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Ruse (comics)
Encyclopedia
Ruse was a CrossGen
comic book
title. It ran for twenty-six issues from November 2001
to January 2004
before it was forced to end by the bankruptcy
of CrossGen. In 2010, Marvel Comics
announced plans to revive the series as part of its acquisition of CrossGen titles.
The first half was written by Mark Waid
and the last half by Scott Beatty
; nearly the entire series featured pencils by Butch Guice
. The series also had three spin-off issues, each called Ruse: Archard's Agents and all written by Chuck Dixon
.
The critically acclaimed series was known for complex plots, the witty repartee between the two protagonists, and being of an unusual genre in comic books (Victorian-era detective fiction
).
s: Simon Archard and Emma Bishop. The relationship between the two attractive leads is purely professional, although the two share great chemistry and other characters make numerous innuendos about their relationship.
Simon Archard is a detective
. He is a master sleuth and extremely competent. He has eidetic memory
. He is feared by the criminals of Partington, and his presence apparently keeps the crime rate low. He is close to emotionless, remaining utterly calm in situations of crisis. He is also emotionally distant from other people. His character is based on Sherlock Holmes
. It is implied that Simon Archard is his world's Sigil Bearer but he does not receive the mark from anyone at the beginning of the series nor does he seem to have any special powers except his mental abilities (he does however wear the Sigil mark upon his tie pin).
Emma Bishop is Simon Archard's assistant. She has mysterious magical powers which she is not supposed to use. Careful to maintain her identity, she conceals her powers (though it was revealed in the last issue of the series, #26, that Archard had secretly deduced her powers almost from the very beginning). The source of her abilities was never revealed in the series, though a reader familiar with the rest of the CrossGen Universe
could deduce from her powers and her orange eyes that she was one of the guides that accompanied Sigil-bearers.
Miranda Cross is the antagonist
of the series. She initially appears to be a beautiful baron
ess; however, it is revealed that she is evil, many centuries old, and from a different world. She also possesses magical powers which are at least the equal of and probably stronger than those of Emma Bishop. She is possibly a demon
of some sort, though the exact nature of her identity is not resolved by the end of the series. Some readers consider her dialogue in Ruse #18 (April 2003) to possibly hint that she is a Negation
Lawbringer.
Malcolm Lightbourne is Simon Archard's former mentor and chief rival. Lightbourne's main goal throughout the series is the retrieval of the Enigmatic Prism, which Archard stole from him at the end of their partnership. Lightbourne also seeks to kill Archard and attempts to achieve both of his goals by destroying the city of Partington.
The Consortium of Aggrieved Man Servants are a group of Butlers that strive to achieve the impossible; kill Simon Archard. This underground conspiracy has swelled in ranks over the years every time Archard has muttered the phrase "the Butler did it." Even though the consortium has made many (botched) attempts on Archard's life, he seems un-characteristically unaware of their existence or perhaps he just doesn't care.
Archard's Agents are a network of people that Archard uses to gather information on cases. Members of the group include a former prize fighter, a child psychic, and a bearded lady.
This storyline focused on a mysterious artifact called the Enigmatic Prism, which incited evil desires, such as hate, lust
, and a need to do violence
, within people. Miranda Cross wanted the Enigmatic Prism to do evil with, and to use it to return to her homeworld. Simon Archard and Emma Bishop sought to destroy the prism, to prevent the artifact from causing further harm.
announced plans to revive CrossGen titles, and revealed that Ruse was scheduled to return as a four-issue miniseries in March 2011. Mark Waid was also announced as the writer.
The revived series made no mention of the Sigils or Negation characters, and the setting re-established the city of Partington as a settlement in Victorian England. However, references were made to events and characters from the Crossgen series.
collecting some of the issues:
CrossGen
Cross Generation Entertainment, or CrossGen, was an American comic book publisher that operated from 1998 to 2004.CrossGen Comics, Inc. was founded in 1998, by Tampa, Florida-based entrepreneur Mark Alessi who sought to create a comic book universe that was uniquely varied but also connected by a...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
title. It ran for twenty-six issues from November 2001
2001 in comics
-Year overall:* Marvel Comics withdraws from the Comics Code Authority and established its own rating system for its publications.- January :* January 23: Fred Ray, Superman's primary cover artist of the 1940s, passes away at age 80.- September :...
to January 2004
2004 in comics
-February:*February 6: Marvel Enterprises and Electronic Arts announce a multi-year agreement in which EA will develop a new generation of fighting video games pitting Marvel superheroes against a new, original set of EA heroes....
before it was forced to end by the bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
of CrossGen. In 2010, Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
announced plans to revive the series as part of its acquisition of CrossGen titles.
