The Wicked and the Divine #1

The Wicked and the Divine #1

Writer - Kieron Gillen

Art - Jamie McKelvie, Matthew Wilson

Publisher - Image Comics

 

“What if God was one of us?”  Forgive me my Joan Osborne moment, but I needed to get it out of my system.  It’s more than a 90’s track, it’s an important question that Kieron Gillen and team are asking, and answering, in their new book.  The Wicked and the Divine presents a group of reincarnated gods living amongst society today, for two short years.  How do they ingrain themselves into the psyche of society?  They become pop stars.  Duh.

 

What seems like far-fetched subject matter is brought down to earth with Gillen’s very straightforward approach to the storytelling.  There isn’t much room for questioning logistics when everything is presented nice and clear to the reader.  These characters are reincarnated gods.  Yes, from multiple sources.  So far we’ve touched on Judeo-Christian, Egyptian and Shinto deities.  Yes, society knows they fancy themselves to be deities.  Yes, this is awesome.  This first installment really doesn’t allow the reader to slow down.  There are quick transitions between the acts so the surprisingly large amount of action happens with rapid story beats.  The story takes a drastic turn into “Whodunnit?” territory in the final act that I was absolutely not expecting from this book.  We don’t get to spend much time with the various characters, sadly.  We’re only introduced to a handful of the deities in the modern day, so a lot of the story is yet to be revealed.

 

The star of this book is without a doubt the art of of Jamie McKelvie and Matthew Wilson.  McKelvie has a great talent for providing a significant amount of detail without overcrowding panels.  Each line is deliberate and adds to the overall tapestry of the scene.  Without a doubt, McKelvie is among the best of the “clean look” artists today.  Wilson’s colors bring the scenes to life with a very fun, pop-infused quality which I look forward to seeing progress.  The concert scene in the first act was beautiful.  That stylistic approach as well as the work the team has been doing on the various covers is worth the price of admission alone.

 

This may not be a book for everyone.  Gillen has a tendency to work with very modern phrasing, and not everyone enjoys that sort of approach to storytelling.  There is an ongoing debate as to  whether or not this affects the ability of the story to age well and remain relatable.  Regardless, it’s an excellent story that warrants at least a run-through of this first installment.  I for one, am fully committed.

 

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Matthew can be found at the corner of unapologetic fan-boy glee and forced objectivity.  Or on Twitter as @mahargen.  He’s also pretty sure he’s in love with Luci, and that makes him feel funny.