25 Best Loki Comics Ever (Ranked)
Loki, the Asgardian God of Mischief, has been one of Marvel’s more popular antiheroes but his popularity has peaked in recent years thanks to Tom Hiddlestone’s majestic interpretation within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), including several movies and the recent Loki television series which aired on Disney+. Loki is a very important character as far as the Multiverse is concerned and his role in the temporal and spatial developments within Marvel’s universe has, at times, been substantial. This is why we at Fiction Horizon have decided to dedicate this article to best Loki comics ever written.
In this article, we are going to give you a list of the 25 best Loki stories that appeared in the comics. We are going to rank them from 25th to 1st, giving you information about the comics and the stories involved. This is, of course, going to be just a brief synopsis so be sure to read the comics yourselves if you want to get the full experience.
List of best Loki comics
25. “Loki’s Dream”
Writer(s): Peter David
Artist(s): John Estes
Publication Date: December 1994
This one-shot story by Peter David was actually the only issue in the so-called Tales to Astonish “volume 3”, although we actually question the validity of the label. In the story, Hank Pym and the Wasp travel to Oslo, where they have to stop a serial killer. Namely, the guy was “infected” by Loki but went completely mad, starting a killing spree that would eventually bring upon Ragnarok, i.e., the end of the world.
As it turns out, Loki is mostly a behind-the-scenes character in this one-shot, but due to his immense influence on the main narrative of the comic book itself, we have decided to start our list with this issue, which really explores Loki’s mythological origins.
24. Marvel Fanfare (vol. 1) #34-37
Writer(s): Alan Zelenetz
Artist(s): Charles Vess
Publication Date: September 1987 – April 1988
The Norn sisters predict a wedding to take place on summer night or all of Asgard and the Nine Realms will be cursed. Volstagg goes to the wedding while Loki watches the bride and groom. Angry at not being invited, Loki turns the groom into a goat, who then runs away into the forest. Disguised as an old man, Loki hands the bride another goat who claims to be the groom and says only a well in Wolfsburg will turn him back.
Meanwhile, Volstagg is waiting for Fandral and Hogun at an inn when he is received by the bride. She asks him to bring the goat to Wolfsburg, which he accepts. Soon after, Volstagg and the goat meet an old woman who gives him a donkey to replace her exhausted horse. As they approach Wolfsburg, the donkey transforms into a fiery creature and leads them straight into the castle. Volstagg and the goat are then attacked by werewolf worshipers, but soon find the well they seek. Volstagg dips the goat into the well, but nothing happens, so he decides to go inside.
Loki uses another goat to seduce another member of the Warriors Three into a dumb job. Hogun is tasked with feeding the goat believed to be the fruit of the tree top murder in the Elven Forest. Accompanied by murderer Vilar, Hogun’s mistrust of the spirits that live there and his own stubborn pride make the journey more difficult than it could have been. He is almost overwhelmed by a serpent that lives in the branches of the tree until he gives in and asks for help from the spirits and Vilar.
The Sprites fly Vilar towards the snake to tickle his chin with a feather and put him to sleep. When all is said and done, and the fruit doesn’t turn the goat into murder, Hogun gives up and allows himself to share a rare laugh with his companions. Loki cheats on Una’s father with another fake goat, which leads him to task Fandral with taking the goat to Love Island and enlisting help from Freya’s priestess. The island of love is populated only by virgins who take care of the temple of Freya, who have sworn all the vows that forbid them to love until the end of their apprenticeship.
Regardless, Fandral relentlessly flirts with every girl he meets. He convinces the girl on the boat that he will take her with him and marry her, even if she breaks her vows with him. When she notices that he is courting other women right after, she runs away heartbroken and prepares to jump off a cliff. When Fandral finds out, he fights the temptation to not take responsibility and apologizes, apologizing for his behavior and assuring the Priestess that she will not be punished for breaking her vows.
The Priestess confirms that Fandral’s goat is also a real goat and, through her own magic, recognizes Loki as the source of the murder curse. She sends Fandral back to Asgard’s Meadows to take appropriate action. As he leaves, as part of his penance, he reluctantly hands the priestess a comically large scroll of all the women he has promised to marry and swears he will never seek her again. The Warriors Three regroup and head to Loki’s Castle to save the murder, but they also send Vilar to inform Odin and Thor who are heading to the wedding with the group.
Loki sends his demonic crows to slow down the warriors, and when they reach his fortress anyway, he takes the form of a dragon and enchants them with illusions to neutralize them. Fandral sees an attractive girl, Volstag a terrifying monster, and Hogun sees a simple door. With the lessons they learned earlier today, everyone defeats the illusion and brings the fight to Loki.
The dragon tries to escape with the killing of the goat, but Thor’s timely arrival strikes the beast with lightning until its magic wears off and the dragon and goat return to their true form. Later, the fateful wedding takes place as planned, and even Loki is allowed to be there, turned into a goat by Odin.
23. “Tales of Asgard”
Writer(s): Stan Lee
Artist(s): Jack Kirby
Publication Date: April 1965 – June 1966
“Tales of Asgard” is actually an anthology of side stories written by Stan Lee and drawn by Jack Kirby that were published as part of the main Journey Into Mystery and Thor series. These stories, which contain many more issues than the 15 ones we have included here (#115-129, partially collected in Journey Into Mystery and the first volume of Thor), explored the different corners of Marvel’s take on Norse mythology and gave the whole world more substance.
These stories focus a lot more on Loki and his lore, thus giving us an insight into the god of mischief, his life in Asgard as well as his relationship with his home realm and the characters that likewise live there.
22. “Dark Reign”
Writer(s): Various
Artist(s): Alex Maleev
Publication Date: February 2009
After the Skrull invasion, Norman Osborn, former Goblin and leader of the Thunderbolts, replaces Tony Stark aka Iron Man as director of S.H.I.E.L.D., which is disbanded and replaced by an organization called “H.A.M.M.E.R.”; it also dismantles the old Initiative, a post Civil War group, and transforms it into the Thunderbolts Initiative. Camp Hammond, also due to the destruction caused by the Thor clone Ragnarok, is decommissioned and replaced with Camp H.A.M.M.E.R.
