Comics Spotlight

           From time to time, mostly when I have nothing else to say, I will be talking about one of the primary passions of my life; comic books. This will probably happen haphazardly, sometimes more regularly, and sometimes not, depending on my mood. I will be talking about anything I am reading (both old and new) and just offering little tidbits about the book in question and in general, just blathering. First off, I figured I would start off with a book that I just started reading, but which has already become one of my all-time favorites, right up there with Starman and Legion of Super-Heroes. That book is Gotham Central.

           GC is a book that I had heard a lot about, but had always avoided for one simple reason: Batman. Now I love Batman as much as the next guy, but he's like the DC equivalent of Wolverine, meaning that he is everywhere, regardless of whether he fits the situation or not. I had thought that since this book was about the GCPD, appearances by ol' Bats would be numerous and frequent. Man, am I glad I was wrong. Batman has only shown up in the book's 30+ issues 2-3 times and even then purely in a cameo capacity. The book is about the cops, the people who live in the world which is populated by the villains that Batman faces every single day. Villains like Two-Face, Mr. Freeze, Joker, and Penguin. Villains who Batman takes on with ease, but who can prove to be more than a little disconcerting for regular people.

           Since this book involves a huge cast, I don't want to focus in on one single cop, but the characterizations by Greg Rucka and Ed Brubaker are fantastic. The characters feel real, and more importantly, face absurd situations with a strength of will that would put Batman to shame. The art-side is no different. Michael Lark is the regular penciller, but is joined regularly by artists who help make the book more real than words alone can. I cannot stress enough how much I like this book.

           Now, this time I was trying to encompass the whole series so the writing seems a bit...blocky to say the least, but from next time onwards I plan on pursuing this segment in the format made easy by Dave's Long Box, an excellent site, and one I visit often, because the guy is just plain friggin' hilarious. Do make visits to this site a regular deal, as it is perhaps one of the funniest review sites I have ever encountered.

Dogs - Lobo

           Since I figured you people had seen enough of my cats, for something different here's a pic of one of my dogs. This fella is called Lobo. He's actually my younger brother's dog, but German Shepherds are a breed that adheres to the whole family, not just one person, so it's like he's everyone's dog. Lobo is currently the oldest animal we have, coming in at slightly over 5 years of age (35 in dog years). He's a sweetie, although I don't think there is anyone outside of the family who is not terrified of him as he cannot tolerate strangers. Excellent guard dog, and father of quite a litter, most of whom have been given to good homes.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Short Review

           Begining a review is always the hard part. You don't want to give anything away, and at the same time you want to draw people in. I think this is the best begining possible for this book as there is no way I could talk about it without spoiling it horribly, although I will try my damndest.
           First off, the death. I must say it was handled very well, and in keeping with the character in question. His death at the hands of anyone else would feel cheap, and there is a sense of "I told you so..." in the writing. Rowling seems to be trying to tell us that trust is something which should never be given lightly, and which, for better or worse is something which cannot be rescinded once given. Now, like I said before, I think this book is easily one of the best books in the series, but again this is based on my own opinion. I know a lot of people will not like this book as it contains a lot of set-up and resolves barely anything, but therein lies the beauty of this book. It sets up the end perfectly, gives us all the info we need heading into the end, and most importantly, finally gives us the origin of Voldemort. The one story I had been waiting to read since book 1 finally surfaced and I couldn't be happier with the result. Excellent method of giving us the story without it seeming force-fed, and anyway, I love non-linear storytelling so it was a treat for me.
           Now, the reason why I thought this book was far better than the last two is quite simple. I prefer my books with more substance to them than a round-the-clock fight session (Goblet of Fire) or boring explanations dealing with a prophecy which was debunked in this book (Order of Phoenix). This book had maturation, and heart. This was an adult's Harry Potter, and I couldn't be gladder for it. I know the kid's will not enjoy it as much (most of them) but it was great, and actually makes me look forward to the next book...whenever it shall appear.

Harry Potter 6 - Pt. 1

           So I finally caved and bought the sixth book in the Harry Potter series. I must say, apart from the shoddy hand-holding begining 2-3 chapters, the rest of the book is one of the better one in the series. I know there isn't a lot of love for this edition and a lot of people don't like it, but from what I've read thus far (still got 4 more chapters to go) this is turning out to be the best book in the series since the Prisoner of Azkaban which is my favorite in the series. I hesitate to review it fully till I'm done, so no more thoughts on why I like this part so much, and why I didn't think 4 and 5 were all that great, but expect an indepth review (well, not so much indepth as full of explanations) soonish.

Fitna!

From the oldest to the youngest. This little fella is part of the newest litter. They're approximately 2 months old at this point, and prone to get into all kinds of mischief. This one along with one of his sisters is my particular favorite in the batch and these two are the ones we'll be keeping. The others have already been promised to loving families and will be moving on soon enough. By the way, for those of you interested, this is the grandson of Pheeney.

Cheap Books!!

I love, love, love going to Anarkali on Sundays. I mean where else can you find an excellent copy of Dune for only Rs. 5??? Not to mention I also managed to get a copy of the Princess Diaries (don't ask) book...also for Rs. 5. I mean, let's face it, the main reason I go on regular sundays is to be able to find comics, but since Pakistan, and especially Lahore seems to be going through a phase of no comic availability, I have to satisfy myself with any books I find. Which, considering I bought 2 books for the price of one comic these days, isn't all that bad :)

I've also managed to dl and start reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I must say, the first chapter is more than a little underwhelming. One of the worst summarizations I've personally ever read, and I may be completely blanking on the last book, but I have no clue who this new Minister of Magic is. Rowling seems to be slipping, and well, it is the penultimate chapter in a series...which almost always tend to suck...so my expectations weren't all that high to begin with. I'll be buying the paper version soon enough. We'll see if reading it without the glare of the computer screen helps the book any, or whether is sucks regardless.

Pheeney!!

My favorite kitty :) This is the little one who started it all, and who is related in one way or another to about 10 of my cats. The others are ones that people dropped off, but the family cats...well, they all stemmed from this regal cat.

The Begining...

I hate talking about myself...although I love talking about the things around me. So, in a nutshell, that's what this literary fiasco in the making will cover. I will blather, I will bore, and occasionally, I will even enlighten (although don't expect too much of that...I'm not here to teach you people :P) Fair word of warning, this blog will be filled with talk about any and all animals which pass through my house (both the 2-legged and 4-legged variety) and occasionally will contain pictures of the same. Sometimes I'll comment on my passions (which refer to comics, and some tv shows, for those 2 or 3 of you who don't know) and other times I'll try to actually talk about something meaningful, like how the current world has no more room for idealists and dreamers, and the only ones who can truly succeed are people whom you want to loath on sight.

Finally, I will try to mix things up, and actually lend a little variety to the topics at hand (heh...you people may be in for some very amateurish, and more than a little annoying poetry I have lying around) not to mention a short story I started a while back and since I want to see it go somewhere, on slow weeks/days I may just publish bits and pieces of that. And finally, expect a lot of pictures when I have nothing to say. After all, a pic's worth a thousand words, right?

And, well...what else is there to offer in the form of an intro? I'm an aries who likes long...nah, just kidding ;) Drop by soon for something different. Thus ends banter #1...