The Walking Dead: V.8 - A Review

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The Walking Dead Volume 8
(Made to Suffer)
Written by: Robert Kirkman, Charlie Adlard & Cliff Rathburn
Paperback: 136 pages
Publisher: Image
Language: English
July 2008, $14.99

In a world ruled by the dead, we are forced to finally begin living. An epidemic of apocalyptic proportions has swept the globe, causing the dead to rise and feed on the living. In a matter of months, society has crumbled: There is no government, no grocery stores, no mail delivery, no cable TV. Rick Grimes finds himself one of the few survivors in this terrifying future. There was a time when he was a small town cop who had never fired a shot and only ever saw one dead body. But now everything has changed. A few months ago, he and a small band of survivors had found a haven behind prison walls. But nothing lasts forever and this time it isn’t just the undead they need to worry about.

+++++++++++++

If you love zombies and like comics, you really should read the Walking Dead series. In fact, it is this series and a couple of others that renewed my love of comics and got me reading and buying them again. To be honest, if you haven’t read the Walking Dead series, shame on you as it is a very good series.

Issues 43 through 48 sees the return of the sadistic Governor who has manipulated his small town of survivors into attacking the prison. The first few pages we discover what has brought this about from the Governor’s point of view. And then we return to Rick and the other survivors’s point of view.

Some say the dialogue is flawed and I will admit it is very basic and obvious at times. However, the story still hits you and for me that is what matters. All of this time Rick and the other survivors have been trying to rebuild their lives and a society after zombies took everything away and finally got them to start living again. It has always been zombies vs. the living, but this time around it is man against man, and that man is the Governor. This is one of the most violent of the volumes and because of it the loss of life is heavy as well. In previous volumes, Kirkman held no punches when it came to taking out some of your favorite characters and this time there are no exceptions. In fact, I think my jaw dropped just a little with the cliffhanger ending. It is safe to say that things will never be the same again.

The artwork continues to have the same impact. At first I wasn’t wholly impressed with Adlard’s artwork, but over these past 8 volumes I have grown to appreciate it. Well worth the read and I cannot wait to see what happens again.

4 out of 4 happy bibliosnark bookmarks

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Cry Wolf - A Book Review

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Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega, Bk 1)
Written by: Patricia Briggs
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Ace
Language: English
July 2008, $7.99

Now Briggs begins an extraordinary new series set in Mercy Thompson’s world—but with rules of its own.

INTRODUCING THE ALPHA AND OMEGA NOVELS...

Anna never knew werewolves existed until the night she survived a violent attack…and became one herself. After three years at the bottom of the pack, she’d learned to keep her head down and never, ever trust dominant males. But Anna is that rarest kind of werewolf: an Omega. And one of the most powerful werewolves in the country will recognize her value as a pack member—and as his mate.

++++++

I am a big fan of Patricia Briggs whose Mercy Thompson series has a distinct voice in the urban fantasy genre where action tends to take precedence over character development or where romance takes over. For me, Mercy was different. Sure there was action and romance subplots, but they were not the main focus of the stories. Mercy is the focus of the series and I have enjoyed getting to know the mechanic shapeshifter. In fact, Iron Kissed even had me crying like the big giant girl I am.

I first read about Anna and Charles in the anthology, ‘On the Prowl’ and to be honest I would recommend that people try to nab that first. The story focuses on Anna, an Omega werewolf who is very special when it comes to pack hierarchy. She is neither submissive nor dominant and has the ability to soothe troubled wolves. Unfortunately, not only was she turned against her will because the Alpha recognized her as being Omega, but was then brutalized and mistreated by her pack. When a local turns up dead and Anna recognizes him as being someone that her pack killed she musters up the courage to call the Marrok, the leader of all werewolves, who then sends his son Charles to investigate. As discovered early on in Cry Wolf Charles not only killed Anna’s Alpha but was shot in the process with silver bullets. Another strange thing happened, his wolf claimed Anna’s as his own.

Cry Wolf begins with Charles moving Anna away from Chicago to join Bran’s pack. She is still extremely gun-shy despite her attraction to Charles and unsure of what being Omega really means. The new couple barely has time to really get to know one another before Charles is needed to investigate a possible rogue that is killing people in the nearby mountains. Of course there is more to it than just that.

