“Occupy Comics” plans to make itself an active participant in a movement that has taken many avenues to get its message out. Issue #1 is an interesting experiment in making comic books one of those avenues of expression, but it’s also ultimately a hodgepodge – the way that most anthology titles tend to be.
Written by Alan Moore & Various
Illustrated by David Lloyd & VariousOccupy Comics brings together more than 50 comics pros to discuss and document the themes, goals, and ideals of the Occupy movement while also raising funds to support it. With a roster spanning from legends like Alan Moore & David Lloyd (V For Vendetta) to rising stars like Charlie Adlard (The Walking Dead) to icons like Art Spiegelman (Maus), Occupy Comics is a once-in-a-lifetime coalition of intelligent creatives using sequential art to record history as it’s being made.
Anthology comics are as difficult to review as they must be to put together in a way that feels cohesive and makes sense. By that token, it’s probably best to look at “Occupy Comics” and evaluate how well it accomplishes its mission statement, rather than reviewing each of its myriad pieces – though there are a few standouts that deserve specific mention. It is important to note the words “document” and “record” in the solicitation. What “Occupy Comics” #1 is absolutely not is an attempt to view the Occupy movement through a prism of fiction or storytelling. It is quite literally an exercise in informing about and celebrating an ideal through many different visual and text-based approaches. Some of the approaches are much more successful than others.
This is also not a comic book that is going to change anyone’s mind. To be quite honest, the audience for this book is absolutely one that skews liberal. But seeing as it’s a book celebrating the 99%, there really is no “target audience.” There’s no “selling point.” “Occupy Comics” #1 is a work of artful expression for its creators to work through these tumultuous times. That is something worth admiring and supporting. For all its faults (and there are a few worth mentioning), this book is being done because of a belief that creative minds of the comic book world feel very passionate about. It’s a little bit preaching to the choir, but it’s also a very useful exercise in fact-finding and making an emotional, visceral connection through art. And though this is a “comic book”, the versatility of the medium is on display as no two pieces share the same format.
First of all, there are several single page pin-up style homages to “the 99%” or politically-charges pieces of comic art. These are stylish and contain some of the most striking images in the book. David Lloyd’s beautifully minimalist two-pager is the highlight, re-appropriating he and Alan Moore’s “V for Vendetta” in a visual metaphor that is quite transparent, but rightfully so, as the iconic Guy Fawkes mask has made its way into the very real-life subject matter that “Occupy Comics” is celebrating. These pieces are interspersed between the longer pieces of sequential storytelling and prose. Art Spiegelman shows up near the end with a jaunty little image that is as humorous as it is truthful. It’s refreshing when creators see the comedy that is ever-present in life itself.
J.M. Dematteis and Mike Cavallaro have a 6-pager in the early pages of the issue that quite literally walks the narrator right through the campers of the 99%. That narrator, clearly Dematteis himself, presents a take on the movement that isn’t often depicted in the oft-manipulative news cycle. That viewpoint is a Humanist take on what “Occupiers” really hope to achieve: basic human decency. The piece works in its good-natured, even-handed take and the clean black-and-white art reflects that beautiful simplicity. Something that could easily come off as naiveté, sounds pleasant, earnest and hopeful in amongst a book that does have a fair amount of bile in other segments.
A lot of that bile is deserved. Joshua Dysart, Kelly Bruce, and artist Allen Gladfelter present a straightforward, bulletpoint presentation of some of the major players in the housing crunch and the ways that they came out ahead. Those bulletpoints come in the form of playing card caricatures; the piece is called “Casino Nation”, after all. A potentially corny concept is handled well in the execution of Allen Gladfelter’s detailed depictions. It’s also striking subject matter, in that much of “Occupy Comics” is about how the 1% holds the cards and the 99% is left playing “52-pickup.” Pardon the pun.
Continued belowThough the bile is deserved in the face of the facts presented by the “Occupy Comics” document, unfortunately some of the other pieces address the movement through heavy-handed visual metaphors and some grating “buzzwords” that feel just as flimsy as the ones used by the media condemned within these pages. The anger is understandable, but while Dematteis warns us against demonizing the opposing side – other segments do just that. Not everyone has to share Dematteis opinions or approach, but the execution of his ideas seem to come from a more thoughtful place, where other segments contain obvious and sometimes manipulative symbolism. Symbols of death, decay and dollar signs are peppered throughout “Occupy Comics” #1 in a manner that is, again, just as “in-your-face” as the sensationalism that is so often condemned. These moments are rarely novel and come across as something that the “Occupy” movement wants to move away from.
Alan Moore has a terrific (and very long) essay in the middle regarding the history of comics and how it relates to and was shaped by the idea that great pop culture and art spins out of politics, class warfare, and world events. Even with Alan Moore’s name attached, this looks on the surface to be the type of segment that readers see as blocks of text to skip over entirely. Don’t do that. It’s a history lesson from one of the greatest thinkers in comic book history. Moore, in his magical mystery bus, drives us back to Egyptian times, through “Little Nemo” and “Krazy Kat”, and even takes a look at the influence of the infamous “Tijuana Bibles.” It’s also written with the elegance that we’ve come to expect from the self-assured and magnetic Moore and any fan of the medium could benefit from the way Moore puts some of this stuff into perspective.
It’s the perspective of the reader that ultimately determines the worth of “Occupy Comics” #1. If you don’t side with the 99% on this, there isn’t much here for you. While some of the segments approach the movement more even-handedly than others, the fact is that this comic book exists to support it and every piece reflects that. But the 99% is a large percentage, so logic would say that this book could be enjoyed or at least appreciated by most comic fans. Like any anthology, some segments are better than others; these tend to be the ones that are most informational. Some terrific art and a myriad of stylistic approaches make this a fascinating operation, but one that does trip over itself to try to hammer you on the head at times. Still, good intentions and educational moments win over in the end. Those that support the movement and feel passionate about it should buy the book, because the passion of the creators is certainly present.
Final Verdict: 6.8 – If you have been a part of an “Occupy” movement, or are just glad that there are people out there that are, this book is a buy. It’s a browse for anyone else who might be on the fence.
P.S. I did try to keep myself out of my review, but with full discretion I will say now that I am the 99%.
