C2E2: Thor: The Dark World Villain Returns to the Comics

Earlier today at the Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), Marvel announced a new storyline for Thor: God of Thunder at their Next Big Thing panel. The story, titled "The Accursed," will take a brief break in the critically-acclaimed generation-hopping storyline in Jason Aaron's series to deal with the return of Thor: The Dark World villain Malekith and his horde of Dark Elves in September. "This will involve a chase through the Nine Realms as Malekith is resurrected and brought out of the realm of the dead," explained Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort. "We'll see a new overview of the Nine Realms and how they all connect together. Thereafter, we'll get back to young Thor and old Thor." Added Aaron, "He's on the run. He finds that the Dark Elves won't necessarily welcome him back with open arms. He doesn't like what's happened to them since he's been gone. He feels they've grown weak." He added, "Malekith eyes the Dark Elves as gone weak because of Asgard. He's disappointed and disgusted in them and so he sets out to slaughter his own people. Thor and some new friends set out to stop him, chasing him across all the known worlds." And while the series brings Aaron back together with his frequent collaborator Ron Garney on art, he promised that he won't be going easy on Garney. "It's always good to raise Hel with Ron [Garney]," Aaron said. "Hell, we've worked together quite a lot. He's one of those guys who can draw everything. He can handle the emotional moments as well as all the crazy fight scenes with weight and gravity and make them feel real." "This arc I'm hitting him with a lot of fantasy elements. Lots of landscapes. Lots of creatures. Elves. Dwarves. Trolls. Giants. All sorts of strange winged mounts for them to ride. This story, on one hand, is kind of a dark, gritty, stern-faced story. Malekith on the run as this desperado, Thor and his posse out trying to bring him down. But it's all woven through this fantasy landscape with its wealth of crazy characters as interesting as Lord of the Rings or Game of Thrones."