Osborn forms an alliance called Cabal with some of the most powerful criminals on Earth, such as Doctor Doom, Emma Frost, Namor, Loki and Hood. Osborn does not intend to fight with them but intends to “divide” the world, giving them what they want more. However, the New Avengers have decided not to submit to Norman Osborn and to oust him from power, by force if necessary.
Tony Stark has lost everything he had, including Extremis and becomes the most wanted man on earth, while Hank Pym, after the death of the Wasp, takes his nom de guerre and reforms the Mighty Avengers, who also become an outlawed supergroup. Norman creates a new team of government Avengers (the Dark Avengers) that includes some dangerous villains, including Bullseye, Venom, Daken and Moonstone, Sentry and Ares (the latter old members of the Avengers from Iron Man) but donating them the costumes and the codenamed some acclaimed heroes, such as Hawkeye, Spider-Man, Ms. Marvel, and gets the approval of the media and the general public.
The team is led onto the field by Osborn himself wearing one of the Iron Man armors painted in Captain America’s colors, giving himself the name of Iron Patriot. Ms. Marvel decides not to obey Osborn’s laws and joins the New Avengers, which also includes Clint Barton aka Ronin, former Hawkeye, who decides to unmask himself on live TV and accuse Osborn of being a criminal madman.
The Dark Avengers go to Latveria to help Victor von Doom against the mighty Morgana le Fay; at first they seem at a disadvantage, but manage to triumph thanks to a good idea from Norman Osborn. Tony Stark continues to be on the run and wanders the world aimlessly, relying only on the help of Peppers Potts and Maria Hill. Meanwhile, Bruce Banner is no longer able to transform into the Hulk, due to the Red Hulk, and Norman Osborn sends Ares to find out if that’s true. Bruce is no longer able to transform, but is saved by A-Bomb’s intervention. D
aken is able to enhance his claws thanks to the metal of the Muramasa sword that he stole from Cyclops. Norman achieves most of the goals he had set for himself, consolidating his power; it seems that no one, including the Fantastic Four or the New Avengers, was able to counter it; however Norman’s dark side began to drive him mad and take control of his personality. Norman’s latest insane plan was to destroy Asgard’s headquarters on earth.
On Loki’s advice, he attacks the city of the gods after a terrible incident involving Volstag. Steve Rogers, as soon as he heard that Thor was also in trouble, gathered the superheroes to help the gods. At the end of the battle, the last of Norman Osborn’s soldiers to remain standing was Sentry, but with the strength of Loki’s Stones of Standards, regretting what he had done, the heroes managed to kill him and Norman Osborn ended up in prison.
21. Mighty Avengers (vol.1) #27-29, 32-34, 36
Writer(s): Dan Slott, Christos N. Gage
Artist(s): Various
Publication Date: September 2009 – June 2010
Yet another contemporary in-continuity story featuring the female iteration of Loki, known as Lady Loki. In this series, where the Avengers have to fight other threat, Lady Loki’s presence threatens to disband the group as the God of Mischief enjoys noting more than to reap discord within the group he is nominally a member of, but in disguise.
The catch is that Lady Loki is disguised and that no one actually knows that it is him that manipulates the group, and not the person he is pretending to be. Unlike his more popular Lady Sif costume, Loki is here disguised as the Scarlet Witch, who is quite often listed as “Scarlet Witch” if the is actually Lady Loki. It is only her strange and unusual behavior that gives away the fact that it is not the real Scarlet Witch.
20. Avengers West Coast (vol. 2) #55
Writer(s): John Byrne
Artist(s): John Byrne
Publication Date: February 1990
In this relatively unknown issue of the never-so-popular Avengers West Coast series, Loki decided to use his tricks to get his revenge. His plan was quite devious and although the heroes resolved it quite quickly, it still deserved a spot on our list. Namely, in this issue, Loki decided to manipulate a group of supervillains to fight a group of superheroes. Pretty standard, not? But, there’s a catch.
Namely, unlike most scenarios, the heroes here have never fought the villains Loki made them face and, of course, vice versa. This made the fight a bit tricky as neither groups were prepared for what was coming and they couldn’t really anticipate the moves of their opponents. In the meantime, Loki enjoyed his genious as he watched his revenge unfold in front of him.
19. Journey Into Mystery (vol. 1) #85
Writer(s): Stan Lee, Larry Lieber
Artist(s): Jack Kirby
Publication Date: October 1962
In the distant land of Asgard, homeland of the Asgardian gods, the trickster god Loki spent time trapped in a tree that Odin left there until someone shed a tear on him and freed him from his jail. After Loki gains partial control of the tree, he drops a leaf from its branches as the god Heimdall walks past. The leaf landed in Heimdall’s eye, causing him to shed a tear, involuntarily freeing Loki from his prison.
Now free, Loki begins planning his revenge against his half-brother Thor and uses his mystical connection to Thor’s hammer to follow Thor to New York on Earth. Appearing on Earth, Loki takes a deadly form and goes to the hospital, where Thor puts on a show for sick children, only to find that Thor has just left. Since he cannot find Thor among the millions of people, he decides to flush out the god of thunder by casting a spell that turns people in the streets into their negative images and thus causes panic.
Under his civilian guise as Donald Blake and out with his nurse Jane Foster, Thor realizes the problem and slips away to transform into his divine form. With the mystical properties of his Uru hammer, Thor manages to bring people back to normal. When the crowd praises him, Thor is approached by his half-brother, who reveals his true identity to him.
Trying to lead their fight in the sky, Loki truly traps Thor and easily hypnotizes his opponent. He orders Thor to hand over the hammer, which Thor refuses due to the will of his father Odin. Eventually, Loki succeeds when he creates a mystical double of Thor and asks his servant to double it, which Thor does on purpose. Loki then orders Thor to go to the zoo and release all the animals.
What Loki doesn’t explain is the fact that once Thor is over sixty seconds away from his hammer, he reverts to Donald Blake’s form. When this happens, Blake is free of Loki’s control and manages to get past a group of people trying to lift Thor’s hammer (unable to do so as they’re not worth wielding) and back into the transformation of Thor. After his conspiracy is foiled, Loki attempts to escape under the protection of a flock of birds, but Thor follows the god of evil.
This leads to a battle through the city in which Loki ultimately attempts to escape on top of an animated statue of Pegasus. Thor eventually stops Loki when he manages to grab him in a pipe and throws him off his horse into the bay. Thor quickly captures Loki and takes him to the top of the Empire State Building, where he sends Loki back to Asgard to be punished in front of Odin with his hammer.
