Thor #29: The Pride of the Valkyries

Thor #29 begins a new mini-arc by a new writer: Torunn Grønbekk, who has previously written multiple Thor-adjacent miniseries including Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor, which concluded in October. As with Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor, Thor #29 teases an exciting new mystery and sees the return of a character not seen (other than in flashback) in Thor comics for several years. There’s no knowing if this mini-arcand the following arc will suffer from the same problems as JF&TMT, but this is a promising beginning. It’s also incredibly refreshing to get a queer subplot – that isn’t focused on suffering Sapphics – in the main series via Runa and her new girlfriend. It’s unclear if Grønbekk is permanently taking over from Donny Cates (she’s listed as “guest writer” on Marvel’s site for Thor #29 but will keep writing Thor after this mini-arc), but it’s wonderful having her on the main series, regardless. 

Grønbekk’s script is more dense than Cates’ tend to be, so leave artist Nic Klein with fewer opportunities for jaw-dropping splash pages, but Klein’s work is nonetheless strong as ever. While the cover is rather static, the interior pages are a perfect mix of dynamic and haunting (and even a little bit of sexy) work. While other artists might have difficulty with certain (spoiler-y) moments of this story, Klein makes it look effortless. Colorist Matt Wilson similarly never fails to impress, deftly matching the shifting moods of both the narrative and Klein’s art.