Myndasöguhöfundurinn og íslandsvinurinn Warren Ellis (Transmetropolitan, The Authority, HellBlazer…) var að leggja lokahönd á verkefni sem hann er búinn að vera með á Livejournal í rúmt ár. Verkefnið kallast SCREAM TALKING, og samanstendur af 50 smásögum, sérstaklega hönnuðum til þess að kanna viðbrögð og útbreiðslu smásagnanna.

Ég mæli með því að allir þeir sem þekkja til Ellis, og er ekki auðveldlega misboðið, kíki inná:

http://www.livejournal.com/users/mistersleepless/

(Svona fyrir þá sem nenna ekki að fara í gegnum þetta allt, ætla ég að setja eina eftirmynnilegustu söguna hérna:

Ripping Yarns
It occurs to me that an awful lot of trouble in Gotham City could have been averted a long time ago if Batman had just ripped the Joker's nipples off.

I mean, treatment doesn't work, does it? They stick the Joker in the nuthatch, he comes out again and does the same things.

A man with the nipples ripped off him does not make the same mistakes twice.

Criminals are a superstitious, cowardly lot, and need the nipples ripped off them.

I mean, who's going to argue?

“Batman, I've heard disturbing reports that you ripped the Joker's nipples off.”

“Choke on my fuck, Commissioner Gordon.”

“…okay.”

I mean, crime in Gotham City doesn't exactly seem to be affected by a man dressed as a bat flapping around the place. But no-one disobeys a man wearing a necklace of human nipples.

“I'm Batman” isn't cutting it in the striking-fear-into-their-hearts stakes. But “I'm Batman – and I'm here for your nipples” is an entirely different proposition.

Criminals would see the error of their ways after a man in a black leather pervert suit had their nipples off with the edge of a Batarang, you mark my words. Or a Bat-Denipplizer.

I'm off to ring DC Comics.


(C) Warren Ellis 2002, 2004

(SCREAM TALKING. Fifty short pieces. A complete work, more or less. This is an old one, but I don't think you've seen it yet. So I thought I'd pass it on.)