Secret Invasion: Thor #3 Review

SECRET INVASION: THOR #3
Written by Matt Fraction
Art by Doug Braithwaite

Unlike the actual Thor series, the Secret Invasion counterpart is all about action and smashing things. For some, this is the kind of Thor they wanted out of JMS's run. For others, it's exactly what was wrong with past incarnations of the hero. Personally, while I enjoyed this mini-series, having it drop on the same week as JMS's series only served to excentuate the flaws in this book.

Continuing with the cliffhanger from last issue, Donald Blake has arrived on the scene to take over for the defeated Beta Ray Bill. He quickly takes up his hammer and the book turns into a generic action romp with the odd bit of narration to break up the monotony.

The way the issue is laid out doesn't do the book any favours. Like Secret Invasion, itself, this is made up of action scenes that look more like storyboards for a movie than something used to tell an actual story. They look like pin-ups and snapshots that need the silver screen and actors to flesh out instead of standing on their own for a comic book medium. It gives the book a "flip through it" type of feeling, whereby I don't even feel the need to read half the pages with so little dialogue and the widescreen action appeal to it.

It doesn't help that the story ends predictably with Thor saving the day, recovering Beta Ray Bill's hammer and the duo then taking the villain to task while the other Asgardians repel the invaders. There's no emotion here, no purpose and it feels like wasted money in the end.

Verdict - Avoid It. If you've been following this series already, this is more of the same and you won't be disappointed on that end. But, for everyone else, you didn't miss anything and you should spend your money elsewhere.

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