I win at Smile!

Back in July, I won a copy of the hardcover of the Original Graphic Novel Memoir: Smile by Raina Telgemeier. If you aren't familiar with the story, it is an account of how Raina knocked out her front teeth when she was 11, and the resulting 4 year ordeal that followed that event to get the situation resolved. During the course of the story, you file her life and her budding interest in boys and how she fits in with her friends, etc. It isn't just a story of dental procedure, but really of all the life that goes on around that central event. The book is 213 pages and is full color. It is published under the graphix imprint of Scholastic.

I follow Raina on Twitter @goraina. In July I guess I saw a tweet about a giveaway that art&story was doing It required all the effort of doing a tweet pointing people to Raina's website. That was the sort of difficulty/effort level I was born for, and I happily tweeted, and was absolutely thrilled and stunned when I won. I am sure I have said this sort of thing many times, but I met Raina at SPX last year and bought two small things she had done. She seemed really nice, and her style of cartooning is fun and expressive, and really terrific. I have wanted to pick up Smile, and have heard nothing but good stuff about it, so this was ideal for me.

Teeth are a tough issue for a lot of people. Adolescence is a tough time. Self Image, self worth, self respect, are all important things. Between the ages of eleven and fifteen a lot of things can happen and change, and most people aren't super prepared for all of those things when they are young. So many things are changing, so much is happening as people are figuring out the type of person they will be, and how they fit in, etc. This is a really good story to tell because it is set in the midst of all of that, and is real. I would recommend it across the board, but really, I think you are doing a pretty great thing if you get this into the hands of a young girl you know.

There is a bit of triumph in the story that I think would be beneficial to anyone staring down the barrel of puberty, and going into middle school, etc. People change, friends change, be true to yourself, don't accept people treating you with less respect than you deserve, ultimately you will get through hard times, and sometimes hard times last longer than we want them too. There are probably other good things to take away from Smile, but those are the ones I was most struck by.

The best part is that the story is told in a way that feels real, but also has humor in it. I look forward to letting my daughters read this when they are back at home for more than a few days(thanks summer) I suspect they will enjoy it. Hopefully Smile is something that will find a place in school and public libraries everywhere.

*The link I put for Art & Story has a link for a podcast interview they did with Raina regarding memoir comics and Smile. It is a great conversation for anyone interested in the craft and process of making comics. Here's the same link again

The Alcoholic

I can't recall when I purchased this lovely hardcover graphic novel, but I do know that it took me more than a year to get around to reading it. In the time between buying it and reading it, I picked it up a number of times, I even carried it with me on a few trips where I thought I might have free time to spend with the 136 page story of Jonathan A., the titular alcoholic, but I never got past the first few pages. This is a thing for me sometimes. I assume there are plenty of others who love reading, and are attracted to a specific book or story for whatever reason, and then can't get into it enough to get through it right off. For me the process goes that sometime in the future I will generally notice the item on the shelf, pick it up, and then be unable to put it down until I am done. That happens more often than I care for, and certainly was the case with this as well.

Jonathan Ames wrote the Alcoholic, and Dean Haspiel provided the art, including the cover. I wasn't kidding about the volume being lovely. it has a cover that is well designed and interesting, and underneath the cover is the title etched into the book inside the outline of a bottle. I never thought I would feel this way, but I really like hardcovers. I love them. I don't have that same feeling about slip covers though. I think that slip covers seem a bet excessive, and just get in the way of getting to the comics. Hardcovers themselves though are kind of classy. I am getting away from the focus of this post now, so I will pull myself back to it now.

As someone whose life has been impacted by alcoholism in one way or another, I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, which follows the life of Jonathan A. from High School, where he first got drunk, on into his forties where he may or may not have learned enough to overcome his basic nature. It takes a wholly unapologetic look at his life, and just presents the events. The narrator is aware that he is narrating. He is telling you the story initially of everything in his life that lead him up to a specific point. Eventually the narrative catches up with the timeline and proceeds from there.

I find that I particularly like the approach taken with the story. There are several main things that are carried through most of the book. One is his attraction to and love for his best friend. They act on the attraction, and then find themselves moving away from each other. Another is a relationship that turns into an on again off again thing that he can't free himself from. His writing and professional / creative career is another, and finally his addiction to alcohol and drugs, and the inevitable detox that he puts himself through. Everything is really just plainly presented. There is humor, but no attempt to explain away anything really. That's not to say there isn't any insight, there is just nothing approaching an attempt to rationalize the destructive behavior.

I found this story really resonated with me. It echoes an awful lot of things that I worry about with myself, and behaviors that no matter how much I understand the negatives, and know better, I still find myself always gravitating back to. I think that's the beauty of this, and where some of its real value lies. Just like the story offers no resolution for the issues, I found no great insight into my own condition, but seeing that reflection there is a pretty useful and thought provoking thing.

The writing is well done. Fairly horrible episodes are presented with some sense of humor. The art is very good. I like that it is a light style without being too cartoonish. It doesn't make anything less ugly than it is, but it resists being grotesque. It also allows the places where there is beauty to show through nicely. I'm glad I picked this up when I did, even happier that I finally read it. I think it deserves the good reviews it has gotten.

Heralds

I'll start with the comparison right off the bat. I liked Marvel Divas a lot. There were some aspects I didn't love, like a sort of dumb name, and sort of misleading cheesecake covers on a book with sensibly drawn ladies done in a light, slightly quirky style. The story was centered around sort of soap opera standard plot points, but that wasn't a negative to me. I liked Divas because it was humanizing. I thought it presented at least a somewhat 'realistic' take on a group of likable female heroes that came across as having a more or less genuine sort of friendship and personal interaction with one another.

Divas was written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and drawn by Tonci Zonjic. Heralds is written by Kathryn Immonen with art by Tonci Zonjic and several others. One huge difference, and I appreciate it a lot, is that Heralds has absolutely beautiful cover work by Jelena Djurdjevic. These are very nice covers and none of them is in the realm of cheesecake. Women are shown with the figures they have in the comics, but none of them are relegated to sex kitten poses.

I already mentioned the second major piece of this. It's written by Kathryn Immonen. Nothing off of Aguirre-Sacasa, but this is an excellent comics writer paired with an excellent cover artist, and what's this... they're both women. I love the writing in this. I think the characters come across as real, and it isn't bogged down on any one emotion or mood. There is a great deal of playfulness and humor in this as well as action and emotion. That to me is a formula anyone should be able to appreciate.

The story starts with a group of Marvel ladies in vegas to help Emma Frost celebrate her birthday (This was orchestrated by Scott for her). It isn't long before the crew is fighting clones released from a S.W.O.R.D. facility and the story gets rolling from there. It isn't my intention to give away much here, other than what a cool thing this series was. I don't really care where it fits into the grand scheme of things, but I would love to see more like this. It has gotten me thinking a lot about how super heroes act in comics vs how real people act, with regard to their interactions and motivations, etc. I don't have a lot to say about it yet, but it does have me thinking.

