Legendary comic book artist and writer Frank Miller, who
famously turned the caped crusader into a fascist in the seminal graphic novel The Dark Knight Returns, now advocates
fascism in the real world. In a rant
posted on his website, he disregards the Occupy movement
as one populated by “louts, thieves, and rapists.” He also dismisses them as an “unruly mob”
that does nothing but “harm America.” Miller
manages to do all of the aforementioned in first paragraph alone. His rant maintains the same tone throughout,
even going so far as to take jabs at the sheltered man child who at one time worshiped him, before execrable works such as All Star Batman and Robin and most
recently Holy Terror eroded such
devotion. Though inflammatory, his stance isn’t exactly surprising, given the militaristic
and fascist tone of even his most respected works.
Nowhere is Millers political stance more apparent than in
perhaps his most famous work, The Dark
Knight Returns. The graphic novel,
originally published in four parts throughout 1986, has a 55 year old Batman
coming out of retirement to save an increasingly lawless Gotham from devouring
itself. He declares war on a vicious new
youth gang, and faces off against the man of steel. In the process, he declares a vigilante form
of martial law and becomes an enemy of the United States government. The book cast fascism as form of revolution
in the modern world. (IE an America dominated
by liberals and scum). This dystopian
take on Batman became an instant sensation and virtually changed the character
overnight, ushering in the “grim and gritty” era of superhero comics.
Since the publication of The
Dark Knight Returns, Miller has made such tales his stock in trade. His superb Sin City series of graphic novels revel in the misogynistic and
dated values of film noir and old detective stories. Women are often portrayed as murderous
hookers, or damsels in distress who are violently liberated from their captors. 300
(both Millers graphic novel and the subsequent film adaptation) played as a
slick piece of right wing propaganda.
His recent Holy Terror
continues this trend, recycling many familiar themes from his past works.
With his November 7th rant, Miller now lets such
sentiments manifest themselves in reality as opposed to the comic book
page. That he does so is evidence of man
whose works have always come from a very real place. It’s also evidence of a man who is detached
from reality. What’s very telling is how
Miller openly embraces any number of myths about the Occupy protesters (Many of which are soundly trounced in this entry from Devin Faraci’s long running column The Devin’s Advocate), such as
the idea they protest capitalism while openly enjoying the creature comforts
and fringe benefits it provides. If Miller truly believes that, he obviously
can’t smell what he’s shoveling.
The irony of all this is that the iconic character that
Miller reconfigured in his own image likely would not approve of his
stance. A great many Batman stories from
various mediums portray Bruce Wayne as both philanthropic and charitable. Though a billionaire (Who uses the image of
an irresponsible playboy as subterfuge) Wayne recognizes that his war is not
one against the poor or the working class.
In Miller’s own Batman: Year One,
Batman issues a dire warning to a corrupt upper class: "You've eaten
Gotham's wealth ... your feast is nearly over.”
It seems that Bruce Wayne doesn’t suffer such types well.
Two fisted vigilantes swooping in to declare
martial law and solve society’s woes with brute force looks and reads great on
the comic book page. Such stories give
us an outlet for our darkest fantasies, and cast our icons in an intriguing new
light. However, they should remain on
the page and the screen, never to cross over into reality. Miller has become the proverbial fanboy completely
lost in a fantasy world. In Miller’s
case, it’s one of his own design. Were
he to exist in the real world, Batman would probably side with the Occupy Wall Street protestors against the police forces that now act as a Gestapo for the corrupt one
percent. Miller would do well to keep in
mind the thoughts of a real life revolutionary, Malcolm X: “If You’re not
careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed
and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.”
Yeah, hows that war on Occupy going, you narcissistic twat? Oh yeah. You lost.
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