Much of the 1980s were filled with comics that were, well, crap. Hell, the 1970s weren’t that great either. A lot of them were just rehashes of old stories from the 50s and 60s that weren’t that great to begin with, and really added nothing more to the table, save a few bad one-liners.
Old-fashioned comedic violence
A while back, my good buddy who got me into comics let me borrow his copy of “The Goon: Nothing but Misery.” I thanked him but it sat on my floor for a while gathering dust as I wasn’t particularly inclined to pick it up.
At the time I was reading a lot of “Hellboy” and felt very serious about my comic reading, so I didn’t really feel like reading anything else.
Comic review: I am a disappointed nerd
Let me warn you: this story is not only going to be a complete nerd rant but will also to contain quite a few spoilers about Grant Morrison’s recent work of “Batman R.I.P.”.
I am a huge fan of Batman. He is one of those iconic characters that has been around for almost 70 years but new artists and writers have been able to still make interesting.
Comic relief: A memoir in little pictures
I have a bit of a problem. I really like to spend money on things I shouldn’t, like comic books. For instance, last week I was at a bookstore with no intent of buying anything, and of course I had to check out the graphic novel section. I stumbled upon something I just had to have, Jeffery Brown’s “Little Things: A Memoir in Slices.
Social security: More fraudulent than Madoff
Every so often, a rascal comes along so scandalous and deviant that history weaves his name with the deeds he committed. Reaching such infamy requires a lot of hard work, and not just your average sod can do it. Many a fallen creature has competed for the title, but the title can only belong to one who truly earns it.
“Identity Crisis” is what it means to be a comic hero
Believe it or not, I haven’t always been into comics. When I was a kid I would read the occasional comic book when I went to the grocery store with my mom, but nothing ever obsessive, like you would probably say is the case now. When I got older, comic books seemed to be a nerd hobby much too far on the fringes of what could ever be conceived as “cool,” or even acceptable.
Hellboy: The movie isn’t enough, go read the comics
So I’m probably going to nerd out on you right now but I don’t care. You probably already know that I’m pretty into comics, and if you don’t, you do now. I’ve read quite a few of them in my day (probably an understatement) and I try to let people know which ones are good and which ones are crap.
Why I Love Comics
So I was up in San Francisco a few days ago, as a final hoorah before the new quarter, with a couple dear friends of mine. On my visit I made it my goal to go to at least one of Frisco’s comic book shops. Now, before any of you Bay Area people flame me with hate e-mail about calling San Francisco “Frisco,” you would only be wasting your time.