In the latest issue of Ex Machina, a flashback is shown as the Great Machine decides to give up crimefighting for politics.

Effective immediately, I am retiring from volunteer community crimefighting.  And running as your independent candidate for Mayor of the great city of New York.  I’m hoping to be part of a truly grassroots campaign, one that will finally utilize the internet’s true potential to reach all voters.  Starting today, contributions as small as one dollar can be made directly to my new website at http://www.hundred4mayor.net.  That’s the word hundred and the number four, so please don’t–

The interesting part of the above quote is the focus on small contributions and the internet as a grassroots tool for campaigning.  Both show an understanding of the tool and the history of it’s evolution of use by the writer of the series.  What caught my attention was the use of a real world website (not sure if there’s an alternative like 555 for phone numbers on television).

With great dialogue showing an understanding of the internet by the writer of the comic book, it seems DC’s marketing team doesn’t quite have the same level of understanding.  DC and it’s parent company Warner Bros. dropped the ball on this one.  Having shown a brilliance for alternate reality games (arg) for the film the Dark Knight, including a fake campaign site for character Harvey Dent, one would think there was a possibility that they’d do a similar campaign for this comic book’s fake campaign (hell you could use the Dent site and change some text and graphics).

To my surprise, on a whim, I decided to see if the above web address and it’s .com equivalent were available.  To my shock, they were, and without missing a beat I purchased both (both are redirected to this site).  We’ll see and keep you updated as to the traffic lost through this slip up.

No malice is meant, just an interesting missed opportunity by DC I think (especially in this political season).

SPOILER – With the books hint at a Presidential run by Mayor Hundred I wonder if DC and Warner Bros. will take the opporunity for a real cool website tie in.