9-11

    (Dark Horse, 2002)
™ and ©2002 the respective creators
Dark Horse published first volume; second volume was published by DC

Twin volumes commemorate the horrific day when America was attacked by terrorists who flew planes into the World Trade Center and Pentagon, killing thousands. September 11, 2001.

The first volume, published by Dark Horse Comics in conjunction with Chaos! Comics and Image Comics, is the more indie-oriented of the two. It features a range of artists and writers both famous (Frank Miller, Will Eisner) and infamous (Mike Diana) who donated stories trying to sum up their feelings about that day. The second volume, published by DC, has a more polished feel, and though super-heroes make appearances in some of the stories, proves just as capable of touching raw, human nerves with its tales of loss and heroism.

Both volumes make for tough, heart-rending reads. No matter whether one lives in New York or California, images of that day are powerful and haunting: The mighty towers toppling in flame and ruin. Those last phone calls home from trapped men and women who knew they were about to die. The choking dust that engulfed all of Manhattan. The countless volunteers forming bucket-brigades to sift the rubble for survivors. The flag that firemen defiantly raised amidst the wreckage. The countless pictures of the missing posted everywhere, begging for hope from anyone who had seen their loved ones before the towers fell.

Comics have a way of weaving words and images into a whole more powerful than either alone. These stories evoke profound sorrow, despair, rage, annoyance (c.f. Pat Moriarity’s idiotic “cycle of hatred” cartoon), as well as relief, hopefulness, and resolve. This is comics at its finest.
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