The Warren Commission Report: A Graphic Investigation into the Kennedy Assassination

by Dan Mishkin, Ernie Colón (Illustrator), Mr. Jerzy Drozd (Illustrator)

Within days of the murder of President John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson appointed a seven-member commission to investigate the assassination. In its report, the Warren Commission determined that there was “no credible evidence” conflicting with its conclusion of a lone gunman. Artist Ernie Colón, bestselling illustrator of The 9/11 A Graphic Adaptation , teams up with author Dan Mishkin to provide a unique means of testing the commission’s findings, unraveling conflicting narratives side by side through graphic-novel techniques. The Warren Commission A Graphic Investigation into the Kennedy Assassination breaks down how decisions in the days that followed the assassination not only shaped how the commission reconstructed events but also helped foster the conspiracy theories that play a part in American politics to this day.

Genres: Graphic Novels, History, Nonfiction, Comics, Politics, Historical, True Crime

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 16, 2014

About the author

Dan Mishkin is a comic book writer who has worked on superheroes, sci-fi, and sword & sorcery, as well as comics featuring funny animals and American history. He is a co-creator of the girls' fantasy adventure Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld, the superhero series Blue Devil, and the current webcomic Amazon Academy.

Reviews

[Brit · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first, I thought this was a graphic depiction of the Warren Report (of which I remain skeptical) but that would be a vast oversimplification of the book. Instead it is critical of the Report and explains the larger forces at work in the government and society. It does not necessarily endorse the findings of the Report but neither does it endorse any of the myriad conspiracy theories about the JFK assassination. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the JFK assassination. It pushed me to think more deeply and critically about everything I have learned about the event.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

After a trip to Dallas and visiting Dealey Park, I have had a fascination in the research or lack thereof that went into the Warren report. I stumbled upon this graphic novel version which turned out to be a golden find. Not only does it cover numerous different conspiracy theories but also takes into account the changing times of the era. A very interesting book that I would recommend to anyone curious about the fateful events of that Nov. 22nd.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a total surprise, thoroughly outstanding. I picked it up on a lark, after it was recommended by my librarian. I have no particular interest in the Kennedy assassination, and no patience for conspiracy theories. But this book completely captured my attention and transformed the way I think about this period, so that's five stars from me. Rather than the text of the actual report (what I thought I was getting when I started), this team (two artists and a historian) have written a history of the Warren Commission Report, of the document itself. This graphic form is the perfect medium through which to explore it. So much of the content of the report is clarified by visual depiction: the physical geography of Dealey Plaza, the anatomical details of the autopsy report, the conflicting timelines of witnesses. That was all interesting, but the real value here, particularly for someone of my generation, was the revelation of how bad this report is, how shoddy the investigation was, and that the government wouldn't have had nearly enough evidence to appropriately convict Lee Harvey Oswald. I had no idea. The authors put forth a sophisticated thesis, that the mishandling of the investigation is what began the shift in Americans' relationship with their government, rather than the conventionally-held turning points of Vietnam or Watergate, and I think they prove this fairly convincingly. As someone who came of age post-Oliver Stone's “JFK,” I lump JFK conspiracy theorists in with moon landing debunkers and those who insist 9/11 was an inside job. This book traces the origin of this subculture, to a time when asking whether Cuba was involved was not an insane statement but a reasoned response. They humanized conspiracy theorists, and gave them credibility. After all, as the book says, both LBJ and RFK maintained belief that the Cubans were involved in JFK's death til their own demises. I learned so much. Since the same team did a project on the 9/11 report, I look forward to reading that one soon.

[Matt Ryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Warren Commission Report covers the assassination of John F Kennedy. Throughout the novel, you can see how America was uncertain about who was on their side and were of where they stand. The story demonstrates the toll that the event took upon Americans. It also takes a deeper look into the assassination and analyzes every detail of the event, down to the very last bullethole.

It was an interesting read, although I have to admit some parts were very slow and didn't really keep my attention, but when there was an intense part, it would keep you turning the pages for more, an example is when the story takes you through Lee's procedure on that fateful day. The author made Lee a solid white color, so in scenes with color he really sticks out. A good example of this is when Lee was walking with a crowd of people and you could pick him out.
Overall this graphic novel has some gold moments, but there are really slow parts that could just seem boring to those who aren't particularly interested in the topic.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is about as exciting as one would expect the Warren Commission Report to be. However, it does a good job of presenting the report alongside of the conspiracy theories while showing how the way the report was commissioned could result in nothing but debate and conspiracies. I'm not a big fan of assassination history and while I know this event as well as the next educated person it's not something I particularly read about so did find quite a lot of new interesting tidbits of information. The writing style is entertaining and the book thoroughly held my attention for me to read it in one day. The art however, I did not like at all. The people are downright ugly, especially the faces of the women. 'nough said. The book is obviously written to an adult audience but could certainly be read by teens though I can't see it having any appeal unless it was for an assignment or such.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 3 out of 5]

http://pussreboots.pair.com/blog/2015...

