Thor Annual #1

Written by: Jason Aaron, Noelle Stevenson, CM Punk

Art by: Various

This Thor annual isn't meant to progress the story forward, nor is it meant to change much at all. All three stories are a collection of fun side stories written very well, with a large does of humor and heart packed into almost all of them.

The first story, by Jason Aaron with fantastic art by Timothy Truman and Frank Martin, takes place in King Thor's world, where Earth is basically a gigantic garden that he and his granddaughter’s, The Girl's of Thunder, tend to. Without giving too much away, the story concerns a Thor dealing with the extreme changes in his life with a dead Midgard. This is where the girls step in, leading up to an ending that made me smile.

The next story is set in the present, following our new female Thor trying to assimilate into Asgard as the new wielder of Mjolnir. Naturally, the story starts at a tavern, a place that our other Thor is familiar with. We end up with her running into The Warriors Three, whom decided to challenge Thor's worthiness. Like the first story, there's humor throughout and an ending that felt very satisfying. Marguerite Sauvage does a decent job with the art, with a bright tone that matches up to the stories feel. Overall this was my favorite story, since it shows our new Thor continuing to set her place in the Marvel Universe.

The last story concerns a younger Thor and a long night of (surprise), drinking. The entire story is one long humorous drinking contest by new writer CM Punk. Rob Guillory brings the same cartoon-like visual humor to this story that he does to the great “Chew”.

Like a lot of annuals, this one is not essential to the core Thor issues. It is merely three writers having fun with our three Thor's without the pressure of continuity. Like all of the annuals that Marvel publishes, it's a tad bit expensive, sitting at a $4.99 price point. If you've got the extra cash this week to get an extra book, by all means get this. It's enjoyable and it made me feel very good, but it is by no means a mandatory reading.