Four More Years . . . Or Just 15 Fifteen More Minutes?

The celebrity of Barack Obama during last year's Presidential election enticed the attention of the comic book industry more than any other real world event in history. While I persist that Erik Larsen first used Obama in Savage Dragon, rather naturally since his series has always been set in Chicago, so many other comics exploited the President-elect's likeness that the line between fantasy and reality became blurred -- and just Google old CNN headlines during the Amazing Spider-man cameo ruckus to prove it. Fortunately, DC Comics' avoidance of ties to reality dodged the Obama gravy train, but they still took advantage of the election to explore a corner of their universe oft untouched -- their heroes' politics.

In DC Universe Decisions, when the Justice League endeavors to protect Presidential candidates in the crosshairs of assassination, the media twists their varied public statements into endorsements for the election. The Green Arrow/Green Lantern dynamic established in the "hard travelling heroes" era propels the series, with Superman's tight-lipped perspective billed as a bigger mystery than the killer. In the end, little more is confirmed than the obvious -- that superheroes are both celebrities and vigilantes, so while their opinions are coveted, they're ineffective in their legal hypocrisy -- but at least it was entertaining to watch.

Wedged between Final Crisis and Blackest Night, Decisions hasn't carried much if any weight in the DC Universe, but its parallel to pop culture happenings is still important in our world as the line between politician and celebrity becomes more and more blurry. This Presidents' Day, as Obama still appears in comics if only now as a barbarian (thank you, Larry Hama), the question persists: Which is a more reliable Washington news source, CNN or TMZ? The decision really is yours.

Making a Monkey of Obama!: The Power of the Political Cartoon

As a comic book fan, I often underestimate the importance of the political cartoon. Often placed in the most sophisticated sections of the paper, like "Business" or "Opinion," the political cartoon takes the comic dynamic of word and image interplay and presents to the most general audience ever, and presumably those smart enough to keep up with current events and relevant social dialogue. So, I shouldn't be surprised that a political cartoon has sparked such a fervent debate today.

Consider this piece that appeared in The New York Times.



Yes. I've already showed the piece to a few different people, and they all react the same way. "Oh, it's calling Obama a monkey." I usually don't cry racism in a crowded theater, but, man, this political cartoon is racist! Now, political cartoonists only get one panel a day, and in this twenty-four news cycle world, I know they often try to kill a few birds with one gag. Still, likening the monkey shot in Connecticut for mauling a woman with the President's attempt to stimulate the economy . . . I can't even think of a just comparison that isn't racist!

The Times editor is defending the strip and claiming that outraged parties like Reverend Al Sharpton are merely seeking publicity, which he is, but if the point isn't racism, what is it? That Obama's stimulus package is so stupid, monkeys helped him work on it? Even if the President weren't black, a trait that carries the historical racist comparison to monkeys, this punchline would be weak at best. The cartoonist should've realized that his connection between these stories would pale to the negative impression his strip might have, even unintended. This isn't a grand leap; it's simple algebra. If Monkey = Stimulus Package, and Stimulus Package = President Obama, then Monkey = President Obama. This is common sense.

In a world where Don Imus is fired for say the word "nappy-headed," pop culture's opinion makers and proclaimers need to choose their words wisely. When those words are tied to an image, as in the beloved nature of the comic, the responsibility is doubled. Yeah, yeah -- they just have to live with that monkey on their backs.

Take a Hard Look at Yourself: Hardware #8

"Dead men."

"Rising from their graves."

"Trying to drag me down."

Are these the first three captions of Hardware #8, or President Elect Barack Obama's first thoughts every morning since Wednesday, November 5? After all, every President has had to face the ghosts of the presidency's past, and in these months of transition between George W. Bush's and Barack Obama's terms in office, who knows how many skeletons the good Senator from Illinois has found in the closets of the White House?

Well, the Internet is full of blogs ready and willing to unearth those specters. Actually, it's full of blogs that review comic books, too . . . Anyway, yes, those three captions kick off a haunted issue of Hardware, the inevitable Milestone book I've decided to review in the context of preparing for Obama's anticipated presidency. If Tom Strong taught us about the vulnerability of our reality, and the Seekers showed us subtlety of spirituality, what insight can Hardware offer about black men in positions of power? Simply put, it's like I said . . .

