As Marvel Studios readies the release of the fourth installment in the Thor franchise, this is a good time for new readers to catch up on how Dr. Jane Foster became the new Mighty Thor in the comics. Since this is going to be a major plot point in the movie and Natalie Portman, returning to the role for the first time since Thor: The Dark World, will be playing this version of the character, there are plenty of stories that prove why she will be an exciting addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Here's a brief guide to reading the most relevant and important comic book stories to catch up on how Jane became Thor ahead of Thor: Love and Thunder.
Thor Volume 4 #1-8 (2014-2015)
Although Jane Foster has been around since her 1962 introduction in Journey into Mystery #84, she didn’t become Thor until 2014. Following the “Original Sin” event, Thor becomes unworthy and loses the ability to carry his hammer, Mjolnir. But the magical weapon always requires a wielder, and it summons Jane to be the Goddess of Thunder. Although the original Thor is initially unhappy with this development, he gives Jane both his blessing and his name, unaware that it is his former lover under the mask.
For eight issues, however, readers were kept in suspense regarding Jane’s identity until the very end. As Jane transforms into her human form, however, there is a twist: Jane still has cancer, and every time she transforms into Thor, it hastens her death.
Mighty Thor Volume 3 #1-23 (2016-2017)
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Over the next 23 issues, writer Jason Aaron and artist Russell Dauterman slowly spool out the answers to how exactly Jane came to be worthy of Mjolnir and flesh out her backstory and childhood. When Jane was nine years old, her mother died of cancer. Her father wore himself to the bone working two jobs to put her through medical school while raising her as a single parent.
At the time of inheriting the Thor mantle, Jane’s life was plagued by tragedy. She recently lost both her ex-husband and her son in a car accident and was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer. But whenever she transforms into Thor, the magical powers eliminate the toxins needed to kill the cancer cells. In short: Being Thor hastens Jane’s death.
But that does not deter Jane. Like Spider-Man, she keeps her identity a secret. Balancing treatment with her new duties as a superhero, Jane serves as a senator in the Congress of Worlds in Asgardia and even works with a new team of heroes...
All-New, All-Different Avengers Volume 1 (#1-8) (2016)
A chance encounter leads to Jane becoming a member of a new Avengers team and fighting new threats. However, she conceals her identity from the rest of the team until Sam Wilson, the new Captain America, accidentally discovers her human identity. But he keeps it a secret, visiting her during chemotherapy to keep her company.
Mighty Thor Volume 2 #700-706 - Death of the Mighty Thor (2017-2018)
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Given its long legacy, Marvel’s numbering of comics can get confusing. But for the sake of clarity, issues #700-706 in Mighty Thor Volume 2 continue directly from Mighty Thor Volume 3 #23.
Jane’s cancer worsens as the war against Malekith the Dark Elf rages on. The Asgardians are losing and an unleashed Mangog- the manifested vengeance of countless billions of murdered souls wreaks havoc on Asgardia. Despite being in the hospital, however, Jane answers the fatal battle call. In a desperate bid to stop Mangog, she ties the beast to Mjolnir and hurls them both into the sun. Mangog dies but Jane does, too.
Shocked and anguished, Thor Odinson refuses to let her die, channeling the power of the God Tempest released from the destroyed Mjolnir into Jane’s body as the universe’s most powerful defibrillator. With Odin’s help, he stops Jane from crossing into Valhalla and brings her back to life.
No longer possessing Mjolnir’s powers, Jane chooses to properly focus on her cancer treatment this time and urges Odinson to take back his name. But this would not be her last appearance as the Goddess of Thunder.
War of the Realms #1-6 (2019)
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By the time Malekith and the Dark Council invade Earth, Jane’s cancer is in remission when she joins the fight. After Queen Freyja goes on a mission to destroy the Dark Elf’s Black Bifrost, Jane temporarily becomes the All-Mother and organizes Earth’s and Old Asgard’s defenses. But to win the War of the Realms, Thor must sacrifice his eye and the last shards of Mjolnir to earn the knowledge. Unwilling to let Thor suffer alone, Jane picks up the broken pieces of Mjolnir from the alternate Ultimate Universe and transforms into the Mighty Thor once again.
Although this version of Mjolnir is unstable, Jane joins the final battle alongside Thor Odinson and his counterparts from the past and future to defeat Malekith. Jane hurls the hammer at Laufey the Frost Giant, dislodging an eye. Sadly, it causes the hammer to break upon returning to Jane. But the pieces envelop her left hand in a “vambrace” or Undrjarn the All-Weapon, capable of transforming into any weapon depending on the need.
War of the Realms Omega #1
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The biggest casualty in the “War of the Realms” event was the slaughter of the Valkyries. During a fierce battle in Manhattan, Doctor Strange’s evacuation spell goes wrong, transporting all the combatants away except the Valkyries. Outnumbered, they all fall to Malekith’s forces. When Thor comes to collect the bodies from the morgue, he despairs that Valhalla will be empty without anyone to transport the fallen valiant. As if hearing Jane’s wishes to comfort Thor, the vambrace activates and summons the spirit of Brunnhilde and the other Valkyries to grant Jane their power. Once the Mighty Thor, Jane has new abilities and a new identity: Valkyrie.
Valkyrie (2019-present)
In Valkyrie: Jane Foster, Jane embarks on new adventures as Valkyrie, learning to control her new powers while saving the world. During this time, she assists the new All-Father Thor to stop Tyr, Thor’s biological older brother, from enacting revenge. She also fights alongside the Avengers and appears in her own miniseries, The Mighty Valkyries, in which she learns that she isn’t the only Valkyrie as she initially believed.
However, Jane will once again pick up the Thor mantle in a new upcoming five-part miniseries, Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor, from writer Torunn Grønbekk and artist Michael Dowling. Slated for a June 2022 release to coincide with Thor: Love and Thunder, Jane will be reintroduced as the Goddess of Thunder to assist Odinson in a fight against his greatest enemies.
In the last decade, Jane Foster has received her own titles, tie-ins, and miniseries. But writer Jason Aaron has written her as a different version of Thor: An intelligent mortal gifted with godly powers who courageously flies into battle while battling death. It’s a bold interpretation of the character and has turned Jane Foster into a unique superhero in her own right. These are the instrumental stories to read and know why Jane Foster is going to be great Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder.
