Book Review, Graphic Novel: THE SMURF OLYMPICS

The feature story in this 11^th volume of Smurf graphic novels from Papercutz is the story “The Smurf Olympics.” Tired of racing and competing by himself, Hefty Smurf takes Papa Smurf’s advice and decides to hold a bunch of Smurf Games where the winner will receive medals. When the other Smurfs hear about this, they aren’t very excited because most of them still have their medals from the days of “The King Smurf.” So, another prize is offered to the overall winning Smurf: a kiss from Smurfette. All of the Smurfs want to compete after that. They are quickly divided into two teams with Brainy Smurf as the referee, but no one wants Weakling Smurf on their team, so he’s allowed to compete on his own individual team. Papa Smurf can tell that Weakling Smurf if feeling depressed and decides to do something about it. But does Papa’s help give Weakling an unfair advantage? “The Smurf Olympics” was the basis for the episode “The Smurfic Games” on tv as well as the story “A Little Smurf Confidence.”

Besides the main story, the rest of THE SMURF OLYMPICS contains several full page Smurf comics as well as some regular Smurf comic strips.

THE SMURF OLYMPICS is an enjoyable read. This book is a must have for a Smurf fan's collection. Also recommended for younger children who enjoy comic books.

Book Review, Graphic Novel: JURASSIC PARK: DANGEROUS GAMES

JURASSIC PARK: DANGEROUS GAMES isn’t the usual Jurassic Park story. Sure, there are lots of dinosaurs (including appearances by a T-rex), but the overall tone and story structure is different. The book features a CIA agent named Espinoza. Espinoza is sent undercover to Isla Nublar. Yes, the island is still over run by dinosaurs. However, the world’s most wanted drug czar, Cazares, has also made the island his headquarters: what better place to place your headquarters and grow your crop than on an island filled with animals the whole world fears and that is under an international quarantine. Espinoza’s cover is broken and he is let go into the wild in a type of  “The Most Dangerous Game” stunt. He’s given twenty-four hours before the hunt begins. The tide turns when Espinoza meets Frances White, a former scientist who decided to stay on the island after the dinosaurs first ran loose. She “nursed” numerous raptors into the world and couldn’t bear to leave them behind. She is able to communicate with them and they view her as their matriarch. White hates Cazares and she is inclined to help Espinoza leave the island, but first she forces him to pass a test. It is a test that only the worthy can survive.

I liked the basic premise of JURASSIC PARK: DANGEROUS GAMES. It was refreshing to see a story that didn’t follow the typical Jurassic Park archetype. However, I was disappointed by the execution of the story. The hunt of Espinoza was much too short and convenient. Also, the climax of the story was dissatisfying; it ends too abruptly.

The typical Jurassic Park fan might be disappointed by JURASSIC PARK: DANGEROUS GAMES, but it’s different enough that the book has more appeal with those who might not be serious fans of the series.

Pranking the Cowardly Lion

"Pop Culture Shock Therapy" ,April 4, 2012

Book Review, Graphic Novel (sort of): ZOMBIES

Contrary to popular perception, zombies weren’t invented by George Romero in 1967. The idea of a zombie is much older, though Romero is mostly responsible for institutionalizing the idea that zombies were mindless creatures that just want to eat flesh and brains. Before Romero, zombies usually weren’t considered mindless creatures, but instead, were often viewed as intelligent creatures raised from the dead for a particular purpose or to serve an evil master. Many times, these creatures could talk and think. This can clearly be seen in ZOMBIES: THE CHILLING ARCHIVES OF HORROR COMICS the latest collection of classic horror comics from IDW. The book brings together some of the better and a few of the not-so-good zombie comics from the 1950s.

Some of the art in this book is quite impressive and some of the artists went on to much bigger things, such as Wally Wood, Jack Cole, and Gene Colan. Many of the stories (though not all of them) contain some sort of moral, an idea later carried over into the hugely influential EC Comics. A few of the stories feature adventurers or detectives who run into an army of zombies.

The paper of ZOMBIES is of a higher quality than normal and though the images are reproduced in stellar detail, they retain the look and feel of the original and sometimes grittier comics.

Overall, this is a great collection of comics. Recommended for comic collectors and fans of the zombie genre.

