Warning: Spoilers For Interstellar will be discussed.
While he's an integral part to the second act of Interstellar's story, Matt Damon's Dr. Mann isn't seen for very long in the story at large. He's mentioned in the first act, and not even thought of after his fiery demise. But for a good part of the middle act he's a very important person that changes the flow of the story massively. If you were looking for a little bit more back story to Dr. Mann's slow, inevitable descent into madness, Christopher Nolan has written a comic that explains some of Dr. Mann's waking days before the big nap.
Thanks to Nolan's guest editing privileges on this month's issue of Wired, he and Sean Gordon Murphy, an award winning comic book artist with a long resume of DC titles, teamed up to create "Absolute Zero," a prequel story of sorts that covers Dr. Mann's discovery that his planet "isn't the one." For those of you thinking Dr. Mann might have been a good guy turned by the worst of circumstances, you're going to want to stop reading after this point, as well as stay away from the comic. Because, as you'll see in this short comic, Dr. Mann is kind of a dick.
Showcasing the interactions between KIPP and Mann, "Absolute Zero" shows Mann doing his duty on the planet he landed on, all the while crafting hypothetical data that they're looking to turn into actual, confirmed data. As we know from Interstellar's second act twist, the hypothetical data was submitted as "actual" data, and Mann sabotages KIPP to keep himself in hibernation a little longer. What the comic actually shows us is that from day one, KIPP and Mann were at an impasse about how to handle the mission. Mann wanted KIPP to do as he was told, while KIPP is adhering to his programming and challenging Mann's decisions.
Naturally, we know how all of this ends and how it affects Interstellar, but what's interesting is the fact that we've gotten our first look into the backstory of the Lazarus missions, and it's proven itself to be a breeding ground for some interesting storytelling. If anything, Legendary and Christopher Nolan should put together a comic tie in for Interstellar and tell the story of the mission's formation, launch, and the three who "made it" to their planets: Miller, Mann, and, of course, Edmunds. If it worked for Godzilla, then it should work for Interstellar.
For now though, "Absolute Zero" is one of the many awesome features of Christopher Nolan's guest edit for Wired Magazine, which should be hitting shelves on next Tuesday. Just in time for you to binge every book there is on the subject of Interstellar, in hopes of possibly cracking some of the deeper mysteries. Interstellar is still in theaters, ready for your enjoyment, especially in IMAX 70MM.
