The Surrogates
| The Surrogates | |
|---|---|
Cover of 2009 collected edition of The Surrogates
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Top Shelf Productions |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format |
Limited series Graphic novel |
| Genre | |
| Publication date |
The Surrogates July 2005 - March 2006 The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone July 2009 |
| Number of issues | 5 |
| Creative team | |
| Writer(s) | Robert Venditti |
| Artist(s) | Brett Weldele |
| Colorist(s) | Brett Weldele |
| Creator(s) |
Robert Venditti Brett Weldele |
| Editor(s) | Chris Staros |
| Collected editions | |
| The Surrogates | ISBN |
| The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone | ISBN |
| The Surrogates Operator's Manual | ISBN |
The Surrogates is a five-issue comic book limited series written by Robert Venditti, drawn by Brett Weldele, and published by Top Shelf Productions from 2005 to 2006. In 2009 it was followed by a prequel graphic novel, The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone.
It has been made into a film, Surrogates, starring Bruce Willis.
The first series ran from 2005 to 2006, with a collected edition published in July 2006 (). A prequel graphic novel, The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone, was published in July 2009 (). A limited edition hardcover, The Surrogates Operator's Manual, collects both books into a single volume ().
Venditti was inspired to write The Surrogates after reading Indra Sinha's book The Cybergypsies, about numerous individuals who lost their spouses or their jobs due to their addiction to the internet and their online personas. In an interview, he said: "It dawned on me that if you were somehow able to create a persona and send it out into the real world—where it could go to work for you, and run your errands, and so on—then you would never have to go back to being yourself."
In the year 2054, people use surrogates (humanoid remote control vehicles) as a form of telepresence in their daily lives and interactions with one another. In Central Georgia Metropolis, Lt. Harvey Greer investigates the destruction of two surrogates. Greer soon discovers a mysterious figure (whom he nicknames “Steeplejack”) plots to permanently disable all surrogates in an effort to eliminate people's dependence on them. Greer considers the anti-surrogate religious leader named “The Prophet” a suspect, but The Prophet is later killed by Steeplejack. Similar to Steeplejack and The Prophet, Greer feels people have become too reliant on surrogates for superficial reasons. Greer chooses to work the investigation in-person after Steeplejack destroys Greer's surrogate. Greer later discovers Steeplejack himself is a surrogate controlled by Lionel Canter, the inventor of the original surrogate. Lionel designed surrogates as a tool for the physically impaired and became dissatisfied with their widespread personal use by the non-impaired. Eventually Lionel/Steeplejack successfully disables surrogates throughout the city. Greer later discovers his wife Margaret, a surrogate-addict, has committed suicide because her attractive-looking surrogate was disabled.
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