80.
Title: [Gotham City Central]: Jokers and Madmen
Author: Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 19, 2016
Rating: ****

Th second volume of Gothic City Central is just as compelling a the first, carefully blending the genres of caped comics and police procedurals and ending up with a strong, character-driven book that develops carefully and with the drama and action appropriate to each, without jumping the shark (or nuking the fridge? What are we going with these days?). Well done, and a pleasure to read.

79.
Title: [Gotham City Central]: In the Line of Duty
Author: Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker
Genre: Comic
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Library Book
Date Completed: September 17, 2016
Rating: ****

Rucka and Brubaker's Gotham City Central occupies the mundane world of Batman's Gotham City, taking a step back from the extraordinary of masked antiheroes and villains to develop an understanding of a police force faced with both typical and atypical crime, and a compatriot they don't exactly like, but understand they must call in when the atypical runs amok. These are the men and women who serve as Gotham City detectives, investigating rape and murder and abductions, and who are faced with the terrifying reality of supervillains from time to time. Though Batman exists in the text, he's on the fringe of the narrative - a looming necessary evil that the squads resent, and try to limit, but nonetheless needs to be called in from time to time. Though almost entirely missing the iconic figure of The Bat, Gotham Central is far from dull, and works well to show readers that Gotham itself, and the people who inhabit this fictional New York, can be just as compelling, and are far more than fodder in the extravagant fight of masks and capes. There are triumphs and failures, prejudices and personal lives, and a negotiation between morals and expectations. The artwork is grim and compelling, avoiding flashy colors and elaborate scenes for the texture of a place you expect to find in reality.  A well done work, and a wonderful addition to the Batman canon.

Homework

57.
Title: [Catwoman: Volume 1]
Author: Ed Brubaker
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

58.
Title: [Catwoman: Volume 2]
Author: Ed Brubaker
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

59.
Title: [Sweet Life: Erotic Fantasies for Couples]
Author: Violet Blue
Genre: Erotica
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition:
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

60.
Title: [Batman: Nightfall Volume 1]
Author: "Various"
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

61. 
Title: [Hero]
Author: Perry Moore
Genre: YA Superhero
Medium: Paperback
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating: ***1/2

An interesting take on the assumed binary between superheroes and "othering" as applied to other marginalized groups; here, Thom has to "come out" as both a superhero and a gay man to his bigoted father.  The story has a great deal of potential, but the gendered implications of Thom's powers (both his initial, and then the shift at the conclusion) ruins its power. I can't really say more without spoiling, so there you have it.

62.
Title: [Ultra: Seven Days]
Author: Jonathan Luna
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating: *

I really wanted this to be a satire, but I don't think it's intended to be. Hideous art, and terrible characterization.

63.
Title: [Watchmen]
Author: Alan Moore
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

64.
Title: [Wanted]
Author: Mark Millar
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

65.
Title: [Ex Machina: The First Hundred Days]
Author: Ed Brubaker
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

66.
Title: [Daredevil: Born Again]
Author: Frank Miller
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

67.
Title: [Cage]
Author: Brian Azzarello
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

68.
Title: [Superman: Red Son]
Author: Mark Millar
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating: **

I am not a fan of The Boyscout, and making him Russian did not elicit any further sympathy.

69.
Title: [Batwoman: Elegy]
Author: Greg Rucka
Genre: Graphic Novel
Medium: Ebook
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

70.
Title: Rhetoric articles - approximately 1,500 pages
Author: Various
Genre: History
Medium: .PDF, various books
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:

71.
Title: Superhero and US Media articles - approximately 450 pages (so far)
Author: Various
Genre: History
Medium: .PDF, various books
Acquisition: Class Text
Date Completed: July 2014
Rating:


I'm missing plenty, I didn't log partial reads, and I'm low-balling the articles. I'm going to be so glad I did this, and I'm very ready for things to settle down ... just in time for another semester to begin.

Hello, grad school - I missed you.