Invisibles 1,16
From Barbelith
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Credits
Grant Morrison (Writer) Paul Johnson (Artist) Daniel Vozzo (Colors) Ellie Deville (Letters) Julie Rottenberg (Asst. Editor) Stuart Moore (Editor)
The Invisibles created by Grant Morrison
Summary
Dane (Jack Frost) is living on the streets of London, stealing for food. He gradually starts to remember some of the lessons that Tom O'Bedlam taught him. He sees the word Barbelith on a wall, and suddenly finds himself talking to 'aliens', who implant a 'magic stone' into his head. When he 'wakes' Sir Miles and some of his hunting pack are offering him a place on their side of the war. Dane kicks him in the bollocks and runs off. The hunters pursue him, but he uses some of his power, and the street is destroyed. Only Sir Miles is well, and he attacks Dane psychically. Dane wins that battle, picks up a bag of things left for him by Tom O'Bedlam, cuts his hair and starts to hitch-hike to Liverpool.
Characters
Jack Frost Boy Ragged Robin Sir Miles Delacourt Tom O'Bedlam
Analysis
Barbelith Universe as Phase Boundary
Annotations
PAGE 2
Panel 3 The man in the car is Brodie. This is the scene from Invisibles 1,13, page 7 [PV/JB]
PAGE 3
Panel 4 This is Dane's fantasy; he doesn't actually reveal his feelings for Boy until Invisibes 2,9 - more than a year later [PV/JB] Panel 5 The name of the only cybercafe around Tottenham Court Road is Cyberia (just parallel behind Goodge Street Underground) - it is one of the first in the world. I have never seen them sell smart drinks [TEC]
PAGE 4
Panel 2 I believe handguns are almost completely illegal in England. Dane got his back in issue Invisibles 1,9 [BSI] Privately owned guns are now totally illegal in Britain, even for shooting clubs [AD] Panels 3-4 (and Page 5, Panel 1) Flashback to the events just after Invisibles 1,9, page 20. [JB]
PAGE 5
Panel 5 Dane is feeding the pigeons. It seems he learned Mad Tom's lesson (Invisibles 1,3). This seems to be a flashback to Invisibles 1,3, but the dialogue is new and does not correspond to that issues's page 8. In this issue and in Invisibles 1,21, Grant is showing us new stuff re: Jack/Dane, filling in some blanks left from Invisibles 1,1 - Invisibles 1,4 [JB]
PAGE 6
Panel 3 Some have speculated that these the two men could be members of Division X. But who--and how? If you follow the time-line, Mr. Six, Jack Flint and George are still not working together again... [PV/JB] I doubt they're Division X. First of all, it seems that Mr. Six, Jack Flint, and George are just about the entirety of Division X. Also, Division X deals in occult type stuff (basically a British take on The X Files), and these guys are entirely bewildered by the behaviour of the security TV. They could be the same as the Men in Black who hassle Division X in Invisibles 1,25, but I'd guess they're just everyday Conspiracy Cops [RM]
PAGE 7
Panels 3-4 Underworld are an electronica group along the lines of the Prodigy; at the time of this comic they had recently released their second album 'SecondToughestInTheInfants' and were soon to have their fifteen minutes of fame after their track 'Born Slippy' was used on the Trainspotting soundtrack. Supergrass are a Britpop band, as are Pulp, the lead singer of which, Jarvis Cocker, wiggled his arse at Michael Jackson at the Brit Music Awards a few years back. 'At This Stage I Couldn't Say' looks like Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, two English comedians who present 'Shooting Stars', a mickey-take of celebrity game shows and 'The Smell of Reeves and Mortimer' from which the picture is taken. Sorry, where were we...? [L] "Root Doctaz" is Jim Crow's band; note that they are on tour, and that is one reason why he's in London in time for the events of Invisibles 1,18 [PV/JB]
PAGE 8
This scene, which starts on page 7, panel 4, is placed chronologically around the pivotal Invisibles 1,2, page 18, panel 6 [JB]
PAGES 9-13
