V for Vendetta (comic)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

V for Vendetta , in the original V for Vendetta (from Italian vendetta ' blood feud '), is a graphic novel by the author Alan Moore , most of which was drawn by David Lloyd . It originally appeared in black and white in the British comic magazine Warrior from 1982 , but could not be completed there due to the bankruptcy of the magazine. From 1988 a colored version appeared in ten episodes on DC , where the last third of the story was published for the first time. The story takes place in a fictional England from 1997, in which after a third world war a fascist party has taken power, which is fought single - handedly by the eponymous character V, an anarchist and terrorist disguised in a Guy Fawkes mask . The central theme is the self-determined freedom of the individual and society as well as the contrast between freedom and power.

content

The graphic novel , divided into three parts, follows the campaign of a masked anarchist, known only as V , against the fictional North Fire party, which established a totalitarian regime in Great Britain after a third world war with nuclear weapons barely spared the British Isles . The action is scheduled for 1997/1998. The as leader dubbed head of the party ruled by a government apparatus from the eyes, ears, mouth, nose and fingers: designations for the all-encompassing monitoring system of cameras and microphones, the propaganda being on television and radio, the investigating authorities, and finally the secret police. An than Vorhersehung known supercomputer provides the means for the central, total and reliable control and planning forecast. Blacks , Pakistanis, socialists , homosexuals , intellectuals and other “deviants” were killed in concentration camps . The culture of the past has been eliminated; At best there is military music and dull television programs like “Storm Saxon”, in which a man who conforms to the fascist ideal has to defend his lover from blacks who are portrayed as subhumans.

The protagonist V fights against this regime, who first lays the foundation stone for the overthrow of the regime by blowing up the British parliament building. At the same time, he saves Evey, a girl who has been forced into prostitution, and takes her to himself. He systematically kills other key figures in the regime. As it turns out, they had all been working as staff at Larkhill Concentration Camp at the same time. Among other things, the pedophile Bishop of Westminster falls victim to him. In the case of terrorist V, a police detective who works for the nose investigates Finch, who has sold himself to the regime because he sees no better alternative and believes that order is necessary. He eventually finds out that V is the only survivor of the medical experiments conducted at Larkhill.

In the second volume, V addresses the public for the first time by using the Mund's broadcast systems for himself. Finch has a breakdown because he cannot believe the terrorist and becomes aware of the previous acts of his victims - especially the doctor Dr. Surridge. Finch had an affair with her and had a high opinion of her. But she too was involved in the human experiments in Larkhill, as Finch learns from Surridge's diary after her death. Evey leaves V and briefly meets with Gordon, who is murdered by a gangster. When she wants to avenge him, she is kidnapped by V, who makes her believe that he is being held captive and tortured by the finger.

In the third volume, V reports back to the public with music ( Tchaikovsky's Overture 1812 ) by robbing the regime of his eyes, ears and mouth with explosives. Chaos breaks out in the streets. Vs long-maintained plan is now in motion. The leader, possessed by the predictive computer, falls apart mentally, his subordinates forge intrigues and thus contribute to the collapse. Finch drives to the abandoned Larkhill concentration camp through LSD in a state of madness, at the end of which he, like V and Evey before him, comes to the realization that no one can impose limits on him except himself. He slips into the spirit of V and finds it to its secret base, the shadow gallery, a lair of forgotten cultural treasures and anarchist equipment, including secret access to the predictive computer.

Finally, V reveals his plan: In order to free the people from the yoke of the regime, it is necessary to destroy contemporary society - with bombs and violence. Then a new society can arise from the ruins if people choose to step through the open door and take responsibility for their freedom. To support her with a new beginning, he has brought Evey in as his successor. He himself is the destroyer and thus not only superfluous, but even harmful when the construction begins again. As if orchestrated by him, he lets himself be killed by Finch. The Führer is murdered by a desperate party member. With a final clap of thunder, V resigns. His "Viking burial": In a subway loaded with explosives he destroys 10 Downing Street as the last remaining symbol of the old state. Evey slips into the Guy Fawkes mask and incites the crowds to riot.

Release history

V for Vendetta was first published from 1982 to 1985 in sequels in black and white in the British comic magazine Warrior. The series was not over when the magazine ceased to appear. At the instigation of the publisher DC Comics , for which Alan Moore later worked, Moore and Lloyd took up work on the series again in 1988 and completed it, with the already finished parts being colored at the same time. Soon after graduation, the entire series was published as a graphic novel, in the US by DC, in England by Titan Books. The band was later assigned to the DC sub-label Vertigo . In Germany in 1991 a 6-volume colored German edition “V wie Vendetta” was published by comicArt and by Speed ​​Comics in 2002 under the same title in the original black and white version ( ISBN 3-936068-12-7 ). In the run-up to the film premiere, a new German-language version in color was published by Panini Comics .

