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Thor: Heaven and Earth #1-4
Thor: Heaven & Earth
In the days before the terrible events of Ragnarok, the Gods of Asgard stare across the ramparts of their city toward a massive, demonic army at the gates. The prophesied End of All Days is about to begin. As the armies of darkness begin their initial attacks, Thor confronts Loki, who is destined to usher in the fall of Asgard. But what Thor learns from Loki may change the way he sees his treacherous half-brother. For perhaps this terrible event is a time also of renewal. Perhaps in this desperate hour, even the God of Lies has a purpose. Collecting THOR: HEAVEN & EARTH #1-4.
112 pages, Hardcover
First published December 7, 2011
About the author
Paul Jenkins
1,193 books141 followersPaul Jenkins is a British comic book writer. He has had much success crossing over into the American comic book market. Primarily working for Marvel Comics, he has had a big part shaping the characters of the company over the past decade.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
May 24, 2015
A solid collection of one offs.
December 30, 2020
3.5 stars.
No lengthy review needed, just revisiting some old Thor one-offs and mini-series.
Most of them (including this one) don't shake the pillars of Heaven, but are nonetheless reasonably solid and entertaining tales.
No lengthy review needed, just revisiting some old Thor one-offs and mini-series.
Most of them (including this one) don't shake the pillars of Heaven, but are nonetheless reasonably solid and entertaining tales.
April 24, 2021
Thor: Heaven & Earth is a collection of one-shots by Paul Jenkins with a variety of artists.
The first issue, with Ariel Olivetti art, features Thor and Loki debating the purpose of Ragnarok, as Loki argues it as an inevitable and necessary cleansing of Asgard from which reality will rebuild itself stronger than ever. And Thor, ever the believer that Asgard must be eternal and Ragnarok must be avoided, has to come face to face with the possibility that he is wrong. Unfortunately it's supported by some flimsy "lies" Loki tells to convince Thor. When Jenkins could have provided some good proof of lies that can be "good", he goes with... evidence tampering cops, unfaithful spouses, and sports stars. A collection of others, as well, but so much of it misses the mark and ruins the overall theme of the issue.
The second issue, with Mark Texeira art, is about a hostage situation! A man has taken a room of people hostage and is threatening to blow them all up... unless Thor can bring his son back to life. After all, Thor is a god and gods can explore the afterlife as if it were any other place to visit... right? There's no satisfactory answer here, which is a shame. An interesting idea, pushing Thor to the limits of his godhood and how far he is willing to go to save people- but it just ends.
The third issue, with Pascal Alixe art, has Thor debating the metaphysical existence of God (and gods) with a Catholic minister who is on his death bed. How can the father reconcile his belief in God with the knowledge that a pagan god walks among humanity at this very moment? As he nears the end of his life, knowing that sickness will take him in but a day, what answers will he and Thor discover? It's a fantastic issue, and even if you don't pick up this trade I suggest looking up just the single issue on Marvel Unlimited.
The fourth issue, with art by Lan Medina, has a writer listening to an old man's story about an ancient time when the Asgardian gods fought a great red dragon. It's gods fighting a dragon, what do you expect? It looks cool, it's pretty fun, it's not the greatest story ever but it has GODS fighting a DRAGON. Which is always a nice story to tell.
Overall, it's a fine collection of one-shots- some good ideas, some really good ones, and a nice pick-up for Thor fans but it's nowhere near a must-read.
The first issue, with Ariel Olivetti art, features Thor and Loki debating the purpose of Ragnarok, as Loki argues it as an inevitable and necessary cleansing of Asgard from which reality will rebuild itself stronger than ever. And Thor, ever the believer that Asgard must be eternal and Ragnarok must be avoided, has to come face to face with the possibility that he is wrong. Unfortunately it's supported by some flimsy "lies" Loki tells to convince Thor. When Jenkins could have provided some good proof of lies that can be "good", he goes with... evidence tampering cops, unfaithful spouses, and sports stars. A collection of others, as well, but so much of it misses the mark and ruins the overall theme of the issue.
The second issue, with Mark Texeira art, is about a hostage situation! A man has taken a room of people hostage and is threatening to blow them all up... unless Thor can bring his son back to life. After all, Thor is a god and gods can explore the afterlife as if it were any other place to visit... right? There's no satisfactory answer here, which is a shame. An interesting idea, pushing Thor to the limits of his godhood and how far he is willing to go to save people- but it just ends.
