2010 has been a rubbish year for just about everything except TV, and it's been a pretty damn great year (for once) for British TV! Here's my top 10 of 2010, the only criteria being that these are all shows that screened for the first time this year in the UK, so I might be a little bit behind the US shows.
(Incidently, if I was including all the programmes I saw for the first time this year number one would be The Wire, since I finally got the box set this year. People aren't exaggerating when they say it's the best show ever. Go watch it.)
10. Being Human - Series 2
Series 2 showed a drop in quality from the first series, but it was still must-see TV, and Russel Tovey is never less than heart-breaking as the werewolf trying desperately to lead a normal life and just getting werewolf Tourettes for his efforts. This series also introduced the wonderful Ivan (yay!) then killed him off (no!). If they'd let him live, this might have been higher on my list.
9. Nurse Jackie
This strange little beast - half-hour episodes but not a sitcom - has been overlooked a lot but is one of my hits of 2010. Edie Falco makes Jackie a real, flawed person, both hero and villain at the same time and the supporting characters were all fantastic. Jackie saying "fuck you" into the severed ear of a rapist before flushing it down a toilet was one of my TV moments of the year.
8. Ashes to Ashes - Series 3
A2A may be Life on Mars' jealous cousin but it finally hit its stride in its last series with the addition of the devilish Jim Keats and boosted roles for the supporting cast. But it only really makes this list for an ending that beat Lost to it - and did it better too. Although it did take me two viewings to get over my anger that - SPOILER - everyone was dead and to realise that it was actually the best ending they could have done.
7. Downton Abbey
This was a hell of a surprise - an ITV costume drama that was actually good. It was great fun, a soap for posh people, treading just the right line between class politics, romance and back-stabbing. Maggie Smith, Penelope Wilton and Hugh Bonneville flew the flag for classy acting but the real stars were a scheming gay footman and his bitter ladies maid sidekick.
6. Mad Men - Series 3 & 4
British viewers got two series' of Mad Men this year thanks to the BBC rushing out series 4 before the rights switch to Sky in 2011 (boo!). Series 3, in particular, was sublime, shaking up the entire format of the show, finally giving Don and Betty their big confrontation (and a divorce) then dodging expectations to pull a light-hearted heist caper out of the bag for the finale. I found series 4 slightly weaker, but Don's arc was fascinating and The Suitcase, a near two-hander between Don and Peggy, was beautiful television.
5. True Blood - Series 2
Some say it was better than series 1. I'm not sure I'd go that far, but it was damn good, mainly for the following reasons: Jason's adventures with the Fellowship of the Sun, the line "smite me, motherfucker!", Godric, Bon Temps unlikely A-Team, the adorable romance between Jessica and Hoyt, and of course, Eric. Lovely, bastard, naked Eric. Yum.
4. Glee
Had the quality not dipped in the second half of the first series, Glee would have been higher on my list. It's an absolute phenomenon and deservedly so. The mix of near-the-knuckle jokes, weird adults, high school cliches, soap opera plotting, song and dance and Sue Sylvester is spot on - when they get it right. I worry that it's getting too kiddie-friendly for its own good, but at the top of its game it's the best and most original US show of the year.
3. Misfits - Series 2
While Being Human's second series was a slight disappointment, Misfits managed to actually be a step up from its first. As filthy and funny as ever, it became darker and delved deeper into its own mythology without sacrificing tone or losing what we love about it. Simon became an unlikely sex symbol, Alisha became a good character and Robert Sheehan continues to be the best youg actor on TV. It also pulled off one hell of a game-changing cliffhanger. Nice work guys.
2. Sherlock
This makes the list almost on the strength of its first episode alone, which was the most perfect hour I saw on TV all year. Benedict Cumberbatch was magnetic as Sherlock and Martin Freeman surprised everyone. The two of them have been the best bit of casting all year - up there with Matt Smith as The Doctor - and the programme lives and dies on their chemistry. Mark Gatiss also somehow got away with giving himself the plum role of Mycroft. Luckily for him, he was good.
1. Doctor Who - Series 5
We all expected great things from Steven Moffat and he delivered on all fronts with a great series arc, wonderfully written episodes of his own (The Eleventh Hour and A Christmas Carol stand out), a great choice of guest writers (Richard Curtis and Simon Nye surprised with their episodes), and guest actors (especially Sophie Okonedo and Tony Curran). But the one thing we weren't expecting was for Matt Smith to be that damn good. Karen Gillan let the team down a little, but Alex Kingston is wonderful.
