After getting canceled by DC Vertigo last month, it seems that “Second Coming” is getting its own second coming. The satirical comic book series by Mark Russell and Richard Pace, which stars Jesus and his superhero roommate, Sunstar, will now be published this summer by AHOY Comics. The first issue of the six-issue series will debut July 10, 2019. Additionally, it was revealed that Andy Troy will color sequences in the comic not colored by Pace.
“Second Coming” ran into trouble this past January when several outlets, including Christian Broadcasting Network and Fox News, reported on what they described as a “blasphemous” portrayal of Jesus Christ. A Citizen Go online petition eventually captured more than 235,000 signatures protesting the comic, leading Russell and Pace to ask DC to pull the series weeks before its scheduled debut in March.
In an interview with The New York Times, Russell explained that he sees the comic as being respectful of Christians’ professed beliefs, but perhaps not all of their actions. “It’s not a satire of Christ so much as it is a satire on how his followers of the last 2,000 years have turned his message of forgiveness and empathy into one of power and domination, which is as un-Christlike as one can possibly imagine.” He went on to explain further in the press release issued by AHOY that he created the series to “re-examine the embedded assumption in all our superhero comics, laws, and institutions of civilization that physical force is the only thing that changes the world. That maybe the good guys are not good simply because they’re better at violence than the bad guys, but maybe because they can imagine ways for people to get along other than bribery and revenge. I suppose ‘Second Coming’ is, like all my comics, ultimately about how our institutions have failed us.”
According to both Russell and Pace, the delay and move between publishers did nothing more than give them time to improve the series. The first issue will now include six extra pages recounting childhood memories from Jesus’s first trip to Earth. The move to AHOY also negated the need for some DC-requested changes, such as less coarse language and adding fig leaves to Adam and Eve.
And AHOY seems more than supportive of the series. Editor in Chief Tom Peyer explained, “We understand that the publication of ‘Second Coming’ will get a strong reaction and we support Mark and Richard’s satiric vision. There are going to be people who don’t want to read ‘Second Coming,’ and that’s fine. It’s not for everyone. But I don’t think it should be controversial to maintain that the rest of us have every right to enjoy it.”