After his hammer returns, Thor returns in his Donald Blake form and reunites with Jane Foster, who once again raves about Thor’s exploits.
18. Siege
Writer(s): Brian Michael Bendis
Artist(s): Oliver Coipel
Publication Date: December 2009 – May 201
Loki was present in the Cabal when Norman Osborn refused to bring Namor to Doctor Doom. When the Doombot posing as Doctor Doom unleashed insect-like robots, Loki advised Hood to take flight. Following Osborn’s talk with the president, Loki advised re-enacting an incident similar to the Stamford incident that would lead to the invasion of Asgard.
He later revealed a plot to Osborn that would take advantage of Volstagg’s presence in Chicago. Since Volstagg had gone on adventures as Thor, the U-Foes could attack him and destroy a packed Soldier Field during a football game, killing thousands while he and Osborn gaze in astral form. Loki then warned Balder about Osborn’s impending attack on Asgard and claimed that he tried to convince Osborn not to attack.
He killed an Asgardian who prophesied the attack. Loki, when Osborn called for his help, sent Hood and her syndicate as reinforcements to aid Osborn’s forces against the Avengers. Loki then appeared to Balder, telling him that he would have simply forgiven Thor instead of banishing him if he hadn’t wanted the throne of Asgard for himself. Balder then banished Loki from Asgard.
Some time after he magically disguised himself as Osborn’s Green Goblin to lay siege to Asgard, Loki encountered the Demon (The Valkyries of Bor) after he lured them away using various wandering gods’ souls that he imprisoned as bait, revealing that he wished to obtain their service as slaves.
The 13 Disir unite and attack him as one, but Loki managed to defeat them using extraordinary fencing skills, forcing them to submit to him and declare him the victor. Loki meets Hela and asks what she will give him in exchange for a new Hel, to which she replies “Anything”.
He meets Mephisto, demonstrating the power of Disir and agreeing to lend him the Disir for a hundred and one days in exchange for the demon lord granting a portion of his underworld to Hela for a thousand and one years, as his new “Hel “, which Mephisto accepts.
In exchange for this, Hela erased Loki from the Books of Hel, thus he was no longer bound to Hel or Asgard, gaining absolute freedom. Mephisto asked Loki why he had resorted to such plans, to which Loki replied that he was more fun this way. When the combined forces of the New Avengers, Young Avengers, and the Secret Avengers defeated the Dark Avengers, Thor demanded to know where Loki was.
Norman Osborn could only tell him that he was dead, as were the rest of them when the true form of the Void appeared. As the creature tore through the three teams, Loki began to regret it, realizing that what had happened to Asgard was not what he wanted. He begged his father, Odin, to return the Norn Stones, which were removed from the Hood and given to the trickster.
He used his power to empower the three teams and give them the powers of the Hood gang and fight the Void. However, the Void felt Loki’s hand on this and attacked him, the stones did not affect him directly. When Loki was shattered by the tendrils of the Void in front of a shocked Thor, his last words were to apologize to his brother.
Thor resolved to avenge his fallen brother from him and destroyed the Void and Sentry with lightning. He carried the remains of the Sentry into outer space and released them into the sun.
17. Silver Surfer (vol. 1) #4
Writer(s): Stan Lee
Artist(s): John Buscema
Publication Date: February 1969
Loki broods in his hiding place, furious because Thor continues to thwart his nefarious plans. He decides to go to the Cavern of Shadows to find someone with enough power to defeat the God of Thunder, his brother. There, he discovers the Silver Surfer and learns more about his past and present. He realizes that the Surfer is someone he could trick into fulfilling his commands.
Eager to carry out his plan, he bursts into Asgard and crosses paths with the Warriors Three. Convinced of his impending success, he is delighted with the three and warns them that Thor will soon be gone forever. They quickly rush to Thor to warn him, which makes him nervous and prepares him for war. Meanwhile, the Silver Surfer seeks refuge in nature and wild animals to escape human violence.
This respite is short-lived, however, as Loki shows up and attacks him quickly. He wants to test the Surfer’s courage and really see how powerful he is, but the Surfer refuses to fight back. It is only when Loki threatens people that the Surfer begins to react. During their fight, Loki realizes that he has found his tool to defeat Thor and he ends the fight as soon as he has started it.
Loki tells the Surfer that his power is needed to save Asgard from Thor. If the Surfer helps, he’ll free him from the Galactus Barrier. After hearing this promise, the Surfer accepts Loki’s request. In fact, the trip with Loki to Asgard on the Bifrost bypasses the Galactus Barrier and allows the Silver Surfer to escape Earth. Upon entering Asgard, Loki quickly disappears so his fellow Asgardians have no idea of the Surfer’s true mission: to defeat Thor.
The Surfer first meets Heimdall at the Golden Gates and is cleared through as he doesn’t appear to be a threat. Then he enters Thor’s castle and interrupts their feast by daring him to fight. The Warriors Three pounce on the Surfer in the face of his threat, but Thor stops them and encourages everyone to eat first before the challenges begin. The Surfer accepts Thor’s request and is mesmerized by the number of people who appear to be loyal to someone who is supposed to be evil.
As they eat, they watch the gladiators fight and Loki secretly arrives in his astral form. He puts dark suspicions in the Surfer’s mind and forces a gladiator to throw his sword at him. This furiously freaks out the Silver Surfer and attacks the Asgardiann, which also brings Thor into the fight. Odin is warned of the battle, but he doesn’t worry as he can sense that both fighters are of a pure heart.
He believes that nothing will happen to them and decides to go to bed. Both trade punches and blows, but the Silver Surfer (with Loki’s own strength) is too much for Thor. Balder and Sif rush to protect Thor, and the surfer is once again surprised by the loyalty Thor commands. He begins to doubt Loki’s story and intentions. Before he can explain everything to Thor, Loki brings him back to earth and into his exile.
16. Avengers (vol. 1) #118
Writer(s): Steve Englehart
Artist(s): Bob Brown
Publication Date: December 1973
With Dormammu having the Evil Eye in his possession, the Dark Dimension begins to fuse with the Earth-616 universe, Marvel’s prime universe. As a result, the landscape and the buildings are distorted and the people become demons.
