As a card carrying geek (shocking, but true!), it's become habit for me over the years to develop obsessive little tendencies with popular entertainment. When I was a kid, it was Transformers and GI Joe. When I got to be a teen, it was Marvel Comics and Monty Python. My 20's led me down the dark path of the Mutant Reviewers, and I think we all know how that's panning out. And the whole way along, it's been videogames, videogames, videogames. My mother must be so proud.

As I get ready to make the big jump into my 30's, I can proudly say I'm at least adding stuff that's totally inappropriate for kids. No, not the collection of magazines under Kyle's mattress! My latest little fixation is graphic novels and creepy literature. I became a big fan of Neil Gaiman almost overnight, read through 20 pounds of Stephen King's books last year, and have developed a taste for interesting graphic novels (and yes, I call them that now that I finally understand the difference between them and comic books… why not ask me in Ask The PoolMan and find out the difference yourself?). Prime among these is the unforgettable V for Vendetta.

I'll admit, I got into V thanks to the movie (review here), not from the source material. The story of a masked vigilante holding a grudge against a fascist British government set in the near future was an intriguing one, and the fact that it was being produced by the creators of The Matrix was just a bonus. But what makes this story so good? And how's the movie different from the book? Is there a clear cut better choice? Why, I'm so glad you asked…

Please note: This article has Spoilers for both the comic and movie versions of V, but they will be hidden under black text, just highlight to read it. However, be warned that you'll still learn a lot about the story of each, maybe more than you wanted.

The Graphic Novel

V for Vendetta started out life as a graphic novel penned by the inimitable Alan Moore, he of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, From Hell, and Watchmen fame. Now, if you only know those as the titles of mediocre movies (and don't recognize the word "Watchmen"), then back away not. Moore's writing is very good stuff. Watchmen and V in particular (both of which I own) are gripping stories with superhero flavours that somehow completely fail to kowtow to existing standards for comics. There is rarely a black and white path to the storyline, and the characters involved are always tragic and show surprising depth.

Visually, the art is a mixed bag. Stylistically, it's wonderful, full of muted colours in a watercolour world. It doesn't look like a lot of the mainstream comics of the day. It's dark and moody, just as it needs to be. But from a technical point of view, I don't like large chunks of it… sometimes the characters seem to be leaping right off the page, they're so dynamic, and others they look like wooden mannequins. And more often than not, the characters change in appearance… it can be hard to identify characters from page to page. It's easy to spot V, of course, but Evey's look is changed so many times from start to finish you have to wonder at times.

The story of V in the comic world goes a little something like this. Set in the late 90's (the book was originally written from 1982-1985) in a nuclear war torn world, Britain has been successfully subjugated by a fascist party known as Norsefire. Their Leader, Adam Susan, runs England with an iron fist and the assistance of a supercomputer known as Fate, whom he is secretly in love with.

Late one night, after curfew, frightened 15 year old Evey Hammond, hungry and desperate, takes to the streets to try and start a side business as a prostitute. Her first intended customer is a secret policeman, known as a Fingerman, who gathers his buddies and intends to rape her as punishment. But from out of the shadows steps a mysterious man in a black cloak and a Guy Fawkes mask, who kills the Fingermen and takes Evey away with him to watch him blow up the Houses of Parliament. He identifies himself only as "V", and is quite clearly mentally imbalanced.

It's perfectly normal to talk to statues as lovers moments before you blow them up.

V takes Evey back to his hideout, the Shadow Gallery, where he keeps her secreted away from the world. It is from his Gallery that V next destroys the Old Bailey courthouse, and carries out his titular vendetta. He wreaks ironic vengeances against three prominent Norsefire party members, Lewis Prothero (the voice of Fate to the public), Bishop Anthony Lilliman, and Dr Delia Surridge, who were responsible for a death camp (Larkhill) in which V was once imprisoned and exposed to "Batch 5". It is this chemical that appears to have given him superhuman strength and agility but has driven him (in the words of Freddie Mercury) slightly mad. V is chased by several people, most predominantly Eric Finch, a party member and detective, and his assistant Dominic.

