In what might be the next best thing to actually watching Monkeys Fighting Robots, the United States Presidential election of 2016 has no shortage of sensational drama – both politically and to some extent in “reality entertainment”. The unconventional campaign is both intensely serious with significant social consequences, but at the same time a source of shock entertainment for those who follow political campaigns.
The polarizing nature of the candidates and the race have led to social commentary from all fronts, including the artistic community.
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Todd McFarlane has Spawn meet Donald Trump
Legendary comic book creator Todd McFarlane snuck a little of his own opinion into a special issue of his most famous character called Spawn Kills Everyone. In it, Spawn makes a visit to San Diego Comic-Con, and after bringing some mayhem to cosplayers, turns his attention to the Red Skull and Donald Trump, beheading the both of them. It certainly appears as if McFarlane intended for the reader to pick up on the juxtaposition of Trump and the Red Skull and make a correlation (wink).
In comments to the New York Daily News, McFarlane acknowledges his distaste for Donald Trump and defends his artwork.
Political satire from famous artists gets a lot of attention
The gruesome depiction of the death of a Presidential candidate from a major United States political party is sure to get noticed, even if it is a parody. Recently, the Republican candidate received major criticism for his offhand comments on “second amendment people” being able to “act” against Hillary Clinton. These remarks prompting serious reactions from the press for days. There were reports that Trump was warned by the Secret Service, but the response by the Trump campaign and follow up by Reuters put that in doubt.
In the 2016 elections, it seems clear that any depictions, comments and imaging of Presidential candidates are sure to draw scrutiny in order to determine the message and intent.
Political satire and parody has a long history in American politics and is considered an acceptable form of political commentary.
It seems that Todd McFarlane just added a couple of new pages to that commentary.
