false 3 0 false false Thu Jul 31 06:02:19 -0700 2008 Thu Jul 31 06:02:33 -0700 2008
Already several years into this gig, Justin – now going by the mysterious moniker “Moritat”, which explains why I’ve been in the dark all this time – pencils, inks, and even colors the Elephantmen series penned by Richard Starkings; the latter who is better known for his revolutionary work with the LA-based digital lettering studio Comicraft. (Open a Wildstorm or Image comics on any given day of the week, and you’ll often find them credited for the lettering.)

Wounded Animals is an entirely different beast – no pun intended. Set several decades after the war in Europe, a trio of Elephantmen – Hip Flask, Ebony Hide, and Horn – are now freed of their bondage, and attempting to lead productive and respectable lives in the United States. Of course, as these things go, paranoia, fear, and hatred against all things bio-engineered reign in the hearts and minds of humans. (Do we ever learn?) Scattered throughout these disparate stories are timely allusions to the fear surrounding stem-cell research -- including the use of human-bovine embryos to extract that – as well as our predilection for specist thinking. Themes from Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Pierre Boulle’s Planet of the Apes converge in these original, multi-layered stories. Where these seemingly disparate plotlines are headed, I can only imagine. (Something to do with a priapic statue, as hinted at the end of this first volume.) But wherever this leads, I do know that I’m enjoying this often-provocative ride.
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