They're haunted.

I've never read Hardware before; in fact, my experience in the Milestone Universe is limited to some select issues of Static Shock and Icon. Near as I can tell, Hardware is a black Iron Man, plain and simple. Brilliant inventor . . . armored alter-ego . . . it's all there on the first page's obligatory origin blurb. This issue, a transition between storylines, I assume, as it seems both tethered to the character's established baggage yet approachable for new readers like me, explores the demons that come with such genius, an aspect of the "self-made armored hero" paradigm firmly established in the mainstream by last summer's blockbuster Iron Man flick. "Woe is me for not using my inventive intellect for good instead of apathy-that-has-led-to-evil sooner! I'll spend the rest of my career in repentance!" The most tender moments in Iron Man, and this entire issue of Hardware -- in a single sentence. No wonder Hollywood never calls.

Seriously, though, writer Dwayne McDuffie uses these twenty-two pages to do what he does best: tell a compelling character-driven story, laced with plenty of societal commentary and action. In Hardware #8, the title character faces the ghosts of his past, from the victims of his superheroic adventures, to the family he forsook to become an inventor, to his mentor-turned-nemesis, to his lost love, to . . . himself. Every episodic encounter boasts a similar theme -- Wake up! -- which, while initially interpreted as a call to integrity, becomes the literal solution when Hardware awakes and realizes the misadventure was a nightmare. McDuffie definitely seizes this opportunity to pull aside the veil on Hardware's inspirations, citing the traditional African trickster tale as the proverbial outline for his armored hero's literary basis. While some might consider this a writer's faux pas, I perceive the move as shedding light on what is to pave the way for what's to come. In the end, Hardware muses, "I can't make up for what I've done. But I can live up to my ideals from now on. I can do better." In other words, some skeletons are best dragged out of the closet so they can finally be buried.

The Obama connection is obvious. First of all, any man, white, black, or green (that's if he's choking at an ambassador's dinner table or something), must face the legacy of his leadership before tackling the role as his own. From the department store manager that inherits a part-time team he didn't hire to the CEO of a corporation facing the realities of America's capitalism and economy, any and every position of authority is burdened some degree of context and challenge that demands sacrifice to be overcome. In the case of the presidency, the concept of collateral damage ranges from firing federal employees to the loss of human life on the battlefield, both of which are ironically equally criticized. How many nightmares will Obama suffer his first year in office? Will they look anything like McDuffie's analysis in Hardware #8?

The comic book medium isn't without similar ghosts. I mentioned McDuffie's "Teenage Negro Ninja Thrashers" pitch a few posts ago -- which is a hilariously biting treatise for Marvel Comics' penchant for jive-talking, skateboarding, young black superheroes. His Milestone line (slated to return to DC continuity soon enough) is essentially the fulfillment of that brief in-office satire, establishing a canon of black heroes with a wide range of nobility and strife -- everything that makes for a fun superhero story. He took his own advice and decided to do better. That's all anybody can do, face to face with the past. The key is one's capacity for honest introspection . . . and I don't think that's something one can learn. The ability to examine oneself . . . should come with one's hardware.

Hardware #8 was published by DC Comics and Milestone Media in October 1993 and was written by Dwayne McDuffie, illustrated by J.J. Birch and Jason Minor, colored by Noelle Giddings, and edited by Steve Dutro.

Seek, and Ye Shall Find: The Seekers #1

Continuing my feeble exercise to explore black comic book heroes in an attempt to understand the idolism around Senator Barack Obama's approaching presidency, I dug up my unread copy of The Seekers #1, acquired for a quarter at Frank & Sons. Judging this issue by its cover (not recommended), The Seekers is a series deliberately targeting black youth, not unlike a title from DC's Milestone Comics, right down to the obligatory skateboard. (If you haven't read Dwayne McDuffie's poignant pitch for Teenage Negro Ninja Thrashers, you can find it at this installment of Comic Book Resources' "Comics Should Be Good.") It even features art from Shawn Martinbrough, a Milestone alumnus whose work I first encountered and appreciated in Detective Comics a few years ago. Alas, I'm saving a legitimate Milestone issue for a near-future review, and, besides, The Seekers has a different target audience in mind.

