"History of the DC Universe"

 

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

Somewhat confusing tome. Written almost like an epic poem. The most moving past of the DC Universe is the part about the future. That is beautiful and powerful 3 out of 5 stars.

"Batman: Haunted Knight"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Interesting concept of a series of Halloween annual specials. Now if only we could get Poison Ivy’s Arbor Day Special, Captain America’s Fourth of July Extravaganza and The Thing’s Bar-Mitzvah-Mazel Tof Hanukkah Annual. Haunted Knight’s artwork was beautiful. The dream scene in which Batman is getting married and Scarecrow is performing the ceremony is a stunning picture.

And Lost fans this was written by Jeph Loeb who is a producer and writer on Lost so check this out. 4 out of 5 stars

H-E-R-O: Powers and Abilities

WORTH CONSUMING!

An honest tale that reflects the deep down need to be a Superman. First 2 stories were real good. (In fact story arc 1 was powerful). Story 3 went back to the kiddy/cartoony aspect of the 1960’s version and I was not a real fan of it.

Still- Worth Consuming!!!!

Daredevil Visionaries

WORTH CONSUMING!

Daredevil has never been one of my favorite Super heroes. Maybe it’s the devil costume- i don’t know. However, like the Daredevil movie, this surprised me and I loved it. Yes- it’s true, I am the only person in America who went to see and enjoyed Ben Affleck’s Daredevil (Having Jennifer Garner in it didn’t hurt). I had for some time wanted to read Kevin Smith’s Daredevil and I am glad I got my chance. I hope one day, there will be more.

The Man from Krypton: A Closer Look at Superman (Smart Pop series)"

 

An anthology on the Superman mythos. However, it gets kinds old with many authors repeating the same things, such as “There were 4 Superman movies made starring Christopher Reeve: 2 great 2 just plain awful” and “How come Superman never used his x-ray vision to look at ladies undergarments?”

Some bright spots include a conspiracy theory about the Superman curse, an expose on the sexual troubles Clark Kent and Lois Lane face, and a review over who played the better Superman.

The Goon, Volume 1- Nothin' But Misery

WORTH CONSUMING!

Papa's got a brand new favorite title. Face it folks, I like the Goon! The world’s best gangster/mob war with zombies and other undead creatures comic….ever. (Who cares if it’s the only one?)

And the ending was sooooooooo very cool. Like Crying Game without the need to puke!

"A Hat Full of Sky (Discworld)" by Terry Pratchett

 — 2006

WORTH CONSUMING!

This book is better than the first Tiffany Aching book “The Wee Free Man”. But the book is not good because of Tiffany, but the Wee Free Men themselves. Pratchett’s most brilliant character(s), since Death.

The book took me a while to read, but not because it was complicated or boring. Actually, this was one of the most non-complex Discworld books, with a definite not ambiguous ending. I’ve been sick for about 10 and just didn’t feel like reading much. So please, consume this book!

"Eat This Book: A Year of Gorging and Glory on the Competitive Eating Circuit"

It took me abut 3 months to finally finish this book. A book that is less than 300 pages, I might add.

So, why did it take me forever to read this book?

3 very good reasons:

1: You can only read so much about puke without wanting to do it yourself.

2: Most of the Competitive eaters in this book are jerks.

3: While the book is good, the changes attitudes in this book going from a nice guy to another competitive eating jerk and that made reading this book harder towards the end.

WORTH CONSUMING!

"Star Wars: Vader's Quest"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Have you always wanted to know what happened between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back and didn’t believe that it was Splinter of the Mind’s Eye? Then this is the book for you.

Long live the Empire!!!

True Brit

WORTH CONSUMING!

A Superman comic co-written by the high priest of British comedy: John Cleese. It’s not your typical American Man of Steel. The gags of profuse bleeding and injury are straight from the Monty Python days. A continuous reference to Superman wishing his was a bicycle repair man is classic. Even the Rutles appear. It wasn’t the best Superman Elseworlds story ever written, but it was the most British and satiric. Pip-Pip!!

"Superman: The Wrath of Gog"

WORTH CONSUMING!

 The continuing story of the Superman/ Gog rivalry. It took some amazing turns. Great storytelling. I’m ready for Lois and Lana to beat the crap outta each other.

Somewhat sequel to Kingdom Come and The Kingdom.

 

"Patty-Cake and Friends Color Collection"

Though the book claims to be juvenile fiction, it’s clearly not for kids under 13. Expletives and nudity (rear only) abound. It’s kind of funny, and gross, like Ren & Stimpy. And there are at least 3 other Patty Cake & Friends volumes, but I will not be reading them. Amazingly enough, for someone who reads comic books regularly (ok, frequently), I feel that I am too old for this material. Also, this book being brand new, the ink was very ripe and gave me a headache, so those with allergies-BEWARE!

