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Thor #495

Feb 1996
William Messner-Loebs, Geof Isherwood

Thor #495 cover

Story Name:

In Mortal Guise


Synopsis

Thor #495 synopsis by Peter Silvestro
Rating: 3.5 stars

Late at night, Thor and his new lover Amora the Enchantress look out over the city; Thor has some unanswered questions about Price and the worldengine but Amora waves them away as irrelevant. She encloses them in a bubble, sailing over the skyline, feasting on roast turkey and making love….

In the night, Machinist Union boss Victor Prazniki receives a phone call, threatening harm to his wife and daughter if he crosses the unseen caller….

The morning comes and the immortal lovers find themselves on the grass in Central Park with no idea why. Amora discovers she has lost all of her powers of enchantment. Thor strikes Mjolnir on the ground and finds it merely a hammer. A pair of punks try to harass these two long-haired weirdos dressed only in bathrobes. Thor and Amora easily beat the punks, barely halting their puzzled conversation. They set out to walk the fifty blocks back to Amora’s building, exciting much attention by their skimpy dress in midwinter….

They arrive at the Ash Hotel to find her apartment empty, stripped of all furniture and goods, with a note from Amora’s love-slaves, now freed from their enchantment and taking all of her possessions as payment for their years of enslavement. Amora throws a fit because even the kitchen appliances are gone. Thor calls Avengers Mansion to give Jarvis his new address and to ask about young Tony Stark. The hotel manager, Philip Fleming, stops by to chat with Thor, though he mistakes Thor for the Vision and Amora for Scarlet Witch, gently reminding them of the back rent due. Amora tries to figure out how to roast the leftover turkey without an oven while Thor searches the Yellow Pages, seeking a job in construction, where he has some experience….

Teenager Annie Prazniki is at a construction site to meet someone when she is surrounded by a bunch of hoods who want to kidnap her. But Thor is passing by, looking for work, and sizes up the situation. He rushes in, clouting the punks with Mjolnir, taking on eight of them at once. Annie runs and while Thor is occupied, the bad guys drag her into a car and drive off. Thor outruns them, leaps on the car roof, and smashes in the windshield, pulling Annie out. The baddies’ cars collide, hurling the two onto a relatively soft pile of trash bags. Giant-Man (Hank Pym) and Black Widow arrive, asking Thor if he would want to join the new Avengers team. Thors begs off as he now has only a mortal’s strength. Black Widow responds, “And you did all this without any powers? You’ll do.”



 

Review / Commentaries


Thor #495 Review by (June 5, 2024)

Review: And a new writer takes over: William Messner-Loebs is stuck with the Thor-Amora romance but he slips in Thor’s “unanswered questions” about the previous issues, which would more accurately be termed, “plot holes.” So, it looks like his big deal is going to be “powerless Thor,” to go along with “teen Tony” in IRON MAN and “dying Cap” in CAPTAIN AMERICA at this odd time. Yet Thor still seems to fit into the Avengers so we’ll see where this goes.

Comments: The cover is a homage to JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #83, Thor’s first appearance. Part one of five parts; part two skips an issue to #497. The reference to “young Tony Stark” is explained by AVENGERS: TIMESLIDE and the AVENGERS and IRON MAN series from this time. First appearance of the Prazniki family, who will be around for the next few issues. First appearance of Philip Fleming, manager of the Ash Hotel; his final appearance is in the next issue. No explanation as to why Thor doesn’t contact Jerry Sapristi, whose construction company he worked for during the DeFalco-Frenz era. Colors by Marie Javins and Frank Lopez.




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Main/1st Story Full Credits

Geof Isherwood
Geof Isherwood
?
Tom Grindberg (Cover Penciler)
Tom Grindberg (Cover Inker)
Unknown (Cover Colorist)
Additional Credits
Letterer: Michael Higgins.

Characters

All stories. Listed in alphabetical order.

Black Widow
Black Widow

(Natasha Romanoff)
Giant-Man
Giant-Man

(Hank Pym)
Jarvis
Jarvis

(Edwin Jarvis)
Thor
Thor

(Odinson)


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