Hey everybody, I hope you’ve had a great week, and are gearing up for Christmas as I am! It is without a doubt one of my favorite times of the year. This week in Ye Olde School Café, I’ll be starting a journey through one of the best stories of the last thirty years in my opinion (and many others), with Alan Moore and David Lloyd’s masterpiece – V for Vendetta! I actually saw the movie first, then picked up the Tpb (trade paperback). There are some glaring differences in each representation, and I have thoughts on both, but I’ll save them until the end. As for now, let’s dive into this fantastic tale!
To set the scene, we have a young girl, Evey Hammond, living in England after a radical party called “Norsefire” has ruthlessly and unethically taken control of the government. In this future, we see policemen, called “Fingermen,” with pretty much the authority to do as they see fit in order to quell any disturbance or lawbreaking. The Norsefire party has total control over the television, radio, and every other media outlet in the country. They have no opponents from a political perspective, either. Speaking of perspective, that’s a word that is used during a line in the movie that pretty much sums up the entire movie in one short scene. If you have seen it, you know which one I mean, if not, Netflix immediately, and enjoy a great movie. Now, on to part one of this story.
As we watch Evey get ready for a night on the town, we also see a man doing the same. Evey is actually going out to try and earn some extra money through prostitution. She approaches a man on a street corner and propositions him. He tells her that she’s made a big mistake, and he pulls out a badge. He and his friends from around the corner are Fingermen. As Evey pleads with them, they try to assault her. Out of the shadows comes a robed figure wearing a Guy Fawkes mask that recites some Macbeth, then proceeds to kill three of the officers and tear gasses the others. He quickly whisks Evey away to another location where she asks who he is. His response is as follows – “I’m the King of the twentieth century. I’m the bogeyman. The villain…The black sheep of the family.” This obviously puzzles Evey, but then he tells her of another event that’s about to occur. He then reminds her of the date…”remember, remember, the fifth of November, the gunpowder treason and plot. I know of no reason why the gunpowder treason, should ever be forgot.” As he finishes his sentence, the houses of Parliament explode, followed by fireworks. Evey is excited like a child, and then V tells her that the overture is finished, and it’s time to prepare for the first act.
The next morning, the “Leader” tells his most trusted men to give their reports. Mr. Heyer (The Eye) tells him that they have pictures from video cameras, but his mask makes identification impossible. Mr. Etheridge (The Ears) explains that there is a lot of phone surveillance with discussions about the bombing. Mr. Finch (The Nose) informs the Leader that the explosive was made by homemade materials and cannot be traced. He also explains that the device was very sophisticated in its construction. As the Leader signs off with the others, Mr. Almond (head of the Finger) is left to explain what has happened. He really can’t explain how this happened, and then the Leader tells him to bring him the head of this lunatic, or he’ll have his head. He tells him to go to Jordan Tower and meet with Mr. Dascombe to discuss how they are going to present this on television to the public. Mr. Almond watches the Leader walk away, and has much hatred in his eyes.
Well, that’s it for this week, but come back next week as Evey is introduced to the lair of the man named V, and also we see V strike again at those in power. We’ll also slowly learn that there is a method to his madness, but his enemies won’t realize this until it’s too late!
Billy Dunleavy
billy@comicattack.net