I think Cry Wolf is a good book, but not a great book. It leans a bit more to the supernatural romance than it does urban fantasy for me and I think the book, especially the characters suffer with the opening missing which leaves the overall story feeling incomplete. I also think if this was the first Patricia Briggs book I read, while her take on werewolf society is very interesting and the characters likeable, I don’t think I would have immediately sought out to devour her other books. Luckily I have known Bran, Samuel, and even Charles from the Mercy series and I have a better understanding of who they are and why they do the things that they do. But a newcomer might be a little confused.

I do like Charles and Anna and would be interested in reading more about them, especially Charles who didn’t get to be as fleshed out as he could have been. Briggs spent this novel developing their relationship and I will admit the progression of their relationship works for me though I think there are still a lot of things that need to be discussed and sorted. I also think said relationship will take less precedence in following books and hit the stride that the Mercy series has in balancing all of the elements. I also hope that Anna’s Omega abilities are more fully explained and realized. I must admit this was the first Patricia Briggs book that I didn’t read all in one sitting because the pacing was a bit slow. I think the last half of the book was definitely more exciting, better paced and more entertaining to read than the first half. With some minor complaints about the villain (who I am surprised lasted as long as she did considering how crazy and easily manipulated she is), I liked the overall story involving her especially Asil. I think my favorite thing about the book is I got to learn more about Bran, the Marrok, who I find fascinating.

If you’re a Briggs fan, it is worth the read if but for the Mercy book 4 preview. As I said I would recommend going back and reading the novella first in the On The Prowl anthology. In doing so, I think you’ll be much happier with the overall story. It’s a good book, maybe not the best, but I think if the series continues the problems that I had with this one will be fixed. It doesn’t help that I had high expectations.

3 out of 4 bibliosnark bookmarks

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Welcome to the Jungle - A Review

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The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle
Written by Jim Butcher; Pencils by Adrian Syaf
Hardcover: 160 pages
Publisher: Del Rey/Dabel Brothers
Language: English
Del Rey, October 2008, $19.95

When the supernatural world spins out of control, when the police can’t handle what goes bump in the night, when monsters come screaming out of nightmares and into the mean streets, there’s just one man to call: Harry Dresden, the only professional wizard in the Chicago phone book. A police consultant and private investigator, Dresden has to walk the dangerous line between the world of night and the light of day.

Now Harry Dresden is investigating a brutal mauling at the Lincoln Park Zoo that has left a security guard dead and many questions unanswered. As an investigator of the supernatural, he senses that there’s more to this case than a simple animal attack, and as Dresden searches for clues to figure out who is really behind the crime, he finds himself next on the victim list, and being hunted by creatures that won’t leave much more than a stain if they catch him.

Written exclusively for comics by Jim Butcher, The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle is a brand-new story that’s sure to enchant readers with a blend of gripping mystery and fantastic adventure.

++++

I really like the Dresden Files and have been ever since I first heard James Marsters (Spike of Buffy/Angel fame) read Storm Front years ago. I was instantly smitten and not just because of James Marsters. Harry was a likable character. He was self deprecating and snarky, an anti-hero I instantly adored. Plus, there was all of the magic and intrigue of good urban fantasy. Unfortunately, the TV series didn’t quite live up to my expectations, but when I heard that it was coming to comic form I was excited. Of course instead of buying each issue, I just waited until I could grab it all together in a nice pretty and shiny hardcover sort of form.

Taking place before Storm Front the comic stays true to the film noir and still has Harry as witty and snarky as ever. For those who are not familiar with the Harry Dresden series this is a great place to start. The books, now 10 but soon to be 11, feature one Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden, a detective and wizard in a world where vampires, werewolves, faeries and other beasties are as real as you or me. Unlike most urban fantasy today Harry is a bloke, a freakishly tall self deprecating guy, and not an attractive gal who ends up falling for one or more of the aforementioned beasties. He usually doesn’t get the girl in the end, is considered a bit of a loose cannon when it comes to the governing White Council due to his lack of any real control over his powers, and has a heck of a time with technology.

