2022 EDIT: From my 'Fruits Basket, Vol. 1' review:
Changing my rating to fit my mood and views nowadays. I'm not as passionate or excited about, or as fond of, this series as I used to be. Perceptions and feelings change upon reflection overtime, regardless of nostalgia, which can be fleeting, and that's fine. Growing up, revaluating and reprioritising things are fine. I need to declutter, anyway. The manga remains a classic, nonetheless.
Final Score: 4/5
Original Review:
A book of character profiles and descriptions from the manga, 'Fruits Basket'. Contains great titbits of detail, quotes from the series, quizzes, life lessons to be had, and some colourful and gorgeous artwork (plus a sticker collection) for fans. This is one fan book worth keeping on the shelves. It’s so cute! I love Furuba so much.
Final Score: 5/5
Thursday, 30 April 2015
Manga Review - 'Fruits Basket' by Natsuki Takaya
2022 REEDIT: Changing my rating to fit my mood and views nowadays. I'm not as passionate or excited about, or as fond of, this series as I used to be. Perceptions and feelings change upon reflection overtime, regardless of nostalgia, which can be fleeting, and that's fine. Growing up, revaluating and reprioritising things are fine. I need to declutter, anyway. The manga remains a classic, nonetheless.
Final Score: 4/5
2022 EDIT: I have reread all twenty three volumes of 'Fruits Basket' in six days. To be engrossed and absorbed into this world again - after so many years, since I was sixteen - it's been a colossal, varietal emotional journey to say the least. I'm still recovering! An exhausting yet beautiful, haunting, raw, and touching experience.
Over twenty years since its creation, I can confidently say that there remains nothing else like 'Fruits Basket'. It defies a single, or combined, or trinity genre: it's shoujo, but it surpasses and transcends that label, with its slice-of-life, comedy, drama (and trauma), romance, thriller, and fantasy, in that order. Psychological and emotional can be attached to any of these, too. Is examining abuse in its many forms a genre, or a formal storytelling device used for fiction? Is examining loneliness? Is adults are the worst, aren't they? There should be. Really, Furuba has lot of every genre to it. It's so much more than cute animals. The series get far, far more intense and harrowing as it progresses; its romances, and messages of kindness, love, pity vs real love, understanding people, and forgiving and not forgiving people, remain important and at the forefront.
While I now fully acknowledge and accept that there are some aspects of 'Fruits Basket' that are dated - including, obviously, the fact that since 1998 onwards there's been the wider affirmation that more than two genders exist, and that trans and nonbinary people exist, and that queer people do actually exist in general and shouldn't solely be played for laughs (even with all the positive bromances in the series, heteronormalcy and opposite gender pairings reign ridiculously) - and while now I don't...exactly like or love every single character...then there's the issue of not properly highlighting the importance of selfcare and that your existence is worth more than what you give to others...nonetheless 'Fruits Basket' was and continues to be something special to me. It's a Japanese property that has as much significance to me, and influence on me - as a person, and as a geek - as 'Sailor Moon', 'Revolutionary Girl Utena', and 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica' do ('Fruits Basket' and 'Sailor Moon' are my nostalgia babies that I love to this day).
I have seen both the OG 'Fruits Basket' anime and the 2019 anime reboot, and the two each have their own strengths and weaknesses, but to me the manga, the original source material, endures and stands as the best. The best and most absolute way to experience everything that is 'Fruits Basket'.
I understand some people being afraid to revisit their childhood faves, worrying that it won't be as good as they remember it; that it won't live up to the greatness they first enjoyed when they were younger and hadn't experienced the world and society at large yet. I've been there. Many times.
But sometimes, maybe, you gain more - far more than you lose - on a reread, as a worldly, wise adult. Maybe you'll feel, think and appreciate far more than you used to. Maybe it'll be better than you remember, or at least you'll still love it, but not blindly, not with nostalgia goggles. You'll love it enough to still criticise it and see its flaws, as everything is flawed, and there's nothing you can do about this fact of life. Pure perfection is impossible. Imperfection is human, and therefore its own beauty.
This is the case with 'Fruits Basket' for me. What a tearful relief; maybe I haven't become so cynical and bitter after all. The manga's teachings and influences may have reached me and stayed with me even after over a decade.
I love the whole manga, for its floods of emotion, thoughts, and human lessons and introspections and reflections, warts and all. There are a few moments that actually got me close to tears, sometimes by just the artwork, as well as the emotions behind the situations. The most understated and subtle touches cut right through me. And yeah, the number of hot guys in the series still attracts me, I admit, and these horrifyingly tragic characters' rare, genuine smiles never fail to warm my heart, touch my soul; flowing all the way to my tear ducts. Never mind the animals; it is a very, very, painfully human series.
Here's to Tohru Honda, and Natsuki Takaya-sensei.
Final Score: 5/5
Read my (slightly edited) original review below for more.
Original Review:
I know it's an exaggeration to say that something has changed my life, particularly if it’s a story from a book or TV series or movie. Or at least, it has changed me; in shaping my deeply-held beliefs.
'Fruits Basket' was like that for me, however. When I started reading manga and watching anime online at the age of sixteen, I didn't start with Furuba for some reason. But when I did, I was hooked. I was blown away. Now I know what it means to have feelings of the darkest depths of human nature, but to also wield the hope we all possess deep inside us. I now understand what it means to deal with these messed-up feelings, to remain good for others, and to stay true to yourself and your life-affirmed values.
'Fruits Basket', my favourite manga and anime of all time, finally gets a review.
I will try to keep this as brief as possible, since the series is so complex and so full of rich, living, three-dimensional characters that one could fill a whole Chinese transcript describing them and all the intricacies of this 23-volume series and how they come together towards the conclusion.
I'll start by saying that it is a gross oversimplification to describe 'Fruits Basket' as a slice-of-life drama about an orphan girl and a bunch of family members who turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac when held by the opposite sex. 'Fruits Basket' is a tale about people who live the most wretched lives imaginable - full of abuse, neglect, and death; afflicted by irresponsible and uncaring adults. But with the help of one girl who has suffered great loss herself, and who carries her late mother's teachings in her heart in order to keep on going and just be kind to people who are not perfect themselves, maybe life can get better. Maybe the girl could even be so powerfully good - so assertive in her morals and code of ethics, no matter the tragedies - she could break the family's Zodiac curse. She wants to break the curse, and could do so by loving fully again and giving that love to others in turn.
The girl I'm talking about is Tohru Honda, a sixteen-year-old orphan who lived in a tent at the start of the series, and who came to live with the cursed Sohmas. She keeps a picture of her mother, Kyoko, whom she loves dearly and talks to like she's still alive. Kyoko died in a car collision, and had had the wayward life of a delinquent - as the leader of a biker gang called the "Red Butterfly Suicide Squad". So she had wanted to raise her daughter to be a better person and not make the same mistakes she did. As a result, Tohru ended up being the very opposite of her mother - bursting with kindness, ridiculously polite, always wanting to look for the good in others, no matter who they are or how reprehensibly they behave. She is the very epitome of a saint.
