Campaign 2020: Presidential candidates discuss favorite feature in comic book
CAMELOT, Iowa — As Democratic presidential candidates prepare for tonight’s first debate of the 2020 primary season, this morning three candidates campaigning in the town of Camelot, Iowa, shared their thoughts on the features showcased in the anthology comic book Steel Cage #1.
Published today by AHOY Comics, Steel Cage presents three “pilot” features for a new ongoing comics series, and asks readers to vote on which feature will continue. In “Noah Zark” by writer Mark Waid and artist Lanna Souvanny, a young boy returns abducted alien creatures to their home planets while evading their cruel captors. “True Identity” is a poignant superhero story by writer Tom Peyer and artist Alan Robinson featuring Penultiman. In “Bright Boy,” writer Stuart Moore and artist Peter Gross craft a dark tale of Dr. Litman, the world’s smartest human, whose skills have a dangerous cost.
The comic was a hot topic of conversation at Camelot’s Comics Aficionados Club, where three lesser-known presidential candidates attended a club-sponsored breakfast forum to discuss political issues.
Asked which Steel Cage feature was her favorite, anti-robocall activist Kit Fox told the audience that she loved “Noah Zark.” “Noah is a charming protagonist, with a wonderful supporting cast of cool alien creatures like Gorilladillo, Army, and Lopealope ,” said Fox. “And it’s a very hopeful comic, with diverse creatures pooling their talents and working together to overcome the obstacles and dangers they face.”
“I suspect the creative team is being slyly political, depicting a dignified captive boy trying to help other captives find their way back home,” said Fox. “While the story is upbeat and fun, I was sadly reminded of the real-life kid detainees at our border. The story is sweet, but comments on the villainy of caging innocence and the strength of diversity.”
Jetpack pioneer Rice Bond agreed with Fox on Waid’s subtle social commentary and mentioned Souvanny’s gorgeous art, but championed “Bright Boy” as the best feature for its dark narrative and captivating artwork.
“Litman is a socially dysfunctional jerk of great intelligence, pushing himself to help the world despite the knowledge that his exertions have a deadly price,” said Bond. “The tragedy is, he’s blind to the fact that he may be as dangerous as the problems he solves, and the story really left me wanting to know more about the character and his background.”
Bond said he identified with the feature’s tragic genius protagonist. “I invented an affordable jetpack that runs on corn whiskey, and all the media wants to talk about is how I eat popcorn with a spoon.”
Bond praised Peter Gross, stating that if the artist’s striking artwork, colored by Giulia Brusco, were a person, he’d kiss it.
When an audience member confronted Bond on the perceived aggressive sexism of his comment, Bond apologized and clarified that he would only kiss the artwork after gaining its consent.
Bond also praised one of the prose stories offered in Steel Cage, “Smithsonian to Unveil New Exhibit Featuring FDR’s Jetpack Chair” by Tony Belletier. “It was a funny story, nicely illustrated by Mina Omatsu, and I love jetpacks!”
Cycling advocate Brie Go — the only candidate pledging to use no fossil fuels in her campaign travels — got applause from the crowd when she said that she was buying comics every week, not gasoline. Go supported “True Identity” because of its art and poignancy.
“You have this superhero who can do these amazing things, but is socially awkward and haunted by his perceived limitations. The comic also has great comedic timing. And artist Alan Robinson, with colorist Lee Loughridge, captures these characters’ emotions really well.”
But Go reminded the audience that all of the features were great, and that readers had to pick the one that resonated with them. “Each one of these features is a unique, engaging comic that the creators should be proud of and that many will cherish,” said Go. “Steel Cage is a treasure trove of stories, and it’s tough to pick just one to continue forward.”
The candidates’ remarks were well-received by attendees. “I think it’s gutsy for candidates to take sides in a comics debate,” said Army veteran and comics collector Richard Hughes. “I’m old enough to remember when Mike Dukakis said he had voted to keep Robin alive in that DC Comics reader poll back in ’88. I swear it cost him the election.”
“I had never heard of these candidates before, but I appreciate that they came by to talk politics and comics,” said Tucker Kluck, a frequent patron of The Erudite Dragon, a local vape shop that also sells comic books, graphic novels, baseball cards, and absinthe. “I’m definitely going to buy Steel Cage now.”
A straw poll of club members to decide which feature should get its own comics series was held shortly after the breakfast forum, although the results of this poll had not been made public at press time.
Editor’s Note: The above article is a fictional parody. Surprise!
Copies of Steel Cage can be purchased at your local comic shop or online.
You can vote for your favorite Steel Cage feature here. Voting will end the Friday before San Diego Comic-Con (July 12, 2019), where the winner of the vote will be announced.
The images and text above are the property of their respective owner(s), and are used here for not-for-profit, educational and review purposes only under the fair use doctrine of the copyright laws of the United States of America.
Although the above parody references actual comics creators and comics, the characters and the incidents depicted in the parody are fictional. Any character resemblance to actual persons (living or dead) is coincidental. The comics creators referenced in the parody were not involved in the parody’s creation, and any opinions expressed in the parody are the opinions of the author.
Disclosure: The author has attempted (unsuccessfully) to sell several prose stories to AHOY Comics in the past. However, the above parody was written as a sincere, unsolicited fan piece on the comic (which was purchased by the author) with no financial arrangement or understanding between the author and AHOY Comics. The author believes that ethical transparency is important in comics blogging, and is even more important in presidential elections.