The Avengers and Defenders swiftly take action and battle the attacking demons. Doctor Strange realizes that they must enter the Dark Dimension and bring the fight to Dormammu himself. However, Captain America warns that many people on Earth would perish if they all left. Before a decision can be made, Nick Fury and the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Fury’s team, agree to stay on Earth to fight the demons while the others move to the Dark Dimension.
Upon their departure, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents start to transform into demons and Fury realizes that the only way to win is for the two superhero teams to stop Dormammu. Deep in the Dark Dimension, Dormammu unleashed all the wrath of the reassembled Evil Eye.
He watches the heroes come into his reign and again Loki asks him to restore his sight. Instead, he locks up Loki and accuses him of conspiring against him, then is surprised by the appearance of the guard. Uatu assures him that he poses no threat and that he is only there to observe the fusion of the two dimensions.
Meanwhile, the Avengers and Defenders fight their way through an army of Mindless Ones as they advance deeper into the Dark Dimension. On Earth-616, superpowered characters around the world are fighting the ongoing invasion of the Dark Dimension. The Avengers and Defenders finally manage to reach Dormammu, but the Defenders are quickly stunned by his power.
The Avengers attack him but are easily lured into the trap. While Dormammu is distracted by the heroes, Loki takes the opportunity to attack Dormammu from behind. The two fight, and the Scarlet Witch is able to strike Dormammu with a hex bolt, which sucks his essence into the Evil Eye. The Evil Eye Ray then rains on Loki and gives him back his sight, but it also drives him crazy.
Uatu explains that this latter effect is the result of Loki’s mind absorbing all the strength of Dormammu’s mystical energy, which no mind in his dimension, not even that of an immortal Asgardian, can properly process.
Once the villains are defeated, the fusion of Earth-616 and the Dark Dimension will cease and the inhabitants of Earth will return to normal. The Defenders accompany the Evil Eye in the hope that it holds the key to freeing the Dark Knight, as the Avengers vanish under their care along with devastated Loki.
15. The Mighty Thor (vol. 1) #148
Writer(s): Stan Lee
Artist(s): Jack Kirby
Publication Date: January 1968
Because they did not obey his orders, Odin toppled Loki, Sif, and Balder with a flash of energy that robs them of their divine powers, just as Odin had previously done with Thor. After reaping every possible advantage against Thor, Loki flees the scene in the hopes of finding another way to defeat his half-brother.
Meanwhile, the infamous criminal known as Wrecker has broken into the home of another wealthy couple elsewhere in town. The heist is called into by the police, who organize a trawl to catch the thief. Under the pressure not to get caught, the Wrecker must let go of his prey to avoid being arrested and set off in search of a new victim.
While in the office of Dr. Donald Blake, Thor, Balder, and Sif order a meal and lament the loss of their divine powers. Loki has rented a room elsewhere in town, in which he tries to contact Karnilla, the Queen of Norns, with a spell in order to cast a spell to regain his powers. Loki doesn’t know he’s being watched by the Wrecker who has targeted Loki as his next victim.
At the critical point of the spell, the Wrecker breaks in and knocks Loki down with his crowbar. When he only finds a special container and Loki’s helmet, the robber is a little more than disappointed. Nonetheless, he puts on Loki’s helmet, and when Karnilla finally appears, she mistakes the destroyer for Loki and gives the little crook the power Loki wanted to regain.
When Loki is resurrected, he demands that the Wrecker give him the power. Instead, the Wrecker returns Loki his helmet, gives up his crowbar, and while he’s not quite sure how to use his powers, he manages to teleport Loki to Asgard. Impressed by his new superpowers, the Wrecker decides to use them to continue his criminal career.
Back in Donald Blake’s office, Thor decides to pass the time by entertaining Sif and Balder with a television show. The show they are watching is interrupted by a newscast in which they hear that a new super powerful Wrecker has started a rampage across town. The three Asgardians decide to stop the Wrecker, even though they don’t have all of their strength at their disposal.
The Wrecker continues its rampage, using its magical power to amplify the power of its crowbar and destroy entire buildings. When Thor, Balder, and Sif confront the Wrecker, the crook uses his powers to banish Balder and Sif to Asgard.
As the battle rages between Thor and the Wrecker continues, it’s clear that Thor is no match for the extra power the convenience store has. Once in Asgard, Sif and Balder rush to Odin to ask him to restore Thor’s full power. Still angry with Thor for his previous disobedience, Odin refuses to help his son, feeling that he has not yet completed his repentance.
The story is continued in several other issues, which focus more on the Wrecker character than on Loki, although the latter does appear.
14. Dark Reign: The Cabal
Writer(s): Various
Artist(s): Various
Publication Date: June 2009
Another storyline under the Dark Reign imprint brings us a collection of stories titled “The Cabal”. Loki is featured in his female form, “wearing” Lady Sif’s body, which is in line with the contemporary continuity of Marvel’s stories from that time. Various writers have contributed to the overall storyline, with several stories focusing on each of the members, explaining who they are and why they are like that.
Although Lady Loki appears in practically all of the stories, “Dinner with Doom”, the last story in the series, is the story which really focuses on her character and explores her position within the Dark Reign series.
13. The Mighty Thor (vol. 1) #348-353
Writer(s): Walter Simonson
Artist(s): Walter Simonson
Publication Date: October 1984 – March 1985
Roger manages to temporarily prevent Malekith from opening the coffin. Balder gets to know the Norns and finds out how important he is in the overall system of things. He also sees how one small act of one person can affect everyone. Thor runs away from the pit, and he and Roger defeat Malekith once and for all.
In Asgard, the Warriors Three have assembled Asgard’s host for war. While Thor is distracted by Melodi, Malekith grabs Rogers’ gun and throws it at the box, which she shatters. The intense cold freezes the portal so that Surtur can break it down and enter our world. After the destruction of the Ancient Winter Box, an unearthly chill spreads through Midgard. Roger suspects Melodi is up to something, but she uses a spell to prevent him from telling Thor.
Agnar and Balder return to Asgard to tell Odin about the vision Balder had. Thor brings Malekith back to Asgard and Odin puts him in prison without escape. While Malekith is locked up, Odin tells them the story of the challenge they now face. He tells them about Surtur, his brothers and the birth of the Odin power and the war to come. And to help in the coming battle, Odin Beta calls Ray Bill back to Asgard.
