Gospel

by Will Morris

When opportunity refuses to knock for restless hero Matilde, the devil comes knocking instead. Thrust into action by the hellish arrival, Matilde and storyteller Pitt will quest for renown, the soul of their community and answers to the toughest question of “who am I?” Inspired by the work of Hayao Miyazaki and set in the chaos of King Henry VIII’s reign, GOSPEL is a thrilling fantasy adventure that explores the truth behind the stories we tell. Collects GOSPEL #1-5

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Historical, Fiction, Adventure, Religion

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2022

Reviews

[Hari Conner · Rating 5 out of 5]

just really enjoyed this tbh! Would love to read more grounded historical fiction comics like this - it’s not a flashy ‘end of the world’ type adventure fantasy, but more a contemplative story set around the reformation with flawed, interesting, grounded characters and a solid sense of fun. Reminded me a bit of Pentiment, which I loved. Also, I really liked the weird assassin even though I don't usually vibe with that kind of character. Good one to read all at once in the paperback imo.

[Lucille · Rating 3 out of 5]

C’est très beau, j’adore ce style de dessin aux encrages et contours épais, et couleurs vibrantes qui rendent chaques pages intéressantes. L’histoire m’a moins charmé même si c’était vraiment très sympa, juste pas trop mon genre l’historique !

[Oda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the art. Unfortunately I hated all the characters. Mathilde is a brainwashed narcissist, sure, but Pitt's whining and constant negativity drove me crazy too. And the present day backdrop doesn't quite make sense. Still, great art and an interesting historical time frame.

[Colin Post · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a different kind of comic, a late medieval period historical fantasy dealing with themes of religious freedom and reform. The beautiful, fluid illustration keeps any of this from being ponderous, and I actually would have liked a deeper exploration of these themes. There’s really just a couple conversations in which Matilde and Pitt work out their differences on religion as myth and spectacle versus faith as something that can become embodied (via vernacular scripture!). How the conflict resolves in the final confrontation with the devil and a hammer is clever but a rush to tie up the conflict neatly. The frame story is also super intriguing but not developed at all to make it really meaningful.

[Jack Phoenix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different from anything one will find on comic shelves in all the right ways, this quick piece of imaginative, historical fiction is worth your attention.

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

In 1538, in the town of Rumpstead, there gambols a rambunctious idiot by the name of Matilde. Her high comfort with the meager zealotry left by perforated holy faiths and the adventure crafted by an England at war with itself quickly translates to a presumption of fate only an orphan would admire.

GOSPEL is an awkward but interesting book. Hidden contentedly among the nonsense narrative of a 16th century teenager whose ego and lust for fame override all but her equally outsized religiosity is a quiet conversation about the dangers of overvalued authority and the seduction of outsider freedoms. Matilde is a dreadfully annoying young woman; she tells tall tales, starts fights, can't swing a sword half as good as she claims, and generally causes trouble for everyone; she thinks herself destined for greatness. And yet, beneath the veneer, one finds a girl without parental guardianship, a young woman without purpose, and a person whose maturity and humility have long been stunted by the rigors of her faith.

Matilde plots and plans and connives to make a name for herself. And when one of her plans goes so far awry as to accidentally summon the devil himself to the roads of Rumpstead (or at least, that's what appears to have happened), the girl sets out in search of a legendary weapon that will smite the beast and win her the fame she believes she deserves. Is Rumpstead worth saving? The whiny townspeople? The exhausted judicial authorities? The braggart guild-mistress? The painter who dreams of a life on her own? The storyteller and scribe whose kindness knows no bounds?

The art and coloring give GOSPEL the sly, partly rustic atmosphere of Euro-centric humanity's most liminal and revolutionary point in time. Desecrated monuments of founding explorers. Scrubbed frescoes of patron deities. Raised market houses packed with well-meaning civilians who bicker and pant and curse. This comic also wields beautiful panel details, and at other times, achingly exquisite and blithely patient page compositions. Of the color theory: washed-out yellows and greens indicate the earnestness of forest under watch by enemies, while the nighttime horizon is awash with a somber, reverential, blue-green glow.

