REVIEW: ‘The Mighty Valkyries,’ Issue #1

The Mighty Valkyries #1 is published by Marvel Comics, written by Jason Aaron and Torunn Grøndekk, with art by Mattia de Iulis and Erica D’urso, colors by Marcio Menyz, and letters by Joe Sabino. Following their victory over the undead Celestial, the universe’s two remaining Valkyries went their separate ways, with Jane returning to her life as a physician and the unnamed Valkyrie leaving in search of something dear to her.

After a cryptic beginning, this book’s narrative gets into full swing by catching readers up with Dr. Jane Foster as she sits with a patient. The patient is an elderly woman who is not long for this world. With a lifetime of stories to tell, and no one interested in listening, Jane has taken it upon herself to hear the woman’s stories. This opening does a wonderful job of showing the tenderness Jane can exhibit.

After a tip-off from Dr. Strange, Jane begins to look into what could be an Asgardian monster loose in New York City. What she ends up discovering is much more than a mere monster run-amok.

Writers Aaron and Grønbekk continue to craft a deep, multifaceted character for Jane. Her kindness, inquisitiveness, and unwillingness to back down from peril are all displayed in turn as this story evolves. The depth of Jane’s character isn’t the only great writing in this story, though. While no one else gets nearly as much time as her, each character appearance in this story delivers a wonderful personality for the good doctor to play off of.

The art by Iulis does a superb job of capturing the ever-changing tone of its story. From the warmth of the opening to the frenzy of its closing fight, Iulis never misses any of this story’s surprising number of beats.

The back half of this book jumps across the universe to find the unnamed Valkyrie as she touches down on a dying planet. It seems she is here to fulfill a promise and learn a secret from a renowned seer. But whether the individual is the genuine article or not remains to be seen.

While The Mighty Valkyries #1‘s opening story is filled with shifting tones, its second tale is much more straightforward.  As our Valkyrie makes her way across the dying world and profiting off its death throes, we are given a running internal dialogue from our protagonist, enlightening us as to how she feels about this world, as well as her reason for being here.

Grønbekk delivers an interesting character piece in this story. It flows along smoothly as it reveals the feelings of its star with skill. As she approaches her goal, the story shifts its perspective from her to another character for a bit. This individual’s view on things is handled uniquely and fascinatingly.

The art in The Mighty Valkyries #1’s second story does a good job of delivering the varied sights, sounds, and species of this alien world. Artist D’urso does a good job of taking our main character through her reflective journey. This combines with Menyz’s colors to deliver a solid visual look for this story.

Lastly, we have Sabino’s letters. While doing a great job of delivering the story clearly and in a way that doesn’t infringe on the art, Sabino also takes the time to give a little extra style to some of the dialogue in these stories, lending a bit more personality to some of the characters.

Taken all together, The Mighty Valkyries #1 does a great job beginning its dual stories. Both flow well, are enjoyable to read, and end on moments that leave me wanting to know what happens next.

The Mighty Valkyries #1 is available now wherever comics are sold.