SOUNDTRACK: KISS-Dressed to Kill (1975).

I feel like I used to  give this disc short shrift because (horrors) its cover is in black and white.  But, unlike the first two discs which were heavy (poppy, but heavy), Dressed to Kill is very anthemic and, well, a little wimpy.  Despite these caveats, I still know every word to the disc, and I do rather enjoy it.

In fact, the first four songs on the disc are not featured on Alive!.  It starts out really poppy with “Room Service” which has a pretty wild guitar solo.  The next track, “Two Timer” is a Gene-sung slow track which even has Gene getting into a spoken word bit: “That’s the truth baby, you’re a two timer.”  “Ladies in Waiting” is one of those fun Kiss songs that starts out a little off-sounding but ends up being a really poppy singalong.  “Getaway” continues a trend of songs that Ace wrote but which Peter sings.  (Evidently Ace didn’t feel confident in his vocals yet).  The side ends with the cool “Rock Bottom,” a slow, pretty guitar intro opens into a rocking song.

This is the rare Kiss disc where Side Two has more hits than Side One.  “C’mon and Love Me” (an unusual request, frankly) is a fun rocker with a lot of baby baby’s.  “Anything for My Baby” is a really upbeat song which amuses me for all of the things that he swears he would do for her: steal, wheel and deal, crawl or kneel, etc.  Next is “She,” one of the all-time great Kiss songs.  It’s heavy, it’s menacing, it has an awesome guitar riff and a great guitar solo.  The fact that they tucked it away in the middle of side two is really weird.  “Love Her All I Can” is a fast rocker that’s followed by Kiss’ most popular song of all time, “Rock And Roll All Nite.”  At this point in my Kiss listening career I’m a little tired of this song.  It’s a very catchy anthem, no doubt, but it’s really not a very good song as far as Kiss songs go.

The recordings for the Kiss Alive! disc were taken on the Dressed to Kill tour and yet the live album has the fewest songs taken from this album.  It’s kind of funny that their most popular song comes at the end of this disc.

[READ: December 22, 2009] Wet Moon

This is a fantastic goth-inspired graphic novel with the absolutely worst title ever.  Wet Moon is the name of the town the book is set in, but it is never mentioned beyond the welcome sign, and I just can’t imagine what inspired the name.

Okay, actually, I just looked up wet moon on Wikipedia, and found out that it is an astronomical term for when the “horns” of a crescent moon point up, away from the earth (like devil horns).  And so I completely take back my complaint, as I now think the term is pretty cool and very appropriate.

And that is the only thing that I find disagreeable about this book.  (Well, actually I don’t like the lettering either, but more on that on a moment).

The town of Wet Moon is a college town where goths live and thrive (and no doubt many fans of the book wish the could live there).  Our heroine is Cleo, a young, slightly overweight goth with a pierced nose and bottom lip.  She has just moved out of her parents house and is living on campus.  (There is an implication that her house is a dorm, but if so, it is the single most beautiful dorm ever, anywhere, so I’ll pretend it’s an apartment–I mean, there’s a walk-out balcony for cripes sake).

Anyhow, Cleo’s friends include Trilby, a rambunctious skinny punk (you can’t be blonde and goth, right?).  She is foul-mouthed and a ball-buster.   Audrey is a beautiful black woman who is the least punk of all the girls, but who is good friends with everyone.  Mara another black girl is a scary punk with spikes in her nose and under her bottom lip.

Cleo’s new roommates are Natalie (we don’t know much about her yet) and Malady (a black woman with blonde dreadlocks and a lip ring).  Their first introduction comes when Malady finds Cleo bent over the toilet throwing up.

And that introduction kind of sums up the way Cleo feels these days.

The story is largely plot-free in this first book.  We meet Cleo’s friends and hear them bicker with each other.  They go to a goth club where the underage Trilby gets drunk.  And Cleo goes to her first class, which she flees from as soon as she sees….

Well, actually I don’t know who the person is.  I’m not even entirely sure if the person is a man or woman (s/he’s very tall with long hair and an intense demeanor).  Cleo has seen this person a couple of times and s/he has made her nauseous each time (there is clearly a past between them, although it is not explained).