"Astonishing X-Men, Vol. 2: Dangerous"

WORTH CONSUMING!
                

If you love Genosha, don’t read this book! If you hate the Hellfire Club, (which I do) sorry.

But this is a great story arc. Right now, Astonishing is running the 3rd story arc, so you’ll have to wait. Joss Whedon is a freakin’ genius. But I still can’t understand where AXM fits in the X-Men canon. But man is it worth the read.

"Essential Marvel Team-Up, Vol. 1 (Marvel Essentials)"

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

Very 70’s, this volume is. Everyone has the nickname of “Bright Eyes”, or “Chuckles”. Corny jokes. Stereo-types. Yet, I remember loving to read old issues of this as a kid for one reason. The teaming up of two superheroes; Usually Spidey and some little titled back-up member of the Avengers like the Black Panther or Hawkeye.

Still the plots are entertaining and the threading of multiple storylines to prevent errors in the plots was very well done. I still do not know whether to keep vol. 1 or sell it, but I would read vol. 2 for nostalgia reasons.

"Superman and Spiderman"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Very lame dialogue for a typical early 1980’s comic. The exchange of Peter Parker working for the Daily Planet and Clark Kent working at the Daily Bugle was inspired.-and a first, the Superheroes DID NOT reveal their secret identities to each other. Plus, I have a new found respect for Dr. Doom. Parasite was still one dimensional.

"Just Imagine Stan Lee's Batman"

 

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

The premise of taking the greatest mind in Marvel Comics history and having him remake DC Comics icons is inspired. But Stan Lee’s Batman is none to new. I feel like I have read this before. Most of the elements that define the Bruce Wayne Batman are missing. It’s more like taking Luke Cage PowerMan, Spider-man, blaxsplotation’s Shaft and adding a Bat element to it.

Plus, the subplot of a religious cult is never fully explained and left wide open.

Not worth buying.

"JLA (Book 1): New World Order"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Starts off real slow. I could not tell if this was a re-launch of the Justice League or just a chance for it to head in a new direction. Once you figure out the answer, the book makes lots of sense and it becomes a page a minute thrill-ride mystery. It will keep you guessing till the climax.

"Fables Vol. 4: March of the Wooden Soldiers"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Excellent. Fables is proof that Vertigo is the leader of great storytelling in the Comics industry. I feel like I must read more. If you like Fables, you’ll also like Y: The Last Man, also by Vertigo.

"Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Think comics are one dimensional fluff? Well think again.

This book is a very thought provoking, insightful work on the history of the Drawn word. It’s also very abstract and sometimes way too smart for me.

But it’s a very good book.

"Fables Vol. 5: The Mean Seasons (Fables (Graphic Novels))"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Not as good as Volume four, but then again, I do not like some of the plot changes that have occurred, but I am still enchanted by this series and must have volume 6 ASAP.
BRING BACK BIGBY!!!!

"Concrete : Think Like a Mountain"-

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

This book is toooooooooo preachy! I had never read a Concrete tale and since this was all my library had at the time, I gave it a try. Like watching The Day After, this book scares you into believe that the Earth is doomed to ecological disaster any second now.

I did like the part about the Oberto hard Salami and the ending was touching, so while I do not recommend this, I would be willing to give Concrete another try.

And the art is amazing and beautiful.

Showcase Presents: Superman Family Volume 1

WORTH CONSUMING!

Taking after Marvel Comics, DC decided to republish the first 22 issues of SUPERMAN’S PAL JIMMY OLSEN, in the style of a person with color blindness. These are classic tales, some of which I remember from the Comics my dad used to have and gave to me, before they were stolen. So it was great to have an old friend around.

Considered “Fluff” compared to Marvel’s material of near the same time period, DC stories were mostly mysteries or dream sequence stories.

Interestingly enough, some of the plotlines for Jimmy Olsen read like episodes of friends. For example, in Jimmy Olsen: Crooner, the youngster gets a bad cold and is forced to sick at a night club. Normally a bad singer, the cold makes Olsen’s voice sound like Ole Blue Eyes and he becomes a star, until he loses his “sexy flem”

Sound familiar? That’s because 35 years later, it happens to Phoebe on an episode of “FRIENDS”

And so do a few other stories in this book. Still, it’s a great read and worth consuming.

"The Pirates! In an Adventure with Ahab: A novel"

WORTH CONSUMING!

This is a lot like going to 2 dinner parties and both serve the same salad, but the entree and the dessert is different. I first read The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists and like some series books it comes off the same, but then gets interesting. I love these characters- especially the Pirate Captain. Gideon Defoe, the Author is a great up and comer and I hope to have more Pirates books to read in the future. Lots of fun and worth reading.

My rating? I give it an Arrrrrrr!!!!

