The Surrogates is a graphic novel that postulates a world in which we live vicariously through simulacra of ourselves to which we are connected cybernetically. Safe at home, we can work dangerous jobs without fear. A fireman’s surrogate can dash into a flaming building to rescue its inhabitants without any fear of his actual body suffering damage. Someone walking down the sidewalk need not fear falling objects, or an out of control car lurching onto that sidewalk. If an accident occurs, only the surrogate will be damaged. Its human operator will remain, safe and sound, at home.
In this world, surrogates have become big business – an overwhelming majority of United States citizens either own a surrogate outright, or are buying one on credit terms. This is the world that writer Robert Venditti and artist Brett Weldele have created. On the surface, it seems like an ideal world – once dangerous jobs are now no riskier than doing a crossword puzzle; sexually transmitted diseases no longer bar us from experimenting as we please. Even vanity is swerved – one’s surrogate can be specifically ordered to represent an idealized image of oneself.
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