I read a lot. I have two blogs dedicated to books, and I have a stack of books I’m reading all the time. I even read the Bible all the time, but that’s something else altogether. I wanted to talk about something that I’ve been completely intrigued about for over a year now. The series of comic books from the Vertigo Comics line up of adult comic book fare, entitled, Scalped. Scalped is one of the most realistic, gritty, and addicting pieces of literature I’ve ever read. The story is far more than just a book, or a episodic run of comics, it’s a completely different and frenetic experience that rivals any movie or television show that you’ve ever seen or heard.
The story follows an American Indian, who is now part of the Law enforcement of a reservation. He’s been gone a long time and he comes back to town to realize that the rez is not what he remembers, and that the memories of his mom, his former life, and the new generation of Indians are nothing like you’ve seen on television. This portrait of Native American life is not some soggy, inspirational tale, it’s a sickening portrait of what very well is happening in the backyards of American reservations.
Jason Aaron writes a really good story, and it is illustrated by R. M. Guéra to such a perfect companion to the stories. This book is something really cool for me, it not only is colorful and gritty, it features movie-script like portraits of a life and time that we as “Americans” never really experience. You begin to really feel the story, and feel like you’re there watching the events unfold as part of the story.
By the third volume of Scalped, I was beyond hooked. The whole story goes from past to present and really, like I’ve said before, rivals anything you’ve seen on HBO or FX or any other program that showcases gritty drama. It’s more than just a cops tale in the Indian Reservation world, and it really is best said by what one reviewer said; “it’s like the sopranos on an indian reservation” and they were right.
Volume 4 shocked me with one of the best action sequences in comic book history. Forget the superhero comics that you’ve read as a child, this thing rocks hard. It really cuts you in the jugular, and unfortunately an old man’s face is also shown in all its gorey glory, as you watch the writers and illustrators paint a gruesome portrait…sick. The ending really had me going, and guess what? Volume 5 was release on Tuesday! That’s right, Scalped Volume 5 picks up right in time with another set of graphic novel triumph.
This is a great series of books, a great work of art and literature. You’re going to miss out, seriously, you’re going to miss out on something great because this thing is going to be a movie or a television show someday and it’s not going to be the same…trust me. If I could recommend any graphic novel, comic book, or book series to you it’s Scalped, it’s that dang good.
Here is an interview with RM Guera:
And here is a review of Scalped, with artwork:
You should definitely check into this work, recommend it to someone, it’s well worth it, I kid you not.
I’m a big fan of bootlegs, and music that you can’t buy in stores. However, the times are changing and record labels are getting smarter than the media gives them credit for. Nirvana’s performance at Reading Festival far and long away was something of interest for a lot of fans, like me. I really liked their live shows, and it seemed that the only way to get them was to get them on the black market, or if you were lucky, ebay.
Well, no longer will you have to try and download yourself a copy of this performance, you can now simply purchase it. You can pick up Nirvana’s Live at Reading cd/dvd by clicking here, and wait for it to come in the mail, or go to your local music store and pick it up.
If I had a job, I’d get this asap, but I might have to wait for it. In the mean time, I’m still looking for new things to occupy my time.
Oh, as a side note, I just got an old Iphone. It’s the Iphone 3g not the 3gs, but it’s nice to get something new to play with. I inherited it from my wife, she’s got a new one…she’s the one working…nevermind.
I was blessed in a lot of ways up to this point. Even now, I’m reaping a lot of what I sewed a while ago. I’m not making a lot of money, in fact, I’m still unemployed. I’m trying to make it through, and I’m waking up. Seriously, I’m waking up to see that I need to write more on this site.
So here is a quick update before I start to seriously consider writing a marathon of posts to bring my site to a former glory.
I’ve moved to Moscow, Idaho and I don’t have any job prospects right now.
I am finally getting back into watching movies. I have a few sites set up for that, the links are below:
Enjoy those sites for constant reviews and quick hits and misses. This site will have a mixed media feel to it and I’ll not review hardcore like I used to. To be honest with you, no one cared about those reviews and most people abandoned me on the switch.
