The Die Hard prequel redefines the original film’s twist
In Die Hard: Year One, a young John McClane foils a terrorist plot. So why doesn’t this experience help him later when taking over Nakatomi Plaza?
A die hard the prequel comic looks like John McClane should have realized much earlier in the original 1988 film that the movie’s villains were just pretending to be terrorists to pull off a heist. In 2010 Boom! The studios released an 8-issue limited series titled Die Hard: Year One. The Howard Chaykin-Stephen Thomas collaboration tells the story of a young John McClane more than a decade before the events of the original die hard film. Although the comic was never able to mirror the success of the film series, it impressed the filmmakers enough to be chosen as the basis for the ill-fated sixth. die hard film.
The fact that the comic was going to be adapted for the film series means that it is considered die hard cannon. Therefore, John McClane in the movie A good day to die strong should remember what happened in Die Hard: Year One as easily as he remembers what happened in the original film. The comic adapts the films’ unmistakable “day in the life” style to tell its story. The story begins on July 4, 1976, when McClane is a new member of the New York Police Department who is asked to provide security for the police commissioner during an encounter aboard one of the leaders’ yacht. most powerful companies in the city. Naturally for McClane, the yacht is commandeered by a group of “terrorists” who threaten to blow it up unless their demands are met.
Minutes after hearing the demands of the so-called “terrorists”, John McClane points out that they are simply pretending to be terrorists to disguise their real motive: money. McClane’s theory is initially dismissed by others working with him, but ultimately proved to be correct. What’s impressive about his analysis of the situation is that he does it with only a year of experience as a cop. Certainly, as he himself says in the comic, it’s a combination of his life experiences and police training that informs his crime-fighting expertise. Fast forward to Christmas Day 1988, when now-veteran police detective John McClane faces another group of fake terrorists who take over Nakatomi Plaza. According to what is presented in Die Hard: Year One, McClane’s training and experience – now deepened by 12 years of fighting criminals on the tough streets of New York – should tell him that Hans Gruber and his team are not terrorists but criminals. Certainly, identifying Gruber as a criminal rather than a terrorist would have changed a number of story points such as the FBI helicopter plan.
Interestingly, McClane doesn’t understand that Gruber and company are criminals until the end of the film when he sees and hears them moving stolen bonds. McClane’s failure to see them for who they really are occurs despite plenty of hints to the contrary. Indeed, the clues are much more obvious than those provided in the comic. Also, on more than one occasion, McClane corroborates that they are terrorists, such as when he says he admitted they had fake IDs that would have been expensive to make. Presumably, these IDs are more expensive than a regular criminal could afford.
Naturally, there are a few reasons an older John McClane might be fooled. For example, Gruber is a former member of a terrorist group, most members of the group are internationals, and they are armed with weapons like rocket launchers, which most criminals would be unable to obtain. However, the time lag between Die Hard: Year Afterand and the original die hard is too short for John McClane completely lost his mind. Naturally, one would expect his abilities in this area to only get better with age, not worse.
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