Jimminy Jillickers, another month gone by. I've been a bad blogger, and I haven't posted much. I blame the heat. It's been hot. June was a hot month, with many days over one hundred degrees. I work outdoors and I have no air conditioning. It tires me out. On top of that, when it's hot, watering the garden becomes a matter of life or death for your plants. I do all my watering by hand, so it's a slow process. In the heat, my computer has a tendency to just turn itself off when overheated, so sometimes I can't even use the thing until late in the evening. I could play in the morning before work, but I have been wary of getting involved in anything that might absorb too much of my attention before work. On my to-play list is Among the Sleep, Mirror's Edge and now Skyrim! I'm excited to check out the full game of Among the Sleep, and I've been fighting with Mirror's Edge for some time now. The fighting areas are just so dang hard! Skyrim... well, I think I'll save that for a day when I really want to unplug. I think maybe tomorrow. On other notes, I finished Scalped. It was pretty good and I recommend it. I also read Cat's Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut. It was also pretty good and I recommend that. Then I decided to stop reading, and I started watching "True Blood." The first season was actually pretty good, much better than I expected. But after a while, I lost interest. It just sort of boils down to really attractive people with southern accents, convoluted plots and cliffhangers at the end of ever.single.episode. It gets pretty tiresome. The characters are pretty good, but you can get all you need from just one season. Geez, I really don't have much else to say right now. But I always have something to say, I just can't seem to access it. I guess I'll leave you with 'Game of Thrones if it were on VHS." Alternative Game of Thrones title sequences are a pretty popular thing now, and some of them are pretty cool. This one cracked me up.
The Font, the Headshots (with smiles), the Music. Pretty good stuff. -D
Scalped is a comic book series taking place in present day, on the fictional Prarie Rose Lakota Reservation between Nebraska and South Dakota. I've read two volumes out of 9 published in 2011. The series is composed by Jason Aaron with art by R.M Guera, John Paul Leon, David Furno and more. The genre is crime drama (noir), and if it were made into a TV series, it would be compared with shows like Breaking Bad, The Sopranos and Deadwood. I wasn't sure what to make of this series after reading the first graphic novel. I'm a little tired of the adjective 'Gritty' and this series is very gritty. No heroes to be found here, just anti-heroes and villains who are somewhat sympathetic. Also some unknowns and straight up bad guys. Granted, I kind of like moral ambiguity, and maybe that's what keeps me reading. Also, I really like the fact that the story takes place on an Indian Reservation and 90% of the characters have lived there their whole lives, and families for generations. This is a setting that is sorely underrepresented in popular culture. Sorely. So Scalped got in the door just for that, and even though it's an ugly gritty crime drama, I decided to stick it out. I'm glad I stuck it out. By the end of the second issue, there is more character development, and I have myself a new favorite character. He'll probably be your favorite character too. The sympathetic villain is becoming more sympathetic, but no less villainous. The grittiness is expanding to include the banalities of abject poverty. I'm really glad this is coming into the story more, because everything I've ever read or been told about life on Indian Reservations is that it can be very hopeless for the inhabitants. Again, I repeat, sorely unrepresented in popular culture. Now, I think it's important to point out that the writer, Jason Aaron is not Native American. He's a white guy from Alabama. But so far, he's a great writer, and has a really good sense of the gritty crime-drama motif and how to build a rounded cast of characters. I do think that it is problematic for a white guy to be writing about the struggles of a people not his own, a people colonized by Europeans. However, as I mentioned before, the subject of life on the Rez is sorely underrepresented, so at this point I think I'll just take what I can get. And to his credit, I think Aaron is very respectful of his subject, and tries to give a well rounded variety of points of view. But, of course, that's just the opinion of another some-white-guy, you can take it or leave it. With any luck, stories like these can get more attention which may lead to a positive change. One can only hope.
So would I recommend giving Scalped a look? Yes. So far, midway through book 3, Scalped has a dynamic and interesting cast of characters, fantastic art that I sink right into, and a light enough touch of mysticism to pique my interest, without laying it on too thick. Also, yes, there are some scalpings, mafia style. I picked up my copies at my local library, and I suggest you do the same. -D
P.S. If super-gritty-noir isn't something you want to see, but you're still interested in modern life on Indian Reservations, you should check out this clip for a much more family friendly version. (The book that the linked movie is based on is a lot grittier)