There’s also a scene in a Denny’s which I found rather amusing.  The kids are smoking and cursing while Trilby tells them that she is supposed to be meeting a guy for a possible date.  The reactions of the friends was totally believable.

Cleo also discovers the phrase “Cleo Eats It” all over town.  Since she’s the only Cleo any of them know, she assumes someone has it in for her.  (Although I secretly hope it’s a new band in town).  Cleo does have an enemy around town, however.  She’s a former friend and she is certainly spreading bad tidings about her.

The really fascinating story line concerns Fern.  Fern is a completely hairless (the only nudity we see concerns her) woman with crazy piercings (she has rings in her back (ow!)) and what I believe is an amputated arm.  It’s unclear who she is or what her story is, but as the book ends she expresses and interest in Cleo.  Hmmm.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this story.  I had my own tiny goth phase (although again, being blond is quite a hindrance) and am still friends with people who are, so I appreciate the scene.  All of the characters are compelling and interesting.  Not all are likable, and I think that’s what keeps the story believable.

But beyond that, the artwork is simply amazing.  Cleo is rendered so wonderfully, with such love and detail.  There’s even a sequence where Cleo is examining herself in the mirror and it’s a grand opportunity for Campbell to show off his incredible detail work with faces.  Cleo makes all kinds of funny faces that people make in the mirror, and the renderings are spot on.

And, of course, its nice to see normal looking people in a book.  These women are wonderfully shaped, they are believable.  Even skinny Trilby is believable-skinny not supermodel-skinny.

Emotionally, the story feels real too.  The cast is mostly women, although there are a few men in there too.  And the interactions between women and men are believable (although it is clear that Campbell writes women better than men, as the male characters are mostly peripheral). In many ways it reminded me of a punk version of Alison Bechdel’s Dykes to Watch Out For (and who would have thought when DTWOF came out that there would be anything more subversive than that?).  It is multicultural, accepting of different sexualities and is a fully formed, self-contained universe that gently pokes its head into the real world.  It’s fantastic.

The only gripe I had was with the lettering.  It feels very sloppy to me.  I suppose it kind of works in the context of these characters, but it doesn’t feel intentionally sloppy, it feels a little hurried (like words don’t fit properly).  I’m not sure what to make of it, but honestly it doesn’t bother me that much. It’s just at little surprising since he takes so much care with the rest of his page.

There are a total of five books in this series, and I can’t wait to read the rest.

Ross Campbell has written a few different graphic novels, but this is my first exposure to him.  I’m definitely going to be looking into some of his others, too (The Abandoned & Water Baby seem like good contenders).

Wet Moon 5: Where All Stars Fail To Burn by Ross Campbell

Published: June 2009, Oni Press (@OniPress)

ISBN: 978-1-934964-25-5

The Recommend:

I know a lot of lesbians were super upset when The L Word finally caved in on itself and breathed it’s last breath last year.

I was not, in part because I had already found another lover, in the form of Ross Campbell’s super comic about a bunch of punky queers (amongst others) in the Deep South.

Campbell has an uncanny knack for creating characters whose sound and fury sounds like every day drama (instead of soap opera). His drawings are bubble gum sexy, if you like bubble gum.

Each installment gets better and better.

Check out this series.

*

About Mariko Tamaki (@MarikoTamaki)

*

Mariko Tamaki is the author of Skim, Emiko Superstar, Fake ID, Cover Me, and True Lies: the Book of Bad Advice.

Visit her at www.MarikoTamaki.com.

The cover to Wet Moon Volume 5: Where All Stars Fail to Burn. Taken from Ross Campbell's Deviantart site. Click to view

I am a fan of the work of  Ross Campbell, the  artist whose work includes Hopeless Savages, Spooked, and  the creator of Wet Moon, all from Oni Press, and Water Baby from Minx. I was first introduced to his work through the website Deviantart. I found his art equal parts horror and glamor. His characters, both human an not, maintain a realistic flaw to them while still remaining beautiful in their own right. I emailed Ross with some questions to find out what got him started in comic books.

Wet Moon Volume 5: Where All Stars Fail to Burn, the latest in the Wet Moon series, has just been released. It’s only fitting that we start off by finding what it is about.

-In your own words, what is Wet Moon about?
Ross: “It’s about a diverse group of predominantly female characters living in the fictional art college city of Wet Moon and what goes on with them. It’s part slice-of-life, part slasher/horror movie, part supernatural thriller, all very slow moving and pensive.”

