Mike Madrid is an author who has written several books (all of which are on my TBR) about women in Golden Age Comics. Let me tell you, there were a lot of Smart Bitches in those early comics, and this particular book, about Golden Age villainesses, tells you all about them. The Golden Age of Comics doesn’t have definitive beginning and ending dates, but it more or less began in 1938 when Superman made his … Continue reading Vixens, Vamps, and Vipers: Lost Villainesses of Golden Age Comics by Mike Madrid →
I have a lot going on in my world right now. We’re moving from Jersey to (most likely) Maryland, so my brain is overtaxed with lists. So many lists. Lists that give birth to their own lists, all of them color-coded with various highlighters, and organized in a constantly shifting order of importance. In fact, this description from Devil’s Bride best captures my brain right now: “Within minutes, she was immersed in lists—initial lists, then … Continue reading Archie Comics: The Reboot →
Lumberjanes is one of those comics that everyone says I should read. Well, I got my hands on Volume One, and then I bought every other issue I could snag at the time (I made it through Issue #17) and I can officially say that all those people are right – you should read Lumberjanes, not because it is feminist and LGBT positive (although that’s awesome), but because it is so much fun. Lumberjanes is about … Continue reading Lumberjanes by Shannon Watters, Grace Ellis, and N.D. Stevenson →
Once upon a time, the best selling comics weren’t about superheroes – they were romance anthologies. You can find my review of a collection of the oldest romance comics line, Young Romance, here. These romance comics were unabashedly soapy and melodramatic, but not very diverse. Now we have a new romance comic magazine, Fresh Romance. In my review of the first issue, I said that the first issue was too short but that the stories … Continue reading Fresh Romance #2, Ed. by Janelle Asselin →
Young Romance 2 is the second volume of an anthology of comics from the late 1940’s by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Why aren’t I reviewing Vol. 1? Because my library had Vol. 2 but not Vol.1. Either volume is a fun collection of a style of comic book that was once insanely popular and is now almost forgotten. The introduction to this anthology, while brief, is absolutely fascinating. Simon and Kirby are most famous … Continue reading Young Romance Vol. 2, by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby →
When people think of comic books today, they usually think of superheroes. But in the 1940’s through the 1970’s, romance comics were just as well known as superhero comics, if not more so. Most of the stories were told from the perspective of the heroine but were written and illustrated by men. The content of the stories fluctuated with social mores and with the rise of the Comics Code Authority, but the romances were always … Continue reading Fresh Romance, Ed. by Janelle Asselin →
Oooh I love it when I find something totally wonderful and I get to talk about it! Sex Criminals is a comic book series that is so great that I want to run around the streets yelling about how good it is. Sex Criminals is about two people, Suzie and John, who have an interesting superpower – they can stop time, but only for short time immediately following an orgasm. John suggests that they use … Continue reading Sex Criminals Volume I by Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky →
Does a review count as a review if it’s just a big Squee? Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a movie that gets almost everything right. This is a classic example of how to make an action movie that is character driven instead of just stringing together a bunch of set pieces. Marvel achieves the perfect balance of action, drama, and comedy here. It should be used in film classes on how to make a … Continue reading Movie Review: Captain America: The Winter Soldier →
Elfquest is a comic book series by Richard and Wendy Pini. This series ran in one form or another from 1978 – 2007, and picked up again in 2012. For our purposes, this review focuses on the perfect “romance novel” comic – the story arc told in Issues 1 – 5. The story is this: A tribe of elves called The Wolfriders (because they ride wolves, duh) lives on a planet inhabited by humans, trolls, … Continue reading Book Review: ElfQuest Issues 1-5, by Wendy and Richard Pini →
Saga is the strangest, most twisted, perverse comic ever. It’s also the sweetest, most romantic comic ever. This is a story about a happily married couple, and a story in which the fate of many, many planets hinges on a romance novel. It’s funny and touching, and I did mention strange and twisted? The premise for Saga is pretty simple. Alana and Marko come from different sides of a vast interstellar war. They fall in … Continue reading Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples →
This is a bit outside the boundaries of the genre, but in some ways, it’s not. I first mentioned The Virginity Project here, and when the publisher of the book offered a review copy for me to review, I was so curious to see the collection, I couldn’t say no. Since so much of romance focuses on virginity in one form or another, both literal and figurative, examining sexuality through illustration of the (dare I … Continue reading The Virgin Project by K.D. Boze and Stasia Kato →
