I am not a Beatles fan. I have enormous respect for them. I understand, unequivocally, how important the Fab Four are to the make up of the musical landscape. Still, with all of that knowledge, I have very little interest in their music. To make my crimes even more heinous, when I do listen to the band, I enjoy their early garage pop work much more than their later albums, which always seemed as much mired in self-indulgence as they were experimental.
However, when Dark Horse Comics sent me The Fifth Beatle: The Brian Epstein Story, I was intrigued. Brian Epstein is a central figure to the existence and success of the Beatles. History might only list him as their “manager,” but Epstein was really the driving force behind the band’s world domination. When they were banging around Liverpool, singing in crappy clubs and resting on the laurels of being the biggest local band around, Epstein saw in them the very future of rock n roll. With zero experience as a band manager, Epstein took on the future of the band.
First some history. Fifth Beatle author Vivek J. Tiwary is no stranger to the world of pop culture. Nominated for a Tony for his Broadway revival of Lorraine Hansbury’s A Raisin In The Sun, Tiwary also gained acclaim for helping to bring Green Day’s rock opera to life, as well as the Addams Family musical. Recently, Tiwary stepped into the world of graphic novels by producing the upcoming TV and film adaptations of Jimmy Gownley’s Amelia Rules! series. Now, with The Fifth Beatle, Tiwary pens not just a graphic novel, but the blueprint for an upcoming docudrama about Epstein.
The Fifth Beatle is not about The Beatles. This is not another musical trip down the well-worn path of the band’s history. Tiwary understands that the Beatles have been exhaustively documented, so if you’re looking for John, Paul, George, or Ringo to take center stage, you’ll be sorely disappointed. To tell the Brian Epstein story, The Fifth Beatle builds on two themes – the outsider and the believer. Brian Epstein was both. Themes are very important to Tiwary in this book. He often uses the allegory of a bullfighter to explain Epstein’s slant on the world. Admired, loved, famous, but ultimately alone.
As an outsider to the music industry, Epstein stood directly against what the world market was telling him, no matter what his interest. In the military, Epstein was not what they wanted, and when he attempted fashion design, his vision was seen as too outside the box. Record labels berated Epstein with the understanding that rock was fading out, that the Beatles were a fad. On a personal level, Epstein being gay, especially in that era, was where he felt most like an outsider – to the point he took prescription drugs to help with his “homosexual preferences.”
The believer in Epstein came first, with his nearly religious zeal to see the Beatles succeed. He knew the world would bow before them, and labored under enormous pressure and personal expense to make them who they are. Epstein also believed that he would find true love, no matter how hard society made it. His dedication to the second belief would be a cause of a lot of strife for the man during his life.
Tiwary’s storytelling is solid, but clearly that of a man who produces films, TV, and theater. There is a breakneck pace to the book that is easy on the reader, but tends to get a bit ahead of itself. Certain aspects of the story seem to have lengthy set-ups, only to go nowhere. Tiwary never shies away from Epstein’s life, but he seems content to give it a quick once over. Granted, a graphic novel isn’t going to carry the weight of a biography in book form, but at one hundred and thirty pages, I think Tiwary could have deepened the story, especially when he claims to have spent two decades preparing for this project.
The first glaring omission is the firing of Pete Best, a task left specifically to Brian Epstein. There’s no mention of it in the book, at all. When Best was fired, the reaction of the fans was unpleasant to say the least. [Editor’s Note: Tiwary explains this omission in Crave Online’s exclusive interview.] I was also perplexed at the ease by which Tiwary glazed over the Philippines tour, a tour that turned violent after Epstein refused a breakfast request for the boys from Imelda Marcos. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Kyle Baker’s art for it, but the “funny” nature of the scene felt odd given the circumstances. The outcry over John Lennon’s claim that the Beatles were “bigger than Jesus” is touched on, but the severity of the reaction is largely ignored.
Tiwary spends a decent section of the book establishing Epstein’s relationship with his family, yet the death of Harry Epstein, just a few weeks before Brian, is omitted. Even Epstein’s death is treated with an ethereal and magical ideal. In reality, Epstein sank deep into depression before his death. The cycle of drugs and emotional upheaval led to outbursts, tantrums, and suicide attempts. None of that is addressed, nor is the discovery of multiple pill bottles at the scene of Epstein’s death. I understand Tiwary wants to keep The Fifth Beatle at a readable size, but these are important parts of Epstein’s life, and their omission effects the impact of the book.
Andrew C. Robinson and Kyle Baker bring a cinema style to the art. Everything is on tap here, from pop art, to cartoons, black and white pencils, painted scenes, small detailed work, and grand scale splash pages. Robinson holds the lion’s share of the art, and seems driven to give each scene the art that expands on the tone of Tiwary’s writing.
A few key moments really exemplify how good the work is. The scene where Epstein first sees the Beatles. Robinson fully captures that religious experience when you see a band that inspires you, especially when that moment is a surprise. Anybody who understands that idea will see it in the panels. The vile, dark nature of the meeting between Epstein and Elvis Presley’s ring leader The Colonel is another wonderful scene, as is the one with the black and white etchings used for the talk show Epstein is on when his sexuality is almost exposed. These are the times when The Fifth Beatle leaps off the page.
Overall, The Fifth Beatle: The Brian Epstein Story is impressive. Even with the content exclusions, you have to respect the scope of what Tiwary, Robinson, and Baker are trying to accomplish.
(3.5 Story, 4 Art)
