For today’s comic book review I read Journey Into Mystery #99, featuring the first of a two-part story starring The Mighty Thor. this, the first part of the story is titled “The Mysterious Mister Hyde!”.  With the title one might suspect, it is a tale that is a play on Dr. Jekyll and Mister Hyde, and in fact they would be right.

You see our stories antagonist is a Man with scientific knowledge, whom was inspired by the very story he draws the name Hyde form to create an elixir that would instill the same effect on him that Dr. Jekyll faced. With the power of Mr. Hyde he aims for revenge on Dr. Don Blake, and also to stop Thor from being able to foal him.

Story

with all that as a background, how could the story not be good? but in  fact it was even better, as the story offers some great character development for Thor and Jane foster, as Thor stands up to his father to win the right to love a mortal, yet again, but this time with some success.

Thus this issue is nothing but an ongoing build up, leaving us with a  lot of hopes, and thoughts for the second part of the story,  The build up is done well, and left me with the need to read part two right away.

Art

The art on the other hand, I felt was just average.  the cover was a bit underwhelming, and then the ongoing art in the issue, was simply just on par with my base expectations.  the shadowing seemed to vary from dark and heavy to  light,  and even at points the artwork seemed like it might have been quickly done.

The panel i included is one that i felt was just too dark, and  overdone, in particularly given that Don Blake’s office is shown to be fairly bright just a few panels before.

Originality & Continuity

While one could say that a story so clearly based on another could not be original, I feel that by letting the characters knowingly base it on the original work, helps greatly compensate for that.

But much more important than originality would be the continuity of this issue,  it is building upon the growing epic of Don Blake / Thor’s love for Jane foster, and his unwillingness to accept Odin’s forbidding the relationship.  Their relationship, or lack there of  has been an ongoing underlining them for a while now, and you can feel it building up to a climax of its own.

Character & Development

Thor Challenged Odin yet again, but this time, revealing a glimmer of hope.  For Thor this is a hope that he needed above all else,  and it instantly boosted his happiness,  unfortunately for him he goes back to discover trouble at his own office.

At the same time Jane foster is wrapped up in her thoughts about the good doctor, and  her feelings for him,  wondering what it is that keeps him aloof, and keeps them apart.  over issues it all seems like small steps, but these small steps are building to some great development of our hero and his main supporting character.