DMZ #37 Review
by Daniel Crown
The map is redrawn as Matty finds a new governor in charge of New York.
December 10, 2008 – With all of the uncharacteristic optimism swelling within sympathetic liberals these days, Brian Wood finds himself at odds with a unique, mostly conjectural set of complications. As the balance of power has shifted in the United States, and a small number of the previously disenfranchised find themselves temporarily appeased, politically charged fiction has arrived at a crossroads of sorts. Wood himself has felt inclined to speak out on the issue, conveying his own personal conflictions, while at the same time attempting to calm down some of the doomsayers who seem ready to write off such stories as suddenly inconsequential. Personally, I don’t get it. Sure, ostensibly, DMZ has always been a book best suited for the apathetic, but to imply this title loses any of its luster under the umbrage of inflated ideology is horribly nearsighted, and mostly absurd.
If anything, the incongruity between the quivering conditions of the American economy and a sudden, unprecedented influx of hope, imbues DMZ with an even greater sense of pertinence – particularly in regards to the rise of power of Parco Delgado, as well as the inconsistencies that continue to wage war on Matty Roth’s conflicted psyche.
As left-leaning citizens (such as myself) are so quick to anoint the President-elect as the “cure to what ails ya”, Wood presents a stark contrast, which constitutes the worst-case scenario. What if the figurehead of hope and change falls victim to the procedural snares of executive privilege? As Delgado’s first mandate sends Matty into immediate conflict with a group of hostile-allies in Chinatown, Wood draws an interesting corollary to an applicable phenomenon.
To this point, Matty has never felt the pressure inherent in trust. Seeing as though the reporter literally took up arms for Delgado, he stands to look foolish if the newly appointed leader fails to deliver. As a former independent, Matty is overtaken with malaise and confusion, the previously prevalent apathy, which used to dictate his decisions, resurging into alarm from the threat of any eventual let downs.
For those people still flying high with hope over recent events, this book might just ground you into a more feasible, more constructive stream of thought. Instead of basking in the glory of the turning of a page, Wood uses “War Powers” to call for a movement of pronounced accountability- a refocusing of attention towards holding trusted officials to their word. This remains true even within admiration.
In the end, DMZ is nothing more than entertainment; but that said, its success remains wholly contingent on its ability to stimulate debate. And while recent events have most likely swayed the title a bit in direction, they certainly haven’t sapped it of its prevailing value. DMZ remains the perfect book for the political reader and a fun monthly reminder of the medium’s unique ability to spur thought-provoking conversation.
