Batgrl: Bookish Hooha

So post-move things have settled, but as usual with new jobs there's now the struggle for fitting my reading into the schedule full of everything else. And because even on a Saturday I've got a pile of stuff to get done, I'm going to just give a run down of bookish sort of hooha.

Grim happily tipped me off to this great Humble Bundle full of Transformers comics and I've been having a great time with them. If they were in paper form I have the feeling I'd have already buzzed through all 23, but for some reason reading them on a computer screen means that I spend more time looking at the artwork and colors. Not that this is a bad thing really. In fact for the first week I was completely snobby and refused to read them on my phone, because I wanted them all on the big screen, in the largest size possible. Then I became annoyed at having to wait til I got home for more story and I gave in. (I have a Galaxy Note, so at least the screen is big for a phone.) The only reason I haven't read more - ok reasons:

1) Causing me to miss my bus/train station - almost. For some reason Victorian ghost stories, history, etc. are easily interruptable and I can look up and remember where I am. Not at all working with the Transformers. 

2) Being in zombie mode after work and forgetting to upload more to my phone for the next day's commute. And then spending that commute thinking about how I would rather be reading about robots and explosions and such.

3) I got seriously into Transformers Prime on Netflix. Apparently reading the comics wasn't hitting all the robots fighting nostalgia buttons - I needed to see this animated. And, just like in the 70s, I did want to go buy toys. (Still do - the new designs rock. Also I have a coworker who has some on his desk.)

I suppose at this point I should explain a bit about me and comics and animation. Primarily because I can't say I was watching the Transformers as a small child and getting hooked then. Nope, I was a teen. And a latchkey kid, so I could come home and watch what I wanted and not have to answer "aren't you a bit too old for...?" Not that I wouldn't be allowed to watch it - just that there'd be some discouragement. Same with comic books - my parents didn't say no exactly, they'd just encourage me to spend money and time reading "real" books instead. (Which was sort of hard to resent as they'd happily buy me those books.) It helped to make them special that one of the times I was freely allowed to buy comics was when we would roadtrip and stop at various touristy spots that sold comics. Comics were acceptable roadtrip reading for some reason. Annoyingly the most easy ones to come upon were things lke Archie, Richie Rich - bleh. But hey, I took what I could get. Also this was the era of "superheros are boys comics" - by which I mean the 70s. What I needed at that point was a handy male friend to loan me those comics, but nope, didn't happen.

Then I went off to college in the 80s and there was a comic book store and ah, it was love. It was also expensive since I discovered I couldn't leave the place without spending $50 at least. And when you consider that I was buying a lot of older comics that weren't pricey - I was seriously into the storylines of Batman and Detective comics from the mid 70s, as well as the Frank Miller Batman stuff - I was getting a LOT of comics. So I had to make sure I didn't go all that often. But again, rationing them out made them more fun somehow. And since I was studying a lot of 17th century lit at the time it was the perfect type of reading for when I needed a rest. Every now and then you just have to get out of a certain time period or genre and read something far, far elsewhere, y'know?

So the hard part for me in all this is am I even going to be able to write reviews for the Transformers I'm reading? Probably not, especially because there'd be a lot repetition of things like "I am SO into the shades of red and purple" and "why aren't there more mechanical bat like robots? I feel those designs are wasted by being used sparingly! And there should be some who aren't villains." I will probably write some more rambling posts like this though. Because I really have enjoyed them. I just don't know how to exactly explain that enjoyment, and how much it's down to me and nostalgia - and also the fact that I adore robots battling and explosions. (I have the same attitude in my film choices - in many a bad movie I can be appeased by explosions or giant monsters.)

Oddly I was feeling badly for some reason that I wasn't reading them faster.

My Inner Naggy Part of the Brain: You used to zip through comics within days - what's wrong with you? Why is this taking so long?

Me: Yeah, what's up with that? Am I tired? Am I not enjoying them enough? ...Wait a minute, why do I NEED to rush anyway? What's your point?

MINPB: You have SO much to read! You're behind in the reviews you keep meaning to write! You need to rush and get finished with-

Me: Um, no. Look we talked about this already. I'm not going to rush - if I'm enjoying it, I can take as long as I need. This is for fun, not an assignment, remember?

As you can tell, it's a familiar conversation. One of the best things about getting older is learning when to not listen to yourself when you find unnecessary things to worry about.

Oh and because none of the stores within walking distance had any Transformers action figures, my desk now has multiple aligators and a couple of prehistoric creatures on it. And randomly Cerberus. Because everyone else at work had desk toys and mine are all in storage. Eventually I'll post a photos.