I love the art in this, but it is a bit inconsistent. I am not sure exactly what role each of the artists had, or if the number of artists had anything to do with this feeling for me. There are also some places where it becomes difficult to tell some of the characters apart. It wasn't major, but I did get a little turned around a few times. I am also not sure if all of these people would be hanging around, but it works, and I think it's justified well enough.

If you haven't checked this out, and aren't put off by good comics, or books that feature women as strong and diverse characters, I recommend it.

Four for All

Recently I have bought and or borrowed several items that just leap out as being things both kids (young adults) and adults(old adults) can enjoy equally. I will keep it fairly brief.

The Amulet Book Two: The Stonekeeper's Curse , Kazu Kibuishi - Get volume 1: The Stonekeeper, if you haven't read it already. I was very excited to see this book in the library. I had been waiting for it, and new it had come out, and it was finally on the shelf the last time I went. This continues the story of a girl and her younger brother who inherit a powerful magic stone from their grandfather, and find themselves on a quest in a land of magic to save their mother from a deadly poison. The art is beautiful and brilliant, the story and characters are varied and fun, each with personality and depth. The story combines elements that make it reminiscent of other works like Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Howl's Moving Castle,Narnia, and many others. A young girl with a good heart and a strong sense of duty to her family is the main character. She is strong willed and resourceful, and although she has some doubts and fears, she does not succumb to the great temptation of the powerful and sentient artifact she possesses. Her brother is separated from her in this book, and put into the role of commander of his own army of strange volunteers from the world they are in. A new character steps forward in the form of a fox who is sort of their Aragorn, a creature they are suspicious of at first, but who later shows himself to be beyond reproach. This is epic fantasy with robots and walking mecha-like houses and evil elves and animal-people and magic stones, talking trees, good versus evil, the works. It is something that could be read to a child, or by a child, or fully enjoyed by adult fans of the genre.

The Good Neighbors, Book 2: Kith - Another volume 2 here. Holly Black is the author and Ted Naifeh is the artist. I love Naifeh's art and this has very much the same sort of feel and similar subject matter of his Courtney Crumrin books, while not being his creation in this case. A teenage girl begins seeing strange things that no-one else seems to see. A world of Fairy and magical folk is suddenly unveiled to her and she doesn't know why. The first book takes us through that, and some mysteries regarding her mother and her creepy grandfather, and uncertainty about her father's actions, etc. The second book continues the story and continues to set her at odds with her grandfather and his plot against the town she lives in, and humans in general. There is a good cast of characters, and I would think that this is a book that Teen fans of supernatural fiction would enjoy. My 16 year old daughter liked it.

The Last Unicorn #1 - My daughters and I love the movie the last unicorn. I loved it long before I ever thought I would be married or have any kids. This comic is a stunningly beautiful adaptation. Not a great deal happens in the first issue(of 6), but the scene is set, and we learn a good bit about the Unicorn, and the world it is in. Honestly, the art sells this one as much as my love of the subject. I set it down then bought it the next time I was in the shop, and both my 10 and 16 year old daughters have read it already and raved about it.

Mercury - Hope Larson. Another fantastic book from Hope Larson. I love this trend of female creators making graphic novels that feature realistic settings and real personalities, with very real seeming young female leads in them, and a touch of the fantastic that does not seem to alarm or surprise anyone all that much. I am calling it a trend, even though in this case I am really just referring to Faith Erin Hicks' War at Ellsmere(also excellent), although not actually comparing the two. Mercury ties together two stories of two different girls across centuries. They share a bloodline, and a common location, and a mysterious piece of jewelry. Both face difficult situations in their own ways, and both encounter strange occurrences without thinking them to be particularly alarming. This is a sweet story with a bit of creepiness to it, and what I would interpret as a fairly happy ending. It is a good size and a great price at 9.99

All of these would be great recommendations for young readers, perhaps female teen readers in particular. I am neither of those things and enjoyed each of these completely. I recommend them in the following order of awesome:(1 being the highest)
1.Amulet
2.Mercury
3.Last Unicorn
4.Good Neighbors

Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937 - 1938

The library I frequent has a pretty decent collection of comics, manga, graphic novels, and comics related books. It never exactly seems like it when I visit, but I am pretty sure there is a huge collection that is always circulating. It is also not uncommon to go in and find something surprising that seems to be brand new and just added to the collection.

In my last visit I borrowed the 2009 release Fantagraphics collection Prince Valiant Vol. 1: 1937-1938 . I am just not someone with a lot of nostalgia for the very old comics. I don't dislike everything I read from the era these were originally made, but nothing gets a free pass either. I never read Prince Valiant, but it ran in the paper when I was little and I looked at it, but never had any interest in reading it. When I was growing up, someone in my household must have read it, as we had 2 dogs, one named Valiant, and the other named Aleta. I knew that the names came from the comic strip but beyond that they didn't mean anything to me.

One thing that impressed me about this collection was it's dimensions. The book is 120 pages at 10.5" wide by 14.25" tall. The collection is made up of color remastered copies of full page 'Sunday Comics'. When you open this book it really feels like you are starting something big. I have to admit that I had a good bit of disdain for the large format Kramer's Ergot 7 when it was being hyped, but after DC's Wednesday Comics and this volume, I have a much better appreciation of large format comics.

I am probably not surprising anyone by saying that Hal Foster's work is some of the most beautiful you will probably ever see in the medium of comics. In the interview with Foster late in his career that is included in this collection, he states his work week to produce one Sunday page at 55 hours. Looking at the pages it seems completely reasonable that such things would require that sort of investment of time. Nearly every panel could be a fine illustration in a high quality story book. The comic itself seems very much like a heavily illustrated adventure story than it does a 'proper' comic. I assume I get that due to the heavy, but never oppressive narrative. The stories move quickly, and have a great deal of action and plot and movement to them. Each page starts with a small synopsis, but doesn't seem to lose momentum for it. The colors have been reworked for this edition to better reflect the original intent of the artist, and are bright and beautiful. The people are stunning and could be movie stars of their time, and the backgrounds and settings, including fens and castles, are just stunning.

I didn't expect to read more than a few pages of this, and almost didn't pick it up due to my sort of disconnect from early works. I honestly had trouble setting it down the few times I needed to set it down while I was reading it. Things move fast, but there is still a lot going on, and all of it focuses on Prince Val. When the comic starts, Val is on the run with his family. His father is a king from the North who has been overthrown and run out of his country. They relocate to a nearly savage Britain, and after showing themselves to be fierce in battle, they are given an island in a fen to settle and live in isolation. It doesn't take long for the restless young prince to start seeing the world and having adventures on his quest to become a knight in King Arthur's court.

