Writer: Donny Cates, Artist: Nic Klein, Colors: Matthew Wilson

Out Now

With his runs on Venom, Guardians of the Galaxy and Thanos, Donny Cates has proven during his time at Marvel that he doesn't do anything small and Thor #1 is no different. Following Jason Aaron's seven-year arc with the Asgardian, Cates said he's excited to start a new chapter with Thor. After the War of the Realms and an almost eternal struggle with Gorr, Thor has ascended as King of Asgard. But dark things lie ahead.

In an interview this week with SYFY WIRE, Thor scribe Donny Cates revealed that when he initially signed to Marvel in 2017, it was to eventually take over Thor after Aaron.

"Axel Alonso thought I'd be good for Thor and when he signed me to an exclusive contract it was so I would be here when Jason left Thor," Cates explained. "So I've known since then and it's been really great since Jason and I are friends and we've been in the planning room together. So, I've had the luxury of working on this story for three years before putting it out."

In the meantime, Cates has been dropping threads in books like Silver Surfer Black and Guardians of the Galaxy that could now play a major role in his Thor run. When it came time to brainstorm ideas for the book, Cates said the task seemed daunting, especially after hearing the scale of Aaron's plans. And, while his initial idea was to go small — to contrast with Aaron's epic run — Marvel editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski pushed him to go the other way.

"Originally, the first arc was the second. I thought that would be a good way to differentiate myself after Jason's run, but then C.B. very wisely said 'No man, blow the doors off, show up and drop a bomb on it.' So I said, 'Okay, if those are my marching orders,'" Cates recalled.

"So, I was going to kind of work up to the Herald of Galactus stuff. The other reason [why] that arc was good to start with was that Jason's Thor has a very distinct look," he continued. "So I started thinking — and this is no disrespect to anyone — as long as I'm writing Thor and he has that one arm and eye patch and beard, I would always be writing Jason's Thor. So what this story brought me was a way to come in and give him a new costume, new purpose new look, and a new quest."

In the description to artist Nic Klein, Cates said he wanted a Thor made of "pure energy, crackling with light."

"I also wanted Mjolnir to look like someone had poured a lightning bolt into a mold," Cates said. "I included a note about the Thurisaz rune and Nic included that in his incredible design. It's the closest Thor has ever had to having something like the Superman symbol across his chest."