In Part One of their non-fiction graphic series, Jean-Pierre Filiu and David B. began with little-known U.S. naval wars and military landings in North Africa from the early 1800s. With Part Two, history heats up. In B.’s crowded, sometimes Cubist black-and-white frames, Best of Enemies explores America’s Cold War policy of siding with the region’s conservative regimes against socialist upstarts loosely aligned with the Soviets. It was a busy period on all fronts: The Palestinian cause erupted, Israel expanded beyond its borders during the Six Day War, the Shah was overthrown by Islamic theocrats and U.S. Marines died in Beirut. Filiu is no amateur on the subject. A guest lecturer at Harvard and MIT, he has also served as adviser to the French government on Middle East affairs.
