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A review by jfictitional
Ex Machina: The Deluxe Edition, Vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan
4.0
While I can't say I've always enjoyed Brian K. Vaughan's work, I admire its diversity, in both genre and theme. What rarely changes, though, is his dedication to inclusivity and tackling the political topics of the day.
So it only makes sense that he'd one day write a comic about real-world politics, but still find an interesting spin by wedding it to the superhero genre, making for a heady political procedural that never seems to stop moving. Being nearly ten years old, it's fascinating how some of the talking points manage to feel both dated and still timely (gay marriage, the education system), while others are an argument we'll seemingly never stop having (race relations). It occasionally gets bogged down in speechifying, as is Vaughan's tendency (along with his penchant for utterly bizarre character names - what kind of sadist names their kid Journal?). But possibly the biggest sin this commits is being so hard to get hold of nowadays.
Content warning: graphic violence, racially-charged language, dead animals, self-harm, implied child murder, suicide
So it only makes sense that he'd one day write a comic about real-world politics, but still find an interesting spin by wedding it to the superhero genre, making for a heady political procedural that never seems to stop moving. Being nearly ten years old, it's fascinating how some of the talking points manage to feel both dated and still timely (gay marriage, the education system), while others are an argument we'll seemingly never stop having (race relations). It occasionally gets bogged down in speechifying, as is Vaughan's tendency (along with his penchant for utterly bizarre character names - what kind of sadist names their kid Journal?). But possibly the biggest sin this commits is being so hard to get hold of nowadays.
Content warning: graphic violence, racially-charged language, dead animals, self-harm, implied child murder, suicide