By Alex Batts — Once again we return, as this entry in The Wicked + The Divine Re-Read Project brings us to the end of the Rising Action story arc, with The Wicked + The Divine #22. This issue is arguably the most pivotal of the entire series. Being #22 of #45 (numbered) issues, it finds itself directly in the middle of the run, and, as such, it serves as a major turning point in the series.

Oh, and it ultimately leaves us on one hell of a cliffhanger. Let’s get into it!

The Wicked + The Divine #22

Here’s the official solicitation text for The Wicked + The Divine #22 from August 17, 2016:

END OF STORY ARC. “RISING ACTION,” Conclusion A little extreme violence never hurt anyone.

Short and to the point, this solicit does not give you any plot information, yet it still begs you to read it by teasing the notion of a conclusion. It also keeps that trademark wit, which is my favorite part of this series’ solicits.

The Cover: The last of our fashion-portrait covers and well…that name feels a bit ill-fitting now given the context of this cover. Here we’ve got a striking and ominous look at Minerva climbing on, in, or around, the machine that Woden constructed that’s to be used for her sacrifice. So, yeah…it does not exactly scream fashion-show runway in theme, BUT the art itself is as stunning as ever.

Jamie McKelvie continues to shine as a master of facial expressions and just brilliant base work, while Matthew Wilson comes in and takes everything up to 11 by deploying a warm color pallet that also creates a dynamic lighting environment for Minerva as she climbs around what looks like a living furnace.

The First Page: This first page is an indirect recap of the craziness that’s happening within the Pantheon, but it also establishes the severity of the situation in case it wasn’t already obvious enough. We see Amaterasu appear to get Urdr, who’s already on her way to Valhalla and has ordered authorities and medical assistance there, as she screams that Ananke is evil and almost killed her.

Urdr of course already knows of Ananke’s treachery and crimes thanks to “Laura fucking Wilson”, but then she asks why Amaterasu came to her and gets a simple but painfully accurate response, “Because you’re the grown-up.” If anyone could de-escalate the situation between the gods it would be Urdr. As always the characters’ personalities shine through in each line of dialogue, and I can consistently hear the tone each line is said in. It all comes from consistent, strong, balanced writing and incredibly accurate and expressive facial expressions.

On-Page Action: This issue continues and concludes the ludicrous action involving all-out fisticuffs among the Pantheon. There’s a brilliant splash of Woden’s Mecha-Valkyrie fighting Persephone while the rest of the gods also attempt to destroy each other in various colorful and chaotic ways. The issue gives us some narration from Woden, who commentates on the unfolding battle and also tries to explain his questionable actions up to this point.

After Woden lets himself be knocked down for the count, we transition to Urdr landing and trying to convince everyone to stop trying to kill each other. There are a few pages of de-escalation, quips, and quick hits including Baal knocking out Sakhmet and leaving her outside, as the gods finally decide to stop fighting and confront Ananke.

It’s here the Pantheon finds Ananke mid child sacrifice. As the gods work to subdue Ananke, she at first tries to explain herself. She speaks of the great darkness that is coming and the need to sacrifice four lives to burn the light that will keep it at bay. However during a battle with — and eventual capture by — Persephone, Ananke shifts from explanation to rage as she raves about how ungrateful, idiotic, and selfish the gods are and have been throughout time. Ananke says defeating the Great Darkness is all that matters and she has sacrificed for thousands of years. She warns of Persephone being the great destroyer. She says that that is all she is.

Urdr suggests that they stick Ananke in the cage that Woden made to imprison gods. From there they could question her and try to gain information about the supposed Great Darkness, what the machine Woden made actually does, and more. Persephone, however, isn’t on board, and Ananke happens to quite literally be in her clutches. Urdr immediately, and naturally, begins to lose her mind, urging Persephone to not be an idiot. Persephone is so close to killing Ananke when Baal steps up and pleads with her, saying killing isn’t a small thing and that her parents wouldn’t want it, Inanna wouldn’t, Lucifer probably would, but Persephone is better than that.

