Reviewer: Andy Campbell
Story Title: The New Labors (part 1 of 5)
Writer: Frank Tieri
Pencils: Mark Texeira
Inks: Jimmy Palmiotti
Color: Raul Trevino & Tatto
Letters: VC’s Randy Gentile
Assistant Editor: Cory Sedlmeier
Editor: Axel Alonso
Publisher: Dan Buckley (Marvel Comics)
I’m a mythology buff, so I’ve always enjoyed the Marvel adventures of Thor
and Hercules (Thor moreso). I also love Wildguard (a comic about a superhero
reality show). So, it comes as no surprise that when I read the solicit for
this Hercules mini, I was pretty excited; Hercules doing a new 12 labors for
reality tv? Count me in!
This first issue gets off to a rather slow start, but that’s sort of expected,
as there is a lot of plot exposition into just what makes Hercules tick…especially
regarding his famous temper. We also read about the setup for the new reality
show, and what the producers have in mind. It seems like it will be a pretty
fun series.
Another thing worth mentioning? This book is really funny. A loud, drunken
half-man/half-god makes for some quality humour. When talking about his original
12 labors, Hercules had exactly the embarrassed reaction I pictured when he
mentioned cleaning the stables of King Augeas. Hehe.
The art…to be honest, I don’t really like it. The character rendering is
just kind of "blah" for me, and the book is entirely too dark for
my liking. I really don’t see any need for the huge amount of shadows that this
book has. One good thing, though, is that there are some awesome panel layouts,
so bravo for that.
Anyway, to sum it up, I’m intrigued enough by the plot to pick up the second
issue, but the humour makes it a no-brainer. Give it a try!
