Mitchell Hundred was once your average New Yorker. A civil engineer and DC comics reader, he was raised by a single mother and has always had questionable sexual preferences. Hundred decided to run for mayor in 2001 as a fringe candidate against the more established candidates.

Mitchell Hundred is not your average New Yorker. A civil engineer and DC comics reader, he responded to a call one night on the Brooklyn Bridge that blew up in his face and permanently scared him. This explosion gave him the ability to talk to and command mechanical devices. Like anyone who grew up on comic books, he decided to become a superhero and use his newfound powers for good. He became the Great Machine, a non-lethal crime fighter who can simply command guns to not fire or radio systems to shut down with his voice.

Mitchell Hundred also commanded one of the two planes headed for the World Trade Center to land. Thanks to this, he went from being a minor candidate to living in Gracie Mansion.

Mitchell Hundred is the central subject of former Lost writer Brian K. Vaughan’s Wildstorm series Ex Machina, which has entered its final arc as its final issue (#50) approaches. The series began in 2004 as a way for Vaughan to express his frustration with politics. Ex Machnia places Hundred at the helm of New York City, placing him up against real life issues the gay marriage debate, legalization of marijuana, terrorist attacks, Papal audiences, and the 2004 Republican National Convention.

The final arc, Pro-Life, rings in 2005, a year that Mayor Hundred should be running for reelection, but isn’t. Hundred has other things to worry about, like the possible return of his old archenemy and the rising of a new, unseen enemy that was only a hindrance before an accident gave the new villain powers.

There are 5 issues remaining in Ex Machina. The bound trades, the eighth of which is coming out on December 9, collect issues 1 through 39. If you’re a New Yorker, a politics fan, or someone who enjoys comics that aren’t heavy on the superpowers, go pick up whatever you can of this great series.

These days, nobody trusts the government about anything. Blame Richard Nixon…I mean, I do. So it’s no surprise that political mysteries have become almost as omnipresent as superheroes and spacemen in the world of action entertainment. The problem is that, just like superheroes and spacemen, conspirators can often become clichéd. What everyone wants is an original story based on this established formula. Red Herring, a new comic miniseries written by David Tischman and drawn by Philip Bond, aspires to do just this.

Red Herring is the story of Maggie MacGuffin, a Congressional aide. Through a series of slightly confusing events, she gets involved with the Red Herring, a strange man bent on exposing a complex conspiracy in the Capital. Tischman manages to throw in enough twists to the genre to keep the books interesting. In particular, this version of the classic Area 51-setup is quite intriguing. Though the story can be quite serious at times, there are a few jokes and a lot of clever satire. Tischman has referred to Red Herring as a mix between The X-Files and the Daily Show, which is completely apparent while reading. However, the writing is not always effective. In particular the narration, which is usually from Maggie’s perspective, sporadically switches to the third person, an omniscient narrarator who reflects on facts Maggie could not possibly have known. However, this is excusable, considering the fact that, overall,  the plot is very solid.

I cannot say the same about the artwork. Bond has a unique style and, at times, is extremely likeable. On the other hand, sometimes it can seem almost laughably sloppy. Red is consistently drawn well, while some of the villains look much more slipshod, with eyes needlessly out-of-focus. Other times, things are colored with bizarrely bright colors when darker hues may have worked better. There is no problem with visual pacing, but I do feel that the art takes a backseat to the writing.

Still, as anyone who has ever read mystery novels knows, the beginning is never the best part. Since I’ve only read Issue 1: Blue Makes Her Look Fat and Issue 2: There Better Be a Damn Good Reason I Was in Coach, I can’t say much about the plot’s development—a key point in any good detective story. I guess the fact that I’m curious to learn what happens next is proof enough that the books are interesting. It would definitely be better bound together in trade-paperback form, but the individual issues are certainly worth your consideration.