Mcfly's Christmas Giftorium Part 2: Comics!

Hey all you wacky wacky folks out there. Hope everyone is doing well, finals week and all. And if you don't take finals, be grateful. I just finished writing a new short story, which was written in a creative haze and finished in the same way; it's always a nice feeling to write, it's an even better feeling to finish that piece of writing. Sure, I should've been doing homework, but I wrote instead, so sue me.

Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed my last entry about books, this entry is going to cover some really great comics I've read and hopefully you guys will look into.

1: Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli: I spoke about this earlier in the year, when I read it in August and I still feel the same way. This is a great read. Comics, I've noticed, can work in one of two ways: either the words tell the story, or the art tells the story. In most cases, one takes the lead, with the other supplementing it, helping the story along; I'd never discount words or art in a comics medium. But in Asterios Polyp, Mazzucchelli manages to have the words tell a story, while the art tells another story, which when combined tell a whole, complete, and natural story together. It's a brilliant search for a man's meaning in life, and Mazzucchelli isn't afraid to show you the love, brilliance, heartache and irony we all go through to get the job done.

2: 100 Bullets by Brian Azzerello and Eduardo Risso: Now this is a big one guys, a HUGE undertaking. If you are a crime/mystery/noir fiend such as that I am becoming, this is going to be one for you. 100 issues of murder, mayhem, backstabbing, double crossing, a mysterious word, an even more mysterious council and ultimately the battle they are embroiled in with their former soldiers. This one has it all. Azzerllo and Risso take everything you love about crime fiction and the comics medium and they do it right. Damn right.

3: Locke and Key by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez: For all you horror fans out there, I present to you Joe Hill, a fairly new writer on the scene,making his big debut only a few years ago. His thing is horror and man oh man does he do it well. I just finished reading his first novel, Heart-Shaped Box, which was great, also highly recommended. But for the comic buffs, I suggest Locke and Key: Welcome to Lovecraft, which is the first volume of the series. The son of Stephen King, Hill mixes in tension, murder, guilt, supernatural forces and a set of mystical keys, that open many doors and do many things, of which we've only seen the tip of the iceberg. With him is Rodriguez who renders this tension perfectly in his pencils and inks. This is not a series to be missed.

4: Umbrella Academy by Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba: Part Grant Morrison zaniness, part Gaiman thoughtfulness and all Gerard Way's ingenuity, this is a great, great book. Fear not, Way writes with a knack and a skill that makes you assume he's been doing this all his life. Likewise, Ba interprets this story with colorful characters and a cartoony surrealism that only draws you further into the seriousness of the story. But don't worry out, for as serious as it can get, The Umbrella Academy, a story of six adopted super-powered children all grown up, is a wild, insanely exciting trip through the wonders that comics are capable of.

And that's that. Hope you guys enjoy, and I'll be back soon with something else or a rant or two. Also, Jamie just got back from Dreidel Drinking. Happy Chanukah all my Jewish friends!

Mcfly's Christmas Giftorium Part 1: Books!

It's a lovely winter-y day here in the great country of Albany, the snow is falling blindingly, its cold, windy and frigid, the ability to make snowballs is to the point of sweatshop labor intensity and efficiency, and I am sitting in the Quad Office, while Mikela is on the great hunt for shoes and the like.

She says hi.

I mentioned before that I would be making a list of things that I think would make great Christmas gifts, things that fall under my domain, like books, video games, comics and so on. I would like to pretend to be an expert on all things sophisticated, like suggesting a nice bottle of wine or perhaps a new monocle for Christmas, yet this blog is not entitled, "It's All A Fancy Bottle of Wine or Perhaps A New Monocle To Me," so I shall just have to be honest with myself.

Just noticed, students are making a giant snowman outside of the office, further pushing my theory that as old as we become, we are inevitably five year olds on the inside. But if that goddamn snowman comes to life, I'm going to freak out . . . seriously.

Also, Chris says hey.

So, books, books, books! Here are a couple of books, that I think would make some great holiday gifts!

1: American Gods by Neil Gaiman: Neil Gaiman, as we all know, is one of my favorite fantasy authors out there. Not to say that I do not have other favorites ranked right up there with him, but he is ostensibly, the man who got me into this type of fantasy. American Gods is a great read, exploring the true nature of forgotten gods, and new incarnations of the gods we make for ourselves, through Shadow's journey. Dark, moody, hilarious, sexy, mysterious and downright breath-taking, American Gods is a great gateway novel into the realm of dark fantasy.

2: Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss: And on the other end of the spectrum, Patrick Rothfuss has a book that does the same for traditional fantasy. Name of the Wind is an exploration of the hero's tale and journey, told by the hero himself. Kvothe recounts his life's story, in an attempt to reconcile people's view of him, with how he views himself, confronting his own struggles and demons as he tells it. It is a fresh, new and compelling look into the traditional hero's journey and how the quest for vengeance must sometime take a backseat to survival. And maybe love. Go read it, and find out!

Also, on a sidenote, Patrick Rothfuss is offering a new type of Christmas-Giftorium-Opportunity over on his blog. It is a fundraiser through Heifer International, an organization that uses donations to purchase and give livestock, and materials to needy families, to help them live and thrive. Pat is holding a fundrasier/raffle, to help raise money for this great cause. I myself will be putting some money in, and whether or not I win anything, I win something, if ya catch my da-rift =)

Check it out over here! http://www.patrickrothfuss.com/blog/2009/12/worldbuilders-2009.html

3: Peter and Max By Bill Willingham: Bill Willingham writes this great little comic called Fables, you might have heard of it. It's a story of our fables, our fairy tales, as they live in the modern world, fighting and struggling to survive. Bigby Wolf, Boy Blue, Snow White and so many more. Peter and Max is the story of Peter Piper, who picked a pickled pepper, and his brother, Max Piper, the Pied Piper of Hamelin. It is the story of two brothers, and the paths they go down, accompanied with the great illustrations of Steve Leialoha. Great read, done in one novel and if you're a Fables buff, you'll love it.

4: Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson: Brandon Sanderson is one of my favorite new authors this year, among Joe Hill and Pat Rothfuss. Brandon does some amazing things with his Mistborn trilogy, a story of rebellion and action, magic and destiny, religion and fate. Sanderson manages to create memorable characters, a great world, three distinct yet wholly connected magic systems, and he manages to tie it all together in three books. It's really well-done, go check it out!

And there are plenty more books out there, man there's almost too many, but those are the ones I can think of off the top of my head. They're all great reads, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. I'm off for now, but I'll be back soon to discuss some comics!

Also, I just witnessed a ResLife snowball fight. Mikela is pissed; hell hath no fury like an irish woman who got snow in her hair.