Mike Deodato jr. is the professional pseudonym of a Brazilian comic book artist, born in 1963, who worked for many Companies of the comic book industry (including DC, Image and Marvel) and, in my opinion, simply represents one of the best artists of our times. His style is often associated to the name of the great Jim Lee, but many of his wonderful tables remind me of the inimitable talent of the master John Buscema: they have a truly extraordinary visual impact and somehow match in a surprising way the "idea" I have always had of many characters of the Marvel Universe. In 2017 Bushicollector released an outstanding kit of Thor (with a very limited worldwide edition of 45 pieces), based on a well-known table of Deodato: the God of Thunder stands on the edge of a rock in a very dynamic and aggressive pose, with open wide and bent legs, one arm stretched back along one side and the other raised to wield the mythical Mjolnir, ready to strike, the huge red cape and the blonde hair blowing in the wind and the mouth open in a furious scream! Sculpted by Sheridan Doose, the kit faithfully reproduces (albeit in a mirrored way) all these amazing feaures of the original table and I think it is one of most successful custom available on market and even one of the best Marvel statues ever released! The sculpt of the figure is out of ordinary: the definition of muscle masses on legs and arms is incredible and conveys a feeling of great power. Note the perfect shape of the large rib cage and the definition of the abdominals; the deep contours of all muscles on both arms, where sculpted veins are scattered everywhere; the wrinkles which emphasize the tension of the left, open hand and the strength which the right one hold the hammer with; the impressive power that exudes from the swollen quadriceps and from the same position of both legs. An excellent sculpt also characterizes the large base, representing a sloped and elongated rock, and the huge and heavy cape which requires a significant space to display the statue but, at the same time, is very faithful to the original table and notably increases both the majesty and the dynamism of the whole figure. My kit was painted by a friend and a true professional in this field: Fabio Funghini. Both Fabio and I live in Rome, so it was possible to follow all the phases of the work together and collaborate closely in the choice of the different color tones. The aim was to reproduce at best the classic suit of the character, as I have always thought of him from the Comics of Kirby and Buscema; thus, I asked Fabio to avoid any shiny color, exalting as much as possible the chromatic contrasts between the background black of the suit and the metallic silver of the front circles and the helmet, the black bands and the bright yellow of the boots, the opaque blue on the legs and the intense red of the cape. Thanks to the great skill (and patience!) of Fabio, the final result matches perfectly what I expected. Note the the rather realistic coloration of the skin, with reddish and slightly intense nuances which highlight the muscle contours and the just sketched green tone emphasizing the veins on the arms. An amazing coloring also characterizes the long wings of the hero's helmet, the legendary Mjolnir with the well-known Odin's inscription and detailed decorations on both sides, the eyebrows and the long blonde tufts moved by the wind (perfectly shaded), the beautiful blue eyes and the many wrinkles on face, which provide the hero with a great expressiveness. As I have already said on many occasions, Thor is one of my favorite characters of the Marvel Universe and it is no coincidence that the collection is full of statues dedicated to the God of Thunder. Among these, I have always considered the Classic version by Bowen Design (both in the color and faux bronze variant) and the old Premium Format by Sideshow the best ones; nevertheless, I have to admit this extraordinary statue was able to leave a unique impression on me: I believe it can easily compete with the above mentioned classics and, at present, is probably one of the best pieces of my whole collection.