Supermarket

So far we've only got a couple of covers and a blurb description, but I'm already in love with Supermarket by Brian Wood and Kristian Donaldson:

Supermarket #1
(w) Brian Wood
(a) Kristian Donaldson
IDW Publishing

"Cash Rules Everything Around Me". In the future world of SUPERMARKET, it's the literal truth. Legitimate and black market economies rule the City, overseen by the vying factions of the Yakuza and Porno Swede crime families. Convenience store clerkette and 16-yo suburban wise-ass Pella Suzuki suddenly finds herself in the middle of it all, heir to an empire she couldn't possibly inherit, but hitmen on both sides aren't taking any chances. Co-created and written by Brian Wood (Demo, DMZ, The Couriers), SUPERMARKET is street level anti-consumerism with a healthy dose of violence and humor. Kristian provides lush, powerful artwork and makes this future world as real as if it were now.

Even though it's from IDW, and thus will cost $1 more than it should (although hopefully it'll be in color), I think I'll be getting this!

Fantasy and Science Fiction/Theory Reading Group

Earlier this year I started attending a local book group for Science Fiction and Fantasy that focus on theory and literary aspects and whatnot. I've found that it's a good way to give my reading some direction and I really enjoy the discussions that we have once a month.

Last night was the annual book selection meeting, where we chose the books we'll be reading for the coming year. Basically everyone brings suggestions and then we discuss and fight it out until something resembling a consensus is reached and 10 selections have been made.

Most of my suggestions didn't make it to the end, but the one that did was that we do a double-bill of two recent Grant Morrison GNs: Seaguy and We3. (The group tends more often than not to pick one GN each year--this past year we did The Dark Knight Returns). Most of the group are not heavy comics readers, so it'll be interesting to see what discussions develop.

The other books chosen by the group are:

Neil Gaiman, American Gods
Charles Stross, Accelerando
Connie Willis, To Say Nothing of the Dog
Cornelia Funke, Inkheart
Max Barry, Jennifer Government
Robert McKinley, Sunshine
Midori Snyder, Innamorati
Clifford Simack, Way Station
George R. Stuart, Earth Abides


Of which I've already read American Gods and Jennifer Government.

Yet Another Fantasy League: Week 5 Results

Here are the results from week 5 of Yet Another Fantasy League:



Power Pack 77
Kickers Inc. 39

B.P.R.D. 67
The Inferior Five 50

Moon Knights 38
www.rickgebhardt.net 52

Nine Pound Hammers 28
Tomorrow Syndicate 64

Danger Limited 54
The Maxx Squad 55

Inferior 5 plus 6 114
Secret Six 73


Current Standings:

   Team                 W-L-T  Pct    Pts  Streak
   -------------------  -----  -----  ---  ------
1. Inferior 5 plus 6    5-0-0  1.000  373  W-5
2. Power Pack           4-1-0   .800  340  W-3
3. B.P.R.D.             3-2-0   .600  349  W-1
4. Tomorrow Syndicate   3-2-0   .600  342  W-3
5. Nine Pound Hammers   3-2-0   .600  273  L-2
6. Kickers Inc.         3-2-0   .600  268  L-1
7. Secret Six           2-3-0   .400  339  L-1
8. The Maxx Squad       2-3-0   .400  281  W-1
9. Moon Knights         2-3-0   .400  239  L-1
10.www.rickgebhardt.net 2-3-0   .400  228  W-1
11.The Inferior Five    1-4-0   .200  250  L-2
12.Danger Limited       0-5-0   .000  262  L-5

Week 6 Games:

Tomorrow Syndicate (3-2-0)
vs.
Kickers Inc. (3-2-0)

Power Pack (4-1-0)
vs.
The Inferior Five (1-4-0)

B.P.R.D. (3-2-0)
vs.
www.rickgebhardt.net (2-3-0)

Inferior 5 plus 6 (5-0-0)
vs.
Moon Knights (2-3-0)

Nine Pound Hammers (2-3-0)
vs.
The Maxx Squad (2-3-0)

Danger Limited (0-5-0)
vs.
Secret Six (2-3-0)

Good luck to all!


