There's a saying that goes "the person who waits for something good, never waits too long". Still, there are times when it seems like you've waited forever for the next installment of your favorite series/franchise. With that in mind, this post will focus on a few works of fiction that I'm eager to get my hands on. Here goes:
The Winds of Winter by George R.R. Martin
I may have made the decision not to watch anymore of Game of Thrones, due to not appreciating the direction the show has taken, but I still remain a fan of the original books and am looking forward to the next installment in George R.R. Martin's epic fantasy saga. I want to see Sansa come into her own as master-manipulator under the tutelage of Littlefinger. I want to see what Tyrion's been up to and most of all, I want to see Stannis defeat Ramsay, completely and utterly. Whether or not any of these wishes will come true, I do not know, but I'm confident that whatever Martin chooses to do with his story and characters, it can't be worse than what Benioff & Weiss have done with them.
Duncan the Wonder-Dog Show Two by Adam Hines
I discovered Duncan the Wonder-Dog thanks to the excellent comic-review site Good OK Bad and since its definitely the most obscure out of the works mentioned here and I've never mentioned it on this blog before, a brief introduction might be in order. Duncan the Wonder-Dog is a comic which revolves around the simple concept: What if humans and animals could communicate? From this idea, Adam Hines has crafted a vast and ambitious tale. The first volume in the series, titled Show One, originally came out in 2010 and took Hines seven years to complete. No idea whether Show Two will take as long, but I have little doubt it will be worth it.
Note: Read the entirety of Show One for free, here.
Fargo Season 2
I was skeptical to the Fargo TV-Show going in, but the first season more than exceeded my expectations, being a truly excellent piece of television that captured the spirit of the original Cohen Brothers' movie, while also being its own thing. Plus, it featured some great performances from Billy Bob Thornton, Allison Tolman and Martin Freeman. Season two is apparently going to take place in the 70's and focus on Lou Solverson, the father of Molly, the heroine of the first season. I liked Lou's appearances as a supporting character in season 1, so I'm looking forward to see how he does in the role of protagonist. The thing that has me the most excited about the second season, however, is that Nick Offerman is going to be in it. I only know him from comedic shows like Parks and Recreations, so it will be interesting to see how he does in a more dramatic series.
The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel
The final volume in Hilary Mantel's trilogy centered around Thomas Cromwell. The previous installments in the series; Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies are among my favorite novels and the recent BBC mini-series was brilliant as well. Out of all the works listed here, this is the one I'm personally looking forward to the most.
Berlin: City of Light by Jason Lutes
The final installment in Lutes' trilogy about Berlin during the years of Weimar Republic, its downfall and the rise of the Nazis as seen through the eyes of various characters. Drawn & Quarterly have actually published the first three issues of this volume (though issue 17 the one that kicks it off is apparently out of stock), but I'd rather wait until I can read the whole thing in one sitting.
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Thursday, August 20, 2015
District 14, Season 2
When I reviewed the first season of District 14 back in February, I heaped a lot of praise upon it. I loved the world that writer Pierre Gabus and artist Romuald Reutimann had created and the rich cast of characters they populated it with. As such, I was of course eager to read the second season of the comic, to see if it would live up to the standards set by its predecessor.
For those of you who haven't read my review of season 1, a brief introduction might be necessary: District 14 (original title: Cité 14) is a French comic which takes place in the eponymous district; a place populated by regular humans, anthropomorphic animals, aliens and even a superhero. The first season introduced us to this setting through the eyes of newly arrived immigrant, Michael Elizondo, a pachyderm who had left his homeland, due to circumstances which were revealed at the end of the season. Upon his arrival in District 14, Michael almost immediately ended up saving the life of journalistic beaver, Hector McKeagh, leading to the two striking a partnership, working as investigative reporters for one of the district's newspapers.
Season 2 begins where its predecessor ended; Michael's sickness has deformed him and causing him to grow increasingly violent. He has fallen into the thrall of a father-son team of monkeys, who knows about his past and forces him to steal for them in order to receive the leaves that can be used to slow down the progress of the sickness. At the same time, Hector, sets out to make peace with his past; first by investigating the rumors of contaminated water in the Covington Neighborhood, the part of the district where most of its alien inhabitants live, and second of all to spring Cloxm, one of the aliens' political leaders and the person Hector's dead wife, Belinda, left him for, out of prison.
As was the case with the first season, season 2 of District 14 sees Gabus juggling several plot-lines of varying importance and it it's a testament to his skill as a storyteller that he constantly kept me invested in what would happen next, no matter whether the focus was on Michael, Hector or any other character.
Speaking of characters, all the ones introduced in season 1 are back for this round (except for those who died during the course of that season's events) and several of the old characters, who only had walk-on roles in the first season, get fleshed out in this one. New characters are also introduced, among the more interesting are Bill and Joe, a couple of old-timers, who set out to avenge the death of an old friend (said friend was mentioned briefly in the first season) at the hands of the most powerful man in the city. Another memorable new introduction is the affably evil, bunny hit-man, Walter Lipoda.
