Genre
Dystopian fiction; comics/graphic novel.
Setting and Context
The story is set in the near-future of 1997 in the United Kingdom; following an atomic war, the country is run by a fascist government.
Narrator and Point of View
The story is narrated alternately by an unnamed third-person narrator and several of the book's characters; the point of view changes often among characters.
Tone and Mood
The tone is matter-of-fact, reminiscent of detective noir; the mood contrasts bleakness with playfulness.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonist is V, and to a lesser extent, Evey; the antagonists are the members of the fascist Norsefire party.
Major Conflict
The story's major conflict is V's mission to avenge the atrocities carried out by the Norsefire party while simultaneously reducing the government to rubble in the hopes that anarchy will thrive in the ruins, bringing back the eradicated principles of individualism and culture.
Climax
The story reaches its climax when V dies of gunshot wounds and Evey takes up the V persona, carrying out the planned final attack on Downing Street.
Foreshadowing
Understatement
Allusions
V's masked persona alludes to Guy Fawkes, a revolutionist in 17th-century England, and to his failed plan to blow up Parliament, known as the Gunpowder Plot.