Twisted Toyfare Theatre, Volume 1

Funny!!!! 

Everything you ever wanted Comic Book characters to do, but were afraid to ask for. Spider-Man meets GI Joe AND Cobra! Skeletor realizes Prince Adam and He-Man look awfully similar! Dr. Doom has a yard sale! 

Perfection! A true, twisted masterpiece!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

"The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 1"

WORTH CONSUMING!
Alan Moore has the extraordinary way of making the familiar seem welcome AND yet strange at the same time. A little too gory for my taste but an excellent read.

I advise skipping the Allan Quartermaine story at the end of the volume.

"Mister O"

WORTH CONSUMING!

A poor man’s Wile E. Coyote. Mister O’s attempts to cross the gorge are primitive, yet inspired. Some are gross, some funny, some sad. All pantomimed (except for the word bubble of “$1”)

Still this takes about 10 minutes to read because of the large amounts of panels, about 60 per 1 page story.

Enjoy!

 

"Supreme: The Story of the Year"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Very familiar, thus an easy read. I thought when I found out that this covers issues 41-50 (not exact), that I would be lost. But this series covers Alan Moore’s re-launch of the Supreme character. The art is amazing and a great story, which is unpredictable until the last 5 pages, so it’s a real page turner.

Worth Consuming very much!!

 

"Hulk: Gray"

WORTH CONSUMING!

A great cover, like a 50’s horror movie poster. Amazing artwork.

The only down side is that the dust jacket says a secret will be revealed, and from what I know about the Hulk legend, it seemed to be a let-down finale.

 

Falling down the Welles

It’s hard to read a book about editing that has so many typos and poor punctuations in it. This book reviews Welles struggle with the Hollywood machine to direct the movies he wanted made. Often as you read about how both Welles and the Hollywood execs and their addiction to edit and re-edit a picture, the story get jumbled and makes little sense.

Don’t get me wrong, the book is great when it talks about Welles himself or the filming of his pictures. Just skip the stuff about editing.

And yes, this book has tons of typos, and many people’s names are not even capitalized.

However, if I find out that the author did the poor edits on purpose as a way of showing how much an editor can ruin a person’s life work, like Tinsletown did to Orson Welles, then I will change this from a Wishy-washy review to a Worth Consuming, because that is a freakin’ brilliant idea for getting your point across in a very Wellesian way.

 

 

"What the?! (regular series) Issue #13"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Marvel’s answer to MAD Magazine. This issue contains parodies of Silver Surfer, Punisher, Batman, and has the Fantastic Four seeing what life would be like with Nick Fury’s eye patches.

 

 

 

"LOEG Vol. Two TP (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen)"

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

This first volume is great. This one relies too much on sex and is very disturbing. A big let-down esp. in the works of Alan Moore. His travel guide to places the various Leagues have ventured to is boring. Skip it!

"Batman: The Gotham Adventures"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Like the Cartoon, it’s a visual masterpiece and entertaining. Worth Consuming for sure!

In the Devil's Garden: A Sinful History of Forbidden Food

WORTH CONSUMING!

The book I wanted so long to be reunited with is finished. In the Devil’s Garden by Stewart Lee Allen is excellent. It covers the religious and moral taboos of food from the Cavemen to Roman Empire, From the Estrucians to the middle Ages, From Pope Pius to 1999, if someone thought it was wrong to eat something or bad to kill, it’s probably covered in this book.

The book is broken into 7 chapters; one for each of the Seven Deadly Sins. Here’s a fun food taboo fact from each chapter:

Chapter One: Lust Because of how closely in resembles a mummified person, the Mandrake was considered taboo, because people though the root was God’s first attempt at creating people (well that, and the fact people thought when you pulled the “Man” up, he gave off a terrible scream that drove the puller mad).

Chapter Two: Gluttony ever heard of the dish Trojan Pig? It was an outlawed dish in Rome (circa 76 A.D.). It was made by roasting an entire steer, stuffed with a lamb, which is stuffed with a swine, which is stuffed with a chicken. (pg. 50)

Chapter 3: Pride One theory as to the rise in Diabetes is the development of high yield (and thus high sugar content) corn, which makes the breakdown of insulin harder and the eater more diabetic.

Chapter 4: Sloth John Barleycorn was the name given to Alcohol during the 19th and early 20th century. He was thought to be the laziest, meanest man in the world, thanks to all the whiskey that flowed through his veins.

Chapter 5: Greed Kuru, or laughing man’s disease, is an ailment found in cannibals in the Congo and New Guinea. It’s obtained by eating the brain of a human which contains over-active proteins called prions. This disease is the human version of mad cow decease.

(This chapter actually has 2 facts that I had to include: it is believed that AIDS will continue to spread in Africa not because of sexual activity, but because of the delicacy of eating primates, which is causing not only the extinction of monkeys but Africans as well) (pp. 162-164).