The stories mix fantastic and realistic elements. Magic exists but is not predominate. Giant Lizards, Turtles and 'Dragons' are around as well, and eventually Valiant becomes the owner of an enchanted sword, but mostly the stories are about Valiant and his bravery, honesty,cunning and determination, and how he uses them to get along and better himself, while making a name in the world. It is really great stuff for anyone who likes Robin Hood or King Arthur stories, or tales of Vikings and the like.

The book itself is very pretty and nicely bound. It's 30 dollars, but really stands out in my opinion. I am happily surprised by how much I enjoyed this, and hope to read volume 2 as soon as I can find it. I would eventually like this to be in my personal library, but I try to resist big purchases like this as long as I can. There is some decent value-added in the collection, with a Bio of Foster, an interview, and a page on this edition specifically. It's not a lot, but it did enhance the experience for me.

The Surrogates and The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone

I picked up these to trades from my local Library the other day when I went to pay the enormous fine I owed them because I am not smart enough to return items or conveniently renew them online. There is no reason anyone should ever owe our library a dime, given how easy they make it for you to renew, but this isn't the first or even fifth time I have almost had my library fine go into collection... and still I just can't quit them.

Robert Venditti wrote both of these stories, and Brett Weldele provided the art. The art is pretty great in my opinion, and works really well in both cases. I have been trying to think of what the art made me think of. Style-wise It seems like a combination of Frank Miller in Dark Knight Returns, and Ben Templesmith in Fell, with yet again another property created in the combining of the two and the use of single color page spreads and lots of muddy gray and earthtone washes, with the occasional blues thrown in. Even in the midst of fairly stylistic art, the characters were distinctive, easily identified, and expressive.

The writing is good, the characters are believable, and it works well, while not exactly making any major innovations with regard to storytelling, or what is effectively a police procedural sort of story mixed in with some commentary on human nature and corporations, and religion. I liked The Surrogates, and because of that, I loved the prequel Flesh and Bone. Flesh and Bone needs to be read after the Surrogates, even if you have no idea of the story, etc. The prequel hits all of the notes and expands upon them in some unexpected ways.

The Surrogates centers around the police investigation into a series of crimes against 'Surrogates' Artificial human analogues that are 'driven' by people and take the place of those people out in the real world. Surrogates allow Police and emergency workers to be able to work better and face less actual potential injury, etc. They are very common in the setting of the story. Detectives Harvey Greer and his partner are our guides through this, and Greer personally stands in for us in the story in my opinion.

Flesh and Bone takes us back to some important events that set the stage for the world as it is seen in the Surrogates. A homeless man is killed by three teens 'joy riding' in their dads' surrogates. This event puts a lot of events into motion, and we get to watch as Harvey Greer participates in the case that will move him from being a uniformed cop to being a detective. We also see his own personal first experiences with surrogates on an intimate level that really gives greater impact to the story as you already know it.

I am not sure either of these will ever find a permanent spot on my bookshelf, but if they do, it will still cast me less than the fine I will rack up having them out from the library..

Chew

I picked up Chew #6 and 7 recently, and just had an opportunity to actually read them today. I picked them up at the comic shop near my parents that sometimes actually has stuff like this on the shelf, unlike my LCS where I would have to have requested it in advance. Not ragging on my LCS, as they are good folks and treat me well.

Chew is the John Layman / Rob Guillory from Image that centers on Tony Chu, a cibopath working for the FDA in a time when trafficking in illegal chicken is a major crime. A cibopath, according to the comic, is someone who can eat something and get psychic impressions of the things history. This makes eating very unpleasant for Tony on a regular basis, and demands that he eat all sorts of awful things in order to do his job.

The first arc of the series (Taster's Choice) ended at number 5, and Issue 6 picks up with a new 5 issue storyline called International Flavor. This one features an investigation into a new, strange, tropical fruit that tastes mostly like chicken apparently. It also has Tony reuniting with an old partner from his days on the police force. The series is funny and interesting, it moves quickly and is served perfectly by Guillory's art.

Guillory's art is a full partner in the success of this book, I believe. It is dynamic and fun and his faces are unbelievably expressive.

The trade of the first 5 issues is out, or you could easily jump into this one if you can get your hands on 6 & 7.

Scalped: V3 & V4

Having received both an American Express gift card for Christmas, AND a lovely selection of discounts that could be used at my local comic shop, I found myself in a position to buy two trades recently. I looked over my shelves before I went to the store and gave it a great deal of thought as I browsed the stock at the shop. Ultimately it was not great contest. If I had about ten more dollars I would have gone with the Complete Edlund volume of the Tick, but beyond that, I had gone way too long without reading Jason Aaron's Scalped.

I picked up Volume 4, The Gravel In Your Guts, and Volume 5, High Lonesome. I read them pretty much straight through when I got home. I love this title. I usually say that Scalped is like a movie, in the best possible way that a comic can be like a movie. I believe now that Scalped is like the best possible gritty crime action/drama that you could hope to get on HBO or Showtime, or anywhere. It has great characters, great plot, intrigue, action, violence, sex, great writing and a real noir visual. I don't always love the art. I think it sometimes looks like a collection of grotesque racial stereotypes, excep for the fact that I have seen people who actually look like the pictures, so I don't think it is racist. It is gritty. It is often as ugly as the situations. This makes it really work.

I think that Aaron and Guera have the kind of complete connection that Brubaker and Philips do. The writing, the atmosphere and the art all gel perfectly in my opinion. This is times are hard and getting harder deep cover crime fiction. If you think things were bad before, you may be surprised by the capacity for them to get progressively worse in these two volumes. Dash Bad Horse, more or less our protagonist is in a hard downward spiral. At the same time even the really bad guys seem to be getting themselves into deeper shit.

In all of this, Red Crow, a big bad who could easily give the Kingpin a run for his money seems to have some bits of conscience and maybe regret or sensitivity that have opened up in him. That doesn't mean that anyone is safe, it may even mean the opposite. Red Crow really isn't a one dimensional character. I don't think even the strippers and whores and thugs are one dimensional in this.

This is an addictive series. For me, it is best to read the trade collections, but can be hard to wait. If you like gritty fast paced action and drama I recommend these highly.

Product Descriptions from Amazon.com

V4 The Gravel In Your Guts
This intense crime drama that mixes organized crime with current Native American culture.

Fifteen years ago, Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse ran away from a life of poverty and hopelessness on the Prairie Rose Indian Reservation in search of something better. Now he's come back home armed with nothing but a set of nunchucks, a hell-bent-for-leather attitude and one dark secret, to find nothing much has changed on "The Rez" - short of a glimmering new casino, and a once-proud people overcome by drugs and organized crime.

In this volume, Dash makes a dark and fateful decision that will forever affect his future on the reservation as he learns more secrets from his former girlfriend's past.

V5 High Lonesome
Jason Aaron, the hot new writer of the critically acclaimed limited series, THE OTHER SIDE, teams with gritty artist R.M. Guéra for an intense crime drama that mixes organized crime with current Native American culture. Fifteen years ago, Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse ran away from a life of abject poverty and utter hopelessness on the Prairie Rose Indian Reservation searching for something better. Now he's come back home armed with nothing but a set of nunchucs, a hell-bent-for-leather attitude and one dark secret, to find nothing much has changed on "The Rez" - short of a glimmering new casino, and a once-proud people overcome by drugs and organized crime. Is he here to set things right or just get a piece of the action?

