Warning: contains spoilers for Immortal Thor #1!In the first issue of Immortal Thor, Marvel fans get a glimpse at Mjolnir’s true form, in a mind-blowing reveal as to its secret function in the cosmos. Currently, Thor finds himself fighting the Utgard-Gods – secret beings who exist above Marvel’s natural order of the divine, and whose very existence spills extensive secrets about reality itself.
In Immortal Thor #1 (from Al Ewing and Martín Cóccolo), Thor is attacked by Toranos, aka the Utgard-Thor. Toranos is an elder god, and the comic details how his pantheon exist in a higher level of reality and are the beings from who regular gods derive their form and function – the Thor fans know is essentially the shadow cast by Utgard-Thor’s larger cosmic presence. Accordingly, Toranos is a towering warrior with absolute control over storms, embodying everything that defines Thor but on a more powerful, primal level. And while the comic doesn’t draw excessive attention to it, that includes Mjolnir. As Toranos attacks, he holds two objects – a gigantic bolt of lightning, and a huge, shadowy wheel.
Mjolnir Is the ‘Shadow’ of Toranos’ Wheel
While the wheel is referenced in the comic – Toranos begins the issue by declaring “the wheel… turns” – it’s easy to miss its significance. Since his creation, Thor has often whirled his hammer in a circle in order to achieve flight or summon specific powers. In accordance with Jack Kirby’s iconic art, this is usually pictured as a whirling circle emanating around Thor’s fist. Indeed, The Immortal Thor #1 even introduces Thor with this image in order to fix it in the reader’s mind. Once this is understood, it’s clear to see that Toranos’ wheel is intended to recreate this image while giving it shocking new meaning.
Thor Is Fighting the Ultimate Version of His Own Archetype
Toranos’ wheel is packed with symbolism – as befits Immortal Thor‘s role as the ‘New Testament’ to Ewing’s Immortal Hulk ‘Old Testament’ – and one of the first things it does is comment on his nature. When Thor’s hammer is a circle, this is essentially an illusion – there’s just the one hammer, and it occupies one point in space, only appearing to be everywhere in the circle at once due to its speed. However, Toranos’ wheel embodies a true circle, echoing the Utgard-Thor’s function as the larger, more absolute idea that the regular Thor echoes. The wheel also has immense importance to Asgard – for millennia, the Asgardians were stuck in a cycle of Ragnarok, where they were repeatedly killed and reborn. The energy from that process fed beings known as Those Who Sit Above in Shadow – implied to be how the Utgard-Gods were previously understood.
Most intriguingly however, the Utgard-Gods spend the issue decreeing that the Marvel Universe must prove that it has not grown stagnant (something that’s easy to read as a meta-criticism of the publisher itself.) The being known as Utgard-Loki says “all things must live and grow – or wither and die. This age of Marvels can be no exception.” The wheel is an obvious metaphor for this process – it’s the nature of the wheel to turn and progress, and if Thor and the Marvel Universe can’t keep up, they’ll be ground beneath it. Does this mean that Mjolnir can mimick the wheel by facilitating progress, or that it’s only a partial element – a single spoke – and not up to the task? In an intriguing echo of this challenge, Alex Ross’ art for the upcoming second issue overlays Thor’s hammer over Toranos’ wheel, depicting their interlocking nature.
Immortal Thor Is Redefining Everything from Ragnarok to Mjolnir
Going by Ewing’s earlier work on Immortal Hulk, Immortal Thor will totally upend how fans understand Marvel’s cosmic lore, weaving old and often forgotten stories into new triumphs. The idea that Thor’s Mjolnir is the shadow of a larger idea – a gigantic wheel – is the beginning of that process, upending preconceptions about Thor‘s place in the larger cosmos.
Immortal Thor #1 is available now from Marvel Comics.
