Alpha Gods is a free, online Original Graphic Novel, brought to you by Orang Utan Comics Studios. So far, two 28 page volumes of the book have been published, and can be viewed for free at Myebook.

Alpha Gods is written by Ian Sharman, with art by Ezequiel Pineda, and coloured by Mauro Barbosa. The series is action packed; however, the focus is not on the action itself, but on the characters and how they react to the situations they find themselves in. One of the overarching themes of the first story arc is betrayal, and how this affects the leader of the group, Paladin.

Alpha Gods is set in the year 2086, a time when a new breed on humans has emerged, called Extra Humans. Extra Humans is a catch all term for anyone with “super powers”, or mutations that give them supernatural powers etc. The rest of humanity began to panic when Extra Humans first emerged, so in 2050 the Department for Extra Human Affairs (DEHA) was founded, with the remit of containing the problem. By 2086 the tensions between Humans and Extra Humans has escalated to flash point, so the DEHA has formed a team, composed of Extra Humans, tasked with policing the Extra Human community. This team is called the Alpha Gods.
Now, I’m not afraid to admit it, but I do love a good superhero story. I know that it’ll spoil my “street cred” a bit, but there is just something fascinating and larger-than-life about a good solid superhero title. The problem is, nowadays we have seen so many iterations of the same iconic characters that it is hard to create something new without borrowing a little something here and there. However, Alpha Gods is a different case entirely. Ian Sharman and Co. have actually managed to create something fresh and original here, and still stay within the realms of mainstream comic books. That is to say, this isn’t a parody, or a dark take on the genre, but a good classic superhero team book, which doesn’t fall into the pitfalls of cliché that so many others do.

Part of Alpha Gods‘ originality comes from the fact that the book mixes several genres into one nice neat package. The book takes superheroes and puts them into a dystopian futuristic environment, where they are hated because of their differences. I guess the book is a little bit like some X-Men tales in this respect, in that the heroes are treated as something to be feared, and not revered. Along with these action, superhero and sci-fi elements, the book also includes some supernatural, and magical elements as part of its setting. The main threat in the book is an ancient evil named Malak. Malak is a Nephlim, an ancient race of half-angels that was spawned when fallen angels left Heaven and came to earth to enjoy the pleasures of Earthly flesh. Malak’s mission on Earth is to open a gateway to allow his “Fathers” through to our World, and then for them to reek havoc upon the Earth. The only real barrier to him attaining this goal is the DEHAs Alpha Gods strike force.

As the story opens, our ragtag team of Extra Humans knows nothing of this plot. As their first mission, they are investigating a rumour that experiments are being conducted on Extra Humans. The team manages to track the roots of this rumour back to a company called ‘Nephlim Enterprises’. As the second issue closes, our team prepares a strike on the company, not quite knowing the trouble that they are about to get into.

Alpha Gods is fun, fresh, original, exciting, and action packed. The plot and script by Ian Sharman is well executed and smoothly paced, while the dialogue feels really natural, especially the banter and joshing between the team members. I was also really impressed with Ezequiel Pineda’s artwork on this book, his line work is really vibrant, and his grasp of physique and facial expression makes the characters just pop out of the page. Mauro Barbosa’s use of colour is also really good, and contributes greatly to the moody sci-fi feel of the book.

I was incredibly impressed with Alpha Gods, and if it was available to buy in stores, I would definitely be picking it up. The fact that it is available online for free is just the icing on the cake. That being said, Orang Utan Comics Studios does plan to release a print TPB of the first two issue arc at some point in the future, so make sure to look out for that. So, head on over to Myebook and read the first two issues now! Orang Utan plan to keep releasing further installments on a bimonthly basis, so there is plenty more story to follow!

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