The comic does a great job of capturing the spirit of the Dresden Files and it should be considering that Jim Butcher wrote it. I have to say that Butcher did a great job of translating our hero into comic form. It may be short, but it still has action, magic, mystery and that ever present wit I find some charming. The artwork is typical of comics today and while I liked the depiction of Harry, I wasn’t digging Murphy and Wil ended up looking like a Lara Croft clone to me. However, the beasties and the baddies turned out great. In the end I am looking forward to Storm Front and the other projects the Dabel Brothers (most notably bringing Patricia Briggs’s Mercy Thompson to comic form) have in store for us.

If you’re a fan of the books, this is a must for you as much as the short stories are in some of the anthologies out there. Its urban fantasy in comic form and for diehard fans there is a great Cover gallery, concept artwork and notes by Butcher himself. Plus you get to see Harry, the beetle, Mister and Bob which makes me excited to see some of my other favorite characters in comic form as the series continues. If you are new to Harry, but enjoy The Buffy and Angel comics or even the Anita Blake ones, I think you’ll enjoy Welcome to the Jungle.

3.5/4 Happy little bookmarks

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Macgyver on an island...

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Crusoe aired tonight and I thought I would give it a chance, though I thought it was a tv movie instead of the pilot for a new 13 episode show. The original story by Daniel Defoe was published in 1719 and it has always held a bit of interest for me. Pretty much has been since I watched Swiss Family Robinson as a kid and realized it was loosely based of Defoe’s novel. The new show is also very loosely based on the novel as well. Obviously keeping Crusoe on an island for 28 years is going to be a bit depressing and making it Cast Away also doesn’t really work as a series. Changes and all I thought I would give it a go. Besides, any chance for me to see Sean Bean even for a second, is worth it. (I adore Sean Bean)

So, how was it? Okay. Clearly NBC is banking on a bit of the Pirates of the Caribbean craze which is fine by me. I like pirates. They make me smile. There are some big changes that have been made. Other than being shipwrecked, having Friday as his companion and being on an island they’ve definitely made it their own.

Crusoe is now quite easy on the eyes and Philip Winchester can be shirtless whenever he wants as far as I am concerned. No bearded survivalist here and his clothes have remained remarkably intact despite being on the island at least a few years. Our shipwrecked hottie is also apparently Macgyver on an island (you should see his jungle pad of awesome) which is also fine by me. I loved Macgyver and was all about the mullet love. Fun gadgets, booby traps, and an impressive tree house make me happy. But the man puts Gilligan’s professor to shame. Seriously. There is romance now (told through flashbacks) and Friday and Crusoe are going to be playing up the buddy buddy thing. Speaking of Friday. I really like him. Tongayi Chirisa makes Friday Crusoe’s equal and their friendship is believable.

Next week looks like a little bit Indiana Jones-esque with a long lost tomb. And somehow I think Sam Neil’s uncle figure may make take a Mondego turn with the possibility he may have some un-uncle like designs on Crusoe’s wife. Not that Crusoe would go the Edmund Dantes route and have revenge be his sole focus when he returns to the mainland, if he ever does. It also looks like Alias’s Mia Maestro will be playing someone on the show as well so mainland intrigue may be plentiful. The first episode had pirates, even a lovely pirate wench and the action was fun. There was humour, swordfights, snarkiness, a cute puppy and the aforementioned Sean Bean for 12 seconds. How on earth they are going to keep it going and interesting for 13 episodes, I am still not sure but I might try it again next week especially if Crusoe is shirtless again.