Friday 31 December 2010
Monday 27 December 2010
What Women Want (from comics)
I'm as feminist as the next girl. As a reader/viewer of fiction I get annoyed by the lack of decent female characters and as a writer I make sure to write them. But what does slightly annoy me is the idea producers/writers seem to have that girls only identify with or enjoy female characters. That idea often ends up creating tokenism, a feeling of "right, better throw a woman into this film or no girl is going to want to watch it. We'll make her hot but relatable". Die Hard has one woman in it - one who is really little more than motivation for the male lead - but it doesn't stop it from being one of my favourite movies.
Comics are consistantly guilty of believing that women are only interested in female characters. They have their 'girl friendly' titles. You can tell that Supergirl is aimed at women because the logo is (oh dear God) pink. Still, at least DC are making a vague effort to accept that girls read comics. Marvel, with the exception of the X-titles, have been ignoring half the population.
The issue of women reading comics has risen its head with a vengenace since Paul Levitz pissed off thousands of fangirls by saying "The fundamental dynamic of the superhero story has historically been more appealing to boys than girls". Maybe that's true, maybe "historically" comics were more appealing to boys than girls. Historically comics were only drawn with three colours and were considered only suitable for kids to read. The comic book medium is new, it's still evolving. It took decades for novels to be considered art. In the last 30 years comics have been coming into their own. It's not all about heroes clad in the colours of the American flag lifting tanks over their heads. The stories are more complex now, more a blend of action, drama and soap. The characters have become more than just costumes and superpowers. They're fleshed out and far more interesting. And that, in my opinion, is what women are interested in.
We don't need a pink logo on a cover to pick up a comic, we just want good stories and interesting characters. Don't get me wrong, I love DC women. I came to comics through the New Teen Titans run from the early 80s, so I was lucky in that I was given good female characters from the get-go, and since then I've become a fan of all the Birds of Prey, Scandal Savage, Power Girl, Catwoman, Zatanna, Renee Montoya (as The Question and as a cop), Amanda Waller, even Wonder Woman, sometimes. But the characters I've always been most fond of are the Batfamily, especially Batman and his Robins. Boys. Not because they're the coolest or most heroic, but because they are some of the most developed characters in the DCU. I've seen Dick Grayson go from Robin to Nightwing to Batman, just as I've seen Barbara Gordon go from Batgirl to 'cripple' to Oracle. Most characters remain static over decades of comics, but the Batfamily grow, age, develop, change, becoming ever more complex, layered and interesting. That is what I'm drawn too, regardless of the gender of a character.
Comics aren't just about explosions and well-drawn fight scenes anymore. They're changing organically, just like their best characters are, and it's time the Big Bosses accept (and start promoting) the fact that their product isn't just for 10 year old boys anymore. Without realising it, they've created something that, when it's written well, is positively girl-friendly. But hey, maybe I'm not a great sample of the female population. The cover that caught my eye this year was Bane riding a dinosaur. But who says women have to be into cute puppy dogs and make-up?
Comics are consistantly guilty of believing that women are only interested in female characters. They have their 'girl friendly' titles. You can tell that Supergirl is aimed at women because the logo is (oh dear God) pink. Still, at least DC are making a vague effort to accept that girls read comics. Marvel, with the exception of the X-titles, have been ignoring half the population.
The issue of women reading comics has risen its head with a vengenace since Paul Levitz pissed off thousands of fangirls by saying "The fundamental dynamic of the superhero story has historically been more appealing to boys than girls". Maybe that's true, maybe "historically" comics were more appealing to boys than girls. Historically comics were only drawn with three colours and were considered only suitable for kids to read. The comic book medium is new, it's still evolving. It took decades for novels to be considered art. In the last 30 years comics have been coming into their own. It's not all about heroes clad in the colours of the American flag lifting tanks over their heads. The stories are more complex now, more a blend of action, drama and soap. The characters have become more than just costumes and superpowers. They're fleshed out and far more interesting. And that, in my opinion, is what women are interested in.
