American Gods: The Moment of the Storm #1: The Center Cannot Hold

P. Craig Russell has been perfectly steering Neil Gaiman’s script throughout the previous two instalments, and thankfully here is no different. American Gods: The Moment of the Storm picks up right where My Ainsel left off and follows Shadow Moon as he heads into the inevitable war and the closing events of the American Gods narrative. The seamless way he transfers the prose gives credence to his style. And his pedigree is, to my mind anyway, without question. As well as being a perfect complement for Gaiman’s treasured creations. Especially given that they were frequent collaborators on other projects such as Murder Mysteries. As well as the comic adaptation of two Fragile Things short stories, The Problem of Susan and October in the Chair. Much like those adaptations the characters come to life in a way that I feel is totally in keeping with the original source material and it is refreshing to see.
There is a discussion between the protagonists in this issue about the perception of what is the real center of the United States, and their whole argument sums up American Gods in a nutshell, which is transposed here perfectly. Much like the characters of Stardust, Neverwhere, Sandman and the Endless, these personages have some important significance to so many people. Whether it be those who worship them within the confines of the story, or in the minds of us the reader, with people who may or may not have even heard of the legendary writers characters. I personally can’t imagine such a person exists who doesn’t know of his work in some small way, but hey that’s just me. And Russell brings them all to life in such an individual and imaginatively charming way. The fact these entities are not per se the real characters, but beings called into existence by those that worship them basically adds to that charm, as well as underpins the central point of their discussion. And what Nancy says is totally faithful to the narrative and relates to how they exist in the first place. This was true of the novel and it’s nice to see that carried through here to the comic series.
And Russell is also once again joined by the same creative team of the last two instalments, with Scott Hampton returning for the role of interior artist, colorist Jennifer T. Lange, letterer Rick Parker and covers again by Glenn Fabry, who also worked on the adaptation of Neverwhere in 2005. This also gives a seamless quality to the story and ensures that things are on a smooth even keel. The lettering of the narrative is in perfect balance with the art and Parker ensures it in no way encroaches on the imagery it informs. Particularly the dream sequence as Wednesday’s words disintegrate and fade as Shadow wakes.
The pastel colors of Jennifer also lend a muted and subdued air to the story and make it seem almost dreamlike. A state I vaguely associated with the book way back when as well. From the dream of Wednesday and the gloomy sacrificial hanging tree, to the residence where the meeting takes place, each has their own palette and gives each location an identity. The colors leap off the page and especially the bold color of the eyes of certain featured images, which hypnotically draw you right into the panels with an almost photo-realistic feel to them.
The artwork of Scott is particularly sublime, not least the featured images here but throughout the story as a whole. And the visuals are almost exactly how I pictured them when reading the original novel, showing these characters as unobtrusive beings in the ordinary everyday, like they belong with the rest of us. Particularly the surreal journey to the meeting place in a blue VW camper van. Only Gaiman could push this through my suspension of disbelief filter. And he is ably helped by the co-creators of this blissful chapter of such an iconic and significant tome of his vast and poetic library. And to see Glenn Fabry continuing the covers joined by Adam Brown, is comforting and keeping the feel constant from the last two arcs.