In this volume, we see the landscape of the Prairie Rose reservation through the eyes of a newcomer - a card shark and con man -
whose presence could spell doom for one of our main characters.

Mouse Guard: Fall and Winter 1152

I read David Petersen's Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 and Winter 1152 recently, and then again for a second time over the past two days. I was bowled over on the first read. The art is beautiful, and the writing is tight. This is a comic made for the medium. There is no shortage of dialog and narration to be found, but the story is told in the art.

These books are square volumes, shorter and wider than a standard comic. It makes use of the size very well, and gives us a good number of full page and even two page spreads that really set the tone and also punctuate just how strong the art is in this. The characters are distinct, even though most of them are extremely cute mice.

The basic story isn't exactly brand new ground. It's a lot like a lot of classic adventure stories. It takes place in something akin to a medieval setting. It features a small group of adventurers on a mission. The main characters are part of a group of elite warriors whose heyday was in the past to some degree. There is a conspiracy afoot, and the order to which they belong is cast in a negative light. Along the way they have opportunities to face perils, meet characters from legends and fight foes that seem to greatly outnumber or outclass them. There are a lot more standard elements that I could name. Add to this that there is no way to avoid comparing this to at least the excellent Redwall series of novels by Brian Jacques.

Beast of Burden #3 came out last week. This also excellent comic is by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson. I read the issue and loved it, and then my ten year old daughter walked over to see what I was reading. I explained it to her and showed her some of the pictures. The art in BoB is also exceptional as well as being very cute in places. She asked to read the issue, and loved it. She is also now a big fan of Mouse Guard. I was thinking about these two very different series, and started to think about something they had in common.

Mouse Guard and Beasts of Burden are both comics I would call 'all ages'. I would actually call them 'most ages', but either of them could be read to a younger reader and edited a little on the fly if needed. Kids nine and up I would say should love these stories.

Mouse Guard made me feel the same way that movies and stories like Robin Hood and The Three Musketeers and Zorro made me feel as a kid. It's exciting and full of action and adventure. The characters are real and flawed, but that isn't the focus, they are also brave and daring, and selfless in their quest to protect those they are sworn to protect, and to complete their missions for the greater good.

I highly recommend these books. Check your local libraries (that's where I picked up mine). And after you read it, share it with a kid. There is a lot to be gotten from the brave little mice of the Guard.

The Issue at Hand: The Tick New Series #1

The first issue of the new ongoing Tick series came out last Wednesday. Unfortunately for me i didn't pick up my comics until today. The really great news is that in addition to there being a copy in my box, there was also a copy on the shelf. This is in a store that doesn't tend to use a lot of shelf space for comics that aren't from the top four or five publishers, but it was there. Hopefully it will catch the eye of someone who has fond memories of the Tick from its various incarnations who didn't realize that a new series was starting.

Despite some very unnecessary self deprecation by the author, both on his blog, and on the Arachnida page at the back of the comic, This is an exceptional book. I understand the fear that there will be disappointment from people who are only familiar with the Tick from the very excellent Fox cartoon that ran in the 1990's. There are a lot of characters that were created exclusively for the show, and they will not be in the comic. There are a lot of characters from the cartoon that created very strong and lasting impressions on people. I don't see this as a negative.

In the case of the Tick, I think that the humor and the tone are most important. The cartoon recreated and perfected the tone and humor of the original comics. Subsequent comics in my opinion were created with an awareness of what had already been done.

This latest offering does the same thing. It draws upon the tone and the humor, it uses existing characters, and adds it's own new elements. Cereno perfectly creates situations and stories within the existing framework of the character, and does so at a level that keeps you from even wondering about the creative team as you are reading it. This is an extremely funny new book that feels familiar in the best possible way. Les McClaine's art is fantastic in the same way as the writing is. When you look at it, it looks like what you are expecting. The book will get a lot of people's money based on the fact that it elicits this sense of familiarity. The good news is that you get more than just the familiar in both the writing and the art. The expressions that McClaine brings out in the characters are what really tie the comic together.

Issue number 1 focuses on two separate Christmas parties. One is for heroes at the Comet Club, and the other is for sidekicks in the Sidekick Lounge at the same venue. In each party there is a gift exchange going on, and stories are being told by both the sidekicks and a group of super-villains gathered in a lounge at the institution in which they are housed. There is an underlying story relating to the gifts, but we also see a handful of times when the Tick ruined a number of villains Christmas-time exploits.

The Tick New Series #1 is good comics. It's funny, well written, and the art is spot on. The 4.95 price tag may seem a bit steep in relation to mainstream comics, but don't let that stop you. If you love the Tick, you will love this. If you are a fan of funny riffs on superheroes, you won't be disappointed.

The Tale of One Bad Rat

I borrowed this Bryan Talbot Graphic novel (Dark Horse Books) from the library a few weeks ago, and just got around to reading it.

The title of this book is in the style of Beatrix Potter. The cover art and font are obviously a nod to the small volumes of stories featuring animals that many of us grew up loving. The story relates to Potter in a number of ways, and is a nice story about overcoming abuse and learning to live and finding peace with yourself. It is a bit neat, and perhaps overly straightforward in its telling and its resolution, but it is still very well done.

There are several themes that run the course of the book. One is a connection to Beatrix Potter, One is vivid visions or hallucinations, One is the theme of child sexual abuse and the toll it takes on the victim, and the last one is rats. These are all tied together in a way that helps us to feel what the protagonist, a girl named Helen, who is homeless when we first meet her and has a pet rat. is going through, and to really see how she is coping with a history of many years of sexual abuse by her father, and emotional neglect by her mother.

Helen goes from one place to another, encountering something at nearly every point that triggers flashbacks to her abusive past. It is something that is ever present, and keeps driving her on. She has a strong interest in Beatrix Potter and goes more or less on a pilgrimage of sorts the the area in which Potter lived and wrote her stories about. In addition to meeting a number of people who just want to use her, she does encounter a number of good souls.

The overall feeling of the book is one of hope. Helen takes control of her situation by the end of the book and it ends on a good note. She is greatly helped toward this end by people she happens upon when she is at a low point, who end up being good and kind to her and step into a positive sort of parental role that she had been lacking in her life.

It's a good story, I'm glad I read it, but I don't particularly love it. The art is good but not a style I like very much, and the story is well written, but didn't blow me away. It's a good book to borrow first.

A Fistfull of SPX 2009 part 1

I've had a chance to get through a good number of smaller comics at this point, and I am pretty impressed with what I have read so far. I think it says a lot about the things I choose to pick up and buy, as well as a lot about the quality of the offerings at SPX this year that I pulled out a pile of minicomics and really truly believe they were all pretty awesome. I am sure I picked up some things that I won't love this much, but this first batch, pulled randomly, is filled with winners.

