The Comic Corner: Rediscovering The Sandman and Storytelling Magic

I’m going through a hard time lately. I can’t seem to write, I can’t get creative. Even worse, whatever I jot down just can’t seem to convince me that it’s worth reading. The wit is there, the meaning is there. It makes sense. But it just. Doesn’t. Inspire. Me.

So I went back to the things that did inspire me. Browsed through my shelves, dusted off a few books that I actually forgot I have. Then I found these:

Three Sandman issues: #17 “Calliope”, #74 “Exiles”, and #39 “Soft Places” respectively

I had gotten them from Komikon. I handpicked them because these issues feature stories that can stand on their own, even though they are part of a larger overarching story. And that’s one of the major points that makes the series a work of genius.

There’s always been something about Neil Gaiman’s writing that makes me want to pick up a pen again after reading. It’s like following a train of thought that overlaps with different genres and worlds, and leaves you refreshed as if waking up from an afternoon dream. I also like that whimsical feeling I get after reading these stories, as if it’s telling me that it’s alright to just let my writer’s voice say what it wants. Inner-editor be damned.

Re-experiencing this was my first step to overcoming my depression since the start of the month. You know that spot in your chest that always feels parched when all hope seems lost? I start to feel a little better when faith starts settling in again.

 

The Comic Corner: Bus Gamer “The Pilot Edition”

Bus Gamer was one of the first mangas I’ve ever bought for my collection. I’m rather proud of this find, got it off the discount aisle at National Bookstore back when they had a bigger stock of these things, and it was also my first standalone manga that didn’t need any further volumes to be complete. That, and it has a more mature plot than any of my other mangas back then.

The story is set in modern day Japan where various corporations gamble their corporate secrets in an illegal simulation game conducted secretly in the city of Tokyo. Each corporation have a three-person team who were given a disk containing their respective trade secrets, and their “players” have to steal the opposing team’s disk under a time limit while protecting their own. This was the Biz game (a more accurate title name than the official one). There are no rules. Anything goes, anyone can die. And the main characters Toki Mishiba, Nobuto Nakajyo, and Kazuo Saitoh, players who were originally only in it for the money, are starting to fight for their lives as the stakes keep getting high.

If you think the artwork’s any familiar, that’s because this title was made by Kazuya Minekura, the prolific Japanese author mostly known for the Saiyuki series. She is also known for putting on hiatus any of her long-term projects that isn’t the Saiyuki series.

The copy I got was the “Pilot Edition” which compiled the first eleven chapters of the story before the series was cancelled due to serialization problems. Minekura mentioned in the afterword that she planned to get back to this series eventually because she liked the characters and had no intention of ending the series with just this. But it had been at least 13 years since that time and she had moved on to other projects. Safe to say that Bus Gamer was left with the rest of her other on-hiatus works to gather dust.

An 3-episode anime based on this was released last 2008, and that maybe the only progress we could expect from this title. Pity, and this work had so much potential to end just here…

Summer Komikon 2013 Loot

This was always one summer event I’d be willing to brave the heat to go to. Komikon. Comics, books, bargain prices. Three of my favorite things in one spot.

Now let’s look at this season’s loot:

Trese 6 Preview by Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo

For the local titles, first I went straight for Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo’s booth. I was hoping for the new issue in their urban-fantasy series Trese, but there was only a comic preview for it. There was also a short story “The Choir”, written in illustrated light novel form, that came along with it. It was still a good buy, though.

Wasted by Gerry Alanguilan

Next was Gerry Alanguilan, another of my local favorites. His Wasted graphic novel was his first work back in the 90’s, and it tells the story of a guy going on a self-destructive path after a break-up. It reflected what Alanguilan had gone through during those times and he had channeled whatever emotions he had into this work. And it showed. Wasted was brought back into print due to fan demand.

Sixty Six by Russell Molina and Ian Sta. Maria

Ian Sta. Maria was next on my list. Sixty Six seems to be his latest work along with Russel Molina after his Skyworld series. I’m still not sure what’s it about though, but it involves an elderly couple and one of them has… superpowers? Retired superhero, maybe? Regardless, I’m looking for more of it.

