Spoilers ahead for Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #3!
No-one objected more when Jane Foster claimed Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor than Odin, and yet Asgard's former All-Father is finally giving the Goddess of Thunder the respect she deserves.
After relinquishing her role as the new Thor, Jane Foster became the Valkyrie, wielding the All-Weapon Undrjarn. Jane was comfortable in her role protecting the souls of the dead, but this changed when Mjolnir - which is now imbued with the spirit of Odin - came crashing into her apartment. Thor was in trouble and in need of rescue, tempting Jane to reclaim her former powers to come to his aid. Even then, with Odin guiding her through the hammer, Jane was reluctant to become Thor again.
It's only while facing a powerful foe in Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #3 by Torunn Gronbekk and Michael Dowling that Jane uses the strength from the hammer to become Thor and take on this threat. At first she is no match for the enemy, but after receiving some words of encouragement from Odin, Jane displays an unbelievable amount of power and turns the tide of the fight. She is so impressive that Odin praises her, declaring she's finally acting like a god. Odin once personally fought Jane to take back Mjolnir, and while he honored her after her death in the role, it's another thing entirely for him to it she's worthy of the Thor role while she possesses it.
This is a huge endorsement for Jane as a character. When she first became Thor, there was significant pushback from some real-life readers, with Odin serving to embody the attitude that Jane was disrespecting Thor's name and legacy. Ultimately, Jane's feats proved the All-Father wrong, and he honored her as a warrior, to the point where in the modern day, he's willing to not just credit her as a god but work with her in wielding Mjolnir. While Jane surrendered the role before, her MCU prominence sees her reclaiming it in this series, and the long memory of comic lore means she'll likely reclaim it again at some point in the future, just as Sam Wilson has undergone several stints as Captain America.
Jane Foster has earned the Thor title many times over, but there's a special satisfaction in seeing her greatest critic celebrate her power as the Goddess of Thunder. Odin is a more complex character than he appears on the surface, being both a prideful, boorish warrior king and the greatest protector of life in the Marvel Universe. That even he its Jane Foster is a worthy god is the ultimate compliment she could receive as Thor, coming from a figure who is unsured both in his stubborn attitude and his understanding of godhood.
Jane Foster & The Mighty Thor #3 is now available from Marvel Comics!