Interior artwork from Wet Moon Volume 5. Taken from Ross' Deviantart page.

-Who would you say is the target audience for the series?
Ross: “I don’t usually think about that when I do the comic, but I’d say the largest group is women aged 18-30, with a growing number of younger teen girls. A lot of older 30+-year-old guys also seem to like the series, too.”

-What comics did you read growing up and how did they influence you?
Ross: “I started reading comics around when Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was getting big, the old Mirage TMNT black & white comics were extremely influential for me, that’s what really got me into comics.

“Then after that the Image Comics boom hit and I was a total Image freak; The Maxx, WildCATs, Spawn, Cyberforce, all that sort of stuff was really pivotal for me (for better or worse, heh), and I’m still a stupid sucker for brooding grim ‘n’ gritty anti-heroes. I was also really into Marvel’s Sleepwalker series; he’s still my favorite superhero, and the Rob Liefeld’s X-Force with Cable and Feral and Domino. My work these days doesn’t really bear any resemblance to any of those things, but I think they set me on the comics’ road.”

-How did you get your start in the comic’s field?
Ross: “I showed my work to Oni Press at Megacon one year, they liked it, and it took a couple years and a rejected pitch or two before Oni let me some flashback sequences on Jen Van Meter’s Hopeless Savages series. Then after that I drew Spooked, written by Antony Johnston, that was my first big graphic novel-sized book.”

Ross’ personal website can be found here.

What do you guys think?

My reading has become a bit haphazard these days, as I now drive for my commute (rather than taking public transportation) and don’t usually have time at work to read (which I sometimes had in the afternoons on slow days).

Nonetheless, I seem to be getting an interesting mix in, as I catch up on some newer adult titles and try to read some of the new (or new to us) YA titles I order for the library.

The Road: I started reading this one over a year ago, and I suppose news of the upcoming film inspired me to start again. It was a quick, gripping read. I’m looking forward to seeing whether the movie captures the intensity of the book. (And I should totally read No Country for Old Men, too.)

Water Baby: I picked this up as an ARC about a year ago and never got around to reading it, but since I’ve decided to offer galleys on a trial basis in my library I wanted to read this one to make sure it was age-appropriate. I found it… interesting. I don’t know–I’d be really interested to hear what other people thought about this, particularly anyone interested in disability issues.

Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451: The Authorized Adaptation: This one was recommended by one of our English teachers, and I’d been curious ever since I heard the adaptation was coming. I can’t recommend this title highly enough. The art is fantastic, the narrative remains faithful to the original, and the foreword from Bradbury raises a question I’ve been mulling over ever since: what book would you want to never forget?

Stitches: I hope I can get students reading this one, because I found it extremely compelling. Fantastic artwork and a twist I definitely didn’t see coming. More than one, actually. Recommend this one to graphic novel fans and anyone interested in outsider coming-of-age stories.

Manhood for Amateurs: Despite the fact that my brother recommends Kavalier and Clay just about every time I talk to him, I still haven’t read any of Chabon’s work besides Summerland (which I loved). I read a chapter of this newest offering somewhere–possibly the New York Times? and got hooked, so I decided to check out the rest of the book. I’m not quite finished but I love it. It’s making me think a lot of my dad, and there’s a really fantastic chapter on the geography (and cartography) of childhood.

På min forrige tur på Outland plukket jeg med meg et nytt verk fra Ross Campells hånd. Campbell er mannen bak den høyt elskede Wet Moon, som jeg har anbefalt tidligere. Denne enkelthistorien heter Water Baby, og i kjent stil inneholder den tøffe og hardtslående jenter med mye kroppskunst og forkjærlighet for metal, kjærlighet, sex, drama, action og småbisarre hendelser.

