October 5, 2021 Johanna Andrews McMeel Leave a comment

Scenes From Isolation

Cathy Guisewite is back cartooning! Scenes From Isolation is a collection of single-panel cartoons she originally put on Instagram capturing frustrations and annoyances during pandemic quarantine. As with any book of this type, some of the recurring themes, particularly the compulsive baking and germophobia, I didn’t relate to at all. Some of the other images, though — especially unhealthy eating, too much online shopping, and having trouble focusing — perfectly captured my feelings. Readers of her previous comic strip, Cathy, […]

October 5, 2021 Johanna Other Prose Leave a comment

Mixology and Murder

Mixology and Murder: Cocktails Inspired by Infamous Serial Killers, Cold Cases, Cults, and Other Disturbing True Crime Stories is a rather unique bartending cookbook. You can gather how from the subtitle. Kierra Sondereker has assembled a set of variants on classic cocktails themed around famous true crimes. Each of the sixty drink recipes is accompanied by a short (2-4 paragraphs) writeup of the corresponding murders. I’d heard of many of these villains or cases — H.H. Holmes, Ted Bundy, Son […]

October 5, 2021 Johanna Art Leave a comment

Scaredy Cat

Ready for the spooky season? I found a lovely little treat called Scaredy Cat by Heather Franzen. You can read it on her website at that link, or she sells a minicomic version (a panel a page, and the whole thing just about fits in the palm of a large hand). It’s not exactly a Halloween story, but it has a pumpkin patch, bats, a black cat, and a cute kitten encountering them all.

September 30, 2021 Johanna Comic News One comment

Diamond’s Disappearing Data

I like Hope Larson’s books, so I preordered All My Friends from my local comic shop. Under Diamond code JUL21 1661, it was originally due out yesterday. The book didn’t ship. Amazon says it’s been rescheduled to next January. That’s a shame, but it makes sense — lots of publishers are having production and distribution delays. What bothered me about the whole thing was how Diamond handled it. It’s a good thing I wasn’t relying on my Saved Items at […]

September 26, 2021 Johanna Marvel Leave a comment

The Death of Doctor Strange #1

I’m not crazy about the concept behind The Death of Doctor Strange #1, a five-issue miniseries written by Jed MacKay and illustrated by Lee Garbett. The more events promote a morbid ending that readers already know won’t stick, the less it means, and the cheaper the gimmick becomes. Admittedly, this is one of the characters, given all the magic, that is more reasonable to take the approach with. (With the slim possibility that Disney, Marvel’s owners, won’t pay off Steve […]

September 26, 2021 Johanna DC / Vertigo 5 comments

Aquaman: The Becoming #1

I don’t know why I believe any more that any superhero comic will be a good starting point. They’re all so invested in their universes that it’s nearly impossible to join in without a lot of work and investment. I haven’t read DC comics for a while — I have so many other things to read these days, with stories that are more inclusive and welcoming. (Plus, I feel as though I kind of filled up my lifetime quota for […]

September 25, 2021 Johanna Movie News 2 comments

Night of the Animated Dead – Why?

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has released a 71-minute animated remake of George Romero’s zombie movie classic. Night of the Animated Dead retells the 1968 Night of the Living Dead. The studio is promising “terrifying new content not found in the original” (and sent me a review copy). I wouldn’t know, as I don’t watch zombie (or horror) films, although apparently it’s just one scene, extended. I am mildly curious, though, as to why the world needed a cartoon version of […]

September 25, 2021 Johanna Other Manga Publishers Leave a comment

A Man and His Cat Volume 4

Umi Sakurai continues to build out this world, balancing moments of substantial emotional depth with scenes of cute cat behavior with universal appeal. A Man and His Cat volume 4 follows up from the previous volume. Hibino’s resentment towards Mr. Kanda, from the days when they were both concert pianists, is explained. Thankfully, they get new chances to interact, now that Kanda has retired from the stage, when they meet in the pet store and Kanda begins helping Hibino with […]

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