OPB’s Think Out Loud recently [re?]aired The Rise of the Graphic Novel. During the show they discuss the difference between comics and the graphic novel, which, IMHO, there really isn’t one. One of the guests echoed my sentiments when he said, “graphic novels are just comics with spines.” And that is book spine, of course. Manga and comics in libraries also come into play, and there is some great commentary from Alison Bedchel, James Lucas Jones, head editor at Portland based Oni Press [publishers of Scott Pilgrim], and many local Portland comics artists and fans.
Give it a listen here.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Tonight is also the Dark Horse talk at PSU. Should I skip it in favor of the unconfirmed test screening of Watchmen? Hmmm….what to do? I’ll report back with my decision.
EDIT: Dark Horse it is. I figure if I went to the theater there is a chance I will not get a ticket, that the screening may not even be happening, and besides, I can always see the movie at a later time. The DH talk is a one-time event plus there may be free food so.
Cindy Sherman’s Untitled Film Still #13 aka ‘The Librarian’ has sold for $902,500 at a Christie’s auction! Wowza. The photographs from Sherman’s Film Stills series are largely inspired by B-movies, film noir, and films from the 50s and 60s.
Here is Sherman in the library, looking deceptively wholesome, I think. She looks very young [Sherman was 23 when this was shot, old enough to have just finished her MLS degree] and there is a ‘Library Lolita’ feel to this photograph. Oh yes, I love fueling the bookworm-by-day-bad-girl-by-night librarian stereotype.
I think this would be a great idea for an exhibit at a library or, EVEN BETTER, as an alternative way of displaying staff and committee photos on library walls! Shot in black and white, those being photographed would create [or recreate] some library-centric scene from the past. Since black and white film would be used, scenes from 1960s and earlier would be best. Ooh! Now how do I get management to share MY VISION.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Mike Richardson, president and co-founder of Dark Horse Comics and Portland State University alum, has donated and will continue to donate copies of all Dark Horse titles to the PSU Library to create an extensive Dark Horse Comics Archive. The library now has DH comics on shelf as well as a collection available for scholarly research located in their Special Collections. The Special Collections holdings include single issues, trades, special edition printings, artwork, and titles in various languages. I remember the collection sort of being in disarray when I saw it but that was probably due to there being no Special Collections librarian on staff to organize everything. They have recently hired one [that 'one' was not me, but it's fine. No, really IT'S FINE] so I imagine the materials will become more accessible and get more exposure now. So, good.
Richardson will be speaking at PSU about the collection and Dark Horse in general. This little event is free and open to the public so if you can go, you should. Dollars to donuts there will be sweet snacks and fizzy drinks to ensure much seat fidgeting during the talk and a lively, sugar-fueled discussion afterward!
It’s a little difficult to see but the event will be October 16, 2008, at 7 p.m. in the Smith Memorial Student Union ballroom.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
My friend Mason and I used to host an mp3 site where we and a few others would contribute songs, found sound, and other audio bits we thought were worth sharing. I have just learned the site will soon be taken down [and rightly so, it has been static for almost two years] and resurrected in the near future. I was looking through old posts and wanted to repost one of my favorites before it dissolved into the virtual ether forever.
Here it be:
The Action “Comes Alive” as you read!
First released in 1977, this is the only book & record set I still have from my youth. This LP has survived eight moves and years and years of mishandling. The audio is decent but there are several snap, crackles, and pops that I’m just too lazy to remove myself. In addition to the turn-the-page bell, you’ll hear samples of a speech given by Hitler, the sounds of Woodstock, and loads of sexual innuendos. Enjoy and may the goddesses preserve you!
Side 1:
Wonder Woman vs The War God
Side 2:
Amazons from Space
Because it’s just so damn good:
Wonder Woman theme
Monday, September 22, 2008
It’s true!
