LOOK! UP IN THE SKY!

There has been a connection between mythology and comic books since comic books were first invented. The super heroes created by comics were from the beginning colorful representatives of comics, but many had a much closer relationship. Captain Marvel’s SHAZAM (Solomon’s wisdom, Hercules’ strength, Atlas’ stamina, Zeus’s power, Achilles’ courage and Mercury’s speed) made it obvious and incorporated many different mythologies. Wonder Woman was affiliated with Greek (or Roman) mythology. Kid Eternity was created by Jude-Christian beliefs. And Þorr was rooted in a wide variety of stories, ultimately culminating in the Jack Kirby super hero.

When Mighty Þorr became more popular, he became much closer to Norse mythology. The strip not only eventually incorporated more and more Norse mythological characters, but Kirby illustrated Eddic stories adapted by Stan Lee in a series known as Tales of Asgard. Norse mythology became very closely associated with comics!

Neil Gaiman, originally a comic-book author, composed his own prose adaptations of Norse Mythology. They were fresh and original version of traditional tales. It was little wonder that they were adopted into a series of modern versions of Tales of Asgard. The stories were adopted by P. Craig Russell, a formidable comics creator himself, and illustrated by Russell and many other top-flight illustrators. The series was published by Dark Horse Comics and is still being published but the first six comics books have been collected into a hardcover edition, and more collections are promised.

The collection features stories illustrated by Russell, Mike Mignola, Jerry Ordway, Piotr Kawalski, David Rubin and Jill Thompson. The stories related in the collection include the creation of the Nine Worlds, the loss of Odin’s eye and the crafting of Mjollnir, plus other tales. The stories are all relatively faithful to the Eddas, but people wanting faithful to the Eddas would do better off reading one of the translations. The greatest feature of this adaptation is the art!

They incorporate a variety of styles, and they are classic comic-book versions of the fantasy. There is no reality as you see the gods running around bare chested with loin cloths and fitted sleeveless mail shirts. These are modern fantasy and not scrupulous adaptations of the Norse mythology or religion. And they are recommended for their skill in portraying that fantasy and not because of any accuracy!

So buy a copy of the Poetic Edda translated by W. H. Auden, Lee Hollander or Jackson Crawford and do your studying from them. Then, relaxing at night, open this volume and read it it just for sheer enjoyment!