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Appaloosa: A Movie Review

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Appaloosa (2008)
Plot: When Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch arrive in Appaloosa, they find a town suffering at the hands of a rancher named Randall Bragg that means to own everything in it, and who has already left the city Marshall and one of his deputies dead. Cole and Hitch are used to cleaning up after scavengers, but this one raises the stakes by playing not by the rules, but with emotion. Cole and Hitch are hired to save the town from Bragg, but a young attractive widow arrives to complicate matters.
Starring: Jeremy Irons, Viggo Mortensen, Ed Harris, Renee Zellweger
Directed By: Ed Harris
Genre: WESTERN
Time: 1 hr 54 min

I should start with the fact that I am not terribly fond of westerns in general. Not that there aren’t some good ones, there are, and films like 3:10 to Yuma, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford have been recent favorites. On the whole it is not a genre I seek out when it comes to my movie geekiness. My dad, however, loves Westerns and was excited to find out that a man from Bozeman was in it as well, so when this came to town we made a point to go together. I’ll admit I was intrigued and am quite willing to see any film that Viggo Mortensen is in. Add in Jeremy Irons and Ed Harris, two more of my favorite actors, and I expected it wouldn’t be too hard to watch.

I am happy to say that I was not disappointed at all. Based on a novel by Robert B Parker, Ed Harris plays Virgil Cole who, along with his long time partner and friend Everett Hitch (Viggo Mortensen), is hired as marshal to clean up the small town of Appaloosa. The previous marshal was killed by land baron Randall Bragg, played by the equally talented Jeremy Irons, whose men do as they please in the town.

Applause goes to Ed Harris who acted, directed, produced, and helped write the film. As I said I have been a fan of Ed Harris for some time as an actor. He’s handsome, with beautiful blue eyes and has a way of commanding the screen. While his character may be somewhat stereotypical of the Western genre in my opinion (cold hearted gunslinger who wants to settle down and get out of this life, but who will never back down from a fight even when he questions it), he plays it well. Same goes with Viggo Mortensen, who disappears into his roles. As Everett he is largely silent, his rifle always on his shoulder and looking oh so delectable leaning against plenty of walls. He respects his partner, Cole, even when he doesn’t understand him. Virgil and Everett rely on each other. They each know the other’s strengths and weaknesses and the dialogue between the two is great. The chemistry between Harris and Mortensen makes the film that more enjoyable.

And then you have Jeremy Irons, who is equally gorgeous to a gal such as me, and certainly no slouch in the acting department. Bragg is a bastard and with his gravelly voice and stare, you cannot help but love to hate his villainous character. Add in great turns by Timothy Spall and Lance Henricksen and the film is actuallu chock full of great performances. The one performance I did not like was Renee Zellweger’s. Not only did she seem to have lost all ability to emote from the mouth up, but I really did not like her character. She was a plot device while her character may be realistic of women of that time perhaps, her constantly wanting to snog every Alpha male in the film was disturbing. I could buy Ali being torn between Virgil and Everett, but when she didn’t even change after her kidnapping (at first I thought she was a plant from the start the way she was happily skinny-dipping with her captors whose sole purpose was to create a rift between Cole and Hitch) I was even more annoyed. In short, she was my least liked part of the film and I would feel the same about her character if I had read the book. I liked Katie much more (Adriana Gil from Pan’s Labyrinth) and was thankful that Everett quickly saw French for who and what she really was.

Apart from the great performances I did not find the film predictable despite having some of the Western staples. I got a great gunfight, some beautiful cinematography, and the outlaws I expected to find, but I also got an old school western about friendship, honor and loyalty. It had everything I wanted in it and it is a film that I would recommend seeing in the theatre if you can as some of the film’s beauty will be lost on the small screen. Definitely worth a look.

3.75/4 popcorns

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The Dark Knight

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I have been anticipating this film for quite some time. And when I say anticipating, I mean from the moment the credits rolled on Batman Begins after we saw the Joker card. I remember not being entirely sure if Heath Ledger could pull off the Joker. As an actor I really liked him, but I wasn’t sure if I could see him as a psychopath and then the first images came out and I knew…yep, the Dark Knight was going to rock. And then Heath Ledger passed away and some speculated it was because his portrayal of the Joker seeped into his personal life. Maybe it was or maybe he was just an awesome guy who accidentally took too much and combined the wrong medications. Regardless it certainly didn’t lessen the hype of the film. In fact the buzz only strengthened. Oscar worthy performances they said. Then the first reviews came up and said it was frakking brilliant. My expectations soared.