As for Reutimann's artwork, I can't think of much to write about it. It continues to be very appealing to look at, and suits the overall tone of the comic very well, in my opinion.
Do I have anything negative to say about District 14's second season? Well, maybe there's the fact that at it ends with several plot-threads still left hanging. That said, I enjoyed my second visit to the District immensely and am looking forward to the upcoming third season.
Sunday, August 9, 2015
What I've Watched
Dear reader(s), it is my pleasure to bid you welcome to, what I plan to turn into a new feature on this blog. Under the header What I've Watched, I'm going to talk about the shows I've been watching lately; old and new, live-action and animated and my impressions of them. I don't have much more to say, so let's cut to the chase:
True Detective (season 2)
The first season of True Detective was some truly excellent television, featuring great directing and cinematography courtesy of Cary Joji Fukunaga and outstanding performances from Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey. Naturally, I was greatly looking forward to the second season. Well, season 2 is here and I'm half-way through and I have to say that, so far, its not living up to the standards of its predecessor. I knew that the new season would feature a completely different plot and cast of characters and I have no problem with that. However, I must admit that I find it increasingly hard to care about the various plots and sub-plots in this season. About the only time that the show has really clicked with me was at the end of episode 2 and the beginning of episode 3. Still, I'll keep watching, hopefully the show will improve in the second half.
The opening is great though.
Sonic Boom
This show, I must say, has turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Its pretty formulaic (almost every episode I've seen boils down to Eggman hatching some scheme, usually involving robots, and Sonic and friends putting a stop to it), but it compensates for that by being genuinely funny. Its not Steven Universe or anything, but its an amusing series that I don't mind watching every now and then.
Garo the Animation
Another show I'm enjoying. Garo the Animation may not break new ground among fantasy anime or take the genre to new heights (at least not from what I've seen), but so far, its a solid show that does what it does very well. The cast may not count among the most memorable the medium has offered us, but the characters are engaging and I'm interested to see what's going to happen next.
Yuri Kuma Arashi
Not sure what to think of this one yet. It has all the weirdness, visual richness and symbolism that I've come to expect from Ikuhara's work, but it hasn't really grabbed me the way that Utena or Penguin Drum did. So far, my favorite episode was the one focused on Lulu and her past. I must admit, I got a chuckle out of her repeated efforts to kill her little brother. On another note, the absence of a lengthy musical interlude, like the above-mentioned shows had, is somewhat disappointing.
Ripper Street (season 1)
I've saved the best for last. Ripper Street is a crime-series set in London, shortly after the Whitechapel Murders and its absolutely brilliant. The three main-characters are well-drawn and expertly portrayed by their actors (including Jerome Flynn, who you may recognize as Bronn from Game of Thrones) and they are backed-up by a strong supporting cast. The show also does a great job of depicting Victorian London and many of the cases, involves the social, political and economical conflicts of the time-period. This is one show that I recommend without any hesitation and I'm really looking forward to watching season 2.
Well, that's it, for now. If you have any suggestions or recommendations for me, please, feel free to post them in the comments.
True Detective (season 2)
The first season of True Detective was some truly excellent television, featuring great directing and cinematography courtesy of Cary Joji Fukunaga and outstanding performances from Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey. Naturally, I was greatly looking forward to the second season. Well, season 2 is here and I'm half-way through and I have to say that, so far, its not living up to the standards of its predecessor. I knew that the new season would feature a completely different plot and cast of characters and I have no problem with that. However, I must admit that I find it increasingly hard to care about the various plots and sub-plots in this season. About the only time that the show has really clicked with me was at the end of episode 2 and the beginning of episode 3. Still, I'll keep watching, hopefully the show will improve in the second half.
The opening is great though.
Sonic Boom
This show, I must say, has turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Its pretty formulaic (almost every episode I've seen boils down to Eggman hatching some scheme, usually involving robots, and Sonic and friends putting a stop to it), but it compensates for that by being genuinely funny. Its not Steven Universe or anything, but its an amusing series that I don't mind watching every now and then.
Garo the Animation
Another show I'm enjoying. Garo the Animation may not break new ground among fantasy anime or take the genre to new heights (at least not from what I've seen), but so far, its a solid show that does what it does very well. The cast may not count among the most memorable the medium has offered us, but the characters are engaging and I'm interested to see what's going to happen next.
Yuri Kuma Arashi
Not sure what to think of this one yet. It has all the weirdness, visual richness and symbolism that I've come to expect from Ikuhara's work, but it hasn't really grabbed me the way that Utena or Penguin Drum did. So far, my favorite episode was the one focused on Lulu and her past. I must admit, I got a chuckle out of her repeated efforts to kill her little brother. On another note, the absence of a lengthy musical interlude, like the above-mentioned shows had, is somewhat disappointing.
