![]() It wouldn't be an influential comic if it weren't a fun read and it absolutely is. There are also some brilliant historical scenes like a young John Lennon and Stu Sutcliffe talking about Stu leaving the band, just before The Beatles became big Lord Byron and Percy Shelley discussing their work and its purpose and an entire storyline set during the French Revolution, all of which wouldn't be out of place in Gaiman's Sandman comics. Dane's abandoned on the streets of London by King Mob but is soon picked up by a seemingly raving mad homeless man called Tom O'Bedlam, the Obi-Wan to Dane's Luke, who teaches him about the true reality. The Harmony House terrors look like Charles Burns' creations from X'Ed Out and The Hive, matching the tone of surreal paranoia as well.īut The Invisibles also incorporates a lot of popular elements into its story too. Dane is rescued from the Harmony House authoritarian monsters by King Mob, a scene that would be replicated in China Mieville's first novel, King Rat. The Invisibles' influence goes beyond The Matrix though. Later on, he's told to open his mind by leaping off of a building - sound familiar? Then there's the astral projection scene where their bodies stay in one place while their spirits go elsewhere, like plugging in to the Matrix. King Mob sees in Dane the potential of someone powerful, someone who can greatly help their fight against The Outer Church. He's given the choice of enlightenment from King Mob, of discovering the real world, or becoming another drone. Dane is basically Neo, whose antisocial behaviour brings him to the attention of King Mob (Morpheus) and The Outer Church (the Agents of the Matrix). One thing that struck me the most about this book is its massive impact it must've had on the Wachowskis when they were coming up with The Matrix. In some ways, considering the time, The Invisibles could be a reaction to the excessive consumerism of the 80s, being the search for substance and meaning and casting aside the superficial dross that makes up modern society looked at another way, it's a great story - either way, it's undeniably a really good piece of art! There are numerous scenes that would be used a few years later in the 1999 film The Matrix and the general spirit of the book - nihilistic anarchy and anti-consumerist - could be seen as the foundation of another highly influential 1999 film, Fight Club.Īs Morrison himself has said, a really good piece of art captures a mood, and The Invisibles captures the mood of the end of the 20th century - the fight for individuality, the value of identity, and the anticipation and desire of a new century bringing about a new world. ![]() Usually with books you can look at the many elements that influenced it and say that this part is inspired by this and this other part is inspired by that and so on with The Invisibles Volume 1, a comic that came out in the early 90s, you can do the opposite. That is until he's rescued by King Mob, the leader of a group of magicians called The Invisibles, who inducts him into his ragtag team of rebels and tells him about their secret war against The Outer Church. After an attempt at burning down his school, he's sent to a re-education centre called Harmony House, a nightmarish facility which tries to reprogram Dane's nonconformist behaviour through lobotomy and castration. The first Invisibles book introduces us to our hero Dane McGowan, an angry working class teenager from Liverpool who spends his evenings vandalising property while his single mother entertains her latest boyfriend in their council flat. But anyway, I'm here now and glad to have finally read such a talked-about book and discovering that it's really good! I know, I know, I'm late to the party on this one! The first volume of The Invisibles came out 20 years ago and I'm just now getting around to reading it - all I can say is: Batman.
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