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Marvel Introduces Thor (As a Lady.)


D-Ray Kenobi
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Marvel is excited to announce an all-new era for the God of Thunder in brand new series, THOR, written by Jason Aaron complimented with art from Russell Dauterman. This October, Marvel Comics evolves once again in one of the most shocking and exciting changes ever to shake one of the “big three” of Captain American, Iron Man and Thor. No longer is the classic Thunder God able to hold the mighty hammer, Mjölnir, and a brand new female hero will emerge worthy of the name THOR.

 

More on Marvel.com: http://marvel.com/news/comics/2014/7/15/22875/marvel_proudly_presents_thor#ixzz37Z443V2c

So, I was actually on board with this for a bit. Until I read this absolutely eviscerating and well-reasoned comment on /r/comicbooks on Reddit:

Marvel could have tried again to elevate any number of females from Thor's world. Sif, Valkyrie, Angela or even Thor Girl. But I'm guessing since "Journey Into Mystery Featuring Sif" and "Fearless Defenders" staring Valkyrie both got the axe after 10 and 13 issues respectively, Marvel is just going to go all in and tell everyone they're replacing Thor.

Yes, this new female Thor will replace the Odinson of the past 50+ years and will be the ONLY Thor... for a year or two. Then, like every dead or displaced hero, Odinson will reclaim his mantle of Thor and she'll go by a different name. Just like Bucky-Cap, and just like Hawkeye-Cap or whoever the heck the new Captain America is supposed to be. Odinson will be back as Thor probably just in time for the third Thor movie, provided this idea doesn't massively backfire before then. Just like Peter Parker managed to come back to life in the comics and take back the Spider-Man identity in time for the Amazing Spider-Man 2 film.
I feel like Marvel looked at the moderate success of Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel and tried to one-up that, even though the situation with Carol to Captain Marvel was completely different. Every subsequent person to use the "Captain Marvel" name after the death of the original has ditched the title in favor of being called: Photon, Pulsar, Oblivion/Martyr, Botched Skrull, Protector. Danvers is more or less the only one to really make that title hers since Mar-Vell died over 30 years ago. Compare that to Thor, where there's only been one Thor, or at best two-kind-of. Beta Ray Bill wasn't Thor. Eric Masterson was just bonded with Thor and Thor eventually is freed from Masterson's mind and Masterson became Thunderstrike. Otherwise Thor has been Thor, no questions about it. Well, until this stunt now.
If Marvel wants to diversify, then they should work their asses off to create a big female lead on par with all of their male leads. They are on the right track with Captain Marvel. But they don't always need to take a popular male character and re-assign the gender. It reeks of Mortal Kombat pallet swapping/gender swapping. Is there no one in Marvel who has an original idea for a female superhero that can stand on her own? Is Marvel not willing to put in the time or effort to get the right creative teams on the job to rightfully elevate a female character to be on par with Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Man, Hulk or Wolverine? Is Marvel just giving up on making Black Widow a star? And even though they are male derived characters, Marvel could be making even bigger pushes with Captain Marvel and She-Hulk since they at least have well defined characters given how long they've been around. Marvel could be doing a much better job at using the female characters they already have and then INNOVATING new ones instead of doing whatever this "THOR" business is.
This comic could very well be great, and I hope it is. But at the end of the day (in a couple of years), this woman will not be "THOR" any longer and it's ridiculous that Marvel is trying to act like this woman is the new permanent Thor. “This is not She-Thor. This is not Lady Thor. This is not Thorita. This is THOR." should be amended to say "This is THOR-[For A Temporary Period]."
What's everyone's opinion on this? After considering it, I can't help but think that this is little more than a cleverly executed and possibly subvertly sexist move.
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https://tv.yahoo.com/blogs/tv-news/-the-view--s-marvel-announcement--thor-s-gonna-be-a-woman--164524340.html

 

According to the announcement, Thor will now be a woman.

 

 

"This is not She-Thor. This is not Lady Thor. This is not Thorita. This is THOR. This is the THOR of the Marvel Universe. But it's unlike any Thor we've ever seen before," series writer Jason Aaron clarified in a statement

 

So what say you on this change?

 


Go ahead and delete. While I was typing up D-Ray posted.

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Anyone really cheesed might want to recheck Norse mythology as there are variations of the ancient tales both where Thor has to cross dress and live as a woman. Loki is often involved and in some manner Odin approves, seeing it as a good test of humility... which Thor lacks almost completely... it's his Kryptonite.

 

Of course that's an argument for Thor being gender bent, not just some new person using his name. Usually I don't like gender bending; If genitals don't make a superhero then giving Superman a vagina won't allow you to explore his character to any additional depth. However it is built into Thor's true mythology that he had these changes forced on him to teach him lessons in a serves him right sort of way, that's a different matter altogether.

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For the record, Loki has been female in the 616 for years. I don't mind it in the Thor is so sacred how dare the change him sense-- I have no problem with that-- but I do agree with the post D-Ray quoted. Why not work harder to elevate existing female charatcers instead of doing the same usurped mantle story they've done over and over.

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Marvel could have tried again to elevate any number of females from Thor's world. Sif, Valkyrie, Angela or even Thor Girl.

 

So much this. Give them the spotlight.

 

Especially Angela. Has it even been a year since she was added to the mythology?

