Annotations of THE WICKED AND THE DIVINE # 13
In the early 2010s, Image comics began one of its most prolific, critically acclaimed, and high selling eras since its founding. High-profile creators began beloved series like SAGA, BLACK SCIENCE, DEADLY CLASS, EAST OF WEST, SEX CRIMINALS, BITCH PLANET, and more. One of those series was THE WICKED + THE DIVINE, from writer Kieron Gillen, artist Jamie McKelvie, colorist Matt Wilson, and letterer Clayton Cowles. It was one of the first series I got into during college, when I actually had money to spend for myself.
This year marks the 10-year anniversary of its publication, and I wanted to commemorate my love of this series with a gift only I could provide: too many words. I’ll be annotating the entire series with the end in mind, so SPOILERS WILL FOLLOW. You can show your appreciation for this hard work and get me to write more consistently by supporting me on Patreon or giving me a one-time tip here. In issue 13, the second issue in volume 3 aka “Commercial Suicide,” Tara performs for Ananke. Yup, it’s that one.
Corrections and Addenda from last week
As Cathal points out on Bluesky, I mistakenly said that the “Videogames” backups were collected in the SPECIALS trade, “Old is the New New,” when they are simply all in the back of vol 3. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.
Solicitation
There’s one god missing in our story. It’s time to finally meet Tara, Goddess of God-knows. Also, meet TULA LOTAY (SUPREME: BLUE ROSE) who joins Team WicDiv as the second guest artist in our Eisner Nominated Series. We had to mention the Eisner nom. We are shameless.
This does nothing to prepare you for this issue. They aren’t shameless only in their bragging, I see.
Covers
A Cover – Jamie McKelvie Tara
Continuing the centered circle theme really works for this issue. It allows McKelvie to highlight Tara’s body, the way so many people in-universe do, without feeling leering. It also cuts off most of her face, specifically her eyes. You don’t have to believe they are the window to the soul to know that looking someone in the eyes is a way of seeing them for who they are, a sign of mutual respect. Tara is just a body. It also of course foreshadows the ending. Less subtly, it is also how the cameraman in the Videogames short frames her.
I guess this is where I have to do my best to explain Tara. This is difficult, as there are multiple different Taras in various mythological pantheons and the Tara in universe doesn’t know which one she is. Further, many of the Taras are in the most ancient of religions, that conglomeration we shorthand as Hinduism. The very word “Hindu” is not how native practitioners would describe themselves, but a geographic term developed from the words used by various West Asian cultures to describe the land beyond the Indus river. It is only when Europe colonizes the land that their diverse religious practices became collective known as “Hinduism” and the practitioners “Hindus”. It then became adopted as an identity by nationalists who opposed both Muslim and Christian rule. All that being said, it is a diverse set of interrelated but often distinct religious traditions and thus even Taras that are the same Tara have multiple different traditions.
I’m going to start with the Hindu goddess Tara mentioned in the PADMA PURANA, one of the 18 Major Puranas. These are major source texts for many Hindu traditions. This one mentions the Tarakmaya war, one engagement in the series of wars between different classes of Hindu deity, the devas and the asuras. Tara, the wife of Brihaspati the god of fire associated with the planet we call Jupiter, was kidnapped by Chandra also known as Soma, the god of the moon. In some versions this is because Brihaspati was neglecting Tara, in others because of Brihaspati’s own extramarital affair, and other simply because of Chandra’s arrogance. The devas allied with Brihaspati and the asuras Chandra. After many deaths, Brahma, the creator god, intervenes for peace, though sometimes it is Shiva who is the peacemaker. In due course, Tara gave birth to a son named Budha, associated with the planet we call Mercury. Under pressure, Tara admits that Chandra is the father.
The second Tara is a big one. Her story is found in the epic RAMAYANA, equal in importance only to the MAHABHARATA. Naturally, this story covers the life of Rama, incarnation of the god Vishnu. Here, Tara is the Queen of the vanara, a race of intelligent monkeys, apes, or forest people. In some versions, she is the daughter of a vanara physician, in others she is the daughter of Brihaspati, and still others she was born of the churning ocean. Her husband the king is Vali, but she is sometimes in a polyandrous relationship with the king’s brother Sugriva, or to have been Sugriva’s wife that Vali stole. Keeping track so far? It’s about to fold in on itself.
King Vali goes to fight a demon Mayavi in a cave. After a year of fighting, his brother Sugriva is lead to believe Vali is dead, at which point he claims the throne and Tara for himself. When Vali returns, he retakes his throne and Tara, exiles Sugriva, and also takes Sugriva’s wife Ruma. You may be wondering, “I thought this story was about Rama?” It is. Rama and his brother Lakshmana form an alliance with Sugriva to defeat Vali, and in return Sugriva will help Rama find his consort Sita. Tara warns Vali and urges him to seek diplomatic solutions, but he ignores her. Rama is able to kill Vali with his arrows, thus allowing Sugriva to retake the throne, his wife, and his ex who is also his brother’s wife. Tara gives a famous lament for Vali, in some versions even cursing Rama by the power of her chastity, before accepting her marriage to Sugriva.
