Of Gods and Men: 1. The End of the Beginning

Des dieux et des hommes #1

by Jean-Pierre Dionnet, Laurent Theureau (Illustrator)

The world turned upside down in 1929, starting in the United States. As the Great Depression shook the nation, so-called "gods" began to appear along Route 66, and quickly grew in number. With humankind slowly dying out, history then took a different course… This is the story "of gods and men," set in the year 2047.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels

56 pages, ebook

First published July 9, 2013

About the author

see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Pie...

Reviews

[Etienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow that was good! I like the illustrations, very classic style, but it suite the story perfectly. I also like the concept and the story, Gods among men, always a good one, the story is a bit blurry, not so sure where it's going and the origin of it all, but it look promising enough to catch my attention and I will look closely for the next issues!! I'm in!!

Now that I have put my hand on the entire series, at least so far, not sure if it's finish, I will look it up when I read all of them don,t want to risk a spoiler. So I was saying that now that I have the first four volume I decide to reread the first before continuing on with the series. I don't get the low rating this one has on Goodreads! This is crazy work really! Very unique, lot more original from the entire Europe Comic collection. If you like comic and looking out for those weird underground gem, this one is definitely worth reading! Going on vol. 2 right now!

[Dev · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley

I was hoping this would be something similar to American Gods or The Wicked + The Divine, but unfortunately it didn't really deliver. The artwork here is probably the best part. I like the bright colors and the layouts are very pretty as well. The character designs are interesting although also a bit ridiculous at times, but I think it works well overall. However I have no idea what was supposed to be happening with the plot.

I think this is a disconnect between European and American comics because many of the European comics I have read from NetGalley seem to be very very short and do not have what I would call a 'traditional' story structure. This just throws us into the middle of a few random scenes and then expects us to read all the backstory after the fact in some character sheets at the back of the book. Maybe this works for some people but it doesn't work for me.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 2 out of 5]

'Of Gods and Men: 1. The End of the Beginning' by Jean-Pierre Dionnet with illustrations by Laurent Theureau is a graphic novel about the doom of mankind and gods fighting in the sky.

In 1929, coinciding with the Great Depression, new "gods" started showing up along Route 66. It's now 2047 and the book starts with a god called the Lord of the Flies fighting another one called Number 1. After the fight, Lord of the Flies heads home to face the music from his wife (?), but she is consumed by media and visiting the dying human population.

This book looked very cool. The art is definitely in the style of Moebius. Unfortunately, the story starts out confusing and doesn't advance enough to make me want to read more, unless it's for the graphics. We learn nothing about these fighting "gods" or what happened to the humans. There is an afterword that talks about the three godlike characters, but it feels like it fills in the story as an afterthought.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Europe Comics and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Sara Dahaabović · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read almost 1/4 of it, but I didn't enjoy where the story was going, guess it's not my cup of tea...

[Ije the Devourer of Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read the English version of this. I really enjoyed the bright and colourful artwork but I thought the story was thin and it felt like an introduction.

This volume introduces us to the gods who are superior and powerful beings controlling the earth. Humans live in protected areas and they are dying out. This story focuses on conflict between two of the gods. I hope the second volume will develop the story a bit more.

Copy provided by Europe Comics in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Pop Bop · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stylish and Weird

Apparently it's rather boring to be immortal and profoundly powerful. This book, "The End of the Beginning", is the first part of an extended series about the immortal gods who began to appear all over the world in 1929, and then continued to appear in various waves thereafter. They live in self-imposed isolation, for the most part, although they interact occasionally with the dwindling human population around them. This volume follows the Lord of the Flies as he duels, half-heartedly, with No.1, (the first and most powerful god), and then returns home to his partner, Snow Queen.

In terms of story-telling, this felt like a comic that could have been created by Evelyn Waugh or Anthony Powell, about "afternoon men" frittering away the time between the World Wars and aimlessly trying to amuse and/or occupy themselves. And that was probably the point. The dialogue has a precise, formal, clipped, and yet slightly lethargic tone that seems intended to keep the reader at arm's length and unengaged. This seems intentional, since there is a chatty description of the main gods at the end of the book, also written by the author, that is quite personable and good-humored.

At first the effect is sterile and somewhat pretentious, but as you read on you realize that these poor gods, who are neither malicious nor mean nor unpredictable in the that old Greek god sort of way, are just at loose ends and maybe need to drop by Jay Gatsby's for a gin and tonic.

