Loki

Collects Loki #1-4 written by Rob Rodi and painted by Esad Ribic (Silver Surfer: Requiem).

As people unfortunate enough to have read Avengers Disassembled: Thor will remember, that story arc left a number of the gods dead, Loki as the ruler of what was left of Valhalla and Thor in chains at the mercy of Loki. Pretty unusual for this corner of the MU, and also a situation which Loki has more trouble coping with than he expected. This story pivots around the father/brother relationship between Loki, Odin and Thor, but from a perspective not usually employed in the ongoing series, namely that of Loki, the Trickster god. Rodi spins a psychological drama with Loki as the main actor, presenting him as a somewhat misunderstood and sad creature, instead of the evil, spiteful character that readers are accustomed to. The genius of the plot is that the ending is written in a way that makes this story function plausibly with the ongoing series, even though the Loki presented here is so different from usual Loki.

I haven't read anything else by Rob Rodi, and looking at his biography, he hasn't really been doing any other major work for Marvel. This is a big shame, because this book is really well written. Rodi has taken a somewhat average arch villain and breathed life into him. Even though he is a god (or maybe because?), Loki certainly benefits from a better explanation of his motivations than what he's been equipped with so far. And the story of Loki presented here builds on both the original myths and the ongoing series to give us a villain that is more than just an evil god. In a universe where a hero needs a villain, Loki finds himself at the bad end of a rotten deal, and this book is his first and probably only chance of redeeming himself. In the end, fate steps in to restore the status quo, and in a world of gods, this conclusion seems inevitable and yet a little sad...

The painted art by Esad Ribic is beautiful and really fits this story of gods and goddesses well. The gods are presented pretty much as they were designed by Kirby way back when, and really come to life on the page under the brush of Ribic. This book has numerous pages worthy of the poster treatment. Hel poses dramatically and enchantingly as ever, but particularly Loki stands out from the rest. His spiny posture and wrinkled face with only a few rotten teeth left, makes him look like someone you would love to hate, a character doomed to villainy. It is a testimony to the quality of this book, that it really succeeds in making the reader care for such a wretched character.

This is without a doubt the best Thor I've read in a long time, and I heartily recommend it to all fans of that series. But more that that, I recommend it to people who like well written stories, that dare to break the rules of how archetypical characters are presented. Thor is a classic Marvel series, but it also seems to be the book most difficult to relaunch for an audience accustomed to books like Astonishing X-Men and New Avengers. I haven't read the new series yet, and somehow I doubt Loke will be presented as he is here. But I hope that the series will take a hint from this book, and try to infuse some of the deep characterisation that these great characters are blessed with here.

8/10