However, Tohru is not a doormat or weak willed, even though on the surface it's easy to dismiss her as such. She will struggle to search for reasons to keep living, to keep on being good in spite of everything, and to help others by using the very act of kindness and forgiveness. That's not weak, that's courageous. She will stand up for others, asking for nothing in return, other than that people will be safe and happy. Tohru will fight to change the lives of everyone around her through her loving and caring personality alone.
What makes this especially remarkable, at least in manga, is that Tohru really isn’t anyone special. She’s not a chosen one of a prophecy or any contrived rubbish like that: she is just an ordinary young girl who by chance stumbled across the Sohmas and their family curse, and who happens to be exactly what they need.
I was the same age as Tohru when I first started reading ‘Fruits Basket’, and lord knows I needed guidance and the courage to achieve the things I needed to in that time in my life. I admired Tohru then, and I still do now as an adult; when it's so easy to be cynical about the goodness of human nature. She was like the friend I always wanted, and had wished for there to be more people like her in real life, for no doubt it would be better if that were the case.
For that reason, Tohru Honda is one of my favourite female characters in fiction, period. Sweet, kind, giving, naïve, self-admonishing, self-sacrificing, yet also determined, brave, strong and unfaltering in the face of adversity. She is far from perfect, and that makes her more three-dimensional and human.
The Sohmas are also a colourful and varied bunch. Kyo (the reviled, cast-out Cat) and Yuki (the Rat) are opposites who hate each other and always fight for historical, complex reasons. But deep down, in terms of family troubles, they may have more in common than they will ever admit.
Other family members such as Kagura (the Boar), Momiji (the Rabbit), Kisa (the Tiger), Hatsuharu (the Ox), Ayame (the Snake), Hiro (the Ram), Ritsu (the Monkey), and Rin (the Horse) are an entertaining mix of likeable and unlikeable traits; and they appear more alive for it. Hell, Kagura manages to not be the Clingy Jealous Girl stereotype (my most hated anime cliché) by being friends with Tohru, even when she knows that Kyo and Tohru are falling in love with each other. There isn't anything to hate about Tohru anyway; she isn't even that stupid or naïve as the reader will come to see.
I adore the poor, tragic hero Rin (and yes she is beautiful and sexy, but not in a fetishized, cheap way). Even the twisted, abusive bastard Akito, the head of the Sohmas and the Zodiac curse, is miraculously revealed to be capable of receiving sympathy (and receiving and giving understanding) much later in the manga series.
I came to love Kyo, violent bad boy that he is. His story is one of the most heartbreaking. His relationship with Tohru is of a 'Beauty and the Beast' kind - taken to extremes, but it has so much heart and hope to it that I nearly cried at the resolution of them realising their feelings and finally getting together.
When the princely, sensitive and shy Yuki doesn't have a chance of winning Tohru's heart, he will find love (not the motherly kind, like with Tohru) in the most unlikely of places - at the high school student council, with a girl who is as lost and alone as he is...
Tohru's best friends, Arisa Uotani and Saki Hanajima, are also worth mentioning. They are polar opposites - Arisa the tough "yankee", and Saki the psychic, Gothic "witch" - yet they both care deeply for Tohru and are extremely protective of her, in the wake of the tragedy of Kyoko's sudden death. They never find out the truth about the Sohmas and their curse - Tohru is the only human outside of the family to know about it and keep her memories - but they still come to trust the family to look after their beloved friend. The kindness of Tohru and Kyoko helped to change the difficulties of Arisa's and Saki's lives, and they want to return the gesture out of the goodness of their not-so-empty hearts.
I don't think there is a single character - and there are hundreds of them - that I dislike in 'Fruits Basket'; for it shows that anyone, child or adult, can change. Anyone can find love and be kind. That's the core message in this whole spider web series in my view. That and the importance of family, but never cling to the toxic, abusive members. Rather, stay with those who make you feel good about yourself, who make you feel not alone, who tell you that you are worth it, and that you have the right to exist.
The series is a sweet drama, with a combined bittersweetness and poison lurking in its pages. The artwork - like the themes and characters - is wonderfully detailed, varied and lovely. Everything is strange; a perfect side-by-side reflection and collaboration between light and dark. Between melancholy and hope.
Natsuki Takaya is a genius, and 'Fruits Basket' is her magnum opus. It is as close to being perfect as any manga I've read. While the anime may not be perfect, with it ending before the manga, it is still my favourite.
Also, I do love the animals. Though in the midst of all the angst and dramatics they are not seen frequently, and less so as the series progresses. It contains a lot of funny moments in the beginning: Furuba has something for everyone, hence the universal appeal and popularity, I think.
'Fruits Basket' showed me what it means to change lives for the better. And this is not an exaggeration; manga or anime, I will never forget this amazing, beautiful series. After all the years since I've finished it, I still haven't.
Highly loved. Highly recommended.
Final Score: 5/5, although scores are redundant by this point. Just try it out for yourself, no matter who you are, where you came from, and where you are going.
Final Score: 4/5
2022 EDIT: I have reread all twenty three volumes of 'Fruits Basket' in six days. To be engrossed and absorbed into this world again - after so many years, since I was sixteen - it's been a colossal, varietal emotional journey to say the least. I'm still recovering! An exhausting yet beautiful, haunting, raw, and touching experience.
Over twenty years since its creation, I can confidently say that there remains nothing else like 'Fruits Basket'. It defies a single, or combined, or trinity genre: it's shoujo, but it surpasses and transcends that label, with its slice-of-life, comedy, drama (and trauma), romance, thriller, and fantasy, in that order. Psychological and emotional can be attached to any of these, too. Is examining abuse in its many forms a genre, or a formal storytelling device used for fiction? Is examining loneliness? Is adults are the worst, aren't they? There should be. Really, Furuba has lot of every genre to it. It's so much more than cute animals. The series get far, far more intense and harrowing as it progresses; its romances, and messages of kindness, love, pity vs real love, understanding people, and forgiving and not forgiving people, remain important and at the forefront.
While I now fully acknowledge and accept that there are some aspects of 'Fruits Basket' that are dated - including, obviously, the fact that since 1998 onwards there's been the wider affirmation that more than two genders exist, and that trans and nonbinary people exist, and that queer people do actually exist in general and shouldn't solely be played for laughs (even with all the positive bromances in the series, heteronormalcy and opposite gender pairings reign ridiculously) - and while now I don't...exactly like or love every single character...then there's the issue of not properly highlighting the importance of selfcare and that your existence is worth more than what you give to others...nonetheless 'Fruits Basket' was and continues to be something special to me. It's a Japanese property that has as much significance to me, and influence on me - as a person, and as a geek - as 'Sailor Moon', 'Revolutionary Girl Utena', and 'Puella Magi Madoka Magica' do ('Fruits Basket' and 'Sailor Moon' are my nostalgia babies that I love to this day).
I have seen both the OG 'Fruits Basket' anime and the 2019 anime reboot, and the two each have their own strengths and weaknesses, but to me the manga, the original source material, endures and stands as the best. The best and most absolute way to experience everything that is 'Fruits Basket'.
