It would seem I skipped #14 by accident on the “consumed all new” chart, so here’s a post about an infant’s board book I read in Chapters a few weeks ago. It’s called “Belly Button Book!” by Sandra Boynton. Its about hippos totally enamored with their belly buttons. It was 30 pages long, probably about 100 words in length and totally cute. It’s not necessarily about anything for me but being bit of pop art that’s really eye catching and very appealing. I’m not necessarily willing to pay the steep price tag for what took about 40 seconds to read, but I’m willing to admire its simplicity and it’s allure.
03/02/2009
[...consumed all new #14] BBB by SB
25/01/2009
[...consumed anew #14] Aquaman: Time And Tide
Aquaman gets a bad rap as a superhero. Yes, he swims and talks to fish, which may not seem very useful, but he’s also super strong and the king of Atlantis, which surely counts for something more. I think the gaudy orange tunic and green tights combination are likely what kept him down for so long, goofy smile and timid teenage sidekick weren’t helping with his kingly image. I mean Namor isn’t much different power-wise, and he only wears a green Speedo, but he commands respect.
Peter David was chomping at the bit to have a go at the King of the Seven Seas, and had to wait his turn after Shawn McManus was given the job in 1991, his failed series lasting only 13 issues. “Time and Tide” was at first supposed to be a bridging story arc between the end of McManus’ run and Peter David’s take-over of the title. But DC decided to use T&T to relaunch the series, and to be honest, I don’t think Aquaman has ever been more successful a character than he was in David’s hands.
Even this early in T&T, a four issue series later collected in TPB, David understood Arthur Curry as a man caught between his humanity, his kinship with creatures of the sea, his destiny as king of Atlantis, and his own interests in love and adventure.
Personally, a superhero King named “Arthur” should lead to an obvious parallel. I don’t think pillaging Arthurian legend and placing it in an undersea context is a bad idea at all, and I’m not sure why it’s never been done.
The art on Time and Tide by Kirk Jarvinen and Brad Vancata is a cross between Eric Larson and Art Adams but not as skilled as either. The figures are frequently malformed and somewhat inconsistent, and there’s often not a great understanding of the dynamics of being underwater. I like the open line, the cartoonishness, and it’s not unpleasant reading, I just don’t think, 15 years ago, that the artists were seasoned enough to really hit this one out. Altogether a decent read, and a fresh new start (in 1993, that is) for the big-A, leading him down a path to long hair, a beard and a hook-hand. But the ol’ kitschy orange and green won’t die, and he’s long since been returned to status quo and not too long ago disposed of altogether.
I read this originally when it came out, and it’s still in my collection. However, I reread it in trade paperback, since that’s what Aden had in her collection, and it was more accessible.
15/01/2009
[...about me #14] tub
One of my favourite things in life is a nice hot bath. Three of the six places I’ve lived in in Toronto, including the new LambBaby house, have had vintage claw-foot tubs, and I’m decidedly a fan. I have yet to find a tub that is as comfortable to lean back in, has the same depth and coverage as claw foots do (and I grew up with a fairly large jacuzzi tub, which was pretty good, but doesn’t really have a good lean-back spot).
NoYo, the last house, had a jacuzzi tub, but its jets were weak, the tub was uncomfortable and the bathroom wasn’t in the best of shape, so I didn’t have a lot of baths in the time I was there.
14/01/2009
[...i ate #14] roasted red pepper soup
I like red peppers raw.
I don’t like red peppers cooked, or grilled, or on pizza, or stuffed and baked or anything like that.
But I do like roasted red pepper soup.
[...learned #14] 1992 all over again
I learned today that there was a line-up of people standing outside the Silver Snail up to two hours before it opened, standing in -20 degree (-30 with wind chill) weather to buy an Amazing Spider-Man comic which apparently has been all over the news and such because the latest features a back-up story with Barack Obama. I can understand the novelty for the regular people who don’t read comics, but it’s the cackling, maniacal, hand-wringing “collectors”, those people that still affix a collectability premium to an essentially disposable medium (do DVDs go up in price in the after-market? Do magazines go up in price in the aftermarket? Rarely, so why should comics?).
Anyway, Aden and I were completely out of the loop on this whole Spider-Man/Obama thing (because of moving, unpacking, ignoring the news) until a friend asked early this week if we could pick her up a copy this week for her mom’s birthday, a big Obama supporter and a childhood fan of Spider-Man. Buying a comic for your mother, that’s awesome, even if it is just a novelty.
Of course, Marvel comics has recently upped the price on select, high-performing titles by $1, including this one, in an effort to basically rake in more cash (as a publicly traded company, I guess they’re obliged to try and make as much money as possible, but, well, *grumble*).
Anyway, using all of our pull, we did manage to secure a copy of the book for our friend and she was utterly ecstatic to receive the book, to the point where I’m kind of jealous that I’ve not been that excited about a comic book in… I can’t remember how long.