Tag Archives: Brian Michael Bendis

I’ve been struggling with a theme for this week. I think it’s because I’m after that initial stage of transition – where everything begins again. I think the stage after you’ve started something new is a comfort stage. So, that seems like a good area to place my comic-reading for …

There are terrible things that happen in the world but there are also terrible people who make these things happen. It’s the terrible people we should concern ourselves more. When events occur by themselves, there is no-one to blame. But people who set these events in motion need to concern …

Milestones are important in a person’s life. They are the historical markers that measure the passage of our lives, broken up into episodic achievements. We measure our lives by these achievements: the first kiss, the first job, whatever; these things help to shape our lives by punctuated moments of celebration …

Happy New Year and welcome back! This week, it’s the call of responsibility that governs this week’s theme in the comic lists. After all, it’s been a restful and relaxing holiday break but like the rest of the western world is realizing, the holidays are over and it’s time to …

The first day of school is a day of anxiety and discomfort; new routines, names, faces, a cessation of an extra couple hours of sleep in the morning and the feeling that the person in that desk sitting across from you doesn’t like you. … now imagine how the students …

As comic characters grow older, it can be very challenging to keep their stories fresh. Especially with flagship characters like Spider-man, Superman and the like. I’m interested in looking at this this week. After all, SDCC looms around the corner and it’s a time of celebrating the work of creators …

Hope keeps us going, but it’s a double-edged sword. While the promise of success is a tantalizing reason, it’s also frustrating because what we want, still isn’t guaranteed. I guess that’s a ‘glass-is-half-empty” approach but that’s what I’m working with this week as we go through the list of comic …

You know, I’ve always been fascinated by betrayal. Okay – it’s not like I’m actively looking to screw someone over, but the whole concept of disavowing a friend, stabbing an acquaintance in the back or even just talking crap about someone in order to minimalize their position and maximize yours …

You ever worry about taking the next step? I do. Some times the next stage of your career, your hobby, your whatever is rationally the obvious thing to do. Yet there are issues like: moving out of your comfort zone, the amount of effort involved, or even just downright anxiety …

You know, those closest to you can let you down. It’s sad, it’s sometimes painful but it’s also inevitable. Friends, to many folks’ surprise can be jerks. Remember Kitty Pryde’s famous line? That’s a universal experience that writers draw upon. It makes for the most poignant of dramas and the …

It’s important to know who’s there for you, and likewise, to let those people in your lives that you are there for them. Relationships are not only clearly important in life, but they are key in writing a successful comic. The chemistry between characters is of paramount importance in order …

I hate having to do things I have to do. But it’s a necessary part of life, and let’s face it, we all have tasks that require us to grit our teeth, roll up our sleeves and just get ‘em done. We see that sense of the imperative in comics, …

I have a firmly established tradition of hating that non-essential, utterly insignificant placeholder of a day called Tuesday. Save me, comics. For instance, yesterday’s morning consisted of discovering that the water bottle in my laptop bag was unsecured and flooded it along with my students’ marked work. We had a …

There are always moments in time you wish you could go back and change. It’s such a universal constant of the human condition and it makes for really good stories. This is a handy, because that’s exactly the theme for this week’s review of comic titles. Huh … who would …

You ever have one of those weeks when you just can’t stop? Determination, stubbornness, the sense of never giving up – whatever it is that fuels me, I must have gotten it from somewhere. It’s a list with that theme this this week, and it’s a great one. Lots to …