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243rd out of 263 books
—
207 voters
DMZ, Vol. 4: Friendly Fire (DMZ #4)
by
Brian Wood (Goodreads Author),
Riccardo Burchielli , Nathan Fox (Goodreads Author)
America's worst nightmare has come true. Having neglected the threat of anti-establishment militias, the U.S. government is in danger of losing control. Middle America has violently risen up, coming to a standstill at Manhattan or, as the world now knows it, the DMZ. Matty Roth, a naïve, aspiring photojournalist lands a dream gig following a veteran war journalist into the...more
Paperback, 128 pages
Published
March 5th 2008
by Vertigo
(first published June 2007)
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This is the most interesting volume of DMZ so far, because the structure of the story forces Wood out of his standard voice. By choosing to do a Rashomon story (or a Jose Chung's, depending on your specialty), Wood ensures that each character in the story has a different view and different voice, because the whole story is based on the idea that everyone sees events in different ways.
I only wish that he had been differentiating his characters and their points-of-view this much right from the beg...more
I only wish that he had been differentiating his characters and their points-of-view this much right from the beg...more
This is a brilliant story, and the DMZ universe is the perhaps the only place the mechanics of an accidental civillain massacre can be blown open and shown for what they are. This would have been a 5 star except for some art issues.
You know PFC Stevens is in for a bad time from the start - from the wrong place, in the army for the wrrong reasons, ill-adapted to the region and born to take the blame for the savvy career soldiers and officers around him.
When things go wrong on Day 204 of the conf...more
You know PFC Stevens is in for a bad time from the start - from the wrong place, in the army for the wrrong reasons, ill-adapted to the region and born to take the blame for the savvy career soldiers and officers around him.
When things go wrong on Day 204 of the conf...more
FRIENDLY FIRE is Wood's chance to tell the story of the mythic Day 204, the day in which U.S. soldiers slaughtered 204 New York natives during a peace protest. It's a tough story to read, and Wood deserves kudos for portraying the different perspectives so well. I was particularly impressed with his portrayals of U.S. soldiers and how they are trained to do exactly what many are being vilified for in Iraq and Afghanistan now: kill people.
The greatest part of this story is that the event itself b...more
The greatest part of this story is that the event itself b...more
The thing about the DMZ series is that, every time I pick it up, I pick it up as a last resort. I'm like, fine, I guess I can read this now. And I'm always annoyed at the start of each story arc, but then surprised by how much it pulls me in. This arc, Friendly Fire, is a good example.
In general, I tire of the relentless, macho, apocalyptic woe of this series - I tire of the "fucking fuck!"s and brains/intestines everywhere and the never-ending cynicism. People have lauded this series as making...more
In general, I tire of the relentless, macho, apocalyptic woe of this series - I tire of the "fucking fuck!"s and brains/intestines everywhere and the never-ending cynicism. People have lauded this series as making...more
Part four in the excellent graphic novel serialization of the "civil war" between the U.S.A. and the "Free States of America", locked in a stalemate at the DMZ which runs between Long Island and New Jersey, (Manhattan being a no-go zone for either side.) More insight on the beginnings of "the war" are explained, with the massacre of 198 peace protesters on "Day 204" of the conflict and the loss of the moral high ground by the U.S. as world opinion shifts against the government and towards a peac...more
Another good installment in the DMZ story, covering an atrocity that occurred early in the war for New York after a 198 person peace march turned into a government spurred massacre. The tribunals are being heard at this point in the story's progression, and photojournalist Matty Roth is there to cover it. As with any war, there are many sides to the massacre and in the end, everything is political.
There were o9nly two things that got me about the story. The first was a perceived change in flow....more
There were o9nly two things that got me about the story. The first was a perceived change in flow....more
This volume was definitely better than the 3rd volume, Public Works. Wood follows up his less than successful attempt at exposing the corruption of contractors during wartime, with a well crafted tale about the ravages of war on a community and a young man in particular.