Book Review, Graphic Novel: GREEN ARROW, VOLUME 1: THE MIDAS TOUCH

Even though I enjoy the character of Green Arrow, I can’t say I’ve really been a big fan of Oliver Queen and his Green Arrow disguise. A lot of what I originally know and read of Green Lantern came from the 1970s team up of Green Arrow and Green Lantern as they traversed the good ole’ U.S.A. bringing down criminals and starting a personal war on drugs. Despite not being as familiar with the character as I am with Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, and Flash, I have always liked Green Arrow.

Like all of the DC characters, Green Arrow has gotten a complete reboot with the New 52. GREEN ARROW, VOL. 1: THE MIDAS TOUCH collects the first six issues of the new Green Arrow. At the start of the series, Green Arrow is already established as Oliver Queen’s night time vigilante alter-ego. Stealing a page from the Christopher Nolan Batman movies, he’s been fighting crime for a long time now and uses a division of his own company to research and fund his crime fighting. The first part of THE MIDAS TOUCH storyline has Queen facing off against a gang of street thugs who record all of their criminal activities and post them to cyberspace. They aren’t all that difficult to fight, but the general premise is an interesting one. What begins as a subplot but then becomes the main focus of this volume is Green Arrow’s confrontation between a decomposing monster of rotting flesh that calls himself Midas and his lady love, an assassin named Blood Rose who has a personal vendetta against Oliver Queen.

As far as comic stories go, GREEN ARROW, VOL. 1: THE MIDAS TOUCH is average. Queen/Green Arrow are likeable enough, but too much of his character seems copied from more updated versions of Batman. Green Arrow and Batman share somewhat similar backgrounds, but the characters are not alike. The similarities between Oliver Queen/Green Arrow and Bruce Wayne/Batman are too many in this volume and take away from the overall character of Green Arrow. For instance, Green Arrow operates with his own version of Batman’s Oracle. Oracle works for Batman because Batman is a detective. It really doesn’t for Green Arrow because he’s not first and foremost a detective.

The other thing I disliked about the storyline is that it really doesn’t conclude. For example, it’s never explained why Blood Rose wants revenge on Oliver Queen. There is no sense of resolution. I realize that monthly comics have usually been written that way, but it doesn’t seem much sense to drag out a storyline beyond 6-8 issues anymore; readers (particularly younger readers) just don’t have the patience for it.

I did like the new look of Queen in this series and I liked the hints of the Justice League, which Queen just learns of for the first time.

Longtime fans of Green Arrow will probably be disappointed by GREEN ARROW, VOL. 1: THE MIDAS TOUCH. New readers might enjoy it and even though there isn’t anything all that extraordinary about the collection, there are enough tidbits to keep those newer readers interested in the further adventures of Green Arrow.

Book Review, Graphic Novel: MAYA MAKES A MESS

In this Toon Book from Candlewick Press, Maya’s parents try to teach Maya basic table manners such as “use your fork,” “sit up,” and “use a napkin.” They tell her she needs manners because what would she do if she were eating dinner with the queen. Well, immediately after Maya gets invited to have dinner with the queen. She’s flown to the palace and is seated next the queen for dinner. At first, she’s terrified and at one point is horribly embarrassed. Then the unexpected happens and things don’t turn out the way they should.

MAYA MAKES A MESS is a beautifully illustrated book. The colors are vivid and it’s easy to discern what each of the characters feels by looking at their facial expressions. However, the book is disappointing because instead of teaching manners or a moral, it does the opposite. In the end, Maya doesn’t learn anything and leaves for home to teach her parents a lesson. I realize that the book attempts to make a point that it’s good to do things unusual sometimes. However, that’s not a lesson that children really need to learn. In our current society children are basically allowed to do whatever they want at schools because there can be no real discipline and teachers are fired or written up for trying to bring some order to a classroom. Children need to be taught manners and learn that they aren’t the center of the world. MAYA MAKES A MESS teaches the exact opposite.

The Vast Left-Wing Conspiracy Is on Your Screen

Everyone should read this article:

http://nymag.com/news/features/chait-liberal-movies-tv-2012-8/

President Obama and the Budget

I'm not always a fan of Glenn Beck. Also, I realize that it can sometimes use the same statistics to support opposing viewpoints. However, that isn't the case here. The federal budget deficit has been growing exponentially larger since President Obama took office. As a nation, we literally cannot afford to keep this up.

Pac-Man Meets the Ghostbusters

In today's The Argyle Sweater, Pac-Man meets the Ghostbusters.

