Good things don't come in small press packages all of the time. Even when art and writing show promise and are entertaining, a comic's premise can damage it.
The premise of Peace Party is weak because multiculturalism is baloney.
Peace... is the story of two American Indians with an injured friend who stumble on a gangland murder. On that plot hangs a celebration of Indian beliefs simply because they are Indian beliefs.
Why is multiculturalism baloney?
Culture is only a collection of man-made customs, a "usual way of behaving". But Truth is not subjective or dependent on the opinions of men.
If everyone believed a rock was an elephant, it would still be a rock.
To build one's life around the arbitrary opinion of men is to build one's life on sand.
Peace Party #1 is priced at $2.95 and is 23 pages. Published by Blue Corn with words by Rob Schmidt, art by Ron Fattoruso and Rob Schmidt.
Rob's reply
>> The premise of Peace Party is weak because multiculturalism is baloney. <<
It is? Says who? And how are my views, whatever they are, relevant to the story?
PEACE PARTY's premise, as I've stated maybe a hundred times, is "Two young heroes fight everything from prejudice and pollution to supervillains and the supernatural." Do you see the word "multiculturalism" in there? Did the characters espouse multiculturalism?
No and no. So you've "reviewed" me but not the comic (which features gunplay, a car chase, and snappy patter, not multiculturalism). Thanks, but I would've preferred it the other way around.
>> On that plot hangs a celebration of Indian beliefs simply because they are Indian beliefs. <<
As opposed to a celebration of "truth, justice, and the American way" simply because they're "truth, justice, and the American way"? How much does any comic book do to justify its underlying belief system? Not much.
More important, you apparently missed Billy and Oliver (two Indians) arguing in the first four pages. Which Indian beliefs were they celebrating if they disagreed vehemently with each other? And while Billy is more compatible with his cousin Drew, it should be clear these two differ on almost everything.
If you read PEACE PARTY #2 or our online stories, you'd see more differences of opinion between Indians. In PP #2, for example, Billy scorns Drew's belief that nonviolence will resolve their problems. So much for the so-called celebration.
If anything, PEACE PARTY celebrates diversity of belief. Which is the point of multiculturalism, of course. Which shows how wrongheaded your claims are.
>> But Truth is not subjective or dependent on the opinions of men. <<
PEACE PARTY #1's first page, which you partly reproduced in your review, show a Native American (Hopi/Pueblo) origin of the universe. Is that any less true than the Biblical version, which it echoed? If so, go ahead and prove it. Otherwise, this "truth" remains as subjective as any other.
>> If everyone believed a rock was an elephant, it would still be a rock. <<
If everyone believed "All men are created equal," it would still be just a belief.
Cultures generally don't address whether rocks are rocks and elephants are elephants, so your argument is irrelevant. What they do address is the universe of beliefs that are less than objective. That includes everything from how to raise children to how to organize governments.
>> To build one's life around the arbitrary opinion of men is to build one's life on sand. <<
In your arbitrary opinion, you mean.
All religious, political, and economic systems are based on the opinions of men (and women). None has a monopoly on truth. So you're saying people shouldn't base their lives on any religious, political, or economic system? What's left? Eating, defecating, fornicating, sleeping, and dying, I guess.
Talk about "weak." The premise of this review is weak. Next time, I suggest you review the comic when I send you a copy. Don't review what you imagine to be my beliefs.
Rob
Related links
A review that addresses the same issue but comes to the opposite conclusion
Another take on this argument: PEACE PARTY #2's Author's Forum (extended version)
Indian comics: Art vs. propaganda
Multiculturalism defined
News from a multicultural perspective
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Original text and pictures © copyright 2007 by Robert Schmidt.
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