The Seekers is a . . . gulp . . . religious comic book!

A Comic A Day has only touched the surface of religion in comics, from the comically devout modernization to the harsh, preachy condemnation. Thankfully, The Seekers establishes a third, more likable category: the fun, Bible-driven misadventure. Actually, the cartoon series Superbook and The Flying House really established the fun, Bible-driven misadventure, but The Seekers adapts the concept for a new, definitively more urban generation. In this issue, Jesse discovers an iPod that transports its user to different periods of time. Stashed in Jesse's church by its desperate inventor, the iPod is sought by community icon Steven Dark, a suspicious, sometimes ominously red-eyed man in cahoots with an errand raven. When Jesse's new friend, the issue's token white kid named Brooklyn, needs to research the Revolutionary War, they select a song by Paul Revere and the Raiders to experience the era personally, but when Jesse returns to his bedroom, Brooklyn doesn't. To be continued indeed.

The Seekers is published by Urban Ministries, Inc., a company that describes itself as an African-American Christian publisher, and is just one of four titles in their Guardian Line imprint. Although this issue is laced with overtly religious advertisements, its content is the furthest from preachy a supposedly Christian comic can get, and honestly I rather enjoyed the story, told boldly through Martinbrough's broad, expressive brushstroke. The tale's overarching mythology retains a bit of obligatory spirituality, considering that keepers of the iPod are called seekers and that the kids' first journey takes them to 10 B.C. Galilee, but sugar-coating the message by actually utilizing the comic book medium to its fullest potential makes the pill go down that much easier.

So, what's the Obama connection? Well, you don’t need me to tell you that religion was a critical component of this year’s Presidential election. Speculation about Senator Obama's religious affiliation ran from ardent analysis to conspiratorial craziness, culminating in a statement by Colin Powell that seemed to hush up anyone duly concerned. To paraphrase, Powell said, Senator Obama is not a Muslim, but if he were, so what? Indeed, as if the racial undertones weren’t enough . . .! On a surface level, Powell's inquiry is applicable in any instance of discrimination; for example, recent headlines report that a batch of retired generals are condemned the military’s old "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Basically, they're asking, if some soldiers are gay, so what? In the context of this review, here’s a Christian comic book. So what? A Muslim might make a great President, a gay guy or gal might make a great solider, and a Christian comic might make for a great read.

Of course, while a comic book comes and goes in twenty-two pages and is relatively immaterial in the grand scheme, a President has four long years to mess everything up. Gulp.

On a more spiritual level, The Seekers tells an entertaining story with a religious context, proving that religion can be present without being overbearing. That Jesse finds the iPod in a church, and that his first trip back in time reflects a Biblical account of world history, is almost more writer's prerogative than publisher's mission statement, at least in this single issue. And, yes, I do want to read #2, if I ever find it, which goes to show just how effective good storytelling is in comparison to preachy editorializing. Besides, considering that the iPod time-travels based on definitively secular bands or song titles, these spiritual matters seem grounded enough in the real world to remain entertaining despite the potential for a sappy moral. Further, that the browsing button on mp3 players is commonly called the "seek" button is a pun that hasn’t escaped me here, especially with the rewind and fast forward symbols affixed in The Seekers logo. We're all seeking something sometime, even if it’s just a song by Genesis. That's as spiritual as Phil Collins gets!

In regards to the Presidency, very few Presidents have actually asserted their religion (specifically, their particular faction of Christianity, at least thus far!), with the exception of the occasional comforting Bible verse in the midst of tragedy, which seems acceptable enough in our politically correct society. Then again, if you're looking for something to offend you -- seek, and ye shall most definitely find.

The Dragon Bump

Awesome developments in Savage Dragon/Barack Obama relations:

http://weblogs.redeyechicago.com/geektome/2008/11/the-savage-drag.html

What Could Have Been: Tom Strong #20

What a difference a week makes.

Last Monday, skeptical Americans, on the brink of an undoubtedly historical Presidential election, wondered about the fate of their country. A week later, Americans either celebrating a victory or lamenting a loss can still be proud that their nation has made a giant step forward in abolishing its reputation for racism, perhaps setting a standard for the rest of the world. That's how I see it, anyway.

