Lore Olympus: Volume One

Lore Olympus Volume One is the first graphic novel adaptation of the online comic of the same name by New Zealand author, illustrator, and folklorist Rachel Smythe. The ongoing series has been running since 2018 on the WEBTOONS website and has won much acclaim from fans and critics alike. After previous nominations, Lore Olympus won an Eisner Award in 2022 for best web comic—the first WEBTOONS comic to do so. Lore Olympus Volume One reached the number one position on the New York Times bestseller chart upon publication. Lore Olympus follows the romantic entanglement of Hades, misunderstood King of the Underworld, and Persephone, Goddess of Spring in a colorful, modern retelling. Volume One contains the first 25 episodes, plus one previously unpublished bonus episode focusing on Persephone’s chaotic debut in Olympus.

Context Warning: Lore Olympus Volume One depicts sexual assault, sexual coercion, and nonconsensual intoxication to explore themes of sexual consent and agency within romantic relationships.

Citation Note: Each episode has its own internal pagination restarting from page 1.

Plot Summary

Hades, King of the Underworld, goes to the Panathenaea party alone. His date, the disagreeable nymph Minthe, stood him up. Hades is self-conscious because he is the only unmarried one among his brothers. Persephone, Goddess of Spring, makes her debut in Olympus at this party, accompanied by her best friend, Artemis. Persephone’s overprotective mother, Demeter, has finally allowed her to leave the mortal realm to attend college to become a vestal virgin alongside Artemis. Persephone is ignorant of how to navigate Olympian society. Hades falls for Persephone at first sight. Aphrodite, the Goddess of Beauty, overhears Hades say that he thinks Persephone is more beautiful than she is. Enraged, Aphrodite sends her son, Eros, to get revenge.

Eros gets Persephone very intoxicated and places her in the backseat of Hades’s car, in the hopes that Hades will take advantage of Persephone. Hades, instead, takes care of her, giving her water and putting her to bed in a guest room in his underworld home. The next morning, Persephone is embarrassed, thinking she just got too drunk. She is impressed with Hades’s home.

Persephone comes upon the fearsome Cerberus; Hades arrives in time to protect her from his dog, but she did not need help. Persephone charms Cerberus. Over coffee, Hades and Persephone get to know each other and exchange introduction cards. Zeus spoils the moment by calling to force Hades to go to a “family brunch.” Hades drops Persephone off at her and Artemis’s house. Artemis, who does not like Hades, is immediately suspicious of him.

Artemis apologizes for leaving Persephone alone at the party and asks about what happened. Eros, meanwhile, feels horrible for what he did to Persephone. He visits her and Artemis to apologize. He tells them how he fell in love with a mortal woman, Psyche, whom his mother sent him to enact vengeance upon. He saved Psyche from a disagreeable marriage, and they lived together for a time, until Psyche’s sisters turned her against him. He told Aphrodite, who took Psyche away. Now, Eros regrets acting hastily, and Aphrodite uses Psyche as leverage to make Eros do her dirty work.

Hades, meanwhile, cannot get over his feelings for Persephone. His “brunch” with Zeus and Poseidon is at a strip club. His brothers tease out details about his night with Persephone. Hera, Zeus’s wife, reveals herself and chastises the brothers for their behavior, particularly Hades, whom she overheard speaking of Persephone in a sexual way, goaded on by Zeus and Poseidon. She shows Hades a photo of Persephone and Apollo together.

While Hades and his brothers are at the strip club, Eros takes Persephone on a shopping spree. Persephone is confused about her feelings for Hades. She tries texting him on the phone Artemis gave her, but, since her number shows up as “unknown,” Hades does not know who the text is from and ignores it. Artemis’s brother, Apollo, and Hermes pick Artemis and Persephone up from the mall. Apollo is attracted to Persephone and flirts with her. Persephone dislikes Apollo for the crass way he speaks about her encounter with Hades.

Persephone volunteers to cook dinner, but she cuts her hand. Apollo manages to make a better impression on her when he heals her hand. The four gods watch movies until Hermes falls asleep, and Artemis and Persephone go to bed. Apollo visits Persephone in her bedroom and coerces her into having sex. Persephone resists, but gives in, briefly believing that having sex with him will be a way of asserting her agency. After Apollo rapes her, he leaves. Scared and confused, Persephone texts Hades again, thanking him for the fur coat he gave her when she left his house.

It is after two in the morning. Hades jolts awake from a nightmare about his father Kronos attempting to eat him after separating him from his mother, Rhea. He sees Persephone’s new text, and, realizing now who sent it, he decides to call her.

The bonus episode is a flashback to Hera’s birthday party. Hera is angry that Hades brought Minthe, but is distracted when it comes time to open gifts. When she opens his gift—the fur coat he later gives Persephone—Hera has a vision of Hades’s wedding day, though she cannot see the bride’s face. She gives him back the coat, telling him it will come in handy someday.