The third issue, with Pascal Alixe art, has Thor debating the metaphysical existence of God (and gods) with a Catholic minister who is on his death bed. How can the father reconcile his belief in God with the knowledge that a pagan god walks among humanity at this very moment? As he nears the end of his life, knowing that sickness will take him in but a day, what answers will he and Thor discover? It's a fantastic issue, and even if you don't pick up this trade I suggest looking up just the single issue on Marvel Unlimited.
The fourth issue, with art by Lan Medina, has a writer listening to an old man's story about an ancient time when the Asgardian gods fought a great red dragon. It's gods fighting a dragon, what do you expect? It looks cool, it's pretty fun, it's not the greatest story ever but it has GODS fighting a DRAGON. Which is always a nice story to tell.
Overall, it's a fine collection of one-shots- some good ideas, some really good ones, and a nice pick-up for Thor fans but it's nowhere near a must-read.
June 11, 2022
This is a very mixed bag, I like the themes, I even like the way the themes are approached I concept, but I found the execution to be lacking in half of these stories. Also, the art isn't great for some of these, especially the one with the priest, which is a shame because it's such an interesting, philosophical story. How do monotheistic religions deal with the fact that Thor claims to be the God of Thunder? And what does it do to Thor if his existence is questioned?
That's the thing I like most about this set: Apart from the last story, there isn't a lot of action I this book. Thor gets very meta-physical here, looking at what defines a God in the Marvel super hero cosmos.
That's the thing I like most about this set: Apart from the last story, there isn't a lot of action I this book. Thor gets very meta-physical here, looking at what defines a God in the Marvel super hero cosmos.
March 28, 2024
Thor is a difficult character to write well; he’s either too vastly overpowered to be interesting, or so artificially laden with contrived weaknesses that he’s hardly credible as a god at all. This small collection of vignettes manages to avoid either pitfall quite deftly, and does so by exploring the existential challenges posed by gods who themselves don’t ever quite seem to understand their place in a thoroughly chaotic universe. It’s a bold choice to write stories featuring a character inspired so heavily by the sword-and-sorcery genre that involve so little of the customary punching and smashing you’d expect, but Jenkins carries it off beautifully.
February 21, 2019
Una interesante colección de cuatro historias independientes, pero con un mismo hilo conductor. La divinidad y la mundaniedad del Panteón nórdico. Las historias son super sólidas y las preguntas que se plantean son profundas y pertinentes. No hay grandes respuestas pero si hay grandes reflexiones, lo cual le da un carácter más filosófico que lo que un cómic de Thor pueda tener. La ilustración de la primera historia es un autor diferente al resto pero ambos estilos cuadran muy bien con la narrativa. Recomendado!
July 26, 2021
This collection of different, unrelated, "one-off" Thor stories which examine the role of gods and the lives of mortals was pretty good. The stories themselves were mostly well written, but the art in each story varied greatly and most of it was just not great IMHO, I'm sorry to say, with the exception of the first story with art by Ariel Olivetti, which was excellent.
January 15, 2022
Paul Jenkins gives readers four different tales involving Thor and they're all pretty good. I really enjoyed the crisis of faith story and the dragon tale. The art was a mixed bag. None of these tales are groundbreaking but its a good collection showcasing who Thor is. Overall, a short but decent collection.
November 25, 2019
Stories felt weird and maybe that is my fault for not reading much Thor before. Story two and three are the good ones, but two feels out of character and three is spiritual(in case that is not your thing)
December 27, 2017
Mostly okay, but the last story was a very good one.
September 15, 2018
A rather interesting mix of stories
October 18, 2019
I liked this one a lot. The stories were well thought out and meaningful.
April 26, 2022
Basically a 4-issue anthology for Thor, all written by Paul Jenkins with 4 different artists. 2 were fine, 2 were meh. The volume as a whole is honestly completely skippable.
October 11, 2019
Rereading, I had forgotten three of the four stories, and like them even more. It's not the plot that counts here, it's the fine scripting and collaboration, with great dialogue. I will read almost anything written by Paul Jenkins: here is an example of his thoughtful scripting. Four stories, four artist collaborators: these are about as good as Thor gets, or has gotten before Jason Aaron's recent run. These artists may or may not not have drawn other Thor stories, but most work here is a good series of variations on the hero.