Brody er en superkul surfejente som tilbringer tiden på stranda sammen med bestevenninnen Lousia. Helt til en dag da en hai svømmer innpå henne, tar en jafs og spiser halve venstrebenet hennes. Nesten et år etter har Brody begynt å komme til hektene, selv om beinprotesen fortsatt gnager og gjør henne grinete. I tillegg har hun mareritt om den store haien. Hun orker ikke være i vann, hun kan kan knapt nærme seg et badekar, langt mindre havet. Det er sommerferie og Louisa bor hjemme hos Brody for å hjelpe henne. Så dukker Brodys ekskjæreste Jake opp. Han sier han trenger et sted bo en liten stund og flytter inn på sofaen til venninnene. Etter å sett ham spise opp all maten deres, flørte med Louisa og gå på fylla for så å kaste opp over hele stua deres, får Brody nok. Hun bestemmer sg for å kjøre Jake hjem til foreldrene i New York, og dermed drar de tre ut på en begivenhetsrik road trip.

Water baby er en kul og røff fortelling som vanlig illustrert med flotte tegninger fra Campells hånd. Og som alltid handler det om å få fotfeste som den personen man er, vennskap og kjærlighet. Brody må finne ut av sin nye livssituasjon og nye usikkerhet, og vennskapet mellom henne og Lousia blir satt på diverse prøver. Jeg synes ikke den helt når opp til samme nivå som Wet Moon, men Water Baby er en gankse sjarmerende historie.

Water Baby er utgitt på tegneserieforlaget Minx, en underavdeling av DC Comics, som har tenåringsjenter som målgruppe. Andre gode serieskapere, som Brian Wood og Andi Watson har også gitt ut serier på forlaget. Jeg synes dette forlaget er et utrolig bra tiltak, en fin motvekt til all rosakulturen som omringer unge jenter. I tillegg er flere av disse seriene fin lesing for oss store jenter. Og Water Baby er blant de mest strålende av dem.

For to uker siden anbefalte jeg Wet Moon, skrevet og tegnet av Ross Campbell. Omtrent på samme tid som han startet opp Wet Moon illustrerte Campbell en annen gotisk fortelling. I Spooked, skrevet av Anthony Johnson, befinner vi oss ikke i de varme og fuktige sørstatene, men i det kalde og regnfylte London, hvor makabre ting holder på å skje.

Emily Spook er en ung kunstmaler på randen av gjennombrudd. Det eneste problemet er at hennes kilde til inspirasjon er borte. En kilde hun ikke kan fortelle noen om. Emily har nemlig siden hun var liten hatt spøkelser i hodet. Uten at hun vet hvorfor hender det at døde menneskers sjeler oppholder seg i hodet hennes en stund før de drar videre til hvor de enn skal. Men nå er det lenge siden noen har vært på besøk. Og som alltid skal man være forsiktig med hva man ønsker seg. For når et nytt spøkelse inntar Emilys sinn er det et mordoffer hun har med å gjøre.

Ikke bare har Simon blitt myrdet, men i livet var han involvert i magi. Simon er overbevist om at dette er grunnen til at han ble drept og ber Emily om å oppsøke de andre i magikergruppen hans for å advare dem. I begynnelsen tror de andre medlemmene ikke på Emily, men etterhvert blir de overbevist. Og så dukker det opp flere lik i ganske grotesk tilstand. Emily allierer seg med en av politietterforskerne for å finne ut av saken. I tillegg får hun andre ting å tenke på når hun får tilbud om å holde en stor utstilling som kan bli hennes store gjennombrudd som kunstner.

Spooked er spennende lesning. Jeg ble engasjert i Emilys liv og karriere, Simons triste skjebne og i de stadig mørkere og skumlere mordmysteriene, med nok overraskende vendinger til å stadig øke spenningen. Det eneste jeg har å utsette på Spooked er at løsningen som kommer på slutten var litt søkt og kommer ganske brått ut av ingenting. Jeg ble liksom sittende og tenke “Huh?” og måtte lese siste del om igjen. Historien kunne altså gjerne vært lenger, slik at siste del kunne vært mer utbrodert. Men opptil da var det spennende og underholdende lesning, som lett kan anbefales til de som liker gotiske grøss og litt svart magi, og ikke minst fabelaktige tegninger.

Jeg tenker stadig at jeg skriver for lite om tegneserier. Og i følge pollen jeg lagde er det flere andre som mener der samme. Derfor har jeg nå tenkt til å ha en ukentlig spalte. Hver torsdag framover vil det være en omtale av en tegneserie å finne her på bloggen. Nye, gamle, klassikere og mer obskure saker.

