2010 proved to be a blockbuster year for Vertigo in terms of original graphic novel output. It seemed they were cranking these things out almost on a weekly basis and the only thing they had in common other than being largely fantastic (such as the Joshua Dysart penned adaptation of Neil Young’s Greendale, or Peter Bagge’s Other Lives) was that they were resoundingly different than both each other and from anything seen in the industry in a while. One of these OGN’s was Matt Kindt’s Revolver, a compelling, chillingly real (despite being completely fictional) examination of the human psyche and of double lives.
The premise of this one is simple: our main character Sam is stuck in a dead end job as party photographer for a local paper. He hates his job, is bored of his girlfriend, and is a painfully average. Then, one night he stumbles home, falls asleep and at 11:11PM shifts into another reality wherein America has been plunged into a post-apocalyptic wasteland due to terrorist machinations. (While I won’t reveal the exact nature of these machinations here, I will say that they strike shockingly close to home and speak volumes of the personal identity of some of the characters portrayed in this book. ) However, just when all hope is lost, Sam wakes up back in his normal, average life, with no one but him remembering any of the post apocalyptic shenanigans.
After bouncing back and forth several times, Sam realizes that he is very much able to use what he learns in one world (be it the location of a well placed row boat or one of his boss’ deep, dark secrets), to aid his quests in the other. Although as the story progresses, his goals become more apocalypse-centric, even while awake in the non-apocalyptic world. However, I believe the true value of this book is watching Sam’s identity mutate due to his time spent trying to distribute the underground Revolver newspaper throughout war-torn America. Almost overnight, his sullen, nebbish attributes vanish, as if the end of the world were enough to finally motivate him into action. As his new-found confidence and abilities lead him closer to solving the mystery of his double life, they ultimately reveal a lot about his own nature and even the nature of all humans when placed in a high pressure situation. Much like Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead examines humanity interacting with a fallen world, Revolver sheds much deeper light on the fallen human mind. The result is a compelling, psychological thriller that can be enjoyed by many.
My one issue with the book is the implications made by one of its final scenes. This scene brings in some very real-world sounding psychology to explain why this may be happening to Sam. Now if, IF, my read of it is correct, it might be implying that there was no reality shift at all and rather that the whole adventure took place within Sam’s own head while initially turned off by this idea, the more I thought about the more I realized that ultimately the book’s strengths remain intact. Its commentary on human society and interpersonal relationships remain strong and ultimately, the lessons it teaches are still taught.
So if you have an even more passing interest in sociology and human behavior, or just like a good post-apocalyptic romp, Revolver could definitely be for you.
