RANT: I really don't like how Asgardian characters are written these days

I'm kind of annoyed by Modern Marvel authors tendency of writing Thor and the people of Asgard either as average joes from the streets with a potty mouth who happen to be from another realm or as condescending parody of viking warriors obsessed with alcohol. This despite that for many years the asgardians were depicted as noble and larger than life people with a hammy shakesperean dialect peppered with thees and thous.

Characters like Thor shouldn't say cringe things like ''i'm the god of f****ng thunder'' or ''give me more Odin-damned giants!''

This is how Thor should talk: ''Mayhap the enchanted mallet of Thor was overmatched against thee before! But when evil doth loom over the light of life, where innocents beyond measure are imperiled, there shall the scion of Asgard be found! For honor, for glory, for Asgard, for life i bid thee FALL!''

I haven't bought a Thor comic since Cates assassinated the character of Galactus, so I'm not here to comment on any specific narrative or story, but the last time I did was Aaron's run on Thor, and while it was entertaining in parts I just noticed that he (and Marvel writers in general) wants to tell a grounded human story using mythological/magical/superhuman characters. Whereas other writers take on Thor (or any other powerful character with a sci-fi or fantasy background) seeking to write a story about Asgardian characters interacting and benfriending regular humans and dealing with uber powerful villains. It's one thing to inject human or humanistic elements in a fantasy adventure story, it's another to treat said characters as basically regular people who happen to have powers. It's how I feel about MCU Thor as well. He doesn't seem like a mystical , godly knight with crazy powers and poetic dialect, but rather a goofy dudebro who happens to be a powerful alien*. I think Aaron mostly built his run off of Matt Fraction's previous work. Fraction sort of turned Thor and Odin into brutish and thuggish boors with anger issues and a potty mouth, whereas JM Strackzinsky's Thor was a modernized take on classic Thor. Similar proper speech pattern (not quite Shakespearean though), quite powerful and examining the impact of Asgardian gods living among humans. Only issue I had was bringing Asgard to Oklahoma at the time, though we'll never know how JMS would have concluded his run and where he would've taken Thor afterward. Everything after 2010 has made me really appreciate Dan Jurgens' pretty good run on Thor from 1998-2004 that often gets overlooked. Just, ugh, just skip the part with the clone of Thanos (big Jim Starlin fan here).

* It's also how i feel about Aaron's Thanos Rising story.

Honestly, i think Odin should have stayed dead. His heroic sacrifice to defeat Surtur in Jurgens run was a great and emotional ending for the character, but ever since Fraction brought him back, he has been portrayed as a douchebag redneck and an incompetent fool in spite of decades worth of comic books depicting Odin as a harsh but fundamentally wise, benevolent and all-powerful king. (his appearance in a recent issue of the new Beta Ray Bill series, working in a tavern with a beer belly and dressed like a truck driver was awful)

How did we went from Thor being a larger than life and knightly hero to an alcoholic emo barbarian who instantly buys the ''gorr was right'' thing?

Thor literally saved the whole freakin universe more times than Jean Grey died and frequently helps humans but somehow he should feel unworthy of any love, gratitude or praise… and I’m totally supposed to buy this s*** and give my money to Marvel.

Kiss my shiny metal *** Aaron. You and the other post-modern deconstructivism lovers like Rian Johnson hellbent on making every heroic character look like a depressed failure.

@cull_obsidian@thor-parker

@Philip33

@mar-vell92: Very well said, I agree with most of what you said.

I'm actually working on a blog to show the difference between classic Odin (specifically Simonson's and Jurgens' version) and modern Odin, to shed a light on just how vastly different characters they are.

@thor-parker: I'm looking forward to it.

@brucerogers@phisigmatau@kevd4wg

@mar-vell92:

I mean outside of Galan I think Cates has been money. With that said,

I know what you mean about what’s happen to Asgard lore as a whole.

But I think this is more a by product of the nature of the comic medium in the west in general.

If you have these serials that last forever, handled between a multitude of authors character assassination is bound to happen. That’s not even including all the other appearances of the character in concurrent titles and cross appearances

Idc if it’s Superman. Batman, f4ntastc, characters over time will look and act remarkably different

I personally just wish stuff would just end like manga for instance

@mar-vell92: Odin's never been my favorite Asgardian, but I absolutely agree that he's just felt like a caricature ever since he came back under Fraction. His writing under Jurgens was great and I love the little bit he appears in JMS, but after that... it's not great.

I think Cates's run has done ok in respect to Asgard, certainly better than Aaron's run did, but it's not like say Gillen or Jurgens, the one thing I've really liked recently has been how Bill's relationship with Asgard has been explored in Cates's book and his own solo.

I can see what you're saying.

That's true.

@kevd4wg: Bring back Oeming!

Welp you can pretty much blame those editors and writers who are being fed by Disney to keep those characters in line with MCU continuity.

Blame everything on the MCU they pretty much ruined my favourite characters as well.

I mean the Guardians of the Galaxy seem more back on track to their comic selves....at least what I've seen.

Still...yeah, I really hate when comics change for the sake of the movies. I mean in all honesty, how many of the general population is actually gonna get into comics? Even if they do, I'm pretty sure they should know that their characters aren't gonna be the same given their comic history is far older than what is seen on screen. If they really do like the character, how they appear/act, shouldn't be too huge of an issue, they could accept them as they are.

@wolfrazer: Ewing's Star-Lord is closer to the original Englaro/Claremont version of the character compared to the dreadful Bendis run.

I actually liked the Odin-damned giants line, lmao.

I see your point but they just need to cater to the general population for the long run.

that is Accurate and it is spot on good sir.

@escrow: Editors need to have the balls to say ''no'' to Aaron.

He's basically the second coming of Bendis.

Ngl, in terms of speech, I think I prefer less Shakespearean, and more callousness. They're Norse gods. Might as well let the Viking out. Though...maybe tone it down a bit for those who don't want that lol.

@indomitableregal: Marvel's asgardians are supposed to have got over the barbarism of their ancient counterparts.

Well current marvel is weird to say the least.

@mar-vell92: No problem with that, but the Old English/Shakespearean can still be a bit extra.

Agreed. I have had this problem for a while.

I honestly really liked how Hickman wrote Thor during his avengers run. That and I really enjoyed his bromance with Hyperion.