I understand some people being afraid to revisit their childhood faves, worrying that it won't be as good as they remember it; that it won't live up to the greatness they first enjoyed when they were younger and hadn't experienced the world and society at large yet. I've been there. Many times.
But sometimes, maybe, you gain more - far more than you lose - on a reread, as a worldly, wise adult. Maybe you'll feel, think and appreciate far more than you used to. Maybe it'll be better than you remember, or at least you'll still love it, but not blindly, not with nostalgia goggles. You'll love it enough to still criticise it and see its flaws, as everything is flawed, and there's nothing you can do about this fact of life. Pure perfection is impossible. Imperfection is human, and therefore its own beauty.
This is the case with 'Fruits Basket' for me. What a tearful relief; maybe I haven't become so cynical and bitter after all. The manga's teachings and influences may have reached me and stayed with me even after over a decade.
I love the whole manga, for its floods of emotion, thoughts, and human lessons and introspections and reflections, warts and all. There are a few moments that actually got me close to tears, sometimes by just the artwork, as well as the emotions behind the situations. The most understated and subtle touches cut right through me. And yeah, the number of hot guys in the series still attracts me, I admit, and these horrifyingly tragic characters' rare, genuine smiles never fail to warm my heart, touch my soul; flowing all the way to my tear ducts. Never mind the animals; it is a very, very, painfully human series.
Here's to Tohru Honda, and Natsuki Takaya-sensei.
Final Score: 5/5
Read my (slightly edited) original review below for more.
Original Review:
I know it's an exaggeration to say that something has changed my life, particularly if it’s a story from a book or TV series or movie. Or at least, it has changed me; in shaping my deeply-held beliefs.
'Fruits Basket' was like that for me, however. When I started reading manga and watching anime online at the age of sixteen, I didn't start with Furuba for some reason. But when I did, I was hooked. I was blown away. Now I know what it means to have feelings of the darkest depths of human nature, but to also wield the hope we all possess deep inside us. I now understand what it means to deal with these messed-up feelings, to remain good for others, and to stay true to yourself and your life-affirmed values.
'Fruits Basket', my favourite manga and anime of all time, finally gets a review.
I will try to keep this as brief as possible, since the series is so complex and so full of rich, living, three-dimensional characters that one could fill a whole Chinese transcript describing them and all the intricacies of this 23-volume series and how they come together towards the conclusion.
I'll start by saying that it is a gross oversimplification to describe 'Fruits Basket' as a slice-of-life drama about an orphan girl and a bunch of family members who turn into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac when held by the opposite sex. 'Fruits Basket' is a tale about people who live the most wretched lives imaginable - full of abuse, neglect, and death; afflicted by irresponsible and uncaring adults. But with the help of one girl who has suffered great loss herself, and who carries her late mother's teachings in her heart in order to keep on going and just be kind to people who are not perfect themselves, maybe life can get better. Maybe the girl could even be so powerfully good - so assertive in her morals and code of ethics, no matter the tragedies - she could break the family's Zodiac curse. She wants to break the curse, and could do so by loving fully again and giving that love to others in turn.
The girl I'm talking about is Tohru Honda, a sixteen-year-old orphan who lived in a tent at the start of the series, and who came to live with the cursed Sohmas. She keeps a picture of her mother, Kyoko, whom she loves dearly and talks to like she's still alive. Kyoko died in a car collision, and had had the wayward life of a delinquent - as the leader of a biker gang called the "Red Butterfly Suicide Squad". So she had wanted to raise her daughter to be a better person and not make the same mistakes she did. As a result, Tohru ended up being the very opposite of her mother - bursting with kindness, ridiculously polite, always wanting to look for the good in others, no matter who they are or how reprehensibly they behave. She is the very epitome of a saint.
However, Tohru is not a doormat or weak willed, even though on the surface it's easy to dismiss her as such. She will struggle to search for reasons to keep living, to keep on being good in spite of everything, and to help others by using the very act of kindness and forgiveness. That's not weak, that's courageous. She will stand up for others, asking for nothing in return, other than that people will be safe and happy. Tohru will fight to change the lives of everyone around her through her loving and caring personality alone.
What makes this especially remarkable, at least in manga, is that Tohru really isn’t anyone special. She’s not a chosen one of a prophecy or any contrived rubbish like that: she is just an ordinary young girl who by chance stumbled across the Sohmas and their family curse, and who happens to be exactly what they need.
I was the same age as Tohru when I first started reading ‘Fruits Basket’, and lord knows I needed guidance and the courage to achieve the things I needed to in that time in my life. I admired Tohru then, and I still do now as an adult; when it's so easy to be cynical about the goodness of human nature. She was like the friend I always wanted, and had wished for there to be more people like her in real life, for no doubt it would be better if that were the case.
For that reason, Tohru Honda is one of my favourite female characters in fiction, period. Sweet, kind, giving, naïve, self-admonishing, self-sacrificing, yet also determined, brave, strong and unfaltering in the face of adversity. She is far from perfect, and that makes her more three-dimensional and human.
The Sohmas are also a colourful and varied bunch. Kyo (the reviled, cast-out Cat) and Yuki (the Rat) are opposites who hate each other and always fight for historical, complex reasons. But deep down, in terms of family troubles, they may have more in common than they will ever admit.
Other family members such as Kagura (the Boar), Momiji (the Rabbit), Kisa (the Tiger), Hatsuharu (the Ox), Ayame (the Snake), Hiro (the Ram), Ritsu (the Monkey), and Rin (the Horse) are an entertaining mix of likeable and unlikeable traits; and they appear more alive for it. Hell, Kagura manages to not be the Clingy Jealous Girl stereotype (my most hated anime cliché) by being friends with Tohru, even when she knows that Kyo and Tohru are falling in love with each other. There isn't anything to hate about Tohru anyway; she isn't even that stupid or naïve as the reader will come to see.
I adore the poor, tragic hero Rin (and yes she is beautiful and sexy, but not in a fetishized, cheap way). Even the twisted, abusive bastard Akito, the head of the Sohmas and the Zodiac curse, is miraculously revealed to be capable of receiving sympathy (and receiving and giving understanding) much later in the manga series.
I came to love Kyo, violent bad boy that he is. His story is one of the most heartbreaking. His relationship with Tohru is of a 'Beauty and the Beast' kind - taken to extremes, but it has so much heart and hope to it that I nearly cried at the resolution of them realising their feelings and finally getting together.
When the princely, sensitive and shy Yuki doesn't have a chance of winning Tohru's heart, he will find love (not the motherly kind, like with Tohru) in the most unlikely of places - at the high school student council, with a girl who is as lost and alone as he is...