As a coda, Sugriva forgets his promise to Rama. Rama’s brother Lakshmana threatens to destroy his city in retaliation. It is only the intervention of Tara that is able to calm him down. She is regarded as a great woman, honored even in contemporary daily prayers as a wise and devoted wife.
The third Tara comes from the Shaktism and Shaivism traditions of Hinduism. There, she is the second of ten Tantric goddesses known as the Mahavidya. Visually, she is very similar in depiction to the first goddess, Kali, as both are blue-skinned with four arms. The main difference is that Tara, unlike Kali, is depicted with a bulging belly, given her associations with motherhood. It is through this association that she is tied to the supreme deity of Shaktism, the goddess Mahadevi, of whom it is said all other deities are simply manifestations. She is the mother of Shiva and a guide who offers ultimate knowledge. If I had to guess, I think this is the most likely Tara that is incarnated in THE WICKED + THE DIVINE.
The last of the major Taras comes from the Buddhist tradition. This Tara is in fact a female Buddha, a word meaning “enlightened/awakened one”. Here, her name is often translated as “savioress” or “rescuer,” though it more literally means “crossing star” like a planet. Here she also retains some motherly iconography from Shaktism, being known as the “Mother of all Buddhas,” though in this instance it is a bit more metaphorical. She is worshipped in many countries in South, Southeast, and East Asia.
Tara also comes in many colors, each seeming to be a different manifestation. Dark green is apparently the ultimate color and her most beneficial form. White Tara heals and purifies, Red Tara helps achieve power and control, and Blue is a destructive force. In Tibetan Buddhism, there are a total of twenty-one forms of Tara, but in Tara Tantra, only nine.
In some versions, she is born from the tears of a bodhisattva, a person on the path to enlightenment. In other stories, she lives on a different planet and, in response to monks who told her she should hope to be reborn as a male to achieve enlightenment in the next life, responds that gender is no barrier to enlightenment and is only reincarnated as women from then on. Her association with planets and thus navigation, she is a protector of caravans. She is associated with the lotus.
Look, I can just summarize the Wikipedia for all the different manifestation of Buddhist Tara, but here are so many. Just read it yourself if you are curious.
For completions sake, there are a few other minor Taras. Tara is the name of one of the Hesperides, nymphs of the sunset. Given her time of death, Tara could be drawing from this. Influenced by the Hindu Tara, the Tagalog goddess Tala used constellations to guide sailors at night. Taara is an Estonian god comprable to Thor. Terra is the Roman personification of Earth, though you probably knew that. I think I’ve done enough for now.
B Cover – Tula Lotay’s Tara
As Gillen puts it in his writer notes, “if one cover is about Tara as a body, this is her face.” It can be read many ways, but it definitely seems sad, in an almost accusatory manner. To me, it also reminds me of THE FALLEN ANGEL, a painting by Alexandre Cabanel.
Behind the scenes on Tula Lotay’s cover. Apparently, the original plan was Tara on a throne.
Icons
In the physical copy, Morrigan isn’t behind bars. This was corrected for the collected editions.
Page 1
Panel 1
The narrative captions here might be the first time we get them from a character that isn’t Laura. Here, of course, we find out that it is Tara’s suicide note, hence the slightly more handwriting-esque font choice. Aside from containing obvious emotional power, it allows us the reader directly into Tara’s headspace, further enforced by the fact that this page is drawn from her literal point of view. Thus far, Tara has been off page. Our only perception of her is through the eyes of the other characters, perspectives which we find out are very limited. This is of course very much on purpose. The whole “Fucking Tara” line was mimetic and catchy, and now we the reader are implicated in this story.
Page 2
Panel 3
And here is the conflict at the heart of the issue. The fans want “TARA”, not “Tara,” or, as we find out, Aruna.
Page 3
Panel 1
The swirling colors drop out and we just get plain Tara. This isn’t what the fans want.
I think there is an interesting choice being made here – from Tara’s perspective, she is being the most genuine and most herself after she puts on the mask. Most people intuitively assume, on a metaphorical level, the opposite is true. People hide their true personalities and identities behind masks in various social situations. This is akin to the Jungian concept of the persona.
While this is often true, the situation seen here in the book is often just as true – the mask allows us to be our true selves. Consider the masked ball in Stanley Kubrick’s EYES WIDE SHUT. There, the anonymity of the mask allowed people to engage in depraved behavior they couldn’t in normal society. For a positive example, observe how many people find comfort in claiming an identity affiliation for themselves.
