Back

117. Sgt. Frog, vols. 1-3 by Mine Yoshizaki. Kinda cute, but not really all that interesting.
     
118. Past Lies by Nunzio DeFilippis, Christina Weir, & Christopher Mitten. Detective story with a (possibly) supernatural edge. In some ways, this reminded me of Veronica Mars, but that's because the main character is a young woman working as a private eye in southern California.
     
119. Tank Girl: The Gifting by Alan Martin & Ashley Wood. I'm not sure why I expected anything different, but this was remarkably like the original Tank Girl comics, just with a different artist. (Checked out of the library.)
     
120. Rex Mundi, Book 4: Crown & Sword by Arvid Nelson & Juan Ferreyra. The latest volume in this alternate history series. (Library.)
     
121. Marvel Adventures Iron Man, vol. 2: Iron Armory by Fret Van Lente, et al.
     
122. One Piece, vol. 12: The Legend Begins by Eiichiro Oda.
     
123. The Mourning Star by Kazimir Strzepek. Post-apocalyptic graphic novel set in a fantasy world. I picked this up on Alex's recommendation. Pretty good stuff.
     
124. The Tomb by Christina Weir, Nunzio DeFillipis. The writing is very good here, but sometimes the art isn't up to par when it comes to storytelling or making sure the reader knows who is who.
     
125. Ultimate Spider-Man, vol. 9 by Brian Michael Bendis & Mark Bagely. It's been a while since the last one of these, and I had forgotten just how good this can be. It really is an excellent comic.
     
126. The Long Road Home: One Step at a Time by G.B. Trudeau. A collection of Doonesbury strips about BD's rehabilitation after losing a leg in Iraq.
     
127. MW by Osamu Tezuka. This is much darker than I'm used to from Tezuka, and I'm not quite sure what to make of this story about a sociopath's search for a stash of nerve gas.
     
128. Showcase Presents: Metal Men by Robert Kanigher & Ross Andru. I don't know if I can describe the insanity of the stories in this book. In one, a chemist has a huge plastic man-shaped container made so that, when an experiment goes wrong, he can empty the chemicals into it as a reminder of his failures. Of course, when the container is filled, it comes to life & runs amok. In another, Tin has been captured by the robot queen of another planet because she has fallen in love with him. Unfortunately, Tin is much smaller than she is, so she force-feeds him giant fruit that causes him to grow to her size (and also changes his demeanor from meek to callous). I don't know what Kanigher was smoking (or perhaps what meds he should have been on), but I'm glad he did (or didn't), because the madness of these stories is glorious. On the other hand, the casual misogyny on display here is pretty hard to take.
     
129. Phoenix, vol. 1: Dawn by Osamu Tezuka. I had been checking these out from the library, but then I decided that they were good enough that I wanted to own them. I also decided to wait until the whole entire series was available before reading them. Volume 12 was recently published, so here I go.
     
130. Phoenix, vol. 2: Future by Osamu Tezuka.
     
131. Phoenix, vol. 3: Yamato/Space by Osamu Tezuka.
     
132. Phoenix, vol. 4: Karma by Osamu Tezuka. This volume is fantastic. It's the story of a woodcutter and a bandit in feudal Japan, and it is very moving. Absolutely fantastic. Highly recommended.
     
133. Phoenix, vol. 5: Resurrection by Osamu Tezuka.
     
134. Phoenix, vol. 6: Nostalgia by Osamu Tezuka. This one I didn't like so much. It's odd and rambling, and it feels rather pointless. A lot of it feels like filler.
     
135. Princess at Midnight by Andi Watson. The latest of Watson's comics aimed at kids.

Busy Weekend

I'm tired and will catch up next week.

Another Sunday

106. Green Lantern, vol. 2: Revenge of the Green Lanterns by Geoff Johns, Carlos Pacheco, Ethan Van Scriver, & Ivan Reis. (Checked out of the library.)
     
107. Phonogram: Rue Britannia by Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie. This was pretty good, but I suspect I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I had ever been into a music scene. I like music a lot, I've got a fairly large music collection (something over 1000 CDs), but I've never identified with a particular genre or been into clubbing. If I had, this book would have resonated more.
     
108. Yotsuba & !, vol. 5 by Kiyohiko Azuma. More cuteness, including the wonder that is Cardbo the cardboard robot. (Library.)
     
109. The Order, vol. 1: The Next Right Thing by Matt Fraction & Barry Kitson. Not nearly as crazy as some of Fraction's other work, but still good, solid superheroics.
     
110. Little Lulu, v. 16: A Handy Kid by John Stanley & Irving Trip. Teena has been making an effort lately to build up the graphic novel part of her classroom library, and I bought this with an eye towards donating it to the cause. However, as good as these comics are, they occasionally feature aspects of childhood that were acceptable in children's entertainment 50 years ago but are no longer. Things like children sneaking puffs on a cigar or parents spanking children.
     
111. Vogelein, vol. 2: Old Ghosts by Jane Irwin. (Library.)
     
112. Star Wars: Legacy, vol. 2: Shards by John Ostrander, Colin Wilson, Jan Duursema, et al.
     
113. Fallen Angel, vol. 4: Heroine Addiction by Peter David, J.K. Woodward, et al.
     
114. Miki Falls, vol. 1: Spring by Mark Crilley. I picked this up because I really enjoyed Crilley's Akiko stories. This is an attempt to capture some of the manga market, and it is good. I liked the characterization & the art. I have some trouble with the premise of the macguffin, but it doesn't bother me enough that I won't pick up the other volumes when I can.
     
