Ex Machina, Vol. 2: Tag

After growing tired of risking his life, America's first superhero Mitchell Hundred retires from masked crime fighting and runs for mayor of New York City, but he discovers that he has more to worry about than just budget problems.

Grade 10 Up In this fast-paced and often sexy collection of previously published individual comics, a former superhero runs for and wins the mayoralty of New York City. Mitchell Hundred, who as Mr. Hundred could speak to machines, is now the boyish young mayor dealing with a series of gruesome subway stabbings. Besides that, he is planning to officiate at the wedding of two men, and his glamorous young staffers are warning him that it will make him unpopular in the polls. To deflect that, he takes a voluptuous columnist up on her dinner-date offer. Otherwise, he spends his time alone in a hovel apartment, dressing up in what must be the ugliest superhero costume ever, trying to sort out the subway killings. There are writing gaps here; it seems as though the monthly comics don't flow together as one book as well as they should. But the action delivers, and when it comes it's bold and leaves readers with a sense of awe. Also, the incipient love affair between the mayor and the columnist is appealing. Most early new series need to shake out the kinks, and this one seems headed nowhere but up. Strong language makes the book most appropriate for public libraries. John Leighton, Brooklyn Public Library, NY
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Starred Review. What would you do if a mysterious explosion left you with the ability to control machines? Become mayor of New York, of course. Mitchell Hundred gave up crimefighting years ago, and now fights evil with a pen and a mayoral seal. His mysterious power still comes in handy, though, especially when he can make the paparazzis' cameras jam or the neighbor's air conditioner stop rattling. But ever since his attempt to help fend off the September 11th attacks forced him to reveal his secret identity, things have gotten terribly complicated for Hundred. In this second volume we see him struggling with a political firestorm ignited by his open support of gay marriage at the same time that a mysterious presence is terrorizing New York's subways, leaving behind the horribly mutilated bodies of dogs and humans. Beside each gruesome discovery is a glyph linked to the explosion that gave Hundred his power. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man) and Harris (Starman series) have a created a compelling and completely original hero in Mitch Hundred. Ex Machina is half X-Files, half West Wing and 100% genius. The dialogue sparkles, the art beautifully conveys both Vaughan's horror and his humor, and the plot twists will have readers on the edge of their seats. For any fan of contemporary comics, Ex Machina is the series to read. (Oct.)
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How's this for a high concept guaranteed to put kick into a hoary genre? A costumed superhero retires from glamorous crime fighting to successfully campaign for the mayoralty of New York. That's Ex Machina, and Vaughan makes the most of the concept via an intriguing, achronological structure that juggles Mitchell Hundred's short, unsuccessful superhero career, his uphill election campaign, and his early days in office, when he is faced with quandaries political--he catches flack for performing a gay marriage ceremony--and otherworldly--the subway is terrorized by a strange being that appears to be connected to the mysterious event that gave Hundred the power to control machines. Vaughan handles political machinations as credibly and entertainingly as the larger-than-life elements. Ex Machina shares many of the strengths of Vaughan's similarly provocatively premised Y: The Last Man, including vivid characterization and very credible realization of an outre set-up. Thanks largely to artist Tony Harris' stylish realism, however, it outshines its predecessor. Gordon Flagg
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