Scott Pilgrim by Bryan Lee O’Malley – It has been awhile since I have been able to relate to a comic book character and their story so much. Granted, I have never dated anyone that required I battle all their exes Mega Man-style in order to continue dating them but then who hasn’t been involved with someone whose past relationships keep infiltrating their own? On occasion the the story seems a bit disjointed – I passed on SP to a friend and he agreed, “Is the beginning of book two actually the beginning of book two?” – but not to a bothersome degree. The look of SP is a manga-western comics hybrid that I love and am seeing more and more. For example with…
…Aqua Leung by Mark Andrew Smith and Paul Maybury – The story of a young prince on a quest to take back the throne and unite kingdoms – UNDER THE SEA. Good heavens, this comic is sweet, sweet eye candy.
Kamandi: At Earth’s End – Originally created in the 1970s by Jack Kirby, we see it resurrected in 1993 by some clueless jackasses at DC. They’ve managed to make him both crass and a mama’s boy. Kamandi has always been ridiculous, which is one of the reasons I love it but this reincarnation is just unacceptable. Bad story telling, boring characters, and Kamandi looks like some haggard Edgar Winter/WWF mutant . Although I admit I was happy to see Kamandi in the post-post apocalyptic Library of Congress. Of course, in At Earth’s End he’s not much for reading but his chaps-wearing gal pal, Saphira, sure is!
Via Daily Kos:
Over the years we’ve forgotten about our libraries. If we thought about them at all, we thought they were anachronisms, unimportant, and irrelevant. We were wrong. What I learned from my experience was that when you’re at the bottom, there is someplace you can go to remain connected, to learn, and even get some entertainment to take your mind off your troubles. No matter how little money you have, you can afford it. It’s free. It’s your local public library. It’s still relevant, and that’s something to remember when times are tough. They’re going to play an important role to many people in the coming year. Even if you’re one of the fortunate ones who won’t need it, remember that it’s there, and support it. You never know.
It bears repeating: They’re going to play an important role to many people in the coming year. Even if you’re one of the fortunate ones who won’t need it, remember that it’s there, and support it.
Created in the late 60s by Kazuo Umeza, Cat Eyed Boy [shouldn't there be a hyphen in there somewhere?] is a horror/comedy manga about a half-[cat]demon, half-child that has been cast out of the demon world for looking too human. Shunned by humans as well, he wonders from village to village, living in attics, and getting into various kinds of mischief. Misfortune may or may not follow him although he does claim at the beginning of each issue that “awful things follow me wherever I go,” then threatens to appear in your attic next. I am a fan of manga from this period, and knowing Umeza’s reputation as horror manga creator extraordinaire, I had high expectations. Maybe a little too high. To be fair, the illustrations are unique and demonstrate Umeza’s fine artistic talents. The monsters and demons are so grotesque I winced at their appearance more than once. The Cat Eyed Boy resembles a strange cross-breeding of school boy, cat, Hamburgler, and Ed Grimley, which oddly enough equals ADORABLE. Like I said, Umeza is a talented man. My main complaint, however, is with the the shoddy translation work. Umeza’s stories may be as interesting and horrific as the characters that populate them but this is not evident in the English versions. The translations are just too literal. Example – Do you not tremble before the fearsome Water-Gulping Goblin? No, you don’t. Because he just gulps water. Other poorly named creatures include ‘Large Hand Bodyless’ and ‘The Meatball Monster.’
MEATBALL ATTACKS!
The Cat Eyed Boy stories have been compiled into two volumes, roughly 500 pages each. All the tails [har har har] are moralistic, and Cat Eyed Boy believes it is his duty to expose the avarice, cruelty, greed, selfishness in both humans and demons, and to punish them by allowing demons to harm and disfigure them [making them as unattractive on the outside as they are inside]. So for the most part Umeza portrays Cat Eyed Boy as a do-gooder, albeit a snotty, na-na-na-na-told-you-you-were-evil one. Oh, and does he really need to piss on everything? I admit the random urination scenes made me laugh but they don’t help enough for me to actually recommend these volumes to anyone. I will say that the final stories in volume two seem to translate better than the others. But again, unless, you are a huge Umeza fan, I would pick these books up at your local library rather than spending $25 for each.
Hope you are having a super time [WITHOUT ME]!
