They’re back. After a long absence Zeus, along with the rest of the Greek pantheon, makes a return from the stars. But why have they come back? Hunt.Kill.Repeat. #1 from Mad Cave Studios gives readers the reason. It’s not for humanity’s salvation, no it’s to remind us of our station. A lesson they don’t mind repeating until everyone gets it right.
Hunt. Kill. Repeat.
Writer: Mark London
Pencil: Francesco Archidiacono
Inker: Marc Deering
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Almost looking angelic, Hunt.Kill.Repeat. #1 begins with a flashback of Zeus and his children returning to earth from the heavens. Lee Loughridge helps establish the impression help for humanity is at hand by giving the pantheon a golden appearance. However, heaven is no longer waiting and Zeus is full of rage at the notion that somehow gone would allow for forgetting. And it’s not just him, he has five of his children – Athena, Aphrodite, Apollo, Hermes and finally Artemis.- who feel thee same. The creative team gave each child a different look, even apparent different nationalities. This works to subtly further the idea that one deity, in this case Zeus , is all of humanity’s creator and all peoples come from him.
After these scenes, the issue moves to the present day. If there is an empire state in Hunt.Kill.Repeat., writer Mark London quickly establishes it is under a new regime. During her morning run Artemis takes a break long enough to give readers a look at how much things have changed. This is her father’s world. The screens of New York City’s Time Square now display images meant to inspire adoration for the gods of Mount Olympus pantheon. And while the streets are no longer full of traffic, the reason Zeus did this wasn’t to make midtown Manhattan less of a mess. Upon his return Zeus takes a page from another diety’s book, issuing an almost identical first commandment. And is there any argument that the main thing humanity worships these days is our technology.
With little effort Olympus sends the world back to the dark ages – no phones, no motor cars. Primitive, try downright savage.
The level of visciousness Zeus displays upon his return does not end once he establishes his authority. Those who still worship their “machine” masters may repent soon enough that Zeus is a vengeful god. Artemis watches, fully aware she could intervene but aware of the repurcusions. Artists Francesco Archidiacono and Marc Deerings make sure you can really feel the force of the enforcement of the Avatar issues upon Jerry”s face. But if you think Zeus is harsh with his “adopted” children, it pales with how he deals with disobedience in his own home. Artemis has come afoul of her father’s will and by his word her siblings ensure she remembers that father knows best.
And apparently the pomegranate doesn’t bloom much differently than the bush. Could it be that the reason ancient Greece was a time of conflict and war is that god’s they chose to worship seem to inspire those reactions? The other children of Zeus are just as cruel and casual in their concerns for humanity as their father. And it is her love of the world that causes Artemis to give up so much. Over several pages Archidiacono, Deering and Loughridge have Zeus’ progeny pummel some penance into the pregnant woman. A punishment meant to remind her of the family business.
After running afoul of her father, the young goddess is left in an ungodly state. But the game has just begun. After all she has lost, Artemis is finally ready to take someone to church.
Score: 9.5