WE3

WE3 

By Grant Morrison & Frank Quitely (DC/Vertigo)
ISBN 1-84576-159-6

Grant Morrison has upped his output of comic material in recent years and much of it is in the form of brief stories spread over three comic issues, designed to be repackaged as slim Graphic Novels for the burgeoning book-store market. This hasn’t always resulted in the best work, but it undoubtedly has encouraged experimentation.

WE3 has echoes of Morrison’s early animal rights convictions, so tellingly employed in his re-creation and early run on DC superhero Animal Man. The story tells in sparse, often wordless, balletic set pieces the story of a Rabbit, a Cat and a Dog who have been grotesquely transformed by misguided scientists, fuelled by Senatorial ambition and Military money into unstoppable killing machines.

None of the thinking is new. None of the deeply emotional triggers are fresh or novel. There are no new insights into the philosophies of scientists, politicians or soldiers, all of whom act just as we world-weary cynics expect them too – even when they redeem themselves.

The secret of what makes this work so very, very well is the subtle restraint of the script, and a deft underplaying of the characters. And of course Frank Quitely. Always an artist of immense power who knows the value of a well-staged shot, simply executed. He is without doubt one of the most accomplished illustrators in the field today, and is never tempted to succumb to the seductive call of fashion. He just plain draws good.

WE3 is lovely and poignant and disturbingly comforting. You really should read it.

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