Private Stevens, a nobody from nowheresville South Dakota gets forced into the army and thrown into the thick of things in the DMZ. His unit is out on patrol on a rainy day and a mass of hooded marches walks passed them. Stevens...more
Private Stevens, a nobody from nowheresville South Dakota gets forced into the army and thrown into the thick of things in the DMZ. His unit is out on patrol on a rainy day and a mass of hooded marches walks passed them. Stevens...more
I don't know if I have much to say on this volume other than it is a near-perfect graphic novel. I would level some kind of criticism at this dissection of a wartime massacre and its effects on the population and the military who ordered it if I had one, but I don't. Books like this, which provide no easy answers yet reveal exceptional quantities of truth, come along round about never in the comic industry, but when they do they should be appreciated and respected for the artistic achievements t...more
If I hadn't seen the other DMZ books in the series on my comic shop's shelves, I would have been satisfied with this as one complete four-book narrative. Brian Wood and company do a great job of deepening the story and depicting the subtle fatalism of the situation. It really puts you in a frame of mind to begin to understand what life in an occupied country must be like -- scary, hopeless, but with cracks in the wall where love and some degree of normalcy sneak through.
Friendly Fire, collecting the fourth and most raw story-arc in this series to-date, Roth investigates the senseless massacre of innocent Manhattans on day 204 of the Second Civil War. We get the story from multiple sides, and are left just as dazed and confused as we were at the outset. It also reminds us the human mass’s demand for blood vengeance – no matter how barbaric that may seem. And that justice is a fickle bitch. (Oh, how low our civilization has sunk.)
Jul 28, 2011
Rahadyan
added it
In this arc of the dystopian series set in New York City of the near future, the protagonist Matty Roth conducts interviews with an enlisted soldier who is apparently the scapegoat for a massacre at a protest rally. From the young grunt's perspective, the readers learn how the war of the DMZ came about. Highly recommended as part of the series, though not the best jumping-on point for readers new to DMZ.
Reprints DMZ #18-22. Matty investigates the claims of soldiers on trial for the Day 204 Massacre and wonders who is telling the truth. DMZ is a solid comic but doesn't wow me. The story is interesting and little by little Wood is telling more about how the DMZ reached the point at which the story takes place. Matty's character is kind of flat but it is supporting characters that do add to the story.
When American troops open fire on a peaceful protest, Matty Roth gets involved in the quest for the truth about what actually happened. Riccardo Burchielli's art is as bad as it usually is. There is a section drawn by Kristian Donaldson, who is not particularly good but at least doesn't sexualize every female in every scene, nor does zie rely upon gratuitous amounts of bodily fluids and harm.
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This volume was much, much better than the last -- a very strong story about guilt and blame for atrocities of war, with a lot of equally valid points of view presented with respect. Matty was much less clueless and frustrating in this volume, and I found the secondary characters presented -- especially Stevens, the soldier being investigated -- to be really compelling.
Wow. Just - Wow.
Five stars isn't enough. In this volume of DMZ, Wood manages to ask all those difficult questions about human nature and truth and war, and he does it in a way that is utterly devastating. I read it twice in a row, then spent a sleepless night curled in the fetal position, sobbing my eyes out. Then I read it again. Just. Wow.
Five stars isn't enough. In this volume of DMZ, Wood manages to ask all those difficult questions about human nature and truth and war, and he does it in a way that is utterly devastating. I read it twice in a row, then spent a sleepless night curled in the fetal position, sobbing my eyes out. Then I read it again. Just. Wow.
This issue of DMZ looks at Day 204 of the war when soldiers of the US opened fire on a group of people. At the time it was unclear who this group were and what they were doing. It becomes a case of "friendly fire" and a sham trial to find out who is responsible. Matty Roth is investigating but comes to no real conclusions.