In my favorite of the four stories, Thor struggles to answer the questions posed to him by a Catholic priest, who begins: "It's too late to be sorry. Insurance will take care of my car. I want to know who's going to explain the rest of it.
[Next panel, new word balloon.] Tomorrow I'm going to stand in front of my parishioners and tell them there is one god and one messiah. They're going to know about what happened today outside my church. They're going to know a creature who claims to be the pagan God of Thunder saved hundreds of lives.
[Next panel, new word balloon, close-up on priest's eyes. glancing sideways] So tell me, Thor: what will I say when they ask me who you are and why you are here?"
[A few pages/years pass, a few missed dates and opportunities. Thor visits the priest on his deathbed and answers...]
Thor: "You are a minister to others. And now you have ministered to me. I didn't come with an answer for you. Instead, I came to reaffirm that you are asking the right question.
[Next panel, new word balloon, close-up on a crucifix on the wall] I am not proof of anything but the complexity of creation. Whatever answers you may personally seek I suspect you are about to find them.
[Next panel, new word balloon, artist Pascual Alixe portrays a seated, pensive Thor] The question is the same for me as it is for you: who am I and why am I here? The answer remains the same as it ever was:
[Next panel, new word balloon, close-up on Thor's face, smiling] Ask me tomorrow."
Beautiful story, ending in a prayer, titled, "Ask Me Tomorrow."
Highly recommended.
In my favorite of the four stories, Thor struggles to answer the questions posed to him by a Catholic priest, who begins: "It's too late to be sorry. Insurance will take care of my car. I want to know who's going to explain the rest of it.
[Next panel, new word balloon.] Tomorrow I'm going to stand in front of my parishioners and tell them there is one god and one messiah. They're going to know about what happened today outside my church. They're going to know a creature who claims to be the pagan God of Thunder saved hundreds of lives.
[Next panel, new word balloon, close-up on priest's eyes. glancing sideways] So tell me, Thor: what will I say when they ask me who you are and why you are here?"
[A few pages/years pass, a few missed dates and opportunities. Thor visits the priest on his deathbed and answers...]
Thor: "You are a minister to others. And now you have ministered to me. I didn't come with an answer for you. Instead, I came to reaffirm that you are asking the right question.
[Next panel, new word balloon, close-up on a crucifix on the wall] I am not proof of anything but the complexity of creation. Whatever answers you may personally seek I suspect you are about to find them.
[Next panel, new word balloon, artist Pascual Alixe portrays a seated, pensive Thor] The question is the same for me as it is for you: who am I and why am I here? The answer remains the same as it ever was:
[Next panel, new word balloon, close-up on Thor's face, smiling] Ask me tomorrow."
Beautiful story, ending in a prayer, titled, "Ask Me Tomorrow."
Highly recommended.
June 16, 2013
I only started reading Marvel comics in the past year. I've been trying to read the major "event" storylines, but have also been picking up individual Thor collections since he is my favorite Avenger. I chose this collection because the price was low and it is a stand-alone; e.g. you don't need other books in order to understand what is going on. The four stories collected here are all tied together by the question "what is Thor's purpose and why is he here"?
In the first story, Asgard is under attack and Thor goes to the dungeon to question his brother Loki about whether this is Raganarok. What follows is an interesting lecture by Loki (broken up by Thor beating on him) about how everything has a purpose, even Loki himself, and that Ragnarok must and will happen. Can Thor accept Loki's explanation if it brings into questions Thor's own purpose in the world?
The second story opens with Thor being summoned to a hostage situation. The villain wants Thor to bring back his 5 year old son, killed while trying to fly like Spiderman. Thor tries to convince him to stand down by explaining why Asgardians cannot interfere with men's choices. An interesting look at free will.
The third story is similar to the second in that a Catholic priest finds his faith in doubt after seeing what Thor can do. If Thor can open a rainbow bridge and travel between worlds, how can he know that his savior was even real? Thor provides an answer, though not one I was expecting.
The last story is something of a folk story taking place in Wales. A writer is putting together a travel guide and a stranger shares a fun story about a dragon's battle with the Asgardians.
