New Ex Machina discussion: alcoholism, heroism, and unanswered questions (spoilers)

[Aaron King]

I didn't want to put this in the #9 thread and I didn't think I should resurrect the old general discussion thread, so here we go.

First of all, I'm pretty darn sure that Hundred has or will have an alcohol problem. The intro to the series focuses on the glass in his hand. In issue #5, Kremlin/Ivan says, "I am the man who helped your mother slay dragon that nearly took me!" and I think it meant to say "that nearly took her." There are a lot of typos in this book. On the next page, he's slamming down a drink talking to someone on the phone. I think he meant "her" because in #8, at the barbecue at the Georges's house, Hundred turns down a drink because "my mom and dad were both 'friends of Bill W.'" This refers to Bill Wilson, founder of alcoholics anonymous. I also think that it ended tragically for his mom. Thus all the flashbacks/meditation things with her.

Next, I want to comment on the first story arc (everything that was collected in "The First Hundred Days"). People have said they were disappointed that it turned out not to be a mystery in the traditional sense. That's probably true, but since I read it in a collected edition, I got a different idea about what the story was. I think it involves "what it means to be a hero." Hundred puts on a costume, decides it stinks, and enters politics. Kremlin distrusts politics and thinks they need to stick with the costume. Bradbury, in his own little way, wants to shoot people and take bullets for Hundred. Comissioner Angotti believes in a greater good achieved through following the good rules and breaking the bad ones ("whichever legal eagle decided to make petty crap like killing a tree a felony"). The artist of the Lincoln piece waffles on her views of right and wrong. She lies to herself, believing that her art (which WAS very trite) will cause societal self-reflection, only to become a vigilante, saving herself and saving Hundred a ton of trouble. Lastly, we get the kid who murdered the plow drivers. We'll use his own words: "I'm gonna live forever. Ever last bastard who ever gave me crap is gonna know that I single-handedly shut down this entire crap school system for three days. I'm a hero." It all seems very jaded and doesn't bode well for Hundred, especially since we know how things are going to end for him.

Lastly, what's the blackmail that Trip had on Hundred? Could Hundred's "dirty secret" be his sexual orientation? Could it be that he killed Pherson, the not-very-revealed enemy? Is Pherson's ghost inhabiting the suit, empowered by the glyph? Did he ever die in the frist place?

[moebius]

In issue #5, Kremlin/Ivan says, "I am the man who helped your mother slay dragon that nearly took me!" and I think it meant to say "that nearly took her."

Mitch's alcoholism has been commented on once or twice. I've started to notice that he does indeed have some sort of drink in every issue. I think the pressure of the job is getting to him.

Kremlin is an Eastern European or Russian refugee. Alcoholism in the Soviet Union was so bad that by the 1980s Gorbachev had to outlaw sugar, because it was a chief ingredient in the production of vodka. I'm thinking that he was either a recovering alcoholic or heroin addict ("the dragon") that helped Mitch's mother. And it's strongly implied in the dream sequence that Mitch's mother died under mysterious circumstances.


Lastly, what's the blackmail that Trip had on Hundred? Could Hundred's "dirty secret" be his sexual orientation? Could it be that he killed Pherson, the not-very-revealed enemy? Is Pherson's ghost inhabiting the suit, empowered by the glyph? Did he ever die in the frist place?

One of the themes of this book for me is that Mitchell was a pretty crap superhero, except for the one situation where his powers were really useful. If you look at all the Great Machine flashbacks, every time Mitchell's in his suit he screws up or gets reactions from people he wouldn't expect. He expects the world to operate by the tenets of four-color logic, and it just doesn't happen. So with the Jack Pherson thing, expect Mitchell to screw up somehow.

As for the Republican dirt, it's hard to tell if Mitchell is gay or just being manipulative with Suzanne. It could be about Pherson. It could be about vote rigging. Hard to say.

Another thing I've noticed is that Mitch is actually a really good fighter. All three of his fights (against Kremlin, two German agents and two FBI agents) he managed to take his opponents down very easily.

Finally, I'm pretty sure it's Geroges' wife in the suit (since they only found a hand, which may or may not have been hers). First rule of comic books: they're not dead until you see the head...sometimes not even then. "Ghost" might be too paranormal concept for a book that's heavily grounded in reality, with only one fantastic element so far.

[Agent Cooper]

What I'm really curious about, as mundane as it may seem, is Hundred's left ear.

In the flashback showing the discovery of the artifact and the explosion that gave him his power, we clearly see that his ear was sheared off - just gone. Only a few tatters of flesh left.

Now, he seems to have a perfectly healthy, whole ear.

Was it regrown? Reattached? Is it prosthetic? In any case, he must have had some profound hearind damage. Do the subcutaneous electronics compensate for this?

I don't know why I'm fixated on this, but it seems important to me for some reason.

[moebius]

His left eye wasn't in great shape either. Heh...Ex Machina should do a crossover with Cable.

[Tobias March]

This is what I love about the audience response to Ex Machina - Vaughan has set it up almost as a discussion group for the themes that arise in the telling, with occaisional superheroics/sci-fi geekgasms. It's real entertainment.