Yay more squirrel girl! This one featuring SKRULLS and the incredible notion that not everyone of a specific species is in fact naturally evil! This one's less funny than some but continues to be A+ content.
Squirrel Girl continues to be the actual best!
The first issue in this volume is a self-contained story about time travel and I ADORED EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. Also this is the second time now that The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl has told a time travel story involving Doreen and Nancy's elderly selves being each other's Most Important Person and I am so here for it.
The rest of the volume covers Squirrel Girl's part in some title-spanning Marvel Comics event, and like, whatever about the event, but the Squirrel Girl story was charming. I loved the stuff about Ratatoskr and Doreen's team-up, and Loki's presence is always a delight. And the whales' reactions to Rachel!! Amazing.
The first issue in this volume is a self-contained story about time travel and I ADORED EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. Also this is the second time now that The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl has told a time travel story involving Doreen and Nancy's elderly selves being each other's Most Important Person and I am so here for it.
The rest of the volume covers Squirrel Girl's part in some title-spanning Marvel Comics event, and like, whatever about the event, but the Squirrel Girl story was charming. I loved the stuff about Ratatoskr and Doreen's team-up, and Loki's presence is always a delight. And the whales' reactions to Rachel!! Amazing.
four movies
Jun. 25th, 2019 09:32 pmJust got home recently from an overseas trip, and on the flight home I watched a bunch of movies because apparently that's the headspace I was in. So here's four very brief movie reviews!
Singin' in the Rain: This is a rewatch, and it's still super cute, and I still super ship the ot3.
Twenty Feet from Stardom: A documentary about backup singers. Really interesting, but I feel like the movie was trying to say that a lot of singers get great fulfillment from being backup singers and prefer that to being the stars, while simultaneously focusing on multiple examples of women who really wanted to make it as a solo artist and really tried but for whatever reasons didn't get there. So I think it could have used some more work determining what the footage they were capturing was actually saying and doing a better job of framing these singers' stories.
Three Thousand: A short, 15 minute documentary film by an Inuit film-maker which was interesting, but I feel like I don't adequately follow what it was trying to say. It's a mostly-visuals-only film experience (almost zero words were used throughout) and I'm not good at visual interpretation.
The Lego Batman Movie: So uh turns out this is actually kind of amazing? It's about family, and people you choose as family, and allowing yourself to be vulnerable with people you care about, and making the effort to become a more emotionally healthy person. Also, hello Kate Beaton's Nemesis Comics relationship style. Also it's funny and cute and seems to really understand Batman and makes a lot of jokes at his expense but from a place of love.
Singin' in the Rain: This is a rewatch, and it's still super cute, and I still super ship the ot3.
Twenty Feet from Stardom: A documentary about backup singers. Really interesting, but I feel like the movie was trying to say that a lot of singers get great fulfillment from being backup singers and prefer that to being the stars, while simultaneously focusing on multiple examples of women who really wanted to make it as a solo artist and really tried but for whatever reasons didn't get there. So I think it could have used some more work determining what the footage they were capturing was actually saying and doing a better job of framing these singers' stories.
Three Thousand: A short, 15 minute documentary film by an Inuit film-maker which was interesting, but I feel like I don't adequately follow what it was trying to say. It's a mostly-visuals-only film experience (almost zero words were used throughout) and I'm not good at visual interpretation.
The Lego Batman Movie: So uh turns out this is actually kind of amazing? It's about family, and people you choose as family, and allowing yourself to be vulnerable with people you care about, and making the effort to become a more emotionally healthy person. Also, hello Kate Beaton's Nemesis Comics relationship style. Also it's funny and cute and seems to really understand Batman and makes a lot of jokes at his expense but from a place of love.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Jan. 16th, 2019 07:34 pmI had heard from reliable sources that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was a good movie, but I hadn't seen any in-depth reaction posts about it, so I wasn't quite sure of the specifics of the ways in which it was good. Still, it sounded worth seeing, so I read the wikipedia plot outline for spoilers and then went to see it last night.