Another reviewer was disappointed that this collection raised some interesting questions but never seemed to answer them. I felt that the point was that the questions needed to be asked but the answer is for the reader to decide. Overall, this collection takes a more philosophical approach to Thor's character rather than the standard "bash the enemies" story. It's not for everyone, but I found it very well done. Recommended.
In the first story, Asgard is under attack and Thor goes to the dungeon to question his brother Loki about whether this is Raganarok. What follows is an interesting lecture by Loki (broken up by Thor beating on him) about how everything has a purpose, even Loki himself, and that Ragnarok must and will happen. Can Thor accept Loki's explanation if it brings into questions Thor's own purpose in the world?
The second story opens with Thor being summoned to a hostage situation. The villain wants Thor to bring back his 5 year old son, killed while trying to fly like Spiderman. Thor tries to convince him to stand down by explaining why Asgardians cannot interfere with men's choices. An interesting look at free will.
The third story is similar to the second in that a Catholic priest finds his faith in doubt after seeing what Thor can do. If Thor can open a rainbow bridge and travel between worlds, how can he know that his savior was even real? Thor provides an answer, though not one I was expecting.
The last story is something of a folk story taking place in Wales. A writer is putting together a travel guide and a stranger shares a fun story about a dragon's battle with the Asgardians.
Another reviewer was disappointed that this collection raised some interesting questions but never seemed to answer them. I felt that the point was that the questions needed to be asked but the answer is for the reader to decide. Overall, this collection takes a more philosophical approach to Thor's character rather than the standard "bash the enemies" story. It's not for everyone, but I found it very well done. Recommended.
February 6, 2013
While I did not find the first story especially strong (the art style was difficult to understand and overall too sparse and stiff to be impressive, and the story itself was too simplistic and parable-esque), this volume got stronger with the reader. I loved how Jenkins explored these very mature issues of reconciling one's shaken faith and honoring one's fallen opponent and set them in very mythical and yet very Marvel universes. The final story, "The Dragon of Dolgellau," I especially loved (the little twist at the end was very nice), and I'm seriously considering buying this volume just for that. While this might not be traditional Thor/Marvel fare, I loved it, and I recommend it.
December 8, 2013
I hardly ever buy floppies anymore, reading a story over multiple months just isn't any fun for me anymore.
Which is why I like that they publish stories in collected form these days, which allows me to read a story from start to finish without having to wait months in between chapters.
And then we have this book, which is basically a collection of four different monthly stories collected into a single hard cover volume.
The four stories are nice, but not great, though short.
The art is nice as well, but not great.
So, yeah.
Which is why I like that they publish stories in collected form these days, which allows me to read a story from start to finish without having to wait months in between chapters.
And then we have this book, which is basically a collection of four different monthly stories collected into a single hard cover volume.
The four stories are nice, but not great, though short.
The art is nice as well, but not great.
So, yeah.
January 5, 2015
This is a good read for different lenses in which to view the God of thunder but no story really comes to a conclusion. They are snippets that are only connected in how disconnected they are from each other.
The art was done well but did not strike me as memorable in any way. The first story has the gods dressed as you would imagine from reading the legends but the rest have thor in his modern attire while the others remain in their legendary garb.
A fun read but no real meat to chew on in this one.
The art was done well but did not strike me as memorable in any way. The first story has the gods dressed as you would imagine from reading the legends but the rest have thor in his modern attire while the others remain in their legendary garb.
A fun read but no real meat to chew on in this one.
May 6, 2016
This was a series of four single-issue stories of a far more philosophical nature than Thor comics tend to contain. It was interesting to see Thor treated more as a god, rather than an alien, but I found the author's thoughts didn't quite match up with my own. Still, they were interesting thought experiments, nonetheless. Thor's powers are a bit more nebulous than they often are, and some of these stories reminded me of Superman stories I have read, but overall, they were interesting stories that showcased the long and varied history of Thor.
March 2, 2012
"Ask Me Tomorrow" in issue 3 is by far one of the best Thor stories I have read. The collection is worth it, if for that alone.
June 18, 2012
I loved every single story in this collection, they were all told beautifully. I only wish there was more in the collection!
November 25, 2016
Not often I put a book on both the Christian bookshelf and the dragon bookshelf.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews