Journey into Mystery featuring Sif: Stronger than Monsters, Kathryn Immonen, Valerio Schiti
I liked this quite a bit. Maybe it’s because I haven’t seen Sif’s character explored anywhere else in Marvel-verse, whether it be the comics or MCU, but I was just glad to see her front and centre. I liked the art, and I liked the tie-in to known Norse mythology (the concept of berserkers). Other stuff, I think I’d have picked up on more if I was used to the version of Asgardian mythology created by Marvel, but it still worked pretty well.
I think some people talking about her just being bloodthirsty and so on missed all the points where she held back the other Berserkers and forced them to behave fairly. So the spell gives her “licence” — but she fights that even before she knows anything about it.
I did like the bits with Heimdall, too. Also nice to see Asgard with barely a trace of Thor. (I like Thor, but he steals the show.)
I loved this whole run, but especially this first arc. Kathryn Immonen did a fantastic job writing, and Valerio Schiti’s art is stellar. Sif is such a great character. Seeing her kick ass and take charge was awesome. And there was a lot of delightful humour.
Sadly, no one bought this series, so it ended quickly. Which I still hold against Marvel’s readers. I still blame audiences for not supporting this book, when it was so damned good. Marvel needs to give Kathryn Immonen another ongoing already.
I should try and get hold of more of it, though I don’t think the library has it. It was pretty great.