In conjunction with the upcoming release of the film ‘Troy’, I thought that for this installment of Incessant Ramblings, I’d talk a little bit about a classic Frank Miller story published by Dark Horse Comics back around 1998 – ‘300’.  Although there are approximately 720 years between the events you’ll see in ‘Troy’ and the battle of Thermopylae, I think if you’re a fan of one story, you’ll probably enjoy the other.  ‘300’ is written and illustrated by Frank Miller with colors by Lynn Varley.   You might recognize this dynamic team from their other collaborations such as the Marvel graphic novel “Elektra Lives Again” (another of my personal favs) or “Batman:  The Dark Knight Strikes Again”.

If you’re a Miller fan, this story is sure to please.  I consider this one of his best ever.  A testament to that statement is the fact that it’s won both the Will Eisner Comic Industry Award and the Harvey Award.  Originally published as a limited series, I have the $30 hardcover edition.  If you’re a fan of getting collected volumes of your favorite comics, this edition of ‘300’ comes highly recommended.  The book just lends itself extremely well to catching people’s attention as it lay on your coffee table or your desk at the office.  At least, that’s been my experience.

For those that may not already be familiar with the true story of the Spartans, let me tell you a little bit about it from an historical perspective.  In 480 BC, Xerxes, King of Persia set his eye upon the land of Greece and enslaving its inhabitants.  Because of a religious holiday occurring at the time, King Leonidas of Sparta could only take with him 300 hand-picked soldiers to meet Xerxes’ army.  Along the way he picked up another 7000 or so allied citizen troops from other parts of Greece.  For days, Leonidas 300 and their allies held back the Persian invaders at Thermopylae.  This was a very strategic location to stand against the invaders due to a mountain gap there that only ran about 60 feet across.  Ultimately, all of the Spartans, including King Leonidas, were defeated in battle against the Persian hordes.  To this very day, however, King Leonidas stands as a living legend and a symbol of valor and the will to remain free.  One monument in honor of Leonidas stands today in Thermopylae which states his response to Xerxes’ command to the Spartans to lay down their arms – “Come and get them”.

Miller takes some creative liberties with his recount of the tale of Leonidas, but the essence of King Leonidas, what he and the 300 stood for, just drips from each page of the story.  This is the story that began the legend that Spartans never retreat.  This story shows what it meant to be a Spartan and what it means to be a free man.  Miller tells a story of Leonidas’ youth that shows us the hardships he’s endured to become the man – the Spartan – he is today.  He also tells a tale of horribly disfigured man, Ephialtes, which shows us the meaning of being a Spartan, even as a newborn infant.  The choice of Ephialtes as this character’s name was also interesting to me.  In reality there is little known of Ephialtes other than he was an Athenian who supported laws and reform which took power away from the “old ways” of democracy and placed them more in the hands of the general assembly.  Perhaps it’s coincidence, I can’t be sure, but it makes for an interesting parallel into one of the motivations of King Leonidas, himself.  In ‘300’ we see Leonidas speak with the monks of the “old ways” and you get a good idea of his frustration with them.  I found both the tale of the young Leonidas and Ephialtes to be creative ways of illustrating the hardships and challenges of the time.

In the end ‘300’ is a beautifully illustrated, cleverly written story of historical events.  Frank Miller fans, history buffs, and, I think, fans of the film ‘Troy’ are likely to really enjoy this book.  Perhaps if ‘Troy’ does well on the big screen, we’ll see ‘300’ on it someday!