We don't need a pink logo on a cover to pick up a comic, we just want good stories and interesting characters. Don't get me wrong, I love DC women. I came to comics through the New Teen Titans run from the early 80s, so I was lucky in that I was given good female characters from the get-go, and since then I've become a fan of all the Birds of Prey, Scandal Savage, Power Girl, Catwoman, Zatanna, Renee Montoya (as The Question and as a cop), Amanda Waller, even Wonder Woman, sometimes. But the characters I've always been most fond of are the Batfamily, especially Batman and his Robins. Boys. Not because they're the coolest or most heroic, but because they are some of the most developed characters in the DCU. I've seen Dick Grayson go from Robin to Nightwing to Batman, just as I've seen Barbara Gordon go from Batgirl to 'cripple' to Oracle. Most characters remain static over decades of comics, but the Batfamily grow, age, develop, change, becoming ever more complex, layered and interesting. That is what I'm drawn too, regardless of the gender of a character.
Comics aren't just about explosions and well-drawn fight scenes anymore. They're changing organically, just like their best characters are, and it's time the Big Bosses accept (and start promoting) the fact that their product isn't just for 10 year old boys anymore. Without realising it, they've created something that, when it's written well, is positively girl-friendly. But hey, maybe I'm not a great sample of the female population. The cover that caught my eye this year was Bane riding a dinosaur. But who says women have to be into cute puppy dogs and make-up?
Tuesday 21 December 2010
Those Glorious Freaks
So, another series of Misfis has been and gone, neatly sidestepping the Difficult Second Season Syndrome which beat Heroes into submission.
I've ranted before on this blog about how superior American TV (especially sci-fi) is to British TV. But Misfits is the one thing giving me hope at the moment. Not only is it great sci-fi, but it could only have been made in Britain. Torchwood's glossy visuals and sexy stars suggest that it wishes it was American (they must have blown all their candles out at once because that wish has come true), but Misfits wears its nationality with pride in every reference to Eastenders, every use of the word "wanker", every explicit sex scene that would never get past the US censors, every evil Jesus.
Misfits is set in a world miles away from the tea-drinking cricket-playing pleasant green countryside of England Through American Lenses. But anyone who lives in this fine ASBO-ridden country will tell you that Misfits is far closer to the truth than the too-grim Eastenders, or the too-cool Skins, or the too-twee interpretation offered in Ugly Betty's ill-advised 'London' jaunt. It just also happens to contain superheroes.
Misfits simply couldn't have been made in the US. Well, I guess it was made in the US. They called it Heroes. But I have a feeling Misfits will be the one I remember the longest. Where Heroes grew poe-faced, crawled up its own backside and introduced a new Nightmare Future every series, Misfits has kept its sense of humour and, most importantly, its sense of the ridiculous. In one episode, time-traveller Curtis received a glimpse into the future in which they are all costumed superheroes. Later in the series Curtis caught up with his own future, and learnt that they were actually just at a costume party. Misfits is forever sneaking up on superhero cliches, then giving them a wedgie and running away.
Howard Overman is a brilliant writer, one who snuck out of virtually nowhere and clobbered us over the head with a work close to genius. I think it's now safe to call him the New Steven Moffat (although Moffat never had an obsession with people fucking melons). It also helps that Misfits has landed one of the best young casts ever collected. Each of the main characters are potentially unlikable. Curits has thrown away his whole future and still not gained much humility, Alisha is a shamelessly manipulative slut, Kelly is a violent chav, Simon is an actual psychopath and Nathan is, in Curtis' oft-repeated description, a prick. And yet we love them all, even when Nathan is trying to get a sweet and innocent healer to touch his infected penis.
Lauren Socha and Iwan Rheon are great as Kelly and Simon - she manages to dig beneath the scraped-back hair and Argos jewellery to find real heart and strength while Rheon makes the creepily unpredictable Simon the show's best wild card. But the real star is Robert Sheehan, stealing the show every week as the frankly vile but always hilarious Nathan, while giving the character a depth not even Nathan himself is aware of.
My only worry going into series 3 after that brilliantly game-changing cliffhanger is that it might be their final series. After all, how long is Channel 4 going to keep hold of that cast and that writer? We may have to say goodbye to such gems as "Save me, Barry!" and "I tripled myself", and British TV will become a cold, dark place again.