With all the warriors gathered in the plain of Vigrid, Odin draws up the battle plan. Odin and Heimdall stay in Asgard, Balder is supposed to ask Karnilla for help, and Frigga is supposed to get all the children to safety. Everyone should go to Midgard to hunt Surtur and the Sons of Muspel. Thor flies forward to alert the Avengers. Meanwhile, the hordes begin to attack Manhattan.
Karnilla tells Balder that she won’t help him unless he swears allegiance to her alone. The Asgardianns enter the battle as Amora tries to get Lorelei, who refuses to help. When the Sons of Muspel begin to set the city on fire, Thor causes a downpour to put out the fires. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what Surtur wanted. As the storm stops, Bifrost is revealed. The moment Thor realizes that Surtur is gone, the Gjallerhorn will sound. The warriors of Asgard and the Avengers fight against Surtur’s forces, but lose ground until the arrival of the 82nd Airborne.
Thor travels to Asgard to stop Surtur. Roger Willis and Human Torch travel to England to stop the winter before the coffin. In Asgard, Surtur has defeated Heimdall and now Thor stands in his way. Frigga leads the children of Asgard when they are stopped by a troll. Back on earth, paint chips fill the air because Surtur smashed Bifrost. Furious, Sif rallies the Einherjar to carry out Bill’s plan. Thor hits Surtur to no avail with his best punches. Surtur defeats him and heads for Asgard, with only Odin in his path.
Surtur is in Asgard to find the Eternal Flame that Odin and his brothers stole at the beginning of time. Surtur and Odin collide and send shock waves through the Nine Worlds. In New York, Mr. Fantastic has a plan, but it is to conquer Demon’s Wargate. Elsewhere, Roger plans to find the coffin and reassemble it to end the winter storms. The human torch keeps demons away as Roger begins to work. Back in New York City, Sif leads the Einherjar into Bill’s trap, while Tyr and Skurge lead their troops and destroy the demons.
Meanwhile, Bill and Mr. Fantastic capture the door and close it. Back in Asgard, Surtur is surprised by Odin’s power and calls out every winter to stop Odin. Elsewhere, the Asgard children have a plan to defeat the troll. And back on earth, the heroes walk through the door to face the demons at their point of entry into the earth dimension.
Back in England, Roger has only one piece left, but he doesn’t make it, he’s completely frozen. But suddenly all the ice, snow and cold disappeared without a trace, called from Surtur to Asgard. But since the ice is gone, the dark elves are roaming free again. In Asgard, Surtur has used the cold to completely imprison Odin, while Surtur walks towards the Eternal Flame and ignites the Twilight Sword. With Thor and Odin out of the way, Surtur goes to ignite the Twilight in the Eternal Flame Sword, but nothing happens.
Loki reveals that it was he who hid the true flame and replaced it with an illusion. Loki and Surtur fight, Loki leading a merry chase until Surtur discovers the true flame. Back in England, Roger and Human Torch escape the elves and return home. After putting the final piece in place, Roger closes the lid, which returns the winter imprisoning Odin to the Casket.
Thor has revived as well, and father and sons face off against Surtur. Back on Earth, Beta Ray Bill and the heroes finally defeat the last of the demons. Surtur and Odin grapple to the last, falling into the chasm of Muspelheim, which seals up behind them.
12. Avengers (vol. 1) #1
Writer(s): Stan Lee
Artist(s): Jack Kirby
Publication Date: September 1963
Loki, previously captured by Thor, is held captive on the Isle of Silence in Asgard. His physical form may be trapped there, but through the projection of his thoughts, his disembodied self travels the earth in search of revenge. He discovers Thor in his human identity of Dr. Donald Blake, but refuses to defeat him as defeating him when he is not Thor would be a hollow victory.
After hours of searching, Loki stumbles upon Hulk and hatches an evil plan to trick Blake into transforming into Thor. He projects a mental image of dynamite onto the tracks of a nearby railroad bridge. The Hulk discovers the dynamite and tries to eliminate it, accidentally destroying the bridge. Suddenly, a train appears on the railroad tracks heading for the wreckage. The Hulk bravely manages to hold the tracks long enough for the train to pass safely before it collapses.
Unfortunately, the damage has already been done and Loki’s plan has succeeded. Hours later, newspapers published reports that the Hulk was on the sidelines again and a manhunt begins. Hulk’s friend Rick Jones reads the article in disbelief and meets with members of the Teen Brigade to ask for help tracking down the Hulk and uncovering the truth.
They try to contact Fantastic Four, but Loki disrupts the radio signal and passes it on to Don Blake. He decides to transform into Thor to help the Teen Brigade. Unbeknownst to Loki, the radio signal is also picked up by Ant-Man, the Wasp, and Iron Man, who also travel to help. The Teen Brigade is later disappointed that the Fantastic Four didn’t respond to their message when they finally got a response. They inform the Teen Brigade that they are too busy with another matter, but they suspect that other heroes may have received their call to 911.
Suddenly, Thor, Iron Man, Ant-Man and the Wasp arrive. Loki realizes that the other heroes are only disrupting his plans and luring Thor in by creating a mental image of the Hulk. When he catches up with this fake “Hulk”, Thor attacks and realizes that he is not real and immediately suspects Loki. Then he returns to Asgard to confront his brother.
Meanwhile, Iron Man, Ant-Man, and the Wasp track down the Hulk with the help of Ant-Man’s ants. He works in a circus pretending to be a robot named Mechano. They try to catch him by collapsing the ground beneath him, dropping a steel cylinder on him and trying to catch him with a net. The Hulk manages to escape from the circus. Iron Man continues the hunt, but the Hulk paralyzes his battery and escapes while Iron Man repairs it. Back in Asgard, Thor asks Odin for permission to meet Loki on the Isle of Silence for questioning.
Odin accepts, but warns that he can interfere in the argument between the two brothers. As Thor bursts through the sea of fog, he is attacked by Loki’s traps. First, hr barely escapes a tangle of roots that threatens to bring him down. Then a volcano erupts releasing globules of volcanic gas that can weaken the power of any god. Thor can escape it by diving into the sea. On the island, Loki discovers Thor’s empty ship and wonders in disbelief if Thor has ever been defeated.
