The Death Of Ragnarök
Rostam vs Thor
When Persia's mightiest hero collides with the thunder god of Asgard, you get The Death of Ragnarök, Vol. 1: Rostam vs. Thor. This story brings their two greatest champions face to face at last. Can they get beyond their vastly different languages and personalities, or are they fated to suffer the destructive consequences of simple misunderstandings?
THE STORY
When Persia's mightiest hero collides with the thunder god of Asgard, you get The Death of Ragnarök, Vol. 1: Rostam vs. Thor. Although these mythologies never met, the Vikings did sail down the Volga River and Caspian Sea to trade with, and sometimes raid, the Persian coast. This story brings their two greatest champions face to face at last. Can they get beyond their vastly different languages and personalities, or are they fated to suffer the destructive consequences of simple misunderstandings?
The goal of this 25-page epic comic is to bring to light the rich legends, myths, and history of pre-Islamic Iran and pre-Christian Scandinavia in a way that preserves the sacredness of when they were first told yet leave room for spectacular action.
ABOUT ME
I'm Behzad Afshar-Naseri. This comic began with a conversation.
I was talking with Robert Atkins about another Rostam story when he pointed out that Thor, like Rostam, is a mythological figure in the public domain. Marvel owns the version we see in the Avengers, but not the god himself. The moment he said it, the thought hit me: "What if Rostam and Thor met in the same comic?"
I was born in Iran in 1977, and we moved to Minnesota in 1978. Growing up, I loved the Minnesota Vikings and their players, and my mom told me stories of Rostam. I thought the two lived separately — that neither their cultures nor their heroes had ever crossed paths.
Fast forward, I left the US Navy in 2000 then attended Florida Gulf Coast University, where I studied English. I concentrated on Medieval English like The Canterbury Tales and Le Morte d'Arthur, Old English such as Beowulf, the Icelandic Sagas, and how much of Viking culture was preserved in the writings of the Arab diplomat Ahmad ibn Fadlan and the Persian geographer Ahmad ibn Rustah.
After several years teaching English around the world and starting a small business with my wife, I went back to school at the Savannah College of Art and Design for Sequential Art. I just graduated — and this will be my first comic!
MEET THE TEAM
Two emerging SCAD grads, backed by industry veterans who've drawn some of comics' most iconic characters.
Behzad Afshar-Naseri — Writer & Creator
Behzad is a writer and recent SCAD Sequential Art graduate making his comics debut with The Death of Ragnarök. Born in Iran and raised in Minnesota, he grew up between the Persian legends his mother told him and the Norse-rooted lore of his beloved Minnesota Vikings — the two mythological worlds that collide in this book. A Navy veteran with a background in English and medieval literature, he brings a lifetime of research and personal history to the story.
Nathan Tada — Interior Art & Cover A
Nathan Tada is an artist built for spectacle. A recent SCAD Sequential Art graduate, his work spans fairytale boxing, unicorn kaiju, superhero showdowns, and massive sci-fi cities — all rendered with a cinematic dynamism that makes every page feel like it's barely containing the action. His specialties in large-scale drama and mythological storytelling make him a natural fit for a clash between legendary figures, and his own deep interest in mythology means he's not just drawing these characters — he's a fan of the source material.
Nathan Tada - Interior Art
Nathan Tada is an artist built for spectacle. A recent SCAD Sequential Art graduate, his work spans fairytale boxing, unicorn kaiju, superhero showdowns, and massive sci-fi cities — all rendered with a cinematic dynamism that makes every page feel like it's barely containing the action. His specialties in large-scale drama and mythological storytelling make him a natural fit for a clash between legendary figures, and his own deep interest in mythology means he's not just drawing these characters — he's a fan of the source material.
Edgar Wolv — Colors
Edgar Wolv is a graphic arts professor and colorist with over 20 years of experience across publishing, advertising, and sequential art. His collaborations include work for Rolling Stone Mexico, Panini Comics, and Electronic Gaming Monthly, and he served as a sequential colorist on storyboards for TV commercials across Mexico and Latin America.
A cancer survivor and published author in his own right, Edgar brings a rare combination of technical mastery and personal understanding of what it takes to bring a book to life. We're proud to have him painting the worlds of The Death of Ragnarök.
Toben Racicot
Letterer
