It”s a good time to be a fan of Neil Gaiman and mythology. First, fans found out Starz is bringing Gaiman”s novel American Gods to the small screen early next year. And now we”ve discovered there is a brand new version of this complex universe coming from Gaiman himself!
Collaborating with Dark Horse Comics, writer P. Craig Russell, and artist Scott Hampton, Gaiman will co-write a 27 issue run of American Gods spread over three complete story arcs. Russell has worked with Gaiman before on The Sandman: The Dream Hunters and the graphic novel adaption of Coraline. Hampton”s art on the Mike Carey miniseries Sandman Presents: Lucifer is a good indication that American Gods will capture the eerie surrealism inherent to Gaiman”s supernatural world.
First released in 2001, the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novel has so many fantastical visual elements that I personally can”t wait to see them in comic book form. From Shadow Moon”s first encounter with Mr. Wednesday to the funeral home run by ancient Egyptian Gods in Illinois to subplots involving ancient history or the arrival of pixies in America, the book is overflowing with eye-catching imagery.
Image Credit: Dark Horse Comics
From the press release:
“American Gods: Shadows #1 finds Shadow Moon released from jail only to discover his wife has died. Broken and uncertain about his future, Shadow Moon meets the mysterious Mr. Wednesday, who employs him to serve as his bodyguard. This fateful decision thrusts Shadow into a deadly supernatural world where ghosts of the past come back from the dead, and a brewing war between old and new gods hits a boiling point.”
The first issue of American Gods: Shadows goes on sale wherever comic books are sold March 15, 2017.