Olympus Heights

This big-hearted foray into a small Indiana town inhabited by Greek gods is a departure for horror publisher IDW. Oliver Dobbs is a cheerful college dropout devoted to his job at the Olympus Heights Museum, where he has an affinity for the sculpture collection. For years, statues of mythological beasts have been dropped off at night by an anonymous donor. Oliver soon becomes embroiled in an epic adventure involving his next-door neighbor, "Mr. Smith," who reveals himself to be none other than Zeus. It turns out the gods have been exiled to the heartland in order to keep an eye on Hades and his crew, who were imprisoned there after mounting an attack on Olympus. Munroe, whose background is in CGI animation and games creation, brings large-scale action to his art. This plus clear visual storytelling, exciting coloring and affectionately funny character design make the work a pleasure to read. Where Munroe fumbles is in the story itself: the plot is thin and gets smothered by excessive internal monologue and long text passages at the end of each chapter. Munroe makes up for these narrative weaknesses, however, with fast-paced dialogue and witty side characters, all forming a charming pop-culture backdrop to the main action. (Feb.)