I’ve read Saga, Y-the Last Man, Paper Girls, Pride of Baghdad and Runaways. All wonderful works. But I had somehow never heard of Ex Machina, somehow it flew under my radar and I only saw it existed when finishing the Paper Girls trade and seeing “More by Brian Vaughan! on the inside of the back cover.

It wonderfully combines superhero action, mystery conspiracy and political debate. Mitchel Hundred is a civil engineer who is injured in an explosion investigating a mysterious glowing green device under the Brooklyn Bridge. Abruptly, he discovers he can talk to machines and in the ensuing cacophony in his brain he yells [SHUT UP!] and instantly all power in NYC shuts off. Not knowing the source or reason behind these powers and having grown up reading Superman comics, he uses these powers for good as a superhero “The Great Machine” with his longtime friend Bradbury and Russian mentor Kremlin helping him. It doesn’t always go well, he can jam a gun or tell a cellphone or train to stop but the city of NY cops and even people he saves aren’t to keen on him. 9/11 happens…differently. Won’t spoil that.

After a year he hangs up his superhero gear to the chagrin of Kremlin and runs for Mayor, winning the election tries to make a difference a different way. Between the fascinating political, social and cultural problems and issues that come from being Mayor of NY, old enemies from his superhero past threaten and the source and purpose of his powers is still not known.

It’s a brilliantly written comic, has great action, wonderful moral and philosophical questions, a great mystery and Tony Harris’s art conveys it all so well. Annoyed I am just now discovering it, if you’ve never heard of it, give it a go!