Not long after Valkyrie regained her true Asgardian body and knowledge that her real name was Brunnhilda, Thor regained his memory that the two of them had been romantically involved in the distant past (Thor #296).
Thor tried to tell Valkyrie the news in Marvel Team-Up #116, but she rebuffed him. Noting that Thor was acting strangely when he tried to open up, Valkyrie exclaimed that her life was confusing enough without any more revelations. The response was humorous yet oddly consistent.
During the handful of times they worked together during crossover story arcs, Valkyrie and Thor had treated their shared ties to Asgard as almost incidental, showing no particular interest in each other. This benefited Valkyrie greatly as a character.
Keeping her back story independent allowed Valkyrie to grow as a character in her own right. If she and Thor had been depicted as a couple from the start, Valkyrie easily could have become overshadowed by the thunder god in the way that Clea was deferential to Dr. Strange or Wasp was so often an accessory to Yellowjacket.
As an aside, soon after Marvel Team-Up #116, Valkyrie expressed her own romantic feelings toward Sub-Mariner. But the Prince of Atlantis was emotionally unavailable (Defenders #116). That said, I think Valkyrie and Namor would have made an interesting couple.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Love Lost
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You're right about Val/ Subby, come to think of it. Thor/ Val, too! Now, Simonson might've done something with it but his plate was full. I really loved her character under Gerber, and I've already babbled in other comments about her and Hellcat sticking with me after my salvage store copy of Defenders #61.
I addressed the Val Norse connection a wee bit in my own story. I kinda like it better than Defenders 109, now that I've finally read that. Call mine an alternative to 616 then.
http://ceaseill.blogspot.com/2010/05/iron-man-heart-of-mountain-feat.html
Happy thanksgiving!!!
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