Comic-book biographies of
presidential candidates are nothing new; the Democratic Party published one in
1948 to sing the praises of Harry S. Truman, noting his boyhood ability to plow
the straightest furrow in the county. The modern version for the 2008 race, Presidential
Material Flipbook,
was produced without the assistance of either contender's campaign; the writers
(Angel
and Desperadoes
writer Jeff Mariotte handled Obama, former DC comics editor Andy Helfer took
McCain) relied on news reports and the candidates' own books. In spite of the
heroic poses on J. Scott Campbell's covers, both text-heavy tales have more
facts than action. Both stories—also available for mobile-phone downloads
and as separate books for readers who refuse to reach across the
aisle—stay mostly fair and balanced, amounting to a pair of
presidential-biography Cliffs Notes.
Considering how ugly and
divisive the race has become, that isn't bad. But more action or at least
better art would have been more fun. Although Obama's youth and
pop-culture-friendly personality seems to lend itself to graphic-novel
treatment, McCain's story, with its early Sgt. Rock overtones, is actually
better suited for the medium. Even when not at war, The Mack's explosive
personality allows for more exciting moments; in one panel, the soon-to-be
senator threatens to "personally beat the *#*@*!" out of an early political
opponent.
Obama's years as a law
student and community organizer are difficult to dramatize, and Mariotte
doesn't really try. Still, his details are revealing. A scene where Obama
visits the 2000 Democratic convention shows how far he's come in only eight
years; not only was his credit card declined there, he had no access to the
convention hall, and was forced to watch the speeches on television. As for the
candidate of the Joe Six-Pack party, his second wife, Cindy, bought a house in
an Arizona district so McCain could run for office there. (At least she used
Anheuser-Busch money.) Both books successfully present the facts in a
straightforward manner, which makes for a decent but slightly dull read. Anyone
who knows who they're voting for is unlikely to be swayed, but undecided voters
looking for a peek into the candidates' backgrounds could do worse.