Regrettably, much of these details are in service of a too-forced adventure tale. Matilde seeks glory, and she calls upon any and all means of human pride and condescension to do so. Do her actions justify her faith, or is it the other way around? Her best friend, Pitt, seeks a way out of town. Pitt's presumed lover, Jenefer, is fed up with the backwater religiosity that limits her earning potential. And everyone else in Rumpstead is too preoccupied with winning mild political skirmishes to bother with Matilde's aspirations of grandeur. Alas what's an orphan to do?

Remarkable character design and effective coloring ensure GOSPEL is a gorgeous read, but the rogue spontaneity of the book's protagonist makes the story difficult to enjoy. Characters who seek fun for its own sake aren't very entertaining beyond the courage they inspire in others. And even then, once Matilde learns of the true influence of her mischievous ways, and readers earn a taste of legitimate character development, the book ends.

[Max · Rating 3 out of 5]

[3,5 stars]

I had a bit of a hard time getting into this one in the first one or two issues, but it really started hooking me as it progressed and the themes of the story became more clear and well-rounded. The story itself takes a lot of interesting turns in the later issues, with especially the twists in issue 5 resonating a lot. The art did grip me from page 1: the chosen style is gorgeous and very expressive, leaving a good impression from start to finish. Did not grip me 100% on this first read, but I think this one might get better with time and re-reads here and there.

[le_Bolshoy · Rating 2 out of 5]

c’était beau mais j’ai rien compris

[Mariah · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars

Matilde is an adventurer living in a small town in England. Matilde's friend Pitt helps tell her stories and goes on adventures with her. Matilde and Pitt are tasked to find the devil who blew up a church. As such, Matilde and Pitt find themselves in all sorts of peril throughout their journey.

I rarely rate anything one star, but Gospel wasn't for me. I was expecting a King Arthur-style adventure that had elements of Dungeons and Dragons and Fantasy to it. Immediately, I was turned off by issue #1 Matilde manufactured an attack on a church to make herself the star and how she was going to save everyone. It seems that Matilde was set up because the man she hired to start chaos didn't end up blowing up the church, but still Matilde bothered me. She's chaotic and immature in the worst way. I thought things would get better, but each issue felt like a struggle to read. Another confusing element of the story was the panels featuring a woman in the present day interviewing a man who is telling this story. It's odd because I figured this would solely focus on Matilde, but now there's another layer to it. This story felt a bit too all over the place which I didn't like.

The art wasn't bad! I thought it fit into the theme of the book. I think the art couldn't overcome the story.

I am so bummed, but honestly, this book is not for me.

[Rick Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of Miyazaki meets feudal England, Gospel is the story of the clunky and chaotic transition of power from pope to monarch during the reign of Henry VIII. This period was bloody and tumultuous, with many of the English people suffering from both a paradigm shift in dogma but also questioning the meaning of power altogether. Morris does a solid job creating a story that does not feel overly contemporary in its vision, though there are definitely moments of anachronism that might bother some readers. It is a highly fictionalized version of England under Henry VIII, but I do feel that the social upheaval felt by regular folk during this period was presented rather well. Unfortunately, a lot of Gospel is also a pretty dry read with the main character of Matilde also not really being that interesting of a figure to follow. What I did enjoy a fair bit was Morris' cartooning which reminds me a little of Chris Samnee, with his use of heavy lines and creative, yet clean, panel layouts. I haven't checked out anything by Will Morris before, but I'd gladly give future work by him a shot since this was a solid comic overall.

[Popcar2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

For what it's worth I think people are too harsh on Gospel. Yes, it's more of a 3/5 than a 4/5, but it's a pretty entertaining story, much better than the average rating would have you believe.

