CSA:
Confederate States of America is an oversized, original hardcover graphic novel. It is the
first in a projected set of seven or eight books originally published in France. The by now familiar premise portrays the South winning the Civil War, as it happened. The
divergence starts at Gettysburg. Lee changes his battle plan at the last minute
and wins the battle. The Union starts to lose heart and Union wills and
strongholds fall like dominoes from there. Grant remains in a corner and
McClellan declares the Union cause lost and stages a military coup, arresting
Lincoln and seizing control of government (something McClellan would never have
had the guts or energy to do). The book leaves off (to be continued) as Lincoln
struggles to find support under house arrest and the Union cause is falling to
pieces.
This
is an interesting piece of speculative fiction, but the book has some problems. Most of the
art is from photo reference, and the painted pages come off as stiff and inert.
The printing is excessively murky and black and it is difficult to make out what is
happening in some panels, especially if the action takes place at night. This is absolute poison in a graphic novel. Readers must be able to follow the story, even without dialog. There are
too many word balloons, same for general exposition. The author is trying
to communicate a lot of information in small boxes and balloons and it comes off as too
crowded on the page. The writer shows some knowledge of U.S. history
and what could have gone so very wrong for the Union, and successfully exploits
those points. However, the story and dialog could have been smoother and more
streamlined. Lincoln is portrayed as much weaker and McClellan much more
powerful than they actually were. I’m not sure if that is for story purposes or
a French misunderstanding of American history.
CSA has some great
ideas, but lacking a bit in the execution. I’m not sure if I will follow up on
future volumes.
Rating: *** Out of 5 stars
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