Walt SImonson | Brought The Lightning

Lightning struck in July 1983 and   Walt Simonson . brought it with Thor #337.  Before July 1983, I had ZERO interest in Thor outside of the Avengers. Then I went into my local comic book store and saw... Walt Simonson 's first issue of Thor doesn't have Thor on the cover. He led with his own creation, Beta Ray Bill smashing the logo up with Odinson's hammer  Mjölnir . Thor #337 also made out of John Workman Jr, a letterer, who incorporated captions into panels, and designed incredible fonts. He also brought veteran colourist George Roussos . Right from the get-go, Simonson let us know this was going to be his Thor series. Besides creating a new ally, he got rid of  Thor's longstanding weakness: Doctor Blake Martin. Stan Lee / Jack Kirby Thor couldn't be separated from his hammer for very long without reverting back to his alter ego, Doctor Donald Blake, a handicapped doctor. Odin imposed this on a young Thor in order to teach him some humility and discipline. Beta Ray Bill took advantage of that during their first meeting. Simonson put his mark on Thor, but he paid homage to the character's past and creators. Thor #338's cover was a tribute Jack Kirby. Simonson is a Jack Kirby disciple (like many artists of his generation). So, Thor had all the bombast of Kirby's run and Stan Lee 's incomparable use of adjectives. This issue would also be the last appearance of Thor's alter ego, Don Blake. Beta Ray Bill added a new, compelling supporting character to the Thor series.  Simonson didn't break entirely from tradition. Thor got a new secret identity in #341; his new alter ego was an oh-so-subtle nod to another superhero - while reintroducing a classic Thor adversary, Fafnir The Dragon. Thor is the Marvel universe's Superman. So, this was at least an original secret identity for Odinson.  Walt Simonson 's included the Ragnarok storyline (which the MCU borrowed from). Surtur made several appearances from #337. Another Simonson Anniversary Walt Simonson broke out in comic books  drawing, colouring, and lettering Manhunter back-up stories in Detective Comics #437 to #443 in  July 1973 (cover dated November) written by the late, legendary Archie Goodwin . Simonson was far less bombastic and had a more detailed style, but his pages were kinetic and well-designed. The Manhunter stories would be reprinted into a collected edition in 1984. Walt Simonson returned to the Norse legends with his own IDW series, Ragnarok There's a lot of Simonson's work we didn't get to. So, check out his profile on Comic Vine here .