All of this is supported by the art. It is colorful, but the lines are spare and gods always seem to be posed in three-quarter profile, even when they're flying around. Everything is big and empty, which I guess reflects the fact that the gods' lives are big and empty, too.

The upshot is that this volume grew on me, and what the author was doing got more interesting as the book went on. I have absolutely no idea where this is going, (there are other as yet untranslated books), but I'm really curious now to find out.

(Please note that I had a chance to read a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

[Elia · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was incredibly confusing. Here is what I gathered:
There are all these super heroes on earth in the distant future but they all call themselves Gods. Humans all live in domes and the birth rate is incredibly low so the Gods are pretty sure we'll die out soon.
All the Gods keep talking about being born "on the road" but no one ever explains what that actually means (unless you read the end notes and you learn they are referring to Route 66).
There is one God named #1 who has encased himself in rock to meditate and one called Lord of the Flies who wants to fight him and also controls flies. He has a girlfriend called the Snow Queen. She likes music and has a human friend who just had a baby.

That's pretty much it. Other than the fight between #1 and Flies there is NO story, NO character development and NO reason behind anything.

[Books by Kimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one is a little harder to rate. I was definitely not impressed by the story or the writing. The conversations were really hard to place too - the whole time I was wondering whether the characters were trying to sound tough and heroic or just joking? It was a little cringeworthy. I was also confused about the starting point.. it feels like volume 4 or 5 in a story where a lot of epic events has already taken place.
HOWEVER, I loved the artwork! It's everything I want in a comic - vibrant, a little rough and with deep colors. I'm also intrigued by the world since there wasn't much info about who's who and what's what.. definitely want to know more.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this copy.

[Vittorio Rainone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Non è la prima volta che si esplora il rapporto fra divinità ed esseri umani. Ma qui si vede l'esperienza di uno dei creatori di Metal Hurlant. L'assimilazione del concetto di storia, ancor prima della tematica fantascientifica. Dionnet ci parla di un'inspiegabile proliferazione di divinità, tutte nate sulla route 66 nel 1929. C'è il numero 1, che nessuno sente il bisogno di chiamare diversamente: il più potente di tutti, poi ci sono quelli della prima ondata, i 66 che nacquero insieme, quindi le ondate successive. Gli dei sono esseri che vivono le loro esistenze guardando il mondo dall'alto, vagando e intervenendo quando più gli aggrada. Dei e Uomini restituisce la grandezza di queste creature e la distanza dalle preoccupazioni dei mortali, si apre con uno scontro impossibile fra signore delle mosche e numero 1, e percepiamo il gioco più che la lotta, e capiamo che l'esito nn può essere la morte, fra immortali. Nella seconda parte assistiamo allo scontro fra Lilith, autoprovclamatasi divinità, e la signora della notte, che volteggia per il mondo circondandosi di tenebra. I personaggi non hanno vincoli di necessità e sembrano muoversi come in un costante balletto di cui sono coreografi. E' bello guardarli, e bellissimi sono i disegni, che sia l'austero Thereau a tracciare distese desolate, o il tratto pop di Baldazzini ad arrotondare i corpi, o infine i corpi spigolosi e nervosi di Mastantuono a donarci lo spiraglio di uno scampolo di vita comune, quando la divinità si abbassa verso l'uomo e capisce che non può davvero pensare a un'interazione.

[April Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I was just basing this review on the artwork, I'd give it 5 stars, it's freakin' gorgeous. The story is vague and confusing, there's some male posturing with a couple of gods fighting each other in the sky, the back story is just barely hinted at- this is set in the future, humanity is dying out, there are gods/superheroes/mutants who seem to be immortal, then the fight ends and everybody goes home. The Lord of the Flies (one of the two fighting gods, who can control any type of fly- super random superpower) goes with his wife, The Snow Queen, to visit her human friend, who's just had a baby. The humans apparently live in domes that the gods don't go into- no explanation why. There are so many odd, disjointed details floating around, with no explanation within the story, then it just ends. This feels like an introduction, and really should be followed by more chapters to fill in what's going on. There are brief character bios about the three main characters at the end that give a little insight, but I really wish there was more actual story to this. It seems promising, like something interesting could happen and throw some conflict into the mix; we'll see, I guess. That artwork, though....totally swoonworthy! I'd buy the next installment just to look at the pretty pictures!

