G.O.D.S. #5 Review

Written by: Jonathan Hickman
Art by: Valerio Schiti
Colors by: Marte Gracia
Letters by: VC’s Travis Lanham
Cover art by: Mateus Manhanini
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: February 21, 2024

G.O.D.S. #5 finds Wyn taking Mia DiMaria on a magical errand to retrieve a missing item that was stolen by a nest of demons in search of their purpose.

Is G.O.D.S. #5 Good?

G.O.D.S. #5 serves as an entertaining one-shot wherein Wyn takes Mia out to perform an errand that forces her to exhibit courage and use her blossoming magical powers. On the one hand, Jonathan Hickman brings the focus back to Mia as a super solid audience insert to help acclimate readers to the world Hickman is building. On the other hand, whatever forward momentum built up in the previous issues concerning the In-Betweener’s destructive plan is on hold… again.

When last we left Wyn, Dimitri, and everyone else in Hickman’s magical stage play, Oblivion was denied a front-row seat to the destruction of reality when Wyn and Doctor Strange stopped one of the brainwashed acolytes of the In-Betweener from unleashing a magical weapon of mass destruction. During their follow-up investigation, Dimitri was tasked with securing/disposing of the weapon. Wyn and Doctor Strange followed the acolyte to his source of training, where they uncovered the In-Betweener’s plot to train thousands (millions?) of terrorist sleeper agents.

Now, all of that story gets pushed aside. Wyn enlists Mia for a “small” task. Mia must enter a magical clinic, one which prohibits males from entering, to retrieve something stolen by the Clinic’s harpy/witch/demon staff – specifically Dimitri. The harpy/witch/demons follow a centuries-old tradition of cooking/beating/killing men (none of the particulars are clear) to formulate a message that will give them their purpose. Unfortunately, the harpy/witch/demon staff didn’t realize they overstepped their boundaries by taking Dimitri, but Mia offers a solution to their message problem that gives everyone what they want.

The issue ends with Wyn explaining to Mia that her recruitment by Aiko ensures she will never achieve her magical potential. Uh, okay.

What’s great about G.O.D.S. #5? Mia’s wide-eyed enthusiasm for magic and excitement over finding a path to her true potential is infectious. Seeing her take on her first assignment, succeed, revel in the achievement, and then get punched in the gut with bad news all comes together for a rollercoaster of emotions, which makes for a memorable issue.

What’s not so great about G.O.D.S. #5? All the momentum and energy built up over the previous two issues suddenly comes to a screeching halt for what amounts to a character development issue where we learn Mia will never be more than a nominal magic user. Okay. That’s fine, I suppose, but there are ways that revelation could have been born out during the growing conflict with the In-Betweener. I’m a firm believer in the notion that every issue needs to count, but so far, Hickman seems content to stop, start, and meander, which isn’t good for the reader’s wallet or goodwill.

How’s the art? Valerio Schiti continually proves to be a good choice for this series. He creates grounded characters when needed and adds a flare of whimsy in the costumes and settings to tease the presence of magic in everyday scenes, which lets the readers in on the secret. Good stuff.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

G.O.D.S. #5 puts the brakes on the In-Betweener’s reality-destroying plans for Wyn and Mia to make a magical errand. Mia’s character growth is the highlight of this series, and the rollercoaster of emotions she experiences in this issue is thoroughly engaging, but Hickman’s lackadaisical plot development is starting to wear thin.