Aside from a few rather minor missteps, I can say that Profane has been a compelling series thus far. As much a clever slice of noir as a novel meta-textual experiment, the creative team (writer Peter Milligan, artist Raül Fernandez, and colorist Giada Marchisio) have made Profane a story bigger than its confines. Plus, it was never meta for the sake of it, but rather a way to use these ideas and tropes to delve deeper into the nature of storytelling; the relationship between creator, character, and audience; and the larger value of telling one another these tall tales.
But with issue #5, Profane doesn’t end on nearly the high point I would’ve assumed it was building toward (either creatively or intellectually). But it’s a finale that leaves you feeling nonetheless satisfied and excited.
Variant cover by David Lafuente. Courtesy of BOOM! Studios.
Leading up to isuse #5, Will Profane had been trying to solve the murder of his creator, Spud Coltrane, who was likely killed by Profane’s own arch-rival, Red Glove. As he made his way across our world (aka the Non-Fiction), Profane met a beautiful girl in Lili, nearly got his sponsor Egbert unceremoniously killed, and generally mused about his fictional status and what it all really meant.
Without spoiling too much, Profane #5 does wrap up quite nicely, touching all the points you’d want effectively enough. There’s something of a solid twist involved, but it ultimately works to extend the book’s final concluding point: life ain’t easy for a private dick. But, really, the story gives us a slightly hokey path forward for Profane, who after bucking against his creator, his fictional status, and all the ideas of fate and predetermination those carry, he’s just about writing his own dang story. And, yeah, it feels a little like some Natasha Bedingfield song to an extent, but it’s wholly deserved.
Courtesy of BOOM! Studios.
Profane has been built expertly across the core story, emerging as this man who can clearly see his own life (literally, it’s written down) and he just wants to try something new — regardless of whether it’s better or not. The story, then, has been an extension of that, exploring fiction, storytelling, and all things meta in a way to cut out some of the intellectual tidbits and get to the deep-seated humanity of it all. To say that as much as this book’s intellectual effort in adding to the sustained meta exploration happening in comics, it’s also doing something very, deeply real.
And that’s using stories to figure out who we are, where we’re at collectively, and where we’re going artistically and emotionally as a species. The end of Profane, then, reminds us that deep introspection, self-awareness, and the hope for the unwritten is as human as we can get, and by embracing these ideas/themes, we’re really keeping storytelling as this innately human ability about growing and extending ourselves and our communities.
Courtesy of BOOM! Studios.
It’s another way that Profane is using this meta malarkey in a new and novel way: it’s not about layered storytelling and some abstract demonstration of creative prowess, but rather this profound reminder that all great stories speak to something deep within us (that’s not always so readily accessible). This aspect or function of us that uses stories to understand and decipher people and the outside world, and that by opening up a blank page in front of us, we can realize the best versions of ourselves. Or, at least try and write some kind of story that’s worth a damn.
The issue, then, was the ultimate payoff — not intellectually, but emotionally and spiritually. A salve, if you will, that stories can build our world and bring it light and clarity. As such, the art team did a lot not necessarily to extend those same messages and generally foster something that felt warm and engaging.
Courtesy of BOOM! Studios.
And by “warm and engaging,” I just mean even more great noir action. Profane #5 had lots of standout moments: we got to see more of Profane’s “scrying,” and that furthered a certain metaphysical quality that reminds us of the sheer magic of this world (and contextualizes all the meta stuff in a really novel and efficient way); a shootout toward the end, which was the right kind of cheesy action we needed and a recognition that this story has always brought us along in its meta-ness and storytelling dissection; and, of course, just heaps more emotionality and humanity, letting us connect with these characters in a way that’s always simple, direct, and hugely effective.
In short, Profane #5 was kind of a best-of or sampler platter of this book’s visual feats, a powerful reminder of how you can tell a slightly involved, rather contemplative story like this is you always remember to keep things slick, sexy, and action-packed.
If anything, Profane needs that really cool exterior to reach that humanity. That, as much as the storyline was building toward this deeply human conclusion, it’s the art that kept that baseline moving steady along this whole time. That we connected with Profane from page one because he’s cool and powerful and reminiscent of so many heroes we already love. Or, that the world itself was neat and orderly and endlessly graceful, and it gave us a certain sturdiness even when some of the meta bits started to roll out with increasing heft and intricacy.
Courtesy of BOOM! Studios.
It’s (obviously) in the art where the “magical” aspects play out, and that leaves the story free to be more direct to really bring us in and get to the heart of its exploration of noir, fiction, audience involvement, etc. Ultimately, it was the art where things felt exciting but wholly relatable, and that function always made this sheer gimmickry of Profane feel less like a chore and more like an exciting adventure we were destined to complete. The art has so much life surging outward, and through that all feats of artistry proved possible.
If you’re anything like me, or you had a comparable experience across the book, you’ll leave Profane #5 fully satisfied. Sure, this series could have done more to delve into meta fiction, but did it really have to? Maybe then it would’ve been just another meta title on the pile, and something that showed off its smarts over adding something of substance. At least here, in this context, Profane gave us something hugely important: a story about us and how we’re on the pursuit of a better, more compelling world.
Forget the missteps or anything else — Profane was a great achievement. The End.
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