This is a re-post of one of my work-related blogs. I took out the really work-related stuff, but you can find the
original post (and others put up by myself and my co-workers) at the
Recycled Book Blog. Anyway, enjoy-
New (Actually Old) Discovery- I just picked up
Preacher...and I'm so mad at myself for putting off reading it until now! If you are unfamiliar with the series, it's a story starring a (very) wayward Texas preacher named Jesse, his ex-girlfriend, Tulip, who hunts him down for abandoning her, and an Irish vampire called Cassidy who has a habit of getting into barroom brawls. In the first issue, Jesse is bestowed with 'the voice of God' by Genesis, a creature born from the so-called union of an angel and a demon. With this 'voice', Jesse has the power to command people to do his will...which results in various interesting and rather entertaining situations that I would rather not divulge and spoil for potential readers. Suffice to say that between Jesse's 'voice' and Cassidy's classic one-liners, I was laughing through both of the volumes I've so far read.
It's a great series, and very deserving of its popularity.
Preacher is intelligent but accessible, clever but never cutesy, and above all a great read. Vertigo has struck gold once again with this series.
I've also picked up an older Marvel title,
Universe X. What's fascinating about this one is that it's an alternate future epic, which not only projects new and terrifying ideas about what could happen to people we grew up thinking of as heroes. Some, like Warren Worthington III (X-Men's Angel) and Steve Rogers (Captain America) simply face age and their own faded glory. Others like Susan Storm Richards (the Invisible Woman) and Professor Xavier (if you don't know who he is, why are you reading a blog about comic books?) are no longer alive, and still others face a perversion of their powers that makes day to day life an unprecedented challenge (Namor the Submariner has been infused with the Human Torch's powers, meaning he can't leave his home under the sea without half of his body bursting into flames. Also, Daredevil is no longer the Man Without Fear- he is the Man Who Cannot Die, who performs outrageous stunts such as literally eating grenades in vain attempts to take his own life). Captain Marvel, on the other hand, returns from the dead (sort of...again) to save this universe from itself... only, he is reborn in the form of a golden-haired child, the son of Adam and Eve (both of whom are perfect constructed beings...and I'm sure you caught the reference behind the names). All in all, it's a heavy read, being two volumes (and each volume averaging 350 pages of illustrated greatness) of a dark, somewhat depressing revision of Marvel Universe history, but it's nonetheless a fascinating and thought-provoking look at our favorite, long-standing superheroes...and the ravages of time.
Universe X is part of a series of revised Marvel history which also includes
Paradise X and
Earth X.
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (Norton Critical Edition)
The Trouble With Tribbles: The Birth, Death, Sale, and Final Production of One Episode by David Gerrold
