Many religious traditions teach us that deities are eternal, but what happens if God dies? That’s the conceit behind creator Joshua Ross’ wild romp of a graphic novel Divinity Calls Shotgun, on sale next month from Source Point Press. In Divinity Calls Shotgun, the Universe has had 150+ divine movers, with Mitch next up to bat. Problem is, Mitch doesn’t realize he’s been tapped to be the next Supreme Being, and there are several other gods and demons and kaiju that are looking to take advantage of the power vacuum. With no clear leadership, chaos and pandemonium are the order of the day in Heaven and on Earth, and only a team-up between Eternity and a fallen angel can restore order.
I recently spoke with Joshua Ross about the idea behind Divinity Calls Shotgun, the inspiration for the graphic novel, the cosmology of the story, and how his past impacted the story. Divinity Calls Shotgun is hilarious, heavenly fun and combines some of the best components of religious satire without losing its heart.
FreakSugar: Before we get into the comic itself, what can you tell us about the genesis of Divinity Calls Shotgun?
Joshua Ross: Ultimately this book started with just a desire to draw something fun. Divinity Calls Shotgun is a homage to books I’ve grown up reading and some of my biggest influences. A story that channels the philosophical humor of Kevin Smith’s Dogma and Garth Ennis’ Preacher and the fantasy mythology of Mike Mignola’s Hellboy with the artistic madness and ultra violence of Geof Darrow’s Shaolin Cowboy.
I was looking for a new story to illustrate and came across an old unfinished short story my brother, Jon Ross, had written back in college. It was a rough couple pages at most, but it had some really fun random ideas. So, I took his basic themes and started running with it and fleshed out the overall plot, creating Hana and Nyssa, and the road trip through the heavens. When I do my creator owned projects, I feel like it’s sculpting with clay. I tend to work backward and I take a loose concept and just start drawing and let the art speak first. Then, I go back and fill in the dialogue and, with my editor, fill in any cracks. What I was hoping would be a 50 to 100 page story, turned into 200. And in turn, became something so much more than just a wacky violent story. This feels almost like a full circle moment where I was able to draw from childhood inspirations and reflect on ideas now as an adult and I feel like it really became a punchy story with some real weight.
FS: For folks considering picking up the comic, what is the conceit of the book?
JR: The book opens with the knowledge that God is dead. This god. Think of a Santa Clause movie where there’s always a Santa, and only one “real” Santa at a time, but over the course of time there have been many Santas. We’re up to god 158.
Mitch doesn’t realize he’s in line to become the next God. Unfortunately, there are other players in this game as the balance of the Universe is at stake. It’s only been a few days, but without divine guidance and a Lord to take charge, Heaven is overworked and thoughts and prayers are beginning to back up. Ancient deities and demigods clash in a battle for power. Giant kaiju and demonic forces are free to wander across the earth. It’s going to take Eternity taking a human form and a fallen angel to restore order and hopefully reset the balance of the cosmos before all of existence is wiped clean. The unlikely pair embark on a wildly entertaining ride that proves even the machinery of the cosmos can be subject to office politics, poor management, and the occasional desire to sit on a couch eating soup.
FS: Who is Mitch and why is he next in line to be the next God? How does he cope with that responsibility?
JR: Mitch is a nobody. But he’s the nicest guy on the planet. A real Cinderella, this one. The fact that he’s the next god in line is something unexpected and how he copes with it is in major spoiler territory, but I will say, he kinda has a no good rotten day. He’s the nicest guy on Earth, so he takes it all lying down.
FS: What can you tell us about the cosmology of Divinity Calls Shotgun? As both a comic lover and a guy who loves studying religion (it was one of my college majors), this book is my jam. Is there any research that went into writing the book?
JR: I grew up in a pretty religious home and have always had an equal fascination with theology and the universe as a whole. As an 80’s child I was part Satanic Panic and open to scientific theories with NASA space exploration. I took a few theology courses in college and religion as a story class. No matter what, when you bring in any kind of religious ideas, someone is going to be upset. For this book, I overall tried pretty hard to not step on anyone’s toes and stay away from any kind real theological discussions and religious specifics. It’s more of a generic Heaven, Hell, angels, demons, and such and I pull some visual imagery from many places. There are some nostalgic scenes where characters from many essential “universes,” religion, mythologies meet up and reflect on their gods and place in the grand scheme of things. But overall, it’s just a fun created mythology where they all can have a place. When there have been 157 gods, it allows me to say, “Hey, they’re all real at some point.”
