2009.12.15 – Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente at Comic Book Club in NYC

LAST MINUTE UPDATE!
“Incredible Hercules” co-writers Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente will be the guests at the live talk/comedy show known as Comic Book Club on Tuesday, December 14, in New York City. The show starts at 8 pm at the Peoples Improv Theater, 154 W. 29th St. between 6th and 7th Avenues — tickets are just $5.
Dontcha dare miss it!

“Assault on New Olympus” recs and reviews

The “Assault on New Olympus Prologue,” written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with art by Rodney Buchemi, has gotten some nice recommendations and reviews. A couple of excerpts:

“So, yeah, this is a comic where Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente writes a fight between Spider-Man and Hercules over a seemingly airhead goddess. It has everything that makes Pak, Van Lente, Incredible Herc, Spider-Man, MarvelComics, mythological superheroes, and comics in general great.”
— Brad Curran, Comic Book Resources
“The stellar team of Pak and Van Lente unleash the next arc of the Hercules series in this one shot. Hercules, Amadeus, two teams of Avengers, the Agents of Atlas, and Ares all feature in this event, and Olympus itself will never be the same. Step-Mommy Dearest Hera has been a really bad girl as of late, and Hercules has a few things to sort out with her. Pak and Van Lente are responsible for one of the best series out there today, and backstopped by artist Rodney Buchemi, they’re going to give us even more in the next few months.”
— William Keogh, ComixFan.com

2009.11.04 – “Assault on New Olympus Prologue” #1

The “Assault on New Olympus Prologue” hits comic book stores tomorrow, and Newsarama has an early review. Here’s an excerpt:

It helps, of course, that the terrific writer combo from “Incredible Hercules”, Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente, are on the case. They manage to cram that past few years of exposition into the story in a way that builds momentum while catching you up. This is one of those rare cases where a new reader could jump right in, while the “constant readers” will no doubt appreciate the updates provided.

Click here to read the whole thing.

CBR reviews “Incredible Hercules” #136

Yet another rave for “Incredible Hercules” #136 (written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Reilly Brown), this time from Greg McElhatton at Comic Book Resources. Here’s an excerpt:

Here’s just one of the things I love about “Incredible Hercules.” One minute it’s taking itself seriously, using Joseph Campbell’s heroic journey to map out the path of its characters. Or, it might be taking classic mistaken identity riffs from Shakespeare plays. And then, when you least expect it… one god gives another a wedgie.

Click here to read the whole thing.

Ridiculous rave reviews for “Incredible Hercules” #136

“Incredible Hercules” #136, written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Reilly Brown, has garnered a slew of rave reviews. Just a few excerpts:
Paradox Comics Group:

Here [Pak and Van Lente] display that knowledge perfectly with an outstanding and gut-bustingly funny fight which employs a manner of playground tactics to get the guffaws a-bellowing from your lungs while dissecting just what makes Herc the legend that he is. Reilly Brown’s talent as an artist really ups the comedic edge and the range of facial expressions that he can produce is particularly noteworthy. Great work from everyone involved.

Chris’s Invincible Super Blog:

I’m just going to put this out there: Incredible Herc is the single best comic on the stands today.

Weekly Comic Book Review:

The battle royal between Herc and Thor is as much a raucous comedy as it is an epic, glorious brawl, and you’ll find it hard not to chuckle as each champion resorts to a string of dirty tricks to best the other. The best part is that you can still pick up this issue without having read the previous ones and still follow along just fine, and in my opinion that is one of the hallmarks of some great storytelling. I would of course be remiss if I didn’t compliment Brown and the art team for brilliant rendering this tale of balderdash and bravura, as their efforts made every page a pleasure to take in and enjoy.

Newsarama:

Best sound effects in human history. I will not do them the disservice of reprinting them in text. Rest assured that this is wholly and completely true.

Comics Should BE Good:

What a wonderful comic. Come on – a purple nurple!!!!! Who doesn’t love that?

The Buy Pile:

Why did this work better than your average fight comic? Well, first of all is the very, very slick characterization and plot work done around the newly prepubescent Zeus, who gets quite a nice turn at the end. Second is the sly humor of it all, from some “down and dirty” fight moves to the beer-swilling mutterings of Hogun and Volstagg to some of the funniest onomatopoeia ever used in sound effects (“WHATAMANNNN,” “SUKKKAPUNCH,” “NURP” and “GODDATHUNDAAA”). Great stuff from Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente on story and the art team of Reilly Brown, Nelson DeCastro, Guillem Mari, Ulises Areola and Sotocolor’s A. Street.

Rave reviews for “Incredible Hercules” #134

“Incredible Hercules” #134, written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Reilly Brown, continues to garner rave reviews from all corners. Just a few excerpts:
The Buy Pile:

A fun book with great art (thanks to Reilly Brown, Nelson DeCastro and Guillem Mari) a witty script by Fred Van Lente and Greg Pak and a twist at the end that’s just about perfect, making the next issue… a must-see. Great fun.

Comics Should Be Good:

This issue is pure pleasure. The recap page mocks Oliver Coipel’s version of Thor, which is hilarious (“thipples”?), and from there, we just page after page of sheer insane delight. From Hercules believing that sunlight turns trolls to stone because he saw a documentary about The Hobbit to Alflyse’s dramatic entrance, from the Acme anvil that lands on Herc to his knowledge of Star Trek pop culture (and the elf’s rejoinder), and finally the ending, with the Warriors Three playing their ace in the hole, this is a wonderful comic.

Newsarama:

Hercules’ gregarious nature is what carries this book, as he rises to the challenge of impersonating the Norse God of Thunder: when the beautiful Dark Elf Queen Alfyse challenges the ruse, saying that his distinctive demeanor and intact hammer are suspicious, Herc simply grins. “Of course. I am Thor,” he says. “And I assure you, my…hammer works just fine.” Never change, Hercules. It’s this sort of humor that reigns for the rest of the issue, culminating in a brilliant final page.

IGN:

This is definitely one of the more humorous issues of the series to come along in a while. Heck, the last page still has me chuckling.

Randy Lander loves “Incredible Hercules” #134

Here’s the blurb:

Incredible Hercules #134 (One of the funniest (and most fun) comics I’ve read all year, Herc in Asgard is turning out to be one of the best stories this very good book has seen)

Click here to read the whole thing.
And Chris’s Invincible Super-Blog has named “Incredible Hercules” #134 the Book of the Week.
“Incredible Hercules” #134 was written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Reilly Brown.

Newsarama likes “Incredible Hercules” #134

Newsarama has posted an advance review of “Incredible Hercules” #134, written by Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente with pencils by Reilly Brown. Here’s an excerpt:

Hercules’ gregarious nature is what carries this book, as he rises to the challenge of impersonating the Norse God of Thunder: when the beautiful Dark Elf Queen Alfyse challenges the ruse, saying that his distinctive demeanor and intact hammer are suspicious, Herc simply grins. “Of course. I am Thor,” he says. “And I assure you, my…hammer works just fine.” Never change, Hercules. It’s this sort of humor that reigns for the rest of the issue, culminating in a brilliant final page.

Click here to read the whole review.
Click here to view a six page lettered preview.
“Incredible Hercules” #134 hits comic book stores tomorrow.