The story follows Matilda, a narcissist that does nothing but cause trouble and share fake stories of her heroism. She's probably what turns off most people from Gospel, especially since it doesn't feel like she ever gets punished for her actions.

Gospel isn't really a fantasy story. Shocking, considering that's what it's advertised as. Instead, it's a story about the power of legends told through a period piece 1538. There's very little supernatural elements to it, and (mild spoiler) when there is any supernatural aspect, it's implied to not be real since Matilda could be exaggerating what actually happened

The actual adventure is a bit uninspired but the moment-to-moment writing was interesting enough, and the art was great.

[Joel Hansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun, charming story set in 1538 England. Right off the bat, the setting itself is a wonderful canvas to paint the story on. I don't think I've ever read a story set in that time, when the reformation was changing the way church was done, after King wrestled authority away from Pope.

Within that setting, we find the main characters: Matilde is a wannabe Saint. She wants to be an icon, a hero venerated for all time. And Pitt is her scribe, a storyteller extraordinaire. Pitt and Matilde were both abandoned as children and grew up together under the care of Father Nicholas at the church in Rumpstead, England. As the church is quickly becoming more iconoclastic (and as the printed Bible in English is becoming more widespread), these two try to keep the legacy of Christian heroism and the fervency of faith alive. It is a epic quest, but one that feels less epic and more normal. The story bridges the gap between myth and everyday life, and it succeeds on many levels.

[Ανδρέας Μιχαηλίδης · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another 2.5 to which I cede half a star because of the art. This was shaping up to be an amazing series, with the interplay of history, ballad and fiction against the backdrop of religious reform in medieval England. That ticked a lot of boxes for me, more so the demonic boar in the beginning.

And then, the plot goes on to demonstrate that basically everything, and I do mean EVERYTHING is a lie, centered around an unlikable fanatic Christian girl.

Some have said that it gives a sort of Miyazaki feel, but that is in fact the greatest disappointment. Miyazaki always tears down a lie to reveal a more interesting or elevating truth. This comic does the opposite and even then, it does not dare go the distance.

It is very pretty to look at, but it left a bitter taste in my mouth.

[Adam Stone · Rating 2 out of 5]

A mediocre fantasy story about a woman and the power of stories written by a man who makes her stories, which comprise 90% of the story, just a story a man is telling a social worker to avoid being put into a retirement home.

It's far from terrible but there's nothing really memorable about it, either.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This didn't really click for me. The art is great are there are some interesting ideas but the story wasn't quite there. The framing device felt a little underdone, and I felt like it needed to lean harder into the supernatural being a thing or very much not a thing. The twist/payoff sort of undermines the way the story has gone in that regard.

[Mike Jorgensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book, although it takes a little more chewing than I anticipated. Everything flows pretty naturally except the modern-day plotline which gets very little attention yet feels like the linchpin. It is definitely going to get a re-read.

[Djongo Bello · Rating 4 out of 5]

What began as an off-putting blunt lesson on the nature of human storytelling ended as a satisfying full-circle narrative on the need for human imagination to fill in the gaps of memory and experience. Quick and fun read

[someone on the internet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Art style superb and beautiful, however not quite for me? Matilde gets likeable though, characters aren't always forced to be likeable at first.

I liked Pitt, sweet guy

However I... didn't get the end

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

[Szustalke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautifully drawn albeit the plot gets a bit messy at times. It's not a life-changing novel but at the same time it is a very pleasant afternoon read. Bonus for creating memorable characters.

[Pedro Mendes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty damn enjoyable, I was surprised as to how much it made me feel good.
Awesome book, deserves more praise!

[Bene Vogt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bears no surprises for anybody who has ever seen an episode of SCOOBY DOO, the side plots are nonsensical and the art pretty damn flawed.

[Iselin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Builds up from issue #3, but the dialogues felt rushed and missing.