100 books/graphic novels in 12 months

New goal. Since I added graphic novels, I'm well ahead of schedule for 52 in a year. I am currently at 42 with 4 months to go. And I just joined an online book club so four more are assured. Therefore I'm revising my goal up to 100. 100 books/graphic novels in 12 months. Ideally I'd like to break down to be at least 60/40 but I've been so graphic novel heavy lately I'm sure it will be closer to 70/30 or 80/20

1. October - Interworld - Neil Gaiman

2. October - The Prince - Machiavelli  

3. November - The Bourne Betrayal - James Ludlum, Eric Van Lustbader

4. November - Catch 22 - Joseph Heller 

5. December - First Daughter - Eric Van Lustbader

6. December - Suck It, Wonder Woman - Olivia Munn

7. December - It's Hard Out Here For a Shrimp - Pepe The King Prawn

8. January - Good Omens - Neil Gaiman

9. January - A Jew Must Die - Jacques Chessex

10. January - The Pearl - John Steinbeck

11. February - Let America Be America Again - Langston Hughes

12. February - The Dream Keeper - Langston Hughes

13. February - The Tavernier Stones - Stephen Parrish

14. February - Hawkman: Endless Flight (Graphic Novel) - Geoff Johns, James Robinson, Rags Morales

15. February - The Thieves of Manhattan - Adam Langer

16. March - The Eternals (Graphic Novel) - Neil Gaiman, John Romita Jr. 

17. March - A.D. New Orleans after the Deluge ( Graphic Novel) - Josh Neufeld

18. March - The Grand Design - Stephen Hawkin

19. March - Boozehound - Jason Wilson

20. March - Sin City The Hard Goodbye (Graphic Novel) - Frank Miller 

21. March - Whilteout Vol 2: Melt (Graphic Novel) - Greg Rucka, Steve Lieber

22. March - Gotham Central: In the Line of Duty (Graphic Novel) Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka, Michael Lark

23. March - DMZ (Graphic Novel) - Brian Wood, Riccardo Burchielli 

24. April - Ultimate Fantastic Four #1-#6 (Graphic Novel) Bendis, Millar

25. April - The Maverick Experiement - Drew Bergquist

26. April - The Sword - Brian Litfin

27. April - The Simple Dollar - Trent Hamm

28. April - Hitler's Pre-Emptive War: The Battle for Norway, 1940 - Henrik O. Lunde

29. May - Unwritten: Inside Man (Graphic Novel) - Mike Carey, Peter Gross

30. May - Parker: The Hunter (Graphic Novel) Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark

31. May - The Dresden Files: Welcome to the Jungle (Graphic Novel) Jim Butcher, Ardian Syaf

32. May - Marvel 1602 (Graphic Novel)  - Neil Gaiman, Andy Kubert, Richard Isanove

33. May - Daniel X: Alien Hunter (Graphic Novel) James Patterson, Leopoldo Gout

34. May - Small Gods: Killing Grin (Graphic Novel) Jason Rand, Juan Ferreyra, Kristen Simon

35. May - Fray (Graphic Novel) Joss Weadon, Karl Moline, Andy Owens

36. May - Planetary Vol 2: The Fourt Man (Graphic Novel) Warren Ellis, John Cassaday

37. May - Planetary Vol 3: Leaving the 20th Century (Graphic Novel) Warren Ellis, John Cassaday

38. May - Eye of God - Ariel Allison

39. May - Tick Tock - James Patterson

40. May - Xmen: Kitty Pryde Shadow and Flame Vol 1 (Graphic Novel) Akira Yoshida, Paul Smith

41. May - Red (Graphic Novel) Warren Ellis, Cully Hamner

42. May - Parker The Outfit (Graphic Novel) Darwyn Cooke, Richard Stark

Upcoming:

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana - Gayle Tzemach Lemmon (Book Club)

Who Killed Art Deco - Chuck Barris

Pirates of the Levant - Arturo Perez-Reverte

The Last Dickens - Mathew Pearl

Shiloh - Larry J. Daniel 

The Liar - Stephen Fry 

First Snow - Eric Van Lustbader

Faithful Place - Tana French

Any suggestions on future books/graphic novels are very appreciated. 

