For a long time, conspiracy theories were treated as a joke in pop culture. The quirky conspiracy theorist who insisted that Kubrick faked the moon landing and that the government was keeping aliens in Area-51 is such a longstanding trope in media that it’s easy to see these theories as harmless and silly. What is much rarer is to see media actually portray the very real psychological effects of believing in conspiracy theories. It is with this in mind that Image Comics published The Department of Truth, and the result is like nothing ever seen before.
The comic follows an FBI Agent named Cole who has just had a rather unusual day. As part of his ongoing investigation into the proliferation of conspiracy theories, Cole attends a flat Earth convention, except, something is off about it, something Cole can’t explain. He tries to shake the feeling as he retires for the night but is then instructed to watch a film with the two old men who are financing the convention. Though he’s hesitant, Cole is bullied into watching the moon landing, and to his horror, it’s all wrong. The angle is off. Neil Armstrong isn’t saying the right things. He tries to tell himself he’s misremembering it, but that wishful thinking shatters as the film is paused and the audience howls in delight. Just barely visible in the reflection of the astronaut’s visor stands a man in a suit.
Saying more would give away too much of this first issue’s mystery, but by the issue’s end readers will come to understand two contradictory facts; that the moon landing really happened, and that the footage Cole watches was not faked. This tension between contradictions is at the story’s heart and is instantly compelling. The wildest conspiracy theories such as the ones shown in The Department of Truth function primarily based on belief. In this first issue, writer James Tynion IV sets up a question more relevant now than ever before, “How can belief break reality?”
Supporting the issue’s strong thematic content is the art by Martin Simmonds. Simmonds’ artwork in this issue is a haunting representation of how conspiracy rots the mind. The scratchy line work and indistinct backgrounds lend an uncertain mood to every scene that will have readers second-guessing the truth of everything they see. Faces blend together, light is represented by dots of white paint, and all of it is unsettling. It is reminiscent of the legendary Bill Sienkiewicz. Much like Sienkiewicz’s work, every single piece of art in this comic is worth framing right alongside the best modernist paintings.
All of that alone is enough to make the comic a must-buy, but what truly sets it apart is its timeliness. The era when conspiracy theories could be thought of as harmless has long ended. The modern conspiracy theorist isn’t a quirky character, they’re genuinely dangerous. In The Department of Truth, conspiracy theories are a hammer used to fracture the truth.
