Desolation Jones
| Desolation Jones | |
|---|---|
Desolation Jones
|
|
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Wildstorm |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Publication date | July 2005 – February 2007 |
| No. of issues | 8 |
| Main character(s) | Desolation Jones Jeronimus Corneliszoon Emily Crowe Tapper |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Warren Ellis |
| Written by | Warren Ellis |
| Artist(s) |
J.H. Williams III Danijel Zezelj |
| Colorist(s) | José Villarrubia |
Desolation Jones was a bimonthly comic book series written by Warren Ellis. Art for the first six-issue storyline was provided by J.H. Williams III and José Villarrubia. The interrupted second storyline was illustrated by Danijel Zezelj and Villarrubia. The series is published by the Wildstorm imprint of DC Comics; it was launched in July 2005.
The story follows the former MI6 agent Jones.
Film producer David Friendly announced in 2008, while the comic was in production limbo, that he intended to adapt Desolation Jones as a feature film. However, when questioned Ellis himself insisted that "All I can tell you is that we've never heard from David Friendly."
The series' last issue, No. 8, came out in February 2007. The project has technically been on hiatus since then, but as of 2012, Warren Ellis has stated the series will probably not return.
Michael (Desolation) Jones
The story's protagonist and title character is Michael Jones, a former agent of British intelligence service MI6, who earns a long record of drunkenness and misconduct within the organisation. This is possibly due to a break-up with a woman only mentioned as "Jessica." In lieu of being discharged for his behaviour, he was chosen to participate in a secret government project called the "Desolation Test." Jones believes he would be taking part in an innocuous research study, but instead becomes an unwilling human test subject. Part of the test was being strapped to a hospital bed for a full year without being allowed to sleep and subjected to endless scenes of death. Jones is the only known survivor of this program. To mark him as a potential biological threat, the British government brands a biohazard symbol on the underside of his left forearm and a "Desolation 01" (i.e. test subject #01) brand on his right forearm.
The Desolation Test caused numerous physical changes. He has become a scarred and frail figure with grey skin and chalk white hair, who must avoid direct sunlight, although the exact effects it would have upon him are not revealed. He suffers from chronic pain and impotence. Mentally, Jones exhibits no fear, remorse, or any other emotion, and is numb to killing people, many times with his bare hands. He manages to take down a much larger opponent in the first issue by gouging out his eye with his index finger, remarking: "Winning a fight isn't about being the strongest or being a clever boxer, it's about being more willing to permanently fuck up the other guy." He heals poorly when wounded, although this may be a result of his constant drug abuse rather than due to the Desolation Test. Even in the best of times, he has hallucinations of half-naked, sometimes bloody angels. The character also wears a trademark orange trench coat, an oxygen mask, and a pair of goggles, presumably to avoid exposure to sunlight. On several occasions he demonstrates above-average reflexes, as though his wasted body still perfectly responds to his MI6 training.
...
Wikipedia