Chapter 6: Blasphemy it was a common practice of Catholics in the medieval times till the 1800s to disguise food not allowed to be eaten during Lent to look like food allowed during the holy fast. The thought behind this: if it didn’t look like the forbidden food, it was not a sin to eat. Examples: A pheasant lined with almond scales to look like fish and eggs shells stuffed with white and yellow almond paste.

Chapter 7: Anger The Aztec’s created smoke bombs to attack Cortez and his Spanish Armada by launching sacks filled with flaming peppers, which give of a potent and sometimes fatal smoke.

If these facts whet your appetite, you are in for a rare treat. Allen’s book makes gross things seem yummy. I didn’t get nauseous once, though some sections in the Lust chapter get a little steamy (and I’m not talking Brussels sprouts). There are several great looking recipes in here as well as fascinating history. Be sure to check out the Endnotes section as well. It’s not the normal endnote fare and has a lot of stuff not covered in the main body of the book.

"V for Vendetta"

WORTH CONSUMING!

 

It’s got mystery, fascism, adventure, and the annoying habit of quoting things I’ve never read.

Yet, this book sucks you in. I happened to read the "Director’s cut version which comes with 2 stories never before published in V For Vendetta.

The biggest downside, you get a tad confused following who’s who due to the lack of establishing captions.

This book also does not have sound effects, yet this story is some good, it makes its own sounds regardless.

Very Worth consuming.

"How to identify and collect American first editions: A guide book"

NOT WORTH CONSUMING

Book Collector’s often prefer a book that is timely, dated, and a clear reflection of the taboos, morals, prejudices and sexisms of the era for which it is written. A person who collects books on slave narratives, for example, does not expect to pick up an edition written in 1955, open it up and read the following:
“Yo, so this G had a musket in my face an’ he say “Drop it, homeboy!” So I dropped my glock, and chilled while the man was out picking cotton in the field…Yeah, Yeh!.”

Yet, when it comes to reading a book on how to identify and collect rare books, I recommend that the average collector find something more modern. How to Identify and Collect American First Editions: A Guide Book was written in 1976. While this book offers some great tips on how to start a collection, it was written during the beginning stages of serious book collecting. Many of the prices and profitable trends have changed. When the author wrote this book, children’s books were basically a dime a dozen. In todays market, Juvenile Fiction is one of the 3 most valued type of books to collect (along with autographed editions and illustrated books with their original plates and protection papers).

Even the standard how books increased in value has changed somewhat since this book was written. Tannen explains that a book value was rarely determined on age rarity, but on the inflation of paper currency.( though the author admits there are some exceptions to this rule) Since inflation is more valued now on debt than the amount of money printed, I am sure a books value is due more now to how scarce and old the volumes are. However, Tannen’s advice to buy books printed in the Civil War South or Old West Territories, and other areas no longer in “existence”, will probably always be hot commodities to look for.

This book offers a extensive but not exhaustive listing of American publishing companies. I took great delight coming upon listing for Duke University Press and The University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill’s printing company. Yet, I noticed other North Carolinian publishers curiously absent from the author’s bibliography; such as The University of Wake Forest and North Carolina State University.

While this listing is not exhaustive, it is quite tiring to read. In a thirty-eight page bibliography of “American Publishers and their Methods of Denoting First Editions” (page 18), the phrase “The first edition can be identified by identical dates on the title page and verso” is found so many times, I gave up counting after 40. In a book with 10 chapters, each with it’s own bibliography, one should expect repetitive narrative throughout this volume.

Reflecting on the age of this book, the author, Jack Tannen writes in his foreword, that he hopes to live another 25 years. Written almost 30 years ago, I wonder if he made it to his goal. Tannen is co-owner of the Biblo-Tannen Book store on New York’s Fourth Avenue, if it is still there. The author’s knowledge of books could mean that his store was a haven to bibliophiles. It would be interesting to visit the store if it was still in existence the next time I go to New York.

More than likely, the casual reader will not take much out of this book, unless they develop the urge to start collecting rare book. Like any buyers guide, age dates this work, leaving much of its information worthless. The only value a book like this have might be to a collector of bibliographies. Which is funny, since the author claims that too, is a growing genre interest of collectors.
Author’s Note: As I was looking for an image of the book, I discovered that Jack Tannen wrote a second revised edition of this book. My library only had the first edition. Thus my review is only pertained to the edition I read.

"Wonder Woman: The Hiketeia"

WORTH CONSUMING!

Extremely fast read. Great art. Top notch coloring. Story is pretty good. Lots of action. I love the Alex Ross cover of Wonder Woman standing on Batman's neck.

"Mutant, Texas: Tales of Sheriff Ida Red"

WORTH CONSUMING!
Neat art, original story.
I would read more of these.