And hey! It was super good! What particularly blew me away, though, was the ART STYLE and the VISUAL STORYTELLING. It just looked so incredible, and I was absolutely not expecting that to be a stand-out feature of the film. In animated films I've seen before, the art has been good but not, like, irreplaceable; I would have enjoyed the film equally well had the creators decided to make it live-action instead. Into the Spider-Verse, on the other hand, would absolutely be a totally different (and worse) movie if it weren't animated. I have had my mind newly opened to the potentials of animation as a valuable artistic choice!
I don't want to take away from the other great stuff the film has going for it. I absolutely enjoyed the characters, and the writing, and the acting, and all that other good stuff. But those parts weren't a surprise in a movie I'd been told was good. The visuals were.
And hey! It was super good! What particularly blew me away, though, was the ART STYLE and the VISUAL STORYTELLING. It just looked so incredible, and I was absolutely not expecting that to be a stand-out feature of the film. In animated films I've seen before, the art has been good but not, like, irreplaceable; I would have enjoyed the film equally well had the creators decided to make it live-action instead. Into the Spider-Verse, on the other hand, would absolutely be a totally different (and worse) movie if it weren't animated. I have had my mind newly opened to the potentials of animation as a valuable artistic choice!
I don't want to take away from the other great stuff the film has going for it. I absolutely enjoyed the characters, and the writing, and the acting, and all that other good stuff. But those parts weren't a surprise in a movie I'd been told was good. The visuals were.
The person who’s been the artist for all of The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl up to this point left after the last volume, and someone new started here. I miss Erica’s art so much! The new person is good too, much better than I was fearing when I heard there’d be a replacement artist, but nobody can live up to Erica Henderson.
But that aside, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl continues to be a TOTAL DELIGHT. God I love this comic. In this volume: escape rooms! the nature of personal growth and redemption! friendship! the best ever sense of humour! LOVE IT.
(Also a brief mention of Squirrel Girl’s childhood friendship with Ana Sofia* which I am SUPER PUMPED ABOUT and I just want Doreen and Ana Sofia to STILL BE FRIENDS AND PART OF EACH OTHER’S LIVES, one small mention merely WHETS MY APPETITE FOR MORE)
*Ana Sofia is Doreen’s best friend from the middle-grade novels about Squirrel Girl by Shannon and Dean Hale.
But that aside, The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl continues to be a TOTAL DELIGHT. God I love this comic. In this volume: escape rooms! the nature of personal growth and redemption! friendship! the best ever sense of humour! LOVE IT.
(Also a brief mention of Squirrel Girl’s childhood friendship with Ana Sofia* which I am SUPER PUMPED ABOUT and I just want Doreen and Ana Sofia to STILL BE FRIENDS AND PART OF EACH OTHER’S LIVES, one small mention merely WHETS MY APPETITE FOR MORE)
*Ana Sofia is Doreen’s best friend from the middle-grade novels about Squirrel Girl by Shannon and Dean Hale.
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Volumes 6-8
Sep. 22nd, 2018 05:06 pmI recently caught up on Squirrel Girl trades that are out so far! Which means I've now read volumes 6, 7, and 8 and am up to the equivalent of issue #32.
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 6: Who Run the World? Squirrels, by Ryan North
( Read more... )
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 7: I've Been Waiting For A Squirrel Like You, by Ryan North
( Read more... )
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Volume 8: My Best Friend's Squirrel, by Ryan North
( Read more... )
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 6: Who Run the World? Squirrels, by Ryan North
( Read more... )
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl 7: I've Been Waiting For A Squirrel Like You, by Ryan North
( Read more... )
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Volume 8: My Best Friend's Squirrel, by Ryan North
( Read more... )
A middle grade novel about Squirrel Girl, sequel to The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel Meets World. These novels act as kind of prequels to the comics about Squirrel Girl. This is another fun, charming book like the last one, which again I don't love as much as the comics but I still enjoyed.
