One of Marvel Comics best titles right now is Thor Volume 4. It holds one of comics’ biggest secrets – the identity of its protagonist, Lady Thor (who’s simply called Thor in the comic).
In its eighth issue, set to come out tomorrow, her identity will finally be revealed. Read on to find out who it is.
But before we get into that, let’s answer the question of why it’s not Thor Odinson wielding Mjolnir. It’s because he can’t. An as-of-yet unexplained incident cause Thor to become unworthy of the hammer.
So who is wielding it as Lady Thor? None other than Jane Foster! Foster is a staple in Thor comics, first appearing in Journey into Mystery #84 in 1962 as the love interest to Dr. Donald Blake, the secret identity of Thor.
Now she’s stepped out of the love interest role and into the hero role.
Interestingly, she now has a dual identity – that of a mortal woman, suffering from breast cancer, and a Norse goddess who can wield Mjolnir. Every time she transforms into the goddess, however, her mortal condition gets worse.
In an interview with Vulture, writer Jason Aaron explains:
“I think we only ever really talked about Jane. It grew out of the idea of the previous Thor becoming unworthy, which was something I was always building toward. I liked the idea of dealing with his worthiness and the idea of what it means for a god to be worthy in the Marvel universe. You know, the god of thunder waking up every morning and looking at the hammer and not knowing if he’s gonna be worthy to lift it. Then, of course, one day he should wake up and not be able to lift it. That opened the door for someone else to pick up the hammer and carry it around in his place. Really, the only character that was discussed was Jane.
Jane’s been a part of Thor’s universe going back almost to the very beginning. She was the initial love interest for Donald Blake, who was Thor’s alter-ego [in early Thor stories]. She was the nurse to his doctor. She’s grown and changed and evolved a lot over the years, become a doctor in her own right. So this to me is not just the next step for her character, but really the next evolution of the core promise that has always been at the heart of Thor’s mythology.”
The story will continue with Jane Foster as Thor as the Marvel comics universe delves into their massive event, Secret Wars.
What do you think of the identity of Lady Thor? Are you excited to see Jane Foster continue to wield Mjolnir? Let us know in the comments!
