Helen Killer? Deaf-Blind Super-Agent?

I don’t know if this is going to amuse or anger the deaf community, so here goes nothing: there’s a new comic book limited series called Helen Killer, deaf-blind super professional assassin. Yes, you read it right. All about Helen Keller, the most famous deaf-blind woman in the past century, but in this completely fictionalized comic book series, she’s a 21 years old student at Harvard in 1901, and was given an unusual device that would allow her to “see” and “hear”, in addition in getting superhuman powers. Guess who made the device for her? Alexander Graham Bell. Yep. From Arcane Studios, Helen Killer by Andrew Kreisberg & Matthew JLD Rice.

Here’s the synopsis: In 1901, twenty-one year old college student Helen Keller, with the aid of a fantastical device invented by her friend and mentor, Alexander Graham Bell, regains her sight and hearing as well as near super-human strength and agility. Helen is enlisted by the Secret Service to protect President William McKinley who has been targeted for assassination by Anarchists. As a deeper conspiracy to destroy America unfolds around her, Helen discovers that her new abilities come with a dark and terrifying price! 28pgs, FC (1 of 4) SRP: $2.99

First issue came out few months ago and I was not aware of it at the time. Seem rather obscured to me the last time I went to a local comic book shop, given there were way too many comic titles on the stands and it’s quite easy to overlook it. The first title of “Helen” caught me and I checked it out. Flipping through the pages, my eyebrows raised and I said, “O-kaaee”. The art by Matthew JDL Rice really jumped out of the pages, fantastic skills and detailing. Saw some depictions of sign language but it seems limited in some respects and not so obvious. I was not in the buying mood, so I didn’t purchase no. 1 and no. 2 issues already published. Issue no. 3 and no. 4 editions to come later.

Andrew Kreisberg, the writer and creator of the series, has a very interesting concept to sell, with all the elements of historic intrigue, events and characters of the early 20th century. Alexander Graham Bell, the assassination of President William McKinley, the creation of the US Secret Services, Anne Sullivan, the Anarchists, and some kind of a sinister, evil conspiratorial force behind the plot to destroy the United States. Hey, that seems familiar to you, don’t you think?

Greg McElhatton has a nice, short critique about Helen Killer. If you’re eager and curious, go out and buy the issues, if you Deafies can put up with the concept of Helen “Killer” wearing a device, invented by AG Bell, that allow her to “see” and “hear” as well as given superpowers and works for the Secret Services. I do not know who are Andrew Kreisberg or Matthew JDL Rice and I don’t know if they are deaf/HOH or not. Wikipedia has an article on Kreisberg being a TV writer, so I don’t know if he’s the same guy or not.

Helen Killer, deaf-blind super-agent/assassin for the Secret Services. Wotta concept.

Robriefs 3.6.2008: Anne Sullivan Was My Ancestor

Robrief no. 1: Anne Sullivan was my ancestor.
This morning, I caught a news report on the Web about a rare photo of Anne Sullivan and Helen Keller. That was really cool and amazing to see something finally turned up after many years being kept hidden from the public by a private family. Several years ago, while I was at Gallaudet, doing a little research on my family history, I’ve learned for the first time that one of my ancestors from my father’s maternal side of the families who came from Ireland around early or mid-19th century was named Anne Sullivan, but with no birth date or death date recorded.

I was surprised by it and prompted me to speculate whether this is the same Anne Sullivan who taught Helen Keller or not? Yet, I noted no trace of her connection to another ancestor she eventually married to, only which I’d learned further on, a man turned out to be Peterson who migrated from Norway. Then, several years later, as more old immigration records became available to the public, provided by Ancestry.com, one immigration record revealed different birth and death dates of Anne Sullivan.

Alas, my ancestor, Anne Sullivan was not the same Anne Sullivan who famously taught Helen Keller. That’s okay by me. Genealogical records were pretty sporadic in the early 1990s and the Internet was not yet widespread, and I did not really pursue my family history research eagerly or seriously at the time. Though, it was pretty amusing, and by pure coincidence, to know there were two Anne Sullivans within the same time-frame of the 19th century America and whose families hailed from Ireland, with the same first name and surname, very common in Ireland (ancient Irish as Súilleabhán, meaning “one-eye”).

Robrief no. 2: Sneak-peek Photos of the Watchmen Film!
Holy God! Those photos of the Watchmen! Mark your calendar for March 6th, 2009 when the film adaption of Watchmen come out. Based on the greatest work of graphic literature ever published, Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. I was 16 years old and a freshman at high school when the 12-issue limited series first came out and I was so entranced with the story and the illustration that I re-read few more times. Because it is THAT good!

Dr. Manhattan, Ozymandias and Rorschach are my favorite characters of the graphic novel. In my views, they are the three most important key characters of the whole saga: Rorschach being a man of low-regard for life but think he’s on God’s mission of vengeance and justice for mankind; Ozymandias, the man who’s being a wealthy, iconic “god” trying to save the world and Dr. Manhattan, the man who have become a god with the powers to destroy the world or remake it. I won’t goes into lengthy details, as the graphic novel itself is deep, dense and thoroughly well-written, with beautifully-drawn illustrations to guide you through the complex, interconnected strings of mystery, murder, love, secrecy and madness, as the world is clocking toward a nuclear Armageddon. Go out and buy the graphic novel, Watchmen before the movie come out next year! It will be money and time well-spent on reading it.

Robrief no. 3: Western Journalists selling out and whitewashing for Islam?
Charles Johnson of LGF blogged that the Society of Professional Journalists’ recommended guidelines that have been, basically, “shilling” for the Islamists since the time after the 9/11/2001 attacks.

Frankly, I’ve been nonetheless disappointed with the majority of Western, mainstreamed journalists and news media on this side of the continent for what I’ve been reading and recognizing so far is called “propagandizing” or “excusing”. One of the most egregious examples of the journalists’ guidelines is this:

When writing about terrorism, remember to include white supremacist, radical anti-abortionists and other groups with a history of such activity.

Have white supremacists ever flew airlines into buildings or blow themselves up by killing others in the name of God? Have radical anti-abortion activists killed abortion doctors on a daily basis? How many militant Buddhists are involved in a “terrorist network”? I’m sure these groups have racked up quite a mass of victims ever since… when? Hello? I’m shaking my head in this sheer disappointment with what SPJ have done to sell themselves out in the name of misguided diversity and political correctism. Common sense and impartial journalism have gone out of the window.

I really like this post by lawhawk who pointed out that SPJ’s guidelines actually violated its own code of ethics! Surprise!