Tohru's best friends, Arisa Uotani and Saki Hanajima, are also worth mentioning. They are polar opposites - Arisa the tough "yankee", and Saki the psychic, Gothic "witch" - yet they both care deeply for Tohru and are extremely protective of her, in the wake of the tragedy of Kyoko's sudden death. They never find out the truth about the Sohmas and their curse - Tohru is the only human outside of the family to know about it and keep her memories - but they still come to trust the family to look after their beloved friend. The kindness of Tohru and Kyoko helped to change the difficulties of Arisa's and Saki's lives, and they want to return the gesture out of the goodness of their not-so-empty hearts.
I don't think there is a single character - and there are hundreds of them - that I dislike in 'Fruits Basket'; for it shows that anyone, child or adult, can change. Anyone can find love and be kind. That's the core message in this whole spider web series in my view. That and the importance of family, but never cling to the toxic, abusive members. Rather, stay with those who make you feel good about yourself, who make you feel not alone, who tell you that you are worth it, and that you have the right to exist.
The series is a sweet drama, with a combined bittersweetness and poison lurking in its pages. The artwork - like the themes and characters - is wonderfully detailed, varied and lovely. Everything is strange; a perfect side-by-side reflection and collaboration between light and dark. Between melancholy and hope.
Natsuki Takaya is a genius, and 'Fruits Basket' is her magnum opus. It is as close to being perfect as any manga I've read. While the anime may not be perfect, with it ending before the manga, it is still my favourite.
Also, I do love the animals. Though in the midst of all the angst and dramatics they are not seen frequently, and less so as the series progresses. It contains a lot of funny moments in the beginning: Furuba has something for everyone, hence the universal appeal and popularity, I think.
'Fruits Basket' showed me what it means to change lives for the better. And this is not an exaggeration; manga or anime, I will never forget this amazing, beautiful series. After all the years since I've finished it, I still haven't.
Highly loved. Highly recommended.
Final Score: 5/5, although scores are redundant by this point. Just try it out for yourself, no matter who you are, where you came from, and where you are going.
Monday, 27 April 2015
Graphic Novel Review - 'Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: In Pursuit of Flight' by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Writer), Dexter Soy (Artist), Emma Ríos (Artist)
The second 'Captain Marvel' comic I've read, published before the previous one, and by the same writer.
First off, 'In Pursuit of Flight' is better than 'Higher, Further, Faster, More' in terms of introducing me to the main character and her history. Carol Danvers' backstory - her family, and how she got her powers and first became Ms. Marvel - is told in a neat way that's important to the overarching story.
We see the Captain interact with familiar Marvel superheroes at the beginning, where she is reluctant to take the name and mantle of Captain Marvel, after her own hero Mar-Vell. The plot is fresh, unique and tightly-woven. It works as its own separate story from other Marvel comics.
Time travel is a very difficult subject to write about, and too often it is used poorly and thrown in as a lazy, ill-thought-out plot device. Time travel is a breeding ground for plot holes and pretentious writing, which is why I tend to avoid stories that use it. But 'In Pursuit of Flight' uses it to great effect and the potential for more isn't squandered.
There are a lot of panels featuring jets, planes and ships - all flight in the sky, and the presence of women in the forefront of these magnificent adventures may inspire girls reading 'In Pursuit' to become pilots themselves, and fight the patriarchy.
The girls of the WWII Women's Air Service, the Banshee Squad, are awesome.
Also, I love Captain Marvel's hairstyle here.
A few downsides that make me rate 'Higher' over 'In Pursuit', however, are:
Carol herself. 'In Pursuit' is where she is not as fun or lively, but more angsty and unsure of herself. While there are moments that show off her competitiveness, determination, witty charm and giving encouraging speeches - especially when she's with the Banshee Squad – Carol still doesn't seem as confident. Odd seeing as she's an Avenger with decades of experience under her belt. Though since this comic was written before 'Higher', I suppose she is only getting started on working out her identity - from Ms. Marvel to Captain Marvel. She’s developing and gaining strength in her own abilities.
I don't like the artwork at all. Maybe it's because I'm still fairly new to American comic books and so I haven't gotten used to there being different art styles in one volume, but the art in 'In Pursuit' looks too dark, murky and serious. The change in artists halfway through is so glaringly obvious I was taken aback. I suppose human beings are hard to draw for even professionals - the second style is too simple, samey and like a cartoon strip found in newspapers (seeing as the past timeline is set in the 1940s to the 60s, maybe this is intentional? I don't know). I miss the colourful and vibrant 'Higher', which seems more fitting for Captain Marvel.
There is a strong girl power message in this volume. Men, past and present, are portrayed as basically douches who don't want women to fly planes and join air force training programs, no matter how good they are. It is a little forced, but it is expected. The women in 'In Pursuit' help and support each other; they are friends and sisters in a cast mostly made up of badass ladies. And like I said it is an aspiration tale that might get more girls to want to be pilots.
Flaws aside, I enjoyed 'Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: In Pursuit of Flight' greatly. The ending is also a little better than in 'Higher, Further, Faster, More' and made me teary-eyed enough to consider giving it five stars. It is a good story about a hero's journey towards self-discovery, guidance from history and the present, and how the past affects one's destiny.
Captain Marvel is still cool. An inspiration. A three-dimensional human being just finding her footing on the ground in an adventure set high in the sky and across time.
For we all have a purpose, a need to reach out and be the stars we were always meant to be.
Make this the plot of the 'Captain Marvel' movie now!
Final Score: 4/5
First off, 'In Pursuit of Flight' is better than 'Higher, Further, Faster, More' in terms of introducing me to the main character and her history. Carol Danvers' backstory - her family, and how she got her powers and first became Ms. Marvel - is told in a neat way that's important to the overarching story.
We see the Captain interact with familiar Marvel superheroes at the beginning, where she is reluctant to take the name and mantle of Captain Marvel, after her own hero Mar-Vell. The plot is fresh, unique and tightly-woven. It works as its own separate story from other Marvel comics.
Time travel is a very difficult subject to write about, and too often it is used poorly and thrown in as a lazy, ill-thought-out plot device. Time travel is a breeding ground for plot holes and pretentious writing, which is why I tend to avoid stories that use it. But 'In Pursuit of Flight' uses it to great effect and the potential for more isn't squandered.
There are a lot of panels featuring jets, planes and ships - all flight in the sky, and the presence of women in the forefront of these magnificent adventures may inspire girls reading 'In Pursuit' to become pilots themselves, and fight the patriarchy.
The girls of the WWII Women's Air Service, the Banshee Squad, are awesome.
Also, I love Captain Marvel's hairstyle here.
A few downsides that make me rate 'Higher' over 'In Pursuit', however, are:
Carol herself. 'In Pursuit' is where she is not as fun or lively, but more angsty and unsure of herself. While there are moments that show off her competitiveness, determination, witty charm and giving encouraging speeches - especially when she's with the Banshee Squad – Carol still doesn't seem as confident. Odd seeing as she's an Avenger with decades of experience under her belt. Though since this comic was written before 'Higher', I suppose she is only getting started on working out her identity - from Ms. Marvel to Captain Marvel. She’s developing and gaining strength in her own abilities.