Evey, still very young and insecure, is amazed by what V accomplishes and very attached to him, but finds herself constantly afraid and challenging her morals. She is separated from V at one point in the story, only to be thrown in prison. She is tortured and beaten in her cell, her head is shaved, and she is kept in absolute isolation. Her captors make repeated attempts to discover the location of V, which they know she has. Her only link to sanity is a letter fed through a crack in the wall from the next cell's inmate, a woman called Valerie. Valerie was imprisoned for the simple "crime" of being a lesbian, and writes to Evey with no knowledge of who she is.

[Spoilers, highlight to read] The surprise here is that Evey's captors are not the government, but in fact V himself. In an effort to "cure" her of her fear, V creates the prison hoax in the Shadow Gallery to show her that by holding onto herself, never breaking, and not giving up any information about him, she has faced pain and death and emerged the stronger, just as he did at Larkhill. She is shocked and enraged, but ultimately comes to realize that he's right; she no longer fears the world around her.

Evey finally does mount an escape of sorts, and she and V continue their work to bring England to a state of anarchy and to topple the fascist government. Finch continues to dog V, even going so far as to drop acid at an abandoned Larkhill to gain insight into V's past. All this as V plans to blow up 10 Downing Street (the Prime Minister's residence). Where will it all end?

[Spoilers, highlight to read] Finch finally fatally shoots V, who dies in Evey's arms. She puts his body on the train filled explosives intended to blow up the next target as a kind of Viking funeral. Evey realizes her role is to assume V's identity (donning his trademark mask and cloak) and appear before the populace even as the news of V's death is spread by Finch. She saves Dominic from a mob and takes him to the Shadow Gallery, perpetuating the cycle of the mentor/student relationship V and Evey shared. England plunges into chaos, and we are left to assume that Evey will create a new hope in anarchy.

The Movie

The film version of V for Vendetta was produced by Larry and Andy Wachowski of The Matrix fame and directed by James McTeigue, who was the first assistant director on The Matrix series. It was originally going to be released on Nov 5, 2005, which would have been the 400th anniversary of Guy Fawkes' attempted destruction of the Houses of Parliament which inspires V on his mission. The release of the movie was instead moved to the spring of 2006 (possibly due to the July 2005 bombings in London).

Set now in the 2020's, the film version of V for Vendetta is a slightly different tale. Norsefire rules Britain after delivering the cure for a plague which has proved to decimate a large portion of the planet. America has been reduced to begging for aid, which England staunchly refuses to grant. Adam Sutler (a blend of the original name, Susan, and Hitler) rules Norsefire with an iron fist, but the Fate computer is nowhere to be seen.

Faith Beats Rock. Rock Beats Scissors.

Late one night, after curfew, confident 20-something Evey Hammond goes to visit her boss after hours, but is confronted by the Fingermen. Out pops V from the shadows, who dispatches her assailants and takes her to the rooftops to witness the destruction of the Old Bailey, then releases her.

The following day, V publicly announces on the national TV system that he will destroy the Houses of Parliament in one year, the next November 5. In his escape from the network building, Evey impulsively saves him from Dominic, and knocked out in the process. V makes the decision to bring Evey to the Shadow Gallery so she won't be killed by the Finger, but tells her she must stay with him until Parliament is destroyed (or she might give up the location of the Gallery). Neither is thrilled with the arrangement, but both eventually agree it's for the best. Again, Evey finds herself repulsed by V's methods, and constantly wishing that she wasn't always afraid.

V then goes to work on his vendetta against Prothero, Lilliman, and Surridge, killing them one by one while Detective Finch continues to hound his footsteps. Evey evades V and flees to her boss Gordon's house, where she hides for a few days. Unfortunately, Gordon airs a piece on the network that proves too risqué for Sutler's tastes, and his house is invaded by the government. Evey gets out of the house but is captured before she can leave the property.

Similar to the book, Evey is thrown in prison and repeatedly demanded to give up the whereabouts of V. She refuses despite her torture and isolation, and survives by clinging to the series of letters from Valerie in the cell next door. The prison scenes mirror the book extremely closely, as do the aftereffects.