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Jack Ruby shot and killed Lee Harvey Oswald, he robbed the country of what it needed, a trial of Oswald where the evidence was put forward and examined in a court of law. As is clear in this book, while there is strong evidence that Lee Harvey Oswald did in fact kill President Kennedy, there is real doubt that it would have been definitive.
Conspiracy theories still abound concerning the assassination of President Kennedy and from this book it is easy to see why. Eyewitness testimony is all over the place concerning the immediate events, with one witness contradicting what another stated over the same scene. Even though some of the facts seem to contradict each other, there remains a debate as to how many bullets were fired at Kennedy. There are also questions as to whether Oswald could have fired three bullets with such accuracy over what is known as the absolute time frame.
When it comes to education, I am in the camp of “Any way to get it done.” It is important that people learn about the major historical events. By presenting the background and context of the Warren Commission report in the form of a graphic novel, the authors do the modern world a great service. By explaining the events in an easily understood form, teachers and students everywhere can use this book to learn about a major event of the turbulent sixties in America.

[Public Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess it should come as no surprise that a book about the Warren Commission report hews so closely to its conclusions. As someone who is pretty conversant with the Kennedy assassination I got pretty antsy during the first part of the book. I was getting ready to pack it in about halfway through, but there were a few things that kept my interest. The authors did a nice job of illustrating some of the bigger criticisms against the Warren Report. For example, they talk about the pressure LBJ brought to bear on Earl Warren to head up the commission and his anxiety about possible Russian involvement.

The end of the book did a fine job of explaining why so few people are willing to swallow the Warren Report and have such problems with the single gunman (I.e. magic bullet) theory. The authors take pains to broaden the perspective to a culture wide discontent with authority that really gained traction during the 1960s.

In the beginning I wanted to hate this book but eventually the authors won me over... to a point. The book still gives far too much credence to the single shooter theory in my opinion. But they do a decent job of leaving it up to the reader to decide.

[Harry Brake · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is what I think of when it comes down to a graphic novel that keeps your attention. Pages packed full of detail that you often might need to come back to, or want to come back to. Overall, this was a great layer by layer approach to what the Warren Commission was created to do, and how successful and controversial this was. The details are excellent, graphics awesome, and I thought how great it would be to mix some real photos into the mix to align with the excellent illustrations already there.
This text by Richard Reeves is well done, precise, and tries to not leave any theories untouched and provides an accurate overview of all the possible information that had made up conspiracies as well as history surrounding this event. very well done.

[Elysa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This graphic novel investigation into The Warren Commission Report is engaging and informative. They didn't seek out to confirm the report or solve Kennedy's murder; instead, they decided to explore the uncertainty around the assassination and how that led to all the conspiracy theories. I think they were successful in that endeavor. They explained the evidence, the inconsistencies, and the mistakes made during the investigation.

I learned new information about Lee Harvey Oswald. I haven't read much about the assassination, and they didn't talk about it much while I was on school. This graphic novel lays out the information and uses imagery to make the story easy to understand while allowing readers to draw their own conclusions.

[Skylar · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well-written and concise explanation of the assassination, the culture of America at the time, and the Warren Commission’s investigation for anyone who doesn’t have the time or inclination to read the giant report itself. I was surprised that the book ended up mostly agreeing with the Report despite its many criticisms of the investigation, but I felt the author made many salient points. I will say that if you’re well-read on the subject, you probably won’t learn many new facts from this book but it’s a solid overview.

[Laura Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well presented description of what is known about the assassination of JFK, Lee Harvey Oswald, and the Warren Commission. The facts as determined, what was not determined or was poorly reported, what was remembered or mis-remembered or uncertain, what was considered as possible motives and connections, and the attempt to present the resulting investigation as complete. Including the context of social, societal and technological change at the time is essential to the understanding of the subject.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a slog! But it is well done in both scope and art. The material is very dense, as one would expect from a graphic novel concerning the Warren Commission Report and the Assassination of JFK. I learned a lot about Oswald that I hadn't known before.

