City of Silence is anything but the what the title would suggest. In fact, it’s the story of an urb imbued with perversion, degeneracy, and utter weirdness that is as deeply saturated with such as the fiercely technicolor veneer that drapes over it. The utter lunacy and bizarreness depicted within is the product of an author who even admits himself, “I was young and probably a good deal less sane than I am now.”
Unsurprisingly, Ellis goes on to state, “It deserved to see the light,” yet I’m not sure I agree. As a prototype to Tranmetropolitan, it’s interesting (and that’s worth seeing right?). Featuring fluorescent colors that are as uncompromising as they are searing, the color scheme has more in Star Wars’ Dark Empire/Empire’s End trilogy with the brightness turned up to the max. This rich color scheme, as well as the dystopic future it envelops, sternly prefigures the excellence of Ellis’ future magum opus, Transmetropolitan.
Just as the chromatics are tuned up to the highest band possible for human eyes to register, so to is the application of British humo(u)r turned up to 11. Truly, City of Silence is the Spinal Tap of comics but for a highly specific British/Comic-Book aficionado audience. If you’re in the in, you’ll see an Emperor with regal clothes. If you’re not, you’ll just see an Emperor’s birthday suit.
City of Silence truly is what it is. Tautological sure but, nothing more could be said. And nothing less.
It is what it is.