The first half was written by Mark Waid
Mark Waid
Mark Waid is an American comic book writer. He is well known for his eight-year run as writer of the DC Comics' title The Flash, as well as his scripting of the limited series Kingdom Come and Superman: Birthright, and his work on Marvel Comics' Captain America...
and the last half by Scott Beatty
Scott Beatty
Scott Beatty is an American author who has written comic books and encyclopaedias based on DC Comics characters.-Biography:Beatty has worked extensively for the popular comic book publisher DC Comics since the mid '90s...
; nearly the entire series featured pencils by Butch Guice
Jackson Guice
Jackson "Butch" Guice , is an American comic book artist who has worked steadily in the mainstream comics industry since the early 1980s.-Biography:...
. The series also had three spin-off issues, each called Ruse: Archard's Agents and all written by Chuck Dixon
Chuck Dixon
Charles "Chuck" Dixon is an American comic book writer, best known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s.-Biography:Dixon grew up in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area, reading comics of all genres...
.
The critically acclaimed series was known for complex plots, the witty repartee between the two protagonists, and being of an unusual genre in comic books (Victorian-era detective fiction
Detective fiction
Detective fiction is a sub-genre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator , either professional or amateur, investigates a crime, often murder.-In ancient literature:...
).
Setting
The series takes place on the planet Arcadia, primarily in the fictional town of Partington, in a Victorian-era setting tinged with elements of magic and fantasy. The most visible difference from real London is that it has living gargoyles which are regarded by the populace as creatures as commonplace as pigeons.Characters
The series focused on two primary protagonistProtagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
s: Simon Archard and Emma Bishop. The relationship between the two attractive leads is purely professional, although the two share great chemistry and other characters make numerous innuendos about their relationship.
Simon Archard is a detective
Detective
A detective is an investigator, either a member of a police agency or a private person. The latter may be known as private investigators or "private eyes"...
. He is a master sleuth and extremely competent. He has eidetic memory
Eidetic memory
Eidetic , commonly referred to as photographic memory, is a medical term, popularly defined as the ability to recall images, sounds, or objects in memory with extreme precision and in abundant volume. The word eidetic, referring to extraordinarily detailed and vivid recall not limited to, but...
. He is feared by the criminals of Partington, and his presence apparently keeps the crime rate low. He is close to emotionless, remaining utterly calm in situations of crisis. He is also emotionally distant from other people. His character is based on Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
. It is implied that Simon Archard is his world's Sigil Bearer but he does not receive the mark from anyone at the beginning of the series nor does he seem to have any special powers except his mental abilities (he does however wear the Sigil mark upon his tie pin).
Emma Bishop is Simon Archard's assistant. She has mysterious magical powers which she is not supposed to use. Careful to maintain her identity, she conceals her powers (though it was revealed in the last issue of the series, #26, that Archard had secretly deduced her powers almost from the very beginning). The source of her abilities was never revealed in the series, though a reader familiar with the rest of the CrossGen Universe
Sigilverse
The Sigilverse, also known as the CrossGen Universe, is a fictional shared universe which served as a setting for most titles published by CrossGen Comics. Except for El Cazador, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, and a handful of flashbacks, all CrossGen Universe titles are set in the future...
could deduce from her powers and her orange eyes that she was one of the guides that accompanied Sigil-bearers.
Miranda Cross is the antagonist
Antagonist
An antagonist is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend...
of the series. She initially appears to be a beautiful baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
ess; however, it is revealed that she is evil, many centuries old, and from a different world. She also possesses magical powers which are at least the equal of and probably stronger than those of Emma Bishop. She is possibly a demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
of some sort, though the exact nature of her identity is not resolved by the end of the series. Some readers consider her dialogue in Ruse #18 (April 2003) to possibly hint that she is a Negation
Negation (comics)
Negation was a comic book series published from CrossGen. Tony Bedard was the writer for the entire run. Paul Pelletier was the artist for most of the issues, with an occasional fill-in artist taking an issue here and there.-Overview:...
