Superman with the temperament of the Hulk:
it’s the graphic Samson!

An image from the Metron Press graphic version of the bibllical account, Samson: Judge of Israel

NEW YORK CITY, United States — The American Bible Society (ABS) is capitalising on the increasing acceptance of graphic novels (stories lavishly illustrated with cartoon-style drawings) as a mainstream medium by publishing a graphic version of the story of Samson under a new imprint called Metron Press.

In an article published recently on a web site devoted to comic book art, www.comicon.com, Mario Ruiz, Senior Art Director of the ABS, is described as having been keen to work in mainstream comics for years.

Perception

“Ironically, I came in to ABS looking to be just an art director,” he says. “So it was really cool when they came to me and asked if I would want to do a comic book for them.”

Explaining why the ABS established Metron Press as a separate imprint to publish the book, Mr Ruiz says it had to do with the perception of the ABS in a secular marketplace.

“We didn’t want Samson to come out under the American Bible Society imprint because people would think we’re trying to shove God down their throat. That’s not what we want to do: we want to tell really cool stories, and the Bible has a lot of really cool stories in it.

“Obviously, our constituency is the Christian market, but we wanted to get this into the secular market as well and, again, do it without appearing to be a bunch of, well, Bible-thumpers. All that considered, we just made a separate imprint. It’s still part of ABS, and we’re not hiding that fact at all. We figured that if anybody was going to tell Bible stories the correct way, it should be us.”

In a ‘mission statement’ on its web site, www.metronpress.com, Metron Press duly avoids any mention of the Christian faith, simply saying it “has an eye for good stories told well and in visually compelling formats”.
The statement goes on, “We are committed to bringing our readers vital stories vibrantly presented; grounded in the universals of human experience empowered by the best of human aspirations and envisioning a meaningful future for all.”

Fund of stories

Talking of the value of the Bible purely as a fund of stories, Mr Ruiz says: “If you take away the religious overtones, the stories in the Bible would be considered classical literature: they have classical themes of good and evil, characters trying to overcome insurmountable odds and lots and lots of drama.” Samson, he adds, is “Superman with the Hulk’s temperament”.

In parts of the story, the 72-page book expands on the original version: in presenting motivations for some of Samson’s actions (which the Bible does not explain) for example. But Mr Ruiz and his team have been careful to consult biblical theologians and historians in order to keep the content “authentic and legitimate”.

Next title

“In the end,” says Mr Ruiz, “I think we succeeded in what we were trying: we told a good story about a man who was given great gifts and talent but still burned in his heart to do things his way, not the way God has chosen for him, and we show the ramifications of that.”