Transmetropolitan Vol. 03: Year of the Bastard

When we left of in “Transmetropolitan”, things got a bit existential and a bit off track of the main plot. That isn’t to say that I didn’t appreciate the stories that we got in “Transmetropolitan: Lust for Life”. I actually really did enjoy them for what they were and what purpose they served. I liked learning more about the world that this series takes place in, and the limits and limitlessness that society lives with. But I’ll be honest, I was stoked to see that we were getting back into the down and dirty nitty gritty with “Transmetropolitan: Year of the Bastard”. Spider’s assistant Channon has left him in the lurch, and he’s turned to drugs and angst. But then he is approached by Vita Severn, the campaign show more manager of the candidate who is going to rival The Beast. This man is known as The Smiler, as he perpetually smiles and tries to show off a chipper demeanor to counteract The Beast.

Spider, of course, is NOT fooled by any of this bullshit.

As much as maybe in this moment I needed someone to rail against The Beast in any way, shape, and form, it was very nice to see that Spider Jerusalem stayed true to form and showed a blatant mistrust for any and all politicians, even ones that could possibly take down the monster in charge. The whole point of this series is that corruption is rampant and a simple answer isn’t readily available because of it. But along with that, we get to see that sometimes in an imperfect situation, there are symbols of hope. And I am, of course, referring to the lovely, strong, and badass Vita Severn, the one friggin’ symbol of true hope that The Smiler’s campaign truly has. I had completely forgotten about Vita. I know why I did (no spoilers), but this time around she left such a positive impression on me she has skyrocketed up to my top five favorite characters in this series. I love that Ellis writes women so well and in such varied ways. You have Channon, a volatile and snarky, but ultimately supportive and caring, ex stripper who will protect Spider at all costs. You have Vita, a brilliant political mind who knows that her choice in candidate is not perfect, but truly feels that it’s the only way to take down an even worse threat. And then, there’s the introduction of Yelena, Spider’s new assistant. Yelena is so different from Channon, in that she has no interest in hanging out with Spider, and deeply resents that she is being made to (she’s Spider’s boss’s niece). And if you thought that Channon didn’t take crap from Spider, Yelena is the absolute master of not taking crap from him. On my first read through of this series I wasn’t as into Yelena, but this time around, I am really enjoying her thus far. Even if she’s a bit 2 Edgy 4 Me at times.

As far as the plot progression goes, as I mentioned before, we get back on track with the main plot in this collection. Spider gets fully pulled into covering the Election, pressured to speak out in favor of the Smiler in spite of the fact that he finds the Smiler pretty corrupt in his own ways. I liked the issues that this raises, bringing up the questions of supporting someone who is flawed and bad in different ways in the name of dethroning and taking down someone who is the evil you already know. I can see arguments for both sides, and I think that Ellis does a good job of showing why both positions have their pros and cons. Along with this, we get to see how flawed Spider himself is. Sure, in the first two collections he’s definitely brash, violent, bitter, and rageful. But in this one we see that he’s also spiraling now that Channon is gone, and that his addiction to drugs is back in full swing. Spider is certainly based in part on Hunter S. Thompson, and it’s in storylines like these that we are reminded that Thompson himself was incredibly screwed up, no matter how brilliant he was. I love Spider, but I applaud that Ellis isn’t making him free of critique or problems that could really do damage to him and to those around him.

Plus, the ending of this collection…… It just gutted me. I had forgotten about it, and I gasped out loud when the big climax happened, because damn was it unexpected, and DAMN did it hurt.

This series continues to be great, and I can’t wait to see what I rediscover next. Even if I know I’m going to get emotionally ravaged again and again. Thanks, Spider. Thanks a lot. show less

The first two volumes got readers acquainted with Spider Jerusalem and the city that he loves to hate. The stories were primarily single or double issues with the overall narrative running in the background. Volume three gives us a story over six issues, "Year of the Bastard."

The presidential election is coming up, and the Opposition Party convention is in town. Spider is assigned to cover it. Two candidates figure prominently, and Spider wants to know if either is capable of taking down the current president, aka "The Beast". He interviews one and attends a campaign rally for the other. Neither of which make him feel good inside. As the convention convenes and a candidate is nominated, Spider smells a rat and digs until he finds the show more truth.

With the departure of his first personal assistant, Spider receives a new one: his editor's niece, Yelena. Spider's not exactly a charmer, so it doesn't take long for her to hate him. While resolving their conflict, Ellis gives a bit of insight into Spider. There's also a back-and-forth between Spider and Vita Severn, a political director for one of the candidate's campaigns. She recognizes the importance of having the press on her side, and he enjoys the access to the candidate that she provides. But there's more going on there.