I've ranted before on this blog about how superior American TV (especially sci-fi) is to British TV. But Misfits is the one thing giving me hope at the moment. Not only is it great sci-fi, but it could only have been made in Britain. Torchwood's glossy visuals and sexy stars suggest that it wishes it was American (they must have blown all their candles out at once because that wish has come true), but Misfits wears its nationality with pride in every reference to Eastenders, every use of the word "wanker", every explicit sex scene that would never get past the US censors, every evil Jesus.
Misfits is set in a world miles away from the tea-drinking cricket-playing pleasant green countryside of England Through American Lenses. But anyone who lives in this fine ASBO-ridden country will tell you that Misfits is far closer to the truth than the too-grim Eastenders, or the too-cool Skins, or the too-twee interpretation offered in Ugly Betty's ill-advised 'London' jaunt. It just also happens to contain superheroes.
Misfits simply couldn't have been made in the US. Well, I guess it was made in the US. They called it Heroes. But I have a feeling Misfits will be the one I remember the longest. Where Heroes grew poe-faced, crawled up its own backside and introduced a new Nightmare Future every series, Misfits has kept its sense of humour and, most importantly, its sense of the ridiculous. In one episode, time-traveller Curtis received a glimpse into the future in which they are all costumed superheroes. Later in the series Curtis caught up with his own future, and learnt that they were actually just at a costume party. Misfits is forever sneaking up on superhero cliches, then giving them a wedgie and running away.
Howard Overman is a brilliant writer, one who snuck out of virtually nowhere and clobbered us over the head with a work close to genius. I think it's now safe to call him the New Steven Moffat (although Moffat never had an obsession with people fucking melons). It also helps that Misfits has landed one of the best young casts ever collected. Each of the main characters are potentially unlikable. Curits has thrown away his whole future and still not gained much humility, Alisha is a shamelessly manipulative slut, Kelly is a violent chav, Simon is an actual psychopath and Nathan is, in Curtis' oft-repeated description, a prick. And yet we love them all, even when Nathan is trying to get a sweet and innocent healer to touch his infected penis.
Lauren Socha and Iwan Rheon are great as Kelly and Simon - she manages to dig beneath the scraped-back hair and Argos jewellery to find real heart and strength while Rheon makes the creepily unpredictable Simon the show's best wild card. But the real star is Robert Sheehan, stealing the show every week as the frankly vile but always hilarious Nathan, while giving the character a depth not even Nathan himself is aware of.
My only worry going into series 3 after that brilliantly game-changing cliffhanger is that it might be their final series. After all, how long is Channel 4 going to keep hold of that cast and that writer? We may have to say goodbye to such gems as "Save me, Barry!" and "I tripled myself", and British TV will become a cold, dark place again.
Friday 10 December 2010
10 Female Characters Who Kick Ass (Without Actually Kicking Ass)
I saw a list of 100 greatest film characters not long ago and was fairly appalled by the lack of female characters on the list. And the few girls who did appear were in the iconic action heroine mold - the likes of Ripley, The Bride, Pussy Galore and any number of Angelina Jolie ass-kickers. Sure, there were plenty of male action heroes on the list too, but the top 10 also included characters like Atticus Finch, Vito Corleone and Charles Foster Kane. There seemed to be few comparable women. Worst of all, while listing the Scarlett O'Hara's 'defining moment', they picked Rhett Butler kissing her - a moment in which she was utterly passive.
So, on goes my feminist hat, and here's my list, in no particular order, of the top 10 strong female characters in TV, literature and film who aren't action heroines. They're just women who know their own mind and whose lives do not revolve around their men. Sorry Bella Swan fans - you're going to be disappointed.
Peggy Olson (Mad Men)
Long before women could vote, Jane Austen created the wonderfully independent Elizabeth Bennet, a woman who only entertained the idea of marriage when she met a man who was her equal. You even get the impression that had Mr Darcy not been interested, she'd have gotten over it. Two centuries later, we got Bridget Jones - a woman obsessed with her weight and her love life. Hmm.
Lyra Silvertongue (His Dark Materials)
I refuse to use a picture of Dakota Blue Richards for this since the Lyra of the shoddy adaptation bears no resemblance to the loveable, three-dimensional character in Philip Pullman's brilliant books. Over three books she grows seamlessly from a naive, showboating child to a sensitive, mature young woman, and in a novel famous for it's religious viewpoints it's a shame that no-one ever points out that it's also a beautiful allegory for puberty.
