The Last God #5: It Awoke, and Became the World Entire

What a traumatic issue! The Last God #5 hits like a ton of bricks, bringing the cruel realities of this epic turmoil to the forefront by blurring the lines between good and bad.

The Guild Eldritch’s plans finally come to light in this issue, and it’s a devastating reveal for our party in the modern times with Valko taking it particularly hard. But before we get too far into that, this issue does something quite interesting that some may not notice. In issue #5 we see a third timeline introduced! For some, the sheer narrative weight might be too much, but the script manages the delicate balance remarkably well. We travel back eons ago to the makers themselves, those called Gods all starting with Ang Luthia which means simply “The One”. From this, we delve into the rise and fall mythological deities and their children, the beings of today. But we also see the rise of Mol Uhltep from “The Void”. This is an incredibly important piece of history that gives context to the entire overarching narrative in the series.

The history lesson was expansive and quite welcome, but it is a lot to take in. Alongside this foray into the formation of Cain Anuun, we have The Age of Olvargolad setting up Shyf and the necessity for the Shield Wall, then the horrible reveal in The Age Tyrgolad that see’s the Guild’s crimes come to light. It’s a truly magnificent task this team has not only stepped up to, but accomplished with both precision and tact. The intricacy in the interplay of timelines is incredible, and even while writing this review, I’m excited to dive back in and discover all the hidden elements that I’ve missed.

The Last God #5 shows that this is not just another epic high-fantasy story with a dark twist. It’s an expertly plotted and fleshed out world thriving with trials and tribulations that transcend time itself. This has led to a bit of a lack of focus on character-driven developments as explore all this world has to offer, but I do hope we are able to feel these characters out a bit more and connect with them as we enter the back half of the series.

While the plotting and overall writing is excellent, The Last God #5 once more gains traction primarily with it’s out-of-this-world visuals. The sometimes unreal execution by everyone involved in this team helps to create an experience that is just unforgettable. From the expansive backgrounds to the vivid magic and twist of horror, the artwork sets this series apart from the rest with top-notch execution.

If you haven’t read the series up to this point, it might not be the worst idea to jump in here then start back at issue #1 just for the context that this issue brings to the overarching narrative. The Last God impresses in a lot of different aspects, but lore hounds are sure to be digging into this series for a long time to come. With this issue setting up a big change in the dynamics of what is good and bad and how Mol Uhltep can escape the void, it seems the series is only going to get more exciting from here!