by Don MacPherson

TEX: GEORGE BUSH AND THE FINE ART OF CHARACTER ASSASSINATION #1 Atomic Basement Entertainment Writer: Joshua Dysart Artist: Brad Rader Additional contributors: Mike Wellman, Brad Kayl, Carol Lay, Tony Salmons, Allen Gladfelter, Adriann Helton & Julie Poulos Letters: Bill O'Neal Price: $3.99 US Subtlety, thy name is definitely not Tex, a scathing political satire of the Bush administration as a corrupt, corporately controlled entity and a well-tuned marketing machine. Dysart and Rader's look at politics is definitely over the top, but for those of us concerned about another four years of Dubya, it certainly is entertaining. Transforming George W. Bush into a twisted vision of a super-hero is essentially an extreme but logical extension of how we were meant to see him at the "end" of the war in Iraq on that notable day he landed on an aircraft carrier boasting the "Mission Accomplished" banner. This well-timed send-up probably isn't going to change people's minds about Bush and Cheney, but it will serve as a reminder for their detractors as to why they oppose them. After a lifetime of privilege, George Walker Bush rises to power in the United States as its commander in chief, thanks in no small part to some eyebrow-raising election glitches in Florida and a right-leaning Supreme Court. Ol' George is having a grand old time filling his daddy's shoes in the Oval Office, but in the wake of Sept. 11, 2001, the country cries out for a new kind of leader. A leader who exudes power and confidence. A leader who won't abide by dissent. A leader with a jetpack. George W. Bush finds himself transformed into Tex, the rootinest, tootinest, most super president the world could ever hope for. Brad Rader, perhaps best known in comics for his work on the adaptations of Batman cartoons and a brief run on Ed Brubaker's Catwoman, shows his work could be right at home in Mad. HIs style here reminds me a great deal of Kieron Dwyer's work on his self-published Lowest Comic Denominator series. There's an appropriately light, cartoony tone at play here, but at the same time, some of the likenesses are quite effective. The cover image of a corporate-logo adorned Super-Bush tearing through the U.S. Constitution is a simple and effective one. the images of America's "enemies" in the thir chapter of the book strike me as being a bit too over the top, but overall, the frenetic and goofy tone of the visuals reinforce what the script sets out to say. Tex is about as nuanced as a sledgehammer to the crotch, but the message it offers is one I'm receptive to. Therein lies its entertainment value. I generally agree with Dysart's politics and point of view here, so the satirical, super-hero spoof of the state of U.S. politics works for me. I just wonder if a more balanced approach couldn't have served as a more powerful tool to open people's eyes to the importance of this election. The script here lacks focus. Dysart clearly has a lot of ground he wants to cover, and everything is jammed in wherever he can find some space. 6/10 Email Don MacPherson with your comments about this review.