Marvel Revives a Key Thor Villain

Over the decades since his Marvel Comics debut, Thor has accumulated a pretty surprising rogues gallery of villains, both from the pantheon of gods and beyond. As the latest issue of Thor’s ongoing title reveals, one of those villains has made a pretty surprising comeback. Spoilers for Immortal Thor #15 from Al Ewing, Jan Bazaldua, Matt Hollingsworth, and Joe Sabino below! Only look if you want to know! The issue largely revolves around Thor’s fight against Zeus and Nyx, only to reveal that Roxxon has been causing trouble in the shadows. 

Roxxon’s Doctor Lamarr manages to build a powerful machine that can sacrifice humans and birth new ones — namely, Dario Agger. Agger returns in a brand-new body, and announces his plans to kill as many gods on Asgard as possible.

Who Is Dario Agger?

While multiple iterations of the Minotaur have appeared in Marvel Comics over the years, the Dario Agger incarnation was created by Jason Aaron and Esad Ribic in 2014’s Thor: God of Thunder #19. Initially introduced as the CEO of the powerful energy conglomerate Roxxon, Dario entered a pact with a mysterious god which turned him into the Minotaur. He became an enemy of Thor and the larger Marvel Universe through his efforts to pollute the world for the sake of profit, and later developed a personal desire to acquire magical artifacts. 

Prior to Immortal Thor, Dario most recently appeared in the Ewing-penned Immortal Hulk title, in which he became a target of the massive monster Xemnu. He was then consumed by Xenmu and radically deformed, and seemingly left unable to speak. 

What Is Immortal Thor About?

In Norse myths, they called him Thunderer. Vuer has he been called, and Hloriddi. The Gods know him as Asgard’s King, keeper of Mjolnir, hero of the tales. When injustice grips the Earth and ancient powers bring down the sky, he fights for those who cannot – and when the tale is done, we will know what that cost him. This is the story of THE IMMORTAL THOR.

“Putting [Immortal] on a book I’m writing is a promise to the reader, and to myself,” Ewing wrote when the series was first announced. “I was the one who pitched the title – not editorial, not anyone else – and it was basically a self-challenge. Can I do a book like that again? Can I do my end of it better this time? I have to try, because the alternative is just lie down and let the grass grow where I fell…I want to take another swing at that ball, and this time, I don’t just want to knock it into the outfield, I want to hit it right out of the park and stroll calmly around the bases. I want to write something that goes as far and as hard and as powerful as the other book did, to give a similar experience to the people who supported that book and supported me through it and took something deep out of it, but with the benefit of experience.”

Immortal Thor #15 is now available wherever comics are sold.