Reading Over Shoulders
Yes, I'm still reading over your shoulder.
Danielle Leigh’s Reading Diary at Comics Should Be Good contains Hero Tales volume 1.
I can’t really follow all of this rant on the Brave and the Bold (ha, I totally wrote the Bold and the Beautiful at first) but you might like it.
I really enjoyed Solanin so I’m excited to get the manga-ka’s latest set of short stories even if, as Matthew Brady says, it isn’t as good.
Kate Dacey reviews Little Fluffy Gigolo Pelu -the title that my comic book store was supposed to be ordering for me over a month ago! What the hell?
Stitches – a review
In the hands of a less capable artist, David Small’s Stitches would have failed. Much of what doesn’t work in the novel is why I didn’t want to read it in the first place. Yes, that’s right, I really did not want to read one of the most talked about books of the year (incidentally, I also don’t want to read The Photographer or Asterios Polyp either – so, maybe it’s just me). I didn’t want to read Stitches because, for the most part, memoirs bore and annoy me. It’s a rare memoir that manages to be honest. Often time I feel like the author is trying to hard to be damaged or pull some memory from toddlerhood that inevitably involves some metaphor like a dangling spider or a grinning Jack-in-the-Box or something.. Small does this. His prose and story is overfilled with parents who are little more than monsters, a crazy grandmother who is every southern Indiana stereotype and weird dreams.
Not that I think Small is lying. I’m sure he’s not. However, it does, or should I say would, read like a formulaic childhood from hell turn to adult success if it weren’t for the artwork. Small recognizes that he tells better stories when he’s silent. He’s been silent a long time. A ragged surgery for a cancerous tumor leaves him without a vocal cord. At 14 he is physically trapped in his own mind, unable to express himself. He becomes his family’s quiet observer, an inconsequential scapegoat for his mother’s anger.
Small is at his best when his character don’t speak. When his mother thwaks shut a cabinet, or his 6 year old self literally dives into his artwork. His drawings carry their expressions so perfectly that often I could just skip the text. I didn’t need to be told that the boy was angry, depressed and intrigued by his new speechless life- I could see it and in just one panel. In fact I wish I could draw this review just to really give the sense at what art can do that a stumbling, rambling bunch of akward text cannot.
So, thanks Bill for forcing this one on me.
Webcomic Wednesday
I’m not entirely sure what’s going on in Sluggy Freelance but it makes me laugh.
List, list, lists!
You know I love lists. And Yaoi. So I’m all about a Yaoi Essentials List! Deb Aoki from About.com asked her Twitter pals what their favorite titles were and then, hooray, made a list! I haven’t read all the books on the list but I’m pleased to see one of my favorites, Future Lovers, was number 1. I also love Fake, Antique Bakery and Seduce me After the Show.
Of course, now my to-read list is even longer.
Did any of your favorite yaoi novels show up or not?
Quick news roundup
I just realized I did pretty much nothing on this blog for Halloween! How could I be so remiss?
Today I’m just going to give a quick roundup of news:
According to Bleeding Cool, Marvel is releasing Civil War on the iPhone. I don’t know why I’m so excited for this – I hope the first issue is free. I can see myself reading superhero comics this way. I’m not spending the money in the store but if it’s good enough I could drop a dollar on the phone.
This article from Publisher’s Weekly about teen reading habits is interesting. What really jumped out at me was not that teens read graphic novels because duh but that, according to the survey, the most read graphic novel genre is romance. Now, I’m generalizing but I think it’s a fairly safe generalization that more girls read romance. If it’s the largest genre read then that leads me to believe that lots of girls read graphic novels which again duh. Why haven’t the publishers caught on?
And just preparing for Halloween next year, this cracked me up.
Comix App for iPhone – a review
The iPhone is my boyfriend, seriously. I got the Comics (by ComiXology) app immediately. I was mainly curious to see what they had but I honestly didn’t think I would use it that much because reading comics on the phone seemed really hard and headache inducing. But this app is a good one and well worth the price I paid – I think it was like $1.99? Or less.
There are a few complaints with the learning curve – mainly that there is a learning curve at all. Moving from panel to panel takes a little finesse and getting used to. If you tap too hard or in the wrong spot suddenly the whole page zooms in and it’s hard to get back. In fact, a few times it did this all on its own and I was stuck sort of fumbling around this giant word balloon for like an hour. Ok, not that long but it was awhile. However, once you have it down, reading is surprisingly easy. You can read in regular or landscape mode – a nice feature.
I was also surprised by how many good comics they have available. I was expecting lots and lots of erotica combined with lots and lots of indie stuff. Not that either of those aren’t cool but, eh, not something I necessarily want to use my precious battery life for. However, right away I found Atomic Robo and my new favorite Nightmares and Fairytales.
The first issue or two is usually available for free and there’s access to reader reviews. After that the cost is .99 cents. Which, really? .99 cents!!! I’m paying it for Nightmares and Fairytales but only once a month so I’m really behind. I can’t do it once a week and certainly not for multiple titles.
All in all, a great app for comic readers. There needs to be a manga equivalent.
Webcomic Wednesday – Halloween Edition
What the hell??? No one is doing halloween webcomics!! I figured I would have a ton of good funny or spooky halloween picks but nope. What’s up webcomic creators?
I guess I can’t get too mad since I could create my own and then have nothing to complain about but that’s a lot of work. I finally found a Halloween themed Something Positive.
Monday is Weary
I’m tired, worn out and a little fuzzy headed. So all I have to say today is – this is awesome.
*note I meant to publish this on Monday but I guess I forgot – oops!*
Top 5 Vampires
This post from Robot6, got me thinking about the Top 5 vampires I would like to share a drink with – a poisoned drink because I don’t really like vampires.
1. The Enterprising Vampire from 30 Days of Night.
OK, sure his idea didn’t go over so well but you have to admire the guy for trying. Finding a town that spends a month in darkness? Brilliant! Admire him, then drive a stake through his heart because he is scary!
2. Lestat de Lioncourt as played by Tom Cruise
This vampire is supposed to be sexy. He’s not supposed to be clammy with long greasy hair. I think he needs to have a poisoned drink then be reborn with another face…and better hair…and taller – oh forget it, he should just stay dead.
3. Nosferatu
This guy gave me nightmares for a week! What kills me (heh) is that they air this movie during Halloween as if it isn’t scary. Yes, it’s old but effective.
4. Kaname from Vampire Knight
What can I say? I’m on Team Zero.
5. Cassidy from Preacher
I’m torn on whether I would actually try and kill Cassidy. I kind of like him and drinking with an Irish vampire would be fun. Except, on the other hand, he’s kind of a jerk.
Reading Over Shoulders
What are you going to be for Halloween?
Since it’s been awhile I decided to check in on my favorite blogs -
Matthew Brady has a good review of Stitches.
David Welsh is working his way through the alphabet asking for your favorite shojo titles. He’s up to B.
Kate Dacey talks about the Kodansha Akira reprint.
