What I've Been Reading

My time to read has been infrequent, though I've snuck stuff down to work to read on breaks and such.

Ruroni Kenshin #8 - I haven't read a volume of this since #2 or 3, so some of the characters are a little new to me. Yet this volume also starts off a new storyline as Kenshin journeys to confront his past and a ruthless killer.

It uses the viewpoints of other characters at first, to show how Kenshin's leaving has affected them. Yet it also caught me up on the basics of what these characters have been doing since I last read them. Yet in an entertaining story, rather than just long dribbling exposition.

So that when we did catch up with Kenshin, I knew what I needed to. His meeting with a very cute (long ponytails on girls are so neat looking) teenage girl ninja offered humor, as well as showing that despite his inner torment he is still to caring individual that we root for.

I'm not sure why I stopped buying the title before, but I'm already back on board.

Various Archie Related Digests Really far too many to list, yet I found a lot of hidden gems in them. Like a strip I had not seen before, but came to really enjoy. In "That Wilkin Boy", which had funny stories about feuding neighbors and realizing the importance of a family pet.

A Hotdog(Jughhead's dog) story, where he and a dog pal become human and try to steal Betty and Veronica from Archie. It's a fun story, that left me laughing but a little weirded out at the same time.

The Archie titles get a bad rap at times for being too predictable. Yet they really can be impressive in their ingenuity at times, and are more than just 2 girls after a guy stories.

Planetes 4.1 The series often known as "the manga for people who don't like manga" returns. This time dealing with themes of rebellion, and the importance of staying true to what you believe in.

While I wish they would have waited to collect the entire story in one volume, rather then the two it will be. It was nice seeing the book again, as well as seeing the focus shift back to characters other than the passionate astronaut who wanted to go to Mars. That the prior two volume centered on. (though they were great as well)

Because the female lead they have here has a bit more temper and variety of emotional baggage than the other characters have shown so far.

Carnet De Voyage I've never read a travelogue comic before, but Thompson certainly does a very interesting one that had me intrigued. While I was as impressed as he at some of the sites he saw and put down in words and drawings.

I thought it especially interesting that the things that stood out most for him were the people he met, not the things he saw. Which has often been my experience as well, and makes this more than just a lifeless scenery book.

The only drawback is that sometimes he doesn't seem to share quite enough. Just as I feel as if he's going to show something really deep and personal about himself, he pulls back. Which is his perogative and none of my business as a reader. It is just an observation that I wonder if he took that extra step, the book might even gain that extra layer.