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?
Top 5 “Melodrama” Picks
I don’t want to give the impression with my Saturday post that I dislike emotional porn. Good heavens, no! Quite the opposite in fact. I’ve left my freshman college English major self in the dust. While it’s true that I don’t think teenage girls emulating the likes of Bella Swan is a good thing, I do think it’s perfectly wonderful to imagine that somewhere, sparkling in a tree, Edward Cullen waits. Hmm, I know far to much about this Twilight business than I should considering I couldn’t make it through the first book.
Ok, on to my top 5!
1. Vampire Knight – I do despise Yuki with her cow-chewing-cud stare but this story has three things that I can’t resist: Boarding schools, hot (shirtless) vampires and hall monitors with guns. Throw in the occasional ball and I am all over it. I’ve kind of quit reading but the first few volumes are yummy.
2. Absolute Boyfriend - so good. So so good. And here’s why. The love triangle includes a horny robot. I’ll repeat horny! robot! The first volume even features said robot, neked with a bow. I know! Making a robot fall in love and deny his robot self is unadulterated emotional porn.
3. You’re so Cool – Here he is, the bad boy. Not “bad” in the sense that he wants to suck your blood but really really bad. He’s cruel, taunting and you are the only one who can melt his cold heart.
4. Chocolate – Hello, boy band.
5. Fake – remember in those tv dramas, Moonlighting, X-Files, Bones – all that will they/won’t they stuff? Well this is like that only the Hayes/Scully/Brennan character is much hotter and also male. Be warned though, it includes a sweet side story that annoyingly gets in the way of the fun.
What are your top 5? Recommend some to me!
Best Manga of 2009
2009 is halfway over! Not wanting to finish out the rest of the year The Manga Critic presents the Half-Time Poll: Best New Manga of 2009.
Best of polls are always fun. It got me thinking about the manga that I consider “the best”. Monster is definitely on the list. I have soft spots for Death Note and Absolute Boyfriend, then there’s MW which kind of freaked me out. I don’t have a set checklist of what’s required to earn the title of “What Sadie Thinks is Best” but I do notice that the manga/graphic novels I really like have some things in common.
First, the artwork doesn’t have to be amazing but I do like when people present their own style. For example, the artwork in Nana really floors me because there is such a sensuality in the lanky characters. Just the way they lean against a wall makes me want to run to Tokyo and make out with the whole cast! It transcends the regular safe, shojo knock-kneed teenagers while also using the conventions like watery eyes and androgynous men.
Second, I have to care about the characters. I don’t necessarily have to like them but I do need to care and care deeply. Solanin has no real plot yet the characters pull me through until the end.
Finally, I have to feel some kind of emotional resonance. If a book stays with me, as they say, then I know it was worth reading.
If a manga has all those things, I usually proclaim it my favorite of all time for the week. There is no shortage of great manga out there. Heck, The Manga Critic’s list is 11 books long and it’s only the middle of the year!!! What qualifies a book as the “best” for you?
Spiderman Does Broadway
No, really. Evan Rachel Woods is Mary Jane.
The official website for Spiderman: Turn off the Dark doesn’t offer much explanation. It will be a “new take on the mythic tale”. Oh, and Bono is involved. It’s all so bizarre. But they have made some pretty amazing musicals out of unconventional material. Dr. Seuss. Monty Python. One of my favorite books, Wicked, was adapted to the stage.
So, on the one hand, it could be really great.
On the other hand, Bono.
Tickets go on sale in September. Will you go? If it comes to Oklahoma City, I most certainly will!
Top 5 Heroes your Kids Should Know About
Kids still on the brain I guess. Here’s my list of the Top 5 Heroes (not necessarily super) Your Kids Should Know About.
1. Spiderman – ok, the first one is super but in an ordinary kind of way. Spidey built his web shooters, using his brain to enhance his powers. He was a dork first; almost everyone is. Practically every man and quite a few women I know speak reverently of Spiderman. Why? Because he’s funny!
2. Naruto – speaking of funny, this quick ninja is a wise cracking but loyal friend. Sasuke could have easily been the star of this series what with his amazing talent and good looks but manga-ka Kishimoto made a wise choice placing Naruto at the center of the story. He’s a true hero with a strong heart that carries him further than raw strength.
3. Sadie – a central character in Mouse Guard, Sadie manages to warn everyone of danger. Determined and smart, this mouse is a dedicated mouse guard with a mind of her own.
4. Batgirl – Robin was kind of clingy and needy (not that we blame him, who wouldn’t be in his weird situation). There have been several Batgirls and almost all of them have a penchant for breaking Batman’s rules. I’m not saying kids should necessarily “learn” to break rules but challenging authority isn’t always a bad thing.
