Thor #193
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeThor #193 marks the passing of the creative torch on one of Marvel's flagship titles: it is Gerry Conway's first issue as regular scripter on Thor, ending Stan Lee's long run as the book's primary writer during the regular monthly continuity. The issue also doubles as a thematic sequel to the celebrated Silver Surfer #4 (1968), reuniting Thor and the Silver Surfer — this time as allies rather than adversaries — and recreating much of that earlier issue's creative chemistry with the Buscema brothers on art. Published in August 1971 as part of Marvel's industrywide jump to a 25-cent, 48-page format, it stands as the only double-sized squarebound issue in the entire original Thor run, making it a structurally unique artifact of a turbulent transitional moment in Bronze Age publishing. The story's anti-war subtext — the Silver Surfer stranding Durok in a future where humanity has destroyed itself — resonated with readers in a country still mired in Vietnam, as underscored by a letters-page contribution from a Marine serving overseas.
In "What Power Unleashed?", Thor #193 (1971) delivers a gripping clash of gods and fate as Thor’s desperate bid to free Asgard from Loki’s rule ends in failure—leading to a death sentence. Meanwhile, the Silver Surfer confronts Duroc with a fate far beyond time, banishing him to a distant, lifeless Earth. Written by Gerry Conway and illustrated with epic precision by John Buscema, with inks by Sal Buscema and lettering by Artie Simek, the issue’s cover by John Buscema and John Romita captures the moment’s weight in bold, timeless detail.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
In mid-1971 Stan Lee stepped away from his monthly writing assignments to work on a film screenplay; what was announced as a brief sabbatical became a permanent handoff for Thor, with young writer Gerry Conway taking over the title's scripting duties beginning with this issue. The issue arrived as part of Marvel's sudden August 1971 price-and-page-count increase — from 15 cents/32 pages to 25 cents/48 pages — which gave Conway an unexpectedly large 34-plus pages of story canvas for his debut. John Buscema penciled and his brother Sal inked, the same sibling art team that had produced Silver Surfer #4 three years earlier, lending the issue a visual continuity with that prior Thor-Surfer encounter. Stan Lee remained on as editor, and the cover was penciled by John Buscema with inks credited to John Romita per the Grand Comics Database.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First issue scripted by Gerry Conway as the regular Thor writer, ending Stan Lee's tenure as the title's ongoing monthly scripter (Lee had written Thor since its earliest issues and would only return once more, for the special out-of-continuity Thor #200).
- The only double-sized, squarebound 25-cent issue in the entire original Thor (1966) series run — part of Marvel's industry-wide format change in August 1971.
- Features the second full meeting of Thor and the Silver Surfer, recasting them as allies after their adversarial debut in Silver Surfer #4 (1968); the Silver Surfer resolves the threat of Durok the Demolisher by carrying him beyond the speed of light into a post-apocalyptic far future.
- Art by John Buscema (pencils) and Sal Buscema (inks) — the same creative art pairing that drew Silver Surfer #4 — with the cover penciled by John Buscema and inked by John Romita.
- First (and only) appearance of Kaggor the Tall, a Storm Giant who falls in battle with Thor in Asgard.
- First appearance of the alternate future timeline Earth-71113, the desolate post-human Earth to which the Silver Surfer exiles Durok.
- The issue's letters page ('The Hammer Strikes') includes a letter from a Marine serving in Vietnam describing the popularity of Marvel comics among troops — a detail that gives the story's anti-war ending additional contemporary resonance.
- Reprinted in: Essential Thor Vol. 4 (2009, black & white); Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor Vol. 10 (2011); The Mighty Thor Omnibus Vol. 3 (2017); Thor Epic Collection Vol. 5 – The Fall of Asgard (2018); and Marvel Tales: Silver Surfer #1 (May 2020), a dedicated spotlight reprint anthology.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Thor el Dios del Trueno #46 (1972), Thor le fils d'Odin #13 (1981), Essential Thor #4 (2009), Marvel Masterworks: The Mighty Thor #10 (2011), The Mighty Thor Omnibus #3 (2017), Thor Epic Collection #5 (2018), Marvel Tales: Silver Surfer #1 (2020), De machtige Thor Classics #11, Il Mitico Thor #98
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