Marion Ravenwood (Raiders of the Lost Arc)
She's a wife, a mother and so much more. In its early days the show bravely tackled the topic of a stay-at-home-Mum losing her identity and her marbles while stuck in the house looking after the kids, and as played by the brilliant Felicity Huffman, Lynette remains the only rounded character in a show increasingly populated by caricatures.
Rose is the ultimate everywoman, an ordinary girl who meets an amazing man and gets caught up in a crazy, magical life. But she stands out from the dozens of other companions because the Doctor needed her as much as she needed him. Alone, they were miserable and unfulfilled, but together - thanks to great writing and even better chemistry between the leads - they were, in the words of the Ninth Doctor, brilliant.
In a show populated by women who could literally kick your ass, President Roslin was the strongest, battling her own personal uncertainty, genocide, rebellion and eventually cancer with one of the strongest wills seen on screen. She's not perfect (she did try to rig an election) but perfect isn't believable. Laura Roslin is.
Lois Lane is the comic book equivalent of a Katharine Hepburn character. Ostensibly, she's Superman's girlfriend/wife, and yes, occassionally she does need her big strapping man to fly over and save her, but we can forgive her that. Because the rest of the time she's a tenacious Pulitzer-winner with more balls than her famous hubby, and all the various screen and print versions of the character have had the sense to make her Clark Kent's equal in every way. Except, y'know, all the superpowers.
I wanted a modern film heroine to round out this list (and to prove to myself that the last decent comedy role for a woman wasn't in the 1940s), and Ellen Page's Juno seemed to be the best choice. Juno is that rare thing, a teenage girl who's treated like a real, layered person and not a cliche. She's intelligent and she knows her own mind, the fact that she's 16 doesn't enter into it.
Have I missed any other strong female characters who don't have a gun in their hand or a black belt in kick boxing? Women who aren't just there as love interests or victims. Suggestions welcome!
So, on goes my feminist hat, and here's my list, in no particular order, of the top 10 strong female characters in TV, literature and film who aren't action heroines. They're just women who know their own mind and whose lives do not revolve around their men. Sorry Bella Swan fans - you're going to be disappointed.
Peggy Olson (Mad Men)
Joan gets the best outfits, but Peggy is the thinking woman's idol. She's clawed her way up the male-dominated ladder of the 1960s without ever compromising her principals. Writer Matthew Weiner and actress Elisabeth Moss have created a believably complex woman, torn between her passion for her work and her desire to conform (on some level) with what is expected of women.
Hildy Johnson (His Girl Friday)
Hildy is the newspaper reporter about to quit to get married, until her editor ex-husband pulls out all the stops to get her to stay. But it's not his manipulations that change her mind - the scent of a good story and her own passion for the job is what causes her to ditch the fiance. It's slightly depressing to compare this (from 1940) and any Katharine Hepburn roles to female characters in modern romantic comedy.
Elizabeth Bennet (Pride and Prejudice)
Long before women could vote, Jane Austen created the wonderfully independent Elizabeth Bennet, a woman who only entertained the idea of marriage when she met a man who was her equal. You even get the impression that had Mr Darcy not been interested, she'd have gotten over it. Two centuries later, we got Bridget Jones - a woman obsessed with her weight and her love life. Hmm.Lyra Silvertongue (His Dark Materials)
I refuse to use a picture of Dakota Blue Richards for this since the Lyra of the shoddy adaptation bears no resemblance to the loveable, three-dimensional character in Philip Pullman's brilliant books. Over three books she grows seamlessly from a naive, showboating child to a sensitive, mature young woman, and in a novel famous for it's religious viewpoints it's a shame that no-one ever points out that it's also a beautiful allegory for puberty.
Marion Ravenwood (Raiders of the Lost Arc)
Action movie producers take note - here's how you do a love interest. Marion isn't just tagging along because she fancies Indy, or because someone got her into this mess. She has her own motivation throughout and even when she's imperilled she's never weak. Just don't ever engage her in a drinking contest.
Lynette Scavo (Desperate Housewives)
She's a wife, a mother and so much more. In its early days the show bravely tackled the topic of a stay-at-home-Mum losing her identity and her marbles while stuck in the house looking after the kids, and as played by the brilliant Felicity Huffman, Lynette remains the only rounded character in a show increasingly populated by caricatures.