I don't like the artwork at all. Maybe it's because I'm still fairly new to American comic books and so I haven't gotten used to there being different art styles in one volume, but the art in 'In Pursuit' looks too dark, murky and serious. The change in artists halfway through is so glaringly obvious I was taken aback. I suppose human beings are hard to draw for even professionals - the second style is too simple, samey and like a cartoon strip found in newspapers (seeing as the past timeline is set in the 1940s to the 60s, maybe this is intentional? I don't know). I miss the colourful and vibrant 'Higher', which seems more fitting for Captain Marvel.
There is a strong girl power message in this volume. Men, past and present, are portrayed as basically douches who don't want women to fly planes and join air force training programs, no matter how good they are. It is a little forced, but it is expected. The women in 'In Pursuit' help and support each other; they are friends and sisters in a cast mostly made up of badass ladies. And like I said it is an aspiration tale that might get more girls to want to be pilots.
Flaws aside, I enjoyed 'Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: In Pursuit of Flight' greatly. The ending is also a little better than in 'Higher, Further, Faster, More' and made me teary-eyed enough to consider giving it five stars. It is a good story about a hero's journey towards self-discovery, guidance from history and the present, and how the past affects one's destiny.
Captain Marvel is still cool. An inspiration. A three-dimensional human being just finding her footing on the ground in an adventure set high in the sky and across time.
For we all have a purpose, a need to reach out and be the stars we were always meant to be.
Make this the plot of the 'Captain Marvel' movie now!
Final Score: 4/5
Sunday, 26 April 2015
Graphic Novel Review - 'Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More' by Kelly Sue DeConnick (Writer), David López (Artist)
My first 'Captain Marvel' comic, and at first I was confused. This "Vol. 1" is neither a reboot nor a smooth introduction to Captain Marvel. I didn't know who half the characters were.
But it got much better as I kept reading. The pacing grows steadier, and it becomes an awesome space/interplanetary adventure with a superheroine protagonist. We have Captain Marvel interacting with more new characters than with her older friends who I knew next to nothing about. And I love the artwork - it's colourful and very expressive, just right for drawing various alien species, and it matches the action and humorous scenes perfectly. It’s a cartoon serial with a lot of heart and brains.
Carol Danvers is great. A pilot, a militant, a strategist, and a diplomat for hard-earned justice on other planets. There are many sides to her: kind and caring, stubborn and temperamental, determined, sassy and funny as all hell. Both the artwork and her dialogue compliment her multilayered personality to a T.
Danvers is a 'Star Wars' fan and this adds to the many hilarious moments in the comic. Her talking spaceship is called Harrison, and she even named her (female) cat Chewie. And she takes the cat with her on space missions when no one back home wants to look after it. In that respect she reminds me of another awe-inspired heroine, Ellen Ripley from the 'Alien' movie franchise.
Additionally, I love that Danvers punches the dumb blonde stereotype right in the face. Her bright and welcoming design is cool, no contest. She really is like a female Iron Man, only with alien powers. In fact Tony Stark designed her ship with the talking computer interface, and her space costume with the helmet.
(Seriously, if she's an Avenger why isn't she in any of the Marvel movies yet? Such bull.)
I even like her romantic relationship with Rhodey, aka Iron Patriot. It ends at the end of the first chapter when Carol decides to follow her dream of reaching for the stars and going into space. I was actually quite sad at that, as even though their interaction in this comic is brief, I felt their connection, their history together.
'Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More' also features the Guardians of the Galaxy; great when the film had recently come out and so everyone now knows who they are. Even though I'm one of the few people on earth who do not like the film, I still enjoyed seeing them here, especially Rocket who is an absolute blast. Literally.
The Guardians’ appearance is a little too brief, even for a cameo. They disappear near the end, making me think they might have been included for fanservice and promotion for their own new series. But this is Captain Marvel's comic - her adventure, her chance to shine and be awesome.
'Higher, Further, Faster, More': from the title alone, you can be certain it ups its game exponentially. It is very political, with rich details of alien worlds and their culture, but it never gets boring and bogs down the action. The scenes in space - reminiscent, again, of 'Star Wars' - are amazing to look at as well. Seeing Carol Danvers adapt to all of these different environments galaxies away from her home is further testament to her strength and resolve as a character; another thing to love about her.
Bright and fun. This Marvel comic was a little perplexing to me at first – other flaws include an abrupt ending, and typical one note bad guys. But it grew on me. Captain Marvel grew on me. Despite an array of strong memorable characters - including a lesbian couple - the leading lady steals the show.
She is one of the most alive heroines I've seen in a long time.
P.S. The cover art segments of Capt. Marvel are fantastic. They make me adore the artwork even more.
Final Score: 4/5
But it got much better as I kept reading. The pacing grows steadier, and it becomes an awesome space/interplanetary adventure with a superheroine protagonist. We have Captain Marvel interacting with more new characters than with her older friends who I knew next to nothing about. And I love the artwork - it's colourful and very expressive, just right for drawing various alien species, and it matches the action and humorous scenes perfectly. It’s a cartoon serial with a lot of heart and brains.
Carol Danvers is great. A pilot, a militant, a strategist, and a diplomat for hard-earned justice on other planets. There are many sides to her: kind and caring, stubborn and temperamental, determined, sassy and funny as all hell. Both the artwork and her dialogue compliment her multilayered personality to a T.
Danvers is a 'Star Wars' fan and this adds to the many hilarious moments in the comic. Her talking spaceship is called Harrison, and she even named her (female) cat Chewie. And she takes the cat with her on space missions when no one back home wants to look after it. In that respect she reminds me of another awe-inspired heroine, Ellen Ripley from the 'Alien' movie franchise.
Additionally, I love that Danvers punches the dumb blonde stereotype right in the face. Her bright and welcoming design is cool, no contest. She really is like a female Iron Man, only with alien powers. In fact Tony Stark designed her ship with the talking computer interface, and her space costume with the helmet.
(Seriously, if she's an Avenger why isn't she in any of the Marvel movies yet? Such bull.)
I even like her romantic relationship with Rhodey, aka Iron Patriot. It ends at the end of the first chapter when Carol decides to follow her dream of reaching for the stars and going into space. I was actually quite sad at that, as even though their interaction in this comic is brief, I felt their connection, their history together.
'Captain Marvel, Vol. 1: Higher, Further, Faster, More' also features the Guardians of the Galaxy; great when the film had recently come out and so everyone now knows who they are. Even though I'm one of the few people on earth who do not like the film, I still enjoyed seeing them here, especially Rocket who is an absolute blast. Literally.
The Guardians’ appearance is a little too brief, even for a cameo. They disappear near the end, making me think they might have been included for fanservice and promotion for their own new series. But this is Captain Marvel's comic - her adventure, her chance to shine and be awesome.
'Higher, Further, Faster, More': from the title alone, you can be certain it ups its game exponentially. It is very political, with rich details of alien worlds and their culture, but it never gets boring and bogs down the action. The scenes in space - reminiscent, again, of 'Star Wars' - are amazing to look at as well. Seeing Carol Danvers adapt to all of these different environments galaxies away from her home is further testament to her strength and resolve as a character; another thing to love about her.
