''Mek'' is a three-issue

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

mini-series A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

published in

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

WildStorm Wildstorm Productions, (stylized as WildStorm), is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee under the name "Aegis Entertainment" and expanded in subsequent years by other creators, Wilds ...

, written by

Warren Ellis Warren Girard Ellis (born 16 February 1968) is a British comic book writer, novelist, and screenwriter. He is best known as the co-creator of several original comics series, including ''Transmetropolitan'' (1997–2002), ''Global Frequency'' ( ...

, pencilled by

Steve Rolston Steve Rolston (born 8 February 1978) is a Canadian artist and writer of comic books and graphic novels currently living in Vancouver, British Columbia. After working in story boards for various animated series, he got his first break from Oni Pr ...

and inked by

Al Gordon Alan Gordon (born June 22, 1953) is an American comic book creator primarily known as an inker and writer. He is best known for his 1990s work on DC Comics' ''Legion of Super Heroes'' and the ''Justice League of America'', Marvel Comics' ''Fanta ...

Publication history

When interviewed about ''Mek'', Warren Ellis explained that he felt that mechanical augmentation was "already happening",www.westfieldcomics.com - Warren Ellis interview (DEC02 Product)
/ref> quoting

Stelarc Stelarc (born Στέλιος Αρκαδίου ''Stelios Arcadiou'' in Limassol in 1946; legally changed his name in 1972) is a Cyprus-born Australian performance artist raised in the Melbourne suburb of Sunshine, whose works focus heavily on ex ...

and the work of

Kevin Warwick Kevin Warwick (born 9 February 1954) is an English engineer and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) at Coventry University. He is known for his studies on direct interfaces between computer systems and the human nervous system, and has also done ...

as examples. In the same interview, he stated his opinion that "What is art and experiment today will be high-end consumer goods in ten years, and cheap enough to be street goods in twenty years" and that "

William Gibson William Ford Gibson (born March 17, 1948) is an American-Canadian speculative fiction writer and essayist widely credited with pioneering the science fiction subgenre known as ''cyberpunk''. Beginning his writing career in the late 1970s, his ...

said it smartest: the street finds its own use for things. And what is experimental, medical or military eventually finds its way down there." The original three issue comic book series was published from January to March 2003 by

Homage Comics Wildstorm Productions, (stylized as WildStorm), is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee under the name "Aegis Entertainment" and expanded in subsequent years by other creators, Wildst ...

, an imprint of

Wildstorm Comics Wildstorm Productions, (stylized as WildStorm), is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee under the name "Aegis Entertainment" and expanded in subsequent years by other creators, Wildst ...

. The series was later collected as one half of a 'flipbook'www.steverolston.com - Mek
/ref> format

trade paperback Trade paperback may refer to: * Trade paperback, a higher-quality softcover version of a book * Trade paperback (comics) In comics in the United States, a trade paperback (shortened: TPB or trade) is a collection of stories originally published ...

, accompanied by another Warren Ellis miniseries, ''Reload'' ().

Plot

The story is set in the near future, when the old fashioned styles of

body modification Body modification (or body alteration) is the deliberate altering of the human anatomy or human physical appearance. In its broadest definition it includes skin tattooing, socially acceptable decoration (''e.g.'', common ear piercing in many s ...

have become passe. The newest fad, "MEK" (short for Massive Enhancement Culture), involves adding cybernetic implants, such as cell phones implanted directly into the skull. The founder of the MEK movement is Sarissa Leon, who has become a celebrity of the new fad. She returns to Sky Road, the place where MEK first took off, after learning of the murder of her former lover and fellow MEK pioneer R.J. Coins. Leon discovers that Sky Road is now the center of "bad MEK", which involves implanting

black market A black market, underground economy, or shadow economy is a clandestine market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality or is characterized by noncompliance with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the se ...

weapons and stolen military technology. Leon attempts to find Coins' murderer, while trying to clean up Sky Road.

Reception

''Mek'' was initially met with a mixed reception - journalist Richard Johnston described the first issue as "an alright Warren Ellis book"www.dynamicforces.com, Richard Johnston, "Waiting for Tommy XVI - Are the Warren Ellis years over?
/ref> and "not his best work but then neither is it his worst"

Notes

References

* * {{Warren Ellis 2003 comics debuts Comics by Warren Ellis