These are adventures of Hercules’ dog, in the world of classical antiquity which flourished along the shores of the Mediterranean. If you like a story full of humor, sex, violence, philosophy and — of course — animals, this series is made for you. Sfar and Blain have created a marvel of offbeat humor, with a sophisticated flair that will stay with you long after the first reading.

Hercules is the son of Zeus: that means he’s a demi-god. Socrates, the son of Zeus’s dog, is a demi-dog: half dog, half philosopher. From the outside, he may look like a mangy yellow mutt with a long black nose, and his behavior might seem like any animal’s. But he can think — and he can talk. After all, he’s Hercules’s dog!

Socrates accompanies Hercules on all his adventures, remarking on the smallest acts and gestures of his master. Under cover of offering readers a classic epic adventure, this new series is really trying to convey philosophy in comics. The dog’s sayings alternate between tavern wisdom and Platonic dialogues — all while his master labors to seduce all the women who cross his path, and to brawl with all the monsters that cross him.

Socrates is jaded; he renders unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s, and he could even be called a cynic. But he’s a Greek cynic, after all — and that means this album is bathed in warm Mediterranean sun, its shadows no darker than that of olive trees offering their shade to lovely young maidens.