BOOK CLUB
Doc Frankenstein // The Matrix Comics: 20th Anniversary EditionDoc
Frankenstein
Of monks
and monsters
Release Out now
Writers ana & Lilly WachowskiL
Publisher T itan Comics
Price 31.99£
The new complete collection
of Doc Frankenstein opens with
a heartfelt introduction from
Lana Wachowski. It’s made clear
from the outset how personal the
following story is to its writer. It’s
a story many years in the making,
and, having been left unfi nished for
the best part of a decade, we are at
last able to read the complete story
in a single, uninterrupted volume.
This is the interesting tale of
what happens to Frankenstein’s
monster once Mary Shelley’s book
fi nishes... now calling himself
‘Doc Frankenstein’, he becomes an
immortal genius scientist/cowboy/
vigilante, who is just trying to fi nd
his place in the world.
Doc is a monster hunter and this
time the monsters are an especially
well-funded, fanatical branch of
Christians, with an arsenal of jet
planes, missiles and never-ending
supply of machine gun-toting
priests. This is the war of science
vs religion as you’ve never seen it.
One of the big highlights of the
book is the wonderfully bombastic
artwork of Steve Skroce. You cansee the length of time it took to
produce the book as from start to
end his style evolves, becoming
as bold and as in-your-face as the
story itself, culminating in some of
the most wondrously obscene and
hilarious double page spreads.
Doc Frankenstein is an
incredibly controversial book, or
at least it wants to be. There is
an obvious lack of subtlety which
plays to the absurdity of the story,
but this can also swing the other
way and make its message appear
preachy. This book is designed
to invoke a response. It wears its
liberalism without shame and is
an antagonistic assault on right
wing religious conservatism. Being
deliberately over-the-top helps
soften some of the more risqué
moments and gives the reader a
way to enjoy a story that really
benefi ts from having a complete
edition. Just don’t leave it on the
coffee table when the vicar comes
to tea.
Burt Peterson
The Matrix
Comics:
20th
Anniversary
Edition
You have to see it
for yourself
Release O ut now
Writers ariousV
Publisher itan ComicsT
Price 35.99£It’s been 20 years since The
Matrix exploded on to our screens.
For many, the cinema experience
was the fi rst time seeing the rich and
complex alternate world that Lana
and Lilly Wachowski envisioned.
But prior even to the shooting of the
movie, the Wachowskis had shared
their script for The Matrix with some
of the greatest modern comic book
writers and artists to get their take on
the concept.Those that bought into it soon
began to create their own tales
based in the world of The Matrix,
many of which were originally
published as online-only, digital
comics on The Matrix website.
Twenty years later, Titan Comics has
released an anniversary edition that
pulls all 28 of the original digital
comics together for the very fi rst time
in hardback print.
Standout works include art
by Bill Sienkiewicz (Legion),
whose masterful blend of oils and
collage deliver a new tangible
representation of the Wachowskis’
original complex fantasy world.
Neil Gaiman (Sandman) brings us
a captivating short story, beautifully
supplemented with art by Greg Ruth.
While Dave Gibbons (of Watchmen
fame) proves that a picture can
indeed paint a thousand words, with
his silent yet deadly 12-page action-
packed adventure.
There is also a touching
introduction by editor Spencer
Lamm (original creator of The Matrix
website that launched the comics,
see page 72), which provides an
earnest behind-the-scenes retelling
of the process that made The Matrixthe cultural phenomenon that it
was. Even the inside covers feature
astonishing archive material from the
original Matrix website.
For hardcore fans of The Matrix,
the book provides a beautiful, near
400-page nostalgia trip that will get
you excited to jack back into that
ground-breaking franchise. If you
weren’t excited about Matrix 4, you
will be after this.
Burt Peterson
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