Magazine Archives for:

September 2011

Spider Jerusalem and Friedrich Nietzsche

“Spider Jerusalem is like Hunter S. Thompson in the 25th century.” That is how the lead character of Warren Ellis’s Transmetropolitan was first described to me.

Hollow Spectacle (or How Super-Hero Comics Warped My Logic Circuit)

There’s nothing wrong with spectacle. Even, I’d argue, for its own sake. Hell, it used to be its own genre of Hollywood movie (e.g. Cleopatra and more recently Gladiator)! But there’s good and bad spectacle,… [more]

Diagram for Delinquents Update #18: Grimmness

In April 1963, two men sat down to discuss the controversial topic of violence in the media. One man had dedicated his life to the study and eradication of it. The other manipulated it to… [more]

Loud Sounds and Bright Lights: Comic Books and the Addict

I hate the new Justice League. Let me be emphatic on this point: I loathe the new Justice League. I realize to a few this may seem a bit dramatic. After all, isn’t this book exactly what… [more]

How Not to Relaunch a Universe: A Negative Review of Justice League #1

How bad is Justice League #1, written by Geoff Johns and penciled by Jim Lee? It’s virtually a road map for how not to write super-hero comics.

How to Launch a Universe in 52 Easy Steps: A Positive Review of Justice League #1

Though I typically skew toward hyperbole when I discuss anything, I will do my best to avoid such in this review. So let’s get this out of the way right now: is Justice League the best… [more]

Fresh Off the Boat: Stories of the Americanization Process in Anya’s Ghost and American Born Chinese (Part Two)

While Anya’s Ghost subtly weaves the theme of the “FOB” and the struggle with Americanization into its story of coming of age and the supernatural, Gene Luen Yang’s award-winning American Born Chinese takes direct aim… [more]