I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. It took me a long time to find my way to … Continue reading My Misspent Youth: Cerebus: Jaka’s Story by Dave Sim and Gerhard
Back when everyone simply had to know that we were in the midst of the Marvel Age of Comics, the publisher had a nifty knack for promoting their pulchritudinous periodicals with defiantly dazzling descriptors. Every adventure promised picturesque peril and … Continue reading Mighty Marvel Checklist Hyperbole Check: Fantastic Four #75
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. I had sadly monochromatic taste as a comic book reader when … Continue reading My Misspent Youth: Eightball by Daniel Clowes
When the magnificent maestros of Marvel Comics were at the top of their game and still trying harder, the only thing they did better than spin scintillating stories was crow about their cornucopia of comics with crazy, colossal claims of … Continue reading Mighty Marvel Checklist HyperboleCheck: The Amazing Spider-Man #100
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. When I started reading Marvel Comics, the importance of reading the … Continue reading My Misspent Youth: Thor by Walt Simonson
When the marvelous mavens at Marvel meant to magnify the merits of their magnificent mags, there were no better place than the Mighty Marvel Checklist, typically taking up one crazy column in the monthly Bullpen Bulletins page. Starting with sterling … Continue reading Mighty Marvel Checklist HyperboleCheck: Avengers #97
I read a lot of comic books as a kid. This series of posts is about the comics I read, and, occasionally, the comics that I should have read. I was so completely enamored with the complex history of the … Continue reading My Misspent Youth: What If? by Mike W. Barr, Herb Trimpe and Mike Esposito
“Most nights Claire disappeared into the crafts room, or had never come out of it in the morning. Technically no crafts emerged from this part of the house. We named it once with the hope that someone, sometime–a future child of ours, perhaps–would go in there and be productive, make something pretty or useful or interesting. Such were our speculations for the children we might have. They would fashion objects that glowed or spoke, and we would sit in wonder as we held their tremendous work in our hands. Our children would solve some fundamental boredom we could not escape, … Continue reading Great Moments in Literature
By now we’ve established that the mighty mavens of Marvel Comics were only bettered in their talent for titanic tales by their positively prodigious promotional prowess. This was trues as ever in the swingin’ sixties when almost every single soaring saga was touted as the living end. For example, 1967’s Daredevil #31 was described as follows: “Possibly the most sensational of all DD’s adventures! Imagine the Man Without Fear minus his super-senses–forced to battle his most deadly foes while he’s actually sightless! It’s Daredevil’s most fateful moment–and when you see the ending–HOOO BOY!” Does the supposed stunner by Stan (The … Continue reading Mighty Marvel Checklist HyperboleCheck: Daredevil #31
“The smoke alarm went off in the hallway upstairs, either to let us know the battery had just died or because the house was on fire. We finished our lunch in silence.” –Don DeLillo, White Noise, 1985 “SETTING SUNLIGHT SLICES SHARPLY THROUGH THE DRY NOVEMBER AIR, BUT CANNOT CUT ITS CHILL. RUSH HOUR THRONGS CROWDING THE STREETS PULL THEIR COATS TIGHTER AGAINST THIS FIRST TOUCH OF APPROACHING WINTER…YET ONE MAN, LOOMING HIGH ABOVE THEM ALL, CASUALLY SHRUGS AWAY THE COLD…AS ALWAYS, HE KNOWS THE COMING DARKNESS WILL BRING A NEED FOR HIM–AND, AS ALWAYS, HE IS GRIMLY PREPARED–FOR HE IS … Continue reading Great Moments in Literature
Coffee for Two 