I went from 150,000 hits a month and more, to about 10 hits a day if I’m lucky. I guess the loyalty I once had from readers is gone. In fact, no one cares anymore, and the less I see in regards to traffic the more complacent I am in regards to making friends.
Oh yeah, “friends”, I have none. I used to have friends, but the further I move away from Los Angeles the less friends I have. Right now I have no one at all. Sure, my wife has family here but it’s not really “MINE”, if you know what that means. I spend a lot of time alone, and in my office, doing nothing. I tried skateboarding this city, but it’s not that skate friendly. There is no core skate shop here either, and the skatepark is flooded with razor scooters.
I feel fat.
I’ve been looking for a church to attend and so far it’s a fruitless endeavor. There’s still a lot of time though…so I think.
I have yet to hear from ANY job. I see “now hiring” signs all over, but after submitting applications to even the most lamest of jobs, I have yet to hear ANY call backs. I hate the feeling of being useless. I have a degree dangit! I am an educated man and I can’t land a simple fast food gig? I suck at life.
That’s it for the moment. I’m on aim a lot….thecorporatehero, that’s about it. Movie reviews are coming sooner than later, and this time it’s no holds barred…well it always was.
I want to be somebody else sometimes. Sure my life is not in shambles, but my career is none existent. The count is 128 resume’s and applications sent. It’s been a full 4 weeks of me trying to get a new job. I have yet to receive one call back. That’s right, I have yet to receive even a solitary call back! I have experience in a lot of different realms and I have no call backs.
I owe money for my college career and now I can’t even land a part time gig at a stupid Walmart. I am stretched spiritually, and I’m not sure who to turn to. I have no friends, I have no guidance, and all I have left s my skateboard and my computer. I live in a small city, no jobs, no future, nothing for me.
I was young when I heard that a husband must sacrifice for his wife…well more so that a husband must love his wife like Jesus loves the church. Well, if Jesus died for the church than does a man die for his wife? I guess in a way I’m dying a painful death, not a physical one, but one of the spirit. My spirits are down, I am a weak man now because I can’t get a job in any field. I guess I’m lucky for the time being, my wife makes more than me, she didn’t go to college and she makes more than I garnered in my whole computer/tech career with the exception of one job.
I’m trying to make the best of things, but it’s not that simple. You can’t just wipe away the stress, and with no one to talk to, it becomes a lonely life. I want to love and I want to leave, and I want a job…any job at this point. I have been kicking myself to fill out an application for fast food, but I can’t turn it in. I just can’t yet…I feel like I’m above it.
Maybe I’m not above it. Maybe I should shut up and take it. I’m nearly physically sick at the fact that my skills, my knowledge and my college career is going to waste, it’s a complete and utter waste. I have no one to turn to.
I don’t even have a passion for this site, nor my old site. I have nothing, I’m just sailing these seas alone…waiting for a call…watching the world smile like lunatics, because I’m not smiling, that’s for sure.
Whatever the case is, no one wants me to work for them.
After 34 applications filled out, after several emails sent, and after even a job fair, I’m still jobless. I used to think that the economy was lame, and it was a myth that finding a job was hard.
No.
I believe now.
I am swallowing my words right now. Seriously, I hate this. I have had no calls back, I have had no opportunities. I’ve sat unemployed for about a full month now. I’m going to be staring at the final places to apply now. I didn’t want to go there, but the last few places are fast food. I could go with McDonalds, the king of fast food, or I can go with Jack in the Box, both of which offer a fine starting wage of seven dollars and forty cents. Amazing, I will be going from nearly twenty dollars an hour to less than my wife makes. Not to say that my wife is not deserving of her wage, but I’m the one with all the education and the bills to show for it.
I never thought that by going to college I would end up working in fast food, but it is looking more likely the more I think about it. If I end up working at fast food, I will be in a depression far deeper than anything I am at now, which is really low.
With no friends, and no hopes…I’m not sure where I will go next. It’s a lonely world, not a small one, a lonely one.
