Sunday, March 25, 2012

Not Many Books

  1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.

    Teena recommended this to me when she read it, but I kept putting it off. Then I realized the movie was coming soon, so I started it. My reading was interrupted by having my appendix removed, but I got back to it and finished it this week. I enjoyed this and am looking forward to seeing the movie soon. (Borrowed from Teena.)
  2. Irredeemable, vol. 8 by Mark Waid, Peter Krause, et al.

    Still enjoying this series. But I am glad that Waid has a finish-point in mind. This is a story that should definitely come to an end and not drag on forever. (Checked out of the library.)
  3. Fear Itself by Matt Fraction & Stuart Immonen.

    The latest Marvel cross-over. Okay, as these things go. (Library.)
  4. Secret Avengers: Fear Itself by Nick Spencer, Scot Eaton, et al.

    Tie-in to the latest Marvel cross-over. (Library.)
  5. Sweet Tooth, vol. 4: Endangered Species by Jeff Lemire.

    This series just keeps getting better.

And now: several weeks' worth of movies and the like
  • Attack the BlockGreat British science fiction movie. The accents are occasionally hard to make out, and the protagonists start out unsympathetic, but it really comes together. I really liked this an heartily recommend it.
  • The Venture Bros.: Season OneWatched this while recuperating. The episode that starts with an extensive quote from "Space Oddity" is the one that moved this series into one of my favorites.

And that's it. A medical emergency kind of preempted most of our movie plans.

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Back in the Saddle

Not completely recovered, but feeling better than I did last week.
  1. Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton.

    Great collection of strips from the website of the same name. Lots of history, and occasional super-heroes. Very funny.
  2. Habibi by Craig Thompson.

    A beautiful book, and while Thompson has said that he was deliberately playing with the tropes of Orientalism, I don't think he overcame the problematic aspects. This post is an excellent examination of the book. (Checked out of the library.)
  3. Save Yourself, Mammal!: A Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal Collection by Zach Weiner.

    A print collection of another webcomic that I enjoy.
  4. Xombi by John Rozum & Frazer Irving.

    Xombi was one of my favorite of the Milestone comics, so I was very excited to read this revival. My only disappointment is that this collection is all we are going to get. Apparently it sold very poorly, which is a shame, since the art is beautiful, and the story is great. Full of strangeness, but not too weird as to be off-putting.
  5. Archie's Haunted House by various. Spooky stories featuring Archie & the Riverdale gang.
  6. Thunderbolts Classic, vol. 2 by Kurt Busiek, Mark Bagley, et al. A great super-hero series from the dark days of the 90s.
  7. 20th Century Boys, vol. 19: The Man Who Came Back by Naoki Urasawa.

    I wish this were being published more frequently than bi-monthly. Can't wait for the next volume.
  8. Mister X: The Brides of Mister X and Other Stories by Jeffrey Morgan, Shane Oakley, D'Israeli, et al.

    In some ways the embodiment of style over substance. When that style is good enough, I don't mind. But I really don't care for Oakley's art. So I really disliked about half this book. (Library.)
  9. Captain Britain and MI13, vol. 3: Vampire State by Paul Cornell, Leonard Kirk, et al.

    I really enjoyed this series. Glad Cornell was able to wrap things up when it was cancelled, but wish it had lasted longer. I should have bought it when it was coming out.
  10. Masters of the Nonsenseverse: A Get Fuzzy Collection by Darby Conley.

    To quote my Goodreads review: "Starting to wear a bit thin. I don't find the Bucky-oriented strips as amusing as I used to. But I love Satchel more than ever."
  11. Showcase Presents: Our Army at War, vol. 1 by various.

    War comics from the 50s. Okay, but not all that good. Entertaining enough in a cheap reprint like this.

I'm not sure when I last updated movies, but I think I've done enough for now with the books. Movies next week. (Assuming I'm not playing Mass Effect 3 instead of updating.)

Sunday, March 11, 2012

Delayed on account of surgery

I had my appendix removed Thursday night and do not feel like updating today,

Sunday, March 04, 2012

Avoiding Childish Jokes About the Start of the Numbering This Week

  1. Red Skull: Incarnate by Greg Pak & Mirko Colak. Early years of the boy who would become Captain America's greatest foe. Done with quite a bit of research & largely historically accurate (as far as I can tell). Certainly there are no indications in the book that this is the Marvel Universe. (Checked out of the library.)
  2. American Vampire, vol. 3 by Scott Snyder, Rafael Albuquerque, & Sean Murphy.

    Still enjoying this, although I was annoyed by a scene set in 1943 in which a woman is referred to as "Ms." (Library.)
  3. Earl & Mooch: A Mutts Treasury by Patrick McDonnell.

    Love this comic strip.
  4. Princess Knight, pt. 1 by Osamu Tezuka.

    I'll write about this when I finish part 2.
  5. Captain Britain and Mi13: Hell Comes To Birmingham by Paul Cornell, Leonard Kirk, et al. Very British and very enjoyable.

I don't feel like dealing with movies this week, so I'm putting that off for now.