Divinity III: Stalinverse #1 –
Valiant Comics
Written by Matt Kindt
Pencils by Trevor Hairsine
Inks by Ryan Winn
Colors by David Baron
Letters by Dave Lanphear
Cover by Jelena Kevic-Djurdjevic
Divinity has always been a solid story for Valiant, but often seems overlooked (in my opinion.) Valiant has their main characters, and we love them, but from the start of the Divinity series you could make an argument that it was in the Top 3 of anything Valiant is putting out. After gaining some press in Divinity II with the inclusion of Vladimir Putin, this unconventional sci-fi space epic is about to take a different turn of sorts. Welcome to the Stalinverse, and the start of Divinity III.
Right when you open this book, you get a great timeline of what has happened in the Stalinverse up to this point, highlighted by key events on different years. That allows you to jump right into the story without needing to have any filler. I will warn about this MINOR SPOILER, just in case this isn’t clear by the cover. You WILL see some of the Valiant characters that you know, but definitely not the way you’ve seen them in the past. Their presence is quite clear, and sets the tone for just how bleak things really are at this point in time in the world. The first issue centers around Colin King (you know that name too), who is tasked with the security of the world and making sure that allies are staying loyal to the Union. We find out a lot about those loyalists, but we also find out more about Colin than expected. His role seems quite clear, and then suddenly, things take a fairly big turn. Maybe it will surprise you, and maybe it won’t, given who we are talking about. There is another player in this story that King pays a visit to towards the end, that may be the key to what happens next. I will not reveal who that is, but if you’ve read Divinity or Divinity II, you will know exactly who it is. It’s where they are and what they say to close out the first issue that proves troubling.
I love Matt Kindt’s work, but there’s just something about the teaming of him and Valiant that I feel brings out the best in him. The way he balances all the different personalities in this book, and the raw emotion of the state of the world, really keeps you drawn in for this entire first issue. Surprises can often be used as a crutch to hide sub-par story telling, but not in this book. Kindt weaves them in as critical moments at critical times in a way that really give them maximum value. Then you add the team of Hairsine and Winn, who really take the mood that Kindt has set and run with it. There’s a particular page where there is a test of loyalty, and the way it is presented is both tragic and incredible. Stepping outside of their comfort zone in this third arc, Divinity is a winner once again. I can’t wait to see how the players interact and how this world continues to change in future issues.
RATING: PULL / BUY