(I originally read these comics in mid/late September 2015)
Coming after Walt Simonson's seminal run, these are a return to traditional '60s-style Thor comics and as such are very enjoyable. Tom DeFalco does his best Stan Lee impression and Ron Frenz similarly apes Jack Kirby for a combined attractive package, especially when Joe Sinnott comes aboard as inker. Stan actually scripts issue # 385 and it's a rare example of a Marvel comic I bought at the time. Plots include Thor aiding a planet of space pirates against judgement (and therefore annihilation) by the Celestials, Set, the Serpent God of Death and his forces besieging Asgard in Thor's absence, and Thor venturing into the Black Galaxy to rescue the trapped Hercules and the High Evolutionary. Meanwhile Asgard, having become untethered from Midgard (that's earth, effendi!) due to the Rainbow Bridge having been destroyed, floats helplessly into the Negative Zone, becoming the target of Annihilus in the process. Like Thor's '60s run, the action moves seamlessly between earth, Asgard and outer space. New earthbound villains Quicksand and Mongoose aren't up to much, but new supporting character and "average guy" Eric Masterson becomes important when, to save his life, Odin joins he and Thor together and Thor takes up Masterson's identity on earth, returning the status quo to something like the original Thor/Don Blake situation. The Asgardian pantheon of characters - including the always-entertaining Warriors Three - get plenty of face time, too, and 'Tales of Asgard' returns as a back-up strip in most issues after many years. All in all, fun stuff!
The Mighty Thor (1966) # 383-400 are collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 383 is collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 387-389 are collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 395-400 are collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 400 is collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 400/410 are collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 408/409 are collected in:
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The Mighty Thor (1966) # 408 is collected in:
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