reviews of some 'things

Oh look, it's a blog post I am making on that blog I don't update. Oh well. Here's some things I've been liking:


Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine

My older cousin recently went to Japan to teach English and I grabbed a bunch of the books he was leaving behind. I had heard of this one somewhere before so I figured I'd give it a read. It's not the sort of graphic novel I'm used to, nor is the sort of story I'm used to in any medium, but that isn't necessarily bad. The plot centers around the relationship of protagonist Ben Tanaka and his girlfriend Miko Hayashi. Tomine does a good job making all the characters involved realistically deep, with both flaws and redeeming qualities, but fails to make them very likable, which really lessens the impact most of the scenes can have. He also seems almost afraid to actually speak his mind and often what I found to be the most interesting questions the book raises are left unanswered. The characters speak briefly of grad school politics, the image of New York to those living on the west coast, the psychological implications of Asian fetishes, etc, etc, but Tomine never actually articulates a full opinion on any of these matters. This dodging of the subject seems to be done under the guise of realism, and here it succeeds: the dialogue never feels forced or unnecessarily explanatory and the events rarely stray outside of the feasible.

The question then becomes, when is it alright to sacrifice something more interesting to avoid breaking the "realism"? I would say never, and I feel like the biggest flaw Shortcomings has is it's readiness to abandon exploration into some interesting topics to "keep it realistic". Yes, in real life, an argument about fetishism in a bar would probably be cut short in the interest of politeness, but no one will complain if three fictional characters discuss it further, and the book would probably end up being more enlightening for it. If you take the interesting topics away from this book, it ends up just being the collisions of several unlikeable characters, which is still quite good when presented with this quality of pacing and art, although the latter could've been a bit more varied. I'm not sure if it's deserving all the hype it's been getting, and I don't know if I would have bought it, but it was worth the time I spent with it. 7.3/10

The Three Paradoxes by Paul Hornschemeier

This is another one I grabbed. Pretty similar to Shortcomings in that it presents a little fairly autobiographical episode of a fairly average person's life. Also quite similar in length and binding and praise but that's less notable. The key difference between the two, I think, is the characters. Unlike Shortcomings, where all the characters are presented as potentially likable characters that become more flawed and detestable as time went on, The Three Paradoxes focuses on making the protagonist and his father more and more endearing as the story progresses. This does unfortunately lead to characters that come across as a little "too good", but the negative factor this could have is mostly avoided by not focusing too much of the plot on these characters themselves. This is achieved by interspersing the main plot with several vignettes of Paul's childhood, the comic he's working on and two hypothetical comics in Paul's imagination. Each of these adeptly adopts and subverts the style of traditional comics before it, creating memorable and humorous scenes. Some effort is made to tie the nature of the main plot and setting with Zeno's paradoxes, but it isn't quite obvious enough for Paul to feel comfortable expanding on. The final scene of Paul never reaching his destination is a nice touch, though.

In all, it's a quite unique and enjoyable read, but it falls just short of being poignant. Maybe blame how short it is, but he really manages to fit a lot within the 100 or so pages. I feel more like the book suffers because it's characters don't. They're not exactly sunny, and some conflicts and turmoil are hinted at, but for the most part everyone is content, if a bit melancholy, and I wonder just where I'm supposed to connect with them. They don't have to be bawling their eyes out, but if you look at something like, uh, anything by that great genius of the form Chris Ware, everyone in that book is suffering in some fairly meaningful and understandable way, and through that you really begin to care for them. A well developed character is one that you feel can go on existing outside of the book's plot, but a really compelling tragic character is one you feel is always one page away from having a breakdown. Paul's characters are good depictions of probably real people, but the very fact that I have no difficulty believing that they'll go on just fine after the book ends leaves me less compelled to follow them further. Again, this isn't an issue for most of the book, as the side-stories keep things interesting, but if the story continued for much longer I think I'd be hoping for some sort of conflict. "Li'l Zeno and Friends" sells this one, though, if nothing else. 7.9/10

solanin by Inio Asano

Oh yeah, this is more like it. I respect my cousin's collection of Western graphic novels of the "depressed people living their lives" genre and their attempts to express the sublimity of melancholy, but no one does it like the Japanese master Asano! The artwork - a breathtaking mix of realism (including some photography) and surrealism, with amazing character designs that instantly become iconic in the reader's mind! The characters - 3-dimensional, flawed but lovable and compellingly dysfunctional, each of them easily to relate to without pandering to any single facet of the reader's personality! The plot - excellent progression with a mixture of rivetingly arcing stories, episodes that strengthen the side characters and illuminate other aspects of the setting and plot and flashbacks that tie your emotions closer to the current events!

