Oliver Davis reviews Prophet #44…
“An Empire Red-Mother is sent to investigate a fallen Prophet arc.”
Issue 44 marks the antepenultimate (great word) episode of Brandon Graham’s Prophet revival, with The War in Space climaxing next month. The story will continue in a miniseries run, but still – for a comic of this immense beauty – sad times.
Other, more conventional comics might rack up the tension at this point in their grand story arcs, focusing in on the last stages of battle and how all is nearly lost before the epic final encounter. Not Prophet. Instead, Graham tells the story of Red Exmere, an old woman carved out of stone that can project her consciousness into a much younger, pink version of herself. She’s one of “THE GREATEST MINDS OF THE EARTH EMPIRE.” Her existence is ethereal, gliding through the Universe as though in a dream, remembering her unpronounceable love Quomtotuz and listening devotedly to the All Father.
He has sent Exmere to locate one of her sisters, a simple story task anywhere else, but here, in Prophet, the quest is merely a means for lyricism. “WE LISTEN TOGETHER UNTIL THE SONG IS ONLY A DISTANT WHISPER.” “I TRY TO LISTEN: A SOUND LIKE A DISTANT OCEAN.” “I OUTGROW THIS WORLD. THE SYSTEM IS DWARFED BY ME. I AM A RED EMPIRE GOD.” Meanings aside, Graham’s words have a musical quality. They follow each other like notes in a song, or keys on a piano.
Exmere’s journey never stops; she floats through, passing brief observations as she transports across the Cosmos. The lucid structure is reflected in Exmere’s astral state; she is rarely the same size, details come and go.
What everything actually means is similarly abstruse, and interpretations may differ from person to person. For me, the two warring Gods from previous issues have formed a new, much larger entity – their fusing together is the ‘OCEAN’ Exmere can hear and follows. For whom this new entity will benefit in the War in Space remains unclear.
An unconventional penultimate issue from Prophet. Any other way would betray the comic’s fantastical innovations that define it. This, arguably, is one of the most brilliant series of the last five years.
Oliver Davis is one of Flickering Myth’s co-editors. You can follow him on Twitter (@OliDavis).
Originally published May 24, 2014. Updated November 28, 2022.