Suddenly, a huge stream of water appears in front of him as Thor emerges from the sea to face him. He throws his hammer at Loki only to distract him from a hastily made ice cap. Loki summons a rock troll who begins to pull Thor underground. At the last moment, Thor uses his hammer to summon a lightning bolt that blinds the troll and causes him to relinquish his hold. Thor angrily throws his hammer at Loki, who has created several mental images of himself to confuse him.
Thor counteracts this by turning his hammer fast enough to detonate all of the figures and reveal the real Loki. He absorbs the earth’s magnetic flux with his hammer, captures Loki by magnetic attraction, and brings him back to earth to wash away the Hulk’s name. On Earth, Iron Man, Ant-Man, and the Wasp continue to pursue the Hulk to an auto factory in Detroit. Thor appears with Loki to clear Hulk’s name. Suddenly, Loki turns radioactive and forces the heroes to retreat. Luckily, Loki is standing over a hatch, and Ant-Man’s ants flip a switch and drop him into a lead-lined tank.
As they celebrate their victory, Ant-Man and the Wasp highlight how well they could work together as a team, and that they should work together in the future. The Wasp suggests they should be called the Avengers, and everyone agrees.
11. Thor (vol. 1) #364-366
Writer(s): Walter Simonson
Artist(s): Walter Simonson
Publication Date: February – April 1986
As the time of the Althing comes near, the Asgardians wonder where Thor is. He is on earth and has turned into a frog. But he’s still a born warrior, and if a rat attacks him, he can easily fend him off. Thor befriends Puddlegulp, which leads him to meet King Glugwort. Hildy and the other kids find out about Twilight and Loki has something to do with it.
Thor and Puddlegulp arrive in time to hunt Ratso and a few others, but not in time to save the king. The other frogs convince Thor to help them against the rats, and Thor already has a plan. In Asgard, the kids tell Heimdall about Twilight, and he suspects Loki is even more cunning.
In the Althing, the Grand Thane calls on the sons of Odin to come forward. Loki is there immediately and laughs at himself at Thor’s absence until the God of Thunder comes forward.
Thor’s plan to find the alligators in the sewers is successful, aside from the presence of the Piper, who immediately takes control of Thor’s amphibian bodies. To aid the frogs in Thor’s battle against the rats, Thor leads the alligators to the surface. Back in Asgard, Loki becomes wary of the Thor who appeared in the Althing and follows him with Heimdall to Heimdall’s house.
The alligators make short work of the rats, and in Asgard Loki discovers that the fake Thor is truly Harokin. When Thor leaves the Frogs, Puddlegulp stops him and says Thor is a secret. Thor returns to the alley and collects Mjolnir – he transforms into a thunder frog. Frog Thor returns to Asgard.
Volstagg takes Gunnhild, who has fallen ill, in search of Twilight. At the Althing, Loki grabs the fake Mjolnir and throws it away to convince everyone that it’s worth it. At this moment, Frog Thor rushes in and grabs Loki. Loki tries to stop him by turning Thor more into a frog, but that just drives Thor mad and he attacks harder.
Volstagg discovers the huge machine that sucks the energy from Twilight. He becomes dizzy and accidentally sets off an avalanche that knocks down both the machine and the sword. With the machine destroyed, Hildy’s disease is gone and Thor is back to normal. When the rest of the Asgardians come up, Loki tries to save the day. But when Thor throws him at Mjolnir, knocking him down, Loki’s plans fall apart.
Thor then announces that he will not take the throne, but rather says that Balder should be honored.
10. “Diversions & Misdirections”
Writer(s): J. Michael Straczynski
Artist(s): Oliver Coipel
Publication Date: January 2009
Loki traveled to Las Vegas to visit her (yes, yes, this is the female Loki) daughter Hela. She needs her help with time travel, but she can only do it because she was not who she is now. Hela helps restore Loki to the state he once was, a son of Laufey. Hela tells him that his old body looks familiar to her, then they join forces and send him back to Jotunheim’s past.
Once there, he greets the Frost Giants and tells them he has a plan. They give him a cloak and he casts a spell that turns Bor into snow. Then he begins to pursue Odin in Bor’s form and tells him to adopt a child from a father whom he will kill in battle. He visits his young self and tells him how he can change his life forever and also get rid of his father Laufey.
When all is said and done, Loki returns to the present, where Hela tells him that she has finally recognized the body he was carrying – Sif’s. It’s a dangerous game, but in the end it will have broken Thor and all of the other Asgardians behind him. Then he retakes Sif’s form and begins his return to Asgard.
9. Thor & Loki: Double Trouble
Writer(s): Mariko Tamaki
Artist(s): Gurihiru
Publication Date: May 2021 – ongoing
This ongoing series is actually a collection of standalone stories featuring Thor and Loki in various misadventures. These stories are actually full of humor and are not as serious as the other stories featuring these two characters. They’re like an anthology series, but whose style is more appropriate for younger reders, which is also reflected in the art by Gurihiru.
8. “X-Men: The Asgardian Wars”
Writer(s): Chris Claremont
Artist(s): Various
Publication Date: November 1990
Cyclops and Madelyne Pryor transport a group of American and Canadian scientists to the Arctic Circle when their plane is shot down by an unknown source. Rachel Summers sees this in a psi-flash during her training in the Danger Room, and the X-Men are faced with an uncontrollable Danger Room scenario. She believes her father’s attack has something to do with Shaman Alpha Flight, who is currently grappling with the issues of some of her own teammates.
Without warning, the goddess Snowbird appears seriously injured in front of him. Before Shaman can deal with Snowbird, Rachel Summers attacks him and his teammates. The X-Men arrive and help Alpha Flight, while Xavier manages to calm Rachel down. Snowbird regains consciousness and reveals that the plane was shot down by Cyclops by the time it was her.
The two superhero teams decide to work together to find Cyclops and the missing scientists. Meanwhile, the Norse god Loki meets with those who sit in the shadows to discuss his current plan to make an offering to humanity they cannot refuse. Wolverine and Heather Hudson remember that Snape and Northstar have heart to heart.
When they discover a fantastic, almost supernatural palace, the teams land and are soon greeted by Cyclops – who is now apparently cured of needing a protective visor to control his optical explosion. A confused and curious group of heroes follow Cyclops into the citadel, where he introduces them to scientists and his wife, who have all been transformed and developed fantastic powers.
