The Pickytarian

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October 12, 2005

Happy Picky-versary To Me!

Random thoughts for today, my one-year (and one day, oopsie) blogoversary...

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I saw a woman reading Perspolis 2 this morning on the subway. I briefly considered asking her if she had read the first volume, and if so, whether she agreed with my assessment of the sequel as being significantly inferior. But my mama taught me not to talk to strangers. And I'm sure this woman's mama taught her that comic book nerd strangers who approach her on the subway must be immediately sprayed with Mace. So I kept my distance.

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From an article in today's New York Times about Infinte Crisis and the general "grim fin-headed arserape" direction of DC Comics:

"I think people feel it's dark because it's so compelling," Mr. DiDio said. "They don't know how our heroes are going to get out of the danger."

Mr. Rucka agreed: "When they're saying 'it's too dark,' they're saying, 'I'm scared.' "

He added, "It's not a crisis if they know they're going to win."

That's right, gents, I don't like it because it scares me. I have also been losing a ton of sleep lately wondering if Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are really going to win this time. It's such a crisis! The disconnect from reality among these gents is almost George W. Bush-like. These are reasonable and intelligent men, though, and I suspect that they know full well that ham-handedly slapping some over-the-top melodramatic rape and murder into a comic book does not make it "mature." What they do know is that it will sell like gangbusters, but they can't exactly say that in their publicity interviews. They're crying about my complaints all the way to the bank, I'm sure.

To be honest, I am considering picking up Infinite Crisis this week. At the very least, it would give me ammunition for some snark. Unfortunately, I haven't bought any of the lead-up crossovers or mini-series. I also haven't bought any of the 60 years of backstory that will surely be integral to the plot. But I sort of feel like it isn't fair of me to complain so much about something I haven't read. I'll be like those moral majority hypocrites who closely monitor every R-rated movie to keep close track of every single moment of prurience.

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I've listed another stack of comics on eBay! I've got a couple 12-book lots of "indie" comics up there, and I will be shocked if they go for more than $2 or $3 per batch. Take a look and try out something new: issues of Daisy Kutter, True Story Swear to God, Teenagers From Mars, Temporary and more can be yours for mere pennies! For the less adventurous types, I've also got recent runs of books like The Ultimates 2, Fantastic Four, and The Losers. I've also got a group of Evan Dorkin books up there, including the ultra-valuable fourth printing of Milk & Cheese #1. How can your money possibly stay in your pocket?

Posted by jdonelson_nyc at October 12, 2005 01:46 PM

Comments

Posted by: Guy LeCharles Gonzalez at October 12, 2005 09:27 PM