This one is about a new mall being built in Doreen's neighbourhood which seems kinda suspiciously tied to Hydra maybe, and also about the importance of speaking up for your emotional needs in your friendships.
The main plot I could take or leave, but I am Very Invested in Doreen and Ana Sofia's friendship, and rather sad about the apparent evidence in the comics from the complete lack of mention of Ana Sofia anywhere that their friendship eventually ends!! (I mean obviously in the comics I am ALL FOR Doreen's current circle of friends and most especially Nancy whom I adore, but what happens to Ana Sofia????)
One other feature of this novel is that it's in part about Doreen's attempts to learn the skills for talking down villains instead of fighting them, which is cool since that's something she does a lot of in the comics, but it was kind of odd that after Doreen started reading books about conflict resolution she got worse at it - I think the point of this in the narrative was mostly just to make jokes but it kind of came across like this book is saying that it's not a skill that can be taught? Which is lies, it totally is!
This one is about a new mall being built in Doreen's neighbourhood which seems kinda suspiciously tied to Hydra maybe, and also about the importance of speaking up for your emotional needs in your friendships.
The main plot I could take or leave, but I am Very Invested in Doreen and Ana Sofia's friendship, and rather sad about the apparent evidence in the comics from the complete lack of mention of Ana Sofia anywhere that their friendship eventually ends!! (I mean obviously in the comics I am ALL FOR Doreen's current circle of friends and most especially Nancy whom I adore, but what happens to Ana Sofia????)
One other feature of this novel is that it's in part about Doreen's attempts to learn the skills for talking down villains instead of fighting them, which is cool since that's something she does a lot of in the comics, but it was kind of odd that after Doreen started reading books about conflict resolution she got worse at it - I think the point of this in the narrative was mostly just to make jokes but it kind of came across like this book is saying that it's not a skill that can be taught? Which is lies, it totally is!
A middle-grade novel. I don't love it as much as the Ryan North Squirrel Girl comic series but it's still pretty charming.
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Some good books
Nov. 13th, 2016 03:20 pmAt any rate the world doesn't stop having good books in it just because everything else is horrible.
Here's a collection of short book thoughts about some books I liked, that aren't substantive or spoilery enough thoughts to get their own posts.
The True Meaning of Smekday, by Adam Rex
A reread. Still an impressively successful and delightful book! A kid's book about alien invasion(s), told from the point of view of a young biracial girl, with the conceit that it was written by her for a school project with a goal of it ending up in a time capsule. Tip is a really engaging narrator, and the themes the book is addressing are all well handled, and it's just all SO GOOD. I have a lot of feelings.
Also http://archiveofourown.org/works/1087542 is pretty much exactly right for what happens after the book imo. I love this fic. (though really I ought to read the ACTUAL Smek sequel at some point I think. There is one now!)
Quilting: Poems 1987-1990, by Lucille Clifton
An interesting collection of poems written by an African-American woman. Worth reading, though I have nothing to say about it because I'm not comfortable enough yet with poetry to have the words to describe it.
Dogsbody, by Diana Wynne Jones
A well written and charming book, as is to be expected from DWJ. I'm not the right audience for it, since I don't particularly care one way or another about dogs, and our main character is fairly thoroughly a dog for much of the book. But DWJ is a good enough writer to keep me invested despite this, and I did care an awful lot about Kathleen!
The Emperor's Soul, by Brandon Sanderson
A reread. I still love this book. But do I have anything else to say about it that I didn't say last time? No.
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel, You Really Got Me Now, by Ryan North, art by Erica Henderson
A total delight, just like the last two Squirrel Girl tpbs! I love Ryan North's sense of humour, and Erica Henderson's art is perfect for the story. Doreen and her friends are all amazing, and I love just about everything about this book.
However. The last two issues in this collection are a two-part crossover with Howard Duck. The first part (done by the Squirrel Girl team) was just about as good as the rest of the series but the second part (done by the Howard Duck team) I just wasn't as into. It wasn't as funny or as charming, and I didn't like the art as much, and I just didn't care as much. It's too bad that this is the note the book ended on, because the rest of the book had me gleeful all the way through.
