Persepolis 2.0

June 29, 2009 4:19 PM

Persepolis 2.0 'describes Iran's post-election uprising and spreads the word about Iranians' historic struggle against repression. Based on the graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi and edited by two Iranians living in Shanghai.' Persepolis.
posted by plep (12 comments total)

I would have rather they left well enough alone and let Satrapi do this if she so chose. Besides, there's already a Persepolis 2. They could've at least called it 2.5 or something.

Yeah, I'm nitpicky.

posted by sephira at 4:34 PM on June 29, 2009 [3 favorites]

You gotta wonder about the smarts (or perhaps sheer chutzpa) of two people criticizing a despotic regime whilst living in another despotic regime with a demonstrated antipathy to free speech, and which could deport them back to their home country rather quickly and ruthlessly. Shoulda chose Canada or Britain instead as a base of operations.
posted by KokuRyu at 4:41 PM on June 29, 2009

I find this whole thing strange and don't think it really works. It's not like Satrapi has been silent on the current issue (here's a quick link, but there are others) and to me, Persepolis was very much rooted in the time it was taking place -- it doesn't make sense to me to see the art in this context. It's a different situation now.

I just feel that if these two people have things to say about what's going on in Iran right now, they should draw their own comic about it instead of borrowing someone else's art.
posted by darksong at 4:51 PM on June 29, 2009 [5 favorites]

I just feel that if these two people have things to say about what's going on in Iran right now, they should draw their own comic about it instead of borrowing someone else's art.

Agreed. Being inspired by Satrapi is great, and if they love her style, well, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, etc. But there's a whiff of piggybacking, even with the disclaimer.
posted by desuetude at 5:16 PM on June 29, 2009

This isn't "based on the original graphic novel" like it promises on the box. It's a complete rip-off, shamelessly plagiarizing a talented artist's life story (and slathering Satrapi's elegant drawings with badly-rendered Comic Sans). If they've done this without permission, I hope Satrapi politely asks for them to shut it down.

See Situationist International Comics for examples of how collaged-comics-as-propaganda can be done in a way that is more tactical than tacky.
posted by oulipian at 5:38 PM on June 29, 2009 [3 favorites]

Shouldn't this be in the Swipe File?
posted by Ron Thanagar at 5:56 PM on June 29, 2009

sephira, Persepolis 2 is only Persepolis 2 in the US. It was originally published in French as one novel in four volumes.

Currently it is being offered in the US in an omnibus paperback edition.
posted by infinitewindow at 5:56 PM on June 29, 2009

Ah that makes more sense, infinitewindow, thanks. I still don't care for what they've done with it though, and I hope Satrapi tells the story herself or they create a comic of their own to do so.
posted by sephira at 6:09 PM on June 29, 2009

This is kind of lame.
posted by chunking express at 7:22 PM on June 29, 2009

To be clear: not the post, the comic book. Why wouldn't you draw one yourself? And if you can't draw, why even bother trying to make a comic book? And really, based on what i've seen on the internet, drawing isn't really an impediment to making a comic book.
posted by chunking express at 7:26 PM on June 29, 2009 [1 favorite]

It's also really clunky and in-your-face; the writing couldn't be less subtle if you used a hammer.

I thought it was being "offered in the US in an ominous paperback edition".
posted by WalterMitty at 10:47 PM on June 29, 2009

There is such a thing as intellectual property, and this violates it. I'd be pissed if anyone took my comic work and stuck words on it, even if I agreed with the sentiment.
posted by jpburns at 5:13 AM on June 30, 2009