Ripper Street (season 1)
I've saved the best for last. Ripper Street is a crime-series set in London, shortly after the Whitechapel Murders and its absolutely brilliant. The three main-characters are well-drawn and expertly portrayed by their actors (including Jerome Flynn, who you may recognize as Bronn from Game of Thrones) and they are backed-up by a strong supporting cast. The show also does a great job of depicting Victorian London and many of the cases, involves the social, political and economical conflicts of the time-period. This is one show that I recommend without any hesitation and I'm really looking forward to watching season 2.
Well, that's it, for now. If you have any suggestions or recommendations for me, please, feel free to post them in the comments.
Saturday, August 1, 2015
My Name is Red
One of my favorite novels is The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco. For those of you not familiar with this novel, The Name of the Rose is a murder-mystery set in an Italian monastery in the 14th Century. The novel was also adapted into a really good movie starring Sean Connery as its mystery-solver, William of Baskerville.
Why am I mentioning this? You wonder. Because I recently read My Name is Red, by Turkish author and nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk and during my read of this novel, I was frequently reminded of Eco's masterpiece.
My Name is Red takes place in Istanbul in the year 1591. The Sultan Murad III has secretely commissioned an illuminated manuscript drawn in the new Venetian Style, a blasphemy in the eyes of many Muslims, particularly religous fundamentalists such as Hoja of Erzurum. As the novel begins, one of the miniaturists who worked on the manuscript, Elegant Effendi has been found murdered. Soon, the master of the miniaturists, Enishte Effendi is killed as well. Enishte's daughter, Shekure enlists the miniaturist known as Black to find her father's killer. If Black succeeds, Shekure will give him what he has always longed for: Her hand in marriage. However, it soon becomes clear that the murderer is one of the miniaturists himself.
From this short and limited glimpse of the plot, I'm sure that you, dear reader, can understand why I was reminded of The Name of the Rose. Both it and My Name is Red are essentially murder-mysteries set by a historical backdrop, with faith playing an important part in the proceedings. However, this doesn't mean that Pamuk has copied Eco (for all I know, Pamhuk may not even have read The Name of the Rose). The differences between the two novels far eclipse any similarities the two may share.
Take the setting for one: The Name of the Rose takes place entirely in a monastery and its surroundings. My Name is Red takes place in a bustling metropolis, the very heart of the Ottoman Empire. Another difference is the amount of narrators. Eco's novel features one narrator, the young monk Adso, who plays the Watson to William of Baskerville's Sherlock Holmes. My Name is Red features a different narrator in each chapter and what a plethora of narrators it is, dear reader. Aside from the obvious ones such as Shekure and Black, we also get to hear from the dead Elegant Effendi, his murderer and many others. Some of the narrators aren't even human; a dog, a horse, a coin and even Satan himself are among those who get to share their opinions and view-points with the reader.
My Name is Red is a work of great richness, I found it to be a fascinating read and will definitely check out more of Orhan Pamuk's work in the future.
Why am I mentioning this? You wonder. Because I recently read My Name is Red, by Turkish author and nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk and during my read of this novel, I was frequently reminded of Eco's masterpiece.
My Name is Red takes place in Istanbul in the year 1591. The Sultan Murad III has secretely commissioned an illuminated manuscript drawn in the new Venetian Style, a blasphemy in the eyes of many Muslims, particularly religous fundamentalists such as Hoja of Erzurum. As the novel begins, one of the miniaturists who worked on the manuscript, Elegant Effendi has been found murdered. Soon, the master of the miniaturists, Enishte Effendi is killed as well. Enishte's daughter, Shekure enlists the miniaturist known as Black to find her father's killer. If Black succeeds, Shekure will give him what he has always longed for: Her hand in marriage. However, it soon becomes clear that the murderer is one of the miniaturists himself.
From this short and limited glimpse of the plot, I'm sure that you, dear reader, can understand why I was reminded of The Name of the Rose. Both it and My Name is Red are essentially murder-mysteries set by a historical backdrop, with faith playing an important part in the proceedings. However, this doesn't mean that Pamuk has copied Eco (for all I know, Pamhuk may not even have read The Name of the Rose). The differences between the two novels far eclipse any similarities the two may share.
Take the setting for one: The Name of the Rose takes place entirely in a monastery and its surroundings. My Name is Red takes place in a bustling metropolis, the very heart of the Ottoman Empire. Another difference is the amount of narrators. Eco's novel features one narrator, the young monk Adso, who plays the Watson to William of Baskerville's Sherlock Holmes. My Name is Red features a different narrator in each chapter and what a plethora of narrators it is, dear reader. Aside from the obvious ones such as Shekure and Black, we also get to hear from the dead Elegant Effendi, his murderer and many others. Some of the narrators aren't even human; a dog, a horse, a coin and even Satan himself are among those who get to share their opinions and view-points with the reader.
My Name is Red is a work of great richness, I found it to be a fascinating read and will definitely check out more of Orhan Pamuk's work in the future.
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