Thor says goodbye to his father Odin in Thor #750 - but is Odin the only casualty?
Classic creators such as Simonson, Aaron, and more are returning to celebrate 60 years of Thor
Thor #750 strikes like lightning on April 27 with the return of classic creators from Jason Aaron to Walt Simonson and more - as well as the death of a popular hero (get all the details on that below).
Now, Marvel has released a preview of interior pages from the milestone issue as well as a variant cover from Stephanie Hans, and even a look at the design for the reforged Mjolnir from Thor series artist Nic Klein.
Interestingly enough, one of the pages seems to reveal the hero who will die in the main story of Thor #750 from the aforementioned Klein and series writer Donny Cates, showing a funeral procession for Thor's father Odin.
Of course, Odin's death was likely already depicted in March 9's Thor #23, the issue just before Thor #24/#750 in which Odin seemingly sacrificed his life to imbue Thor with the so-called Odinforce.
However, just because we're seeing one funeral in the preview, that doesn't mean another hero couldn't kick the bucket by surprise elsewhere in the story.
Have a look at the gallery of interior pages along with artist Stephanie Hans variant cover, and decide for yourself:
Original story follows...
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Thor originally debuted 60 years ago in 1962 (along with a bunch of other iconic Marvel Comics characters), and April's Thor #24 will mark the God of Thunder's sexagenarian anniversary with an oversized issue carrying the 'Legacy' issue number of #750.
Along with the main story by the regular series creative team of Donny Cates and Nic Klein in which Thor and his allies mourn the loss of an ally in the preceding 'God of Hammers' arc, the oversized Thor #750 will feature the return of many of the most influential and beloved Thor creators from years past.
We'll run down who's contributing what momentarily, but first, we're gonna dig into the apparent announcement that a Thor cast member will perish in the finale of 'God of Hammers,' which follows up on the solicitation for March's Thor #23, which states Thor will suffer a "horrific and tragic loss."
Marvel's announcement doesn't directly reveal who will die in 'God of Hammers,' but Nic Klein's cover of Thor #24 (seen here) offers some possible clues about the character receiving a Viking funeral surrounded by mourning Asgardians - the two biggest being the absence of fan-favorite hero Beta-Ray Bill as the only major current cast member missing from the crowd of mourners, and the distinctly Korbinite-looking remains of whoever's gonna die.
Which brings us to the additional returning creators who will contribute to Thor #24/750 - first and foremost being legendary Thor writer/artist Walt Simonson, Beta Ray Bill's creator, who returns to tell a new tale of the Korbinite warrior.
Simonson's fellow writer/artist Dan Jurgens also returns to Thor for a story pairing up Thor and his brother, Balder the Brave. Jurgens wrote a popular Thor run in the late '90s (alongside artist John Romita, Jr.) that redefined some aspects of how Thor interacts with humans.
Then J. Michael Straczynski and Olivier Coipel will reunite to tell a flashback story set in their definitive Thor run, which returned Thor and the Asgardians to life - and in which Loki briefly took the guise of a woman by inhabiting Sif's body, and Asgard was turned from an otherworldly realm to a city floating above Oklahoma, only to fall and be destroyed.
Speaking of Loki, creative team Al Ewing and Lee Garbett, who redefined Loki as a magical spy in Loki: Agent of Asgard, will return to the god of mischief for an "all-new chapter" in his saga.
Then classic '80s and '90s Thor creative team Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz will dig into one of their primary antagonists with a return to the Enchantress, a version of whom was adapted into Disney Plus' recent Loki streaming show as Sylvie.
And finally, Donny Cates' predecessor as Thor writer, Jason Aaron, will team with artist Das Pastoras for a "revelatory tale" about Thor's father, Odin. Over in his current Avengers title, Aaron recently revealed that Thor's mother is not the earth goddess Gaea, as he long believed, but the cosmic Phoenix Force. Perhaps Aaron's Thor #750 story will follow up on Thor's supposed parentage.
Marvel hasn't revealed the full page count for April 13's Thor #24/750. Stay tuned to Newsarama for Marvel's full April 2022 solicitations, coming later this month.
Beta Ray Bill is one of the most worthy heroes to ever wield Thor's hammer.
I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)