was present at that time. Frigga was reported dead in Thor (vol. 2) #81. Both will eventually be resurrected. Frigga will return in Thor (vol. 3) #7, while Odin won’t be brought back until Thor #416.
Valkyrie was killed last issue, she will be seen again in Hulk (vol. 2) #7, but the full story won’t be told until Valkyrie (vol. 2) #1.
Sif lost her arm in battle in Thor (vol. 2) #80. Here, she is hinting at the feelings that the two of them have had for one another. See Thor #337-372.
Here, Thor mentions how he wouldn’t allow his fellow Avengers to remain in Asgard. He is referring to Iron Man and Captain America, who briefly fought alongside Thor in Thor (vol. 2) #81-82, before he realized that this was Ragnarok and sent them back home.
Mention is made that Valkyrie was a member of the Defenders. She was a member of that team from Defenders #4-152.
This is the first time Heimdall is referenced to have died in this Ragnarok. He will later be restored in Thor (vol. 3) #3.
Thor obtained the Odinpower following the death of Odin. In one timeline, he used this power to try and make Earth a better place, but eventually took over the entire planet. During this period, he and the Enchantress sired a son, Magni. Magni would later convince his father that his rule was wrong. Thor then traveled back in time to prevent the inciting incident that led to that future. The future Thor then merged with his pat self so he would remember what happened. See Thor (vol. 2) #67-79. This created a divergent reality identified as Reality-3515, per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #2.
Toothgasher and Toothgrinder were last seen in Thor (vol. 2) #40, and they were killed alongside Odin. However, according to Norse mythology, the goats could resurrect themselves as long as their bones were not broken. Presumably, this is how they happen to appear here. It should be noted here that the armor that Thor is wearing the enchanted armor he first built in Thor #378.
Thor was a founding member of the team alongside Iron Man, the Hulk, Ant-Man and the Wasp, as seen in Avengers #1.
Odin slaying Ymir with his brothers Vili and Ve was first told in Journey into Mystery #97. However, this series of events was actually part of a previous Ragnarok cycle. As revealed in Thor #294 and explained in more detail in Thor (vol. 2) #84, Asgard has gone through cycles of death and rebirth, with the Asgardians reliving their lives more-or-less the same each time. Events tend to vary depending on which cycle we’re talking about. These cycles of death and rebirth were created to give power to They Who Sit Above in Shadow.
The Odinforce states that Odin creationed the human race. However, the origin of humanity has a number of conflicting origins. Generally speaking, in the Marvel Universe, the theory of evolution is the most widely accepted explanation for humanity. That said, there are other conflicting ideas that are unique to the fiction:
- According to Norse mythology, the first humans were Aske and Embula and they were born from magic. A version of this tale was originally told in Journey into Mystery #103, in a version that suggested that Thor created the first man and woman with the help of Mirmir. While Thor Annual #5 states that they emerged from the ice following the creation of the Earth from Ymir’s remains. Thor #294 went on to suggest that these were actually false memories implanted into the minds of the Asgardians by Odin at the start of the most recent Ragarnok cycle.
- Another commonly held belief was that humanity was the work of Gaea, the Earth Goddess, as per Iron Man Annual #10.
- Yet another, per Eternals #1, states that the Celestials had their hand in creating the human race through genetic experiments performed on our primate ancestors. Since both the Eternals and Deviants — created by the Celestials as well — also exist, this seems like the most factual acount.
- In Thor #215, Xorr the God-Jewel claimed to have created life on Earth. However, there is no supporting evidence to back this up.
- More recently, X-Men: Giant-Size #1 revealed that a group of beings called the Evoltuonaries played a hand in the birth of the first humans.
Odin sacrificing one of his eyes for the wisdom of Mimir is part of Norse mythology and has happened many times in past Ragnarok cycles. The most recent time was when Thor sacrificed his eye in Thor #274 in order to prevent an earlier Ragnarok level threat. However, Odin’s eye was later restored around Thor #400.
We get a parade of events that have transpired over the years. Those we haven’t already covered are:
- Thor becoming worthy enough to life Mjolnir, as seen in Journey into Mystery #102.
- Don Blake finding the walking stick and becoming Thor was from Journey into Mystery #83.
- Thor battling the Absorbing Man for the first time, which happened in Journey into Mystery #114-115.
- Beta Ray Bill lifting Mjolnir in Thor #337.
- Odin and Surtur seemingly dying in battle during an earlier Ragnarok level threat is from Thor #350-353. However, they didn’t actually die, but were made prisoners of Seth, the Egyptian death god. See Thor #400.
- Balder’s death happened in Thor (vol. 2) #81.
Thor already knows that Ragnarok operates on a cycle, after this was revealed to him by the living eye of Odin in Thor #292-300. However, this was later called into question by Tiwaz in Thor #355.

Topical References

Sif asks Bill where he has been “all these years”, this based on the measurement of time between Thor (vol. 2) #41 (published in 2001) and this issue (published in 2004). As this is a measurement of time between publications it should be considered topical. For modern readers only about a year has passed between Bill’s last encounter with the Asgardians.