Rose Tyler (Doctor Who)
Rose is the ultimate everywoman, an ordinary girl who meets an amazing man and gets caught up in a crazy, magical life. But she stands out from the dozens of other companions because the Doctor needed her as much as she needed him. Alone, they were miserable and unfulfilled, but together - thanks to great writing and even better chemistry between the leads - they were, in the words of the Ninth Doctor, brilliant.President Laura Roslin (Battlestar Galactica)
In a show populated by women who could literally kick your ass, President Roslin was the strongest, battling her own personal uncertainty, genocide, rebellion and eventually cancer with one of the strongest wills seen on screen. She's not perfect (she did try to rig an election) but perfect isn't believable. Laura Roslin is.Lois Lane (DC comics)
Lois Lane is the comic book equivalent of a Katharine Hepburn character. Ostensibly, she's Superman's girlfriend/wife, and yes, occassionally she does need her big strapping man to fly over and save her, but we can forgive her that. Because the rest of the time she's a tenacious Pulitzer-winner with more balls than her famous hubby, and all the various screen and print versions of the character have had the sense to make her Clark Kent's equal in every way. Except, y'know, all the superpowers.Juno (Juno)
I wanted a modern film heroine to round out this list (and to prove to myself that the last decent comedy role for a woman wasn't in the 1940s), and Ellen Page's Juno seemed to be the best choice. Juno is that rare thing, a teenage girl who's treated like a real, layered person and not a cliche. She's intelligent and she knows her own mind, the fact that she's 16 doesn't enter into it.Have I missed any other strong female characters who don't have a gun in their hand or a black belt in kick boxing? Women who aren't just there as love interests or victims. Suggestions welcome!
Friday 3 December 2010
Coming Out
Okay, deep breath, confession time. I've always known I was different to other girls, but I did my best to fit in. I'd talk about boys and shoes and hope no-one noticed that my heart wasn't in it. But now, finally, I feel like I can embrace the real me, the person I've always been under all the social conventions.
I'm a comic book geek.
There, I said it. Wow. I've talked a lot on this blog about film and TV, but that's more acceptible in some way. They are to comic books what marijuana is to heroin. Buffy the Vampire Slayer was my gateway drug. Now I'm hooked on all things geeky (except gaming - I'm still a joypad-mashing hopeless case when it comes to games).
But comics have actually been an important part of my life since I was a child. My Dad was a comic collector before he had to sell all his comics to pay for nappies and baby food and other frivolities. So my destiny as a geek was sealed from birth (my brother has taken a different but similar path - he's into Manga and World of Warcraft). All of Dad's comics were gone by the time I was born, so he'd tell me the stories from memory instead. My bedtime tales were "once upon a time there was a Caped Crusader, and his name was Batman..." Dad was a DC buff, so I was too. We would stand in the kitchen for hours on end as he smoked out the back door, telling me the stories of Watchmen, of the Talia Al Ghul/Silver St Cloud/Batman love triangle, of Starfire arriving on Earth and snogging Robin to learn English.
Then there were the cartoons. Every day on one of my summer holidays I got up at 7am to watch X-Men and Batman: The Animated Series. Then, when I was old enough to know better, I was hooked on X-Men: Evolution, Batman of the Future, Teen Titans and Justice League (which, for my money, is the best of the bunch). Then there were Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Smallville, although, ever my father's daughter, I was never a Supes fan.
The first graphic novel I ever read was The Dark Knight Returns, the one comic Dad had managed to hold onto. Not a bad introduction to comics, but maybe a little heavy for a newbie. But it all really kicked off when I spotted a Watchmen graphic novel, long before the film made it cool again. I remembered Dad's stories, and decided to buy it for his birthday. I think I read it even before he did. It became a tradition. Every birthday and Christmas I buy Dad a graphic novel. Initially, I just got him ones that he reminisced fondly about. Then I nicked it and read it. V for Vendetta, Frank Miller's Daredevil run... Then I started developing my own tastes, and soon I'd even overtaken my father. The day I bought him a comic and handed it to him with the words "I read this the other day, I thought you'd like it" was probably the most proud of me he's ever been. That moment kicked my graduation day into the dirt.