Don't expect a light read because it's a graphic novel, because it is not. But it deals with the heavy material in a way that one can digest it quickly.

[Leonardo Del bino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice presentation of the investigation into the Kennedy assassination. The authors highlight the issues with the report itself, but also why it is still more reliable than many conspiracies. Towards the end, they get lost trying to tie the effects of the assassination with the political climate of the time. Nevertheless, it remains an enjoyable way to learn about history.

[Art · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have heard about the Warren Commission Report since I was a kid, but I never really knew the details. This book took care of that. It also took a look at the inconsistencies. It looked a bit at the historical forces happening in the Sixties. Well worth the reading.

[Magali Najarian · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars actually

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit tough to read, but super fascinating. All history books should be in graphic novel format. :)

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was . . . Heavy for only such a short graphic novel.

[Melissa Anderson Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm reading a bunch of graphic novels right now, and I'm really impressed with the incredible range of the titles and how I learn something new about the form's possibilities from each one. Reading The Warren Commission Report, I was really intrigued to see what a non-fiction graphic work for adults would be like. It's especially interesting, since even though I was not alive when the events took place, I still learned about the JFK assassination primarily through images--the Zapruder tape, diagrams of the magic bullet, photographs of Oswald being transferred to the county jail, movies like JFK, and so on. It's not like Lincoln's assassination, or other historical events that we've mostly only read about in text. So, I already have an image-based understanding of the events surrounding the assassination.

In this "graphic investigation," the panels contain quite a lot of text. Some of the panels were almost overwhelmed by text boxes and balloons, which I think helped convey the overwhelming task of the investigation. The authors use a lot of third-person omniscient narration, narration of actions, text describing sound effects, text providing contextual facts about the period, and word balloons containing actual quotes from the report and other documents. Indeed, I don't think there was a single panel containing no words or text at all, but unlike some of the works from the core collection I've read, there also weren't any sections without any graphic elements at all. The text and art work well together, each providing information to complement and supplement what is provided by the other. The art also creates an interpretive mood that influences the reader's understanding in some cases. For example, the drawings of Oswald are all in black and white, so Oswald stands out in an otherwise colorful panel as a sort of ghostly figure, an unknowable character who is both present and absent in the narrative at all times. Color was important in this work in other ways, too, and the muted tones and overall dominance of golds and browns used gave the book an atmospheric feeling--as if the reader is looking through old documents and photographs, yellowed with time. I really enjoyed the work, and thought it did a wonderful job of conveying both the complexity of the task given to the Warren Commission and the ways this event and its aftermath have affected American culture.

[Joe Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is a good - the comic book presentation can be a bit of a challenge on a Nook. I found the presentation informative - I've never bothered to read the Report itself. The conclusion is off the mark. The commission and its report are failures - they fail to put to rest the issues surrounding the assassination of JFK. This book identifies all of the issues - the commission was put together to "convince the American public that Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone assassin", which is probably false. Oswald was killed before he could stand trial. The commission needed to act in place of that trial and present both sides of the case before drawing a conclusion. Instead, it "cherry picked" evidence that supported it desired conclusion and comes across as prosecution brief. The FBI and the CIA withheld information. Some of that information has been released but not enough to clarify the exact relationship between the CIA and Oswald. There is evidence that more than one individual was posing as Lee Oswald. The autopsy was unprofessional, incomplete results were provided to the commission and original notes have been destroyed. The commission was unable to positively identify Oswald as the shooter. Thus a key issue is why he would have shot the president. The commission was not able to agree on his motive. The prevailing choice is some sort of megalomaniac cry for attention by a loser who tends to be volatile. The problem with that is his insistence that he did not shoot JFK. What's the point of doing something for attention if you're not going to take credit for what you did. Besides Oswald claimed to have liked Kennedy. Castro said he didn't have anything to do with Kennedy's death and that he personally liked the man. The commission believed Castro but they had already decided that Oswald was guilty so they ignored him. The other problem which is not discussed in the book is that people such as Lyndon Johnson, who had much more motivation for killing John Kennedy was never examined as a suspect. So when the authors and other say the commission "got it right" they mean that the commission correctly determined that the shots that killed JFK were fired from a sniper nest on the sixth floor of the Book Depository. The commission failed to provide convincing evidence that Oswald was the shooter and more importantly that he acted alone. The authors adequately make that point but can't bring themselves to own up to it.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's not the first book I've read about the JFK Assassination and the conspiracy theories surrounding the events of 11/22/63, but it's a quickly-paced read and a good choice for someone looking for background on the topic.

