SPOILER WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Thor #1, by Jason Aaron, Mike Del Mundo, Marco D’Alfonso, Christian Ward and Joe Sabino, on sale now.
The God of Thunder’s 'Fresh Start' has arrived with Thor #1, which reinserted the unworthy Odinson as the Marvel Universe’s primary Thor. However, Thor wasn’t alone in this oversized issue, as there was no shortage of guest appearances from the usual suspects – such as Loki – to the unexpected surprises – such as the Juggernaut.
The cameo that packs arguably the biggest punch in terms of payoffs, though, is Namor, the Sub-Mariner's, because it finally provides an answer to the question readers have been asking themselves since the Golden Age of comics: What does Namor’s battle cry, “Imperius Rex,” actually mean?
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While searching for the Gem of Infinite Suns, Thor finds himself in a saltwater slugfest with the King of Atlantis, who’s none too pleased with the God of Thunder encroaching on his territory.
“To you and all your kind, Thor, I say… Imperius Rex!” Namor exclaims as he prepares to deliver a left-hook to Thor’s jaw.
“All these years, Namor, and I still have no idea what that even means,” Thor replies, speaking not only for himself but for countless Marvel Comics readers.
As Namor angrily responds, explaining, “It means I’m going to feed your sorry Asgardian hide to the biggest sharks I can find!”
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Is this a tongue-in-cheek response, or does Namor’s decades-old battle cry really have such a hyper-specific, situational meaning? Sure, it’s most likely the former, but let's admit it -- it’s far more fun to imagine it’s the latter.
Thor #1, by Jason Aaron, Mike Del Mundo, Marco D’Alfonso, Christian Ward and Joe Sabino, is on sale now from Marvel Comics.