The question is, did Barack Obama win because of the Dragon bump? Pundits will argue that one for the next four years, I'm sure . . .

To acknowledge America's celebration of change, I decided to read a few of the comic books in my stable of unread issues that star black protagonists -- a theme I've traditionally utilized in February for Black History Month, but black history has been made this month, so the obligatory wait would be a disservice. My hope in these next few reviews is to find some parallels between the black heroes of comics and our President Elect, who has become a real life hero to many, many people (and who has now starred in a few comics of his own!). Leave it to Alan Moore to kick off the concept with practically prophetic results.

When the Comic Bookie closed last month, I was delighted to find several issues of Tom Strong in the fifty cent bins. Tom Strong remains one of those series I regret not buying monthly, yet also remains a guilty pleasure when I flip through discounted back issue boxes, as it isn't foremost on my mind but always climbs the must-buy list when I find a cheap issue. With all the publicity surrounding the release of The Watchmen movie, Moore's other works are likely to take a backseat in these coming months, until of course each of them are optioned for film production, too. I dare say that Tom Strong is one of the writer's most ambitious works, though, with thirty-six issues spanning eight years (the longest Moore has been associated with any one character or story, with the exception of Swamp Thing, unless someone can cite another example). Reflecting, sometimes satirizing, the science fiction pulp of the '50s, Tom Strong also combines strands from almost every other significant comic book genre, as well (western, romance, horror . . . it's all in there, sometimes in a single issue!), utilizing flashback sequences and/or chapter breaks liberally yet with reverence. Again, why I still haven't read every issue is beyond me.

Tom's origin is perhaps the most interesting contribution to the entire series, however, as Moore successfully tells a complex, engaging origin story with striking originality. When scientist Sinclair Strong and his wife Susan are shipwrecked on a deserted island, Strong makes the best of it by building a laboratory where he and his wife raise their son in a high-gravity chamber, educating him and nourishing him with an indigenous root, goloka, in a culminating effort to perfect his mind and body. When a volcanic eruption destroys the lab and kills Tom's parents, Tom finds comfort in the local, hidden tribe, and he takes a bride who eventually joins him on a journey back to Millennium City, where he becomes a science hero. Of course, fans know there are many more critical intricacies to this story, but these are the nuts and bolts necessary to understand issue #20.

See, in issue #20, Tom encounters a visitor from an alternate timeline, one where his origins are vastly different. Apparently, when one of Susan's pre-Sinclair suitors gives her an element capable of dividing time, she does just that, creating a history that prematurely kills Strong and strands her on the island with Tomas Stone, their ship's Jamaican (?) captain. When Tom Stone is born, he attains the same longevity and strength from the island's beloved goloka and learns vicariously through Sinclair's stranded books, essentially becoming the same man from the original timestream, but with darker skin. In Millennium City, this alienation actually builds a bridge of camaraderie with the one that would become his mad scientist arch nemesis, and together they become a force for good. However, Susan soon discovers the timeline's split, and . . . ha, to be continued. Surely a tale with such chronological consequence couldn't be told in a single issue, eh!

So, what does all of this have to do with Barack Obama? Well, Moore pens a prolific line that reminded me of the Illinois Senator's recent accomplishments. When Tom's mother sees how beloved her son is in Millennium City, she muses, "And everyone's so friendly to colored people now. You must have educated them, son." The implication stands, that the positive impact of a single individual with a high enough profile could redirect the perspective toward an entire group of people. Racism certainly isn't over, in either our reality or Strong's alternate history I'm sure, but racists can at least tangibly grasp that they're in the minority, that they're in the wake of something much more progressive than their rooted and anchored beliefs. Thankfully, we didn't need a skewered timeline to teach us that.

Yet, this catalyst in Tom Strong #20 is what appealed to me most of all. A week ago, Americans were like-minded in their contemplation of another reality, one in which their candidate of choice didn't win -- an Earth-2, if you will. How exciting is it that those that aren't into comics or science fiction can understand the Doc Brown concept of an alternate timeline? In this other world, how many of your friends really moved to Canada when McCain-2 won the election? How did his spending freeze affect the economy-2? Most interestingly, how soon did Palin-2 take the White House, if at all? I'm hoping to discover some traits in black comic book heroes that reflect our reality now, the one with Barack Obama poised as America's President, but Alan Moore turns racism on its ear a bit and shows us that sometimes the color of one's skin does matter, just enough.

