Hercules #5
Written By: Dan Abnett
Art By: Luke Ross
Colors By: Guru Efx
Letters By: Joe Sabino
Release Date: March 30th 2016
Plot
The plot is pretty straight forward. This is the battle we’ve been waiting for since this first arc started. Hercules vs The Storm. Will the prince of power prevail or will he perish. I dare you to try and say that five times fast.
Story
This was mainly an action issue, but honestly that’s exactly what I wanted. One of the best things about this and any other Hercules comic is watching Herc kick ass and take names. Hercules is one of if not my favorite mythological hero. One of the things I’ve enjoyed most about this series is how well Hercules manages to balance the old and new. He has more modern armor and is cool with using modern weapons and technology, but and the end of the day Hercules is always down for a good old fashioned knock down drag out brawl.
Gilgamesh has also become one of my favorite characters. He’s another ancient immortal mythological hero, but unlike Hercules Gill is out of practice and is only now starting to slowly adjust to being a hero in modern times. I loved seeing Gill get back in the game and I really respect his unwavering loyalty to Hercules. Those two make one hell of a team, or I guess one Hades of a team would be more appropriate in this context.
Our heroes have their work cut out for them because they learn very quickly that the Storm is no push over. However the Storm did make one fatal mistake, the picked a fight with the most suborn demigod in history. In the end Hercules manages to win the day and drive back the storm for now with the assistance of the shadow centaurs from a couple issues back. Now Hercules and his allies must regroup, rearm, and prepare for war, but is Hercules prepared for what The Storm has in store for him?
Art
The art for this series has been consistently great and continues to get even better as the series goes on. Luke Ross’ artwork truly gets to shine during the action scenes. The flow of the panels is very dynamic and fast paced. You can almost feel the impact of all these intense clashes. As a fan I was on the edge of my seat rooting for Hercules and Gilgamesh to come out on top. Also as a big mythology fan I really appreciated all the little nods to Hercules’ Greek myths. I also really enjoyed the coloring. It was very well balanced. In the beginning when things start to look grim things shift to a slightly darker color pallet, but as our heroes begin to turn the tide of the battle the art starts to brighten up again. That a nice subtle touch.
Verdict
Hercules is currently my favorite new series to come out of all new all different marvel. I’m a firm believer in the idea that superheroes and comic books are modern mythology and Abnett really brings that concept to life with this series. He manages to blend very classic themes of what it means to be a hero that were present in ancient myths and blend them seamlessly with very modern sensibilities. This issue and series in general has great action, character development, and all the heart of a hero. If you’re a fan of Hercules or mythology in general I highly recommend that you go out and pick up Hercules issue #5. Let’s make sure those rumors are false and do our best to keep this awesome series off the chopping block.