It’s no understatement to say that Neil Gaiman is a titan of the comic industry. While his work such as the far ahead of its time Sandman has been popular for some time, it’s only recently been seeing mainstream attention, and that’s certainly been the case for his breakout novel, American Gods. Though the novel’s T.V. adaptation has been marred by production problems and controversy, Dark Horse Comics has been releasing a graphic novel adaptation of the novel that has the seal of approval from Gaiman himself, and in September, the completed series will finally be released in one package.
American Gods tells the story of a man named Shadow Moon. After spending years in jail, Shadow is released into the world only to find his wife dead and his life in shambles. Life on the outside starts to become interesting for Shadow though a chance encounter with the enigmatic Mr. Wednesday leads Shadow to become the old man’s bodyguard. But Shadow quickly learns that nothing is as it seems as he’s introduced into a world of powerless gods desperate to regain their power.
Releasing in September, The Complete American Gods contains all three graphic novels that make up the series, Shadows, My Ainsel, and The Moment of the Storm. Adapted for the page by writer P. Craig Russel, artist Scott Hampton, covers by David Mack, and a variety of other artists with supervision by Gaiman, the comic adaptation’s first volume released in 2018 with its last volume arriving in 2020.
Fans of the original novel have good reason to be excited for the comic, as it is a faithful adaptation that mostly retains the dialogue and narration of its source material. While the plot is much the same, the graphic novel’s visuals make this a worthy addition to any comic fan’s collection. The abstract imagery of the novel’s wilder scenes is here rendered in a beautiful water-color that gives these scenes a whole new life. The graphic novel’s faithful adaptation stands in stark contrast to the book’s infamous T.V. adaptation by Starz, which has been known for its production troubles.
Regardless of if readers have read Gaiman’s original book or not though, the comic serves as a fantastic way to experience the story of American Gods. This new collected edition is an absolute behemoth, as the three combined volumes come to a total of 720 pages, meaning that none of the source material’s detail is lost in adaptation. Look for The Complete American Gods when Dark Horse releases it on September 14th, 2021 for $124.99.
