Spike it! - The Book of Fate

I've been enjoying the heck out of Brad Meltzer's run on "Justice League of America." There have been gripes that it's too arcane..too dense...can't follow it. Sure, sure. But if you've had any history with the characters before, it's a wonderful ride, with a wide variety of characters all with their different interpretation of what doing the job of "hero" is all about. Plus, Meltzer gives a nice free-hand to his artists to allow them to have "moments" that communicate only through the art. Pretty generous, that. There may be too many captions, but once the story is over you can go back and see the scrupulous path taken to get to those end-points. And, like my favorite comic-book writers (Fox and Gaiman and Moore and Morrison) he has a wonderful imagination that presents a logical extension of powers ("If he can do this, then he should be able to do this!") that make you smack yourself upside the skull and go "Why didn't I think of that?"

For instance, here's one of my favorite pages--art by Ed Benes--in which various members of the JLA, and their predecessor-group, the Justice Society of America, have teamed up to investigate the appearance of members from another super-group from the 30th century. Arcane, yes. In this page, one of the conjoined supergroups' sub-group investigative teams is featured. Here are four minor characters in the scheme of things--Red Arrow, Power Girl, Hawkgirl and Hawkman. Red Arrow has been a super-hero since he was the kid sidekick of Green Arrow, so he's been around the block. As he sits in a spaceship headed to the Hawk-pair's home-world, he ruminates on why these kids from the 30th century might be there...and thinking strategically, warns the strongest person on the ship...Power-Girl...about his fears. P-G (who may be Kryptonian, like Superman) has no firm history--she doesn't know where she's from--so she has no logo on her chest, all the better to see her cleavage (which is why she's one of Walaka's favorite characters). She ponders the upcoming fight, and her first dibs on who to take out is the character from the 30th century who is also blonde and pretty, but psychic. And Red Arrow's assumptions are confirmed by the pair in the drivers' seats--who are both products of reincarnation--they only go forward in time, not back. There's a lot to cover in six panels--two of which are exactly the same, with a slight variation to the third. That's some good economic stuff right there. Clever ideas. Nice charcterizations born out of history.

So, I was anxious to read some of Meltzer's non-comics fiction. I heard a radio interview about his latest, "The Book of Fate," and picked it up when it came out in paperback. I was attracted to his extensive research for the book, interviewing Presidents George HW Bush, and Clinton, as well as looking into the history of the Freemasons. I figured it might have a similar depth of material as "The DaVinci Code," which, though a terrible read, had a lot of neat arcana in it.

Alas, "The Book of Fate" reads more like those psuedonymous Michael Crichton books that author ground out during his medical school days--stories that moved quickly, sometimes for no apparent reason, and with enough action and/or violence to increase the page-turning along the way ("Popsicles" a college room-mate called them--forgettable and without much value, other than the descriptions of weaponry and fighting techniques). The Freemasonry? For all the claims of extensive research (and that is certainly evident in his writing about life in the White House's "inner circle") there's precious little about the Masons other than some name-dropping, and the curious configuration of the layout of Washington D.C.--which is, to say the least, interesting.

But it does share one aspect with "DaVinci." It is meant to be read in short sittings. the chapters are abnormally short--just enough to cover a series of events in one location--then once a cliff-hanger is achieved, or about to be achieved, the next chapter focusses on something many miles away, just enough to sustain interest, or frustrate that interest. I found myself frustrated more often than not, and a bit irritated that Meltzer used two narration styles: one, a first-person narrative, all the better to explain the intricacies of life in the White House, and build suspense/identification with the narrator; then, an omniscient view where events are described but information withheld to keep the suspense going. You can't be personable AND ominiscient--you have to make a choice. One's useful--the other's a cheat--like one of those "serial killer" POV shots inserted into a straight narrative. One has to think: "Okay, Who am I now?"

So, if you're looking for the Mason hook to be delved into, it's not here. It's a simple thriller about who trusts whom in the White House--or rather the Presidential Retreat. And how much trust that entails. Like the quality of the book itself--Not so much.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now, on the other hand, there was the problematic "All-Star Batman and Robin," written by the hyper-ventilating Frank Miller. Maybe Miller's been distracted putting together a film version of "The Spirit," but his writing has been more heavy-breathing than usual. For instance, in the latest issue Wonder Woman is portrayed as a man-hating demon-warrior. And if this wasn't born out by the many repetitions of "Men! I HATE them!," there are the sound-blurbs Miller chooses for the sound of WW walking "TANK-TANK-TANK-TANK." Yeee-ees.

But just when one is about to lose all hope, Miller nearly ends it with this two-page spread, featuring faithful servant, Alfred, taking out his frustrations on a weight-bag. Miller always wrote best for Alfred, but here something is added to the character than deconstructed--the power of the one man who can persuade Bruce Wayne, and the restraint with which he must endure. And while he's at it, Miller adds one more haunting aspect to an origin story that has lately creaked with the weight of additional details. But here, the tragedy is deepened. Nice work. It lets you see how great Miller could be.