Lawbringer.
Malcolm Lightbourne is Simon Archard's former mentor and chief rival. Lightbourne's main goal throughout the series is the retrieval of the Enigmatic Prism, which Archard stole from him at the end of their partnership. Lightbourne also seeks to kill Archard and attempts to achieve both of his goals by destroying the city of Partington.
The Consortium of Aggrieved Man Servants are a group of Butlers that strive to achieve the impossible; kill Simon Archard. This underground conspiracy has swelled in ranks over the years every time Archard has muttered the phrase "the Butler did it." Even though the consortium has made many (botched) attempts on Archard's life, he seems un-characteristically unaware of their existence or perhaps he just doesn't care.
Archard's Agents are a network of people that Archard uses to gather information on cases. Members of the group include a former prize fighter, a child psychic, and a bearded lady.
Plot
While some issues were standalone issues in which Simon Archard and Emma Bishop solved some small mystery in Partington, most issues were concerned with the larger storyline running throughout the entire series.This storyline focused on a mysterious artifact called the Enigmatic Prism, which incited evil desires, such as hate, lust
Lust
Lust is an emotional force that is directly associated with the thinking or fantasizing about one's desire, usually in a sexual way.-Etymology:The word lust is phonetically similar to the ancient Roman lustrum, which literally meant "purification"...
, and a need to do violence
Violence
Violence is the use of physical force to apply a state to others contrary to their wishes. violence, while often a stand-alone issue, is often the culmination of other kinds of conflict, e.g...
, within people. Miranda Cross wanted the Enigmatic Prism to do evil with, and to use it to return to her homeworld. Simon Archard and Emma Bishop sought to destroy the prism, to prevent the artifact from causing further harm.
Revival
In 2010, Marvel ComicsMarvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
announced plans to revive CrossGen titles, and revealed that Ruse was scheduled to return as a four-issue miniseries in March 2011. Mark Waid was also announced as the writer.
The revived series made no mention of the Sigils or Negation characters, and the setting re-established the city of Partington as a settlement in Victorian England. However, references were made to events and characters from the Crossgen series.
Quotes
- Emma, when asked what she has learned: "I've learned that... that Simon Archard shows all the crimeside manner of a cactus."
- Simon: "Begging your pardon, but would you two please repeat that exchange? I can barely hear it over the clamor of mysterious subtext."
- Miranda: "All that you know, all you can conceive... I and others like me are fated to control it."
- Emma: "Wait. Don't speak for a moment. I wish to bask in the warm glow of your praise."
Collections
There have been a number of trade paperbacksTrade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
collecting some of the issues:
- Enter the Detective (by Mark Waid, Butch Guice and Mike Perkins, collects Ruse #1-6, CrossGen, 160 pages, July 2002, ISBN 1-931484-19-8)
- The Silent Partner (by Mark Waid, Scott Beatty, Butch Guice, collects Ruse #7-12, CrossGen, 160 pages, February 2003, ISBN 1-931484-48-1)
- Criminal Intent (by Scott Beatty, Butch Guice, Mike Perkins and Laura Depuy, CrossGen, 160 pages, July 2004, ISBN 1-931484-74-0) [This collection was solicited, but never published due to Crossgen's bankruptcy.]
- Ruse Omnibus (by Waid, Beatty, Guice and Perkins), collects Ruse #1-17, Checkerbooks, 500 pages, January 2009, ISBN 1-933160-77-2 [This collection was solicited, but never published.]
- Ruse Collection (by Scott Beatty & Butch Guice), collects Ruse #18-26, Checkerbooks, January 2009, ISBN 1-933160-80-2) [This collection was solicited, but never published.]
- Ruse: The Victorian Guide to murder (by Mark Waid and Jackson Guice collects Ruse (Vol:2) #1-4, Marvel Comics, 96 pages, October 2011, ISBN 978-0-7851-5586-7)
Awards
The series has been nominated for five Eisners and has won a number of awards, including:- 20022002 in comics-March:* Adventures of Superman #600: super-sized anniversary issue by Joe Casey, Mike Wieringo, and Jose Marzan, Jr. -April:* Batman #600: "Bruce Wayne: Fugitive," part one, 64-page giant, written by Ed Brubaker.-January:...
Eisner AwardEisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
for best coloring