The One #1-6
Published by: Marvel Comics/Epic – 1985
Written and illustrated by: Rick Veitch
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The One, a six issue miniseries published by Marvel’s Epic imprint circa 1985, is one of Rick Veitch’s lesser known forays into the world of superheroics. Veitch himself is one of comics’ lesser known masters. Veitch is probably best known for his stint as the artist of Alan Moore’s scripts on DC Comics’ Swamp Thing and for taking over the writing duties on the series after Moore’s departure in the mid-1980s. Veitch’s work tends toward contemplative explorations of spirituality, morality, and identity, packed full of sensationalism, salacious sexuality, and graphic violence.
It’s a cliché, but holds true: This is not your typical superhero book, and these are not your parents’ superheroes. The One tackles ideological conflicts between political philosophies under the guise of a knock-down-drag-out fight between the superhero avatars of capitalism and communism. The superheroes in The One—if they can even be called that—are highly flawed mortals driven by ideology, but not by morality. They are manipulated and exploited into becoming weapons to blindly defend and assert their respective belief systems. They do not save civilians or value life above all else, but rather act out a greater ideological conflict wherein civilians are merely collateral damage. They are war personified into a pair of individual actors with global reach. They are a metaphor for the tenuous and volatile nature of global security. But, rather than focusing the story on the superheroes and the conceptual implications of their battle—though an epic battle does occupy significant real estate—the main characters and events are reactions not to the superheroes but to the greater events around them, of which the superheroes are merely a part.
The One, at its heart, is a story about the conflict between two entities—neither of which are superheroes—“the One” and “the Other.” The former is a representation of man’s more noble inclinations and spiritual and ethical purity, and the latter its vices and corruption. This conflict takes place in both a literal sense and a metaphoric one, as both plot and theme. Within the story, these are abstract concepts given human form whose significance dwarfs that of the superheroes, implicitly suggesting that it is human nature, not ideology, which will dictate the outcome of global conflict.
Each character does dual duty as both major and minor players; there is no sole protagonist and multiple narrative strands intersect and diverge at intervals, coming into focus then receding into the background. The One features original characters in a world not shared by other titles nor extended beyond the terminus of the story, and, because of this, each character, and the world itself, has the ability to surprise the reader not only in its conception, but in its actions and its development as well. No character or premise therein is sacrosanct. Though Veitch does a serviceable job of making the reader care about the outcomes of events, and the wellbeing of his characters and the world-at-large, he is willing to sacrifice them for the greater good of the story. His characters are like many of us, flawed and wandering but ultimately hopeful, and their world is like ours, teetering between order and chaos.
It should be noted that The One is not intended for a young audience. It deals with adult themes in graphic detail, including sex, drugs, and brutal violence. Were it a movie, The One would undoubtedly be rated a hard “R.” However, in a strange case of deference to censorship, the profanity is kept to a minimum. The word “fuck” is consistently replaced by the word “shuck,” yielding coinages such as “mother-shucker” and “mind-shuck,” among others.
Veitch is a graduate of the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art and is a journeyman artist. Though he may not be as clean and slick as the Jim Lee’s and Marc Silvestri’s of the world, or as inventive as the David Mack’s and Bill Sienkiewicz’s, Veitch’s art is detailed and expressive, and its imperfections seem appropriate given the tone of his writing. His world is imperfect and his art reflects that reality.
Recommendations:
Fans of Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman will find Veitch’s work familiar as it is a deconstructionist approach to the superhero and suspense genres. It is reminiscent of Moore’s Watchmen and Swamp Thing, Moore and Gaiman’s respective runs on Miracleman, and Gaiman’s The Sandman.
Fans of The One interested in further exploring Veitch’s oeuvre would be well advised to read his run as writer on DCs Swamp Thing from the 1980s—often featuring the art of Alfredo Alcala which has much in common with Veitch’s own—which introduced a more spiritual and mythological dimension to the character and tackled issues regarding environmental degradation and conservation, as well as featuring frequent cameo appearances from other DC characters. Also highly recommended is Veitch’s 2006 Vertigo graphic novel Can’t Get No, which is a slice-of-life meditation on what defines modern life and makes it meaningful, set against the backdrop of the events of 9-11. Can’t Get No features poetic text in captions which run parallel to the otherwise silent visual narrative, building on theme and tone, creating a synergy wherein words and images combine to create a unique reading experience neither could achieve on their own.
Other comics worth looking into for fans of Veitch—but not done by Veitch—include the original twelve issue Marvel series Squadron Supreme from 1985—another somewhat obscure deconstruction of the superhero genre which has since been mined and exploited for its resources via modern reboots—and other Epic comics such as Starstruck and Moonshadow, both of which appeal to an older audience in terms of both story and art—though one should be warned of overt sexual content. Both have seen serialized reprints from other companies since the completion of their initial print run.
Brian Bigelow
August 13, 2016