Seriously, this thing is good. Asano impresses me more and more as I explore his works. I'm not sure if this ranks as high as Oyasumi Punpun in my mind, but it's not fair to compare a 6-volume+ series with a one-off like this. Solanin excels masterfully as what it is. Written by Asano in an uncertain time in his life, it clearly represents his inner turmoil without becoming preachy or drudgingly autobiographical. He projects different aspects of his conflicts onto different characters and writes stories that highlight the pros and cons with the various solutions he considers. This is a novel that explores the depths of his current psyche without appearing necessarily personal, a miracle of both passionate personal expression and the ability to tap into the commonly shared feelings of his generation. This is truly something that deserves to be the voice of an entire demographic, and never have I found the my feelings and the feelings of many of my peers mirrored so eloquently on paper: dread towards the working world but lack of faith in the artistic talent needed to circumvent it... one of Taneda's climatic lines in the second arc - "Everybody!! Congratulations on graduating from humanity!! But I...! I... need a little more time to find an answer." - well, that's certainly an understandable sentiment.

But don't get the idea that this praise is just coming from my situation being similar to the one in the story, for that is, at best, the icing on the cake. Nor should you think this increasingly loving review stems primarily from some irrational attachment to the protagonist, although I'm not saying that doesn't exist too. No, this story stands on any merits for which it can be judged. Although initially serialized, the plot flows wonderfully in the collected volume. The criticality of the events escalate quickly without ever making the tone entirely somber or cheery. The crucial tragedy divides the story subtly but effectively, and the end is satisfying and cyclic. Actually, the ending might be my biggest and only beef with solanin: it is somewhat surprisingly realistic, and I found myself hoping for something a little more fantastic. However, I realize now that what I was doing was fantasizing along with the characters, and the ending we're given is sublime in it's cyclic quality. Asano was giving himself the best but the toughest advice with this ending, and it certainly isn't difficult to take to heart. There aren't many comics out there like this, and most of the rest carry Asano's signature. The man has truly established himself as the voice of a generation too uncertain to be heard otherwise, and the world should be listening. The characters of this story are the future in a way too profound to be understood today, and reading solanin, you can't help but pull for them. 10/10

Big Boi - Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty

I actually didn't think this album would happen. Not because it seemed to be stuck in some sort of recording hell since 2007, in fact, the lack of news never really disturbed me, but because what I heard of it seemed unfeasibly good. When Shutterbugg was released as the album's first actual single earlier this year (there were a number of "false starts" of varying quality), it seemed like all three years of recording time were probably spent on that one song. Hell, that one beat, that one section of the beat where the vocoder stops and there's just this beautiful chord progression. It wasn't the best hip hop song I'd ever heard, or even the best produced, but listening to it I just got this sense of perfectionism that I knew must have reflected ridiculous amounts of work. The super-slick music video supported this further. I just could not believe there was an album coming that was going to be this good across the board.

Well, I was sort of right. Sir Lucious Left Foot does not have 15 tracks as good as Shutterbugg, but it does have a couple that are even better and the rest aren't half bad. Shine Blockers, now over a year old, still has a welcome place on the album, and ranks in as one of the most memorable tracks, creating a nice fusion between the two prevailing tones of the album - super smooth club-esque production and more traditional dirty south beats. Other production highlights include Andre 3000's crazy and fun work on "You Ain't Got No DJ", the unconventional but badass beats on "General Patton" and "Tangerine", the catchy flow of "Follow Us", and, of course, the jaw-dropping "Daddy Fat Sax". I cannot get over how insane "Daddy Fat Sax" is. I guess I should have been prepared for Big Boi to go all out on the track that he lent one of his favorite nicknames to, but it still is just unbelievably monstrous.