Whether sexuality, race, gender, neurodivergence, ability, religion, or even more frivolous identities like fandoms, labeling oneself is a mask one puts on in order to ironically be more free. How I introduce myself (Hello, my name is Stephen, and I’m a -Christian- -autistic- -a comic book fan- just Stephen) affects initial perceptions of me, but in a manner I can control.
Panel 2
“Actual songs” because, contrary to appearances, the gods’s performances in this series aren’t actually musical, but metaphysical.
Page 4
Panel 3
“Do your thing,” Tara is instructed. As we find out this issue, part of the problem is that Tara doesn’t know what her “thing” is, from the literal level of what god in particular she is incarnated as to the abstract why she is doing this.
Page 5
In the extras, we get a behind-the-scenes look at this page. Though the caption doesn’t say, I assume the first column is “flatted” colors, the second column is Tula Lotay’s “color effects,” the third column is the black and white line art, and the fourth column is the Tula Lotay’s final color choices.
Panel 2
This mirrors the B cover that Tula Lotay drew. Tara is being judgmental, but just as much of herself as of her fans.
Page 6
Panel 2
As Gillen notes, catcalling was one of the issues being brought to the forefront by feminists on social media and beyond during this era.
Panel 3
“eleven” really stings, as it should. I don’t know as much about the specific ways English culture reinforces racism, but I do know there is something to non-white women finding themselves often fetishized and sexualized in a way that white women might not be. I could definitely see that being an element with how awfully Tara is treated here, and at young age to boot.
Page 7
Panel 1
A really great small touch from Tula Lotay here is the eyelines of her fellow students. They are all looking downward, both the men and the women, again recalling the cover. No one is looking at her eyes.
Page 8
Panel 1
“It’s not that I didn’t want people to look at me,” is Tara’s hamartia. We find out, at the very end of the series, that she could have given up her godhood at any time. Her conflict lies in wanting the celebrity but also insisting that it be “for the right reasons.”
Panel 3
That motivation is especially difficult when, as she says her, “All motives are ulterior.” She can’t trust that her friends are truly her friends, because there is always the possibility that they are using her. This thought process also rings true to what I hear from various neurodiverse people.
Page 9
Panel 1
Gillen notes that this is the first time we see the godly incarnation from an external point of view. I wonder what these two drunkards think of this happening.
Page 10
Panel 1
How tragic that after being unable to trust anyone’s motives, Tara falls for the manipulations of the series’ arch-villain Ananke.
I think this is the first time in the present we’ve seen skulls demarcate the dead at an actual, physical table. Of course, these can’t be the real skulls of Lucifer and Inanna, because their heads are being held by Ananke and Minerva in some spooky cavern somewhere.
Panel 3
“Stare at this, not me” is Tara accepting that she cannot change people’s objectifying ways and instead is taking control of what she can.
Page 11
Panel 1
“Looking good, girl.” Ugh Woden you’re the worst.
Panel 3
We get some more Baal nicknames! Update the charts. The Norns are “The Cauldron-Clique” and Dionysius is “Party-Starter.” Note also how Baal uses the nickname and passive tense to avoid responsibility. Dio isn’t mad that Baal violently took his anger out on a woman, he’s “angry about the Morrigan.”
Panel 5
This deflection continues with his Morrigan nickname “The Mistress of Mope.” Yeah, I’d be pretty sad if you beat me to a pulp because you were mad at my boyfriend too. Plus, he is metaphorically putting her into a box (the same way he literally put her in a box) and denying the full spectrum of the triple-goddess.
Page 12
Panel 2
Baal continues to deny responsibility for his own actions. Almost as if he’s already done some incredibly dark things like, I don’t know, kill children for the supposed “greater good” and has gotten to the point where he can justify any action he takes.
Panel 3
This causes him to project outwards, by making jokes about Tara being “Princess Perfect” up in her tower.
Panel 5
Tara is tall. And she, channeling Ivan Drago, promises to break Baal. That’s pretty much all I have to say.
Gillen writes that part of her inspiration is Lady Gaga crossed with Taylor Swift, TS’s height specifically inspiring this moment.
Panel 6
I hate Woden bowdlerizing acts of extreme violence as “enthusiasm.”
Page 13
Panel 3
Ananke’s casual “We know you could” to Sakhmet’s “I could eat them” really implies a lot that we are getting for the first time here.
Page 14
Panel 1
I think it is important that Tara even here, with only Ananke whom she trusts and thinks is the only person who cares about her, still wears her mask.
Panel 2
I believe that “Tara-Tara” being refered to here is the Green Tara who is an important figure in some Buddhist schools as being a Buddha herself. This is too confusing for little old me.
