As previously promised, I want to introduce three comic book series to all Villagers' attention that touch upon our favorite TV show:
1) The Prisoner: Shattered Visage by Mark Askwith (writer) and Dean Motter (artist) (paperback, DC Comics): an apparently authorized sequel
to The Prisoner, wherein a newly-retired female British spy is "accidentally" exiled to the Village by her still-active husband,
wherein she meets a mentally-shattered Six and Leo McKern's Two, still present on the island after over twenty years. Very nice ties to many of
the episodes, though not what I would call the best story Askwith could've come up with. Motter is a famous Canadian artist and graphic designer
whose other comics works, such as the dystopian Mister X and two Terminal City series, served as one of the graphic inspirations
behind The Matrix, itself not a bad vision of a dystopian hero against authority!
2) The Invisibles by Grant Morrison (writer) and various artists (seven paperback volumes, DC Comics): another, perhaps more overt influence
on The Matrix, Morrison's tale of rebellion against extradimensional evil authority goes so far at one point as to have a
super-secret-agent character named Jon Six (who is, however, a dead ringer for Jason King -- aka Peter Wyngarde, the "Checkmate" Two) and to
almost scene-for-scene use the opening sequence in a brutal interrogation scenario. Definitely a fantastic series for conspiracy theorists.
3) Queen and Country by Greg Rucka (writer) and various artists (ongoing series, with six paperback compilations to date, Oni Press): another
story of a female British secret agent, a member of SIS' (fictional?) Minders squad. While this comic was more influenced by the
highly-underrated Roy Marsden series The Sandbaggers and the works of John Le Carré, it is fascinating to see how Tara Chace, the
protagonist, is becoming every bit as disgusted with her job as Drake/Six, and in the newest issue, #22, her immediate supervisor plans to resign --
and makes direct references to Six and his TV series! Fascinatingly well-done, enjoyable by even non-comics fans, and always well-researched, both
politically and militarily, this is the series I would recommend the most to read.
All three comics series mentioned above are each enjoyable and tie to The Prisoner in their own way. The books are all still in print and
should be freely available on the various Internet booksellers. I'd love to see if there is any favorable thoughts on them, and to see just how
other Villagers feel about The Prisoner's influence on stories in other media. Be seeing you!
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posted on 1-5-2004 at 10:18 AM