 

The Argyle Sweater, Saturday, August 18, 2012, by Scott Hilburn

Cecil B. DeMille on the Bible

"After more than sixty years of almost daily reading of the Bible, I never fail to find it always new and marvelously in tune with the changing needs of every day."  --Cecil B. DeMille

Something Wonderful This Way Comes

When I was rather young, I saw a special on tv entitled Something Wicked This Way Comes. It was the film version of Ray Bradbury's story and had been adapted into a television movie. It's a story about a carnival that comes to a small Midwestern town and some very strange and spooky things start happening when it does. That film scared me, particular the things that happened to those who came under the spell of Mr. Dark. Despite my fright of that particular story, I was never actually scared of carnivals. As a kid, carnivals were wonderful places filled with bright lights, good food, and exciting rides.

I still like carnivals, but more because of the excitement and joy they bring to others. When you reach a certain age, they don't let you ride kiddy rides anymore unless you're someone's parent or guardian and much of the magic and excitement of a place transformed disappears when you aren't young or don't have people in your life to share it with.

This weekend (Aug. 17th & Aug. 18th) is the Sorento Homecoming: the weekend when the carnival comes to my hometown. If you're in the area (zip code 62086), drop on by. Watch the parades, buy a raffle ticket, play some bingo, and eat a funnel cake. Just be sure you don't make any deals with anyone whose last name is Dark.

A Post-Book Education?

--Jonny Hawkins, 2012 Teacher Cartoon-a-Day Calendar

Quint's Sweet Revenge

I found this hilarious.

"Brevity," July 25, 2012 by Guy, Rodd, & Dan

Meet My Old Friend Melancholy

The weather today, Friday, August 10, 2012 here in the greater-St. Louis metro area (IL side) has been like that of a bright autumn day. At the office I work, the people who have stopped by and many of the people I have talked on the phone remarked what a beautiful day it is. As much as I'm happy for the break for those who work outside and who have endured the hottest month in recorded history and even though I recognize the beauty of nature around me, I would not describe today as being a beautiful day. The weather today is too much like the crisp autumn days of October instead of the usually sultry days of early August. October is a part of Autumn and I don't like Autumn very much anymore. Autumn is the precursor to Winter and Winter is the discontent of my soul. So, while everyone around me seemed to be basking in the crisp freshness of a cool day after two months of sweltering heat and humidity, I found myself struggling to ignore my old friend melancholy.

Melancholy is misunderstood in the post-modern American culture I live. People often equate it with depression. They are wrong. Depression brings about a sense of almost total apathy mixed with sadness. Melancholy isn't like that. Melancholy is a sense of longing and loss that's similar to nostalgia, but it's a much stronger and more intense feeling than nostalgia. Also, though there is sadness, there is no apathy.

Melancholy and I have known each other for many years. I don't know when we first became acquainted but I believe it was sometime when I was just in college for the first time or shortly after I had graduated. It would leave during the spring and summer when the weather turned bright and the hopeful promises that were hidden behind the dark and drab coverings of winter finally began to break free. It seems that every autumn since then, melancholy returns. Things will be fine and then the weather turns and suddenly, melancholy is back.

I don't look forward to it's return, but I am aware that autumn usually brings it back. However, it's only the beginning of August. There's more than a month more of summer, so I was taken aback by today's sudden appearance.

I'm sure that the recent closing of ALL SHOOK UP! has something to do with it. Any experienced actor knows that after the close of a show, it is often soon followed by a sense of loss that is sometimes mixed with longing. Even bad shows often cause this effect. It has to do with a group of diverse people uniting together for a common cause and all that jazz. Due to the bond that was created on this show and the special production that it became, I know that this feeling of loss and longing will be more intense and probably last longer. However, even when you're prepared for something, you can never fully prepare yourself for how the event actually unfolds. I know that's part of what has happened with the closing of ALL SHOOK UP!

Sometimes I wish melancholy would leave me alone. However, I know that it's visits have made me a better and stronger person than I would be otherwise. I'm more empathetic and caring now than I would have been if melancholy had never visited me.

So, meet my old friend melancholy. He's not the most welcomed of guests, but despite the sadness he brings, he'll actually make your life better in the end.

THE Show to See

If you happen to be around the Highland, IL area this Friday-Sunday, I highly recommend that you come out and see ALL SHOOK UP! It's a show you don't want to miss. I've been in several musicals and I can honestly say this is the favorite musical I've ever been in. You don't want to miss out.