Bright and fun. This Marvel comic was a little perplexing to me at first – other flaws include an abrupt ending, and typical one note bad guys. But it grew on me. Captain Marvel grew on me. Despite an array of strong memorable characters - including a lesbian couple - the leading lady steals the show.
She is one of the most alive heroines I've seen in a long time.
P.S. The cover art segments of Capt. Marvel are fantastic. They make me adore the artwork even more.
Final Score: 4/5
Graphic Novel Review - 'Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: The Circle' by Gail Simone (Writer), Terry Dodson (Artist), Bernard Chang (Artist), Ron Randall (Artist), Rachel Dodson (Artist)
Been sighted as one of the best 'Wonder Woman' comic books in the last decade, as penned by Gail Simone. Sure I was hyped up - even the packaging was immaculate and handled with extreme care when it was posted to my door. But experience has taught me to always keep my expectations low on anything.
In the end I couldn't help it - the book and its cover make it look like a Greek mythology treasure trove!
Nonetheless, I enjoyed 'Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: The Circle'.
The plotting is solid - nothing and no one, no matter how small the role, is left out at the end. The action is amazingly drawn and moves everything forward with ease. Athena praise the artwork!
But of course the main talking point is Wonder Woman. She is tough, smart, savvy, and most of all she's compassionate and seeks redemption and forgiveness in everyone, even her worst enemies.
Gail Simone was once quoted saying:
'When you need to stop an asteroid, you get Superman. When you need to solve a mystery, you call in Batman. But when you need to end a war, you get Wonder Woman.'
Wonder Woman is a paragon for truth and justice in all places - not only in America or her once homeland of Themyscira, but on other planets as well, as seen in the last story of ‘The Circle’.
Other 'Wonder Woman' comics I've read seem to portray her as being rather bloodthirsty and quick to stab her opponents even in public places in civilian form; implying that Amazons and thus all "strong independent women" are like that. However, Simone seems to understand the original purpose of the most famous superheroine of all time. I get the feeling that, even with the numerous bad decisions made by 'Wonder Woman' writers before her, Simone is able to find ways of making them work for her own stories. Or at least she can make up for them without retconning anything.
Wonder Woman can be formidable, yet caring and reasonable; she is a negotiator first before she's a warrior. Though unafraid of knocking out those who stand in her way - nor will she back out of a challenge - she knows when the time is right to fight. She's a hero who will not give in to hatred and use violence to try to solve every problem, and that's admirable, not weak or an effeminate way of looking at the world. Wondy can navigate through any situation with a calm head on her shoulders - no matter what, she will put peace and family community first.
Her lasso of truth is a fully effective instrument (not necessarily a weapon) – it’s frightening in how far it goes to uncover the truth in a person.
Weapons in Wonder Woman’s arsenal include a sword and a bow, and in battle she can wield both just as well as her lasso.
Aside from Wonder Woman herself there are other things to love about 'The Circle', such as the complex development of Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons. There is the backstory of four Amazon warriors who were chosen above others to guard the queen, but who then came to betray her when they saw her child - Diana, the future Wonder Woman - as an abomination and a threat to the Amazons. So “the Circle” conspired to kill Diana as a babe. The flashback scenes are bold and manage the trick of creating suspense when you already know how things are going to turn out. Diana's relationship with her mother is also very well handled.
Despite a war going on, entertaining comic book antics are present. Neo-Nazis are the bad guys (so satisfying to see Wonder Woman rough them up!), and super intelligent gorillas hide out in Agent Diana Prince's apartment!
Her friend, Lt. Colonel Etta Candy, is an awesome female ally for her - incredibly smart, witty (she's given brilliant dialogue), not skinny, and able to put anyone in their place, even men who outrank her. She even reasons with an alien planet destroyer! Too often I see Wonder Woman partnered with men, and while that is good for her given her sheltered upbringing on Paradise Island, girlfriends outside of there are sorely missed. Etta is an Amazon in her own right; Diana even refers to her as a sister.
So, fabulous artwork, great writing, great history, great Wonder Woman. What didn't I like?
Unsurprisingly, the dishonour goes to the romance. It lacks tension, is unnecessary, and does nothing to advance the plot. Thomas Tresser, aka Nemesis, barely does anything throughout the whole book, shifting between continuing DC storylines as it is. Granted, Wondy is shown to be wearing the pants in their relationship, and Tom is a good guy, who struggles to find in himself what someone like Wonder Woman would see in him. However I still feel it was only there for the main female to be with a man, in a story that has nothing to do with romantic love. Not helped by the fact that Diana's human role is downplayed in this comic in favour of the Nazis-vs-Amazons-and-the-Gorillas arse-kicking.
And a few things were a bit confusing to me - especially in the last story - since I have not read many of the previous comic book issues. But I can live with that.
Because I agree with the general opinion that 'Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: The Circle' is the 'Wonder Woman' story most dearly needed in recent years. Is this Wonder Woman done right – as a princess, a banished Amazon, a feminist icon, and a hero for peace? Yes.
Beautiful, strong, smart and brave, she is really is a wonder, as she was originally meant to be. A goddess, as the intro by Mercedes Lackey proclaims.
Final Score: 4/5
In the end I couldn't help it - the book and its cover make it look like a Greek mythology treasure trove!
Nonetheless, I enjoyed 'Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: The Circle'.
The plotting is solid - nothing and no one, no matter how small the role, is left out at the end. The action is amazingly drawn and moves everything forward with ease. Athena praise the artwork!
But of course the main talking point is Wonder Woman. She is tough, smart, savvy, and most of all she's compassionate and seeks redemption and forgiveness in everyone, even her worst enemies.
Gail Simone was once quoted saying:
'When you need to stop an asteroid, you get Superman. When you need to solve a mystery, you call in Batman. But when you need to end a war, you get Wonder Woman.'
Wonder Woman is a paragon for truth and justice in all places - not only in America or her once homeland of Themyscira, but on other planets as well, as seen in the last story of ‘The Circle’.
Other 'Wonder Woman' comics I've read seem to portray her as being rather bloodthirsty and quick to stab her opponents even in public places in civilian form; implying that Amazons and thus all "strong independent women" are like that. However, Simone seems to understand the original purpose of the most famous superheroine of all time. I get the feeling that, even with the numerous bad decisions made by 'Wonder Woman' writers before her, Simone is able to find ways of making them work for her own stories. Or at least she can make up for them without retconning anything.
Wonder Woman can be formidable, yet caring and reasonable; she is a negotiator first before she's a warrior. Though unafraid of knocking out those who stand in her way - nor will she back out of a challenge - she knows when the time is right to fight. She's a hero who will not give in to hatred and use violence to try to solve every problem, and that's admirable, not weak or an effeminate way of looking at the world. Wondy can navigate through any situation with a calm head on her shoulders - no matter what, she will put peace and family community first.
Her lasso of truth is a fully effective instrument (not necessarily a weapon) – it’s frightening in how far it goes to uncover the truth in a person.
