The irony of these issues after I realized it and read them made me wonder if it was too good to be a coincidence. Both titles in in their own way about two gods of war (Ares and Athena) with opposing philosophies on how to approach the same subject.

To start off with I'll go with the Ares one.

The premise is simple and one I ironially have thought about at times: What happens when you take the rejects of the normal army and ask the most brutal war god in history to turn them into a fighting force? Dark Avengers: Ares is the answer.

Ares's speech in the first few pages displays two things. One, Gillen's understanding of the character. Two, the differences between him an Athena. If you had any questions about the differences between the two the speechs answer it.

The issue is about about picking his team and his unorthodox training methods. As one might expect Ares's picks are pretty much the rejects of the normal army. I liked that Gillen is able to make it clear that Ares is not the dumb brute most people assume he is. He does have his own philosophy of war with rules on how to behave, actions to take, etc. It just tends to exhibit itself in actions that tend to be brutal and straight to the point without any discussion or thinking. Ares is all about action which as we have seen in other titles can sometimes cost him.

The twist at the end sounds like a double-cross to me. I don't want to spoil it, but lets say those who have been reading Secret Warriors and Incredible Hercules will know what is going on.

Overall, I think this was a good issue. By limiting it to three issues it forces Gillen to get straight to the point and not waste any space. So decompression is not a problem. In a single issue we get the team selected, a brief history of each, Ares's philosophy on war, some lessons and the set up for the rest of the series. If it were long we probable would only have gotten half of these stuff in. The only qualm I had was the scene with the sunglasses. That just comes across as out of place to me, but at least even the characters in the book react that way. Thing is no one really want to question Ares.

Artwise, Garcia's pencils present a rough, gritty look. Considering this is both a war story with a particularly brutal war god they work. Overall, I have no real qualms with the art or coloring. The only thing I do have is the look of the female guest star at the end. The gritty look just does not work for her.

Favorite scene: One of Ares's recruits is dumb enough to ask him what relavence does an ancient war god have to the modern world. After demonstrating his knowledge of modern weapon states:

"Consider: the human fist." right before nearly knocking the recruits head off and going into a speech about what he is.

Story: 8.5/10
Art: 8.5/10
Overall: 8.5/10

Incredible Hercules Review

This one picks up with Amadeus Cho and sets up directly for the "Siege of Olympus." I would say it is even more important than the Hercules story. Cho finally gets some answers and even more questions.

Turns out Athena has been manipulating events for longer than anyone guessed. Her past with both Cho and Pythagoras Dupree is revealed and the reason for it all.

She also states why she is in a sense trying to replace Hercules. Following her reasoning makes sense as a new type of hero is needed for the age of reason. Turns how Athena has been trying for decades to create a champion against a coming darkness. A darkness it seems Athena ironically may have helped create. Dupree was merely Athena's learning curve.

We finally learn also why Zeus sent Hercules to Earth all those years ago at the beginning of the Age of Marvles. Also, by a miracle turns out Cho does not hate Athena. Problem is the threat Athena warned about is coming, but first they have to deal with Hera who is even crazier then we initially thought and was supported by Dupree's genius.

Finally, we also learn what is going to cause Hercules and Spider-Man come to blow. Let's just say it is over the oldest reason in the book: a woman.

Overall, I liked this issue. We finally got a lot of answers to various questions that have been going on and it sets up the next story arc well. I actually think I liked Cho's story better than the Hercules one. At the end you can't but help feel pity for Dupree.

Artwise, I have nothing to complain about . I like the rendition of Athena especially.

Story: 9/10
Art: 9/10
Overall: 9/10


You can use these issues to compare how Ares and Athena approach war. Aside from Ares's speech it is in their methods. It show where Ares tends to be very direct Athena is more manipulative and behind the scenes. She picks single individuals to become powerful and rally the troops. Ares picks a bunch of grunts to become as brutal as him and overwhelm the enemy with fear. Two approaches each with their own pros and cons.