In my other Fantasy Leagues, I lost 71-40 in my friends & family league (2-3-0, seventh place); won 40-37 in my public league (2-3-0, eighth place); and scored a pathetic 190.45 points in my Pass & Kick league, dropping me down to third place.

New This Week: October 12, 2005

Based on the NCRL list for this week's comics shipping from Diamond, here are a few things to look for at the local comic shop later today:


The Pick of the Week is Doom Patrol, vol. 3: Down Paradise Way, crazy insane surreal super-heroes from the mind of Grant Morrison and the hands of Richard Case, Kim DeMulder, Kelley Jones and others. Featuring the first appearances of Danny the Street and Flex Mentallo.


In other comics:

AAA Pop Have the long-delayed third issue of Mike Allred's Golden Plates.

Antarctic debut The Science Fair and Metadocs: The Super ER, and have a new issue of Ninja High School (#132).

Dark Horse have a special 24 cent edition of the first issue of The Goon, as well as a Goon hardcover collection.

DC Comics have a collection of Astro City: Local Heroes; new issues of 100 Bullets (#65), Ex Machina (#15), Fables (#42), Villains United (#6), and Y, the Last Man; plus the first issue of some obscure mini series I haven't heard anything about: Infinite Crisis.

Fantagraphics have the latest issue of The Comics Journal (#271).

I Box have a new issue of the now-seemingly-bi-annual Thieves & Kings (#47).

Image have a new issue of Gødland (#4).

Lightspeed have the final print issue of Finder (#38).

Marvel have digest-sized collections of Spellbinders and Livewires, the final issue of Gravity (#5), and the debut of Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.

Renaissance Press have the latest Amelia Rules (#15).

Viper have the penultimate issue of The Middleman (#3).

Viz have a new issue of Shojo Beat #5.


All in all, it looks to be a much saner pile of stuff (quantity-wise) than the past two weeks!

Review: Yotsuba&!, vol. 1

Yotsuba&!, vol. 1
by Kiyohiko Azuma
ADV Manga, $9.99

Truth be told, I had been reluctant to read Yotsuba&!, for a couple of reasons: first, much has been made from all the promotion that Yotsuba&! is by the creator of Azumanga Daioh, a comic that I had a lukewarm at best reaction to; and second, so much praise has been heaped on Yotsuba&! that it couldn't possibly live up to the hype, could it?

As it turns out, yes it can. Yotsuba&! is a delightful, charming series that can be enjoyed by all. It's also at times very, very funny.

The premise is simple: Yotsuba and her dad move in to a new neighborhood and interact, mostly with the family next door. What makes this comic a winner is the personality of Yotsuba herself: bubbly and fearless, and often wrong, and scarily like a real four-year-old. (In fact, there were frequntly things that Yotsuba would say or do that I could see my own nephew doing.) Yotsuba is exploring her world and her boundaries, trying to make sense of it all. Yotsuba hasn't yet developed a self-censoring mechanism (in Freudian terms, she's all ego & id, without a superego) and says exactly what's on her mind, although mostly her heart is in the right place.

Azuma has a gift for deft characterization, and that extends to the supporting cast as well: Yotsuba's dad, a single parent trying to keep everything together; the older neighbor girls, who take an immediate liking to this strange girl who moves in next door; and Jumbo, the family friend, who is also at a stage of arrested development, showing how what is charming in a four-year-old girl can be disconcerting in a grown man.

Have I mentioned yet how charming Yotsuba&! is? Yes, I have, but I probably can't say it enough. Reading Yotsuba&! will keep you smiling from cover to cover, and help you to rediscover your comic book soul.

Rating: 4.5 (of 5)

New Library Comics: Week of October 3, 2005

Here are the comics we got in for our library collection last week:



Atagawa, Fumihiro. Furupawa monkey /Tokyo : Shueisha, 1998- v. 1

Jones, Sabrina. Prisoners of the war on drugs /Northampton, MA : The Real Cost of Prisons Project, c2005.

Pyle, Kevin. Prison town : paying the price /Northampton, MA : The Real Cost of Prisons Project, c2005.

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover.

Back to the jungle this week, and George Wilson paints the cover to 1967's Tarzan #172, as Tarzan faces off against a big ol' gorilla with a spear and a loincloth!

(standard disclaimer about apes not really being monkeys applies)

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.