synopsis:
Thor has returned to the United States where he has traveled to a foundry in Pittsburgh to repair damages done to his hammer during his battle with the Destroyer in Vietnam. With his hammer repaired, Thor collects the Norn Stones that Loki used to cheat with during the "Trial of the Gods" and makes sure that he has all of the stones before returning to Asgard, however as he departs the Earth he unknowingly and accidentally drops one. When he turns the stones over to Odin, the All-Father plans harsh punishment, however Thor begs his father to have mercy, which does Odin proud. Meanwhile, in the castle of Ularic, Loki continues to toil in his forced role of being the court Warlock's aid. However when Ularic's guard is down, Loki knocks him out with a gas and then seals him in a sphere and drops him down into a time vault. Now with the entire courts magical texts and potion materials Loki begins plotting anew to get revenge against Thor.
After spending some time in Asgard, Thor finds himself restless and asks Odin if he may return to the Earth, Odin decides to grant this request and transports his favored son back to the mortal world. Returning to the office he maintains as Donald Blake, Thor is shocked to find the window to his office locked and Jane nowhere to be found. Changing back into Donald Blake and gaining entry into the office, where he finds that the paperwork is all out of order and Jane is nowhere to be found. Finding no note, Blake assumes that Jane has been kidnapped when he is disturbed by the landlord coming to collect the overdue rent. Having more pressing concerns, Blake walks out of his office and notes one of his patients and tells her that he can't see her, however she advises Blake that she has decided to see the new doctor that has opened up an office down the hall during his absence. Rounding the corner Blake changes back into Thor and gives a rise to his landlord before leaving the office.
Finding the streets too confining and needing to find a quite place to think about where to start searching for Jane, Thor decides to go to Avengers Mansion.
There he finds new Avengers recruits Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver who explain that they have been added to the Avengers roster following Thor, Iron Man and Giant-Man's absence from the team. Not wanting the aid of the new recruits, the further frustrated Thor storms out of the mansion. Finding a rooftop to ponder his situation, Thor is unaware that elsewhere in the city Jane Foster is also thinking of him, when her thoughts are interrupted by the entry of a shadowed man who tells her to forget the man she loved because they are together now. While back in Asgard, Loki has created a device that uses magic to reconstitute the gaseous form of the Absorbing Man and send him hurtling back to Earth to get revenge against Thor. While on Earth, Thor gets inspiration from witnessing a T.V. news interview and decides that the best way to try and find Jane would be to send out a special broadcast to her. However, on his way to a television station, Thor is stopped when suddenly the Absorbing Man crash lands right in front of him, and seeing his old foe, the Absorbing Man wants nothing more than a rematch against Thor.