Upon her release, Evey leaves V, promising to see him one last time before Nov 5. Finch, meanwhile, has learned how Norsefire came up with the cure for the plague and realizes how they've engineered their way into office. The fifth nears, and Evey finally does visit V one more time, dancing with him in the Gallery before he shows her the train filled with explosives intended for Parliament. V goes to confront Sutler and the leader of the Finger, Creedy, for a final showdown, even though Evey protests that she's fallen in love with V.

[Spoilers, highlight to read] Creedy produces and kills Sutler in exchange for V's surrender and to supplant Sutler as the leader of Norsefire. V, however, stages an amazing battle and defeats a dozen men with guns using only his signature knives. He is, however, mortally wounded in the fight, and makes it back to Evey only to die in her arms. She puts his body on the train, and is about to send him off when Finch shows up. He initially demands she stop because of his sense of duty, but relents as he realizes that Norsefire ultimately is the greater evil. They watch together as the Houses of Parliament are destroyed, and Britain is left to ponder its future as thousands of people dressed in V's masks and cloaks watch the flames.

So What's The Difference

The movie adaptation of V for Vendetta is extremely good, especially considering what a butcher job was made of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. I get the impression that the Wachowskis treated the project with real respect and dignity. However, the book was a sprawling, long work; trimming it down to something that could be digested in a movie theater would definitely have been a challenge. So what changed?

First and foremost, the central political theme is different. The book was very clearly Anarchy versus Fascism, with both being represented as varying shades of grey. The movie is more like Liberalism versus neo-Conservatism, and is very much Good Guys versus Bad Guys. The big thing that Moore took issue with in the adaptation (which he demanded he not be credited for) was that the writers took what was a very British story and implanted a quite American set of views and beliefs on it. It's not too tough to see parallels drawn against the Bush administration in the adapted story, which probably goes a long way enlightening the viewer on how the Wachowskis view Dubya.

Nazi fans? Who, us?!?

And although they made subtle attempts here and there, we're never really challenged to see the Movie V (Hugo Weaving) as anything other than a freedom fighter, a hero. He serves the common man, he fights the corrupted government… he's basically Robin Hood. Comic V was never, ever portrayed as simply being in the right. His methods are at least as violent and shocking as those of the government he seeks to topple. Not to mention his mental instabilities in the comic are much more pronounced and noticeable. In the movie, he's a regular gentleman (albeit one in a smiley mask who kills people with knives). He watches movies with Evey, makes her breakfast, and generally fits a superhero mould, a knight in black armour. It's only really near the beginning (when he destroys the Old Bailey) that Movie V shows any outward signs of mental imbalance. Comic V is much more willing to sacrifice the innocent and use any means to justify his ends.

One place where the two versions of V do differ sharply is the inclusion of multiple costumes. In the movie, V is only ever seen dressed in his Guy Fawkes mask and cloak (with a very brief scene where he masquerades as an old man to supply info to Finch without giving away his identity). In the comics, V changes not only his outfit, but the Fawkesian mask to inflict his revenge on Prothero. He dons a garish suit with a cane, and puts on a vaudevillian mask and straw hat. He does this because of his flair for the dramatic, and in the comic, it works. In the film, I imagine it would have been a disaster. The comic is also the only way to see V remove his mask for any character; he voluntarily shows Surridge his face before she dies (though the reader can't see it). She comments that he is "beautiful".

But if the differences between the two V's are tougher to spot and explain, the differences between the Eveys is a slam dunk. Comic Evey is only 15, and is the embodiment of fear and lack of control over her environment. She's portrayed as extremely naïve, even mildly stupid. She takes the bold step of attempting to become a prostitute, but is extremely clueless on how to go about it, to the point of wincing as she awkwardly solicits a Fingerman right on her first try. She's the picture of helplessness.

So… they're the same HOW?

However, Movie Evey (portrayed by Natalie Portman) is a much more confident and self aware creature, the daughter of human rights activists. She's older (in her 20's) and works for the British Television Network. She lives on her own and obviously has some control over her life, even if the government (particularly the Finger, who captured her parents years before) inspires fear in her. The difference between the two characters is night and day, at least before her capture. The characters are much more similar after she is released from prison, excepting that the Movie version of Evey also falls in love with V. The younger version of Evey in the comic obviously views V as more of a father figure, and at one point she even briefly wonders whether V could in fact be her long missing father (something Moore vigourously denies).