Madelyne reveals that she has the power to heal and demonstrates it by healing Aurora, Sasquatch, Rogue, and Puck from their problems. Shaman decides that Madelyne should use her powers on Snowbird when he realizes that Snowbird never got off the plane with them. Worried about them, Wolverine leaves to find his dear friend, accompanied by two of the scientists, but Logan fears it is too late.
During a feast, the members of X-Men and Alpha Flight all reveal their own feelings about the fantastic powers these people have been given and how they can literally heal the world. At this banquet, it is also revealed that Madelyne is pregnant with a boy. When Rachel finds out, she panics and runs away. Kitty and an angry talisman follow her as Loki keeps a close eye on Talisman.
During this time, the heroes are brought to the Magic Well, where the people obtained their powers. Heather enters the well and returns with the “strength” to lead when the shaman loses control of his medicine bag, demons come out. With the sack and demons removed, Madelyne reports that their healing powers cannot work on Shaman and he is dying.
7. “Loki: Sorcerer Supreme”
Writer(s): Donny Cates
Artist(s): Various
Publication Date: November 2017 – February 2018
A magic tournament is held and the Vishanti surprisingly declare Loki as the new Sorcerer Supreme, stripping Stephen Strange of his long-held title. The world is, of course, in danger and in need of the Sorcerer Supreme’s services, so Loki does his best to protect the planet from different threats. Strange, who has been demoted to a normal human and is now working as a veterinarian, doesn’t trust Loki and looks for a way to regain his title and his powers.
While Loki continues to do his job, Strange is becoming more suspicious. Realizing that he cannot defeat Loki on Earth, he heads to Asgard, hoping to find a way to defeat the evil god in his home world. After some initial trouble, as the Asgardians weren’t overly happy with his arrival, Strange manages to get his powers back and with them, a way to defeat Loki. The two wizards finally clash and Strange manages to regain his title from Loki.
6. “Style > Substance”q
Writer(s): Kieron Gillen
Artist(s): Jamie McKelvie, Mike Norton
Publication Date: March – July 2013
Kate Bishop wakes up in a strange bed in an orbiting space station and slowly remembers sleeping with Noh-Varr, who gets out of the shower and dances to 60’s pop. Suddenly they are attacked by Skrulls; Noh-Varr retrieves his handguns and goes into a spin while Kate grabs the controls and tries to push the ship away from the explosions.
In New York, Hulkling plays Spider-Man to thwart a heist. He returns home to be berated by his friend Wiccan for filming the event by a spectator and now everyone thinks there is another Skrull invasion. Wiccan angrily says they agreed to quit the superhero game; Hulkling gently responds that he has fallen in love with a superhero and that it is important to him; Wiccan gives in and decides to help him.
Back in his own room, he scans the possible worlds with his own magic. This attracts the attention of Kid Loki, who was dining in New York; he teleports to the roof of the building where the Wiccan was supposed to be, but finds Mrs. America waiting for him. She kicks his ass, despite his efforts to buy time.
The noise awakens Hulkling and Wiccan’s adoptive parents inside the building; Hulkling rushes in and asks who she is, but Loki teleports and Mrs. America flies away. Meanwhile, Wiccan found the moment in space-time just before Hulkling’s mother was killed and removed his mother.
When she returns, Hulkling is delighted to see her and they kiss. Later, however, the mother turns out to be some sort of shape-shifting monster and murders their foster parents.
5. The Trials of Loki
Writer(s): Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Artist(s): Sebastian Fiumara
Publication Date: November 2011
Loki went into exile on Midgard after Balder’s death. He is eventually found by Thor and they remember Loki’s mischief, which resulted in Sif’s hair being shaved, the creation of great treasures, and Loki’s lips sewn together. This is actually a multiple-part one-shot that chronicles some of Loki’s adventures throughout his life. The stories were written by the same author and present Loki in various different situations, focusing on great character development.
4. Thor & Loki: Blood Brothers
Writer(s): Robert Rodi
Artist(s): Esad Ribic
Publication Date: April 2011
In part one, Karnilla ordered Loki to kill Thor because of a deal Loki made with her, which he hesitates over, although it was ignored by most Asgardians. Thor was the only one who had ever shown brotherly love and treated him like family.
The second part shows Loki receiving insults from Sif, who is now trapped in a cell next to Thor’s. Loki believes that Sif is just as lazy as Odin (which he pointed out to him), to which Sif returns in disgust.
In the third part of the series, he has a chat with Balder, where Balder reveals that no incarnation of Loki has ever been Lord of Asgard and that Loki will share the same fate (a surprise that leaves Loki horrified). Loki later meets his real birth mother, Farbauti Laufeyson, whom he believed to have been dead for so long.
The final, fourth part shows that instead of taking Thor’s life, Loki wants to rule Asgard alongside his brother. It is not known if this is successful, as the final part ends with a cliffhanger in which Loki meets Thor, who comes out of his prison and crushes Loki with Mjolnir.
3. Vote Loki
Writer(s): Christopher Hastings
Artist(s): Various
Publication Date: August—November 2016
The Asgardian god of mischief, Loki, is a lot of things – a god, a trickster, a brother, a liar, a son, a villain, even a hero – and now he wants to add one thing to the list: the President of the United States. It is certainly strange to see Loki run for public office, but with his winning smile and silver tongue in the election campaign, this election certainly becomes more interesting, even though one suspects that there is a plan in the background driving Loki to run for President.
Presidential candidate Loki Laufeyson is struggling to keep up with the campaign stunts. As if proving his eligibility wasn’t hard enough, the media start spreading rumors that his Super P.A.C. is actually a cult under Loki’s control Now, when one is running for President of the United States, it’s important to take the time to mingle with your constituents, and Loki has had the American people eaten out of his hands, which becomes highly suspicious.
The election campaign isn’t all about handshakes and baby kisses, however – when Latveria is hit by a destabilizing crisis, Loki takes the opportunity to prove his presidential strength (while leaving rivals in the dust). A country is in turmoil and the god of evil seems to be in the midst of saving it, but it all seems almost as if he had planned all of it. But Lokiy surely wouldn’t cause a national catastrophe for a bit of good press, right?
