There’s a segue from an ordinary sized Loki among Frost Giants opposite Thor in action on the rainbow bridge, and while colourist Matt Wilson is due some credit, Dauterman’s distinct approach is key to the spec tacle. Instead of leading to a messy looking graphic novel the switches work really well.

His line is delicate, and he sometimes varies the look of his scenes according to the main character within them. Otherwise Dauterman’s art continues to progress and impress. Not as welcome is Loki’s self-aware dialogue, which verges on the irritating, and Russell Dauterman toying with illustrations of Tom Hiddleston as Loki, is equally ill advised as this isn’t Dauterman’s strength and so the look is inconsistent. Since the earliest days of Thor’s strip Loki has always been dangerous and engaging, and the best chapter has him facing off against Thor, utilising all his previous identities. “An all-new, all-different Thor deserves an all-new, all-different Loki. Nice character touches and moments of action keep the plot simmering. Possibly tied in, or possibly a situation that can be taken advantage of, is Odin’s apparent dictatorial insanity, with Asgard darkening as the other eight worlds are under threat. This is a very slow release plot, with Aaron spending as much time with the villains as he does with Thor. These now include Loki, restored to his evil trickster identity after Marvel toyed with Loki in a heroic form.

Introduced to tie in with the second Thor movie, he’s sparked story possibilities for Jason Aaron, and he’s gathering an alliance of people very dangerous to Thor. The villain of the piece is the elf Malekith.

Review by Karl Verhoven Spoilers in reviewĪfter stringing out the mystery of the new female Thor’s identity for almost two graphic novels, Jason Aaron revealed the current person worthy to possess the power of Thor in the concluding pages to Who Holds the Hammer? What with internet revelations and a limited number of viable candidates, by that point it wasn’t much of a surprise, but if you’d prefer to work your way to Thunder in Her Veins without knowing, don’t read beyond the fourth paragraph.

Thunder in her veins