Thor and Loki: The Tenth Realm #2

“Original Sin”

Story: Jason Aaron & Al Ewing

Script: Al Ewing

Artist & Colorist(pgs 1-5) Lee Garbett & Nolan Woodard

Artist & colorist (pgs 6-20) Simone Bianchi & Adriano Dall'alpi

Letter: VC’s Joe Sabino

Assistant Editor: Jon Moisan

Editor: Wil Moss

Released: 7-24-14

bi-weekly release, $3.99

For my first tie-in review, I have chosen Thor and Loki: The Tenth Realm. I made this choice because, as many people know, Thor is losing Mjölnir to a lady, and I believe that the events that will make Thor unworthy of his mighty weapon will occur within these pages. Thor and Loki have set out to find Angela, Thor’s sister thought lost eons ago. My interest has been rewarded with a great tale of Thor and Loki’s encounters with the denizens of the mythical tenth realm, known as angels.

The main opposition to tie-ins with big events is that there is a miscommunication or misinterpretation of the events that are supposed to occur between the main title and the tie-in. However, in this book this has not been the case. I suspect it has to do with the involvement of Original Sin’s writer, Jason Aaron, in this title. The story is told well and is easy to understand, but its simplicity shows off the title characters and their differences.

Both title characters show off their personalities and strengths well throughout the book. When the angles of the tenth realm attack our heroes, due to bad blood stretching back eons, Thor engages them in battle. Loki, in contrast, uses his guile to make his way to the opposition’s leader. Thor gets to show his prowess in battle, which is very interesting, but Loki proves why he is a much more interesting character by entering into negotiations with the Queen of Angels. Loki steals the show; he is a true wild card.

The art within the book is beautiful. Both sets of artists and colorists are outstanding, but Simone destroys all expectations. It truly shows that the characters are well outside of the bounds of the normal Marvel universe. Panel to panel the art adds to everything in the story, the action flows well in Thor’s battle and it adds to the suspense of Loki’s scenes.

The issue ends well. It has several plot threads that are engaging and keep me wanting to know what is going to happen next. However, this does not detract from the fun and suspense of the current issue, because it is full of fun action with Thor and suspenseful subterfuge with Loki. I am looking forward to picking up future issues and discovering the mysteries of the tenth realm.