First up is the Christian Bauman novel In Hoboken. It’s the story of Thatcher, a young folk singer recently discharged from the army, who moves in with his friend James in Hoboken (of course). The book chronicles Thatcher and the people he meets, including members of the music community and Orris, a mental patient who at times feels like the most real character.
Overall, I found the book well written and enjoyable, but the plot ambles along never really going anywhere. It ends kind of flat, failing to wrap up or even address some of the issues in the characters’ lives.
The second thing I’ve been reading is Marvel’s title, Secret Warriors.
Nick Fury has discovered that the only person he can trust is himself and it’s kind of crazy awesome. So far we’ve had a new team of young heroes, Skrulls, and Hydra. I like how this book is trolling the back alleys of Marvel’s Dark Reign. I’m hoping to see this book cross over into the rest of the Marvel universe (and vice versa). It would be great to see Captain America and others all show up.
Well, off to the pile of comic books and books remaining.
I almost forgot to mention, I recently also finished Stewart O’Nan’s a Prayer for the Dying. A beautiful but heartbreaking book that can be difficult to read. Essentially it’s a tale of a small town after the U.S. Civil War that experiences a diphtheria outbreak and is threatened by wildfires. Written in the second person, the book grapples with the moral implications of what must be done and then often asks, how do you live with it?
Overall, this is one of the best books I’ve read in the past year or so. That being said, there were times I had to put it down. What happens throughout the story is sometimes depressing and disheartening. Not only do you feel for Jacob, the main character, but you cringe as you feel the novel’s world sliding slowly out of control.
That being said, I’m starting to really admire O’Nan and his writing. He can change voice, style, and subject so easily from book to book, yet still manages to produce great work.
The Incredible Hulk
15 06 2008In the latest round of comic book movies, Iron Man has been getting all of the love. While it didn’t get panned, the reviews for the Incredible Hulk have been lukewarm at best. I finally understand. It’s obvious that the people who made The Incredible Hulk actually cared what people like me, comic book readers, thought. As a result, much of the shmaltz that is woven into movies so that the general public can swallow then is not here.
I’m not going to give any spoilers here but I have to make a few comments. First, this movie doesn’t see the need to give us a long-winded and cliched origin story. Actually, it uses the origin found in the television show as a backdrop to the credits. I actually prefered this because, as a long-time reader of the Hulk, if they’re going to tell an origin story I’d prefer it to involve a gamma bomb. It also allows us to sidestep what would end up being an hour of slow story development and trade it in for some action.
That being said, we get Bruce Banner in Brazil, trying to learn to control the monster inside. Of course we know that won’t happen because otherwise there would be no movie. What we get in addition to a great Hulk is a supporting cast full of the characters needed for any Hulk movie. William Hurt plays a great General Thunderbolt Ross and Liv Tyler is adequate as Betty Ross. What we get in addition to these two is Tim Roth in a fantastic performance as Emil Blonsky and Tim Blake Nelson as Samuel Sterns.
Other nice touches include cameos by Stan Lee and Lou Ferrigno. Additional touches for long-time Hulk fans include Jim Wilson (one of the Hulk’s former sidekicks) and McGee (the name of the reporter who hounded the Hulk on television) within the film. I do wish that Rick Jones had somehow been worked into the movie as his sidekick.
Overall this movie was fantastic. It includes yet another teaser for the Avengers movie scheduled to be released in 2011 and remembers that the angrier the Hulk gets, the stronger he gets. Don’t believe the reviews that say the movie has no heart, is lacking, etc. This movie was well worth the price of the ticket.
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Tags: avengers, bruce banner, edward norton, iron man, marvel comics, the incredible hulk
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