Writer: David Pepose
Artist: Jonathan Lau
Dynamite Entertainment, October 2026
Space Ghost vs. The Herculoids #2 continues to unashamedly embrace its unlikely premise: taking two classic 1960s Hanna-Barbera sci-fi franchises, throwing their most recognizable characters into a fight, and watching the fireworks unfold. Written by David Pepose with art by Jonathan Lau, the crossover continues to adapt these vintage cartoon icons for modern comic books, adding high drama and an aggressive edge without losing sight of what made them memorable to kids suffering from square eyes (a term which anyone born this century would not recognise). (We reviewed the first issue of this series last month – see https://worldcomicbookreview.com/2026/09/26/space-ghost-vs-the-herculoids-1-review/)
Mr Pepose, as usual, does a fantastic job of giving these Saturday morning cartoon characters a gritty, high-stakes makeover while retaining their core identities. The pacing is relentless, tossing readers headfirst into action sequences from page one. Mr Pepose knows exactly what his audience came for, and he wastes little time delivering.
The main attraction, naturally, is watching Space Ghost and his crew go toe-to-toe with a giant rock ape and a laser-breathing dragon. As Space Ghost and his sidekicks struggle to fend off the Herculoids, they must also repeatedly rescue innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire. It is superhero spectacle at its most straightforward, with the conflict escalating as both sides become increasingly invested in taking the other down. In these sorts of plot scenarios, hubris prevails.
However, the issue also manages to throw in a tragic twist when a weapon powered by a quasarite core catastrophically backfires, seemingly vaporizing Space Ghost’s sidekicks, Jace and Jan. Space Ghost predictably holds Zandor (the Herculoids’ herculean male leader) responsible for the apparent deaths, giving the two sides another reason to resume their brawl further down the line.
After all, why settle for a simple misunderstanding between a cosmic barbarian and a space cop in a white body stocking when you can add a seemingly irreversible tragedy to the mix?
Fortunately, and unsurprisingly, the apparent loss isn’t what it seems. Jan and Jace have merely been displaced, eventually encountering a still-alive Tara (Zandor’s other half, who Zandor thought was also a casualty of the on-going war).
This leaves both Space Ghost and the Herculoids under the mistaken impression that they’ve lost loved ones to each other. The dramatic irony is hardly subtle, but it gives the story another layer of emotion – vengeance – beyond the spectacle of its central clash. Whether the eventual revelations will be enough to settle matters remains to be seen.
Jonathan Lau’s artwork remains one of the comic’s greatest strengths. His colorful, kinetic visuals capture the scale of the confrontations while maintaining enough detail to make both the characters and their surroundings worth looking at. The action is busy without becoming muddled, an important distinction in a comic where enormous creatures, energy weapons, and costumed heroes are constantly competing with each other for the reader’s attention. This is precisely the kind of visual clarity a kaleidoscopic crossover like this needs. When the premise revolves around watching familiar characters clash, the artwork must be able to sell the spectacle, and Mr Lau delivers.
Space Ghost vs. The Herculoids #2 doesn’t pretend to be anything more complicated than a high-energy clash between two beloved Hanna-Barbera properties. Mr Pepose supplies the dramatic stakes and recognizable character dynamics, while Mr Lau ensures the fights are worth the price of admission. The apparent tragedy adds some intrigue, even if the eventual resolution already is completely obvious. (Imagine if Tara and Jace had actually died!) For readers who came to see these two cartoon legacies collide, and try to resolve a question their eight year old selves might have puzzled over – who would win if Space Ghost and the Herculoids met met? – the issue delivers exactly what it promises. For our friends at Comic Book Round-up, this title is scored 3/5.