The origin of the Gods and Ananke’s role in it is revealed in The Wicked + The Divine #43, by writer Kieron Gillen, artist Jamie McKelvie, colorist Matthew Wilson, and letter Clayton Cowles. This issue blows the whole thing wide open, giving readers the answers they’ve been craving and ending with a completely unexpected bombshell.

The Gods attack Valhalla, sweeping aside Ananke/Minerva’s best-laid plans and forces. They confront her, and she tells them the story of how all of this started and her role in it. As the Gods realize the extent to which they’ve been manipulated, one of them decides that she’s not done yet.

Short summary, eh? To be honest, it’s tough to summarize this one or even talk about the most significant part of it because of spoilers. Suffice it to say, readers are given the how of the Recurrence, if not the why, and it’s a doozy. T this point in the game, Ananke’s manipulations are nothing new, but the way she manipulated the whole situation for her own benefit is masterful, to say the least. It’s a testament to Gillen’s skill as a writer that he’s able almost to make Ananke/Minerva sympathetic before her story starts in this one. She only has one story, and she’s been telling it over and over for six thousand years. Without Laura’s help, she can’t even tell the story of her own origin, and it’s kind of a poignant moment. It’s the first time readers have ever really seen her as anything but entirely in control of the situation, and it definitely affects.

From there, the Gods realize the truth and act accordingly. Each one gets a few panels to explain why they allowed themselves to get fooled and this sequence is one of those times that the creative sympatico between Gillen and McKelvie pays dividends. They’ve been working together for so long that they mesh perfectly and that’s a big deal here, as the story beats slow down, each God getting three panels, two with illustrations and one black panel, to explain why they allowed themselves to believe Ananke’s lies.

Beyond that, on the art side, there’s a beautiful splash page action scene. It’s one of the highlights of the book, but the biggest highlight is the coloring in the flashback scene. Matthew Wilson works with a wide range of palettes in this issue, but for the flashback, he gives the whole thing a very smoky, almost firelit effect that sells the antiquity of the sequence and gives it a feel like an ancient fireside tale, which is what it is.

The Wicked + The Divine #43 gives readers the answers they’ve been waiting for. It’s a masterfully crafted issue. It lays out the reasoning behind the Recurrence and offers readers a glimpse of Ananke’s greatest trick. It takes what could have been a big fight issue and makes it something more and tops it all off with an ending that fits perfectly with what we know of the character who instigates it. With two issues left, this books shows that it can still surprise readers.

Grade: A