Persephone, with tears running down her face, lowers her hand. She doesn’t move as Baal walks away. “What about Jenny?”, she says. Baal stops in his tracks, confused, as Persephone continues, “My sister. She was asleep when the house went up.” And here comes that major turning point. One finger “KLLK” later and Ananke is literally torn to pieces. This scene and specifically that line delivery are two of my favorite moments in the entire series. It’s a gut punch followed by a series-defining shock. The Pantheon is stunned, then quickly begin to discuss what they’re going to do.

Baal says it was self-defense, at least that’s what they’ll say it was, making everyone party to conspiracy to murder. “We all have to lie?” Minerva asks, as Woden walks in to say, “There’s no other choice…it’s necessity. Now, where have I heard that before?” As Amaterasu freaks out about what they’re going to do we get a gruesome and epic splash page of Persephone saying, “Duh… whatever we want.”

Deeper Meaning: The biggest questions I come away with here regards Ananke’s motivations, manipulations, and whether one could consider her actions justified in any sense. First off, we see Ananke continue to prove that she’s a master manipulator. She is caught in the middle of performing a ritualistic child sacrifice yet still tries to explain her way out and, some would argue, crafts a rather compelling narrative for why she at the very least should be kept alive for questioning.

She also goes through a range of emotions in rapid succession, from bargaining to rage to eventual defeat and acceptance. She even posits herself as the victim in this scenario, being forced to endure forever with the gods. Though we can see she’s a terrible person, Ananke reasons that she has done what she must, and it also begs the question of whether the sacrifices she’s made are worth it to stop the presumed Great Darkness. Do the ends justify the means? Persephone couldn’t let Ananke live, but now the Pantheon is in a similar (albeit on a smaller scale) moral conundrum.

With Ananke’s murder they have begun to say “It was necessary” but how far does that go? Sure, Ananke was awful and likely deserved to die, which is a whole other argument, but was it right to kill her? Was Persephone justified in her actions, and are the rest of the gods justified in helping cover it up? Each of them likely feels differently about it, which all begs the question of the reader — how do you feel about it? Answers will almost certainly vary, and that’s the beauty of it.

The Art: McKelvie and Wilson carry over the bombast we saw in issue #21 into the opening pages of this issue. With the various gods battling it out in front of and on Valhalla. I said it when we first saw them on display, but Persephone’s powers are my favorite looking of the bunch, while each god has a unique aesthetic that makes them stand out. It never gets old seeing the way McKelvie creatively utilizes their various powers, from Baal’s bright lightning to the murder of crows The Morrigan lets loose, there’s always something engaging to behold.

The action is dynamic from page to page and Wilson’s colors continue to elevate the book. I’ve said it a million times and will say it over and over, but the art in this series is an essential part of what makes WicDiv what it is, and that’s fully on display in this arc. The final 12 pages of this issue are some of the most important in the run and they’re immaculately rendered on every level. The camera position, panel layouts, environments, lighting, colors, mood, facial expressions, and more are top tier. There’s action, drama, suspense, shock, humor, catharsis, and uncertainty all in this final scene.

As always McKelvie and Wilson knock it out of the park, a few of my favorite panels/pages include Baal flying at Ananke as she blocks him, Persephone walking towards and blocking Ananke’s attacks as they yell at each other, Persephone’s decision to kill Ananke and the page of the murder itself, and of course the brutal final splash page…

Wicked + Divine #22 Re-Read

Wicked + Divine #22
Writer: Kieron Gillen
Artist: Jamie McKelvie
Colorist: Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Publisher: Image Comics
END OF STORY ARC. "RISING ACTION," Conclusion A little extreme violence never hurt anyone.
Release Date: August 17, 2016
Read It Digitally: Wicked + Divine #22

Click here to read past installments of the Wic + Div Re-Read.

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