Here is the latest in our year-long look at one cool comic (whether it be a self-contained work, an ongoing comic or a run on a long-running title that featured multiple creative teams on it over the years) a day (in no particular order whatsoever)! Here's the archive of the moments posted so far!

Today we take a look at the first volume of Ex Machina, by Brian K. Vaughan and Tony Harris...

Enjoy!

Besides being an interesting comic filled with compelling characters, an intriguing premise and great artwork, what stands out to me about Ex Machina is just how well CRAFTED the whole thing is. Brian K. Vaughan, right from the get-go, had a complicated intricate plot in mind for this series and as he told the whole thing through flashbacks from varying time periods, it must have been really difficult for him to coordinate it all in his head to make the over-arching narrative work, and yet he pulled it off with seeming ease.

The book opens with this, as we learn that the entire story is going to be told via flashback...

But very quickly, we learn that he could flash back to ANY time in the lead character (Mitchell Hundred)'s life.

Isn't that an endearing scene?

Anyhow, the basic gist of the comic is that a civil engineer named Mitchell Hundred gained superpowers (the ability to "talk" to machines) and became a real-life superhero, with the help of his two best friends, Bradbury and "Kremlin" (an old family friend). He ultimately decides to quit becoming a superhero and run for Mayor of New York. His candidacy is a joke until he saves one of the Twin Towers on 9/11. He then becomes so popular that he wins election. The comic then tells the story of his term as Mayor of New York.

After that flashback to his childhood, #1 also shows us how he got his powers...

In the next issue, there's a great scene showing the naivete he had back when he was a "superhero," as he tries to have a sit-down with the commissioner, Batman-style...

Finally, a glimpse of Mitchell at work as Mayor...

Ex Machina is a great comic that had a particularly good opening - Vaughan and Harris create a vibrant world filled with characters that we want to know more about and want to see what happens next.

It's also interesting, with the ending of the series coming soon, to see how everything was set-up way back with this first collection. Nicely turned.