Panel 3
I love a panel within a panel. Here, the window panes break up Ananke and Tara, showing that they aren’t as close as Tara might think.
Page 15
Panel 1
As Gillen points out, “Ananke really cares about Tara, definitely, for sures.”
Page 16-17
Just, an awful amount of stuff here. Gillen modeled much of the style of these on real tweets from “Gamergate” and other high-profile instances of online harassment. The effect of reading it on an in-universe iPad adds to the ongoing commentary on fandom and its negative effects. Any one of these in isolation could be hurtful, but it is only via the collision of social media, celebrity, and fandom that this deluge of negativity is made possible.
Page 18
Panel 1
Short of the opening splash, this is the biggest panel we’ve gotten this issue. Further, it’s a closeup. Tara is finally taking off her mask, only to reveal tears. This is what she is hiding from the world. She’s so full of sadness that she doesn’t want to exist anymore. The combination of all of this is that we the readers are hit with a deluge of emotion.
Page 19
Panel 2
Tara is performing to the sunset. Her “day” is ending.
Page 20
Panel 1
“Try to be kinder” is that kind of aphorism that rankles because it is both trite and true. We all, like Baal, find ways to justify our unkindness. Often it is because the person we are being unkind to has crossed some sort of line of moral decency. I’m not saying we need to coddle those who hurt others, but I do think we need to figure out how to deal with them in a kind manner. Once you can justify an exception to the law of universal kindness, you can justify anything.
Panel 3
Signing off with “fucking Tara,” paying off that setup in the most heart-wrenching of ways.
Page 21
Panel 2
Just to make sure you don’t read Ananke as doing some sort of twisted altruistic assisted suicide, her evilness is reinforced. This is all part of her bigger plan.
Page 22
Panel 1
There is a lot in this series about how much of our lives is mediated via technology and social media. The reader knows the truth of Tara’s death, but the world is only told of a Penthouse fire, shaping the narrative exactly to Ananke’s desires.
Page 23
Panel 1
The tweets here are decidedly less hostile than the ones in Tara’s messages. There is something to the way people treat someone better when they are dead, because their personhood is no longer a threat.
Page 25
Add another skull to the circle. 18 August means it’s just shy of two weeks after issue 12.
We here get the full, awful purpose of this arc’s title. I’ve already mentioned Colin Newman’s “Commercial Suicide,” but this title also calls to mind a lot, notably the David Bowie song “Rock and Roll Suicide.”
It also of course draws to mind the many musicians who ended their lives prematurely. Kurt Cobain, Ian Curtis, Michael Hutchence, postdating the series Avicii, Chester Bennington, Chris Cornell, and so many more. This isn’t to mention the many other forms of celebrity and public figure and all of the everyday, ordinary people who did the same. I wish I was a better writer and had something more to say about the phenomenon. All I can really gather myself to say is that it is tragic, and awful, and that they deserved a better world. A more kind world that listened to them more, and was better able to address their needs. I want to live in that better world, and I will do what I can to make it a reality.
Backmatter
Appropriately, things are kept sparse here for maximum impact. Gillen mentions that the comic has been optioned for television development, though we now have the hindsight to know that fell through like the majority of TV does. He highlights the series SUPREME BLUE ROSE that Tula Lotay worked on with Warren Ellis as an example of where to find more of her art.
Page 29
As mentioned, this arc has one-page backups from the original art team. They are called “Videogames,” because they are “a game of video.”
Panel 1
20 March puts this between issues 6 and 7. It is also the date of the London premier of CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER, which this is supposed to be in canon.
Panel 2
This is the one that mimics the A cover. It is also the only line of dialogue Tara gets in this scene.
Panel 3
While I’m not sure if we are to assume that Tara has undergone any surgeries or dietary / workout regimens, they are incredibly popular for Hollywood and all celebrities. Yes, even the ones you think look “natural” probably can just afford higher quality work. It’s probably something that we should destigmatize.
Panel 4
“Missing rib” jokes are a long standing playground rumor attached to various celebrities throughout the generations. It’s quite vulgar so you can look up the punchline yourself if you are curious and don’t know.
Back Cover Quote
“Looking good, girl.” – Woden
BAAAH TO REALLY TWIST THE KNIFE ONE FINAL TIME
And that is the conclusion to my annotation of THE WICKED + THE DIVINE # 12. Did I miss anything in those 3800 words? Are you named Kieron Gillen, Jamie McKelvie, Tula Lotay, Matt Wilson, Clayton Cowles, Hannah Donovan, or Chrissy Williams and would like to correct the record on anything? Comment below! I will issue any corrections in the next annotation and add a note on this one. See you soon for issue # 14
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