Election Day is, of course, fast approaching and the Loki Mania is at its peak; the American people have spoken, and they want Loki as their new President. But Nisa Contreras doesn’t buy it. She had a bad feeling about Loki from the start and she manages to eventually find the proof she needed to show everyone that Loki is not as perfect as he seems.
2. “Trust Me”
Writer(s): Al Ewing
Artist(s): Lee Garbett
Publication Date: February – June 2014
In the present, Loki stabs Thor with a sword. Hours earlier, Loki’s attempt to shower in an apartment is interrupted by the appearance of the All-Mother, who has a mission for him. This causes Loki to climb the side of the Avengers tower on Seven League boots and use a disappearing cloak to make himself invisible to the Avengers.
Inside, Thor is in an unusually aggressive mood and asks Jarvis for mead. He notices that Loki is looking out the window and attacks. Loki’s fall catches the attention of Hawkeye and Black Widow, and a grappling hook prevents him from falling. However, this leaves Loki surrounded by the Avengers.
When asked by Thor, Loki is openly telling the truth: that he works on behalf of the All-Mother before distracting Thor by reminding him of the time Tony Stark cloned him. This infuriates Thor and allows Loki to pass. Hawkeye’s attempts to stop him fail due to magical misdirection from Loki which causes the Archer’s Arrow to end in Bruce Banner.
With the distraction, Loki heads over to the Avengers database and uses it to find all the information the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D., and everyone else has about him before immediately deleting it, as these stories contained a metaphysical weight that brings Loki back to meanness, which is something Loki wants to avoid.
In the time required for that, however, the Avengers catch up with him. Thor advocates killing Loki and tries to do so. At this point, it becomes impossible for him to carry Mjolnir, which allows Loki to slip around Thor and stab him, causing strange energies to escape from Thor’s body.
A flashback reveals why Loki stabbed Thor; after his last encounter with Malekith the Cursed, a sort of corruption seeped into him, which led to Thor becoming more and more violent, arrogant, and aggressive. For this reason, Loki has brought back Gram, the sword of Sigurd, which forces those she wounds to endure the truth.
It works and clears Thor of the contamination, which is immediately sealed in a special jar that Loki brought with him, though his celebration is interrupted when the Hulk knocks him out. Soon after, Thor and Loki are talking in a cell.
The God of Thunder reflects on his previous story of arrogance and wonders if he has really changed since. Loki calms him down and the two brothers share a drink before Loki’s inevitable flight. Subsequently, Loki presents the sealed corruption of the All-Mother, who repeats her terms of service; for each mission completed, one wrongdoing by Loki is removed from the books of Asgard.
Loki tries to warn the All-Mother, and Frigga in particular, not to open the jar, but is instead told to leave. The jar is open and the corruption takes on a familiar form – that of Loki. An older, meaner Loki. Someone who wants to talk about the future.
1. “Fear Itself”
Writer(s): Matt Fraction, Ed Brubaker
Artist(s): Stuart Immonen, Scot Eaton
Publication Date: April – October 2011
During World War II, the Red Skull, under the orders of Adolf Hitler, performed a ritual to bring the hammer of Skadi from beyond, appearing over Antarctica, but Red Skull was not able to lift or wake it up; he requested the Thule Society to build a fortress to guard and hide the hammer.
Many years later, Sin, the daughter of Red Skull, with the help of Baron Zemo, recovered The Book of the Skull, a spell book containing the location of the mystical hammer. Times of uncertainty and fear sprout around the world; the heroes have regained power in the Marvel Universe but the distrust that common people feel towards them after the Civil War, the Skrull Invasion, the Dark Reign of Norman Osborn, and the recent fall of Asgard during the Siege, has caused a deep fear, fear that could consume everything.
Sin, the daughter of Red Skull, released the mysterious Serpent from his grave, from the depths of the Mariana Trench. The Serpent’s mystical hammer empowered Sin, transforming her into his herald Skadi. The Serpent demands to be treated as the “Father of all” and with it, an old evil has been released into the world.
He conjures the Worthy, causing seven more divine Hammers to fall from the sky throughout the world. Each one transforms his bearer into an unstoppable machine of destruction that rampages through everything in the name of the Serpent. Upon learning of their escape Odin and the Asgardians withdraw from Earth to begin preparations and set the planet on fire, and thus destroy the Serpent.
When Thor tries to intercede, the Serpent reveals to him that he is the brother of Odin and the true and exiled king of Asgard. When the Avengers rally to defend humanity, the Serpent easily defeats them.
The struggle later culminates in a fight between the Worthy and Captain America’s men; the former immediately find themselves in the lead in strength and endurance, but after a short time Stark and his team arrive at the scene of the clash, with Asgardian weapons loaded and temporarily blessed by Odin, or magically empowered and therefore indestructible.
Thor also joins the group and immediately goes in search of the Serpent, who transforms into a giant serpentine wyvern using all his accumulated powers. The god of thunder immediately finds himself in trouble and is mortally poisoned, causing Mjolnir to fall; Cap finds it and discovers that he is worthy of lifting it, which makes him as powerful as Skadi.
On the other side of Yggdrasill, the Aesir are ready to march on Earth and arrived too late: the Serpent is killed with a mighty blow to the head and Thor falls to the ground, now dying. After taking nine slow steps towards his father, he loses his strength and dies in front of all his brothers and friends. Realizing that the prophecy has now come true, the All-Father removes the magic hammers from the Worthy, which are then sent in all directions so that no one can track them down.
Jane Foster and all the god’s acquaintances are notified of the incident and arrive on the spot, collaborating in the construction of the funeral pyre. The following day presents several news: Odin feels guilty for allowing his brother to hurt his family and decides to stay in Asgard until the end of time to check on his deceased brother. In his place, his wife Frigg, Gaia, and Iðunn will remain on Earth to help the Asgardians.
A week after Thor’s death, two major events take place: Sin is found by a group of aliens, who heal her and revitalize her body weakened by the removal of Skadi’s spirit. They manage to convince her to search for her seven hammers and that much work has not yet been done.
Hulk, who broke Nul’s hammer, gets tired of Banner’s constant presence and manages to get out of his psyche. He abandons him in the middle of a desert and goes in search of the demon who had previously possessed him, also seeking the help of Doctor Strange.