Weapons in Wonder Woman’s arsenal include a sword and a bow, and in battle she can wield both just as well as her lasso.
Aside from Wonder Woman herself there are other things to love about 'The Circle', such as the complex development of Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons. There is the backstory of four Amazon warriors who were chosen above others to guard the queen, but who then came to betray her when they saw her child - Diana, the future Wonder Woman - as an abomination and a threat to the Amazons. So “the Circle” conspired to kill Diana as a babe. The flashback scenes are bold and manage the trick of creating suspense when you already know how things are going to turn out. Diana's relationship with her mother is also very well handled.
Despite a war going on, entertaining comic book antics are present. Neo-Nazis are the bad guys (so satisfying to see Wonder Woman rough them up!), and super intelligent gorillas hide out in Agent Diana Prince's apartment!
Her friend, Lt. Colonel Etta Candy, is an awesome female ally for her - incredibly smart, witty (she's given brilliant dialogue), not skinny, and able to put anyone in their place, even men who outrank her. She even reasons with an alien planet destroyer! Too often I see Wonder Woman partnered with men, and while that is good for her given her sheltered upbringing on Paradise Island, girlfriends outside of there are sorely missed. Etta is an Amazon in her own right; Diana even refers to her as a sister.
So, fabulous artwork, great writing, great history, great Wonder Woman. What didn't I like?
Unsurprisingly, the dishonour goes to the romance. It lacks tension, is unnecessary, and does nothing to advance the plot. Thomas Tresser, aka Nemesis, barely does anything throughout the whole book, shifting between continuing DC storylines as it is. Granted, Wondy is shown to be wearing the pants in their relationship, and Tom is a good guy, who struggles to find in himself what someone like Wonder Woman would see in him. However I still feel it was only there for the main female to be with a man, in a story that has nothing to do with romantic love. Not helped by the fact that Diana's human role is downplayed in this comic in favour of the Nazis-vs-Amazons-and-the-Gorillas arse-kicking.
And a few things were a bit confusing to me - especially in the last story - since I have not read many of the previous comic book issues. But I can live with that.
Because I agree with the general opinion that 'Wonder Woman, Vol. 3: The Circle' is the 'Wonder Woman' story most dearly needed in recent years. Is this Wonder Woman done right – as a princess, a banished Amazon, a feminist icon, and a hero for peace? Yes.
Beautiful, strong, smart and brave, she is really is a wonder, as she was originally meant to be. A goddess, as the intro by Mercedes Lackey proclaims.
Final Score: 4/5
Saturday, 25 April 2015
Graphic Novel Review - 'Red Sonja, Vol. 1: Queen of Plagues' by Gail Simone (Writer), Walter Geovani (Artist)
Gail Simone's 'Red Sonja, Vol. 1' is one of the most violent comics I've ever read, and I love it. I love the female characters and the strong relationships they have with one another; the connection they share is not without great development. Sisterhood and badassery don't usually come together in something with a pulp fiction-y, nostalgic label on it. But 'Red Sonja' has made it happen and (hopefully) it's there to stay and inspire others in the field.
In the introduction to 'Red Sonja, Vol. 1', Gail Simone explains how she wanted to write a sword and sorcery comic with strong female characters and men who were not just buff, hulking meatheads with criminal records for sexual assault. She was already a fan of the character of Red Sonja and wanted more to be done with her. I share her inclinations and frustration, for I love the fantasy genre and I do believe it can do better in terms of diverse representation, like with many other genres and mediums.
For instance, this comic features women who wear practical clothing for fighting, even Sonja who doesn't wear a chain mail bikini for everything. I mean, there are scenes set in the winter and in gladiator rings!
'Red Sonja' of the 21st century is still silly and sweet. But the book’s mostly sombre mood, dark turns, plot twists and harsh settings overshadow all the campy stuff, i.e. Sonja's bikini.
Speaking of which, the artist, Walter Geovani, seems to have achieved the impossible and drawn a female character in fanservice costumes without overtly sexualising her. Because Sonja, no matter what she wears, has a personality which demands your attention so much more than her appearance does. While there are one or two accentuated butt and cleavage shots - played for laughs as one of Sonja’s new hero-worshipping female acquaintances calls her "she of the excellent cleavage" - there are no ridiculous "sexy" poses, or any painful (not to mention impossible) anatomy and physics breakers.
This newer version of Red Sonja – with no mention of Conan the Barbarian – is an antiheroine; in no way a simpering victim nor a woman scorned. Known also as the Red Devil and She-Devil with a Sword, Sonja is confident, assertive, stubborn but loyal, smart, skilled, sarcastic, and an all-around badass. And not one panel in the comic lets you forget any of this, even when the booze-loving vagabond is drunk. She is sexy - and I do love my redheaded heroines - but not sexualised. Above all she is human, and flawed, but possesses a warm and bloody agency of her own free will, commanding respect wherever she goes. One of my favourite scenes is of Sonja dying in the snow after being disgraced and banished, and upon making contact with a stag (this makes sense in context), she has flashbacks to her childhood when she had witnessed her beloved family and village slaughtered right in front of her. No longer afraid to hunt, the following night the girl murdered the monstrous bandits one by one in a dark forest - leaving a man's decapitated head hanging from a tree. Even as a young girl she was not to be trifled with. If you try anything terrible with her, even with a hangover Red Sonja will kick your arse, and sometimes not alone as she has her smart (mostly female) allies.
'Red Sonja' is somewhat morally questionable, due to violent death being the solution to every problem. Plus the non-human characters - fish people - are portrayed as villains or are at least all portrayed in a very negative light, due to their ugliness. But the fight scenes are so much fun - the art and the emotions it renders are excellent - that I didn't mind not thinking about it too much. Some things are not to be taken too seriously, especially in comic books, and this action and adventure/sword and sorcery/barmy and bloody tale is one of them.
Such a brutal and enjoyable thrill ride! With plenty of laughs, cries and even some intellectual discussions to be had, 'Red Sonja, Vol. 1: Queen of Plagues' may have made a fan out of me; with a new found respect for the high fantasy and sword and sorcery genre, and for comics with female leads.
Read it. It's awesome, and so is Gail Simone. She knows how to make anything work.
P.S. The cover art samples, by female artists, are truly stunning. Sonja looks so beautiful and fierce in every one of them, even the cartoony ones.
Final Score: 5/5
In the introduction to 'Red Sonja, Vol. 1', Gail Simone explains how she wanted to write a sword and sorcery comic with strong female characters and men who were not just buff, hulking meatheads with criminal records for sexual assault. She was already a fan of the character of Red Sonja and wanted more to be done with her. I share her inclinations and frustration, for I love the fantasy genre and I do believe it can do better in terms of diverse representation, like with many other genres and mediums.
For instance, this comic features women who wear practical clothing for fighting, even Sonja who doesn't wear a chain mail bikini for everything. I mean, there are scenes set in the winter and in gladiator rings!
'Red Sonja' of the 21st century is still silly and sweet. But the book’s mostly sombre mood, dark turns, plot twists and harsh settings overshadow all the campy stuff, i.e. Sonja's bikini.
