At Westfield Comics:

The other main characters are the people that you would expect to see in anyone's life - a wife, an ex-lover, co-workers, relatives... but we're never quite certain which of these characters are genuine and which ones are, you'll excuse the expression, "snakes." They stand in stark contrast to Timmons, an honest man who lives in a dishonest world - much like the one we live in. But for Timmons, the contrast becomes too intense. Let's say he's a conservative who can literally bite your head off.

Fangoria:

"[it]is the story of a young man named Bill Timmons," Meth tells Fango, "who is drawn into some chicanery involving his employers, Bill and Hillary Clinton, and simultaneously something even more insidious involving the Republicans, so he’s caught between a rock and hard place. But you don’t want to corner a man who can shed his skin or swallow your children."

Silver Bullet Comic Books:

I already have a story arc for the next mini-series rolling about in my head. Bill Timmons is a complex character; he sheds his skin more often than Nixon did and has snake-like abilities far beyond those of mortal men, but his politics and emotional state are just as important as his physical traits, so there’s lots of room to grow with this character.

When you peek beneath the surface of most human stories, the same basic motives typically drive characters into action - the craving for another human being’s affection, an appetite for power, and the need for revenge. I suspect that two out of three of these lie at the core decisions made by most political leaders; it’s rarely the quest for justice or liberty or democracy or whatever term is currently in vogue. Clinton and Bush have little in common with King Arthur; that’s the difference between human leaders and fictional heroes.

Accepting that, if you drop a man who is youthful and naive and basically honest into the midst of today’s political quagmire, he will find himself quickly dysfunctioned by leagues of inertia. However, if you change the equation by giving him abilities far beyond those of mortal men, well now—that's a whole new ball game!

Could this perhaps be why we continue to attest some benevolence to our politicians, at least by offering the benefit of our presence at the polls, in the face of the deceptive posture they put forth as being truly concerned for the well-being of the people they represent?

And more succinctly, regarding our own hero and Superhero mythology itself; Was the era which gave birth to our champions really in such a deep denial of the reality we lived in, that it attested such purity to a Superman or Captain America, to the degree of bringing an entire generation into an adoration of the type of heroes who simply had little or no authentic human qualities? Or a severe imbalance of them? It's not the first time these issues have been explored in the comics, that's true. But have we ever really resolved what, if any, true representation of ourselves does our hero mythology actually hold?

Furthermore, assuming such is true of political leaders throughout history, which isn't difficult to accept at all; What does this say about popular perception of our more pure spiritual icons, the bigger than life ones such as Buddha, Moses and Jesus, as a sampling, and towards whom the worship of millions in the world is directed?

Clifford Meth's take on the issues which drive our heroes, the presumed good guys, certainly doesn't rule out the authenticity of naive innocence or a spiritual purity, at the base of the human soul, at all. This is his protagonist's fundamental characteristic, as Meth describes it, after all.

What he appears to be saying here, however, is that when a person of such innocence and honesty is faced with a struggle for their identity in the face of devious treachery and subtle deception, then that innocence can be shed, as the skin of a snake, in order to reveal an ability for the same cunning and deviousness they themselves contend with, and which they need in order to overcome adversity.

It is true that Jesus himself, as an archetypal example of benevolent heroism, upon sending his disciples out to spread the news of the coming new kingdom, advised them to be cunning and devious, as the religious authorities are, in order to contend with them... but to nonetheless maintain a basis of purity and honesty as they did this. Moses was also cunning and devious in asking Pharaoh to release the Israelites for a temporary pilgrimage into the desert, knowing he had no intention of returning with them, once they were released.

So, if our own most revered spiritual heroes displayed the same qualities which Meth allegorically brings to the surface in SNAKED... why is it that our cultural perception of heroism remains stripped of such basic human traits?

Can we not accept that Clark Kent, Steve Rogers and other supers, as an example, were also motivated by knowing the stature, fame and admiration they'd gain as Superheores... and that this public adoration itself was also a central factor driving them on their path to legend, as Meth suggests must also motivate our heroes?

It should be interesting to see how these ideas play out in SNAKED. Knowing Clifford and his writing, it's safe to say that the comics medium is in for a special treat with his first work adapted into comics form.

For comics aficionados who've known his dark fiction narratives, it'll no doubt be a well anticipated merger of forms. For those who'll be reading Clifford Meth for the first time in SNAKED, it should in the least be a very pleasant surprise.