[Vivienne · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Of Gods and Men: 1. The End of the Beginning’ is written by Jean-Pierre Dionnet with art by Laurent Theureau. It was published by Europe Comics in May 2019 and translated from the French by Joseph Laredo.

I originally accessed it via NetGalley but accidentally failed to download before its archive date. However, I recently bought it when it was on sale and so now able to give feedback.

From publishers: “The world turned upside down in 1929, starting in the United States. As the Great Depression shook the nation, so-called "gods" began to appear along Route 66, and quickly grew in number. With humankind slowly dying out, history then took a different course… This is the story "of gods and men," set in the year 2047.”

This is the first in a four volume series and plunges us into the action from the opening in the form of a duel between two gods: the Lord of the Flies and Number One. Later in the story we are introduced to the Snow Queen, the elegant goddess who features on the cover. The final section provides background on these three gods.

I felt that the art work was extraordinary. At 56 pages it is a quite short graphic novel, though I found it an intriguing opening and will be interested in seeing where the story goes in future volumes.

[Dr. Siobhán · Rating 2 out of 5]

*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for the free comic!*

"Of Gods and Men" had so much potential and yet it did so little. Gods are once more walking destroyed earth, humans are not faring well as birth rates have gone down.

This super super short first part of the story does not explain anything, it's just a very random conflict without any background information. It annoyed me a lot. Especially after finding the explanation for everything in the descriptions in the end.

Cool panels, great ideas, yet this first part is just weird and confusing. Sorry.

2 Stars

[Ileana Renfroe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Description
The world turned upside down in 1929, starting in the United States. As the Great Depression shook the nation, so-called "gods" began to appear along Route 66, and quickly grew in number. With humankind slowly dying out, history then took a different course… This is the story "of gods and men," set in the year 2047.

MY REVIEW:
The comic and graphic novel Of Gods and Men was a bit of a disappointment. I expected a bit of a longer story. Also, the flow was not something I could ignore. The potential is there, it just needs some work.

I received this book for free in exchange for my honest opinion.

[CJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting teaser. It was reminiscent of comics from the 80s/90s like Astro City, Squadron Supreme and Watchmen. Has piqued my curiosity enough to pick up the next issue.

Recommended for fans of Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely and Alan Moore.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the artwork was quite good, you're thrown into the middle of a confusing story that's only somewhat explained by reading the one-page character sheets at the back. That's not how I want to read my comics. The actual comic should tell the story, not these one page character write ups that you threw in the back.

[Theediscerning · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of the biggest piles of pathetic, druggy claptrap I've ever had the misfortune to download. Gaudy, nonsensical, and seemingly created by people who have never seen a narrative form before in their lives.

[Richard Joya · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find it ironic that it is set in the USA because this is very French. You can tell the creative team behind it loved Moebius, I don't blame them.

[Oliver Clarke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review copy from NetGalley - this review first appeared on scifiandscary.com
This is one of those books that’s hard to review in that I liked it for reasons I’m not sure I can define. It’s a French comic that is incredibly confusing even by the standards of French comics. I kind of thought I knew what was going on in it until I read the synopsis and realised that I’d got it completely wrong. You can read the official version above, may take on it is as follows.
It’s set in a future America where some bad shit has obviously gone down. There are these random superhero type dudes who battle against each other. It feels a bit like one of the later issues of ‘Watchmen’ but with none of the build up. As a result, it’s disorientating, and it does little to help the reader find their feet. I spent much of the story scratching my head. Actually, saying there is a story at all is a bit of an exaggeration, it’s basically just people in spandex posing and fighting. Oh, and spouting weird macho dialogue, too.
But, and it’s a but of such epic proportions that Sir Mixalot would be fully into it, the artwork is freaking great. It manages to be polished and rough at the same time. It’s almost perfect, but you can see every pen stroke. Best of all, it’s packed with a vibrancy and kinetic energy that really leaps off the page. There are a couple of really great set piece pages too, I won’t tell you more than that because spoilers, but they work brilliantly.
So like I said, a hard one to review. There’s a lot that is pretty bad about this book, but a lot that is great. It’s bewildering, but memorable, and it left me wanting to know more about the world its set in.