Før helga tok jeg turen til Outland for å kjøpe det nye nummeret av Fables, og jammen ventet ikke en annen gledelig overraskelse på nyheter-hylla; et nytt nummer av Wet Moon, det femte i rekken.

Den lille byen Wet Moon skiller seg antakelig ut fra andre småbyer i det sørlige USA. Andelen av befolkningen som har sorte klær, piercinger, tatoveringer, deformerte kropper, kunstneriske anlegg og bifile tendenser er uvanlig høyt. Men slik er det i Ross Campbells gotiske tegneserieunivers, hvor man kan boltre seg i mystikk, absurditet og drama.

Blant disse gotiske beboerne av Wet Moon er Cleo og vennene hennes. Historien starter i det Cleo skal begynne på det lokale colleget i hjembyen og flytter inn i en av studentboligene på campuset. Hun deler kjøkken og stue med den blaserte Nathalie og litt underlige Malady. Cleo får vite at jenta hun erstatter har forsvunnet på mystisk vis. Men hun har andre ting å bekymre seg for. Cleos høye og mørke ekskjæreste dukker stadig opp så hun må flykte vekk. I tillegg er det utvikling til drama i vennegjengen, og så møter Cleo en nye jente som får henne til å stille spørsmålstegn ved sin egen hittil heteroseksuelle identitet.

Wet Moon får etterhvert et ganske omfattende persongalleri som alle vikler seg inn i utfordringene knyttet til vennskap, kjærlighet, sjalusi og bitre oppgjør i soft ball.

Etterhvert som handlingen skrider fram gjennom de nå fem albumene har både tegnestilen og handlingen endret karakter. Begger deler starter ut ganske realistisk, for å så bevege seg i nye retninger. Tegnestilen endrer seg til å bli mer manga-aktig og stilisert. I begynnelsen var jeg ikke så begeistret for dette, men nå har jeg gått over til å synes det er litt spennende å se tegningene endre seg fra album til album.

Handlingen går stadig mer i retning av det fantastiske med hint av film noir. Plutselig har vi både en slags superhelt som dukker opp og beskytter jenter som blir overfalt på natta og en mulig voldelig psykopat. Jeg synes det er gøy at Campbell forsøker å utvikle serien og gjøre den til noe mer enn bare ungdomsdrama, selv om han definitivt har beholdt de elementene og.

Serieskaper Ross Campbell har fått mye ros for å tegne jenter som ikke er stereotypisk pene. I Wet Moon kommer karakterene i alle størrelser, og det vises at jenter som ikke er høye og supertynne også kan være vakre. Campbell skal også ha kudos for å tegne mennesker som ser ulike og unike ut, i stedenfor å bare endre på hårfrisyre (merker at dette har blitt en kjepphest for meg).

Selv hyller jeg Wet Moon, eller kanskje først og fremst tegnekunsten til Ross Campbell, ved å ha et bilde av Cleo som bannerbilde her på bloggen.

Wet Moon er full av gotisk sjarm og med passelige mengder romantikk, drama&intriger, samt en god dose mystikk og grøss. Og alt nydelig illustrert. For meg er i alle fall dette en uimotståelig kombinasjon. Wet Moon; et sted vel verdt å besøke. Husk å pakke med naglebelte, rosa hårfarge og et Cannibal Corpse-album.

The Abandoned by Ross Campbell

Very nice little tale about a group of rejects coming together in the wake of your typical zombie plague. As with many of the zombie stories I’ve been reading lately, this doesn’t re-invent the genre, but the genre ain’t broke, so…

Supergirl with her new shorts (above)

So I’ve been reading all the Supergirl’s shorts posts and posts and posts – there was even a bit about it on NPR apparently – and I wasn’t adding to the discussion because frankly, it’s been very well covered.  Also, I agree with the majority opinion (at least what I’ve read – I’ve not polled any actual fanboys to see if they disagree) that the shorts are a WAY overdue addition to Supergirl’s costume.

For the uninformed – some wise men at DC have finally stated that they never want to see Supergirl’s panties again – thus she wears red biker shorts under her skirt from now on.  See image above in which Superman’s line of thinking is probably something like this:

“Oh, crap, gee, this is really uncomfortable, I’m supposed to be a hero for the entire planet and now I can see right up my teenage cousin’s skirt and I’m looking at her underwear and OHMIGOD is that her teenage lady parts? Crap…and I’m not looking away…crap…this went bad fast…mental note to never fly behind…or below her again…even in battle…crap – I’m still looking!”

