Original artwork, not a still
Journalism is just a gun. It's only got one bullet in it, but if you aim right, that's all you need.
— Transmetropolitan · 1997
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
Spider's mission statement says journalism is a weapon you only get one clean shot with, and that the point is to use it on power. Ellis wrote it as a love letter to the press at its angriest; reporters, student papers and newsroom walls have borrowed it ever since.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for TransmetropolitanShow the scene
Spider Jerusalem, the star of Warren Ellis and Darick Robertson's Transmetropolitan, is a hard-drinking, chain-smoking gonzo journalist of the far future who takes on two successive corrupt US presidents. This is his credo. In full he says that journalism is a one-bullet gun and, aimed right, can 'blow a kneecap off the world'. The series ran from July 1997 to September 2002, first under DC's Helix imprint and then Vertigo.
Sources (2)
- Transmetropolitan (Wikiquote)whole pageReference checked
- Transmetropolitan (Wikipedia)whole pageReference checked
Context reviewed