[Randall Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this on Goodreads, and was very eager to read it once it came in the mail. I recently have visited Dallas, and actually toured the Book Depository Museum and stood on the spot JFK was shot. I also stood on the Grassy Knoll. I wasn't alive during the time of the assassination, but have read a lot about it and like most people have been very intrigued. I have seen documentaries, read plenty of books, and watched the Zapruder film several times. This was a fairly unique take on the whole thing. A graphic novel version of the whole ordeal is genius. It opens up a whole new perspective as well as a completely difference audience. The information was straight forward and contained some new pieces of information I hadn't already heard before. This is definitely worth reading for anyone interested in the Kennedy assassination.

[Randall Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this on Goodreads, and was very eager to read it once it came in the mail. I recently have visited Dallas, and actually toured the Book Depository Museum and stood on the spot JFK was shot. I also stood on the Grassy Knoll. I wasn't alive during the time of the assassination, but have read a lot about it and like most people have been very intrigued. I have seen documentaries, read plenty of books, and watched the Zapruder film several times. This was a fairly unique take on the whole thing. A graphic novel version of the whole ordeal is genius. It opens up a whole new perspective as well as a completely difference audience. The information was straight forward and contained some new pieces of information I hadn't already heard before. This is definitely worth reading for anyone interested in the Kennedy assassination.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

Certainly not the first book anyone would think of when pondering the choice of something suitable for adapting into a graphic novel. It's less an adaptation so much as a story of the writing of the report and a critique of its findings. This isn't a JFK conspiracy book though. If the Warren Commission erred it seems largely to have been in being too sure of its findings, and too willing to sweep discrepancies under the rug. The discrepancies don't add up to a compelling alternative theory, but, given the uncertain nature of eyewitness testimony (among other reasons), they should probably have at least been acknowledged in the official report. It would probably have done a great deal to stem the tide of conspiracy books that followed over the years ...

[CD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting subject material for a Graphic Novel. For readers two generations plus removed from the event it may seem to border on myth.

The book does a fair job of relating the information of the events of the assassination of JFK but little of the controversy around the Warren report. There are a few liberties taken in making the story readable that go beyond the commission report itself, but nothing outstandingly egregious. It needs some additional punch beyond to really work well.

Well done art work that convincingly portrays the players. Jackie O' is the worst drawn of the lot it is sad to say. While it may be the ebook format, the colors try too hard to appear to be from the 1960's. It wasn't as drab as all that.

[Darlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really surprised at how good this book was. I usually don't read this type of book because I get bored with all the facts and lose interest quickly. Being written in a cartoon format with such great illustrations this book kept me interested and reading. I learned more from this book about President Kennedy's assassination than I ever knew. It also makes you do alot of thinking and wondering what really happened. I really enjoyed reading this book. I received this book through goodreads first reads in exchange for my honest review.

[Michael Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well done graphical story of the JFK assassination as it was described by the Warren Commission report. Also this is the story of the Commission's investigation, the limitations they worked with, the questions about its conclusions, the conspiracy theories that the report fostered. I was 12 years old when Kennedy was shot. I still have the image of the newspaper headline I saw when I got home from school in my head. It was important then, and it's important now, given the state our country is in. Well written.

[Margaux · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I had to stop for a minute while reading this.

In great detail, the authors and illustrators lay out background information and key witnesses for the Warren Commission Report. It even has information on the atmosphere in Texas and the Kennedys' attitude before heading out on that fateful morning. It's gutwrenching and heartbreaking and just terrible, but a really informative book. A definite alternative to reading a dry textbook.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A graphic rendition of the Warren Commission Report is actually quite effective. They are able to use the pictures to help portray locations and actions. I like how Oswald is always a black & white sketch, in marked contrast to everything else. It's not just a synopsis, though - the team explains how social forces and the Commission itself acted together to lead to resulting conspiracy theories. I didn't know much about this, and feel much better informed for having read this book.

[Tricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A graphic rendition of the Warren Commission Report is actually quite effective. They are able to use the pictures to help portray locations and actions. I like how Oswald is always a black & white sketch, in marked contrast to everything else. It's not just a synopsis, though - the team explains how social forces and the Commission itself acted together to lead to resulting conspiracy theories. I didn't know much about this, and feel much better informed for having read this book.