Maybe I’m overstepping, in part because I’ve never been a true Supergirl fan, so I don’t feel like mine should be the voice of changing her, but aren’t the shorts – though totally a step in the right direction – still just a drop in the bucket?

Birds…meet Supergirl’s lady bits!

I mean WHY THE HELL IS SHE WEARING A SKIRT AT ALL?  Honestly, I know it sounds petty but this is the single biggest reason I’ve never been able to be a true fan of Supergirl and take her seriously…what kind of superheroine wears a skirt to fight crime in?  Especially when one of your most valuable powers is the ability to fly.  How does this make any sense?!

Now I’m sure there are some purists out there that love Supergirl and feel that without the skirt she’s just not Supergirl, but c’mon. This costume was a mis-design from go…it might have made some sense forty years ago (though I doubt it) but it’s time to update.  REALLY update.  No self-respecting superheroine, especially one that by modern standards is relatively modest would be caught dead fighting crime in a miniskirt.  Plus, what’s progressive about a miniskirt anyway?  If you’re trying to get the teens to sit up an pay attention a flow-y miniskirt is not the ticket.  Let’s really take things to the next level and ditch the skirt…entirely.  In fact, let’s look at Project Rooftop’s recent request for a Supergirl redesign for inspiration.

My personal favorite by far is Ross Campbell’s hardcore badass Supergirl (see above), I know the purists would likely have my (and Ross’s head) but it’s a step in the right direction if you ask me.  If you’re not ready for it then there are a few other skirtless examples on Project Rooftop, and even those that still employ the skirt, do so in a much more modest, practical, and updated way.

But still I say, let’s just slightly update this awesome cry from

“YES! SHORTS! FINALLY!” to

“YES! NO MINISKIRT! FINALLY!”

Our girl deserves it.  I might even start reading her books.

Det herjer en feministdebattfeber i bloggosfæren for tida. Jeg har ikke orket engasjere meg eller en gang giddet å lese noe særlig av innleggene. Jeg er så ufattelig møkkalei diskusjonen om hva en feminist er, hvem som egentlig er feminister blablabla. I stedenfor sånn kjedelig “er du gucci-feminist eller livmorfeminist”-prat vil jeg være mye mer konstruktiv og fortelle hvilke inspirerende tegneserier dere kan lese.

5 på topp girl power-tegneserier

Strangers in paradise

Dette er den store “jeg kan ikke tro at en mann har skrevet dette” sagaen om to vanlige/uvanlige kvinner (og noen menn). Francine og Katchoo er noenogtjue, bor sammen og har vært venninner siden high school. Når de møter kunststudenten David og skumle folk fra Katchoos fortid dukker opp begynner ekstraordinære ting å skje. Serien er for omfattende til å la seg oppsummere her, men kort sagt handler den om kjærlighet, både den vennskapelige og romantiske sorten. Det handler om kjærlighet som dukker opp der du minst ventet det og på måter og i skikkelser du overhodet ikke ventet deg. Og om hvordan det av og til er en lang reise fram til det stedet der man vil være sammen med den man vil være med.

Strangers in paradise er rett og slett fantastisk. Et must å lese for alle som er opptatt av meningen med livet, kjærlighet og tegneserier.

Vamps

5 kvinnelige biker-vampyrer som herjer seg gjennom statene på jakt etter hevn, sex og ferskt blod. Det er essensen av Vamps. Elaine Lee står bak denne lille perlen fra 90-tallet. I åpningen kjører de fem vampyrdamene en stake gjennom gjennom hjertet til mesteren sin. Dermed er de frie til å gjøre som de vil og ikke være mesterens lille harem. 5 harleyer senere er de ute på veien og søker etter det gode livet, og etter hevn. Gjengens leder, Howler, vil ha hevn på de som tok fra henne barnet hennes når hun levde. Samtidig er tvillingsøsteren hennes på sporet av gjengen sammen med en etterforsker som skal løse mysteriet angående alle de blodløsene likene som stadig dukker opp. Drama og voldsomheter følger.