Tom Strong #20 was published by America's Best Comics in June 2003 and was written by Alan Moore, illustrated by Jerry Ordway and Karl Story, colored by Dave Stewart, lettered by Todd Klein, and edited by Kristy Quinn and Scott Dunbier.

Happy Halloween!

An excellent assortment of comic book-inspired political cartoons and images can be found here: http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=18655. Highly recommended.

Happy Halloween!

Obama-El

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7675927.stm

'Nuff said!

Chasing Obama: Savage Dragon #137

I'm not Jewish, but I figure today, Rosh Hashana, is as good a day as any to give this thing a fresh, new start. If you've bookmarked to RSS'ed A Comic A Day, thank you, and you don't need me to remind you that, a few years, I decided to read and review a comic book from a different title every day for a year. Despite a few challenges that included a brief lack of Internet connectivity, the project went really well. Then, when I decided to do it again . . . not so much. Sure, I had more reliable access to the Internet, but a flurry of self-aggravated personal obstacles prevented the same level of commitment I had exhibited the previous year. I had touted it in this blog's bannerhead from the beginning; if you're a comic book geek like me, you probably read at least a comic a day already, either nostalgically from your long-boxed collection or obsessively from your weekly pull-list (and, TMI alert, most likely on the toilet -- Am I right?), but to post a thoughtful review of these issues just as frequently? "It's not as easy as it sounds."

Not if you have a life, anyway.

So, what's a fledgling blogger to do? Well, I've decided to combine the two phenomena: the struggle of daily distraction with the persistence of passion for comics. In other words, A Comic A Day is often going to focus less on an individual comic book issue and more on a specific personal issue directly affected by comics; further, though my life has become plagued by my beloved graphic medium (more on that in posts to come), these entries may come as rapidly as several times daily to as inconsistently as once every few weeks (you know, like a real blog), depending on the tenacity of comics in pop culture. Theoretically, such a direction could easily dictate daily dedication, since I usually have my comic book goggles on anyway, but considering the variables of everyday life, it also allows for opportunities to retrospect in case I voluntarily or otherwise miss any given day. While the premise seems shamelessly introspective and self-serving, my hope is that my entries will reflect comics' influence on Every Geek, that they will illicit an "Oh, yeah, that has been happening on the fringe of my life" kind of response.

If not, perhaps somebody will finally comment on how crazy I really am.

Consider this, my first topic, my recent quest to acquire the Barrack Obama variant cover of Savage Dragon #137. (An appropriate beginning to this latest incarnation of A Comic A Day, as I've thoroughly documented how Erik Larsen is inadvertently responsible for my collecting comics in the first place.) I heard of Dragon's endorsement of Barrak Obama a few weeks before the issue's release; as Larsen undoubtedly intended, his comic's connection to current events made for fantastic headline fodder, so one needn't frequent the standard industry news sources like Comic Book Resources to hear about it. So, I anticipated the issue as one might await another Avengers/JLA team-up (or, to a lesser extent, another Star Trek/X-Men team-up); see, just like the renewed vision for this blog, Larsen had managed a comic book life/real life crossover, a rare phenomenon in an otherwise uber-insulated medium. I couldn't wait to see how he'd pull it off.

Here's the problem. Wednesday is generally the busiest day of my work week, so if I really want to hit the comics shop, I either have to manipulate my schedule accordingly or visit a store closer to the one I favorably frequent, which, as fellow collectors know, is like asking a vegetarian to eat at McDonald's over their preferred salad bar because of the convenience of a few miles. I get the regulars' discount at Tustin's Comics, Toons, 'n Toys, okay? (Yes, it's the same discount any customer might get on new releases, but Obama would be the first to tell you, these are difficult times! Now get off my back and back on topic, already!) So, I waited until Thursday to pick up Savage Dragon #137. I can hear those fellow collectors collectively booing even as I type that. Yes, the few Obama'ed editions they had received were looooong gone.