5. Professor Xavier - mainly because he’s pretty cool and he helps kids in need.
Webcomic Wednesday
Young Bill Young here. This is how I felt when I bought the first incarnation of The Sims. ‘Nuf sed!
Twitter is a Superpower
Or a drug…I’m not sure which.
I was wanting to do another Top 5 list when I noticed this trending topic #crapsuperpowers. Ha! So awesome! My contribution was very literal – constantly shooting a laser beam out of your eyes. I’m, of course, referring to the X-men’s Cyclops who has to wear special glasses that constantly get knocked off and then his laser eyeballs go haywire. They can build an invisible jet but can’t make a strap?
Anyway, here’s a few of my favorite answers from other twitter folk:
@Poddingtonpease the uncanny ability to see through Glass
@esteethomas the ability to fly an inch form the ground
@Ibbored Laser pointer vision. Red ones. Give business presentations with no hands required?
@0mmbajBriano4 the power to talk to fish
and finally –
@obaadepoju The ability to memorize every twitter update you see everyday
Happy Tweeting!
Top 5 Shojo Heroines I would Slap in the Face
Normally, I don’t like to bring the hate. Ok, no that’s not true. Anyway, I expressed how much I admire the shojo heroine last week and got lots of great comments. But some shojo heroines are too much for even me.
Here’s my top 5 Shojo Heroines that I would slap in the face!
1. Hatsumi from Hot Gimmick – on the outset this had all the makings of a fantastic series. Hatsumi covers for her maybe-pregnant younger sister. In exchange for the secret, she agrees to become the slave of the boss’s son. Sexy hijinks ensue?!?! Uh no. The younger sister is not pregnant and Hatsumi is a moron. What could have been a tension filled drama quickly becomes a cautionary fable of how to act like a spineless wimp. From what I hear it doesn’t end at all the way fans wanted it to either.
2. Nobara from Crimson Hero – I like spunky but Nobara takes it to annoying. She’s so naive that you begin to wonder if she’s been huffing paint between games.
3. Nana O. from Nana – I guess Nana O. isn’t technically “shojo”. I started out loving her. She was so cool! But somewhere along the line she became a needy, selfish, entitled little girl. Blech. I hope she can come back and I love this series so I’m sticking with her but I’m also putting her on notice.
4. Shakuya from Two Flowers for the Dragon – honestly, I don’t really know why I don’t like this heroine. But..I just…don’t. I will say that the artwork in this series is pretty great.
5. Sakura from B.O.D.Y. – another case of naivete gone overboard. Wake up!
What about you? Did I put your favorite on the list? Want to make a case for why I should hug instead of slap them? Did I miss anyone you would like to slap? Let’s get mean!
Top 5 Villains I Identify With
Inspired by facebook’s Living Social which I am unabashedly addicted to. What is it about lists and making lists and having pictures to go along with those lists and being able to comment on lists that just brings out the best/worst in people. I’m always amazed at the instant camaraderie when someone agrees with your list or the instant irritation when they don’t. Case in point, a list revealed that a friend of mine doesn’t like pancakes. THE HELL? Who doesn’t like pancakes! So of course, being a good facebook user I gave her a public flogging.
Anyway, here’s my list of Top 5 Villains I Identify With:
I chose villains because the best villains have motivations that we all can get behind. How they carry out those motivations, usually involving carnage, we don’t agree with but we can totally get why they would want to. My favorite villains are the ones who do it because they are trying to set things right, just like the hero. Ultimately, it is both the hero’s and the villain’s burden to make the decision to act, to suffer the consequences.
Villain #1 – Poison Ivy I don’t really love plants. I mean, they are nice and all but they bring bees, require “tending” and usually mean a trip to Lowe’s which… *barf* However, I do have a child (ren – well almost!). So I know the feeling of wanting to protect him at all costs. Of believing that this world needs to treat him kindly.
Villain #2 – Magneto Say what you will about his choice of headwear but this mutant understands something that X has yet to figure out. “Peaceful assimilation”? Yeah, that’s an oxymoron.
Villain #3 – Ramona Flowers’ Exes (sorry couldn’t find any decent pictures of the exes) Technically this is a crop of villains but I relate to them all. I think at one point we’ve all wanted to bust the head of the ex-girlfriend/boyfriend’s new flame.
Villain #4 – Alex Wilder I love my mom and dad.
Villain #5 – The Joker Yes, he’s bat**** crazy. He 
treats his decision to commit homicide as lightly as picking out ice cream flavors but come on. Who hasn’t wanted to skip raging against the machine and just work on making the machine pay?
Nickelodeon Magazine announces Comic winners
The children have spoken and here’s what they say – Nickelodeon Magazine – Nicktoon Comics.
I’m really pleased to see that so many kids are enjoying Diary of a Wimpy Kid! I chuckled at the Simpsons win too.
