Global Frequency
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''Global Frequency'' is an
American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
limited series In the field of comic books, and particularly in the United States, a limited series is a comics series with a predetermined number of issues. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is finite and determined ...
created and written by
Warren Ellis Warren Girard Ellis (born 16 February 1968) is an English comic book writer, novelist, and screenwriter. He is best known as the co-creator of several original comics series, including ''Transmetropolitan'' (1997–2002), ''Global Frequency'' ...
and published by
Wildstorm Productions Wildstorm Productions (stylized as WildStorm) is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee and Brandon Choi to publish through Image Comics, Wildstorm became a publishing imprint of DC ...
, an imprint of
DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...
. The series is set in the present day, consisting of single-issue, standalone stories. The 12 issues were published between October
2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
and June
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
. Each issue was drawn by a different artist, with uniform covers by Brian Wood, and interior artwork colored by David Baron.


Overview

The Global Frequency is an independent, covert intelligence organization headed by a former intelligence agent who uses the alias of Miranda Zero. Reportedly, 1,001 people are on the Global Frequency, forming an active
smart mob A smart mob is a group whose coordination and communication abilities have been empowered by digital communication technologies. Smart mobs are particularly known for their ability to mobilize quickly. The concept was introduced by Howard Rhei ...
communicating by specially modified video
mobile phone A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that allows users to make and receive calls over a radio frequency link while moving within a designated telephone service area, unlike fixed-location phones ( landline phones). This rad ...
s through a central dispatch system coordinated by a young woman code-named
Aleph Aleph (or alef or alif, transliterated ʾ) is the first Letter (alphabet), letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician ''ʾālep'' 𐤀, Hebrew alphabet, Hebrew ''ʾālef'' , Aramaic alphabet, Aramaic ''ʾālap'' ...
. The purpose of the organization is to protect and rescue the world from the consequences of the various secret projects that the governments or individuals of the world have established, which are unknown to the public at large. The people on the Global Frequency are chosen and called on for their specialized skills in a variety of areas, and include military personnel, intelligence agents, police detectives, scientific researchers, academics, athletes, former criminals and assassins. The threats addressed by the organization are equally varied and usually world-threatening, including rogue military operations, paranormal phenomena, terrorist attacks and religious cults. The existence of the organization is an open secret, but its membership list is anonymous, the identities of its field agents unknown to even each other before they meet on a mission. Often, the only way to tell a member of the Global Frequency is by the phones that they carry or the Global Frequency symbol—a circle with four points on its perimeter 90°s apart that they sport somewhere on their person. Who exactly funds the Global Frequency is not known. Zero has said that at least some of the money comes from the G8 governments that pay the Frequency for not revealing the various secret horrors that they combat. Although the presence of an independent, unaccountable agency with strike capability makes some authorities nervous, they also recognize the fact that the Frequency has the skills, the reach, and more importantly, the will to act where governments cannot. As a result, the organization gets tacit approval for its activities, and is sometimes called on by governments to deal with extraordinary crises. Mostly, the organization acts proactively as it discovers such threats. Ellis designed the comic series like a television series with standalone "episodes", allowing the reader to begin with any issue and be able to understand what was going on. As a result, the only regular characters in the series are Miranda Zero and Aleph, with only a few other characters making a reappearance in the 12th issue of the series. This also heightened the suspense for the reader, as the survival of these characters was not guaranteed.


Collected editions

The series has been collected into two
trade paperbacks A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, also known as wrappers, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardback (hardcover) books are bound with cardboar ...
. After the WildStorm imprint was discontinued, the entire series was collected under the
Vertigo Vertigo is a condition in which a person has the sensation that they are moving, or that objects around them are moving, when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. It may be associated with nausea, vomiting, perspira ...
label in 2013, with a Deluxe Edition under the DC Comics label in 2018. * ''Global Frequency Volume 1: Planet Ablaze'' (collects ''Global Frequency'' #1–6, ) * ''Global Frequency Volume 2: Detonation Radio'' (collects ''Global Frequency'' #7–12, ) * ''Global Frequency'' (collects ''Global Frequency'' #1–12, ) * ''Global Frequency, The Deluxe Edition'' (collects ''Global Frequency'' #1–12, )


Awards

The series was nominated for "Best Limited Series" in the 2004 edition of the
Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are awards for creative achievement in American comic books. They are regarded as the most prestigious and significant awards in the comic industry and often referred ...
.


