12 - Brett Plastic # 16

The mythology surrounding the Brett Plastic comic series is somewhat confused. Many hold on to the belief that its reclusive creator, Kazuo Yamaguchi, planned out the entire series before starting work.

But an anonymous story from someone who claimed to have worked for Yamaguchi suggested a more prosaic explanation for the unusual development of the series. He claimed that, with sales tailing off and a limited number of storylines for a character who was so entirely reasonable, Yamaguchi yielded to the market and decided to make Brett’s niceness a little more edgy.

What is apparent is that Brett Plastic changed, and much of the resulting discussion that dominates the countless forums and chat rooms for Plastic enthusiasts centres on the missing issue fifteen.

Issue fifteen never appeared, but there is continued speculation, fostered by occasional hints from Yamaguchi’s studio, about what it contained. All people know for sure, is that there was something subtly different about the Brett Plastic who appeared subsequently. Whatever had happened to Brett Plastic in issue fifteen, he was no longer the same man.

From Brett Plastic # 16

Two businessmen are walking down an anonymous and deserted city street, an identikit business district somewhere in the Western world. Suddenly, a wired junkie steps from the shadows, all sinew and nerves in a scruffy T. He pulls a knife and thrusts it at one of the alarmed businessmen.
‘Money,’ shouts the junkie. ‘Give me money! I’ll stab you! Give me money!’ He’s brandishing the knife wildly, and looks in danger of stabbing one of them involuntarily, so bad are his jitters.

The businessmen look terrified and start fumbling for their wallets. They can’t see anyone nearby who might come to their aid, but someone is nearby. Like a phantom, Brett Plastic has appeared and disarmed the junkie in one swift movement. Before the businessmen even realize he’s there, Brett is holding the junkie in a firm grip with his arm behind his back.
The junkie screams in pain, ‘Ah! Jesus!’
‘Not quite,’ says Brett Plastic. ‘But I’ll listen like Jesus. Now why don’t you tell me what’s going on.’
The junkie starts to cry. ‘I need money, man, that’s all. Money.’
Brett Plastic nods his understanding and says, ‘I’ll give you money, but there’s no need for violence.’ He turns to the businessmen and says, ‘Okay, gentlemen, I’ll handle it from here.’
One of them, still astonished, says, ‘Thank you, er, Mr…?’
‘Plastic. Brett Plastic.’
Both of the businessmen and even the junkie gasp in awe – they’ve all heard of him. Brett winks and the businessmen hurry away, leaving Brett to turn his attention back to the junkie.

‘What’s your name?’
‘Eddie,’ says the junkie, still afraid of what Plastic might do to him.
Calmly though, Brett Plastic says, ‘Eddie, I’m going to let go of your arm so that I can give you some money. Don’t run away – you know I’ll catch you if you do.’
Eddie nods and Brett lets go of his arm. Eddie is still trying to rub some life back into the muscle when he notices the wad of notes that Brett is holding out to him. He reaches out to take the money, but as his hand grasps around it, Brett grabs his arm and looks at the track marks on it.
‘You’re a junkie, aren’t you, Eddie?’
It must be something about this man because, for the first time in years, Eddie feels truly ashamed as he says, ‘Yes, I am. I’ve tried to stop. I really have. I just can’t.’
‘You can, Eddie. I have faith in you. I look into your eyes, and I truly know that you can stop.’ Brett picks up the knife and says, ‘Now, I want you to trust me. I’m going to do something that will help you, because every time you think you need a fix, you’ll look at this and you’ll know that you’re not alone. You’ll know that I’m with you, and that I believe in you.’

Eddie looks on with alarm and no small amount of pain, but it’s a beautiful pain somehow, as Brett Plastic expertly uses the point of the blade to carve a B into one of his forearms and a P into the other. He does it so that when Eddie looks down at his own forearms he sees BP – Brett Plastic. Eddie is almost delirious by the time Brett has finished.
Brett smiles and says, ‘Now go in peace, Eddie, and make your life right.’ He winks warmly and walks away.

Eddie looks down at his newly carved forearms. He falls to his knees and holds out his arms in a worshipful salutation, and as the blood drips from them onto the stone floor, he calls out, ‘Thank you, Brett Plastic! I won’t let you down! I promise, I won’t let you down!’