Wizzywig
Ratings9
Average rating3.3
"They say What You See Is What You Get-- but Kevin "Boingthump" Phenicle could always see more than most people. In the world of phone phreaks, hackers, and scammers, he's a legend. His exploits are hotly debated: could he really get free long-distance calls by whistling into a pay phone? Did his video-game piracy scheme accidentally trigger the first computer virus? And did he really dodge the FBI by using their own wiretapping software against them? Is he even a real person? And if he's ever caught, what would happen to a geek like him in federal prison? Inspired by the incredible stories of real-life hackers, WIZZYWIG is the thrilling tale of a master manipulator-- his journey from precocious child scammer to federally wanted fugitive, and beyond. In a world transformed by social networks, data leaks, and digital uprisings, Ed Piskor's debut graphic novel reminds us how much power can rest in the hands of an audacious kid with a keyboard" -- from publisher's web site.
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Could have been a bit shorter, and the jumping around in time probably didn't help the narrative flow more than hinder it. I enjoyed the characterization and history lesson. Pulling in real life examples of whistle blowers was a great way of showing why something like this matters, too.
My father-in-law went into a store with a wide selection of graphic novels, described me to the bookseller, and walked out with this Christmas gift. I took one look at the title and said, “Oh yeah, Wizzywig, that's how you pronounce the acronym.” That was met with blank looks. “What You See Is What You Get,” I explained. “Wizzywig.” That got less blank looks.
Wizzywig is a graphic novel about a hacker in the early days of hacking. It was pretty interesting and tosses out some arcane bits of information, some of which I've come across in other articles, podcasts, what-have-you. It was pretty interesting stuff though artistically nothing to crow about. Pretty standard black-and-white panels. One thing it does well is unglamorize the hacking life.
