Review by Frank Plowright
When the opening page of American Carnage shows a baby gurgling happily under a red blanket with a swastika symbol it’s an indication of heading into the very dark underbelly of early 21st century USA.
It’s part of a flashback as FBI Agent Sheila Curry is questioned about a mission that went wrong, leaving her injured as a suspect blew up his premises in preference to arrest. She believes he was part of a larger organisation involved with the lynching of her friend, but the FBI don’t want her continuing to investigate a high profile suspect. Sheila, though, isn’t inclined to let things lie, so persuades disgraced former agent Richard Wright to investigate alleged philanthropist Wynn Morgan off the books and infiltrate his organisation.
Morgan is a demagogue, knowingly spreading lies and exploiting the dispossessed and ignorant for his own gain, while his also smart adult daughter is equally complicit, yet possibly not entirely attuned to her father’s vision. Despite his career experience it’s not long before Wright is fatally compromised.
Artistically, Leandro Fernández takes his lead from Eduardo Risso on 100 Bullets, emphasising darkness and shadow illuminated by bursts of bright colour. To make a point Morgan is frequently only seen as a set of teeth on an otherwise black face as he talks, while Wright’s profile is only semi-dark. People are well defined in detailed panels, although surprisingly rarely actually moving. It’s notable art, although at times Fernández over exaggerates reactions.
American Carnage has a consistently bleak intensity. Bryan Hill begins by turning over stones to see what’s beneath, and each consecutive layer introduces greater despondency as it unflinchingly spotlights issues no other graphic novel has yet tackled so comprehensively. Hill makes no concessions to political correctness. Brutal racist bigots represent their real world equivalents, and modifying the language to avoid offence would undermine the entire project, so the hate is evident and up front. It’s presented as credible and alluring to the dispossessed, the distortion of facts supplying a world weighed against them, and is chillingly outlined during Morgan’s speech opening the sixth chapter.
The result is incredibly uncomfortable reading both for being immersed in a world of hate, for the tension generated as to Wright’s fate should he be revealed, and for the question hanging over him regarding how far he’s being seduced. And, of course, there’s an obvious real world comparison. For all the points Hill has to make, this is also a taut action thriller with everyone’s motives questionable. These nine chapters provide a meaty and unpredictable experience while speaking to the state of the USA in the early 21st century, so very much worth your time.
Just in case there’s any confusion, beyond the title this bears no relation to the 2022 film American Carnage.