FS: I adore the look of the pages I’ve seen so far. The linework fits the tone perfectly. What was the process like designing the look and what’s your collaboration been like with the creative team?
JR: I’ve probably never drawn a book that was more ‘me’ than this story. I pull from multiple influences throughout my life. There are quite a few little easter eggs throughout the book. I started drawing this being inspired by classic renaissance type imagery of God and angels. Looking at old statues and paintings and let it evolve from there. I’ve always been told I have a more “European-style” to my work with influences by Geof Darrow, Moebius, Juanjo Guarnido, and Frank Quitely for example. I wanted to build a world that, with all of its moving parts and mythologies, felt real. Too many fantasy books feel like some teenage boy’s sketch journal of random ‘rad’ ideas. I wanted it to be equally badass and tangible and every character makes sense, to a certain degree. Angel cops wear police uniforms, demon waitresses wear classic diner outfits, and it makes it all feel equally ridiculous and feasible.
Colors were by Colin Johnson, who has colored my last couple books, London After Midnight and RSVP:ESP. He’s always a pleasure to work with. We had a good collaboration and he was always game for any color schemes and ideas I gave him. We came up with a basic color theory to compliment my art style and some of the insane battle scenes towards the end of the book and he provided essentially flat pages and I added any final details and textures if needed. I think we nailed something that looks modern and classic that fits this story perfectly.
FS: Do you have any kaiju- or religion/mythology-centric stories?
JR: The giant cigar smoking kaiju ‘Frank’ scene is amongst my favorite in the book. A moment of reflection from a creature that has lived a millennium and, while being a creature of chaos and destruction, has learned to love humanity and, in turn, causes more chaos and destruction. And there are plenty of conversations explaining the mechanics of the collected mythologies, whether it’s reflected nostalgia or inner workings of the politics behind it all to build its own mythology.
FS: What are you reading right now?
JR: I have a whole self of books I’m trying to catch up on. I tend to read a lot of indie books, but here’s a few recent books: Of course I’m reading the new Hellboy and Shaolin Cowboy books as they release, I can’t stop staring at Drome by Jesse Lonergan, picked up a some collected works of Tony Millionaire’s Sock Monkey, Replay by Jordan Mechner, I Am Going To Be Small by Jeffrey Brown, the first couple issues of Demon Run by Ethan Young, and I recently picked up a full run of Lone Wolf and Cub and am about seven books into that.
FS: If you had a final pitch for the graphic novel, what would it be?
JR: I hope everyone gives it a chance. Divinity Calls Shotgun is hilarious, imaginative, action-packed feast for your eyes and brain alike. One reviewer described it as – “The whole thing feels like somebody took Dogma, Preacher, a monster movie and an Adult Swim fever dream, tossed them into the trunk of a beat-up Crown Vic and drove from Brooklyn to the gates of Heaven with the check-engine light flashing the entire way.” And I feel like that sums it up pretty good.
Divinity Calls Shotgun goes on sale Wednesday, October 7, 2026, from Source Point Press. Final order cutoff for the book is next Monday, September 14, 2026.
From the official description of the book:
A hilarious and action-packed feast for your eyes and brain alike that channels the philosphical humor of DOGMA by Kevin Smith with the artistic madness of SHAOLIN COWBOY by Geof Darrow!
Divinity Calls Shotgun is a 200-page, full-color satirical road trip across Earth and the Heavenly Realms. Delivering a knee to the groin in a gritty adrenaline-fueled book with explosive fight scenes, Divinity Calls Shotgun is full of absurd humor, surprisingly deep existential conversations and encounters with demonic penguins, kaiju, angelic squirrels, and beings older than time itself. Written and illustrated by Joshua Ross (Left Turns, RSVP: E.S.P., London After Midnight).
