“Journalism is just a gun. It’s only got one bullet in it, but if you aim right, that’s all you need. Aim it right, and you can blow a kneecap off the world!”
The quote above happens to be just one among many other brilliant ones that are riddled across Transmetropolitan, a DC Comics series written by Warren Ellis and pencilled by Darick Robertson. Set in around 23rd century New York (although, it is never explicitly specified as such), the series follows the exploits of an ‘outlaw journalist’ in a futuristic dystopian world. Yes, the protagonist, Spider Jerusalem is everything that the phrase ‘outlaw journalist’ could possibly connote, and much more! And yes, he is based on Hunter S Thompson; I hope that would be enough to convince a considerable number of you to go ahead and download the series already, but for the sake of those to whom the initials HST mean nothing, I shall go on. The entire series is a tribute of sorts to Gonzo journalism, a subjective style of reporting popularized by Thompson, and one which refuses to blindly adhere to fact and is rather fuelled by the writer’s own ruminations and at times imagination.
Coming back to Jerusalem – the perfect anti-hero, an eccentric misanthrope who is forced to live in the depraved city as a popular newspaper columnist, even though he would much rather stay aloof in the mountains blowing up bars for recreation. True to his inspiration, Jerusalem too has a wicked fascination for drugs and weapons, and one that would even put old HST to shame, but then we must not forget that Spider is fictional. The plot and its development, the artwork, the dialogues, the concepts, everything about this series is just about perfect! Imagine living in a city where people practise moral cannibalism by chomping on a human leg that is cut off a brainless clone, or where changing one’s species is the norm, or how about a city where everything is obeyed by your voice as long as you have enough money; and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
As Warren Ellis elaborated in an interview, the comic uses the Wellsian style of social commentary through a portrayal of the future, and that it sure does. Full marks to Ellis and co. for tackling issues like homosexuality, prostitution, environment, corruption and just about everything, in a manner that is as profound as it’s amusing. Armed with his weapon of choice – a bowel disruptor (I’m sure the name speaks for itself) and striding along with his two ‘filthy assistants’, nothing could be possibly cooler and more badass than Spider Jerusalem. Read this ‘supermodernist’ masterpiece now! As for me, I’m out of here and I hope to never see you all again.
“If you loved me, you’d all kill yourselves”, with regards from Spider Jerusalem!