7 Miles a Second

The cover of the 2013 Fantagraphics version

The medium of comics has many masterpieces, books that exemplify what comics is capable of as an artform and transcend their respective genres to make universal statements about life and the human condition. These are debatable criteria for defining art, as all such criteria are, but what is not debatable is that 7 Miles a Second is a comics masterpiece. An autobiographical story of artist and activist David Wojnarowicz with art by James Romberger and colors by Marguerite Van Cook, the title comes from the escape velocity for Earth’s gravitational pull, but also describes the propulsion through time and space that the reader experiences in a narrative that takes less than seventy pages but encompasses so much.

7 Miles a Second was originally published by Vertigo in 1996 and rereleased by Fantagraphics in 2013. Unfortunately, the subject matter of institutional neglect and harrowing health crises makes it timelier than it should be. Mr. Wojnarowicz was a vocal proponent for the rights of AIDS victims and died in 1992 from complications from the disease. He used his art on behalf of those who were dismissed as “deserving” death by those in power. Once more, we find ourselves facing a hostile government that lionizes the man who ignored the dying and suffering of others. People who were deemed too racist for that administration have found comfort in this one and seek to strip all the rights the queer community has gained at the cost of so many lives. When I have to explain to other gay men why people with HIV shouldn’t have their health care taken away, 7 Miles a Second should be required reading.

This book is far more than an “AIDS memoir.” Split into three sections, “Thirst,” “Stray Dogs,” and “7 Miles a Second,” it provides glimpses of the author’s life at distinct points: as a young hustler on the streets of New York City, as a homeless young man, and towards the end. Mr. Romberger’s art is harrowing but not without tenderness, and captures the perfect way to express some of the more experimental stream-of-consciousness narration of Mr. Wojnarowicz’s prose. During a panel at last year’s Flame Con, Mr. Romberger described his thought process for illustrating one of the later sequences during which the character of David ignores a phone call. He pictured himself as the one making the call, and considered what that meant and how it affected the people in the story, seen and unseen alike. There are motifs and themes that deserve far more space than I can provide. (Seriously, there’s a Master’s thesis waiting to be written on the use of Frankenstein imagery, if one does not already exist.)

Ms. Van Cook’s colors are beautiful, and provide depth and texture to Mr. Romberger’s images. During the aforementioned Flame Con panel, she explained how she used day-glo colors from children’s paint boxes, which is an inspired decision. Her work explodes off the page with warmth and luridness, depending on what the scene demands. It is another example of how groundbreaking 7 Miles a Second is, and how it should continue to inspire comics artists.

7 Miles a Second is available for purchase on Amazon, comiXology, and the publisher’s website.