Comic Book Candy

Just to show how busy I’ve been keeping myself lately, here’s a pictorial demonstration of my recent reading material. Chugging right along in my quest to read everything relevant from ten years ago, I’m thoroughly enjoying Sandman , and I got a healthy dose of “coming of age” while reading Stuck Rubber Baby and Blankets at the same time. Some of you more observant readers out there might notice something missing from my stack…I’ll give you a hint. It starts with M and rhymes with arvel (I don’t think any real words rhyme with Marvel). I guess I’m just hard pressed to think of any Marvel stories I feel compelled to catch up on. Plus my local library is a little Marvel light. I’d love to read the Garth Ennis / Steve Dillon Punisher run, but that’s not in the cards. Here is a link to the Tasmania State Library . If anyone can find me a Marvel book in the library’s catalogue worth reading, I will enthusiastically take up your suggestion!

It is rare, but certain comics can make you feel like you’re reading history in the making. Issues of The Walking Dead can carry that kind of excitement. But will this zombie comic ravenously consume future readers as it does today? With hoards of enthusiastic fans picking it up on a monthly basis, it’s easy to be convinced to read it. Trying to encourage someone to pick up a trade of your favorite finished series is a little trickier. Those comics will never be read or appreciated in the same light as the folks who picked them up issue to issue, and the urgency to read them fades with the years (until a movie or television series goes into production). Elf Quest. Nexus. Grim Jack. Fritz the Cat. Groo. Cerebus. Next Man. Bone. Concrete. “Yeah, I haven’t read it, but I know what it is. Kind of.” These are just a few of the notable independent series that are known mostly by name alone to younger comic book fans. To help encourage new readers to seek out these notorious titles, I’m ...

I haven’t read a “new” comic in about two months now. Don’t think that means I’m not reading – oh contraire! I’m reading more than ever! Just not of the “recently published” variety. I have been doing a wonderful job of rationing the comics I brought with me from the states – namely, I’m so enjoying Blackest Night and all of its space battle-y epicness! I’ve got enough two page spreads to last the blog for a long while (coming in the near future). Though I currently can’t write about enjoying comics from the new release shelves, I can tell you all about what I have been reading, which is a lot of well established series that I should have read by now. Here’s a look at the trade paperbacks I’ve picked up, and a little bit about why you should check them out too, even if you have access to new books: Sandman Volume 1 Publisher: Vertigo (DC) Writer: Neil Gaiman Artist(s): If you like… House of Mystery! Hellblazer! Gothic tales that can sometimes be disturbing, the darker side o...