Category Archives: levity

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Brian Cronin on “That Time the Greek Gods Fought Jesus”

Since there may be little immediate scholarly value to this, Sacred and Sequential offers the following without comment (so we’ll use CBR‘s Brian Cronin’s comments from last year on The Godyssey):

The comic opens with Avengelyne having a premonition that Zeus and the Greek gods are upset with Christianity since no one worships the Greek gods any more.

Now do note – this is a DREAM. This did not ACTUALLY happen in the comic. I suspect that that was something that occurred to the creators after the fact, as it seems kind of out of place as “just” a dream, but to be fair, they clearly DO state in the comic that it is a dream. However, as a premonition it is on point as Zeus IS pissed and it is up to Avengelyne and Glory to stop this war between the Greek gods and the angels of heaven before things went too nuts.

…ok, one comment: In 2013, this property was optioned for a movie development.

We now return to incisive, scholarly analysis.

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Review of HOLY F*CKED #1: “Provocation for Provocation’s Sake” [Redux]

HOLY F*CKED #1Earlier this year, I reviewed Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa’s miniseries Holy F*ck. Throughout the run, I consistently found the series to be missing that certain something. The artwork was consistent and the writing delivered several gags that were independently funny without fully meshing with each other. My final verdict was that the series as a whole seemed directionless, almost scattershot. But I also kept wanting more. I find myself in that same situation as fall starts creeping in.

Last week, Marino and Arruda Massa returned with the first issue of Holy F*cked. With that, we are cast once more into the lives of Jesus, Satan, and the nun Maria, who have all found happiness in Los Angeles. Jesus has gotten real big into skateboarding (I am certain that although this hasn’t really been explained, it will eventually play a big role). Jesus and Satan are living together, and pretty early on we find out that the devil is pregnant. For her part, Maria works in a soup kitchen, regaling the homeless with old war stories.

Of course, we know that their bliss can’t last. Anansi, the African spirit that most often takes the form of a spider and is connected with knowledge, overhears the news and reports it to Hercules. Hercules is thirsting for revenge: after Jesus and his cohorts defeated Zeus, Mount Olympus deteriorated from a prosperous, “grand utopian metropolis” to a wasteland. And so, out of rage and jealousy that the man who took away his family is about to start his own, Hercules resolves to murder Jesus Christ. Setting his plan in motion, he goes to Earth and, disguised as Thanatos Kostas (a play on the Greek personification of death and a word meaning roughly “constant”), a newcomer to town who is passionate about charity work, he infiltrates the soup kitchen.

That, more or less, is the story.

Continue reading Review of HOLY F*CKED #1: “Provocation for Provocation’s Sake” [Redux] →

contributors, levity, reviews

Review of HOLY F*CK #4: “…I Still Want to Read It”

HOLY F*CK #3 coverToday  marks the release of the fourth and final part of Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa’s Holy F*ck. The issue brings a high-action conclusion to Jesus, Satan, and the nun Maria’s struggle against Zeus, Isis, and the multi-pantheonic corporation Polydynamis’ attempt to plunge the world into nuclear chaos and feast off the belief they hope this will inspire.

There are three narrative threads running throughout Holy F*ck #4: Jesus’ attempt to stop Polydynamis’ missiles; Satan and Maria’s fighting their way through the diving company board; and Zeus’ attempt to keep his coalition together in the face of this final thrust. This choice of words is not haphazard; without spoiling what seems to be the major gag of the issue, the way Jesus handles the missiles cannot be described in any other way. (Ok, maybe a little spoiler: as a colleague put it, “their title is truth in advertising!”) Meanwhile, his companions blast their way through a small horde of nameless god-grunts before arriving in front of Zeus to effect the series’ final, and somewhat anti-climactic resolution. The whole thing is over too quick, rushing through developments so as to give more room to milk a couple of jokes.

I have reviewed the three previous issues for Sacred and Sequential, and consistently found Holy F*ck to be missing that certain something that would bring me to feel that I’ve really enjoyed it as a whole. The artwork has been consistent and the writing has delivered several independently funny gags that have not fully meshed with each other, making the final product seem directionless, almost scattershot. Still, every issue has managed to keep me wanting to see what happened next. Sadly, I feel that where the series ultimately ends up, with a nod to corny sit-com endings, just isn’t all that satisfying.

Continue reading Review of HOLY F*CK #4: “…I Still Want to Read It” →

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Review of HOLY F*CK #3: “Slouching Toward Satire”

HOLY F*CK #3As something of a rarity in comics publishing, the third issue of Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa’s Holy F*ck hits the stands this week (March 11, 2015), mere days after the previous one. As always, Sacred and Sequential and I were kindly provided with a review copy. Continuing the story of Jesus, Satan, and the nun Maria’s quest to stop Zeus and Isis’ plot to cause nuclear devastation in order to inspire humanity to have faith in them (and a cadre of other old gods who have remained more or less peripheral throughout the series) once more, this issue shows the gods finally get their plan crowdfunded through the website Kickslammer.

Although the plot moves forward at slightly faster clip than in #2, many of the problems I had with the previous two issues remain. Characterization is still rather flat and inconsistent, events are sometimes poorly connected to each other, and things that seem to move the story forward or to develop a character turn out to have little lasting influence. Again, the book is sprinkled with amusing gags. The opening gag this time, for example, giving author credits to Marina and Arruda Massa but crediting God as creator of Jesus and Satan, is a good one. And Jesus’ lengthy muttering about the complexity of the knots with which the hostage Maria has been tied to a pole is my kind of dry. Continue reading Review of HOLY F*CK #3: “Slouching Toward Satire” →

contributors, levity, reviews

Review of HOLY F*CK #2: “Provocation for Provocation’s Sake”

HOLY F*CK #2 coverJust over a month ago, I reviewed Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa’s Holy F*ck #1. Where I landed then was on a note of cautious anticipation, despite not finding the comic book all that entertaining. In spite of my review being arguably negative overall, the creators have kindly turned to Sacred & Sequential and to me for a second review. While I wish I could say that the second issue did more for me, but having read it, I can’t help but feel my earlier anticipation was premature.

Continue reading Review of HOLY F*CK #2: “Provocation for Provocation’s Sake” →