Now, I could've picked up the regular cover edition of the issue, but I wanted the Obama cover for nostalgic value. According to Image Comics' website, a second printing was already scheduled for the following week, so I decided to wait. After half a summer, what was another seven days? Of course, that week, I didn't get to the shop until Sunday. I didn't think a second printing would be as coveted, and, even if it was, that my retailer would over-ordered to compensate. Heck, I'm still finding Savage Dragon #120, featuring Bush and Kerry from the '04 election, in twenty-five cent bins . . . and I guess shop owners learned their lesson. My store didn't even order that second printing.



So I decided I had to do what any good voter would do to support his candidate. I started to work the phones. I called every comic book shop in Orange County, and a few in the Los Angeles area. Of the dozen or so stores that I contacted, I found one first printing copy -- marked up to $20. Nostalgia shouldn't cost that much. I finally opted for the standard cover.

Now, I thoroughly enjoyed Savage Dragon #137, and for an issue that received an unusual amount of attention from the mainstream press, Larsen was wise to exploit his platform to push as many comics as possible. The first pages are surprisingly domestic, as Dragon deals with his daughter's insubordination in school, then transitions into an interesting Superman allegory that contributes to the issue's overall climax. The balance between character development and superhero action would've been approachable enough, but Larsen effectively pitches both Mike Allred's Madman and The Amazing Joy Buzzards, as well, to the unsuspecting general audience that picked up the issue for its political relevance or possible collectibility. (The Popgun mention in his letters column was courtesy borrowed colorist Dylan McCrae, whose vibrant style totally suits Larsen's proud superhero camp. Hope he sticks around.) Those looking for an Obama cameo will be disappointed, though, as the Senator only appears on that coveted cover and in mention when a press-hounded Dragon endorses him for President.



Therein lies the issue's real viability, anyway. The question that will haunt Savage Dragon #137 for years to come is whether or not Dragon's endorsement implies Larsen's, and whether or not a creator's politics should affect the content of his work. My opinion? Please. DC and Marvel crossed that line decades ago every time Superman or Captain America punched out Hitler; their stand against the Nazis simply wasn't as controversial or potentially divisive as today's bipartisan political climate. (In fact, Dragon fights Hitler's brain this very issue! Er, it's a long story.) The political climate has influenced artistic trends for years; the earliest example I can cite offhand is Hamlet, specifically the Prince's use of theater to expose his royal uncle's treachery. If audiences accepted this motif, then the trend couldn't have been too uncommon. Now, I'm not saying that Savage Dragon is Shakespeare, but the persistence of the art-as-soapbox phenomenon is obviously as timeless.

Consider when Dragon ran for President in 2004; the political commentary was as third person as much as Dragon was a third party, so no one questioned Larsen's affiliation then, but now he's picking a side, and I'm intrigued by the readers that would denounce his title because of it. Never mind their political affiliation; even more liberal readers might believe that such political opinion has no place in comics. Where were they when Dragon proclaimed his atheism, despite meeting God that one time? (That's another long story.) Where were they during any one of several issues depicting Dragon's way with the ladies? Politics are a no-go, but religion and sex are bias-free entertainment? You can't say you don't like M&M's because you just hate the green ones, you know what I mean?

Some might comment that this life-imitates-art is the result of a creator-owned property. DC has attempted to tackle similar political issues, first when Lex Luthor ran for President and now in a miniseries with fictional bipartisan candidates, but the disconnect from reality makes these efforts safe, and consequently harmless. Larsen doesn't suffer from the sanctity of a corporate filter, but is his opinion really that important anyway? Has anyone opted for Obama because Dragon told them so? Because Martin Sheen told them so? Because Oprah . . . ah, I won't go there.

Even Dragon wouldn't condone his opinion as an end-all for anyone -- but I'm not putting words in Dragon's mouth. That's Erik Larsen's job, and this month, he did it well, dropping a stone in the proverbial comics pond and making waves out in the real world. While Savage Dragon #137 states a political opinion, I think its real message is that we should all make a decision before the time comes to cast your vote. When an alternate cover edition sells out, you have to go with the standard, but when it comes to electing the President of the United States, the choice is solely yours.

Savage Dragon #137, August 2008, Image Comics, by Erik Larsen, with letterer Tom Orzechowski, and colorist Dylan McCrae.