Here's a collection of short book thoughts about some books I liked, that aren't substantive or spoilery enough thoughts to get their own posts.
The True Meaning of Smekday, by Adam Rex
A reread. Still an impressively successful and delightful book! A kid's book about alien invasion(s), told from the point of view of a young biracial girl, with the conceit that it was written by her for a school project with a goal of it ending up in a time capsule. Tip is a really engaging narrator, and the themes the book is addressing are all well handled, and it's just all SO GOOD. I have a lot of feelings.
Also http://archiveofourown.org/works/1087542 is pretty much exactly right for what happens after the book imo. I love this fic. (though really I ought to read the ACTUAL Smek sequel at some point I think. There is one now!)
Quilting: Poems 1987-1990, by Lucille Clifton
An interesting collection of poems written by an African-American woman. Worth reading, though I have nothing to say about it because I'm not comfortable enough yet with poetry to have the words to describe it.
Dogsbody, by Diana Wynne Jones
A well written and charming book, as is to be expected from DWJ. I'm not the right audience for it, since I don't particularly care one way or another about dogs, and our main character is fairly thoroughly a dog for much of the book. But DWJ is a good enough writer to keep me invested despite this, and I did care an awful lot about Kathleen!
The Emperor's Soul, by Brandon Sanderson
A reread. I still love this book. But do I have anything else to say about it that I didn't say last time? No.
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel, You Really Got Me Now, by Ryan North, art by Erica Henderson
A total delight, just like the last two Squirrel Girl tpbs! I love Ryan North's sense of humour, and Erica Henderson's art is perfect for the story. Doreen and her friends are all amazing, and I love just about everything about this book.
However. The last two issues in this collection are a two-part crossover with Howard Duck. The first part (done by the Squirrel Girl team) was just about as good as the rest of the series but the second part (done by the Howard Duck team) I just wasn't as into. It wasn't as funny or as charming, and I didn't like the art as much, and I just didn't care as much. It's too bad that this is the note the book ended on, because the rest of the book had me gleeful all the way through.
Tags:
- anent: book thoughts 1,
- author: adam rex,
- author: brandon sanderson,
- author: diana wynne jones,
- author: lucille clifton,
- author: ryan north,
- book theme: comics/graphic novel/manga,
- book theme: fantasy,
- book theme: kidlit,
- book theme: modern earth,
- book theme: poetry,
- book theme: reread,
- book theme: science fiction,
- book theme: secondary world,
- fandom: comics,
- pub date: 1975,
- pub date: 1991,
- pub date: 2007,
- pub date: 2012,
- pub date: 2016,
- rating: ****,
- rating: *****
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl!
Jan. 24th, 2016 03:39 pm1. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel Power
2. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel You Know It's True
both by Ryan North, illustrated by Erica Henderson
WHERE HAS SQUIRREL GIRL BEEN ALL MY LIFE.
I was cackling with delight all the way through. I don't even know what to say. ( I say things )
AND SO FORTH, I could keep going with many exclamation points for a long time. The long and the short of it is: yes good more please.
And like: I know this is an ongoing comic and I know there are more issues out that have not yet been released in trade paperback. So I COULD read them if I wanted to pay ridiculous prices for short and flimsy single-issue releases. But that's not how I prefer to read/buy comics. Sigh, my life is so hard.
2. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl: Squirrel You Know It's True
both by Ryan North, illustrated by Erica Henderson
WHERE HAS SQUIRREL GIRL BEEN ALL MY LIFE.
I was cackling with delight all the way through. I don't even know what to say. ( I say things )
AND SO FORTH, I could keep going with many exclamation points for a long time. The long and the short of it is: yes good more please.
And like: I know this is an ongoing comic and I know there are more issues out that have not yet been released in trade paperback. So I COULD read them if I wanted to pay ridiculous prices for short and flimsy single-issue releases. But that's not how I prefer to read/buy comics. Sigh, my life is so hard.
