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Book Review: “X’ed Out” by Charles Burns
The first installment of Charles Burns’ graphic novel trilogy entitled “X’ed Out” landed squarely at the No. 1 spot for the New York Times Hardcover Graphic Fiction in Fall of 2010. Here are my thoughts about this intriguing title.
What I Liked
- The art is first-rate and a joy to behold. While in full-color, flat color is used economically and only to the extent necessary. No virtuoso shading and rim lights like the superhero colorists. The evidence of the author’s career as an illustrator is unmistakable in the laser-sharp line-work and graphic design of the panels and pages. The book itself is an attractive production from Pantheon Books.
- The writing style is a loose, almost conversational-type of approach. This makes the story accessible, while still keeping the book’s plot enigmatic enough to hook the reader.
What I Didn’t Like
- The occasional use of Herge’s Tintin as an alter-ego is the very kind of derivative work that I find disappointing. While Tintin was not a major influence for me (I was more of a MAD magazine fanboy), the use of the imagery and style disturbs me as when sampled music creates new hits.
Overall Grade: A
The volume is a joy to behold and due to the scant number of pages I found myself rationing the reading to a few pages at a time to make the experience last. The color art is mesmerizing and the retro illustration style is perfectly captivating. Can’t wait for the next installment.
To understand more about the book, head over to this interview at nytimes.com with the author.
Guest Strip: Big Sandy Gilmore
Hey folks, this doesn’t happen that often but I have a guest strip over at Matt Stout’s “Big Sandy Gilmore“. Matt is the co-host with Chris Flick of “Capes & Babes“, one of my favorite podcasts these days called “The Lightbox”.
When he put out a call for help during the birth of his daughter recently I was glad to take a crack. There is nothing more fun than shirking all my responsibilites to draw and write for someone else’s “world”.
Check it out, I’ll still be here when you come back.
Regads,
-T.A.D.
Book Review: “Life” by Keith Richards
A rock and roll legend who really needs no introduction has penned his memoir. Keith Richards’ “Life” details his life story, work ethic, songwriting and touring with the World’s Greatest Rock And Roll Band The Rolling Stones.
What I Liked
- Amusing anecdotes, and some genuinely sweet family photos that reveal the personal side of the legendary guitarist
- Detailed description of his discovery of open G tuning using only five strings. What this means is that his guitar is not tuned to a standard concert tuning of six string E-A-D-G-B-E arrangement, and the result unlocks a powerful palette of richer sounds. It’s the reason even the very best cover bands don’t quite get his sound right. His description is absolutely poetic.
- The “inside story” behind some of his exploits from the source, particularly the fall from the tree in Fiji. The story was carried by the media as a goofy escapade, but is a well-told tale of head injuries and the importance of immediate medical attention.
What I Didn’t Like
- It is completely his prerogative to openly disclose his heroin addiction, and it’s disappointing that the only thing I learned besides open G tuning is how his addiction was ingested.
Best LOL Jokes (Spoilers!)
When Mick Jagger was getting out of control (considering himself the leader) he called Charlie Watts wondering where “his drummer” was. This resulted in Charlie punching out Mick, who was wearing one of Keith’s jackets. When Keith grabbed Mick who was reeling towards a balcony and certain death, Keith grabbed him. Charlie shouts “Why did you grab him?” to which Keith replies “He’s wearing MY jacket!”.
Overall Grade: A-
It’s an interesting read if you are a fan of the Stones and reading about the excesses and privileges of one of the world’s living rock legends. I’ve used the word legendary as sparingly as possible, but when I saw the Stones live for the Bigger Bang Tour in 2006 that’s the single word I came away with.
Up next, I’ve downloaded my first eBook to Kindle. Not sure if finishing an eBook is as rewarding as putting Keith’s book on the top shelf of “finished” books.
Capes And Babes Treasure Hunt: A Win-Win
I’ve been meaning to blog about the webcomics that have my attention lately in this space. Capes & Babes by Chris Flick is not new to me, and it occupies a spot in my Favorites folder with about a dozen “must-reads” that I’ll probably discuss in future posts.
It was Chris’s recent “treasure hunt” contest that inspired me to crawl through his archive for the prize. This afforded me the opportunity to see the evolution of his work, and the surprise was not that his work evolved – it was strong from the very start.
A less tangible take-away for me is that it seems there is a kind of joy in his work, in other words – it doesn’t seem like his process is hard work to him, as it is to me. I’m reminded of a U2 interview where the drummer Larry says “With Springsteen, there’s a kind of joy in his performance, with us, we’re slogging out there every gig. It’s hard work.”
Please check out Capes & Babes when you have the time to go through the archive. I’ll wait patiently for my sketch card prize and likely post it here.
Regards,
-T.A.D.
Looking for a Fresh Webcomic Resource?
A new Webcomics “How-To” site launched yesterday at webcomicalliance.com. Hosted by some familiar names in my Favorites folder it offers free resources to help you in case you’re foolish enough to start a webcomic.
I went straight-away to the first podcast, and I’ll admit I wanted to hate it because I’m not sure if we need – or if I have time for – another webcomics podcast in my playlist.
But I liked it. And I subscribed to it in my RSS reader. Let’s hope they can keep it up.
What do you think? Can the new, free Webcomic Alliance can keep up with the established resources?
Broken Rib: An Illustration
A couple of weeks ago I got on a Metro-North train to meet with a NYC recruiter on a rainy Monday morning. Another passenger was standing alongside me in the doorway area since all seats were taken by other commuters (and their backpacks).
Since we were in such close proximity I noticed he was pretty well-dressed in the style of the Wall Street type.
Early on in the commute, the train lurched suddenly and forcibly. His feet went out from under him and he fell hard to the slippery floor. It became quickly apparent that what could have been simply an embarassing moment for him was something more serious when he couldn’t get up right away with my assistance.
In chatting with him, he said he couldn’t go out for medical attention because he had to get to a meeting. When I pressed that an emergency room visit would be my first choice, he divulged that it was actually a job interview, and re-scheduling because he “fell on the train” would be embarassing. He asked for my contact information in case he needs a witness for a claim.
I don’t know how it turned out for him but this is what the job market is like. Suffer and wince through a job interview with a broken rib for fear of re-scheduling. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone.
-T.A.D.
Qwitter
As a follow-up to yesterday’s love letter to Twitter, I became a user of the Qwitter service recently and weeks later I can’t for the life of me understand why.
Qwitter sends you email with the Twitter names of followers who unfollowed you. The best use of this information is to help you thin out your list and weed out the Twitter users who are not reciprocating the follow. In other words, Twitter works best when the follow is mutual. This isn’t always practical in the case of celebrities, if following celebrities is your thing.
The worst use of this information is when you are having a bad day and want to feel worse. While some followers are spammy (I didn’t mind when the bowling alley in Portland Oregon unfollowed me), some are genuine relationships. This post was inspired by a certain webcomic artist who un-followed me hours after I re-tweeted a pencil sketch from his sketchbook. A re-tweet (or RT) is an implied compliment. If something strikes me as special, or note-worthy, I’ll ReTweet without hesitation. To be promptly un-followed seemed downright rude.
On a related note, I’m phasing out logons to Facebook for a bunch of reasons – likely the subject of a future blog post. This will free-up more time to waste on foursquare, my new diversion.
What are you favorite or least favorite time vacuums?