Movie Review: Wonder Woman (2009) Spoilers

I've had the pleasure over the past few months to rediscover several classic comic book tales through the increasingly stellar animated films that both DC Comics and Marvel Entertainment have been putting out straight to DVD.

Tonight I had the pleasure of watching Wonder Woman (2009). I've read the origin of Wonder Woman many times but have never found myself completely engrossed in the character. Historically, I've struggled with the worlds of magic/mysticism collide with that of the more common superhero. It's an argument meant for a different post entirely, or for that matter a white paper. However, this streamlined version of Wonder Woman, that introduces her to the modern viewer and does a good job of not overly explaining the mythology, was an enjoyable and eminently re-watchable version.

Wonder Woman, or Diana as she is known at the beginning of the film is voiced by Keri Russell. To me it's always a credit to a voice actor when I don't spend too much time trying to determine who it is. The voice fit Diana perfectly and I didn't even realize it was Russell until the credits rolled. Diana is given enough naivety and smarts to give the character's first interactions with the modern world seem plausible and natural. What was especially pleasing is that the tone of the film seems much like Diana herself. It never questions her abilities and moves forward with a consistent and entertaining tone.

Ironically, the fact that I immediately knew the voice behind Colonel Steve also improved the character for me. Colonel Steve is a hard character to accept at times. The carbon copy handsome, talented, charming blah blah blah. He's the star quarterback who donates his time to taking meals to old ladies and saving kittens from trees. At best he's grudgingly likeable. At worst, the viewer can't stand him. In a brilliant bit of casting, Nathan Fillion was brought in as the voice of Colonel Steve. Immediately, I couldn't hate the guy, no matter how hard I try. Fillion has made a career out of being the handsome, charming, seemingly too good to be true archetype that everyone can't help but love. No matter how strange some of Colonel Steve's lines could be worried or how the swings in his character's outlook changed, it worked. Mostly because Fillion's voice reminded you of some strange combo of Richard Castle, Mal and even Captain Hammer.

The rest of the voice cast is good to passable. Oliver Platt and Alfred Molina are excellent as Hades and Ares and the animation is never a distraction. On the whole an excellent rental and enjoyable for fanboys and regular watchers alike.

Grade: A

Movie Review: Superman/Shazam Return of Black Adam *Spoilers*

One of the biggest challenges as a movie fan is that it seems that often the marketing wing of a studio has no idea what a movie is about, so they just punt on the trailer, title etc. Superman/Shazam is a perfect example. What I completely missed is that on Netflix instant watch at least, it is actually a compilation of shorts about some of the coolest, underutilized characters in the DC universe. But the title and cover made me think it was a full Superman/Shazam movie. .

Due to this fact, it sat unloved on my cue for months. I'm not a huge Shazam/Captain Marvel fan. I think the introduction of "magic" as another Superman vulnerability smacks of writer desperation and the boy becomes superhuman with a word gimmick doesn't seem to work on a large scale. This is why I think that Captain Marvel, despite his obvious name issues, has historically been a mostly forgotten and underutilized character.

If the title of this film was DC Showcase: Forgotten Heros or even DC Showcase: Characters you really don't know, then I think it would have moved up my Netflix cue much faster. There are four separate shorts starring, Superman/Shazam, The Spectre, Green Arrow and Jonah Hex. The voice cast and art for each of the shorts is superb.

Each of these characters honestly couldn't carry an entire film (see Jonah Hex) but in a short, they shine. Superman/Shazam is passable, The Spectre is appropriately creepy, Green Arrow lasts just long enough for the character to be enjoyed but the holes not to show and Jonah Hex is a nice easy cowboy revenge story that doesn't need to waste time with details or character development.

If you're a fan of DC Comics or any of the animated series created or produced by Bruce Timm, I highly recommend giving this compilation a shot. Don't be fooled by the complete failure of the marketing department, there is value here beyond the tagline.

Grade: B+