Incredible Hercules: Love and War [Hardcover]

Coming off the high drama of the "Secret Invasion" crossover arc, "Sacred Invasion" (collected in "Incredible Hercules: Secret Invasion"), which saw the titular Greek hero and his friend Amadeus Cho save Earth from the designs of the Skrull Gods, the cast decides to go on vacation. Writers Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente and new artists Clayton Henry and Salva Espin opt for a more action-comedic tone, reminiscent of much of the first arc, "Against the World". And they throw in more than a few jabs at one of the Distinguished Competition's more recently-beleaguered properties.

In an earlier story, Hercules and Amadeus made the acquaintance of Namora, the recently-resurrected Princess of Atlantis, and so Herc opts to head seaward for a fling. While Herc and Namora shake the earth in their enthusiasm, Amadeus is on the sidelines (having been promised there would be nymphs); but that doesn't last long, as Princess Artume and her band of Amazon warriors abduct him, a development that Amadeus initially welcomes, finding Artume quite attractive. Herc initially assumes that the Amazons are just out to find mates to replenish their breeding stock, but it quickly turns out the ambitious Amazon princess has other plans. Elsewhere, while the main cast deals with this unexpected flare-up, sinister forces with deep and abiding hatred of Hercules and his sister Athena mass their forces and make their plans against them.

Pak and Van Lente have consistently produced some of the funniest comics around, and that trend continues here. Trades of "Incredible Herc" always make a point of including the series' recap pages from the single issues, which normally are not, because these recaps are individual one-page gems, worth reading in and of themselves. There is plenty of excellently-executed broad comedy, but the little details, particularly the sound effects, are always worth paying attention to for all the jokes they pack in (the unveiling of the Titan general Atlas from his mythic confines is accompanied by the giant lettered "SHRRRGGGG!"). This is matched by an excellent command of mythological detail, and they excel at depicting the gods and taking them seriously. Clayton Henry on art brings a straightforward and clear style, and a particular command of facial expressions (Herc's reaction to seeing Amadeus and Artume remains one of the most priceless things I've seen in a while, and it has deservedly become an internet meme).

Fred Van Lente has said that much of the inspiration for this arc came from his recent research into the process by which William Marston created DC's Amazon superhero Wonder Woman. Van Lente and Pak set out to do a story with a more myth-loyal take on the Amazons, as the barbarian warriors that they have traditionally been in Marvel Comics. Princess Artume is a clear parody of Diana (Diana, the Roman Goddess of the Hunt, was associated with the Etruscan variant, Artume): imagine if, created to bring peace to the world, Diana opted ot commit matricide and reshape the world in her image, and you get the general idea. More specifically, the writers take aim at DC's lamentable "Amazons Attack!" story arc.

Like all volumes, highly recommended.

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