In other media

Mark Burnett James Mark Burnett (born 17 July 1960) is a British television producer who has won thirteen Emmy Awards including ten Primetime, one Sports Emmy Award and two Daytime Emmy Awards. His other accolades include five Producers Guild of America A ...
prepared a ''Global Frequency'' television series for 2005 with
Michelle Forbes Michelle Renee Forbes Guajardo (born January 8, 1965) is an American actress who has appeared on television and in independent films. She is a Saturn Award winner with three nominations. Forbes first garnered attention for her dual role in t ...
as Miranda Zero,
Josh Hopkins William Joshua Hopkins (born September 12, 1970) is an American actor. His best known roles include Raymond Millbury on '' Ally McBeal'' (2001–2002), Grayson Ellis on '' Cougar Town'' (2009–2015), and Liam O'Connor on '' Quantico'' (2015–2 ...
as Sean Flynn,
Jenni Baird Jenni Baird (born 29 April 1976) is an Australian actress. Baird was educated at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts from which she graduated in 1999. Upon graduation, Baird appeared in the Australian short film ''I Promise''. Bai ...
as Dr. Katrina Finch and
Aimee Garcia Aimee Sandimés Garcia López de Ordóñez (born November 28, 1978) is an American actress. She is known for her television roles as Veronica Palmero on the ABC sitcom '' George Lopez'' (2006–2007), Jamie Batista on the Showtime drama '' D ...
as Aleph. The characters of Sean Flynn, an ex-policeman who accidentally stumbled on a Global Frequency mission, and Katrina Finch, a brilliant scientist with expertise in multiple fields, were created especially for the series. Unlike the comic book, which had an ever-changing cast of field agents, Flynn and Finch were to be regulars along with Zero and Aleph, with other Frequency members coming in as and when necessary in supporting roles. This would allow for the character continuity expected of a television series and yet allow other characters to be killed off as in the comic book. A
pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...
, based heavily on the first issue of the comic book, was produced, but
The WB The WB Television Network (shortened to The WB, stylized as "THE WB", and nicknamed the "Frog Network" and/or "The Frog" for its former mascot Michigan J. Frog) was an American television network that ran from 1995 to 2006. It launched on ter ...
(the original intended network) did not commission the series. John Rogers was the principal creative force behind the television incarnation, writing the pilot episode, with Ellis credited as producer and creator. Other writers waiting to come on board included
David Slack David Slack is an American animation and television writer and producer. He has written and/or produced on such shows as ''Law & Order'', '' Lie to Me'', ''In Plain Sight'', ''Teen Titans'', '' Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi'', '' Jackie Chan Adventures'', '' ...
,
Ben Edlund Ben Edlund (; born September 20, 1968) is an American cartoonist, screenwriter, television producer, and television director. He is best known as the creator of the satirical superhero character the Tick. Background Edlund was born and raised in ...
and Diego Gutierrez. The pilot was directed by Nelson McCormick. The unaired pilot was leaked onto the Internet in June 2005. Although it received positive reactions from those who watched it, Ellis said that the leak annoyed Warner Brothers to the extent that they killed the project. In November 2009, ''Production Weeklys
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
feed revealed that a new television adaptation of ''Global Frequency'' was being worked on by
The CW Television Network The CW Network, LLC (commonly referred to as The CW or simply CW) is an American commercial broadcast television network which is controlled by Nexstar Media Group through a 75% ownership interest. The network's name is derived from the first ...
and writer Scott Nimerfro, while a new pilot by
Jerry Bruckheimer Jerome Leonard Bruckheimer (born September 21, 1943) is an American film and television producer. He has been active in the genres of action, drama, comedy, fantasy, horror and science fiction. After working in advertising out of college, Bruck ...
and written by Rockne S. O'Bannon was reportedly being produced by Fox in November 2014, but by February 2015, Fox did not order the pilot due to problems with the script.


References


External links

* *
Mania.com's main page for ''Global Frequency''
(Comics2Film now at Mania.com) * {{Warren Ellis Comics by Warren Ellis Television pilots not picked up as a series Fictional organizations Unaired television pilots