When we last left our crew of stalwart and increasingly more impatient Gods, they were doing what all large groups of Gods with limited time left and a rising threat on the horizon do: sit around and vote on what to do. With the Great Darkness in retreat for now, the group – in all of their wisdom – chose from three options: fight the thing, study it, or kind of just do whatever and who cares. The latter won out, because of course it did, and this issue gets the anarchy going in a big way. The factions of Gods have splintered once again, with several looking to study, some preparing for battle, and others doing anything (or anyone) that strikes them.

With all that explained, here’s the deal: This issue was a bit of a tough one, because it was kind of hard to understand. It wasn’t bad, because Gillen and McKelvie are at a point as creators well beyond putting out bad work, but this series has its ups and downs, and while this one wasn’t down, it was off to the side. It felt a bit disjointed, which looked to be the point, as several small stories were laid out, page by page. There were a few mixups of character interactions, as we got some pairings we haven’t seen much of before, and with those came some interesting conversations and plans that will likely be laid out much more later, especially as it’s coming to pass that the two years on Earth the Gods have is nearly gone, with several of them able to see their Death Day on the horizon.

Even with there being little in terms of action in this issue, it’s still beautifully drawn. Jamie McKelvie, Matt Wilson, and Clayton Cowles are a phenomenal team, and with McKelvie pledging himself to every issue from here on out (with exception of the specials), it’s going to keep this gorgeous consistency.

It’s hard to talk about this book so often when it’s so good, but with this being one of the stranger issues from a pacing perspective, it’s cool to see it still maintain its level of excellence in a more unique storytelling style.