Bizcochito - Dennis Pacheco - pigeonholepress.net - This is billed as 'a tale of sweet revenge', and 'a cautionary tale in two acts'. This small square mini is 24 single panel pages, and tells a story that spans a 13 year time frame, and highlights the fact that some people will wait far longer than you might think to exact revenge. It is very cute, very well drawn, and very available to read for free. If you follow that link you will be on a page that shows several of Pacheco's works. bizcochito is toward the bottom of the page. Well worth reading. Budgeting and a desire to get a wide variety of creators are the only reasons I didn't buy more of his work. He was not able to be at SPX, but his work was well represented.

Earth Minds Are Weak (1-4)- Justin J Fox - clifffacecomics.com - here is the blurb about the first issue from his website.

"Issue 1 of an 80 pg. wordless adventure, The Story of Suave Prospects. This surreal tale focuses on four brothers. Born into the world as naive adults, they explore a mythical temple in search of their Ids. Magical candles, the living dead, dancing beer labels, alien plants, shape-changing mushrooms and a tavern in the belly of a whale are just some of the dream-like elements that they encounter. 4.25” x 5.5”/21 pages/b&w"

The art is fantastic in this. I am not sure I understood much of anything in the four small books, but it was interesting and made me think and try to decode what was going on, and what we were being told in each of the panels. In that regard I enjoyed it a lot. It's trippy. I don't think I ever have an opportunity to use that word, but it applies here. There is a heavy sense of design and mythology (central american) represented in the black and white. You get a lot of really heavy black and white, but also a lot of fine textures drawn in very thin lines. There is a strange mystical,sexual, and psychological vibe at work, and while I don't feel I understand it, I get it, and I like it.

Four Stories - Tom McHenry - noncanon.com - I was standing in front of Sara Bauer's table trying to figure out what to buy when I picked this up. I laughed so hard at what I saw on the random page I flipped to, that I felt obligated to buy it. The pieces in here aren't exactly funny, but the title of one of them just killed me... it was "Fucking Comics on the GodDamn Internet", which is a short sort of existentialist piece about two webcomics creators sitting in a cell talking about their place as basically mankind's last hope in some alien gladiatorial arena. It works. This also contains the story No Argument is Ever Won, which hits WAY too close to home for me about the dickish behavior we subject the people we love to, and geek... identity issues? The piece that hit me hardest is probably the Rag and Bone Man. Inside the strange sad story of a couple losing a baby, is this concept of selling things like memories and abilities, for money. This is a powerful and effective small volume. The art is good and the writing is great.

Hey Pais, the best thing in the WORLD - Sara Bauer - heypais.com - Hey Pais is a journal comic by a cat. It is simple and cute and funny and endearing. It is really just a nice comic. It is also a webcomic, so follow that link and enjoy! The mini comic I picked up is especially precious. In March, Paisley decided that she was going to make a March Madness inspired bracketed competition to determine the Best thing in the world. It was divided into four divisions of People, Food, Activities, and Events. There is a tiny little envelope inside the front cover with a very small copy of the brackets, which include among other things: Ice Cream, Dropping Beats, Morrissey and Unattended Bread. There is one comic for an item in each division in each round. It is very cute, and very funny. Inside the back cover is another tiny envelope that contains the brackets with the results all written in. I LOVED this. It makes me smile to take out the little brackets. It's sweet and nice and funny.

Outreach - Raina Telgemeier - www.goraina.com - It was really nice getting to meet Raina. She is just nice and friendly and accessible. Her art is fantastic, and she is a perfect choice for the graphic novel adaptations of the babysitters club books. I picked up two small volumes from her that have panels drawn from real life classes she has done for kids. I LOVED the fact that she had minis for sale. She has quite a few books under her belt, but she also had minis available, which is a genius thing to do in the context of a show like SPX especially. If she lived closer to Virginia I would be trying to figure out how to have her attend an event for our Girl Scout service unit. The cover for Outreach #2 is cute and smart. It has a boy and a girl reading comics on it, and the boy is reading a comic labeled comics for girls and the girl is reading the one for boys. PLUS her booth was giving away a cookie with each purchase!! it was delicious. <--- disclosure per the new FTC rules...

Ok, I am getting tired now. I know it doesn't look like much, but this is 9 comics covered. I have a bunch more that I have already read, but they will come in another day or so. Be sure to check out the sites for these folks!

Cross Country - MK Reed

Another longer work that I picked up at this year's SPX is the book Cross Country by MK Reed. I was excited to pick it up as I really enjoyed the two smaller works of hers that I picked up last year. For a tiny blurb on 'I will feast on your whore heart' and 'Myrtle Willoughby' go here.

Cross Country is a story about a guy named Ben who has taken a job as the assistant for an heir to a big chain store as he goes on a road trip visiting various stores as they celebrate milestones or have events, etc. Greg, Ben's boss, is a spoiled self centered frat boy asshole, and Ben is immediately sick of him, but he does his job and puts up with it.

Ben is a decent guy, but he has not gotten over the girl who left him in college, and is subjected to frequent and sometimes disturbing dreams about her still. Ben keeps in touch with his best friend Tara, via phonecalls and postcards, and ends up getting back in touch with his ex, and staying with her for a day. Greg ends up facing some consequences for his actions, and everything ends on a sort of promise of things getting at least somewhat better for Ben.

It's a great story with excellent and enjoyable dialog. It's smart and comes across as very genuine. The dream sequences are interesting and well done, and give us additional insight. Reed's art is simple, but well done and consistent. The story is dialog heavy, but in the way that a car trip and a reunion with an ex would be. It doesn't feel unrealistically padded or anything. The characters are distinct and there is a good bit of humor as well.

In a very basic and complimentary way, this book reminds me of the movie Sideways. There are a lot of basic similarities. Not even close to exactly the same, just the basic feel and some of the themes with the characters.

I highly recommend this. You can read a preview of the book, or order it for 10 dollars through the author's website

You'll Never Know, Book One: A Good and Decent Man

Carol Tyler was a VIP at the 2009 Small Press Expo. I had never read anything by her before this weekend. I had seen her name, and read a very little bit about her, but that was it. That was another one of those situations where my ignorance is my loss, whether I realize it or not. Fortunately for me SPX was there to help me. I attended the Q&A that comics critic Douglas Wolk did with Carol on Sunday of the show. I am really glad I did.

Listening to Carol Tyler talk was a highlight of the show for me. I think a lot of the creators and exhibitors there would have been greatly served by hearing the parts of her story and her approach to cartooning that she shared. She spoke at length about her new book from Fantagraphics that deals with her father's time in World War II and his long silence about it. Part of what was really driven home in her talk was how her father's story is not an exceptional one, how from the time of the war forward he was part of a great fraternity that includes pretty much anyone that has gone to war, and his tendency to be closed lipped about it is the rule of his era.

