Scenes from an Impending Marriage

On my visit to Crescent City Comics, I picked up Scenes from an Impending Marriage: A Prenuptial Memoir by Adrian Tomine. Since I was on my honeymoon and had just survived a wedding myself, I was interested to read about Mr. Tomine's experience on his way to the altar. The book is autobiographical, covering the time from when he became engaged to his fiance Sarah through their wedding day.

This book may not be for everyone - it is not your mainstream action comic book, that's for sure. But for me, someone who had just recently found myself, as Tomine puts it, "sucked into a black hole of nuptial narcissism", I found it cathartic. From the couple's battles over the guest list to Tomine's obsession about creating perfect invitations, it made me feel better to know that I'm not the only one who's a bit baffled over the things we put ourselves through in order to participate in the bizarre social ritual we call "weddings".  My thanks to the author for giving us a sweet little book that allows the soon-to-be wed to pull back and have a laugh at ourselves, while still appreciating the tender and touching moments that go along with committing to a loving partner for life.

Here are a couple of the "scenes" to give you an idea:

From "Scenes from an Impending Marriage", written and drawn by Adrian Tomine

Crescent City Comics

My husband and I were in New Orleans for our honeymoon a few weeks ago, and we stopped by Crescent City Comics to pick up our Wednesday comics and check out the shop. The shop is a bit off the beaten tourist path, being far from the French Quarter and instead close to Tulane and Loyola Universities. But it was worth the trip. The shop was inviting and well-stocked, and the staff were friendly and helpful. I particularly liked their shelves of staff recommendations, stacked with solid books selected with care by folks who clearly do a lot of reading. We will definitely be back next time we visit the beautiful city of New Orleans.

And if an excellent comic shop isn't enough to get you to hop on the St. Charles Streetcar and head uptown, Crescent City Comics is also just across the street from Dat Dog, where we had one of our tastiest meals in New Orleans. The alligator sausages are Amazing like Spider-man!

 

Alligator sausages at Dat Dog, New Orleans, Louisiana

Batwing #4

Success! I was able to get all 4 comics on my list at Lee's yesterday, AND a copy of All-Star Western #2 I had previously missed out on. Huzzah! Then, from Lee's, my hubby and I went for dinner, Abita beer and comics reading at Marvin Gardens in Belmont...

We grabbed a spot in a back booth and I tucked right in to Batwing #4. Once again, I loved it! The action never stops in Batwing, and I continue to be impressed by Winick's ability to weave serious issues such as AIDS, orphan soldiers and violent warlords into a tale I still find highly enjoyable. In this issue, Batwing's "secret origin" was "unveiled!" Batwing, aka David Zavimbe, suffered through a tragic childhood fitting of any Bat-character, but is also haunted by his own terrible actions from the past, making him in some ways more tortured than the Batman himself. While I was not surprised by his secret origin, I did find it heartbreakingly realistic. And perhaps that is what I love most about this comic - it is believable. It is much easier for me to imagine a damaged villian massacring innocent people with machetes in Africa because, well, there are actually real people who massacre innocent people with machetes there. And it makes me happy to imagine that Batwing is doing something about it.

From the preview I saw, I was a little worried that I wouldn't be into the art on this issue, since I've grown attached to Ben Oliver's work in the first 3. But Chriscross did a good job. The art flowed from previous issues, but definitely had its own twist and style. I be a happy camper. Check it out:

 

Batwing #4 is written by Judd Winick, with art by Chriscross and Ryan Winn.

Welcome, and Happy New Comics Day!

Hallo, and welcome to my new blog "Have Fun Read Comics!" The title pretty much says it all. This blog is about celebrating the joy I get from comics and pop culture, as well as reminding myself and others that really, when it comes down to it, hobbies should be fun!

So, where better to start than the excitement of New Comics Day and the fourth installment of the DC reboot?!  Today I will be heading down to my new local shop, Lee's Comics of San Mateo, CA. (The shop's not new, just me - to the neighborhood.) I'm planning on picking up the following new arrivals from DC:

Action Comics #4

Animal Man #4

Swamp Thing #4

and, one of my favorites of the reboot so far:

Batwing #4

Hooray! I got even more psyched for the issue after I read the USA Today sneak preview and interview with the author, Judd Winick. Go Judd! I'll let you guys know what I think of #4 later today. I loved #1-3, but there's a new artist on this one, so we shall see...