Dette er en fortelling med blod, vold, sex, gambling, motorsykler, alkohol og ikke minst fem hotte damer som ikke eier skrupler. Meget oppbyggelig for moralen til oss lovende unge piker med andre ord.

Questionable Content

Min desiderte favorittwebcomic. Hovedpersonen er strengt tatt Marty, en forsiktig og usikker indierocktype, men resten av persongalleriet har også etterhvert sterke roller. Og dette persongalleriet består stort sett av tøffe og kule jenter som ikke er redd for å komme med skarpe replikker, tømme en whiskeyflaske eller diskutere biseksualiteteten sin.

Questionable Content har karakterer med skikkelig personlighet, er veldig morsom og har som et av sine hovedbudskap at man skal behandle damer med skikkelig respekt. Synes noen burde gi skaperen Jeph Jacques en feministpris eller noe (ok, det høres bare døvt ut, men kanskje spandere en øl på ham og skryte litt av tatoveringene hans da).

Wet Moon

Ross Campbells fabelaktige verk om en gjeng med gothchicks down in the dirty south. Hovedpersonen Cleo og vennene hennes bor i den lille byen Wet Moon hvor de har begynt på første året på college. Dette er en veldig søt og kul tegneserie om dannelsesreisen til noen kule, men forvirra jenter som har piercing, tatoveringer, gothmetal og unaturlige hårfarger i fokus. Skulle ønske denne hadde eksistert da jeg var 15.

Ekstra kudos til Ross for å tegne skikkelige pene jenter som er langt i fra radmagre.

Møkkajentene

Er det flere enn meg som savner Møkkajentene på nest siste side i Morgenbladet? Kebbelife kan finne seg en annen avis, jeg vil ha ny dose med Møkkajentene hver fredag! Jeg tror mitt første møte med Møkkajentene var albumet Varmere, kaldere, varmere, kaldere. Et anmeldereksemplar ankom redaksjonskontoret til Under Dusken (studentavisa i Trondheim, hvor jeg jobbet en gang i tiden). En av unggutta av typen “jeg elsker å snakke om hvor tøff jeg er som drikker whiskey mens jeg leser Bukowski og er jeg ikke kul som kan sitere Nietzsche” plukket det opp. Reaksjonen lot ikke vente på seg: “Hehe, øh. De snakker om mensen og sånt, hø. Ææsj..”. Bedre kvalitetsstempel trenger du ikke.

I have promised myself that I won’t go crazy trying to top myself every year in the amount of stuff I read.  This is probably for the best because I’m sure I’m missing (probably small, but still) chunks of my book list from the time that my computer crashed and I was lying on the ground for a month with my back all screwed up, scribbling the list of what I’d read that day in the back of notebooks while on happy pills.  Well, sleepy pills.

But in case you were wondering, the count so far is…299!

I’m sure there’s something wrong with me that I just went into a slight panic over how LITTLE I’ve read this year.  *eyeroll*

Sooo, this past week (excluding Spotlights and manga), I read just a few things:

The Little Lady Agency and the Prince wraps up Hester Browne’s trilogy of the lovely, naive Melissa who, despite everything that makes sense in life, never finds out that her name MEANS the name of her alter ego.  Well, sort of.  Her alter ego is Honey (Melissa = honey bee, honey, bee), a busty, curvy blonde (wig) who can get any man’s shape in life.  This time the man is an actual, honest-to-God prince, if sort of the Paris Hilton version of royalty, and Melissa needs to whip him into shape to please her grandmother, an old family friend of His Highness.  Meanwhile, her now-fiance Jonathan is in Paris, and Melissa’s having second thoughts about taking her show on the road.  This last book wraps up everything nicely, finishes the building of Melissa’s backbone, and made me once again sit up a little taller and pay attention to the way I’m walking.  But I didn’t try to overgroom this time.  I gotta be me.  Fortunately, Hester Browne will keep being her (fabulous author) next year with a new book.  Boo hiss at the long wait–June!–but yay for more Hester Browne.