Her father is a poster child for that era in my opinion. He pursued the woman he was attracted to, he was a bit of a goof and a wise-acre when he was younger, he served his country because it was what people did, and after the war he didn't speak of it for decades. He was crusty and could be a real son of a bitch, but he did what he had to to support his family. I could go on further with traits like that. All of those things make him identifiable and also give the story it's impact.

We are served the story in the context of the artist herself. Her husband left her and her daughter, and she is doing what it takes to keep things going for the two of them. Throughout her life she saw evidence of his involvement in WWII, but it was not a subject her father would talk about. It was an empty space in his story that she thought must hold some clues to understanding him as she knew him. His unwillingness to talk about his war-time past ended with a phone call she received from him one day, and that kicked off what would become the impetus for this book. The book contains an account of her life at the time, focusing on the rebuilding of a scrapbook of his army days, and recounting his story from that time.

The art is wonderful, and I believe she said it was done entirely in inks. Her style is one of cartoony but expressive and identifiable people set against lush and beautifully detailed backgrounds that are just superb. Her caricature of herself is one of the most honest representations I have seen from an artist. The book itself is over sized and reminiscent of a family album in its dimensions. She stated in her talk that she wanted it to be something you really had to sit down with and take slowly, rather than some other format more fitted to a fast read. It was a real pleasure hearing her talk, and also having her sign my copy. I am sad that I have to wait until the end of 2010 for the next installment, but I am certain it will be worth the wait.

One of the things I was most affected by was her imperative to collect and tell people's stories. She has her class do exercises in that vein, interviewing real people and relating real stories. She speaks of the stories she has collected that she hopes to actually produce some day, and it is just magical. It's hard not to be affected by the enthusiasm, or impressed by that gift for seeing things that way. If you have a chance to meet her, or see her speak about anything, really, I recommend it.

Here is a link to Douglas Wolk's write up of this book in the New York Times.

No such thing as a Wednesday without comics

In an attempt to make Disappointment Wednesday a little less so, I went the webcomics route. There is a ton of really great stuff out there for free just waiting to be read, and even still I don't tend to read enough of it. I read a large number of items on Zuda, and have a handful of others that I frequent, but still I don't even touch a fraction of even the most well known and regarded comics on the web. I went the easy route and started at ACT-I-VATE.

ACT-I-VATE is a webcomics collective that was started by Dean Haspiel in 2006. It provides a place for talented, hand picked creators to host their comics and serialized graphic novels. There is a great lot of great and recognizable talent there. There are dozens of offerings, and previously I have only read one or two. Not sure why, but then I am never sure what keeps me from reading good stuff that everyone else is smart enough to read when it's new.

Here's What I read there:

Adventures of Maxy J. Millionaire - Paul Maybury - This was a Zuda contest entry at one point. I loved it there, and I love it here. Especially wonderful is the last page where Maxy confronts Paul about the book that he's supposed to do about Maxy. Maxy J. is a stuffed toy who loves chicken nuggets and writing checks. He leaves his girl after she has grown up and put him through the indignity of having sex with someone in his bed. It's sort of cute and sweet and sad. Maxy is naive and self centered and a bit delusional. It's a really good character. I love Maybury's art, and would love to see this go someplace.

Beanbots - Kevin Kobasic - I may use the word sweet alot in this post. Beanbots focuses on a Dad and his two daughters (I am a father of two daughters, so it really resonates, but it is good regardless of that) The art is sort of soft focus and cute, but in a way that drives home the whole raising girls thing. If you have girls, or know them, or were one, or are one, you know that especially when they are little they can be a cross between the cutest thing you have ever encountered and a Tasmanian devil, or sometimes the actual devil. They can undo anything you are secure in, and make you love more than you thought was possible. This is a very funny strip, but there is a reality to it that is just perfect. One of my favorite strips has the Dad taking care of the two girls and walking with them in public. They have angel halos and he has a superman cape. By the end of the strip both of them are bawling and he has an ass for a head(hopefully you follow that link to see the whole thing).

Flowing Wells - Andrew Dimitt - This is another comic that was in a Zuda competition once. 8 screens and the sort of storytelling that this is didn't translate well into the Zuda model. That is a sort of Weakness in the Zuda concept, but it certainly isn't damning in my opinion to Zuda or this strange but excellent comic. Flowing wells is almost entirely narrative so far. The art is really great, and very clean. I am seriously a big fan of this. I don't fully get it, but the concept as I understand it is very cool. It is something that really needed space to grow and develop, and given that, draws you in well. As I understand it, Flowing Wells is like if the Sims took place on an actual planet and everything was actually built upon the planet and the sims that were created there suffered under various mods that caused all sort of problems, including giving them free will. When we join the story there are very few 'people' left there.

Underwire - Jennifer Hayden - This is perhaps my favorite. These pieces are absolutely from a woman's perspective, but they are less gender specific than they are just true to life, easily identifiable pieces of on the human experience. The art is absolutely perfect. It is personal and accessible and expressive. I have linked to my favorite panel of my favorite story. Visit the link then start at the beginning of the story. Each chapter is a 12 to 18 panel strip that comes off as a short story or vignette. They all work for me and give us looks at real and different every day sorts of occurrences elevated to art. I highly recommend this. The panel I have linked to is a situation that my wife and I definitely experienced ourselves with our oldest. We pointed out the moment things changed as well. Hayden is working on a graphic novel - "The Story of My Tits" which is scheduled for 2011 from Top Shelf, according to her website . It is definitely on my list as something I need to get when it comes out.

For the final webcomic I read, I looked no further than someone I follow on twitter, and whose blog I regularly visit - Keven Church - I have only read a few entries of his webcomic The Rack, but it is definitely something I want to read. Today I chose to Read the 'limited series' spin off of the Rack-

Lydia: A comic strip about corporate culture. - There was no issue with understanding and enjoying this, despite my limited experience with The Rack. It was very funny, very well drawn, and extremely well written. It wasn't Dilbert, and it wasn't The Office, it was yet again unique, despite covering an angle on a set up that has been done a good bit. This takes it from a slightly different direction than we have seen it before, and works. Lydia went from working in a comic shop to working in a corporate environment where it was immediately clear that management was flaky and imbalanced, but not immediately clear what the job was that she was hired to do. Good clever stuff, go read it now.

Ranma 1/2 vs Usagi Yojimbo

I am pretty sure that before this week I had never read any Ranma 1/2, or any Usagi Yojimbo. These 2 series are unrelated except for the facts that 1. I picked up 2 volumes each at my local library, 2. I just read 2 volumes of each of them, 3. I am talking about them now (or' talkin' 'bout' them, as it were).