Guy Fawkes mask

Anonymous activist in a Guy Fawkes mask

From the graphic novel "V for Vendetta" or the film adaptation of the same name coming Guy Fawkes mask of the protagonist V is the Internet collective Anonymous as a sign of recognition and identity protection. Such masks were worn during the demonstrations against Scientology . The mask was also widely used as part of the Occupy Wall Street movement from the end of 2011. The mask was also used in anti-ACTA protests in February 2012.

Konrad Lischka wrote on Spiegel Online that the comic author Alan Moore and the illustrator David Lloyd Guy Fawkes made V for Vendetta a symbol of the resistance movement in the early eighties with their comic series . The mask that is now worn by activists from Anonymous and the Occupy movement around the world can be traced back to Lloyd's drawings. Moore described in his essay Behind the painted Smile that Lloyd came up with the idea. Moore therefore quoted a note that the draftsman sent him at the time: “Why don't we show our hero as a risen Guy Fawkes, with one of those paper mache masks, the cloak and the conical hat? That would look bizarre and give Guy Fawkes the image he's earned all these years. We shouldn't burn the guy every November 5th, but celebrate him for trying to blow up Parliament! ”Moore continued:“ I made it morally very, very ambiguous. The key question is: is this guy right? Or is he crazy? What do you think, reader, about it? That seemed like the right anarchist way to go: I didn't want to tell people what to think. I just wanted to tell them to think and think about some of the little extreme events that recur quite regularly in human history. "

David Lloyd, the illustrator of the comic, says of the mask that it has now become a common brand name and a symbol of protest against tyranny . Lloyd is happy with the way people use the mask. So she is unique and an icon of pop culture.

On the national holiday of the United Arab Emirates , wearing the mask in the national colors or with a flag pattern was banned in the Emirate of Dubai . The reason given was that this symbolic opposition to state power (cf. anarchy ) was illegal. Corresponding persons would therefore be interrogated and could be prosecuted for causing disturbance .

Adaptations

music

The musician David Jay , who has also realized other projects together with Moore, recorded a 12 " EP called V for Vendetta in 1984 , the title of which was inspired by the graphic novel, and which also includes the setting of a song by V.

The band Jocasta used quotes from the comic for their related song The Land of Do-As-You-Please .

Play

The Swedish theater group Stockholms Blodbad performed a drama version of the material under the title Landet där man gör som man vill in 2000 , in which video recordings of scenes from the graphic novel were shown.

Film adaptation and novel

The feature film V for Vendetta was released in Germany on March 16, 2006 . Directed by James McTeigue , the script comes from the Wachowski siblings . Hugo Weaving is V, Natalie Portman plays the main female character Evey. Alan Moore distances himself from the film adaptation, among other things, because he saw the conflict between the two poles of fascism and anarchism, which is the basis of the comic book, replaced by a contrast between “contemporary American neo-conservatism ” and “contemporary American liberalism”. For the filming, V for Vendetta also appeared as a novel by Steve Moore .

Comic

An anarchist opponent of Batman named Anarky has appeared in the DC Comics about Batman since Detective Comics # 608 . Anarky resembles Alan Moore's character from V for Vendetta in both appearance and philosophy. The reminiscence of V for Vendetta is also evident from the fact that Anarky reads the comic in one scene.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Matthias Heine: Guy Fawkes: Why protesters wear an officer's mask . In: The world . June 23, 2011
  2. www.tagesschau.de : Europe-wide protests against international agreement - tens of thousands demand "ACTA ad acta!" ( Memento from January 25, 2013 in the Internet Archive ).
  3. Konrad Lischka : grinning mask without a message . In: Spiegel Online . November 5, 2011
  4. BBC News Magazine - V for Vendetta masks: Who's behind them? ( Memento from January 21, 2012 on WebCite )
  5. gulfnews.com - Vendetta masks in UAE colors draw warning ( Memento of the original from February 11, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (English) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / gulfnews.com
  6. techdirt - Wearing V For Vendetta Guy Fawkes Masks Declared Illegal In Dubai (English)
  7. Heidi MacDonald: A FOR ALAN, Pt. 1: The Alan Moore interview , GIANT Magazine. March 15, 2006. Archived from the original on March 5, 2007. Retrieved January 3, 2007.