[tag]V for Vendetta [/tag]Definitely worth a read. [tag]Alan Moore[/tag]’s [tag]graphic novel[/tag] of a bleak, [tag]dystopic[/tag], Fascist Britain in the aftermath of a nuclear war. In this Britain the rule of law is maintained by the 3 arms of the state – the eyes, the ears and the voice. The voice tells you what to think,and the eyes and the ears ensure that the ‘law’ gets behind you if you don’t. It’s a society that is bereft of non white, non hetrosexual, and non christians, and non conformists.

The story starts on the 5th of November with a masked hero – V – dressed as Guy Fawkes – rescuing the heroine Evey from a gang of cops who want to rape and kill her. He stops the offence, kills the policemen and blows up the Houses of Parliament. As the story progresses V manages to take out many of the symbols of the state. And in doing so challenges the authority of the Leader.
A lot of the story is from Evey’s point of view. Her hero worship of V, her abandonment by him, her time in captivity, and her realisation of her own part to play in the world. The story is as much about Evey’s transformation from an aspiring hooker to a person who self actualizes and escapes her own innate fears as it is about the brilliance with which V achieves his goals.

Alan Moore’s narrative is gripping I personally find him to be one of the best story stellers of the last century, in any medium – just check out Watchmen or Batman Killing Joke or the Swamp Thing to know what I mean. And David Lloyd’s artwork is brilliant – it creates a possible grey future where the world has gone mad. The colouring is in almost washed out colours – enchancing the feel of a horrific future.

In a world gone bananas, and where fascist tendencies are on the rise again … V for Vendetta makes for a very scary read.