Usagi Yojimbo - Stan Sakai - This is a pretty straight forward lovingly done tribute to a genre. It also uses anthropomorphic animals to tell its stories. I am a big fan of Kurosawa's samurai era films. I also bought a lot of Lone Wolf and Cub when First Comics put out the English language editions with the Frank Miller covers in the late 80's. Usagi Yojimbo started around the same time I think, and I have been aware of it, and thought it was cool, but never read it because sometimes(most times) I am slow to pick up on things.

The volumes I got from the library are numbered 2 and 3, and are put out by Fantagraphics. In this case I don't think starting with volume 2 was bad because it contains what was the first 6 volumes of the Usagi Yojimbo comic, and starts right off with a very nice origin story retelling by the main character himself.

You should know by now that I tend to like nearly everything I read on some level or another. Even I have a ha

rd time believing me when I re-read my reviews. That being said, and unnecessarily apologized for... I really love this series so far, and can't believe it has taken me this long to actually break into it.

The really great thing about this, is that the art is fantastic. It's dynamic and expressive (I think those are important things for art in a comic like this), and allows you to distance this work from its 'source' material. It makes this telling of things completely its own. I don't feel like the use of Animals here is completely allegorical in nature. I don't feel that every animal represented is directly representative of some characteristic of the specific character. Some are, but I don't think it is trying to be that deep all the time. I consider that a very good thing. The way it is done is light, has a good bit of humor, but also comes across as having more depth than just that. Usagi is a real character and we are on his journey with him. He is very much cut from the same cloth as the heroes of the genre I mentioned earlier, and his story is expertly told. Plus... You have to admit that a kick butt samurai rabbit is an extremely cool character design.

This is well written and well drawn. If you like the stories of Zatoichi or Miyamoto Musashi, or any of the others I mentioned, you should give this a shot. If you aren't sure about those things, give this a shot anyway. I think this is a pretty accessible window into the genre.

Ranma 1/2 - Rumiko Takahashi - I am not a big consumer of manga. I have read a number of titles, but nowhere near the hundreds that my daughters have read. I have seen Ranma 1/2 for a LONG time, my library has a ton of it, but I have never tried to read it, and never really understood what it was about. I decided on my last trip or 2 to the library that i would specifically pick up some things I had sort of avoided reading for a long time, and make an effort to read them.

Ranma 1/2 is the story of a father and his daughters who run a martial arts school. He has arranged with an old friend that one of his daughters will become engaged to the friend's son, sight unseen. When the friend and his son show up, it becomes clear pretty quickly that something strange has happened to them. Ultimately it boils down to the fact that they had gone to China and chose to train in an area covered with cursed springs. Anyone falling into one of the springs comes out of it oddly and mostly comically transformed. The transformations are triggered by hot and cold water. The father turns into a giant panda when he is splashed with cold water. The son turns into a girl. To change them back they need to be doused with hot water.

Ranma Saotome is the boy in question. He is an expert martial artist. Akane Tendo is the daughter that ends up engaged to him. Her sisters decided that since Akane seems to hate all the boys she has met, that a boy who is also a girl would be ideal for her. There isn't a ton of depth here, but there is a lot of action, and even more humor. There are also a lot of boobs. lots and lots, but no sexual situations. I will probably let my 10 year old read this. As far as nudity goes, it is about as inoffensive as you can get, and is generally used for humor one way or another.

Akane is also extremely skilled in martial arts. Prior to Ranma showing up, she was able to beat up all the boys in her area. She is not keen on being anyone's fiance at the moment, especially not someone she didn't choose. She is hard-headed and has a quick temper, but she is not without her endearing qualities as well.

In addition to Ranma and his father, we get another character that has had misfortune at the cursed springs. He blames Ranma for it, and is intent upon destroying him. Unfortunately for him, his changed form is that of the cutest little black pig you will ever see.

Obviously this is filled with improbable situations where the changing characters are doused with water far more than anyone should ever expect to be doused with water. I laughed out loud constantly as I was reading this. The second volume moves into the realm of odd specialty fights that Ranma must be a girl to help out in. First it is a Martial Rhythmic Gymnastics battle, and then it is a Martial Figure Skating battle. I admit that those things seem kind of dumb to me, but they are really pretty funny, and very smartly executed. Again, there isn't a ton of depth, but there is a lot of action and cuteness and humor.

Casanova v1 TPB

I have had Matt Fraction's Casanova: Luxuria for about a year or so. I have tried to read it a few times prior to this and just wasn't able to. The very beginning of it is kind of dense. What i understand now is that instead of getting confused and setting the book down, you just need to give it a few more pages. Don't stress out if you don't fully understand it as it starts out pretty fast and gets the confusing stuff out of the way pretty quickly. It quickly turns into a sort of joyride if you just go with it.

Casanova is another thing that I will call a love letter to comics. You really get a sense that Fraction just loves the hell out of comics in the way this is written (including the statement 'I love Comics' actually appearing in the book, but that isn't what I am talking about). You get a lot of fun comic conventions all over the place in this. Mad scientist, evil mastermind, super spy, robots, giant robot, time travel(time/space/dimensional travel), life model decoys, multiple earths, death that isn't final, psychic duels, advanced civilizations, and much more are packed into this story.

Casanova Quinn is the son of the leader of the big law enforcement organization E.M.P.I.R.E. His sister Zephyr is also a super spy/agent. After his sister is killed, Cass is pulled into another timeline where the Casanova there had been killed, and the Zephyr there had not. From that point he is enlisted by Newman Xeno to be a double agent, and to run missions for W.A.S.T.E. The AIM to EMPIRE's SHIELD. The missions are sometimes just piggybacked onto his EMPIRE missions, but are often counter to the objectives. He is constantly facing off against his sister and Xeno and other elements. When the volume ends he is in a good position to start anew, with a base of operations and a freshly assembled team.

It's a romp, a wild ride, it's a well done story with a lot of humor and a great deal of cleverness about it. The art is by Gabriel Ba and works very well with the story. If you've never read it, here is a link to a good CBR article on it that includes a preview of the entire first issue

Lucifer, the first 4 Trades

I think I have re-read most of the first volume of the Lucifer trade about five times. I have enjoyed it every time, but for some reason I have waited to read any further than that, even though I got the first three trades for my birthday a while back, and have had volumes 4 and 6 since last year (half priced trades at Heroes I think, and I still need to pick up v5.

In the past five days I have read the first four trades. This amounts to issues 1-28 of the comic. If I had the fifth volume right now, I wouldn't be writing this.

Lucifer is a spin off from Sandman. Lucifer was a character in certain storylines in Sandman, and one of the things that happened there was that he abdicated Hell, and had Dream, of the endless, cut his wings off. If you have read any Sandman at all, you know that not only is it very well written, but it is also a very dense and I would say fertile work. It is very thick with characters and worlds and possibilities. As you read Sandman, you get a feeling that all of those places existed outside of the storyline, that they were real things with their own histories and futures, and that

whatever we saw in the comic was just a glimpse. It is a very rich work in that regard. There are a lot of possibilities for stories that could be picked up and told. Some of them have been, and many have not. According to the introduction in volume 1, Lucifer is the character that Neil Gaiman most wanted to see 'spun off'. I think it was an ideal choice for that honor, and I think it is clear that Mike Carey really was the right person to do it.

