The Wicked and the Divine: Fandemonium

Writer: Keiron Gillen
Artist: Jamie McKelvie
Colourist: Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Flatter: Dee Cuniffe
Publisher: Image Comics

What's it about?
Every 90 years 12 Gods return as young people.  They live for two years.  Then they are dead, until the next cycle.

In this cycle they are pop stars.  Rock gods.  Choose the descriptor that gets you the most excited.  Everyone is a fan.

This volume follows Laura, lover of Lucifer, now dead, before the two years are up.  Laura is dealing with her heartbreak, being a teenager - nearly an adult, her sudden fame as Luci's widow and she starts hanging out with the other Gods.  It's part teenage discovery, part detective story, part rockstar biopic and all powerful.

This turns out to be volume 2 - I thought it was volume 1.  I had no problem following the story even without having read volume 1.

What's good about it?
It's a passionate tale that runs the full spectrum of emotions - grief, ecstasy, joy, anger, numbness.  Laura is an appealing protagonist.  She's about 17 and I feel was on the cusp of doing something great before the Gods took hold of her.  This sense of what she was before means the book feels more solid.  Laura feels more real.

There's a good array of Gods from several different cultures - we meet Baphomet, Baal,  Urdr, Amertarasu, Woden, Sakhmet, The Morrigan, Minerva, Dionysus and Inanna.  Some are gender flipped, all are made real.

The back of this volume has the variant covers, examples of the creation process from script to completed page and a rather endearing photograph of some cosplayers dressed as some of the Gods..

What's the art like?
The interpretations of each God are admirable and imaginative.  The Morrigan with her crows is beautiful (see above).  The pages where Dionysus controls the club are inspired.  The colours are vibrant and pop off the page.

Other information:
I can't find a current cost but I woul dexpect it be around £12.