Novel Review: |
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| Harlan Wilson's Dr. Identity | |
| by James Maddox |
One can't help but read through the pages of Dr. Identity and see that the book has an air of blatant violence and absurdism. The constant reference to pop-culture and the over the top ideas that course through the novel's pages are obvious in their satyric goal. The book is confusing and pompous and vile. So you should read it as soon as possible.
Here we find two characters, Dr. ------- and his "gänger" Dr. Identity on the run after Identity set off on a killing spree, which started with one student, then a college wing, then a shopping complex—because once you've crossed the line, why stop there?
In the multi-narrative tale, we are able to gain a broader view of the world these characters inhabit, as well as gain varying insights to the thought process of the average citizenry, which happens to be not so average, indeed.
Truthfully told, maybe odd isn't the right word to express the kind of storytelling Wilson produces for us. Filled with ultraviolence and critical theory, not to mention a few jabs at modern academics (the bit about essay requirements is hilarious), the fact is that though Dr. Identity initially comes off as being strange, there is something more that we should be interested in as readers of today's literature.
The book has a few downsides, such as it's disturbing portrayal of future women and students and, well, everybody. Also, sometimes the telling of the story tends to remind me of watching a television show by way of antenna—the static just keeps piling up, keeping you away from the main event—but for the most part, these techniques have a reason for existing in the story.
That stipulated, am I saying that everyone is going to take time to pause and give Dr. Identity the thorough going over that they should? No, of course not. In a world where people still bitch about giving graphic novels honorary awards, I wouldn't expect that to happen in my wildest dreams. But that doesn't mean that you, the sensible reader of today's literature, have to overlook it because it's different, because most likely you, the sensible reader of today's literature, are going to find issues in it that mirror important themes in society.
The theme that caught me most in Dr. Identity was "Identity". While Bliptown itself seems to be made of nothing but recreations of things that comprised its past, the question that seems most interesting is simply "What is original here?"
"You can't create something new," said Dr. 'Blah. "The new is just the old in disguise. Making something new is merely the process of disguising something old in a seemingly creative way. The disguise is the thing—not the thing itself..."
This said after Dr. Identity maps out his plan for an original comic book idea he plans to create after their travels through infamy. However, we find that Wilson has put this idea of unoriginality to good use in his novel.
In this book, the names of great thinkers produce ideas in our heads relating to a certain subject matter. So when Wilson uses a reference, he is not referencing the person, but the idea that the person's name enforces. And more often than not, that idea is pushed to an extreme.
Despite what 'Blah claims, I think Wilson has done something new, and he's done it well.
More than a tale of science fiction, like any good science fiction story is, Wilson exposes the truth of why we keep going back to the same old narrative concepts, then destroys that truth by creating something completely original, proving that if the novel is dead, then Dr. Identity is a fully functional zombie.
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