By Alex Batts — “Once again…” — just kidding, I’m not going to start every one of these articles off like that. Though I can’t say I wasn’t tempted! But we’re back for another installment of the Wic + Div Re-read Project. I think I solved my spoiler conundrum and have decided that I’m just going to be talking spoilers for previous issues as we go forward. I know that seems logical, but I didn’t want to alienate people who haven’t read the series during these earlier articles. However, I quickly realized it’s nearly impossible to talk about this week’s issue without getting into the shocking cliffhanger from last week so… here we are. 

With that prelude out of the way, on to the issue!

The Wicked + The Divine #2

Here’s the official solicitation text for the second issue from July 16th, 2014:

Diabolically divine pop-god Lucifer is in trouble. She offers superfan Laura an unprecedented deal if she helps. It’s a bargain. A Faustian bargain, and they always turn out so well. Who knows who Laura will turn to fulfill it? We do. Clearly. It’s our comic. You can know too if you buy this fine pictorial narrative with your human money coins.

This solicitation trims the excess we saw from the first solicit while also cranking up the meta advertising that the creators used to push this series. Personally, I’m a huge fan of the humor here, and I think it does a lot to help with the overall tone of the series. The solicitation also touches on one of the cornerstones of the series, especially within this first arc, and that’s the relationship between our main character Laura and Lucifer.

The Cover: We’ve established that the series will have a running theme of using portraits to showcase different key characters as the covers, and this week continues that trend. For this issue, we see the Goddess Amaterasu and WOW is she vibrant. If you couldn’t tell, she’s a Sun Goddess, and McKelvie and Wilson’s work does so much to draw you to the cover. The background, her make-up, and her hair are bursting with color, and then her eyes are pools of black. The contrast is striking and like the cover for last week makes you want to learn more about her.

The First Page: No splash this week, but we pick up right where the first issue left off. Lucifer has seemingly just blown the head of a Judge clean (well, it was rather messy) off. Lucifer was taken into custody after she clicked her fingers and the gunmen attacking her and her peers last issue quickly found themselves headless. Luci made a compelling argument that it’s up to the court to prove a link between her actions and the exploding heads, and then she naturally goaded the Judge about whether a finger click is worthy of being held in contempt of court.

So, Lucifer clicked her fingers, and the Judge’s head exploded, but did she do it? That’s the million-dollar question. The first page shows Luci being dragged away and her shouting after Amaterasu to whisper something in her ear. The page is three horizontal panels, with the one in the middle containing the whisper, and the only full-color section of that middle panel contains a circle used to highlight what Lucifer whispers, which gives the phrase even more significance. Lucifer name-drops Ananke and the final panel reveals that Laura was right behind the Gods for the hushed exchange. Whew, that took a little more space than I imagined for a first page, but there’s already so much at play!

On-Page Action: The first page sets the entire issue into motion. Lucifer is held in lockdown because of her actions, and Laura (and the reader by proxy) have a new thread to investigate. Laura does what she can to look up information on Ananke, and this quest eventually leads her into a conversation with Lucifer herself. This issue does a lot to strengthen the friendship that was established in the first issue between Laura and Lucifer. The pair are quickly becoming one of the pillars of the series and their chemistry feels incredibly natural.

We also get our introduction to Baal, one of the other members of the Pantheon and the only one of the Gods willing to speak to the press after the events in the courtroom. In this interview, we get a sense of his hot-headed temper. Laura’s loneliness is further expanded upon with her inner monologue where she comments that she either doesn’t have any friends or that they don’t matter for this story, she continues to lie to her parents, and she plans on flunking out of school. Her mind is focused on one thing and one thing only: Godhood.

Laura’s conversation with Lucifer provides our first real insight into Ananke. Laura’s previous Google search revealed that Ananke is the Goddess of necessity (take note of that) and that she’s been around since the beginning of time. Lucifer confirms this and mentions that Ananke is the one who finds all the Gods and welcomes them to the Pantheon.

Ananke guides each God, gives them advice, and tries to operate in their best interests. We also see the process of Gods being transformed from ordinary people into Gods in a wonderful two-page splash scene, which I’ll touch more on soon. This issue also establishes the partnership between Laura and Cassandra as they attempt to investigate what really happened in the courtroom. Their conversation contains one of my favorite exchanges in the entire series (it’s about lying) that would’ve completely sold me on the book if the first issue hadn’t already hooked me.

The last thing this issue does is tease The Morrigan (my personal favorite God in the series) and her domain. The use of art and color, or lack thereof, in the pages leading to her expected appearance is amazing, which I’ll expand more upon in the art section.

Deeper Meaning: This issue continues to beat on the drum of wanting to be special. Laura is willing and eager to trust and assist the Devil herself to maybe have a taste of Godhood. It’s certainly a slippery slope, but like Laura, we want to believe Lucifer. She’s just so damn likable and her reaction to the Judge’s death makes her case compelling. Amaterasu warned that being special comes at a cost, so far we’ve seen that Laura has dropped all other priorities in her life to pursue this goal and we’re left to wonder if the ends justify the means.

The Art: McKelvie and Wilson create magic together. I don’t know how many ways I’ll be able to praise their art as this re-read goes on, but strap in because I’m going to have fun trying. Emotion in facial expressions is something that’s pivotal in this book and the pair completely nail it every time. It creates very real and convincing moment-to-moment exchanges between characters as you get reactions to lines and expressive beats in-between dialogue.

The fall of normal people into Godhood is also illustrated for the first time in this issue and it’s a visually stunning thing to see. Ananke’s head is ever present as her words welcoming Lucifer to the Pantheon echo around the returning God. We see this sequence a few times over the course of the series and seeing the slight variations in dialogue based on which God is being welcomed is always interesting. The visual flair of “falling” into Godhood is also worth noting as it’s a sharp contrast to what you would normally consider an ascension.

The page layouts themselves also keep things interesting, specifically the final few pages in this issue when Laura goes to investigate The Morrigan. Unlike her fellow Pantheon members, The Morrigan is more underground (literally) and Laura’s descent into the subterranean world of London is illustrated impactfully with tons of negative space. The negative space creates engaging and unique panel layouts as well as serving a narrative purpose. It wowed me the first time I read it and somehow still manages to captivate me.

The Wicked + The Divine #2
Writer: Kieron Gillen
Artist: Jamie McKelvie
Colorist: Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Image Comics

Check back next week for The Wic + Div Re-Read Project Part 3, and in the meantime, checkout the Saga Re-Read Project here!

Alex Batts is from Texas. A lifelong comic book enthusiast and movie lover, if he’s not talking about comics, he’s probably not talking. You can find him on Twitter by following @BatmanFiles