TRANS-SCRIBE: Marvel Studios’ The Infinity Saga – Thor: The Art of the Movie by Matthew K. Manning

Originally published on Set The Tape

When the Marvel Cinematic Universe was first making its way onto screens ( almost by surprise thanks to a post credits scene in the first Iron Man movie and the inclusion of Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) at the end of The Incredible Hulk) fans of the comics waited eagerly to find out what other characters and properties would become involved in ‘Avengers Initiative’.

The announcement of Captain America being brought into the fledgling universe was almost a foregone conclusion, as whilst Cap wasn’t a founding Avenger in the comics he’s been the iconic leader of the group for so many decades that excluding him would just feel weird. But one of the announced films that was a surprise was Thor. I remember working in a comic book shop at the time, and knew that Thor was one of those weirder characters, with a more convoluted and fantastical origin, and so our group in the shop would have conversations about just how they would adapt the character to the big screen.

And because of this incredibly different style of origin, comics that were closer to fantasy epics than the grounded nature of the rest of the MCU, it quickly became one of my most anticipated entries in this first phase of movies; and subsequently became one of my favourites. I loved the way that it melded the fantastical with the mundane, and managed to make the characters work well in a realistic setting. As such, when Titan Books started releasing these new editions of the Marvel Studios’ Infinity Saga art books, Thor was the volume I was most excited to get for the first set of movies. I was eager to see the design process that brought the world of the comics to the cinema screen.

The volume opens with an introduction from Walter Simonson, a man who knows Thor better than most. Having worked on the title for dozens of issues, and produced one of the most popular classic periods for the character, Simonson feels like one of the perfect voices to get involved here, and is able to bring some historical insights to the character and his universe as a great jumping off point in which to dive into the film adaptation. This section also includes some wonderful art from across the characters’ publication history, including work by Jack Kirby, John Romita Jr., and Olivier Coipel that shows how the character has evolved on the comics’ page over the decades.

The first chapter, ‘Forging A Hero’ dives into Thor himself, and showcases some of the amazing designs that were used in the creation of the character’s costume. Most interestingly here, it seems that the basis for Thor’s look was locked down pretty quickly, and we get a lot of variations of the style that eventually appeared on screen as the designers worked on the smaller details, rather than the larger design ideas.

Having taken some key elements from the comics, the armour designs were more about perfecting it, rather than proposing big, radically different looks every time. The area in which the on screen Thor seemed to have the most variety and design changes were with his hammer, Mjolnir, which we’re told had more than 200 different designs. Whilst we don’t get all 200 here, we do get around 30 or so, some that are very close to what we eventually got on screen, and others that are much more alien and fantastical. It’s fun to imagine seeing some of these designs on the screen, and there are some very creative ideas presented here.

After discussing Thor, the book moves onto the other gods and their world of Asgard. As someone who loved the design work on the movie, this is a great section of the book, as we get some incredible looks at the designs for Odin, seeing some very different armours, a more intricate and heavily armoured Loki, and spend some time with characters such as the Warriors Three, Sif, Heimdall, and the other background citizens of their world.

It’s great to see the evolution of these designs, especially with the background actors who you never see very clearly on screen. There are some fantastic designs for their clothing here, and you can definitely see a lot of inspiration from non-Norse cultures and aesthetics creeping in to add to the more alien and otherworldly look the production was going for, mashing together several influences. The designs of the world they inhabit are also given a lot of space, with page after page of amazing concept art, sometimes alongside the final sets and props as they appeared in the final movie.

The book doesn’t just limit itself to Asgard, however, as there’s a chapter that deals with Jotunheim, the land of the Ice Giants, that our heroes visit briefly in the movie. Whilst we only see it on screen for a short while, and often in the dark, this chapter is perhaps the best look at this world that you can get. The designs for it are nothing short of stunning, and will make you a little sad that we didn’t get to see more of these concepts on screen for a longer time.

It also gives us a better look at the Ice Giant arms and armour, which we only see on screen in fast paced action scenes. The final chapters also cover the weapons, armours, and artefacts of the Asgardians (great to see in more detail once again), and the human side of the film. The stuff for the Earth designs are probably the weakest part of the book; not because it’s not been given care and attention, just because designs for a small town street and old motor showroom just don’t quite stack up against ice palaces and gods.

For those that love the MCU, and the comics that these films are based on, or even just those with an interest in seeing behind the scenes of movies and how they get made, this book is something that you’re going to want to read. With this being the third in the series that I’ve had a chance to get hands on with, it’s just as beautifully presented as the previous volumes. The images are wonderfully clear and bright on the page, the paper is of great quality, and the book itself feels like a well made, robust piece in your hands. It’s s genuine delight to open up the covers and see what’s inside, whether you’re reading and absorbing every word on the page, or just taking in the art. With plenty more movies in the MCU to go, this is shaping up to be one of the best art book series on the shelves.