Author - James Prohias
ISBN - 0823050505
Publication Date - August 11, 2009
Plot - It is hard to pinpoint the exact plot of the Spy vs. Spy series without somehow discussing the history of the series. As it was originally developed as a Mad Magazine comic in 1961, and developed by Prohias after he fled Cuba it depicts the crazy adventures of two eerily similar looking spies who were hell bend on destroying one another. The one was dressed in all black attire, while the other spy was dressed in all white. The plot of these adventures is not particularly complex, as it is essentially a series of comics put into one large book. The setting of each strip begins with one of the spies getting an idea about how he is going to defeat the other spy. As he goes about his plot to destroy the other spy, it always seems to turn out that he has miscalculated something and the second spy ends up hurting or destroying the first. But of course the pair keep at it, and before long the shoe is on the other foot. And the second spy finds an idea of how to destroy the first, creating a kind of comic misadventure drawn from the two characters.
Book Review - It might be slightly unfair to call this a book as it is pieced together comic sketches, but I think there is a theme to all of these comics. Especially as these comics were developed in the 1960s, during the heart of the cold war, there was a commentary being made about the nature of the spies that were fighting each other. Yes one wore black and one wore white, but that was where the differences ended. It was not written like a typical movie script where the villain of the story wore black and the good guy wore white. Each of the spies seems to be involved in some maniacal plot to destroy the other spy. And there is seemingly no back story or reason for the destruction. Through it all we get a sense that both parties should not be fighting at all. Because if they took a look at their similarities, their differences may ultimately be meaningless. This comic set will certainly tickle your funny bone, but the underlying premise causes one to think, especially in world where people are afraid of their own shadow, and that terrorists might be lurking around every corner.
About the Author - Antonio Prohias was a product of the revolution of Cuba. In late 1950s and early 1960s if one was not a supporter of the government of Cuba, Castro's regime, then he or she would be labeled as a spy. Prohias, therefore, considered himself a spy.
After fleeing to America in 1960, as Cuba's world was being crushed, and Castro was removing any dissenters from their midst, Prohias tried to find work doing what he loved. He had written cartoons back in Cuba but feared that they would not translate as well in America. Getting a job at what he could do, with little command of the English language, found him working for a clothing factory in Queens.
The nights found him working hard to try to develop a comic that he would be proud of. The idea came to him of Spy vs. Spy when he started thinking about himself and how he was considered a spy in Cuba. If he could translate that in such a way that was engaging, and required no talking he would be set. MAD magazine loved it and decided to begin publishing in 1961. Covertly, Prohias would sign the first panel of every cartoon in Morse Code that spelled out by prohias. He had truly become a Cuban born, American spy.
Genre- Comics, Graphic novels
Curriculum Ties - A study of cold war literature, and how our writing was impacted by our view of the world - History/Literature
Booktalking Ideas - Have an open discussion of the Cold War and how we viewed the Russians and other communists and comparing and contrasting that with how we view the terrorists today.
Reading Level/Interest Age - Grade 9+
Challenge Issues - This may encourage violence between people as its characters are constantly trying to destroy each other.
Overcoming Challenge - Compare and contrast Spy vs. Spy with other comics. Show how much violence, even if it is cartoonish, occurs in much of the other comics or cartoons we allow our children to watch and see.
Why Included - I loved the recent showings of the Spy vs. Spy series as movie shorts. I also found this book in the graphic novel section for older teens at my library.
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