Written over 1998-1999, it is just as relevant now as then. Besides the obvious oversaturation of media in our daily lives, there's the politics. This quote from Vita Severn about one of the candidates sounds like it could've been about the 2016 campaign:

"His Florida campaign for the candidacy rested entirely upon cultural and economic divides, the exploitation of tensions and the vestiges of prejudice. His appearance in Sanford looked like a Nuremberg rally."

Spider relies on the usual assortment of cigarettes, booze, pills, and sex to help him cope with his resurgent celebrity as well as sift through all the political bullshit. Inspiration is typically the result of intuition and amplified by the biochemical mixture in his system. After the binge required to write a column, there's always the comedown and hangover. Copious amounts of coffee and cigarettes get him through it. Going forward, it might take more than that. While this volume has concluded, it is clearly just the first act in a much larger story arc.

Darick Robertson's artwork continues to vividly convey the story. All of the characters' emotions, the action, the minutiae of city life, and the chaos of the political maelstrom are exquisitely rendered in fine detail. show less

Spider Jerusalem turns his gonzo journalism to cover the election in Warren Ellis’ demented future; while it was written in 1999, the lunacy depicted there looks like a superb curve fit to applying the classic science fiction “if this goes on” principle to modern politics. Sadly, the only thing that appears fantastical in this story is the reaction of voters to unpleasant truths being trotted out in front of them; Ellis’ world has a higher proportion of people willing to acknowledge observable reality than the one we live in today.

After two mostly episodic volumes, the third one actually has some kind of ongoing plot – admittedly, not very much of it, but I’m not reading this series for its compelling plot anyway – I read it for the over-the-top personality of Spider Jerusalem, the wild imagination of Warren Ellis comes up with (like growing a vice president on a body farm, “creating that utter rarity, a politician with a clean past”) and the graphic inventiveness of Darrick Robertson (whose panels invite to linger and explore to find all the details they are crammed full with). Having said that, though, I’ll also have to say that the story takes a surprisingly grim turn right at the end – will have to see whether Transmetropolitan follows that up show more in its next volume. show less

Man, much better. The politics picks up and classic Gonzo journalism tactics come into play. The political wrangling in this is classic, and strangely enthralling. Dirty politics and Neo Nazi politicians, cannibalism and deviancy - this comic really has it all.

Like [a:Garth Ennis|14965|Garth Ennis|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1242438038p2/14965.jpg] [a:Warren Ellis|12772|Warren Ellis|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1316469074p2/12772.jpg] takes no prisoners, but unlike [a:Garth Ennis|14965|Garth Ennis|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1242438038p2/14965.jpg], [a:Warren Ellis|12772|Warren Ellis|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1316469074p2/12772.jpg] weaves together a heavily political message that rings truer with every show more passing year.

There's a lot of truth in Transmetropolitan and there's much that anyone with even the slightest interest in politics can take away from it. In addition to this the society that has been created in this comic series is just fantastic. While not as detailed as [a:Carla Speed McNeil'|63762|Carla Speed McNeil|http://www.goodreads.com/images/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66.jpg]'s world in the Finder series this one still stands on its own. The hate, the saturation of information, it all is something that one should be able to relate to.

Hell, even Heller's constituency is something that the average American has a passing familiarity with here...

Man, I can't wait to see what happens next. show less

So help me, I wish these damn things were longer.

How much fun is Warren Ellis' dystopic future-future New York? and has there ever been a more brutally dangerously cool character than Spider Jerusalem? The politics kick up a notch here, taking us into the upcoming election, and Spider's reluctance turns into energy once he really gets into it. But this volume also sets up the shifting remainder of the story arc... and it's like a drug, you just want more every damn time you finish one. Now all we need is a real Spider Jerusalem and maybe we'll all come out of this moderately okay....

More at RB: http://wp.me/pGVzJ-Fn

The story telling keep getting stronger as does the quality of the art.
That said I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first two as I don't really enjoy political themed stories and that was what dominated here and I felt in once section in particular the use of Hitler was a bit cliched and ham handed. I got the point without having that pounded into my head, in fact using his image actually took me out of the story and weakened the whole concept.
I did enjoy the introduction of Spider's new assistant and the growing circle of people that Spider interacts with on a more regular basis, it makes the character and his world feel more grounded and real, I felt his pain in the end and that isn't something I thought I would have in the first show more two books. show less