Holy cow, Roy Thomas is awesome. This first Eternals Saga trade of Thor comics has totally turned me around on the long-lived characters. When I was a kid reading the Marvel Universe Handbooks, I thought "Uni-mind? Gross!" Now I think it's awesome! Kirby came up with a fantastic origin for the Eternals, but Thomas seems to be the guy who integrated them perfectly into the Marvel Universe.
This issue has the Forgotten One (who we later know as Gilgamesh) show up to be the champion of the Celestials. He wants to allow them to finish their 50-year judgment of Earth. (Incidentally, surely Marvel will do something to play off this in 2027, right?) Thor and the rest of the Eternals want him stopped, so naturally Thor and "Hero" as he's known here thrown down. I love it, what good is that possibly going to do? When things start getting dicey, the lead Celestial actually teleports Thor and Hero up to his ship (I think so they can destroy more impressive looking Kirby technology). I love seeing Thor give props to all his strong opponents in this story. He's constantly talking about how noble and great Hero is. Actually, Ikaris does it too, at one point stating that comparing his and Thor's strength is like comparing two mighty mastodons. That's tremendous, I think I'll use that.
In any case, this whole trade is packed with awesome ideas. Luchador Deviants facing off against luchador Eternals. An alliance of Zeus and Odin to take on the Eternals. Makkari vs. Mercury. Thena vs. Athena. Ikaris vs. Ares.
Keith Pollard and Chic Stone do a tremendous job making the Eternals look awesome. Thor always comes off well, but I love how they handle his hammer-tossing flight. And the covers by Pollard and Bob Layton are stunning. I highly recommend this trade for fans of classic Marvel.
Excellent
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