Page 45 Review by Stephen
"Best superhero series of the last three years; best political fiction since West Wing. That's quite the accomplishment."
- Stephen, by the time he was reviewing volume nine
Mitchell Hundred can talk to machines objects - he can order them about. He can make guns backfire, lights switch off, and disable bugging devices with a word. Which is handy if you're a politician. Quite how this process came about, we don't yet know. What we do know is that Mitchell decided that he could make a bigger difference to people's lives as Mayor of New York City rather than some sort of superhero. He could make them easier. Unfortunately it's making his more difficult.
Here he is at the Brooklyn Museum of Art, standing in front of an imposing painting of an American President upon which a single word has been stencilled: "nigger".
"Is... is that Lincoln? As in, Abe Lincoln?"
"Afraid so."
"But he's... I mean, what does it mean?"
"The work is untitled. Its meaning is open to interpretation. However, through juxtaposing an image of the "Great Emancipator" with the word some whites still use to keep American Blacks shackled to the past, I believe the artist is reminding us that no one can deliver this country from our legacy of bigotry."
"What the hell is she talking about? This thing is absurd. It's not even shocking, it's just... ridiculous."
"You're not going to be laughing when you hear who paid for it."
"Who?"
"Us."
"What?"
"That's not entirely accurate, sir. The city does provide the museum with a very generous $7.2 million annual subsidy, but we also receive significant corporate donations and --"
"Rima, be serious. This wouldn't be here without funding from taxpayers."
"That's... that's true, Mr. Deputy Mayor."
"Forget who footed the bill for a second. Why is this in the same building as Homer and... and Rodin? I'm as open-minded as any politician alive, but this is just puerile!"
"Really? I think Trista Braving's work is quite extraordinary. She dares to confront ideologues. Those with an aversion to the harsh reality of life."
"This artist. Is she...?"
"Is she what, Mr. Mayor?"
"Is she, you know...?"
"Is she black?"
Is she? And does that matter? All this and more (like how to get it removed without being accused of censorship) is debated in an unexpectedly pleasurable series which I still lament having even a trace of superheroics about it, because we could really use the equivalent of The West Wing in this medium, even if the industry as it stands wouldn't bloody support it. Like GOTHAM CENTRAL, the second storyline is looking even better than the first, with some real horror which may be linked to the Mayor's strange powers and some entertaining discourse on same-sex marriages, but this is a fine opening salvo introducing both the political players and a snowstorm which threatens to bring the city to a halt... since its snow ploughs and ploughmen are being targeted by a terrorist. Also: how did Hundred get elected, who stood in his way, and what methods did they use to do so?
Tony Harris uses photo references for his pencils. They're surprisingly good actors (I've seen this stuff done badly), and his art is surprisingly loose in spite of it. In fact, it's quite delicate. See how it's all done in the back!
"I think creators of all colours have a responsibility to appropriate "taboo" phrases from hatemongers. After all, Mark Twain used the n-word dozens of times in Huckleberry Finn, and it's considered the greatest novel in American Literature."
"Oh fuck. That means she is white.... This week is gonna suck, isn't it?"
