The Great Library: String Theory

When people think of libraries they do not automatically think of nerds.  A youth that spent all their time in a library instead of outside playing would possibly draw the stigma, but that is not the type of person that one would expect to encounter when going to a library.  The initial and automatic association with a library is “books” and not people.  However, when people start to think about different genres of books – especially with fantasy, adventure, and science fiction – the association with nerds begins to creep in. 

Libraries are also not usually associated with comic books, and certainly not with the digital comics available on the internet that are known as web comics.  Nerds, on the other hand, often would be – perhaps with the later more than the former.  Here at Nerd Up, we’re not making a distinction between different forms of literature, and they’ll all be found within The Great Library.  It’s not like we’re in Alexandria, and we certainly hope that the Romans don’t have cause to burn us down, accident or not.

In this excursion into The Great Library we will be taking a first look at a science-fiction themed web comic titled String Theory.  Written and illustrated by the pseudonymous Dirk Grundy, String Theory is a character-driven story set in a dystopian alternate future timeline.  The comic was started in 2009, and features a mostly-weekly release schedule.  Since this is an independent project that is not funded by outside sources, there is no official release timeframe; however, if one of you billionaire entrepreneurs out there reading this wants to financially back the project, Mr. Grundy might be willing to negotiate a release schedule and project budget with you.  The primary focus of the story is Dr. Herville Schtein, a brilliant physicist with a few personal problems who may or may not be on the path to becoming an evil super villain.  Everybody makes mistakes sometimes, right?  In this alternate future, the events of the Cuban missile crisis went differently and history has taken an alternate path for the United States of America.

The story involves quite a few more characters than just Dr. Schtein, and the narration shifts between various characters in different settings to show events that are taking place at that point.  The story is divided into different chapters to mark major shifts and developments in the plot, but scene changes are dictated by story and not by chapter.  Through the first five chapters, we have seen a secret government research facility, a commercial prison complex, the offices of a government intelligence task force, a regular residential neighborhood, the offices of a super wealthy business empire, and flashbacks to the collegiate and childhood worlds of memory of Dr. Schtein.  String Theory makes use of flashbacks to provide backstory for different characters, and – as with the ongoing story – the flashbacks might be from the perspective of different characters. 

 

Speaking of flashbacks, it should be noted that String Theory contains various forms of adult content.  Drug use, false imprisonment, accidental mass murder, intentional mass murder, intentional personal murder, a slightly cannibalistic serial killer, futuristic prison Nazis, and bodies being turned inside out by scientific experiments gone wrong are a few examples of things that you might find.  Considering the inclusion of those topics, though, String Theory is not really an ultraviolent story (at least, not to the point of time in which this article was written).  Still, some people have an aversion to violence or these types of topics, so consider yourselves forewarned.  As Mr. Grundy himself says on the topic, “Well, the comic’s not for kids anyway. Please don’t read it to your kids or let your kids read it.”

Even though the story is not completely linear, it would be a good idea to treat String Theory like you would with any normal book (this is not a Choose Your Own Adventure book, sorry) – start at the beginning and work your way forward.  It should be noted that the art style and character design have evolved over time, and it is most notable when re-reading chapter one after having seen some of the later material as chapter one is almost entirely drawn in black and white and the character art is more cartoonish and less realistic than in later chapters.  Mr. Grundy has hinted that he may re-draw chapter one in the later art style at a future point in time, but hopefully he leaves the black and white version available as well.

Below is a stunted synopsis of the first five chapters of the comic.  I have attempted to avoid including any spoilers, but merely seeing the names of characters involved could be considered a spoiler, so be forewarned.

 

SPOILER ALERT

Chapter One introduces us to Dr. Schtein’s research in teleportation and introduces his new assistant, Dr. Delia Osgood, for whom he begins to develop romantic feelings.  Other characters of note that are introduced include rival scientist Dr. Benjamin Langstrom, Director Julian Edelmeyer,  a mysterious man with some form of extra-sensory powers, and Dr. Schtein’s pet, a mutant talking cat named Marcus.

Chapter Two introduces Dr. Langstrom’s sister, Ms. Emily Langstrom, as well as a variety of individuals in the Nevada State Penitentiary including prison Nazi Drew Macmanus and his flunky Edgar Krow, an unlikely inmate named Jacob Jacobs, Professor Phineaus Armastus, wealthy businessman Darius Thanatos, Dr. Schtein’s old college roommate Laurence Johnson, and Dr. Schtein’s estranged daughter Alice.

Chapter Three continues upon Chapter Two, providing further mention of Ms. Eliza Thanatos, revealing further information on the mysterious man with special powers from Chapter One, following Dr. Osgood to her new job in which she is placed under her former lover Professor Eric Degroot, and further explaining Dr. Schtein’s personal issues after he meets Dr. Leon Auditore, psychologist.

Chapter Four mostly concerns the details of Dr. Osgood’s new job and what she has been doing while the events of Chapter Three were taking place.  New characters introduced include Dr. Osgood’s new boss Director Chauncey Fredericks, co-workers Henry Barrett, Gina Crawford, and James Cain.  Also introduced via flashback are Dr. Schtein’s grandfather, Dr. Orville von Schtein, and Dr. Schtein’s father, Robert Schtein.  Also, a character that we hadn’t really seen since Chapter One makes a reappearance.

Chapter Five is rather short compared to the previous chapters, only seven pages long, and details the interactions of Dr. Schtein with Darius Thanatos that will lead into the later stages of the story.

END SPOILER ALERT

 

I personally recommend String Theory to anyone who enjoys science fiction writing, detailed characters, or involved stories in general.  I haven’t talked about it much, but the artwork is really wonderful too.  The characters are fluid and give a sense of motion, and the backgrounds can be wonderfully detailed (or minimalist in some instances) while giving important information about the setting that is not explicitly stated by any character’s dialogue.  There are also many little details in the artwork that hint at future story events that you may not notice upon the first read-through, but might see and understand upon a later reading.  Hopefully, once all is said and done with the story, it is put into print form and receives the audience that it deserves.

I do not normally like to read comics because I prefer the more detailed characters and plots that can be found in novel form.  If a story is worth reading and investing my time in, I want there to be enough of an experience to fully immerse myself in the alternate reality.  Characters need to have some consistency, but also need to have the ability to adapt and change as the events of the story take place.  A (somewhat dated) science fiction television show comparison would be the detailed story arc of Babylon 5 as compared to the episodic, monster-of-the-week nature of Star Trek: The Next Generation.  Both shows have their merits (even if it may sometimes just be comedic value of the “science” involved), but Babylon 5 had the better story and more detailed characters by far, even if it may not have garnered the same number of viewers during both shows’ respective television runs.

And that explains String Theory.  It has a better story and more vibrant characters than many of its contemporary works, but it may not be as well known as it should be.  Now that you’ve heard about it, go read it for yourself.