On the other side of the album are the lyrics. They aren't fantastic, but they're as good as they need to be: a clever line here or there, nice storytelling when necessary but not on the tier of old Outkast, some appreciated philosophizing but nothing too deep or insightful... all stuff we've sort of heard before. The most memorable hooks aren't built around great lines, though, Big Boi wisely chooses to substitute rapping hooks for sung or sample-based ones in most cases. In all, this is an incredibly solid and fun album for blasting in almost every occasion. It's exactly the album I hoped he'd make, and I feel like the next Outkast album (oh man it better be happening!) will be all the stronger for it, like Person Pitch and Merriweather Post Pavilion. Except that I think Noah is more similar to Andre and Avey more similar to Big Boi, but at this point I am on a pretty strong tangent so I'll end it here I guess. 8.5/10

Wavves - King of the Beach

I wasn't a huge fan of Wavves but I liked his first two albums enough to get really hyped up for this one, which I was told was on a totally different tier than his previous ones. So when it came out I jumped on it fast and was pretty blown away by the opening title track, and I kept that amazed state all the way through the first tracks, each time I was getting a bit skeptical or judgmental, something cool like the little chorus breakdown on "Super Soaker" would pull me right back in. I'm not sure when exactly the magic started wearing off, but I guess I just started to realize that the album wasn't going to do a whole lot more than it had already done. It's not like the album isn't diverse or that he wasn't trying new things right up until the very end, it's just that the first track surprised me on a way that all the rest couldn't. Given that initial burst of energy, all variations and expansions follow just a little too logically, and I spent most of the time waiting to be blown away again.

It's not like I wasn't still excited, though, as this is a very exciting album. And I don't think it was bad and tricked me into getting all excited, either, as this is a pretty well made piece of pop music. It's wonderfully noisy, the riffs are catchy and the lyrics are fun and deserve the bit of thought you can't help but give them. The imagery is especially appealing, from the awesome cover art to the very idea of the King of the Beach. What's really infectious is the enthusiasm, probably best shown in the shouted lyrics of stellar track "Post Acid" - "Understand, won't you understand, in my time of need, won't you understand that I'm just having fun with you?" Awesome teenage emotions yelled out to droney surfer rock daydream? Yeah, I'm totally down with that. 8.2/10

The Roots - How I Got Over

While Big Boi made the exact album I was hoping he would, and Wavves created something that lived up to some vague hype I threw kinda near it, The Roots were busy making something I could never have hoped to dream of. I had actually begun to give up on The Roots. Their albums never really drastically got any worse, but they had also stopped getting better, and between their steady income on that talk show and established reputation, I was almost convinced that they were content with riding out the rest of their careers as they had been. Well, this is how I got over that idea (ha ha LOL).

This is soul music. I had almost given up on that genre, too, but The Roots certainly hadn't. Instead of going to the well of more jazzy hip hop beats and socially active lyrics - and that well isn't dry by any stretch! - they chose to move in this direction that they had hinted at many times before. This the spirit of Marvin Gaye right here, infused in the soulful voice of Black Thought and the many guest stars and ?uestlove's hypnotizing beats. Listening to this album, it's hard not to picture the band playing so passionately - the seamless track progression really lends to this feeling of a "session" or "jam" album. The fusion with hip hop is equally seamless, as rapping verses start up almost unnoticed, intermingling flawlessly with the sung verses. The lyrics range from fairly standard street history fare to political commentary and clever little puns and punchlines on them all. Joanna Newsom's guest appearance stands out as being particularly unexpected and well executed, but every guest lends something to the track without diverting the flow of the album too strongly. The respect The Roots have for the supporting artists and, in the case of the remakes on the album, the original versions, is obvious, and what results is part loving tribute and part dynamic reinvention. The only questionable inclusion are some of the last tracks - Web 20/20 is just a bit too standard to fit in, and although I have a soft spot for the bonus track Hustla, I admit that it's pretty weird after the rest of the album. In all, if this is the direction the band is moving in now, I'm entirely happy. 9.0/10

well uh that's it, i had a few other albums and maybe some books to talk about but i am tired now goodnight i hope you like reading this awesome blog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!