Broken Frontier

If you believe the polls, the War in Iraq has become quite unpopular with the people in the United States. Fewer people support the U.S. being over there than they did just a year ago and the number dwindles every day. A second battle has begun to be fought in the media and in the world of politics. Politicians who are against the war question any request by the Bush Administration, only to be accused of not supporting the troops by right-wing pundits.

The American people have a variety of ways to show their distain for unpopular wars. Most common is through protest and demonstration. But those of a more creative mindset have another weapon at their disposal.

The current Iraq War is often compared to the Vietnam conflict. Vietnam, however, was far more divisive for the country. On January 25, 1970, a movie hit the screens that brought the war home for a number of viewers. That movie was M*A*S*H.

While set during the Korean War, director Robert Altman used the movie as an allegory for Vietnam, which America was heavily involved in at the time. It portrayed the gore and tragedy of war with a healthy dose of subversive humor and black comedy.

This trend continued with the M*A*S*H TV show, which debuted on September 17, 1972—months before the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam conflict ended. The M*A*S*H movie might have brought the high cost of war into theatres, the TV series brought it into the American living room. Sure, reports of the war headlined the Nightly News every night, but M*A*S*H presented the same information in a more appeasing way. The program showed in greater detail the toll war takes on the warrior using appealing characters and top-notch comedic elements.

Both versions of M*A*S*H are only a small example of the use of humor and satire to react to real world events. They are just two entries in a tradition that goes back centuries and which continues tomorrow with Rick Veitch’s Army @ Love.

Set 5 years in the future, the Vertigo series examines how the Army might deal with a lack of new recruits, not willing to fight and die in an unwinnable war. The Army combats this with an aggressive marketing campaign to make the idea of war even more appealing. Are you the type of person who doesn’t want to be separated from your family for an extended period of time? Bring you cell phone to the battlefield! You can tuck your kids in via phone, all the while dodging mortar fire. Are you a randy teenager looking to hook up with anything that moves? The war is one great big party where your options are unlimited. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to join the “Hot Zone Club” if you know what we mean! Wink wink, nudge nudge!

What Veitch has done is take problems the Army is facing right now—burned out troops, decline in recruitment, soldiers being separated from their families for extended periods and the Army focusing it’s TV ads at minorities and the poor—and applied an absurdist answer to them.

But how will it go over? When even asking for some accountability in the government is greeted with cries of treason, this series could create a firestorm of controversy if it ever gets in the mainstream’s spotlight. Not that Veitch has ever shied away from controversy, as his work on Swamp Thing, Bratpack and Miracleman can attest.

However, controversy is never a bad thing if it brings more attention to the points Veitch is illustrating. And if our troops are over in Iraq in the hopes of bringing that country democracy and freedom, then essentially they are fighting to give them the same right that Veitch has. He has the right to say what he wants, question his government and provide social commentary. He just chose to do it in a satiric style.

So, while the series will most likely fly under the mainstream’s radar, we should not be afraid of any negative reaction it might cause if it doesn’t. At the very least, it means Veitch’s points are being discussed. And that is the sign of successful satire. 

Read our interview with Rick Veitch and view a sneak peek of Army@Love #1  here.

Also out this week:

• Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis #50

Kurt Busiek and Butch Guice took over this title when it came out of the One Year Later break and took it in a completely opposite direction. They brought in a new Aquaman, a new supporting cast and stories that were less superhero and more sword and sorcery. Now, after just 10 issues, both creators are gone, leaving a lot of the questions they raised unanswered. Is the Dweller in the Depths really the classic Aquaman? Is the new Aquaman a familiar relation to him? And what is the dark secret that King Shark is hiding?

These questions are now in the hands of noted fantasy novelist Tad Williams and the underrated artist Shawn McManus. Supposedly, Williams is working from the guidelines that Busiek (who gave up this title to devote more time to Superman) gave him as to where he wanted the story to end up. Whether Williams chooses to follow this path or go in his own direction is anybody’s guess.

Tad Williams (W), Shawn McManus (A), DC Comics, $3.99. Ongoing Series.

• Witchblade: Shades of Gray #1

This inter-company crossover unites Top Cow’ Witchblade with Dynamite Entertainment’s Dorian Gray. Detective Sara Pezzini, wielder of the Witchblade, is on the trail of a serial killer. Enter Dorian Gray. Is he hunting for the murderer, or is he the murderer himself?

If this is the same Dorian Gray that is the lead character of Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray (and it could be, that original tale is now in the public domain), then the solicitation wasn’t lying about this issue spanning the ages. The mythology involving the Witchblade goes back centuries. Pair that with a character who is immortal and you have the potential for a sweeping historical arc. 

Leah Moore & John Reppion (W), Stephen Segovia (A), Top Cow/Dynamite Entertainment, $3.50. Four-Issue Miniseries.

• Hellblazer #230

It’s a big week for new creative teams at DC/Vertigo. This issue marks the start of Andy Diggle’s run as writer, taking over for Denise Mina. Diggle is no stranger to Vertigo, having written The Losers and Swamp Thing for the imprint, or Hellblazer, having  written 2003’s Hellblazer Special: Lady Constantine miniseries.

One of my first Guiding Lines columns touched on the unique ability John Constantine exhibited to not only survive numerous writing changes, but also to bring out the best of those writers. I consider Diggle to be one of the most underrated writers in comics today and have enjoyed much of what he’s done in the past. I’m sure his stint here will be no different. 

Andy Diggle (W), Leonardo Manco (A), DC/Vertigo Comics, $2.99. Ongoing Series.

• Hero By Night #1

The winner of the 2006 Comic Book Challenge finally gets to see his vision come into print. D.J. Coffman beat out 50 other semi-finalists to win the contest sponsored by Platinum Studios (who also own Broken Frontier, I say in the spirit of fairness). The result? A four-issue miniseries which begins tomorrow.

Jack King finds the lair of a 1950’s superhero in his apartment. He does what anybody would do if they found a famous hero’s crime-fighting equipment—he sells it on eBay! But his get rich quick scheme backfires when the hero’s long-lost arch-enemy arrives to settle a past grudge. Talk about getting more than you bargained for! 

D.J. Coffman (W/A), Platinum Studios, $2.99. Four-Issue Miniseries.   

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William Gatevackes is a professional writer living in Mamaroneck, NY with his wife Jennifer. He also writes periodic comic reviews for PopMatters and writes title descriptions for Human Computing’s Comicbase collection management software.