Is it just me or does Clint Eastwood seem to be doing the same role in a different background all the time these days? It just seems to me that he’s doing the same thing all the time and no one is calling him out for it. I found myself comparing Gran Torino to “The Rookie” with the way the roles were working out, but that wouldn’t be fair would it?
Gran Torino was nominated for a lot of awards and once again Clint Eastwood’s passion for film shines through. The film caught me off guard with the length and character set up. The character “Walt” that Eastwood plays is so much like a lot of older people that I’ve met in my life, and just like I was able to worm my way into a lot of situations over time, he bonds with the next door neighbors in an unlikely way. The writing is so good, that even when you think the story is going for the cliché openhanded opportunities, it reminds you that it’s more than just a view of good and bad.
I enjoyed the film, I thought the story was good, and while I could see the obvious play on duality, I let myself be taken away through the story. The story itself has a lot of layers that you might miss if you’re not aware of foreshadowing, alliteration, and many other literary terms that you probably don’t remember from English II. The story has those, and plays with your emotions. One such example of the duality that I’m talking about is in the third act when the young priest comes to talk to Walt after a gang has attacked his friends. We see the priest’s face in clarity on one side, while the other side is embraced by the darkness, creating a great and play on the old “Dark Knight”, Two Face, style of duality that we see throughout many places. Some might argue that the duality is really something that is set up in the very first moments of this film, where the priest is talking about how life and death are bittersweet, but that’s not the case, as the ending really pushes you over the line.
This film really pulls you in with the characterizations of Walt’s family. Especially how they don’t understand their father, and how they treat him like he’s a child. Furthermore, his constant racist notions is something that many people might find a bit too much to handle. I appreciated the honest approach to the writing and figured it really fit the character and the time period very well.
Eastwood and the cast play off quite well. I thought the pacing was well done, and while I thought it was slow at times, I realized that it takes time to set up raw emotion and conclusions. The overt “Christian” message was seen throughout and the closing acts really reflect that notion. Eastwood as “Walt” seemed somewhat auto-biographical in a way and while I wanted to think of this film simply as fiction, I realize that it shares common ground with so many other stories, not just in my own life and the lives of others, but even in fictional films like “Up”. Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino really is a strong film with a great central message for both secular and Christian minds to enjoy. I thought it wasn’t half bad. I liked “Unforgiven” way better, but this one was top notch in a different way. Make sure you check out Gran Torino at least once.
I just want to make sure to say that the movie reviews, book reviews, and so much more is coming. I am still getting settled here in Idaho, and I’ve been actively looking for a job. It’s been a sad, depressing, journey through the worst job market I’ve ever seen. You know things are bad when minimum wage jobs don’t call you back because they are completely filled.
Today I even applied at someplace I previously applied at and was ignored.
Hang in there as I make up new content to fill the old set list, as the old has been blown up and created a terrible world view for me. For those of you still reading, Gran Torino and three more other films I have to watch and review.
I am worth a lot. That’s what I keep hearing from people. Of course I’m worth a lot, but can I land a job? Nope. It’s my second week of searching, moving through the motions and I have applied at all the locations near me. The city isn’t very large and it has only a few opportunities. I’ve applied at even the lowliest of positions, cleaning up throw up, but no one has had interest in hiring me. At this point I’m willing to work at the minimum wage of the state which is under eight dollars an hour. Nothing.
I’m sitting here and am wondering why it is that life has passed me by so quickly.
I’m in a new city. So far the job market has been non existent. A friend of mine told me to be flexible, and I have been. I’ve applied at the worst jobs I could think of, because that’s all that is open. One such application really was stupid and that was the almighty Walmart. I went through their application and eventually finished it.
The company has a test that you must pass to be considered in some of their jobs. I unfortunately failed their test. That’s right, I sir jorge failed the Walmart test. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Interactive Media Design and I’m not good enough for Walmart. Talk about a real downer, I felt like crap.
This new city I’m in sucks. Everyday for me has been a battle of wits, and though some people say that happiness is a choice, I find it to be a lie. You can’t choose it, when your up to your neck in mire.
Where am I?
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