Why is now the time for me to come clean about all of this? Because I've just booked tickets to my first ever Comic Con. In April, I'm off to Kapow!, the brand new British answer to the San Diego Comic Con (thanks Mark Millar!). I'm already excited and most of the line-up hasn't even been announced yet. For the first time I'll be in the company of my nerdy peers, and I'll probably realise how little I actually know about comics, compared to most other people who call themselves fanboys (and girls).
No-one is just one person. I'm about six or seven. The other mes get regular excursions: Professional Me goes to work four days a week, Writer Me never shuts up, Party Girl Me gets glammed up and dances crazily every weekend (ish), Intellectual Me loves the theatre and carries a book everywhere she goes, Lazy Me has her very own sofa arse-print, Friends and Family Me reminds me what's really important. But Geek Me has to sit quietly at the back of the class. It'll never be the loudest or most prominant aspect of me, not unless I achieve my secret secondary dream of being a comic book writer (I really want to write TV), but it's about time I stopped hiding it.
Besides, it makes me quirky and interesting, right?
I'm a comic book geek.
There, I said it. Wow. I've talked a lot on this blog about film and TV, but that's more acceptible in some way. They are to comic books what marijuana is to heroin. Buffy the Vampire Slayer was my gateway drug. Now I'm hooked on all things geeky (except gaming - I'm still a joypad-mashing hopeless case when it comes to games).
But comics have actually been an important part of my life since I was a child. My Dad was a comic collector before he had to sell all his comics to pay for nappies and baby food and other frivolities. So my destiny as a geek was sealed from birth (my brother has taken a different but similar path - he's into Manga and World of Warcraft). All of Dad's comics were gone by the time I was born, so he'd tell me the stories from memory instead. My bedtime tales were "once upon a time there was a Caped Crusader, and his name was Batman..." Dad was a DC buff, so I was too. We would stand in the kitchen for hours on end as he smoked out the back door, telling me the stories of Watchmen, of the Talia Al Ghul/Silver St Cloud/Batman love triangle, of Starfire arriving on Earth and snogging Robin to learn English.
Then there were the cartoons. Every day on one of my summer holidays I got up at 7am to watch X-Men and Batman: The Animated Series. Then, when I was old enough to know better, I was hooked on X-Men: Evolution, Batman of the Future, Teen Titans and Justice League (which, for my money, is the best of the bunch). Then there were Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and Smallville, although, ever my father's daughter, I was never a Supes fan.
The first graphic novel I ever read was The Dark Knight Returns, the one comic Dad had managed to hold onto. Not a bad introduction to comics, but maybe a little heavy for a newbie. But it all really kicked off when I spotted a Watchmen graphic novel, long before the film made it cool again. I remembered Dad's stories, and decided to buy it for his birthday. I think I read it even before he did. It became a tradition. Every birthday and Christmas I buy Dad a graphic novel. Initially, I just got him ones that he reminisced fondly about. Then I nicked it and read it. V for Vendetta, Frank Miller's Daredevil run... Then I started developing my own tastes, and soon I'd even overtaken my father. The day I bought him a comic and handed it to him with the words "I read this the other day, I thought you'd like it" was probably the most proud of me he's ever been. That moment kicked my graduation day into the dirt.
Why is now the time for me to come clean about all of this? Because I've just booked tickets to my first ever Comic Con. In April, I'm off to Kapow!, the brand new British answer to the San Diego Comic Con (thanks Mark Millar!). I'm already excited and most of the line-up hasn't even been announced yet. For the first time I'll be in the company of my nerdy peers, and I'll probably realise how little I actually know about comics, compared to most other people who call themselves fanboys (and girls).
No-one is just one person. I'm about six or seven. The other mes get regular excursions: Professional Me goes to work four days a week, Writer Me never shuts up, Party Girl Me gets glammed up and dances crazily every weekend (ish), Intellectual Me loves the theatre and carries a book everywhere she goes, Lazy Me has her very own sofa arse-print, Friends and Family Me reminds me what's really important. But Geek Me has to sit quietly at the back of the class. It'll never be the loudest or most prominant aspect of me, not unless I achieve my secret secondary dream of being a comic book writer (I really want to write TV), but it's about time I stopped hiding it.
Besides, it makes me quirky and interesting, right?
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