Ruse (comics)
| Ruse | |
|---|---|
Cover to Ruse #1
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Crossgen Entertainment |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Publication date | November, 2001 – January, 2004 |
| Number of issues | 26 |
| Main character(s) | Simon Archard Emma Bishop Miranda Cross Malcolm Lightbourne |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Mark Waid |
| Penciller(s) | Butch Guice |
| Inker(s) | Mike Perkins |
| Colorist(s) | Laura DePuy |
| Creator(s) |
Mark Alessi Gina M. Villa |
Ruse is a comic book featuring detectives Simon Archard and Emma Bishop. Originally published by CrossGen, it was revived in 2011 by Marvel Comics as part of its acquisition of CrossGen titles.
Ruse ran for twenty-six issues from November 2001 to January 2004 before it was forced to end by the bankruptcy of CrossGen. The first half of the series was written by Mark Waid and the last half by Scott Beatty; nearly the entire series featured pencils by Butch Guice. 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).
The series also had three spin-off issues, each called Ruse: Archard's Agents and all written by Chuck Dixon.
In 2010, Marvel Comics 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 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.
The revived series established the city of Partington as a settlement in Victorian England, and made no mention of the Sigils or Negation characters from the original series. References were made to events and characters from the Crossgen series.
The series focused on two primary protagonists: 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 an 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). It is possible that Simon received the mark before the series began, gets his abilities from it and is able to hide it from everyone (and wears the mark on his tie pin as respect for the powers it gives him).
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