4 out of 5

Let me explain what ‘God is Dead’ is about so that this two-part mini (issues Alpha – this one – and Omega – …not this one) has context and to prove that I didn’t just buy this single issue because Alan Moore was a contributor.

…ha ha j/k ya’ll of course that’s the only reason I bought it.  I passed on the G is D ongoing, despite the nifty covers and dramatic title, because it was created by Jonathan Hickman, whom I consider an amazing idea man, but not the best writer-man.  The books of his I’ve read generally look and… suggest greatness, but then four or five issues pass by and I realize I’m not invested at all.  So he’s one of those comic dudes who doesn’t exactly grasp how to actually write for comics.  Mike Costa took over the title, and I’m not really familiar with his work, but the Hickman mark was already establish in ma head so I continued to ignore.

Maybe Moore reads Hickman, or Costa, or this series, or maybe not.  Who knows.  Whatever the reason for his involvement, this was a rare instance of buying another creator’s title due to an appearance of someone I generally follow and not ending up feeling like I wasted my bucks.  God is Dead is, I think, about what it suggests, and then some resultant war that maybe happens when other gods step in to take Dead God’s place.  I can’t give you one iota of fig as to why this Alpha / Omega thing is happening. but here it is, and it features three short pieces – one by Costa, which is continued in the Omega issue, one standalone by Moore, and one standalone by Simon Spurrier.

The Costa piece is hard to judge because it is the most likely candidate for something that ties directly into the series.  Though the art (Rafael Ortiz), which gets to depict some crazy gods doing crazy things in a void, white background – which didn’t feel like a cheat, as the tale is interspersed with events that take place in reality – though the art and layouts are notable throughout, I really felt far away from the story, and I suspect that wouldn’t be the case if, uh, I knew what ‘Book of Acts’ was intending to accomplish.

The Moore piece is great, the kind of straight-forward snark we don’t often get from him, and why I miss Dodgem Logic.  All of the returning gods are attending a performance by the prophet for the one god who hasn’t returned.  That prophet looks an awful lot like Alan Moore, and gives a lecture on how we, at one point, understood that we worshiped our own creativity as a god, but have somehow lost that connection…  Throughout this prophet’s speech (which could’ve been talking heads, but is somehow excitingly illustrated by Facundo Percio), Moore takes several stabs at himself and his fans or detractors, with the same intelligent flair that’s fueled some of his best work.  This was an unexpected piece, but it was pretty amazing.

But he’s not the sole reason I’m rating this book highly: Simon Spurrier’s contribution was surprisingly effective.  Because my first exposure to Spurrier was seeing his name tied to ‘Crossed’ (though I think he might be a 2000 AD guy), I’ve, for better or worse, lumped him in with Ennis.  That association remains: ‘Pitter Patter,’ illustrated by Gabriel Andrade, concerns a foul-mouthed cherub, drinking and smoking in a bar, complaining how (as a returned mythical figure) his Biblical form is all destruction and flames, but the populace recognizes him as the rosy-cheeked baby, so that’s how he looks.  He tells a violence-soaked tale of trying to regain his more imposing visage.  The juxtaposition of cute and crass (mixed with religious barbs) is absolutely Ennis.  And Spurrier manages to do what Ennis generally does well: effectively used trash talk.  The cherub swears up a storm and uses rude metaphors; Spurrier does it just enough so that we definitely ‘hear’ the character’s voice, but doesn’t push it over the limit for an unneeded extra gag.  All this Garthyness aside, the final words of the story feel unique to Simon.  I can’t pinpoint why, exactly, but Ennis normally likes to make his tales point to the hollowness of society, whereas Simon isn’t so much judging our depravity as he is making an observation on our silly cycles…  Not worlds apart from Garth, of course, but I liked that the conclusion felt like fitting to the story and not an easy carbon copy, giving this book a solid close.