There is also a list of secondary characters a mile long in the comic (not mentioned above) that are completely dropped from the movie. I actually think the deletions work. Having to keep track of not only the core characters, but their wives, lovers, neighbours… it gets to be a lot. It works in the more literary version of the story, but would have been hopeless in the movie. It also gives more power to the characters that are up on the screen. In the comic, the Leader eventually dies at the hand of the widowed wife of a detective V killed, out of her frustration of bouncing around between men and having had to become an exotic dancer to support herself. In the movie, Sutler is finally killed by a main character, lending more importance to the event. Dominic's importance is downplayed somewhat (becoming more a sounding board to Finch's exposition than [spoiler] the heir to V's legacy). There are a legion of supporting characters I haven't mentioned simply because although their collective effect is significant, the core of the story still revolves around V and Evey.

Then there's the issue of the sequence of events. The comic's timeline starts with the destruction of the Houses of Parliament, then the Old Bailey, the Post Office Tower, and then 10 Downing St. The movie starts with the destruction of the Old Bailey, the yearlong promise, and then the destruction of Parliament. For me, the comic's order of happenings makes less sense (but then, maybe the lack of order is the point). In the movie, V clearly builds to a crescendo meant to coincide with the death of Sutler. The comic has buildings of varying importance destroyed, and Susan's death comes by accident at the hands of a secondary character. By leaving the Houses of Parliament (certainly the most famous and recognizable of the buildings) to the end of the movie, there's a much higher tension to what V is building towards. However, the story's key element, Evey's imprisonment, thankfully remains the same.

And it's here where I really have to hand it to the film makers, they had the guts to retain the scenes where Evey is jailed, shaved, tortured, beaten, and eventually freed. In a Hollywood of increasing sanitization, where test audiences tend to endlessly screw up movies that could have been great, somehow we were treated with a scene that so closely resembles its literary counterpart that I'm not sure it could have been done any better. It was wonderfully acted by Natalie Portman (including the on-camera shaving of all her hair while she sobs), and was just a remarkable inclusion. I applaud them for keeping it, because telling the story any other way would have undermined the whole thing.

And this, ladies and gentlemen, is what we call "creative license".

[Spoilers, highlight to read] The fact that Evey goes on to fall in love with V in the movie, however, is somewhat baffling. Even if we accept her progression from fearful to fearless at the hand's of V's torture, it can be a very tough pill to swallow that Evey would proceed to make a romantic gesture at him. This part certainly smells of test screening to me. The comic versions of the characters share a kind of affection, but not a romantic one.

All Right, So Which One's Better?

No, you can't ask me that! Oh wait, *I* asked me that. Well, that's different.

First of all, I'd wholeheartedly recommend that anyone who (like me) learned about V by way of the movie go out and buy the graphic novel. It's a superb work, with many, many layers of subtlety, and it deserves to be enjoyed.

But that said, I'd say I enjoyed the movie just a little more. I know somewhere Alan Moore is loading demons onto a catapult to fling at me for having said this, but it's the truth. The story of the film is just tighter, more interesting, and set at a better pace. The graphic novel is an amazing piece, but was possibly a little too far ahead of its time. I can't help but wonder whether it could have been put together in a little more sophisticated fashion by waiting a few years. Art in comics got a lot more detailed in the 90's, it would have been interesting to see what difference it might have made.

The movie also features great performances by Hugo Weaving as V and Natalie Portman as Evey, to say nothing of an absolutely solid cast of supporting players. The only face I ever had a problem with was Finch (Stephen Rea). His performance was fine, but I seem to remember Finch smiling in the comics every now and then, displaying a little more personality. Who knows, maybe they thought they had enough personality in V himself? I'd say that's arguably true.

Regardless, you have a great story lying ahead of you, regardless of how you choose to experience it. V for Vendetta, in both its incarnations, is a fantastic mind trip and amazing story. I've enjoyed becoming a fan of this fantastic tale.

Verily.

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