Podfic: Backup
Jun. 23rd, 2014 08:22 pmNew podfic by me, for ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
verity!
Title: Backup
Author: thatbroadcast
Podficcer: sophia_sol
Fandom: Hawkeye (comics)
Characters/ships: Kate Bishop, Clint Barton
Length: 16:16
Content notes: Canon-typical violence
Summary:
She gets the text at two pm on a Tuesday.
KIDNAPPED NINJAS WARWICK HOTEL BRING BACKUP BATTERY DYING CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS SHIT
Download from mediafire, download from the audiofic archive
or
Stream at tumblr
verity!Title: Backup
Author: thatbroadcast
Podficcer: sophia_sol
Fandom: Hawkeye (comics)
Characters/ships: Kate Bishop, Clint Barton
Length: 16:16
Content notes: Canon-typical violence
Summary:
She gets the text at two pm on a Tuesday.
KIDNAPPED NINJAS WARWICK HOTEL BRING BACKUP BATTERY DYING CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS SHIT
Download from mediafire, download from the audiofic archive
or
Stream at tumblr
four things make a post
Jun. 16th, 2014 06:45 pmDude I have TOO MANY THINGS TO POST ABOUT and not enough time to write up all my thoughts/feels. So you get the abbreviated version now and may or may not get more later.
THINGS:
1. This weekend I visited Verity! And also got to hang out with Effableobject and with Aria! And it was an amazing A+ decision and I had a fabulous time and all of the above people are gr9
2. I watched Maleficent with Verity! (YES even though both of us are the not-good-at-watching-visual-media sort...) and I loved it to itty bits. Not a perfect movie but it did everything I could ever have wanted from this story so I AM HAPPY.
3. I read all of the Fraction Hawkeye that has come out yet! Which means through issue 18. And DAMMIT I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. I am terrible at reading WIPs, and I love this comic dearly and I WANT TO KEEP READING IT BUT I CAN'T TILL MORE COMES OUT.
4. Relatedly, I read all of the current Young Avengers, which means through issue 10. And once again DAMMIT WIP.
THINGS:
1. This weekend I visited Verity! And also got to hang out with Effableobject and with Aria! And it was an amazing A+ decision and I had a fabulous time and all of the above people are gr9
2. I watched Maleficent with Verity! (YES even though both of us are the not-good-at-watching-visual-media sort...) and I loved it to itty bits. Not a perfect movie but it did everything I could ever have wanted from this story so I AM HAPPY.
3. I read all of the Fraction Hawkeye that has come out yet! Which means through issue 18. And DAMMIT I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. I am terrible at reading WIPs, and I love this comic dearly and I WANT TO KEEP READING IT BUT I CAN'T TILL MORE COMES OUT.
4. Relatedly, I read all of the current Young Avengers, which means through issue 10. And once again DAMMIT WIP.
Okay um! The number of graphic novels I have read in my life can be counted on one hand so I'm not very practiced at how to talk about them?
So uh yes Black Widow: The Name of the Rose was really great! I loved it a lot! I had a million Natasha feels! ( cut for spoilers )
So uh yes Black Widow: The Name of the Rose was really great! I loved it a lot! I had a million Natasha feels! ( cut for spoilers )
Books books books!
Nov. 7th, 2013 08:55 pmTags:
- anent: book thoughts 1,
- author: aaron bobrow-strain,
- author: cs forester,
- author: johanna spyri,
- author: matt fraction,
- author: rudyard kipling,
- book theme: comics/graphic novel/manga,
- book theme: famous/classic,
- book theme: history,
- book theme: history (modernish when writ,
- book theme: kidlit,
- book theme: nonfiction,
- book theme: reread,
- book theme: sailing,
- book theme: short stories,
- fandom: comics,
- pub date: 1880,
- pub date: 1902,
- pub date: 1935,
- pub date: 2012,
- rating: **,
- rating: ***,
- rating: *****
