A review by hflh
Messenger by Paul Tobin

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

5.0

I absolutely adore this webcomic to the ends of the universe and back so I reread it to give it a review that does it justice. 

TL;DR: everything I look for in a comfort read – emphasis on friendship, whacky adventure, fun fellowship vibe, satisfying queer representation! 
 
Summary
Dare Crilley is the best bike messenger in the world. So, naturally, when the universe is doomed to collapse because the gods won’t talk to each other, the gods turn to her for help. Dare must reopen the lines of communication between the gods by delivering messages between them. If she fails, the universe will collapse. 

Dare spends part-time in the whacky and dangerous world of the gods and part-time navigating her personal relationships in and outside of work. This comic does everything right and everything you don’t expect and it’s wholesome, fun, refreshing, surprising, etc. etc. etc.. The art style is also very compelling - unique, fun, and colourful!

Review
This is a whacky, and playful story with a loveable cast of recurring characters. The plot is very fast-paced but there are still tender moments and a running theme of showing up for your friends. 

Because of the fast and action-focused plot, there are time skips and a lot of the relationships develop behind the scenes, but it still feels organic. Also sometimes things felt unrealistic but we’re literally dealing with gods so it didn’t impact my experience. What did impact my experience - sometimes the world-building felt heavy-handed and there are some overdone gags (particularly in the second half) but overall a very entertaining read! 

I usually don’t like books about gods, but I have never been more pleasantly surprised. I usually don’t like love triangles, but this is the only satisfying love triangle I’ve ever read and probably the most satisfying relationship dynamics I’ve seen for a bisexual woman protagonist in a love triangle. I don’t want to spoil any of these things, but check my spoilers section if you want the tea* 

On first read, I rated the whole thing 5 stars; on reread I would rate S1 5 stars and S2 4.5 stars. S2 flounders a bit in the beginning, focusing a more on characters partying and being ridiculous (which worked much better when it was in moderation) and less on a tight plot, but it finds its feet again for a satisfying end. Regardless, I am honouring my first impression rating because these issues didn't bother me. 

*My spoiler loves on the world of the gods and the love triangle:
World of the gods:
These are not your traditional gods. There are gods you’d expect: fire and war gods, nature gods. But, there are also mundane gods like gods of café napkins and internet browsing history. The world they’ve built is a really fun take on gods-among-us stories.


Love triangle:
I also really loved how they handled the relationship between Dare, her girlfriend, and the male god who develops feelings for Dare. In S1, I almost thought Dare’s girlfriend was going to be killed off so Dare could end up with the male god but was very pleased with how it was resolved. In S2, the god confesses his feelings and the comic hints at Dare having some feelings as well but Dare only ever emphasizes how she loves her girlfriend and wants to stay with her and it's clear she has no second thoughts. The god is never jealous, he treats Dare first as a friend, and their story concludes with a healthy friendship and I cannot get enough of it.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings