Category Archives: Utilitarian Review

Utilitarian Review 9/1/12

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On HU

Featured Archive Post: Me on Chris War, Oedipus, and Superman.

James Romberger on a new TwoMorrows book on underrated artist Marie Severin.

Bill Randall from the archive on the distorted image of Tatsumi.

Ryan Holmberg on abstract comics and modernism.

Derik Badman on poetry comics and/or comics poetry.

Me on Stanislaw Lem’s idiotic “Return From the Stars.”

Jones, One of the Jones Boys pisses on the Golden Age of Comics.

Caleb Das on Portia de Rossi and funny women on television.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At the Atlantic I argue that Cronenberg’s Cosmopolis doesn’t make the rich powerful enough.

At Splice I celebrate Julia Roberts finally getting a good role.

At Splice I plead with the GOP to deal with its coming demographic apocalypse.

 
Other Links

Craig Fischer on Kirby’s strengths and weaknesses.

Adrielle Mitchell on comics creators vs. comics academics.

Elizabeth Greenwood on Mirror, Mirror.

Darryl Ayo on Luke Pearson.

Jared Gardner on Joe Sacco.

Subashini Navaratnam on nice (and not nice) book reviews.

This really depresses me.
 
This Week’s Reading

I finished Chris Hedges’ “When Atheism Becomes Religion”; read Joseph Conrad’s short novel “The Shadow Line”, reread the first chapter of Giorgio Agamben’s “The Kingdom and the Glory: For a Theological Genealogy of Economy and Government” and confirmed that I really don’t particularly want to read the rest; read Stanislaw Lem’s “Return From the Stars” (which I reviewed this week); and am now reading Henry James’ “Portrait of a Lady,” which is awesome.
 

Shorter Utilitarian Review 8/23/12 — Vacation Edition

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News

I’m going to be on vacation and away from the internets starting tomorrow…thus this early and short Utilitarian Review. The blog will resume regular posting next Tuesday, August 28.
 
On HU

Featured Archive Post: Kinukitty on Archie’s hideous transformation.

Me on the mysterious black metal evil of Funeral Mist.

Me on how Philip K. Dick anticipated his own crappy remaking.

Jaime Green on how the play Clybourne Park is lying to you about race.

Me on the Dark Knight Rises and the pleasures of self-actualizing billionaires.

Vom Marlowe reviews the Glades.

Me on the small as life pleasures of Say Anything.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At Splice I talk about Obama and the audacity of cravenness.

Also at Splice I weigh in on negative book reviews vs. positive book reviews.
 
Other Links

Robert Stanley Martin on John Cheever’s “The Country Husband.

Jeff Spross on how DKR is not really conservative.

Sarah Kendzior on how academia exploits its adjuncts.

The Atlantic sneers satisfyingly at Joe Paterno.

Ben Saunders is curating a exhibit of Charles Schulz’s drawings at the University of Oregon.

Utilitarian Review 8/17/12

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On HU

Featured Archive Post: Bill Randall on YKK and Japanese reactionary politics.

Me on grief and Marley’s Dokebi Bride.

Darryl Ayo on rereading comics.

Ng Suat Tong on the low price of original art from Frank King’s Gasoline Alley.

Darryl Ayo on how Michael DeForge destroys his sketches.

Chris K on loving Kirby because of his flaws.

Kinukitty on 50 Shades of Grey and porn for your kindle.

Me on why comics have no value.

Robert Stanley Martin on Made in the USA and everything bad about Godard.

Me on Dara Birnbaum and Wonder Woman’s capitulation to capitalism.

And a downloadable mix of black metal, plus Donovan.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At the Chicago Reader I talk about how anti-slavery ideology fed imperialism.

At Splice I argue that there’s probably nothing especially damning in Romney’s tax returns, which is all the more reason to distrust him.

At Splice why Romney’s incompetent campaign makes me nervous.

At Splice I explain that no one likes Paul Ryan, but it’s not his fault.

At Splice I explain that Obama’s an arrogant asshole just like all other Presidential candidates.

 
Other Links

Craig Fischer on Kamandi.

James Romberger interviews Gabrielle Bell.

Jacob Canfield on putting together a college comics magazine.

Daniel Larison on why the GOP has no one to turn to with foreign policy experience.

Erica Friedman’s Okazu is 10 years old — a couple centuries in Internet years!
 
What I’ve Been Reading

Thought I’d add a section on what I read this last week, and encourage other folks to say what they’ve been reading in comments. If people like it, I’ll keep it; if nobody cares, I’ll drop it, but we’ll try it for a couple weeks anyway.

So; what I’ve been reading this week. I’m rereading Ai Yazawa’s Nana. I’m in the middle of Joseph Stiglitz’s The Price of Equality. I read for review Yuval Taylor and Jake Austen’s new book Darkest Africa: Black Minstrelsy From Slavery to Hip Hop. And Poked around in Lilli Carrés Nine Ways to Disappear.
 

Utilitarian Review 5/5/12

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News

We have transferred our archive from our blogspot address. There are still a few kinks in the system, but hopefully all will be worked out by the end of next week. So take a look around if you get a chance — and we’ll be featuring some older posts in various ways going forward.
 
On HU

Alex Buchet reviewed the new Avengers film, and discussed the creator’s rights issues it raised.

Most of this week was devoted to our roundtable on Wonder Woman #28. The roundtable index is here. Check it out for posts by Trina Robbins, me, my eight-year-old son, Jones One of the Jones Boys, Kelly Thompson, Sina, and Vom Marlowe.

Incidentally, you can read all of my reviews of the entire run of Marston/Peter Wonder Woman comics here.

In our Featured Archive Post, Sean Michael Robinson and Joy Delyria report on Emily Bronte’s relationship with her publisher and the unicorn in Wuthering Heights.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At Splice Today I review the banal slog that is Guy Delisle’s Jerusalem.

Other Links

Really funny letter by Adam Yauch. RIP.

Jason Michelitch with a great review of the sex and violence and nationalism in the Captain America movie.

Monika Bartyzel on the depressing sexism in the superhero genre. Also on how Marston/Peter were great.

A new James Romberger comics.

Shocking new data shows that schools do better if you give them more money.
 

Utilitarian Review 4/28/12

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On HU
 

Our Featured Archive Post this week was my discussion of Moto Hagio’s Half-Drawn.

I talk about the television show Bones’ stupid take on extreme metal.

Me on the crappy Azzarello/Chiang Wonder Woman.

Jeet Heer on why Watchmen isn’t so great.

I talk about the brutal boy’s love of Let Dai.

A NWOBHM download mix.

That incidentally finished up a week long Metal Apocalypse.

Domingos Isabelinho on John Porcellino.

Lindsey Bahr on Dystopian fashions in Hunger Games and Gattaca.

Kailyn Kent on the relationship between comics and galleries.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere
 
At the Chicago Reader, I sneer at a bunch of crappy DC and Marvel titles.

At Splice Today I argue that we won’t get decent health care until we’re willing to see it as an issue of basic equality.
 
For those of you who haven’t, you might check out my old Gay Utopia project. Contributions by Edie Fake, Lilli Carré, Ursula Le Guin, Matt Thorn, Michael Manning, Johnny Ryan, Eric Berlatsky, Julia Serano…and tons more.

Tucker does his thing, with Abhay and Jog guesting.

Chris Roberson on quitting DC over their treatment of Alan Moore and generally shitty creator’s rights practices. Righteous move by Timothy Hodler in getting the interview.
 

Utilitarian Review 2/4/12

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On HU

The week started out with Charles Reece and I in an epic Buffy vs. Twilight showdown.

I talked about noir and violence in the Steven Grant/Mike Zeck Punisher.

Richard Cook discussed the found footage horror genre.

I talked about comics and Fredric Jameson’s theories of the postmodern.

Andrei Molotiu discusses the cracked allure of Frank Miller’s Holy Terror.

I talked about the Marston/Peter Wonder Woman and replicating postmodern pleasures.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere
At the Atlantic I reviewed the surprisingly enjoyable new found footage superhero film Chronicle.
 
Other Links
Robert Stanley Martin reviews Lilli Carré’s Nine Ways to Disappear.

Chris Mautner on the Before Watchmen idiocy.
 

Utilitarian Review 1/28/12

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On HU

In our Featured Archive Post, the mysterious cough syrup celebrates the work of Jason Overby.

I sneer at the saccharine atrocity that is the new muppet movie.

Tom Gill on a classic Tsuge manga.

Tom follows up with a discussion of Tsuge and the zen concept of evaporation.

I argue that sci-fi and fantasy takes on race need to be more aware of history.

Qiana Whitted discusses African-American literature and African-American classics the comic.

Joy DeLyria on good and evil in Buffy, Battlestar Galactica, and sci-fi/fantasy.

I put up a black and white gospel download mix.

Ng Suat Tong on Olivier Schrauwen’s The Man Who Grew His Beard.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At Splice Today I review Tim Wise’s new book Dear White People and disagree with him about Ron Paul.

At his blog Bert Stabler and I chat about academic Marxists.

At Splice again I argue that Newt Gingrich is good for no one.
 
Other Links

Elias Hiebert has a nice reply to my discussion of Crumb and blackface.

Jason Thompson has a massive essay at io9 about the collapsing manga industry.

Qiana has a post at her new blog about blackness in EC monster comics.

Rand Paul on the idiocy of airport security.

Matthias Wievel at tcj.com on the new Fanta Carl Barks collection.

Best Music Writing is now taking nominations for its 2012 anthology.