
Writer: Gerry Conway
Artists: J.L Garcia and Wally Wood
Hercules has been chained on a small island in the Aegean by Ares for thousands of years. Suddenly he is free and soon comes to the rescue of a teen boy and his dog being attacked by giant octopus. The boy Kevin and his husky Basil are grateful for the rescue. Hercules finds out the boy is blind and that a nuclear war has occurred four weeks ago. Kevin was with his brother on a sailing trip around the Medittereanian Sea when Athens was bombed. His brother died in the bombing and two weeks later Kevin and Basil emerged from the shelter and were attacked by mutants. They managed to make it to a sailboat and sail away.
Hercules agrees to accompany Kevin to the Vatican because that is where his father a diplomat was stationed. They first have to battle minotaurs sent by Ares. Then they arrive in Rome and find soldiers battling using sticks and stones. Hercules stops them and confronts Ares who is behind this. Ares sends a big red hulk called the Smasher to beat up Hercules. Thankfully with the help of Kevin and Basil the Smasher is defeated. Only Kevin finds out that the Smasher was his father and is now dead.
I love post-nuke adventures and always wanted to give this series a try. I am not disappointed. What a cool idea to use Hercules and transport him to a post-nuke world. Ares imprisoned Hercules and seems to be somehow responsible for the war. Now the Greek name is Heracles and how he can speak English is a bit of a mystery. I suppose series back then didn’t concern themselves with such trivia. Yet I love the characters. Kevin and Basil are perfect for his companions in this world. Ares is a perfect opponent. There are many possibilities in the post-nuke world, and I look forward to exploring them.