Then I read the first Exterminators trade, Bug Brothers.  This comic is…not for the weak-stomached or the bugphobic.  Ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ew ewwwww.  I still haven’t gotten through the second one, although it’s not for lack of an intruiging story.  It’s just all the BUGS, my God.  I can’t even talk about it, if I want to get through it.  I swear.  I’m just going to plow through…but not anytime before bed.  *shudder*

Then I FINALLY remembered to read the next book in Scott Westerfeld’s Uglies trilogy, Pretties.  Westerfeld once again writes an only-slightly-preachy fast-paced tale.  Actually, this one seemed more preachy than the last, but I can’t really be sure, it was so long ago that I started.  I’m annoyed with myself that it took me this long to order this one from the library, as I loved Uglies so much.  The story of a society where everyone is made beautiful to level the playing field, the main character Tally goes undercover to aid the “Smokies” in their endeavor to rock New Pretty Town to the core.  Yes, yes, I know it sounds dumb.  It isn’t.  Westerfeld does a great job in creating something deceptively simple, like New Pretty Town itself.  Gotta remember to put a hold on Specials, especially since I can sort of say “Okay, I get where this could go” for the next one, but I cannot for the life of me figure out what the 4th book could be about yet.  I was pretty sure it was only supposed to be a trilogy, and if I ask my daughter (who read them all), she’ll end up spoiling me.  I can make it.  It’s only a few days’ wait.

Um, I also read Ross Campbell’s Water Baby, a Minx book, but…Ross Cambell’s stuff is so realistic it makes me want to kill myself either from boredom or from the fact that life is pretty much depressing as heck.  THANKS FOR NOT TAKING ME OUT OF MY GREY WORLD, CAMPBELL.  I read to ESCAPE–well, you know what I mean.  I don’t read to get depressed and gain a fear of sharks.  Unwashed Brody gets her leg eaten by a shark and then lets her jackass ex-boyfriend come visit, and then drives him home with her bff.  There.  That’s the whole thing.

Finally (I told you there wasn’t much), I read B.P.R.D.: Plague of Frogs, which is the Hellboy-less Hellboy series.  Oh, that’s probably unfair of me.  I’m getting a headache from all the books I’ve piled onto my new shelves.  Some of them are old and gross.  But that doesn’t make B.P.R.D. a fascinating read–it generally isn’t.  I never really LOVE it.  I like it, always like it, and sometimes I REALLY like a certain story, but mostly I just wish there were a way to take the good stuff from the movies (like the visuals) and the good stuff from the comics, and give me something to love.  It’s probably not Mignola’s fault that I was watching his movie when I realized I needed to get to the ER because this pain in my back was hitting critical levels.  Anyway.

So I picked up the 52 trades because I always wanted to read them in trade form, but I felt like not enough time had passed.  I’m still not sure on the time thing, but I’m ready to get back into comics bigtime (pleeeeease, library, back me up here!), so I need to start–or review–somewhere.

Speaking of comics, I also have to get that Batman list for you.  I will.  Probably tomorrow.

Da var det igjen tid for fornying her på skravlebloggen. Jeg begynte å se meg litt lei på den forrige designen så nå prøver vi en annen. Med customized header og alt. Bildet jeg har valgt å la trone øverst på bloggen er av Cleo, hovedpersonen i den flotte tegneserien Wet Moon, som blir laget av Ross Campbell. Jeg tror jeg liker den nye looken, særlig fordi den blir litt ryddigere og mer oversiktelig. Også så fint bilde da (kjenner jeg meg selv rett så vil det bli byttet ut en del). Håper dere også liker det dere ser.

Jeg tar meg selv i å lese Wet Moon om og om igjen. Hittil har det kommet tre volum av serien som er skrevet og tegnet av Ross Campbell. Jeg ble desverre litt skuffet over det siste volumet. Det er lite framdrift i fortellingen og Campbell har gitt hovedpersonen Cleo store mangaøyne, noe som ser ganske malplassert ut i det som ellers er en flott og original tegnestil.

En bekjent som lånte tegneserien av meg sa etter å lest dem at han forsto hvorfor jeg likte den; karakterene ser jo ut som meg.. Jeg vet ikke heelt om det stemmer. Det er i hvertfall mange år siden jeg sluttet å gå i lakkbukser, svarte blonder og naglehalsbånd til daglig. Uansett, jeg skriver bare dette for å ha en grunn til å poste noen fine bilder på blawghen min. Skulle gjerne sagt noe mer inspirert om serien, men det må bli en dag jeg ikke er fullt så trøtt.