So then I finally got a chance to see it. Did it live up to my expectations? Is it as awesome as everyone says? Yes and No. And here is where the spoilers begin, so if you haven’t seen the film, don’t read the rest of my review. I will say that I did like the film. In fact there were parts I absolutely loved, but it didn’t leave me full of the geekasms I thought I would be feeling. But I will get to that. First we’ll talk about what I loved.


‘Why so serious?’ The Dark Knight lives up to its name in that it is deliciously dark in both its tone and its look. And you have one hell of a villain in The Joker. In fact, Heath Ledger pulled him off brilliantly. He is by far the best Joker on screen. He is charismatic, brutal, funny, and functional psychopath who is manipulative and can muster very little empathy for anything other than his own interests. He is everything I wanted him to be and more from his mannerisms, look and voice. Finally he wasn’t some snarky clown, but a brutal killer with a twisted sense of humor. He was the perfect villain for Batman always wanting to push, never believing that the bat could really be incorruptible. Alfred said it best, “Some men aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.” Knowing that there will not be any more of Ledger’s performance makes me sad because I didn’t feel like I got enough of him in this one and I definitely want more. By the way…magic trick with the pencil. Made of awesome.

As I said I love the overall look and feel of the film. Gotham isn’t a happy place. Its dark and the idea that the escalation that is occurring, that a man like Joker even exists, is all due to Batman taking the fight to the next level is brilliant. There are a lot of lies in this film from Joker’s lies of how he got his scars, to Alfred not giving Bruce Rachel’s letter, to Gordon, and even Batman himself. And when the film ends the city is even darker. The white knight is gone along with the white hat of Harvey Dent, Batman is on the run his head full of demons of lost loves and guilt and the bad guys are still out there. Like I said, Gotham isn’t a happy place and I love that because in the next film I get the reason why I love Batman. I get the Dark Knight and that question of will he or won’t he stick to his rules? Will he live long enough to be the villain of the story?

It goes without saying that Christian Bale does a brilliant job. As much as I like Michael Keaton, I think Bale might be my favorite Batman. And the supporting cast of Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, and Gary Oldman completely rock. Could you ask for more? Aaron Eckhart did a wonderful job as Harvey and the ‘face’ for ‘Two Face’ horrendous and wonderful. And well I already gushed bout Heath’s performance.

Other reasons I loved it: The Chase. When the semi trailer flipped I was grinning from ear to ear. The giddiness of the beginning, seeing new toys for Batman to play with, having Bruce Wayne steal away the entire ballet company, the little subtle hints of where Harvey Dent would eventually go and even having Bat fanboys/imposters.

So now we get to what I didn’t like about the film, some of which would probably get me some comments if anyone really read my blog. *smile* What bugged the most? The Harvey Dent/Two Face storyline. Of course I wanted a Batman vs Joker movie. In fact, that is what I thought we would be getting while the Harvey Dent storyline was weaved through out but we never got to see Two Face emerge until the next film. And I think there was every intention of having more Joker. Alas, we will never get to see any more of Heath Ledger’s Joker and thus it is bittersweet. I wanted more Joker.

For me I think the Harvey Dent/Two Face storyline should have stopped at the hospital when naughty nurse Joker shows up and talks to him. Harvey makes a choice there and with the explosion of the hospital later his whereabouts are unknown. We know what he has become now. We know he’s the bad guy and seeing him again in another film makes you giddy; a hero in one film and a villain in the next. Instead, they rushed his storyline. There wasn’t enough build up and the result is disappointing.

While I enjoyed Maggie Gyllenhaal replaying Katie Holmes (Secretary is one of my favorite films of all time), I really never liked the Rachel Dawes character. So I wasn’t entirely sad to see her go. The length of the film is a bit longer than it needed to be and if you trim out the Two face bits it would be a nice length. For some reason Batman’s voice was a bit more distracting than it was the last time. Though understandable why he couldn’t use his Bruce voice, the harsh guttural tones were just weird.

I did enjoy this movie as a whole and I think the more I watch the more I will like it. I had extremely high expectations and add in the death of a brilliant actor the film had a very high order to fill. Nolan continues to impress and I cannot wait to see what he come sup with next.

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