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Wednesday, August 1, 2018

The Art & Narrative of Elektra Assassin Sienkiewicz & Miller


Imagine it’s something like this; a politically visionary, mysteriously engaging action adventure that is satirically humorous while disguising itself as a romantic spy thriller. This refreshingly funny take on contemporary world events is peppered with, while including demonic possession, psycho- babble and even robotics. Frank Miller and Bill Sienkiewicz gave this jewel of a novel to the world in the nineteen eighties. It was originally released in monthly installments   by Marvel Comics and sold in specialty shops. That was the way I initially read this graphic novel. It was brilliantly conceived and constructed at the time. It not only holds up in our contemporary political climate (the age of Trump) it soars and is on many levels definitive in tone along with being surprisingly prophetic.








































Elektra was a character Frank Miller created as foil to Matt Murdock’s Dare Devil. Elektra was an extrodinarally gifted while flawed character. She was an immediate fan favorite and she was killed almost as quickly as she was introduced. Elektra was too good to remain in oblivion and the novel “Elektra Assassin” was a wonderful way to revisit the character while adding to the mythology in this work that is a prequel to the original Miller thriller. 
























 THE SOVIET PREMIER HAS BEEN SIGHTED AT THE WEST WING...VOTED FOR THAT SON OF A BITCH...LIED TO US...CANT BELIEVE HE'D LET THIS HAPPEN...



I most recently reread “Elektra Assassin” in a compilation edition and it was exceptionally good. In ways even better than I remembered from my eighties encounter with the book.   At this point I couldn’t recommend it any higher. “Elektra  Assassin” is literature at it most heightened. The creators are in-league with Ian Fleming, Dashiell Hammett and Stieg Larsson. They are masters of their chosen form. Miller’s words and Sienkiewicz’s pictures make for an illuminating and grand experience. In another way of phrasing; they are ranking among the very best! 




Miller and Sienkiewicz followed up their achievement; “Electra Assassin” with another tale from the Dare Devil Mythos; “Love & War” which is centered on the chance that the heartless “King Pin” (Wilson Fisk) might actually be capable of loving something outside of his own narcissistic self-love. Could this, again be a prophetic treatise on the inner life of a ruthless businessman politician, someone at the present time, some unnamed public figure?”  But within the mean time take a look at “Electra Assassin.” It just might become a thing treasured in your own right, as you may as yet find to peruse and imagine.

    




















"I don't need evidence," said the President. "I'm the President. I know what I'm talking about," he said. "I got elected didn't I?"






A local man claims to have seen the woman strike down two police officers with her bare hands, before being subdued. Local authorities refuse to draw any connection between this incident and the recent assassination which took pace in San Concepcion.



3 comments:

  1. WOW! Powerful ! Very thought provoking??

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  2. James,

    I think that this proposed liberal propaganda to insight division of U.S. Citizens represents the Obama years more than present day. Internationally (for now) the world is a little safer with North Korea not launching missiles. The U.S. gave up nothing – and if North Korea does not come through on their promises, then we have lost nothing. Obama, Kerry, Clinton and Biden gave Billions of Dollars (in cash) to Iran for what? They are still pursuing nuclear weapons and they are still sponsoring terrorist activities. You cannot even call that negotiations… it is more like surrendering.

    The liberal party of hate that is funding the misinformation in America is doing more for the Russians and Chinese than any computer hacker could. How do you defeat America? – You divide the citizens and create unrest from within our borders.

    “Luke – Hate leads to the dark side”

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  3. It is really amazing how much people love to hate on Trump because he's not a normal politician and he calls the press out on their crap. In all fairness to James, given how Trump has been painted from the moment he switched parties (he was a moderate Democrat for years) and entered politics, his perspective is understandable. If you take the media seriously, Trump is literally a combination of J.D. Rockefeller, Hitler, and Satan that sits and meditates on how best to be racist while harassing women and stealing from the poor to pay the rich. Oh, and he's stupid too... somehow. That kind of thing, whether it's true or not, is hard to ignore if you still respect the outlets it's coming from because it requires you to simultaneously believe that they both have and lack integrity and perspective.

    Speaking as someone who hasn't taken the mainstream news seriously since the Clinton administration because of the propaganda, lies, and slant even back then, it's hard for me to relate to that view of things, but I understand some people do still believe what they're told because the alternative is simply too scary - that we are extraordinarily vulnerable to received information, and that many times we, for all practical purposes, cannot know what is true. The average person without countless hours to do their own research who wants to ensure their worldview is shaped only by facts is left with little choice but to take everything they see from media with such a large grain of salt as to render most of it (from either side of the aisle) totally useless. What's scary is how readily people will discard the lessons of their own personal experience (which generally teaches us that people are good, want to get along, hope the best for everyone, just want to be left alone to prosper in their own lives, etc) in favor of the propaganda which teaches us to fear and hate anyone who is in a different arbitrarily-chosen group than we are. Very Orwellian: "The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command."

    Anybody who has trouble believing that many large organizations would be willing to execute on a deceitful agenda for their own reasons needs to spend more time in private rooms with small groups of powerful people. I've been doing work for the Board of Directors of a landholding company for the last few years, and the experience has been eye opening. Evil intent is not required for these powerful people do plan and execute on things that others would be squeamish about or highly object to - the perspective is simply very very different.

    As for the comic itself, I've not heard of this character before, but it seems to me that dystopian futures with political conflict and corrupt government will always be applicable, especially if it's not intended by the author to be allegorical. History teaches us that such issues have always existed, and there is no reason to believe a time will ever come when they will not exist to some degree. The comic seems to be a nice reminder that we hold all political figures accountable (regardless of whether or not the mainstream press hates their guts with the burning passion of a thousand suns), and that they and their minions should not be above the law even if their philosophy and goals are congruent with ours. And, lest we forget, that superheroes are awesome, especially when they wear properly-colored outfits and have fun weapons.

    ~ A

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