[REVIEW] Athena Voltaire #8 Pulp Action at its Finest!

From Pulp to Pages

I wasn’t around for the days of the radio or TV serial. I certainly wasn’t for the days of pulp action comics like The Phantom or Doc Savage, but I’ve had time to do research and appreciate the art form.

Athena Voltaire thus far has been an awesome homage to the subgenre, mixing the action elements of Doc Savage with the heart of an Indiana Jones to create a bad ass, Nazi punching, globetrotting tale of treasure hunting and supernatural mysticism.

Athena Voltaire Vs Nazis

Coated in the beautiful browns and yellows of sepiatone. The book begins with Athena, her friend Desmond Forsyth and his partner Pippa Nightingale fighting off Nazi soldiers rappelling down a mountain into a cave. The action is frenetic and exciting with speed and motion lines to show for it and awesome shots of Athena’s mid air combat skills, as she is taking a soldier in a choke hold and smacks him with his own gun.

Finishing off the Nazis, they enter the cave and watch as one of their leader is in the midst of casting a spell. Athena and her compatriots initiate a shootout as ghosts are summoned into the cave, killing the Nazi soldiers. Athena isn’t fazed and like the hero she is, she punches, shoots and kicks all of the bastards in her way to take the spell book back!

As she reaches the mouth of the cave, she encounters an enemy from previous issues, Baron von Sturm. They have a four page long fight scene, making use of Von Sturm’s lack of restraint in fighting Athena. Not to mention her own cunning to seal the victory in a very Indiana Jones-esque manner.

Every single page of this book was a sight to behold and delight to read. This issue, nay, this entire series does a great job with distinct character personalities, compelling evil villains even at a basic level and awesome action. I recommend it for fans of 1930s action-adventure heroes and even modern day newcomers that just want to see an amazing character do insanely cool things while maintaining a snarky/serious demeanor like any fantastic hero should. Pick up your copy from your local comic book shop or directly via Action Lab Comics.

How did we rate Athena Voltaire #8? 5 Sodas
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