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They're keeping the "real" Thor around as Unworthy Thor, who will likely still have his own series. Which kind of goes to support the point that Lady Thor is more or less a temporary stunt.

Marvel has made an unfortunate habit of doing this lately. Superior Spider-man wasn't exactly universally well received, but at least it was a try at something new and creative. But everyone knew that it was a temporary stunt that would come to a close as soon as the new film was near release, even despite Marvel's insistence and stance that it wasn't. The same is clear with this, with either Age of Ultron or Thor 3. If Marvel wanted to be taken legitimately with stuff like this, they should grow a pair and stick with a character / story alteration like this through a media blitz for a new film.

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Angry at the [insert thing] of his most recent love interest Thor goes on a Journey Into Winning! After discovering the "strangth?!" of tiger blood Thor becomes utterly disenchanted with his destiny.

 

Disgusted with his turn to irresponsibility, self abusive and sexist behavior his father Odin approves Loki's plan to teach Thor a lesson. The next morning Thor wakes up as a woman, extremely similar to the flocks of chicks he had been bagging and tagging for weeks. Without the ability to use Mjolnir, no travel to or contact with Asgard and no one really believing his/her story Thor is classed as MIA.

 

Thor is left to deal with his/her reality, perhaps even coming to terms with the idea of some psychotic event, wondering which life was real (Captain Picard's Inner Light style) ... until Thor rediscovers his/her "humanity". Along the way to inner discovery meaningful, compassionate relationships are fostered; detailing the soul of a hero and actions that can be taken without powers or vigilantism.

 

Like O'Neil and Adams using Speedy to examine peer pressure and drug usage/additiction or Miller's flip with Catwoman to examine the sexual streetworld, I'm flirting with the idea to use this actual mythological twist for Thor as an examination of the modern "legit" entertainment/sex industry. With Thor's Loki imposed reality having a background in that "world", perhaps waking up as a Vegas stripper. Undecided how to approach it really, maybe it could work more honestly as a relative to a worker instead of actually "quantum leaping" into one. Maybe seeing the "glamour" of the industry as someone teetering on the verge of diving into that pit.

 

Loki masquerades occasionally as a user/abuser. Continuing to needle Thor during his purgatory. Often spouting his typical rhetoric of "everyone has their roles to play", which is ultimately excusing himself of accountability and liability. This struggle is also flipped as Thor comes to terms with his/her choices, consequences and destiny. To say it super simply, similar to Popeye, I am what I am not who someone tells me I am. Ownership of ourselves and moving forward to be better.

 

At the end Thor is offered a choice to stay as s/he has grown to be, regardless of whether s/he also wishes to succeed in the prescribed destiny of Thor. Acknowledging that s/he can only be true to themselves, regardless of physical gender, Thor reasserts himself as Thor Son of Odin.

 

Meanwhile Sif, as Sif not some altered moniker, takes up the slack left behind by Thor's disappearance. In honor of her lost companion she strikes the color from her raven hair, turning gleaming blonde (which is also a nod to her actual mythological descriptions). Odin might see her as the offspring he dreams of, the tired and true, with faults but with the temperament to push thru them. Sif literally is the greater woman behind a great man, like the old saying. Perhaps updating that as a great woman standing with, not behind, a great man. Feel free to insert "great person" if that makes us feel cooler.

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I love that Torchie.

 

I think the implication is that something happens or he does something to make him unworthy.

Yeah I get that. My thing is the same issue Tank has with the EU and Luke. Once Thor learns humility he should have it. Find other life lessons or whatever. This would be like Luke still being tempted by the Dark Side after 50 years.

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  • 3 weeks later...

But now there are so many important questions to be answered!

 

Is she hot?

Thor's suddenly snackable. Yum.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! And all this time, girlfriends everywhere will be thinking the men in their lives have finally reached enlightenment and came to accept, embrace even, strong female lead characters ...

 

Thor actually dressed in drag during one of the actual Norse sagas, so why not?

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Feige has said this isn't happening in the movies, and neither is Falcon becoming Captain America. That tells me that these changes are temporary. To me, the questions are: 1) how to best utilize them if you know going in that they are placeholders; and 2) how to make the originals matter more when transitioning back to them.

 

Back to the movies and how this affects them. Evans and Hemsworth are still signed on for two more movies each that haven't even started shooting yet (at the least, if they don't re-up either of them...however unlikely or otherwise). Would this really be anything other than temporary when they have Captain America 3, Thor 3, Avengers 3 still to shoot and Avengers 2 less than a year away from release? Turning somebody else into Thor could be confusing to some of the audience, inn such a way that could have a negative impact on their attempts to promote his next two appearances. Cap? Whoa. Yes, a rumored passing of the mantle. But to Falcon instead of Bucky? But what about the nine picture deal signed by Sebastian Stan? Eight more pictures as the Winter Soldier? Some as Cap, and then Falcon takes the mantle? Does Steve get it back first? Or do the movies deviate?

 

That's too many potential questions. And with so many disenchanted viewers questioning the deliberate changes Fox is making, and how Marvel has responded in print and marketing to Fox, my guess is that we could see things swing back to pre-Avengers Now before too long so they don't rock the boat too much in their cinematic universe.

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  • 9 months later...
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