This article originally appeared in the January 2007 issue of the Sequential Tart Webzine.

Like Isaac Mendez, the comic artist of NBC’s Heroes who can paint the future, some comics creators find that their work at least partially anticipates some aspects of the future. In his introduction to the original DC Comics run of V for Vendetta, Alan Moore wrote that he and artist David Lloyd had played something of a Cassandra role in anticipating the future, when they created V for Vendetta. In his and Deepak Chopra’s Comic-Con panel of July 20, 2006, Grant Morrison said of his work on The Invisibles, “We had things that went into the comic and would then manifest themselves in the real world and in my life.”

A similar phenomenon can be observed in other media, too. Most notably, science fiction authors frequently write about things that happen later. For example, Lester del Rey wrote a story called “Nerves” that told of a nuclear power plant accident years before Three Mile Island. H.G. Wells called this prophecy-like phenomenon “The Discovery of the Future.” For Wells, this discovery of the future was not exactly about foretelling the future. It was about realizing the creative effects of our acts. It was about learning to predict the consequences of our choices so that we could engage together in creating a better future world. In the spirit of H.G. Wells, it may be thought provoking to compare two of the most prominent features of the comic world of V for Vendetta to the real world of America, circa 2006.

One of the bizarre, twisted features in the political landscape of the V for Vendetta comic world is the relationship between Leader and Fate. Leader is a virgin, and the only love he has ever known is his love for Fate, a computer system that he personifies as a cold goddess. Fate is a system for total informational awareness, and it is hooked up to surveillance cameras everywhere. V is, among other things, a consummate hacker. He has been hacking into Fate for a long time. When he finally reveals to Leader that he has compromised Fate, by the sign of the V on the computer screen, Leader feels as if his love has been unfaithful to him. He kisses the screen, saying, “I forgive you.” Is there anything in America that can compare to Fate?

In fact, there is. It is called PROMIS (Prosecutor’s Management Information System). There are mixed reviews about what PROMIS is capable of doing and who has access to it. What is certain is that a computer software system called PROMIS exists and that it can, at the very least, predict and influence the world financial system. We also know that information about our financial transactions is tracked whenever we use a credit or debit card. As far as I know, however; the POTUS (President of the United States) is not in love with PROMIS. We can take comfort in the fact that it is extremely unlikely that the POTUS sits in front of a monitor hooked to PROMIS, watching us in our bedrooms.

Next, let’s consider the Voice of Fate. In the comic world of V, Lewis Prothero broadcasts propaganda to the people every day as the Voice of Fate. When we’re first introduced to the Voice of Fate, we see journalists in a newsroom. They are having a discussion immediately in the wake of the fireworks V unleashed in the explosion he showed Evey after rescuing her from the government police. “Fate doesn’t think we should mention the fireworks,” one of the journalists says. “If anyone asks later we’ll say it was a freak effect of the blast.” We learn immediately that news is censored under the Norsefire regime. We infer that it is important to the regime to keep the populace pacified with a carefully controlled, calming Voice of Fate. People who live under Norsefire apparently feel reassured to be told by The Voice what will happen, what to do and what to think.

Is the news media in America anything like the Voice of Fate? In fact, it has been established that the media reports fake news as if it is genuine reporting. The Center for Media and Democracy has documented that television news stations routinely disguise PR video content that has been provided to them by corporate and government sources. Stations routinely air PR videos as if the videos were their own independent reporting. In most cases, they did not verify or balance the content of the videos that were provided to them. Unlike the media in the Norsefire comic world, however; many alternative news sources are available, from CSPAN to blogs. Once again, the resemblances between art and life are enough to make us pause and think, but not to panic.

Readers can continue this game of comparison on their own, comparing the comic world to our world. They can form their own conclusions about many other serious trends that the V for Vendetta comic dramatizes, from torture to habeas corpus. In most cases, I am confident that some research and thought would turn up superficial differences, yet deep similarities, between V’s world and our world. V is a comic, though; and as such, it remains open to multiple interpretations.

It’s not often that I recommend drawing direct political lessons from any work of fiction, whether a comic or a novel. V is different. It works because it is morally ambiguous rather than a simple tale of good vs. evil. To think about moral and political issues, when reading V, is to be fully engaged with it. So, what would I advocate, then, if I like V so much? Do I think we should dress up like Guy Fawkes and destroy property? After all, aren’t I taking V rather literally in making comparisons between V’s world and our world?

The answer is that there is a reason why Evey does not remove V’s mask when he lies dead at her feet at the end of the comic. She knows that no matter what V looks like, the idea of V will be diminished in some way, if he becomes just a man. V is an idea. There is an obvious difference between art and life. In art, a guy dressed as Guy Fawkes can blow up a building, but in real life, the building still stands, and nobody has been hurt. Nothing has happened except in readers’ consciousness. So, no, I would never advocate imitating V in a literal sense. Instead, I think V inspires us to destroy illusions and free our minds. I think V allows us to imagine being brave and helping others to become brave. Freeing our minds, freeing other minds, being brave and encouraging others to be brave are activities that were still legal, the last time I checked.