Speaking of which, the artist, Walter Geovani, seems to have achieved the impossible and drawn a female character in fanservice costumes without overtly sexualising her. Because Sonja, no matter what she wears, has a personality which demands your attention so much more than her appearance does. While there are one or two accentuated butt and cleavage shots - played for laughs as one of Sonja’s new hero-worshipping female acquaintances calls her "she of the excellent cleavage" - there are no ridiculous "sexy" poses, or any painful (not to mention impossible) anatomy and physics breakers.
This newer version of Red Sonja – with no mention of Conan the Barbarian – is an antiheroine; in no way a simpering victim nor a woman scorned. Known also as the Red Devil and She-Devil with a Sword, Sonja is confident, assertive, stubborn but loyal, smart, skilled, sarcastic, and an all-around badass. And not one panel in the comic lets you forget any of this, even when the booze-loving vagabond is drunk. She is sexy - and I do love my redheaded heroines - but not sexualised. Above all she is human, and flawed, but possesses a warm and bloody agency of her own free will, commanding respect wherever she goes. One of my favourite scenes is of Sonja dying in the snow after being disgraced and banished, and upon making contact with a stag (this makes sense in context), she has flashbacks to her childhood when she had witnessed her beloved family and village slaughtered right in front of her. No longer afraid to hunt, the following night the girl murdered the monstrous bandits one by one in a dark forest - leaving a man's decapitated head hanging from a tree. Even as a young girl she was not to be trifled with. If you try anything terrible with her, even with a hangover Red Sonja will kick your arse, and sometimes not alone as she has her smart (mostly female) allies.
'Red Sonja' is somewhat morally questionable, due to violent death being the solution to every problem. Plus the non-human characters - fish people - are portrayed as villains or are at least all portrayed in a very negative light, due to their ugliness. But the fight scenes are so much fun - the art and the emotions it renders are excellent - that I didn't mind not thinking about it too much. Some things are not to be taken too seriously, especially in comic books, and this action and adventure/sword and sorcery/barmy and bloody tale is one of them.
Such a brutal and enjoyable thrill ride! With plenty of laughs, cries and even some intellectual discussions to be had, 'Red Sonja, Vol. 1: Queen of Plagues' may have made a fan out of me; with a new found respect for the high fantasy and sword and sorcery genre, and for comics with female leads.
Read it. It's awesome, and so is Gail Simone. She knows how to make anything work.
P.S. The cover art samples, by female artists, are truly stunning. Sonja looks so beautiful and fierce in every one of them, even the cartoony ones.
Final Score: 5/5
Non-Fiction Book Review - 'Techniques of the Selling Writer' by Dwight V. Swain
2023 EDIT: Part of my 2023 clear-up, of books I no longer like, or am no longer interested in, or remember well as standing out, or find as special anymore, or I otherwise will not miss.
Final Score: 3.5/5
Original Review:
I had considered giving 'Techniques of the Selling Writer' a low rating whilst reading, because for all its helpful and heartfelt writing techniques, planning and human insight, it does drag on for far too long. A few chapters in the middle are at least over 100 pages long, and the examples of good writing were not strong enough to sustain my attention; hence why it took me three weeks to finish the whole thing. For that it nearly put me off both writing and reading altogether. There is also the casual sexism for something written in the 1960s, and the author continuously assumes that his readers - and most professional writers - will be male by default.
But 'Techniques of the Selling Writer' isn't really dry, and the last third made up for the monotonous page-turning I endured in the middle. The author, Dwight V. Swain, truly understood what it means to be a writer and how you can live like one.
In his book, Mr. Swain hammers in the importance of feeling and projecting your creative, lively passion into your work, something I agree with wholeheartedly. He emphasises the essentiality of conflict - Conflict! Conflict in Every. Single. Scene and Motivation. Also, his talks of main story goals, stimulus, character feeling-to-motivation, reaction-to-action, keeping heroes heroic, character choices, the point-of-no-return, scene and segment planning, and how to handle important scenes and make them flow together flawlessly are inspiring. As is his definition of a climax and how and why it must work for the hero and the reader.
Swain even defines "to identify with" as a person who looks up to, is envious of and aspires to be someone else, rather than there being anything strictly relatable and compatible between the two. I can see some sense in that statement.
So despite not enjoying the reading experience like with many other writing books I've read, 'Techniques' is worth a shot. Writing and selling your work are all about putting your whole being - heart, brain, time, energy - into creating something new, alive and worth your own time and attention. Whether this book does that itself is - as always - up to the reader.
Final Score: 3.5/5
Final Score: 3.5/5
Original Review:
I had considered giving 'Techniques of the Selling Writer' a low rating whilst reading, because for all its helpful and heartfelt writing techniques, planning and human insight, it does drag on for far too long. A few chapters in the middle are at least over 100 pages long, and the examples of good writing were not strong enough to sustain my attention; hence why it took me three weeks to finish the whole thing. For that it nearly put me off both writing and reading altogether. There is also the casual sexism for something written in the 1960s, and the author continuously assumes that his readers - and most professional writers - will be male by default.
But 'Techniques of the Selling Writer' isn't really dry, and the last third made up for the monotonous page-turning I endured in the middle. The author, Dwight V. Swain, truly understood what it means to be a writer and how you can live like one.
In his book, Mr. Swain hammers in the importance of feeling and projecting your creative, lively passion into your work, something I agree with wholeheartedly. He emphasises the essentiality of conflict - Conflict! Conflict in Every. Single. Scene and Motivation. Also, his talks of main story goals, stimulus, character feeling-to-motivation, reaction-to-action, keeping heroes heroic, character choices, the point-of-no-return, scene and segment planning, and how to handle important scenes and make them flow together flawlessly are inspiring. As is his definition of a climax and how and why it must work for the hero and the reader.
Swain even defines "to identify with" as a person who looks up to, is envious of and aspires to be someone else, rather than there being anything strictly relatable and compatible between the two. I can see some sense in that statement.
So despite not enjoying the reading experience like with many other writing books I've read, 'Techniques' is worth a shot. Writing and selling your work are all about putting your whole being - heart, brain, time, energy - into creating something new, alive and worth your own time and attention. Whether this book does that itself is - as always - up to the reader.
Final Score: 3.5/5
Wednesday, 22 April 2015
'You're strong/smart/funny/cool for a girl' is not a compliment. It basically translates to 'You're the exception to the rule that girls are lesser'. There is no respect in that. Same goes for excuses for sexist media with 'But we have one or two strong/smart/funny/cool women - that's enough!'
What does gender have to do with anything we do, anyway?
What does gender have to do with anything we do, anyway?
Wednesday, 8 April 2015
Marketing industries - aiming products at children - perpetrate some of the worst sexism in society. Outright telling little girls they shouldn't want to be heroes or in any way heroic. Just be pretty, passive princesses, preferably in pink (I love pink but this is ridiculous). Boys do stuff, earn stuff. But girls just are, apparently. I was once one of those girls they marginalised, and this must be more well known.
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