Issue two ended with the promise of a chance to meet a new god in the Pantheon, Baphomet, and it follows through on that promise. Baphomet’s introduction at the end of the last issue was in the form of a dramatic splash page where he’s back lit by a fiery subway tunnel while holding the severed head of the Morrigan, the god that Laura was trying to meet and speak with about Lucifer’s framing. It’s all very standard “we’re getting this series started, and we’re going to end each issue on a cliffhanger with a bit of pinup art of a new character to keep readers intrigued” stuff (they even do it again at the end of this very issue with Baal). The impression we’re given is that Baphomet is a dangerous character and a potential antagonist. This issue demonstrates that he’s definitely dangerous, but his bad guy schtick is more put on than originally thought.
The cover for this issue is about as serene as you’re going to see the Morrigan. (Cover by Jamie McKelvie & Matt Wilson)
The first clue that this guy is less of a villain and more of an obnoxious trickster comes from his opening act where he tosses the Morrigan head he’s holding at the crowd, and it bursts into declamations about how amazing Baphomet is–in pun form. The bodyless head is certainly grotesque, but the words coming out of its mouth are laughable. “Ultimate decapitation headliner!” is the opening bid on entertaining the crowd, and that pun gets repeated for emphasis with the head finally just saying flat out, “Puns are excellent!” just to make sure everyone understands what’s going on. It’s dark comedy done as a warm up act without any consideration for how the audience might receive a severed head screaming at them without warning.
These are the jokes of someone taking refuge in audacity because sincerity is too painful a thing to practice. (Artwork by Jamie McKelvie, colors by Matt Wilson, letters by Clayton Cowles)
Once you get past the shock value, it becomes clear that Baphomet is trying really hard to project a trollish persona, but the effect is strikingly inelegant. The sense of menace fails to come through except in just how poorly he reads his audience. These folks are in an abandoned subway to experience some intense grimdark existential angst from one god, and this other dude shows up peddling toilet jokes and gore.
Thankfully (or not), the Morrigan quickly makes her appearance with a flurry of ravens that terrorize the crowd. When she reforms, we learn one of the unique things about the Morrigan: unlike the other gods she has multiple aspects depending on her mood. While the black-haired Morrigan is her even-tempered mode, the red-haired Badb appears when Morrigan is angry; given that Baphomet just tried to upstage her without warning, it makes sense that she’d be in a bad mood. The two gods engage in some witty banter that’s mostly just broad bawdy humor about their sex lives, but it’s all dressed up in the elevated diction that this pair seem to favor in comparison with the more plainspoken Pantheon deities that we’ve met so far. Morrigan and Baphomet revel in the artifice of performance, although they seem unaware that their chewing the scenery doesn’t register as delightful for the crowd who are seriously worried they’re about to get caught in a fight between a couple of gods.
The Morrigan also really likes her puns. The tip off that this is all part of the show is the fact that Badb only shoves Baphomet; she’s capable of doing much worse if she’s really angry. (Artwork by Jamie McKelvie, colors by Matt Wilson, letters by Clayton Cowles)
Thankfully (for real this time), Laura decides that she should do something to remind the gods that they’re here to entertain instead of just indulging in whatever private drama they’ve put on display, so she picks up the Morrigan head and pulls a Hamlet (as though this horror show weren’t already ridiculous enough). It’s a silly ploy, but it works to remind the Morrigan that she and Baphomet are scaring their guests and not in a good way. The moment when she acknowledges that they’re being bad actors is reassuring because it gives you a moment of feeling like maybe things won’t get out of control.
Laura looks about as uncomfortable as everyone else in that subway tunnel feel, not least of all because that prop she’s holding is probably made to feel like real flesh and bone. (Artwork by Jamie McKelvie, colors by Matt Wilson, letters by Clayton Cowles)
Yeah, that doesn’t work out.
Because all the back-and-forth was just a precursor to the actual show (and never forget, the gods in this story are doing their most miraculous bits when they’re in the middle of genuine performance), things do get worse. The Morrigan and Baphomet count off a duet that reminds everyone of their unavoidable mortality in a darkness so deep that Laura fears she won’t ever escape it before the police arrive to disperse the crowd. Baphomet gets shot with a rubber bullet and retaliates by setting the police officer who did it on fire, and things just spiral out from there. The Morrigan’s third aspect, Gentle Annie, manifests to heal the burned man, and then Morrigan disappears but not before providing Baphomet with an alibi for the murder of the judge (all that sexy talk wasn’t just part of the show, apparently) and offering to do Laura a favor if she ever needs it.
Aw, Laura. (Artwork by Jamie McKelvie, colors by Matt Wilson, letters by Clayton Cowles)
While the underworld gods give the police the slip (because, seriously, how is it that anyone in this world believes they could apprehend the gods unless they wanted to be caught?) everyone in the crowd gets arrested for their trouble. Laura’s let off with a warning, and we get a silent scene where she argues with her parents about what she’s been up to for the past few months. Her captions overlaid on the panels make it clear what Laura thinks about all of this (she regrets it; she’s frustrated that her parents aren’t harder on her for rebelling; she’s frustrated with herself for these fights never being enough to get her to change her behavior). This is easily the most mundane scene in the issue, and the fact that Laura edits it down to a single page without any further detail about what’s going on in her life outside the Pantheon underlines just how disconnected she feels from everything outside the fantasy world that her fandom exists in. Laura has some stuff going on.
The issue wraps up with a bit of debriefing between Laura and Cassandra about their respective misadventures in investigation. We know how Laura’s trip to see the Morrigan went, and Cassandra asks for all the information Laura has from Lucifer about the Pantheon. It’s a fun way to remind readers about the personalities of the gods that we know of so far, and it provides some drips and drabs of information for future plot threads. The issue closes, having finished its journey into the underworld, with the in-person introduction of Baal, who has a whole different vibe from Baphomet’s “none more goth” attempts at intimidation.
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