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I've just finished reading issue 152 (I live in a third world country). Half way through, on the double page spread, I started noticing something. I don't know what happens after 152 and whether I'm just grasping at straws but did anyone else notice the Wizard of Oz thing (the books not the movie, seeing as my supposition includes Ozma and Tok-tok). On that double page, they set out along the yellow brick road to find the Wizard/Dark Beast/Wicked Witch and there they are. Tom Skylark is Dorothy, who arrives on the scene, sort of confused and new to everything, along with her little dog Toto or in this case his enormous robot dog Rover (the Sentinel could also represent Tok-tok). Next to Tom, you find E.V.A or in Oz context the Tin Woodsman. Then there's Wolverine, the cowardly lion. A once glorious warrior reduced to nothing more than an old woman's toothless watchdog. And finally you get the Scarecrow who is represented by New Beak. He's tough on the outside but inside he's just a scared little child trying to live up to his grandfather's legend. Oh, and Cassandra with Martha in hand is of course (of course!) Glenda the Good Witch with the ruby slippers (or a brain for E.V.A perhaps). They each, like their Wizard of Oz counterparts, are searching for something. Wolverine wants to relive his past glory and he wants to be the hero again (courage?). E.V.A, like the Tinman wants a brain or in her case a central nervous system, more specifically the nervous system of Fantomex. Beak's little parallel doesn't pan out as well as the others but it still kinda makes sense. He wants a heart and well...no it doesn't pan out at all. And then finally Martha (is that name even correct). She seems inconspicuous but maybe her part will be just as important as her equivalent, the ruby slippers. Even Cassie said it; she'll be the engine. They even start out in Munchkin-ville (?) and when they embark along the brick road, they are even cheered on by Munchkins. They don't skipping along on their way because this isn't The Wizard of Oz; it's the edgy gothic revamp of the classic children’s tale, ooo dangerous. If you need any more to convincing you can just cast a glance in the direction of the Beast/Sublime. I mean come on...his castle looks almost exactly like The Wicked witch's. He even uses flying monkeys to do his bidding (maybe that witch was a wayward geneticist herself) for Pete’s sake. If hidden allusion and seditious analogies to The Wizard of Oz was good enough for Pink Floyd then I'm sure Morrison wouldn't mind recycling these stale ideas again for his own nefarious ends (like usual).
P.S. Phoenix is Ozma. |
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