by Joshua Dysart, Alberto Ponticelli, Pat Masioni, Oscar Celestini, and Jose Villarrubia; Vertigo Comics
While
I think I’m a reasonably well-informed person, I really don't know much about Subsaharan
Africa and the conflicts afflicting the region. I think this is typical of many
North Americans. Unknown Soldier is a comic that aims to educate an ignorant
Western audience about the fight against messianic-madman and insurgent leader
Joseph Kony and his Lord's Resistance Army during the height of the conflict in
Uganda. The comic provides an unflinching look at this truly monstrous thing,
from the use of child soldiers and child sex slaves to the desperate plight of
the displaced and marginalized Acholi minority in Uganda. Unknown Soldier uses
the lens of Dr. Moses Lwanga, a crusading activist and doctor who returns to
Uganda from the United States with the intention of building a better future.
However, Dr. Lwanga is heir to a dark secret and the violence that confronts
him awakens something that sends him charging into the maelstrom. It’s a brutal
comic that takes a really hard, uncomfortable look at these events and attempts
to make them understandable through fiction. Unknown Soldier is also an action
comic that orbits some pretty engrossing mystery and drama so it's also a
pretty exciting comic. Unknown Solder does suffer from a very abruptly ending
that leaves story potential untapped and it, out of necessity, shows a very
narrow view of life in Uganda which maybe feeds the idea of Africa as an
exclusively wretched place. On balance, it's an interesting and informative
comic well worth reading.
Word
count: 250
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