Warning! Major spoilers for the finale issue ofImmortal Thorahead!As Marvel’sThorbegins a major new era,the hero has gained a “new” secret identity: Sigurd Jarlson.However, like many aspects of Thor’s storyline over the past several years, this is actually the resurrection of a deep-cut alter ego that the Mighty Thor briefly adopted back in the 1980s.
Immortal Thor#25, written by Al Ewing, with art by Jan Bazaldua, Justin Greenwood, and Pasqual Ferry, is the final issue of Marvel’s most stellar ongoing series in recent memory.
The issue follows the long-heralded death of Thor, sending him on a brief but memorable journey into the afterlife, before he is reborn as a mortal, under the name Sigurd Jarlson.
Marvel Fans, Meet Sigurd Jarlson; What To Know About Thor’s “New” Human Identity
Immortal Thor#25, Written By Al Ewing; Art By Jan Bazaldua, Pasqual Ferry, And Justin Greenwood; Available Now From Marvel Comics
“Sigurd Jarlson” first appeared, as an updated alter-ego for Thor, in 1983’sThor#341, written and illustrated by Walt Simonson. The hero adopted this new human identity after abandoning hisoriginal persona of “Donald Blake.“This is echoed in the plot ofImmortal Thor#25, the crux of which involves Thor battling the embittered remnants of Blake in the afterlife.
Readers went intoImmortal Thor#25 knowing that it would end with Thor’s return, but the issue still managed to pleasantly surprise readers, as author Al Ewing has become known for, by making Thor’s first human identity the “final boss” of the run, before transitioning to an entirely new paradigm in which he operates under his second identity, that of Jarlson.
As has been the case withImmortal Thorall along, the final issueremixes and reinterprets classicThormythologyfrom throughout the character’s Marvel history, while setting the stage for the next “act” in the hero’s current journey to do more of the same. Notably, theinclusion of Thor’s Jarlson alter-ego might hint at what comes next.
Thor’s New Human Incarnation As Sigurd Jarlson Points Readers Back Toward The Hero’s ’80s-Era Stories
Sigurd Jarlson, First Appearance:Thor#341, Written And Illustrated By Walt Simonson
More than just killing off Thor, the conclusion ofImmortal Thorwrites him out of Marvel continuity entirely,so his rebirth as a mortal, Sigurd Jarlson, brings him into a world where his heroic alter-ego never existed, setting up a strange, but highly engaging dynamicfor the upcoming sequel series, aptly titledMortal Thor.
The use of Sigurd Jarlson as Thor’s new human identity suggests that fans should go back to Marvel’sThorcomics from the 1980s.
WhileImmortal Thordrew inspiration from all ofThorlore, it paid particularlyclose attention to the hero’s 1970s stories; the use of Sigurd Jarlson as Thor’s new human identity suggests that fans should go back to Marvel’sThorcomics from the 1980s in order to get a glimpse of what Al Ewing has in store for readers.
