Well helLoki (I won’t apologize for that)

Loki: Agent Of Asgard #1

Writer: Al Ewing

Artist: Lee Garbett

Colors: Nolan Woodard

Letters&Production: VC’s Clayton Cowles

Cover: Jenny Frison

You know how you keep hearing that something is awesome, and you should really check it out, because it will swim right inside to your sweet spot… For me, lately it seems that thing has been Al Ewing, and to quote the late King of Rock N’ Roll, “Oh, my peter!” This book is FUN. I can practically feel Ewing smile while writing this book, Loki, fresh from his days of Avenging(Youngly) has a new mission, as an agent of the All-Mother, the “ruling triumvirate of Asgardia” and maybe, Loki can choose to be more than the God Of Evil. And so off he goes, breaking into Avengers Tower…

Of course breaking in isn’t so hard when you can run up the side of said Tower and do it invisibly. And no doubt, it is no coincidence that the Avengers on hand at the time of his “visit” are the Avengers that we saw in that small budget movie barely anyone saw. Fine.. practically everybody saw that movie. Loki is sniffed out by Thor, and sent flying and rescued by Hawkeye and one of his nifty arrows, as he planned I suppose. Once inside, all he has to do is stir up some emotions, bring up the past(that time Tony Stark cloned Thor) perhaps, cast a bit of an illusion, so that when Hawkeye takes a shot at him again, it’s really Bruce Banner that gets an arrow in the arm. Whoops. As the Avengers fight amongst themselves, Loki goes about purging the Avengers database of all references to the Loki of old, because these files, stories, have a “gravity” to them, that would pull Loki back into what he was. The Avengers confront Loki, Thor suggesting they kill him, and having a little trouble with his hammer, all of which gets Loki where he needs to be, close enough to stab Thor. A flashback gives us a little more info about the mission Loki was sent to do. It seems there is some corrupting influence in Thor and the sword Loki has can purge this influence and collect it for the All-Mother. We get a nice little bit of Thor and Loki, Thor being a bit reflective on their relationship, before coming to our closing scene. Loki, delivers the essence or whatever was corrupting Thor to the All-Mother and is dismissed, they open the jar, and on the last page we see that what Loki has captured, was in fact…Loki? The old Loki, the Mad God, the evil Loki.

Good shit, pure and simple. Ewing gives a fun, funny script, with some genuine heart. Lee Garbett delivers some great art, especially surly, drunken Thor’s face. Great colors, with the magical energy all but crackling off the book. This is a great new place to hop on, being a number one though, it better be. Really had a blast with this book. Good job Marvel. Good job, indeed.

-Kris