Channel Zero

by Brian Wood

Special interest groups have bullied the government into passing the Clean Act, effectively killing freedom of speech and silencing the country into submission. TV and God become one and the same as America wages its own holy war against its citizens. Meet Jennie 2.5, media slut turned info-terrorist, out to save the country from itself, and restore free will and self expression.
Hailed internationally as ground-breaking work in the field of...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0967684749
• ISBN13: 9780967684741
• Release Date: September 2000
• Publisher: Ait/Planetlar
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.4" x 10.1"
• Age Range: 13 to 16 years
• Grade Range: Grades 8 to 11

Customer Reviews

Channel Zero my hero!

Awsome book, interesting concept and designed really. I would reccommend this book to anyone who loves Brian Wood and other dystopic literature!!

Wow

I've never read a book as ambitious as this before. There was every chance for Brian Wood to totally fall on his face, and he flew instead. This, and its prequel, Jennie One, make a FANTASTIC story. Get this NOW, before it's gone.

revolutionary comics

Channel Zero is a graphic novel for people interested in anti-establishment revolutions and propoganda.Channel Zero is a graphic novel for people who want to see graphic design given just as much importance if not more than illustration in comics.Channel Zero is a graphic novel for people who want something to believe in.Channel Zero is a graphic novel for people.

It's an angry little book

On its own, just going by the basic plot, Channel Zero wouldn't be too impressive. Sure it's an interestingly told tale of an America not too far in the future where the government controls the media and a "Clean Act" keeps everyone in line while saying it's "for their own good", which the people, being apathetic sheep, timidly go along with. Like I said, nothing too revolutionary here. But it's Wood's style that brings this story to life, his stark black and white drawings, seemingly carved on the page, jagged and angular characters, buildings that are both looming and out of focus, images that come across as grainy photographs from not too distant Hell. This future America comes to life in the form of his angry drawings and it does a better job than any series of pristine photographs ever could. Wood's graphic sense and style set the book apart from just about anything else out there and it's worth reading just for that. The story itself is entertaining, like I said, as Jennie 2.5 seeks to bring revolution to the masses and stop the government's oppression of the people. But he picks easy targets (the Christian Right? the media? try to be a little original at least) and the reader has to buy the assumption that all of the bad things occur because the populace is too numb to care and too apathetic to bother to correct it, the believability of which probably depends on how cynical you are. The plot tends to float around and not all that much really seems to happen, other than Jennie herself there aren't many strong characters, though I do like how Jennie is not a total role model, she's abrasive and elitist, saying that on the one hand the US government is wrong but that a country like China can do whatever it wants to its people because it's "their business" which can come across as a little sanctimonious and self-righteous, but then a good radical needs those qualities anyway. But honestly, all the revolutionary screaming and rhetorical posturing takes a back seat to the images themselves and long after the meat of the story has faded, Wood's terrifying, angry drawings will be what remains with you. Those, better than anything else, convey what he's actually trying to say.

Brian Wood's Been Watching

CHANNEL ZERO is what happens when people pay attention. When Brian Wood eyes the world around him he recognizes something is wrong, and rather than sit back on his arse and watch the rear-inclined, Orwellian propaganda machine gallop and trample the forgotten soul of America he calls us on it. He flips off the holier than thou Right Wingers, and gives a much needed elixir to those inflicted with the fastest growing disease in America: Complacence.Brian Wood's Channel Zero combines a gripping speculative flair with a hard edged present-day social commentary that acts as a mirror for the rotting, backward contemporary culture. And rather than stop there, he dares us to move forward and embrace a different kind of America.It isn't pretty, it isn't flashy, and it most certainly is not sugar coated, feel-good fare; there's too much of that already littering bookshelves everywhere - and CZ is the scolding for it! But if you're looking for a literate, smart, unapologetic graphic novel, look no further, because CHANNEL ZERO is a phenomenal work by the most important comics writer to come along in quite some time. Brian Wood is a pill for the conscience.