The Ancients, I mean the Asgards, no wait – it was the Golden Tribe. You know who I mean –  the ones that knew everything and bestowed much of their knowledge upon the Silver Tribe, that funny race of beings much like the Vulcans who have no emotions, but do seek power and utter domination over the Universe? But because the Golden Tribe didn't want everything to go to the Silver Tribe, they gave the most powerful gift to that pesky Iron Tribe, the humans. Why would the Golden Tribe bestow this one great power on such a petty race of weak-minded beings?

Heroic Age is aptly named. It is very heroic and does a splendid job of delivering plenty of high octane drama with a strong blend of ethical dogma. The Golden Tribe created 5 beings called Nodos. These Nodos each have very special abilities and can destroy worlds, if needed. The Silver Tribe has one major superiority complex and sees the Iron Tribe as a threat to their power base and intend to extinguish their ever-present annoyance.  The Iron Tribe, with their new found power, are looking to throw off the yoke of oppression and take back their destiny. I am sure you can see where this leads. 

The Nodos that has bonded to the humans is known as Age; he was raised alone and at 16 met his first humans. Being a human with a great beast inside of him, many of the other humans are somewhat nervous about his presence, but they soon learn that he is a kind being that will protect them to the bitter end. There is also a hidden knowledge inside of Age – that is slowly revealed. He comes across as a simpleton, but he has an understanding of future events that gives him the aura of a sage. Add his persona to that of the Princess, the beloved leader of the Iron Tribe, and you have a powerful blend of action and ethics. 

The other four Nodos are bound to the Silver Tribe and must all fulfill the labors spelled out in the contracts they accepted when they bonded to their tribe. Once all of these Nodos come together it is a battle of epic proportions. But the real test comes in the conclusion of this tale. 

Overall

I had seen some ads for this show and had a feeling that it was going to be something of a real snoozer. To my delight, it was nothing of the sort. From the very first episode, I was hooked. The pacing was perfect and the melodrama did not overwhelm me. That does not mean that it did not find ways to be heavy-handed – that is far from the truth – but I would say that I enjoyed being smacked about by some rather over the top ethics. I even found myself tearing up from time to time. I guess that makes me a bit of a wuss and that's OK by me.

Seeing this on Blu-ray also brought home some of the action. The clarity and brilliance of the picture saved the animation from its mediocre mix of CG and standard production. I did find the lack of extras a little disappointing, but it is not the extras that bring a person to the counter, it is the story. And for Heroic Age, the story stands on its own. 

With 26 episodes to play out this space opera, the story progresses at an almost flawless pace. The battles did become somewhat predictable, but there was enough twist in the plot that saves this from utter failure. In fact the final outcome was nearly sublime and gave me pause to revel in the positive diatribe it was espousing.

ComicsOnline gives Heroic Age: the Complete Series on Blu-ray 4.5 out of 5 Jason and the Argonauts.