One of the big criticisms for this crime thriller set in L.A. I saw in another review was that:
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“Novelist Gary Phillips aims to paint a picture of the underbelly of the Los Angeles underworld, “showing us The Dark Side of the American Dream”. Unfortunately, what gets depicted is more like The Dark Side of Beverly Hills; perhaps 90211. Everything is pretty and clean. The gang leader, Trey, drives a Mercedes convertible and preaches his “bid’ness” to his desegregated officers over a lunch of wine and fine food. And the muscle-car driving protagonist, Cameron (or CQ, as he goes by on those impeccably-swept streets), has a sister, Rita, who lives the high-life with her gambling-addicted husband. If anything, the characters are culled from an episode of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and if this is what the “underbelly” of Los Angeles is like, then I’m on the first flight out.”
As one commentator pointed out “I actually kinda liked how the atmosphere wasn’t the same stereotypical hoods always on tv and video games”, which got me thinking about crime and how we perceive it.
This reviewer was mad that Phillips’ didn’t show the grit and grime expected to see on TV. But that expectation for grit in grime is because that is the kind of underbelly we are always shown - the gangbangers on street corners in run down parts of town. If you think about the way these stories are told, these criminals are always the same and operate in the same seedy bar/dark alley/weeds growing from sidewalks atmosphere.
In the original High Rollers press release, Mark Waid said, “Gangsters and the Mafia are America’s new vampires - the dark creatures of the underground that fascinate and appall us.”
I think this goes to show that what that reviewer had grown to expect was the status quo derived from the expectations media has put into our minds. This is also troubling - that someone can’t see gangsters outside of that atmosphere, which happens to be the poorer part of a city. I’m not saying he’s classist, but in a social sense it is interesting to point out how we perceive what crime and a criminal should be.
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image courtesy BOOM!
Matt Knicl: My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.
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Matt Knicl
My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.
Capes & Cowls » Blog Archive » High Rollers’ Gary Phillips on YouTube (Capes & Cowls » Blog Archive » High Rollers’ Gary Phillips on YouTube) says:
(Posted July 16th, 2008 at 12:49 am)
[…] BOOM! Studios is putting out a four part miniseries featuring writer Gary Phillips sharing his background and knowledge of Los Angeles, the foundation of his new series High Rollers. […]