Love is in the Bag 5 and Bag Together by Ace Vitangcol, Jed Siroy, Andrew Agoncillo, Ryan Cordova, and Glenn Que

I also got the fifth issue of Studio Studio’s Love is in the Bag series (finally completing the series!!!), as well as its sequel Bag Together. Their Angel Crush series are next on my list, as well as the Love is in the Bag light novel The Great Donut Caper.

Black Ink Comics

I’ve added the Black Ink comics group on my watchlist. They’re just one of the recent comic groups popping up but they are promising. They’ve done a great job with their works, a series of short stories told in graphic novel form, ranging from romance to horror to fairy tale parodies. They’ve got a few other titles I want to get come next convention, so I’ll be expecting more from this group.

Eminagazine Issues

Then, we got Eminagazine by the Emina Club, another recent comic group. This group is obviously influenced by the anime artwork craze, and it shows. I’m not sure I could take this group seriously, since their material is aimed at anyone a dozen years younger than my age. Though I have to admit, styling their magazine mascot out of the Philippine flag (blonde, blue and white foxtails, white top with three stars on it, yeah) is kinda creatve.

Couscous Express by Brian Wood and Brett Weldele

I’ve also got my share of Western comics. There’s Brian Wood’s and Brett Weldele’s Couscous Express, which I got out of the bargain bin because its story involves gang warfare, scooter shoot-outs, and the Turkish Mafia. Hey, I’m a sucker for stuff like this.

Drawing the Line compiled by Suley Fattah and Julie Eng edited and designed by Ron Boyd

Next, I’ve got the Drawing the Line anthology. This compilation was made to support cancer research and was dedicated to the people involved, after which the compiler had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and wanted to contribute to the community. A collection of stand-alone-stories written and drawn by numerous Canadian comic artists, some of which are motivational and interesting. A good read, definitely.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird

Then, I also bought the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles graphic novel adaptation of the 90’s movie. Just cuz I was a fan of them. That, and I wanted to see how Eastman and Laird had parodied Frank Miller during that time.

Overall, I think I’ve got myself another good haul. Worth the April heatwave, in any rate.

July 2012 Reading Batch

I had a good haul this weekend.

There was an event last July 1, an Indieket (a smaller-scale version of a Komikon), and I found a lot more interesting titles than the last convention.

From the local talents…

Manila Automat Prmier by Mica Agregado; EM Zine by Trizha Ko, Francine Yulo, Ronaldo Recto, Wino Puanco, and Noel Villa; a certain artist’s journal; Horsemen by Sere Cruz; Windmills I: Bearly Standing, Windmills 2: Bearkdowns, Windmills 3, Windmills 4: I’m Gonna Be-ar, and Taking the Train by Josel Nicolas; and Pugad Baboy Vols. 1 and 24 by Pol Medina Jr.

I also found these as added bonuses from the only Western comic outlet in the event:

Sandman Issue #17 and 74

And, on the way home, I dropped by another Booksale branch on the way home and I also just happened to stumble upon these:

A mind-screwing serial killer and a cymbal-playing toy monkey… I’ll be seeing these in my dreams…

Here’s to a fun better-half of the year…

First post, first glimpse of my collection

I’ve been collecting books for years and I often some noteworthy reads among the stacks of surplus goods. A recent – and really lucky – bargain find is what prompted me to start this blog.

I was just going through my usual rounds at Booksale, a local bargain bookstore outlet near our place, when I came across this:

Oops, still got the price-tags on.

Three Calvin & Hobbes comic collections. All at P70, the equivalent of a dollar and maybe 50 or 75 cents. Just sitting on top of a motley collection of surplus manga and other western comic books.

What else could I do but grab them and buy ’em before anyone else could.

These copies are now some of the highlights of my collection – as well as some of my favorite bathroom reads. My mom and sis also read them, and are still impressed by the fact that we managed to get these below – way below – their usual market price.

I’ve set up this weblog to keep track of the more notable book finds that I’ve collected so far and as well as future hopefuls. Also, it works as an outlet for whatever opinion I’ve made of them after reading. That’s got to count as a plus.