Polite Dissent

Detective #27
Michael Uslan, writer
Peter Snejberg, artist

Detective #27 is an Elseworlds book by Michael Uslan and Peter Snejberg. It is set in 1939 when a Confederate plot that has been brewing since the end of the Civil War is about to come to fruition. Bruce Wayne, son of murdered physician Thomas Wayne, joins a secret society of detectives dedicated to stopping the plot. The members of this group are known by number only; hence he is Detective #27 (for those who miss the allusion, Detective Comics #27 featured the first appearance of Batman).

The comic is a interesting read, and Uslan does a good job of introducing many historical personalities into his story, including Teddy Roosevelt, Sigmund Freud, FDR and even Gregor Mendel. Snejburg’s art fits the mood perfectly. I enjoyed the story immensely, but there were some medical and botanical “irregularities.”

Without giving too much away, the villains’ plan is to crossbreed Devil’s Thorn (a species of Datura) and Devil’s Backbone (Entex spinosa) for 75 generations, producing a highly poisonous fear-inducing airborne toxin. This poison will be released upon some unsuspecting northern city (as airborne spores, the story tells us).

Datura is a genus of plants from the Solanaceae family (the potato family, also known as the nightshade family). Jimson Weed is probably the best known plant in this genus. Members of this family have known hallucinogenic properties and have been used by both South American and Southwest American Indians in religious ceremonies. Datura plants contain atropine, scopalamine and other similar chemicals. High doses can lead to flushing, dry mouth, dilated pupils, rapid heart rate, blood pressure problems, seizures and coma. Visual hallucinations are common — interestingly, the hallucinations are said to be in natural colors, not the bizarre colors seen with other hallucinogens. Tactile hallucinations (the feeling of insects crawling on the skin, for instance) are rare but can happen.

Emex Spinosa is a plant in the Polygonaceae family (the Buckwheat family) that grows naturally in the Mediterranean areas of Europe, Africa and the Middle East. The rest of the world considers it a pernicious weed. I can’t find any record of it being poisonous, but there are other toxic plants in the Polygonaceae family (rhubarb, for instance).

I can find no record of Emex Spinosa ever being referred to as Devil’s Backbone (that name is usually reserved for Pedilanthus tithymaloides and Kalanchoe daigremontiana, which are both toxic in their own right). It is more commonly referred to as “Devil’s Thorn” (ironically, the name Uslan assigns to Datura) and Tri-corner Jack. Honestly, I don’t get very worked up over confusion about common names. Common names are — by definition — very common and several plants will often share the same name. Both Datura and Emex species can both be referred to as Devil’s Thorn, and someone probably does call Emex spinosa “Dveil’s Backbone.” There’s a reason most botanists use scientific names: much less confusion.

It would be very difficult, if not outright impossible, to cross breed Datura and Emex spinosa. They are not only from different genuses and families, but even from different orders. In animal terms, this would be like trying to breed a goat with a trout. Combining Deadly Nightshade and Datura would make more sense; they’re at least from the same family. Frankly, I don’t understand why the Emex spinosa is included in the plan at all since it doesn’t seem to be a toxic plant. The Datura is toxic enough that it can carry the plot all by itself.

Finally, the story make several references to “spores.” Both Datura and Emex are seed bearing plants. They do not produce spores. (Spores are similar to seeds, but are produced by bacteria and more primitive plants — and uninspired Iron Man writers).