My reaction to some of Herc's more recent issues has been a bit mixed: #126 was excellent, particularly the main Herc origin; #127-128 were good, though they had the least-attractive art the series has had; #129-131 was a step up, with progressively better art, and ended strongly. "The Replacement Thor", based on the first issue, is the strongest since at least "Love and War".

First off, Reilly Brown's art is perfectly suited to the series; he rivals Clayton Henry for the best facial expressions yet seen on the series, which always enhances the comedy bits. Between him and the impending return of #126's Rodney Buchemi, this is the strongest art on the series since Sandoval left.

Writing-wise, we get to the appearance of the Thor mythos, something everyone (including myself) has been waiting for since the series started. Herc and Kid Zeus are recruited by Balder to go and stop Alflyse, the Queen of the Eastern Spires, who aims to rule all the Dark Elves and then the Nine Worlds. And she's a hot blue chick, which both Herc and Zeus find very attractive. Zeus, incidentally, looks to be a fantastic addition to the cast. Pretty much everything he says is funny.

I'm not sure why Malekith was able to get Thor's costume right, when he got Balder's wrong, but whatever.