Eight Billion Genies returns, and with it comes the continuation of one of the wildest comics in recent memory. We’re “eight days” into the story, and with about half of the world’s wishes granted, we’ve also seen about a quarter of the world’s population meet their end. Thankfully, though, none of those people are inside the Lampwick Tavern which is wish-proof, thanks to the wish of the bar’s owner.
While the first few issues were focused on those inside the Lampwick, we’re now getting to see more of the world outside the tavern itself, as everything has gone absolutely haywire, with multiple volcanic eruptions named after J.R.R. Tolkien’s Mount Doom, massive anthropomorphic highways, killer vampires, and so, so much more.
We also get more information about how wishes work and the adjustments people have been making in seeing the world collapse around them. Certain things work strangely: Wishing for the return of a lost loved one or a dead celebrity comes with a bit of a timer that wasn’t established early on. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg, and while this is an incredible series, there is a challenge in describing it without ruining the fun.
The absolute absurdity of the series gets elevated by the creative team, with Charles Soule and Ryan Browne making this the weirdest book possible. From the characters to the story, it’s one of the most unique series on the market. Combine that with Ryan Browne’s lettering style, something that is possibly my favorite things in all of comics, and you get a delightfully strange project that is escalating exponentially with each coming issue.
Soule and Browne are an excellent team, with this series coming off the successful and terrific Curse Words. With this series nearing its halfway point, it will be interesting to see where it goes from here. With nearly a quarter of the population gone and nearly half of the genies having completed their tasks in a mere eight days, it will be fascinating to see the state of this world as we head into the next issue, two months into this worldwide event.
Creative Team: Charles Soule (writer), Ryan Browne (artist)
Publisher: Image Comics
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