The character of Lucifer is one that I think would be hard to write well. He is clever and sly, he is an individualist, as well as a being of great power. He is called the prince of lies, but as the comics make very clear, he keeps his word. His intellect and his cleverness are such that he seems to operate exclusively in the 'very big picture' view of things. You may think you have him at a disadvantage, but you can't be sure he hadn't already allowed for that, and built it into his plan before you even started to formulate yours. He is a master of negotiation, a master of the bluff, and he is always aware of the true rules that govern any situation. He also commands respect, and may not tolerate it when people don't know their place.

The beauty of this series is in the telling. When you are reading it, you are always seeing multiple angles. You are never perched on Lucifer's shoulder for very long, but you see the plot building through the points of view of a great number of supporting cast. Sometimes the supporting cast are recurring characters, and sometimes they are almost just incidental. In one, we see two unfortunate 'pilgrims' who happen into Lucifer's home uninvited, in another we get a wonderful story of a female centaur that was born in Lucifer's realm outside of creation. She sees the future and seeks to warn him as he is their creator.

My favorite character in the stories is Elaine Belloc. When we first see her she is a young girl whose friend was killed, only to remain her friend as a ghost. Elaine sees ghosts, and is able to call on the spirits of her Grandmothers to give her guidance. We learn a lot more about Elaine as the story goes on, and due to his saving her life and always being honest with her, she is considers Lucifer her friend.

Ultimately the stories relate to Lucifer's rebellion against heaven, and his desire to have a creation of his own where no-one bows down to anyone, and religion is the only thing that is truly forbidden. He makes a lot of enemies in the process, and their machinations are rolled into the story as well, creating a compelling and interesting series of stories and events.

I truly believe that this series is brilliantly done. I would say that it is every bit as good as Sandman, but I think it's standing as a byproduct of that series makes it hard say that. It's the flawless heir in my opinion, a very worthy offspring to a very good comic. It takes the character (and some of the supporting ones) and continues them in a way that just moves naturally from everything we saw about them in the first place.

I strongly recommend giving this a read if you haven't already. If you aren't a Sandman fan you should give it a read anyway. (If anything, just give Sandman: Season of the Mists a read before you start this).

Heartbreak Soup

I am not sure that I have given Gilbert Hernandez and his work the love they deserve. Since I first fell in love with Love and Rockets (in the mid to late 80's) it was more about Jaime and the Locas stories. I read a good bit of Palomar stuff, but I never REALLY read it. It could be argued that I did that with a lot of the Love and Rockets stuff I had in general, at first, anyway. I got the Locas hardcover when it came out a few years ago, but didn't pick up Palomar, and then felt stupid when it was no longer available. A few months ago I picked up the lovely 2007 Heartbreak Soup paperback. and last week I ordered the second volume that covers Palomar stuff, Human Diastrophism.

I think a lot of my dismissiveness in the past is probably due to a lack of maturity on my part. When I was first encountering this stuff I was maybe 17, and the punk edge of Maggie and Hopey appealed to me more than the goings on in a small town. Twenty-two years later I must have matured enough to appreciate it. I started reading it and could barely put it down until I finished. It was a good meaty read, and not something you could just speed through. It's about 285 pages of comics, and it is very dense with dialog and characters and intertwined plots. There are also very helpful little pronunciation guides at the bottoms of the pages that help with character names. I am ok with Spanish pronunciation, but still found it helpful.

In this volume there isn't really a single theme, a single steady plot that drives the volume, etc. We get a good number of individual stories that all exist in the same basic setting, using some amount of the same characters at various points in their lives. It really functions as a window on a small town in Mexico and focuses on the lives, loves, heartbreaks and triumphs of the people that live there. I was trying to think of something that it brings to mind, and I guess two things really struck me as being evoked in the stories. The first is the Eisner's Contract With God Trilogy, and how it really highlights a location as the central focus and we see the world that revolves around that spot, and the people that come and go. The other is the Andy Griffith Show. Palomar could be Mayberry. Both are filled with characters you might find in any small town, and both, despite their size and distance from a big city will not tolerate being made to look like bumpkins or let their 'simple country nature' be taken advantage of.

Gilbert's art is a masterwork of cartooning skill. Palomar comes across as a fully populated, 'living' town. Every character is distinct. Every character shows a real range of feelings and emotions. Faces are expressive, but body language is also clearly communicated through the art. If there is one place that I personally believe he excels the most, it would be in his portrayal of children. The stories are filled with children. If not in the foreground, then in the background. They are delightfully, and perfectly portrayed. There is that sense that kids can be kids regardless of where you put them, or what situation they might be in. I just found them to be real.

I can't speak highly enough of this. If somehow you have made it this far in your life and you haven't given this a read, then you owe it to yourself. The paperback is 14.95 and can be picked up online for less. I can't imagine that anyone has captured the human condition any better than this. The stories are sweet and sad and sometimes optimistic, and sometimes not. It's a lot like life, only with better writing and art.

Age of Bronze: Betrayal, Part One

I picked up the hardcover of this Eric Shanower comic at the library a few days ago because I wanted to finally give Age of Broze a read. I had picked it up a few times and was scared off by how dense it seemed, and the historical aspect of it, even though I am a big fan of mythology(Greek and otherwise) and generally like things about ancient civilizations and the warfare of those times.

I was at the library and resolved to give some things a chance that I had avoided in the past for whatever reason. I am sort of running out of things I haven't read from the comics collection at my local branch and figure that I should broaden my scope even more than I already have. I borrowed this book, as well as a Star Wars graphic novel, Ranma 1/2 , 2 Justice League themed audio books on CD, and a Cartoon History of the Universe.

What I didn't realize at the time is that I sort of had the wrong book in my hands, and had picked up not Age of Bronze #1, but Age of Bronze Betrayal #1. I still want to pick up the initial stories, but my lack of background on this was no barrier to enjoying it.

Age of Bronze Betrayal starts with the Trojans and the Achaeans on more than just the Brink of war. All the gears are in motion, and preparations on both sides are in full force. We get a very good 'story so far' recap and detailed maps to help make sense of everything that's happening. It helps a lot, especially since I haven't read the previous installments. This is apparently part 3 of 7, but again, It is a great read on it's own. It reads like a history, but it is shown in a way that keeps the humor and drama and intrigue at the forefront. There are a TON of heavy hitter type characters, and all are dealt with as individuals. I think this might be the best format for this sort of story.

The art is clean and beautiful, and even though the story contains at least a hundred dark haired guys with beards, all of the characters become easily identifiable as you get farther into the book. It was engrossing and compelling and made me keep my eyes on it until I had finished reading it. It's an excellenty done historical fiction account of the Trojan War. I recommend it if you like any of the sort of elements that it is composed of.