The Forgotten Divine Review

 

The Forgotten Divine Review

Writer: Mark Russell

Artist: Russ Braun

Colorist: Paul Little

Letterer: Rob Steen

Publisher: Ahoy Comics

Price: See the Kickstarter Page

Release Date: June 9, 2026

 

Rodney Coleman had a good life. Then his marriage fell apart. Still, the military trained him to be an army of one. So, homeless and unemployed, Rodney pitches a tent in the desert and contemplates his life. Where will he find inspiration? And how will he get a new start in life? Let's leap into The Forgotten Divine and see!

 

Story

Each time he visits Doc, the VA counselor offers Rodney guidance. But Doc doesn’t have it all together either. He has also seen his dreams dashed. So, Doc shares stories that his father told him. He speaks about a man who impressed his father during his tour of Vietnam. Yet the question remains for both men: what is the secret of happiness?

 

In The Forgotten Divine, Rodney can't forget his years in Afghanistan. Not only did it mark him physically. But coming back proved a difficult adjustment. Missing out on those early years of his marriage also took a toll. Still, Rodney frames every problem he encounters through the lens of his training as a Master EOD. When his subordinates struggled to defuse explosive ordnance, they came to him. Now, no longer a leader and lacking people who need him, Rodney’s future looks bleak.

 

As Mark Russell ponders the plight of soldiers struggling to adjust to civilian life, he also questions how we define our roles in society. Rodney’s dreams make him wonder if he doesn’t belong for a reason. The visions he sees while asleep make his hours awake feel like a hallucination from which he cannot escape. Yet as Rodney shares his dreams with others, he discovers that when they sleep, they also partake in the same dreams. And like Rodney, these people also believe they receive these special insights for some greater purpose in The Forgotten Divine.

 

Art

Outside a worn strip mall, helium balloons anchored by a sandwich board on a terminal island, and a window sticker alert visitors to a Veterans Administration mental health center. Rodney sits on a folding chair in jeans, a hoodie, and a camouflage jacket. Doc sits behind his desk, enjoying a corndog. As Doc shares his dad's experiences in Saigon, monks sit, clasped hands and crossed legs. Yet as Rodney stares at Doc, his unkempt beard failing to disguise the scar crossing his cheek, Rodney looks anything but Zen.

 

As Paul Little applies bright colors to Russ Braun's art, the browns, yellows, and reds of Earth's desert contrast with a vision of pink, purple, and red foliage outside a domed city. Greens and blues dominate a glimpse inside a secret world, where white-gray aliens behold a giant pink-purple eye. Unlike Rodney, the aliens evoke the monks in Vietnam, as they act in concert, each at one with their community.

 

Rob Steen fills white balloons with black uppercase dialogue, while blue boxes reveal Rodney's thoughts and narration. Other people's off-camera dialogue appears in white narrative boxes, as they give him everything he fears, and yet everything Rodney needs. Thanks to Ahoy Comics and Superfan Promotions for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Once, Rodney felt like he belonged. But over time, everything society promised him became a lie. Still, no one wants to be alone. Mark Russell ponders what gives our lives meaning and how far we will go to defend our beliefs in the sociological science fiction story The Forgotten Divine.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

For a look inside, see my preview of The Forgotten Divine.

 

To support this project, see the Kickstarter page for The Forgotten Divine.