More of what really happened during Jack's inititiation in Invisibles 1,2 is presented here for the first time [JB] Almost all of the fringe elements regarding time, language, the 'elves' or 'DMT machine elves', the magic matter, and even the 'LUV LUV LUV' spot in Gideon's recollections (see Invisibles 2,5) are all borrowed from one text by Terence McKenna: TRUE HALLUCINATIONS. This book should be heavily touted for those wishing to understand some of what Grant's rabbiting on about [JOB] The aliens' thought-dialogue includes statements where sounds are placed within slashes and parentheses, like "/(word)/." It seems that these blanks must be filled in by the listener, and sometimes the listeners has more than one way of perceiving the word...or none at all. This may in turn tie back into the conversation regarding glossolalia -- "the original tongue" -- that St. Germain has with Ragged Robin Invisibles 1,8 [JB] A magic stone is inserted into Jack's head by aliens in order to activate his "/(third eye/ajna chakra)/." This is why Jack has a scar on his forehead in Invisibles 1,2 after page 18 [JB]
PAGE 11
Panel 4 "The implant will form a four-dimensional super-conducting crystal structure designed to bond with neural DNA. Call it a /(magic mirror/ufo)/." Or Fanny's liquid superfluid from Invisibles 1,13-Invisibles 1,15? Seems to be the same soulstuff... [JB]
PAGE 12
(bottom lefthand panel) "Understand: you are the /(chosen one)/ This is /(your time)/ your world is dying but you can lead your people to /(global peace and harmony)/" Jack has been chosen/elected...he's practically a Buddha figure. [JB]
PAGE 13
Panel 1 The Mobius strip: a simbol of infinity. "Which side are you on?" may mean that there's only one side (this is the same discussion as seen in Invisibles 1,5 when King Mob attends to the puppet show) [PV] It looks like there's writing behind the Mobius, possibly from the Koran. Can anyone identify it? [L] This scene is very similar to the opera 1000 Airplanes on the Roof, written by someone or other and music by Philip Glass. I don't remember the story very well, but I do remember that a man is abducted and the aliens force a small sphere up his nose. I think that the man realizes that the aliens see part of themselves in him. This sounds similar to the lines from page 13: "Look. We are you. Try to remember." Anyway, the first time I read this, I was reminded strongly of the opera. [goofy] (final panel) Now we will show you the /(truth)/ Watch the /( )/ find it out." This is a direct echo of Fanny's experience in Invisibles 1,15, page 15, panel 1 -- including the phrase "find it out," the red circle and the SuperFluid [JB] "The soul is not in the body. The body is inside the soul." A major tenet of sorcery? [JB] The quote is reminiscent of The Book of the Law (Aleister Crowley), 1:8 - "The Khabs is in the Khu, not the Khu in the Khabs." "Khu" can be translated as "soul" (or, more typically, "spirit"), but unfortunately "khabs" means "star" rather than "body". Still, it's likely that Grant was trying to evoke the quotation [CM] "Try to remember." --That phrase again. [JB]
PAGE 14
Panel 3 "My name's Gallagher": Dane's using the famous Gallagher brothers' family name. Liam and Noel are vocalist and guitar player-songwriter for Oasis [PV/JB]
PAGE 15
Panel 4 Pamela Anderson, infamous fake buxom star of Baywatch. Previously alluded to in Invisibles 1,12, page 16, panel 1.
PAGE 17
More new info about Dane's initation; and his first call on Jack Frost.
PAGE 18
Panel 3 How does he know ? Carbon monoxide is odourless and colourless [RJ] That's assuming it IS carbon monoxide... [L]
PAGE 23
Panel 3 Number 23 again (see the discussion about Invisibles 1,9's cover). This is page 23, too [PV] 23 is a holy number to Discordians (See Principia Discordia, pg.16), and also appears constantly in Robert Anton Wilson's fiction and nonfiction [BSI] Panel 4 Tesco is a chain of supermarkets [PV]
[note] Dane's story continues in Invisibles 1,17 [JB]
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