Holy allegory Batman! If you ever needed a sign saying "Oh hey maybe DMZ is kinda about Iraq or something," this is probably it. War crimes trial of American soldiers who killed a bunch of civilians. Oh look, they get off scot-free. Quelle surprise.
A bit meh, a bit directionless, and not much story. Not the best DMZ.
A bit meh, a bit directionless, and not much story. Not the best DMZ.
Starting off in the middle of this series was a bit jarring but by the end I really started to know and feel for these characters. My criticism of Woods early work was that I always found his characters artificial but I was really impressed by the work here. Definitely will be going back and reading the first 3 volumes.
After finishing the fourth volume in this series I can only conclude that Brian Wood is one of the best writers currently working in American comics. I am continually surprised, stunned, thrilled and often touched by these characters and this world that Wood, and absolutely stellar artist Riccardo Burchielli, have created. They pull no punches in this series and the 'good guys' and the 'bad guys' often change depending on the circumstances. It is very real and very complex storytelling that touc...more
Aug 03, 2011
Cchauvet
added it
Sadly, I feel as though this was a throw away story arc. On the one hand, it's remarkably well told and illustrated. On the other, it just doesn't do anything to advanced the main plot of the series, in my opinion. Unless the rest of the series hinges on this collection, I could probably have skipped it.
Absolutely incredible addition to the series. The Woods' writing has gone to a new level and per usual the artwork is tight, gritty and immersing. To use a cliche, DMZ continues to pull no punches: War Is Hell. It's hard to find any work that has more wholly walked so satisfyingly away from sentimentality, even when it comes to the horrors of war.
Who is innocent? Is anyone? Who doesn't have blood on their hands, just, unjust, in between? The confusion and complexities of war, especially a civil...more
Who is innocent? Is anyone? Who doesn't have blood on their hands, just, unjust, in between? The confusion and complexities of war, especially a civil...more
Wow. The best volume of the series by far, with devastating impact and unanswerable moral questions. I criticized the previous volume for being simplistic; "Friendly Fire" shows a complex and thought-provoking side. Top-notch writing that brings "DMZ" to a whole new level.
Friendly Fire is a compelling story about how soldiers often get caught in the middle of military machinations and take the fall for their superiors. The whistle-blowers who call out the faults and failures of military operations are left high and dry...or worse.
And it's back! Experimenting with a new narrative style, a compelling story that isn't as clear-cut as what was happening before, and a gut-churning resolution. The only thing keeping it from five stars was a very incongruous and jarring artwork-style shift.
This was disturbing storyline, but I think a thought-provoking one. Matty tries to develop a story about a massacre of civilians, and ends up with several different perspectives on the events.
It's an unpleasant ending, but a fitting one.
It's an unpleasant ending, but a fitting one.
Enjoyed this a lot, more than #3. I thought it dealt with really interesting issues from some objective viewpoints, raised more questions than answers and I think that was the goal, and they did it really well. Provocative and artistic.
A great look at very human interactions of soldiers, civilians and bureaucrats involved with an isolated incident of war. So dark and visceral...a great addition to a series of graphic novels that almost can't be beat. Excellent work.
The classic war question, who is at fault, who shot first is explored. out of all the factions: US, Free States and DMZ, who started the first massacre? Who is truly innocent if involved at all?
Nice installment, as usual, Matty gets used and is surprised at the end, but at least this time he gives his story to an outside party where it might have some hope of seeing the light of day.
Nice installment, as usual, Matty gets used and is surprised at the end, but at least this time he gives his story to an outside party where it might have some hope of seeing the light of day.
matty engages in some journalistic detective work around the most contentious massacre in the war. the illustrations, which get switched up a bit in one chapter, are brilliant. great continuation of the story.
Brian Wood shows us there are no easy answers in a military conflict where multiple parties have their own truth and seek retaliation. Burchielli's artwork is beautiful but succeeds in revealing war's ugly face.
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