Review: The Private Eye Cloudburst Edition by Brian K. Vaughan

Brian K. Vaughan. The Private Eye.  Berkeley, CA: Image Comics, December 17^th, 2015. 300 pp.

Warning: Spoiler alert.  This is a clever story about the issue of freedom, privacy, the government, technology and the internet.  The story takes place in a futuristic Los Angeles after the electronic “cloudburst” in which everyone’s online activity such as internet searches has somehow become public for all to know and see.  The world after “cloudburst” has become hyper-vigilant about privacy, where internet has ceased to exist and people walk around in masks and disguises called “nyms” (etymologically related to “anonymous?”) and people use fake names and nicknames in public.  This alternative world also give rise to the “Private Eye,” which is now an illegal occupation but the black market for them continues to exist since people still want to find out information about others.  It’s in this world that we have our protagonist, a Private Eye who was asked by a client to search up dirt on herself but then was mysteriously murdered.  While reluctant to be involved with the investigation after the client’s death, he is pressured by the client’s sister and also by his paid getaway driver (whom later we find out is just a high school student) but also as the story unfolds because of the parallel to his own mother’s death.  They soon discover that the dead client was involved with something far more complex: a conspiracy to resurrect the internet with the leader being someone who is very powerful and affluent.

This comic is laden with worldviews issues; it made me think about the issue of privacy, security and freedom.  Against the grain of most people today the people of the future are afraid of the internet for its negative effects and violation of privacy.  The author here wants to caution readers about the dangers that the internet does pose against one’s privacy with the electronic trails that we leave behind long after our own memory of our activities has faded.

One also see this book being a critique of the response to protect one’s privacy.  Here we see a society that can be very impersonal:  People walk around the street with various masks, some of which are of animals and others resemble monsters.  People are very reluctant to reveal their real names and also live double lives.  It’s kind of hard to have an authentic relationship if one doesn’t truly know someone but only interact with the façade.  In an interesting twists the media has truly become “the fourth estate” of government, being the law enforcement arm of the government.  They not only investigate crimes but as it turns out they are armed and can legally apply force.  It’s interesting to consider that they can “shoot” their cameras towards people and intrude into people’s privacy and also shoot paints to mark a suspect (thereby eliminating their ability to blend in anonymously with the crowd) and of course with bullets.  The future’s version of the FBI is even called CNN (with the new words of “Citizens National News”) and if approved by higher ups they can even broadcast things live.  Often people criticize the government’s inability to be well coordinated with other agencies and yet even with the media and law enforcement being one, we continue to see their limitations and ineffectiveness that is often faulted against government.  One of the more fascinating response to the cloudburst and an attempt to safeguard privacy is that in a world without the internet people use the “Teevee” a lot, which supposedly can only give content but can’t gather information from people.  Like the book “Animal Farm” we also learn that with power comes corruption and that the “Teevee” can hear what people are saying also.  There’s definitely the question the author raises of whether or not we can trust any individual with the heavy responsibility of giving us information without at the same collecting information about us.

There is also a big theme of consent in the book.  We see the private eye getting people’s information without their consent by following them and taking pictures for his clients.  With the first client being dead the dilemma is in the back of one’s mind:  If one dies, can one get information with their consent since after all, one is dead?  But no matter how hard people try both in the comics and in the real world, we always give away and get information without consent no matter how hard we try.

In our techno savvy age, the protagonist mistrust’s of technology is a reminder for the readers that not everything digital is necessarily good, helpful or edifying.  We see throughout the story that the P.I reading old books and listening to old records.  A lot of this stem from his grandfather telling him as a young child to get the facts himself and to look deeper into things.  I think there is something to be said about the way we learn and the repercussion that technology might have on our ability to really learn something when everything is so instantaneous.  Learning truths takes time, not just only with the research but sitting down, thinking about it, and “letting it sink in.”

On a lighter note I did enjoy how the story takes place in Los Angeles and at familiar places such as Santa Monica, West L.A, Sunset Blvd, etc.  Of course it is futuristic and bears no resemblance to modern day L.A.  But here and there, there are glimpses of it being L.A. through the signs in the background.  One sees the Hollywood sign at a distance mountain background.  There’s still Pinks hotdogs, a famous hotdog place in Hollywood.  It makes this story more believable than most future “sci-fi” which makes the story all the more compelling.  Finally I must also caution that the book does have some swearing and had things that was inappropriate that really wasn’t needed to carry the story forward.  There’s also a few fighting that takes place with guns and knives.

Christian Reflection:

There were two moments that made widen my eyes while reading this book from a Christian worldview.  The first was when the sister of the dead client told the Private Investigator that “men are weird” after finding inappropriate things in the bedroom of someone they were trying to find information.  The Private Investigator simply responded with “You have no idea.”  The matter of fact way that he said it in light of his own work of spying on people was really stunning.  It reminds me of the truth that the Bible is right, that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).  Everyone have secret sins that are dark, we don’t want others to know about it.  The secrets and lies that people make throughout the book attests to the Private Investigator’s declaration.  The other “Romans 3:23” moment was when the Private Investigator was about to die and he tells his two friends that it’s okay he probably had his death coming to him since he’s done some terrible things in his life and deserves it.  His friend, the adolescent getaway driver shouts “So has every person ever, dummy!  Isn’t that what you taught me?!”  It spoke more truth than probably the author realize, that all have sin, not just with respectable sins but heinous sins, sins that would be grievous to others and to God, and we all are deserving of death (Romans 6:23).  God will judge for every careless words we say, both with our mouths and over the internet.  But here is the good news:  While deserving of death, Jesus Christ has paid that penalty and died for those who would repent and trust in Him as Lord and Savior.

NOTE: This book was provided to me free by Image Comics, Diamond Book Distributors and Net Galley without any obligation for a positive review. All opinions offered above are mine unless otherwise stated or implied.

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