We had to wait a while for the latest issue of The Goddamned, one of my favorite series running. The wait, again, was worth it as Jason Aaron and R.M. Guéra manage to keep the storytelling and rich theological/spiritual themes at a high level.
You can read our coverage of the first three issues here, here, and here. In the latest issue of “Before the Flood,” the stalwarts of Cain and Noah finally collide. Cain rejoices over the possibility of death at the hands of a Nephilim, and their one-sided battle is one of the more disturbing sequences in the series so far. But as Noah takes over and punishes Cain for his wickedness and other humans for having “gone in the way of Cain” (Jude 1:11), the first murderer has a change of heart, which will likely shift the narrative moving forward.
The Goddamned continues to be the best kind of adult Sunday school lesson with it’s daring take on all-too-familiar biblical stories and characters. More than previous issues, in this week’s release, writer Aaron forces us to reconsider Noah, particularly the ways in which his divine calling impacts his psyche and ego. Cain continues to show us that there are fates worse than death and that when such fates are divinely ordained, God’s character should be called into question.
The twist–without giving it away–adds a bit of heart and human emotion to the proceedings, which, until now, have been grotesquely bleak. I’m eager to see where Aaron takes Cain in the next issue and how Guéra will visualize that journey for us.
All issues of The Goddamned are available in print at your local comic book store or digitally from Comixology.