115. One Piece, vol. 11: The Meanest Man in the East by Eiichiro Oda.
     
116. Hikaru No Go, vol. 9: The Pro Test Begins by Yumi Hotta & Takeshi Obata.

I Hate Daylight Savings

90. Bumperboy Loses His Marbles by Debbie Huey. Another book for Teena's classroom.
    
91. Embroideries by Marjane Satrapi. (Checked out of the library.)
    
92. Due by Michele Petrucci.
    
93. Superman: Secret Identity by Kurt Busiek & Stuart Immonen. I was very lucky to find a copy of this book at cover price. It appears to be out of print, and that's a huge shame, because it's wonderful. Busiek extends the superhero metaphor beyond adolescent power fantasies and explores how it can be a metaphor for young adulthood, fatherhood, and late middle age. This book is fantastic. It's on a par with Busiek's work in Astro City. I think part of the reason it was allowed to go out of print is that Busiek was inspired by Superboy Prime (as presented in his original appearances during the '80s). Since in the mainstream DC universe that character has been turned into a whiny emo villain (one that embodies nearly everything I think is wrong with current superhero comics), the powers that be probably don't want to remind people that he once represented something else.
    
94. Welcome to Tranquility, vol. 1 by Gail Simone & Neil Googe. A great story about a retirement community for superheroes. (Library.)
    
95. Astro Boy, vol. 23 by Osamu Tezuka.
    
96. Thunderbolt Jaxon by Dave Gibbons & John Higgins. (Library.)
    
97. Thor Visionaries: Walter Simonson, vol. 5 by Walter Simonson & Sal Buscema. The final volume of Simonson's wonderful run on Thor.
    
98. Gumby: The Collected Edition by Bob Burden & Rick Geary. Wacky, goofy stuff. I especially like the part where Gumby is captured & hypnotized by an evil circus troupe. They try to figure out what to do with him until the ringmaster decides that, since Gumby is made out of clay, to write some Hebrew letters on his forehead and pass him off as a golem.
    
99. Iron Man: Hypervelocity by Adam Warren & Brian Denham. Tech porn. (Library.)
    
100. Supervillain Team-Up: Modok's 11 by Fred Van Lente & Francis Portela. I love the idea of a heist carried out by a team of supervillains, and this did not disappoint.
     
101. Bleach, vol. 22: Conquistadores by Tite Kubo.
     
102. Owly: The Way Home & The Bittersweet Summer by Andy Runton. Another book for Teena's classroom.
     
103. Power Pack: Pack Attack! by Marc Sumerak & GuriHiru. I bought this myself, but after I read it I donated it to Teena's classroom library.
     
104. Gyo: The Death-Stench Creeps, vol. 1 by Junji Ito.
     
105. Gyo: The Death-Stench Creeps, vol. 2 by Junji Ito. Disgusting, creepy horror story from the creator of Uzumaki.

Sunday Update

77. The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service, vol. 5 by Eiji Otsuka & Housui Yamazaki. More Japanese horror. (Checked out of the library.)
    
78. Manga Shakespeare: Hamlet adapted by Emma Vieceli. If done well, this could have been fantastic. But I can't see any reason for doing this manga-style except that manga is popular right now. Plus the art just isn't all that good. And the text has been drastically cut. It's been years since I've read the play, but I could tell that great chunks of the text had been left out. I'm glad I bought this on sale & didn't pay much for it.
    
79. Age of Bronze, vol. 3A: Betrayal, part 1 by Eric Shanower. Now, this is good. Shanower does a stunning job of integrating many different versions of the story of the Trojan War into his own version. It's got an enormous cast, but he makes each character distinct, both visually & in characterization. A wonderful, wonderful comic. I just wish it came out more frequently.
    
80. Chicken with Plums by Marjane Satrapi. Good, but depressing tale of the last days of Satrapi's uncle's life. (Library.)
    
81. Iron West by Doug TenNapel. Cowboys & robots. (Library.)
    
82. Hikaru no Go, vol. 8: The Pro Test Preliminaries, Day Four by Yumi Hotta & Takeshi Obata.
    
83. Crossing Midnight, vol. 2: A Map of Midnight by Mike Carey, Jim Fern, & Eric Nguyen. I'm really enjoying these collections, so I feel a little guilty because apparently the individual issues haven't sold well enough & the series is being canceled. Dammit.
    
84. Cover Girl by Andrew Crosby, Kevin Church, & Mateus Santolouco. I enjoyed this, but it feels like it originated as a movie pitch: a young actor going nowhere witnesses a car accident & rescues a woman from the wreckage, the fame from that jump starts his career, but now people are trying to kill him, so the studio hires a bodyguard, and the sparks fly between him & her.
    
85. The Dreaming, vol. 1 by Queenie Chan. Moody, spooky story set in an Australian boarding school. I reread this volume & the next because the final volume was recently published.
    
86. The Dreaming, vol. 2 by Queenie Chan.
    
87. The Dreaming, vol. 3 by Queenie Chan. I found the ending a little disappointing, but overall I liked the series.
    
88. Casanova, vol. 1: Luxuria by Matt Fraction & Gabriel Ba. Imagine a young Mick Jagger starring in a Jerry Cornelius version of a James Bond novel. This is something like that. Very cool, very fun stuff, filled with weird & twisted ideas.
    
89. Bumperboy and the Loud, Loud Mountain by Debbie Huey. Extremely cute kid's book that we discovered thanks to Alex. Teena bought this for her classroom, and I borrowed it from her before she took it to school.