The Songs of Johnny Go

You've read volumes 1 and 2 before, yes?

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eliyes.livejournal.com

Nope! I've been thinking of picking them up, but I can never find 1. Just 2. (I seem to have a gift for that sort of thing.) But if 3 is made of win, then perhaps I shall order 1.

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Oh gracious! Yes, find 1 and 2. I imagine you can probably read 3 all right, but I'm only a few pages in at this point. Find 1 if you can. Also, for the hardcore lit geek, the annotations, I'm told, are awesome:

http://www.geocities.com/athens/olympus/7160/annos.html

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eliyes.livejournal.com

Ooooh, annotations. :D

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Hi--I've got annotations to the Dossier here (http://www.shsu.edu/~lib_jjn/dossier.html).

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What the... every so often in my LJ, I mention some writer or artist, and bam! They leave a note on my LJ regarding something I wrote about them! Do you people have radar or something? ;)

Seriously, that's awesome, I'm very glad to have it, but will try to resist the urge to check it out until I've read the book at least once. I'm sure I'll give in soon enough, though.

Excellent work, man.

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There's a memo passed around. :-)

Thanks! Enjoy the annotations, and if you see any I missed, let me know about them.

And, y'know, if you feel so inclined, buy the book (http://www.amazon.com/Impossible-Territories-Unofficial-Companion-Extraordinary/dp/1932265244/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195080884&sr=8-1) next July. :-)

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Say, I dunno if you're even gonna read this, but I just finished the book, and...

... well, was it just my copy, or are the 3D effects off after the inital two-page spread? You know how the 3D effects there are red and green? Well after the initial two-page spread, the effects become red and the more traditional blue, thus making the 3D glasses unable to completely work.

As such, effects like the portals or Yuggoth's emissary don't work. The blue 3D lines don't vanish through the green lens, obviously. Was this the case with all other copies as well? It wasn't intended to be this way, right?

Does this make sense? Trying to describe 3D effects is odd.

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Hmm. The 3D effects work on my copy...but my eyes aren't great, and so I can't really say that 3D effects "work" all that well on me. (One of the reasons that my annotations for the 3D portion are so skimpy is that I literally can't tell what I'm looking at in the 3D section).

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Yeah, I'm still kinda like "wait, what the hell happened in my brain?" from the end there.

So, for the portals where there are two images in one, when you blink to see the one image, the other one vanishes completely? There are no overlapping images?

(if that makes any sense; eloquence defies me here)

I checked out another copy, and yeah, still blue rather than green. Wonder if anyone else has noticed? Ah well, if nothing else, I'll just have to track down old-fashioned red-and-blue glasses from somewhere.

I've started using your annotations, and I am much beholden to you. Great work as always. I'll definitely be buying a copy.

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Hmm. I'll have to ask Kevin O'Neill about the 3D stuff.

Glad you're enjoying my work!

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Hey, awesome, although he might not know, as I don't believe the 3D effects were his call. But if you hear anything, please do let me know, I'd greatly appreciate it. I'd hate to have to buy another printing or something.

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skalja.livejournal.com

I loved that film as a kid, even though it was way, way beyond me. And my brother, who loved it even more...

.......

--!

Thank you, you just gave me a BRILLIANT idea for a Christmas present for him. You rock.

(And of course I'll be checking out LoEG III when I can, but heck, you knew that already.)

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... as a kid? How the heck old are you??

Also, another perfect gift for the League fan is Jess Nevins (

ratmmjess, apparently!) book of annotations.

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skalja.livejournal.com

My parents had odd ideas about what constituted suitable children's entertainment. We also loved Shoulder Arms. XD

-- Wait, League fan? I'm talking about The Great Dictator, my dear sir.

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Oh grief, I thought you meant the LoEG (or LXG, ugh) movie and books, not THE GREAT DICTATOR. Thus my confusion.

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skalja.livejournal.com

Now that would be a bizarre childhood indeed.

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ortugatay.livejournal.com

Oh yay!
Boothe just turned me on to Extraordinary Gentlemen and I'm almost through volume 2. Now I'll have even more to read!

Also, I'm looking for more graphic novels that would strike my fancy. Knowing me as you do, and also knowing that I'm a fan of the Gaiman Sandman series, Blankets, Peanuts, and League of Extraordinary Gentlemen...what might be good for me to look into next?

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Ooo, yay, I get to play Comics Pimp again! :)

Okay, let's start smallish, and try not to overwhelm you. Here are three or four things that come to mind.

Alan Moore's SWAMP THING may sound uninteresting, but it's very much worth reading for two reasons: 1.) It's Alan Moore, and 2.) SANDMAN was it's spin-off.

SANDMAN would not have been possible were it not for Moore and SWAMP THING. Many of the characters and concepts are introduced in these pages, which start of strong, and get only better through each volume.

Like, you know Matthew the Raven? He's one of the main characters in SWAMP THING... back when he was the living human Matthew Cable.

Also, Alan Moore's TOP TEN is pure comic joy. Fun, great characters, packed with "easter egg" jokes in every panel, and surprisingly moving when you least expect it. There are three volumes of Moore's TOP TEN books, plus the SMAX spin-off, which is not essential reading, but fun anyway.

Finally, I can see you enjoying the two best superhero books out there in the filled-with-lame-superhero-books market: ALL-STAR SUPERMAN and INVINCIBLE.

ALL-STAR SUPERMAN is a throwback to the Superman stories of the 50's, filled with strange, absurd, and wondrous characters and events, but told in a modern sensibility. It's elegant in its simplicity, and a pure joy to read each and every issue, even if you've never cared for Superman as a character.

INVINCIBLE starts off as your average teenager-gets-superpowers story. If you just read the first seven issues (which is to say, just the first collection), you'd rightly feel it's a very "meh" book. Nice and light, but no reason to read on.

And then issue eight or so comes out.

Just ask Kevin. He started reading it out of sheer boredom, and now he's like an addict to SuperCrack.

Those are my suggestions for now, just off the top of my head! I'll keep a-thinkin', and let me know if you're interested in anything else!

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*rejoices*

*rejoices*

*rejoices*

... *rejoices one more time to make it an even number*

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It warrants it and more.

It amazes me that there are some people out there who just don't see the big deal about Alan Moore.

Then again, I'm one of only two people in the entire world who does simply not understand the appeal of SCOTT PILGRIM, volume four of which just came in as well. I don't quite know what to do when excited giggly fans snatch it up with foamed mouths and ask, "HOW AWESOME IS IT?!?!"

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I love Alan Moore. Admittedly, I find him a touch heavy-handed on occasion, but nothing unforgivable what with his awesome storytelling genius and all.

Also admittedly, I'm one of those people who loves Scott Pilgrim. Which appeals to me, I think, because I'm a sort-of-indieish twentysomething Canadian, and it's neat to see a book that captures the culture and language of "my" demographic so well.

(Plus the bad guys turn into coins when they're defeated, which is just fun. If only all my problems turned into coins...)

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Yeah, even when he's heavy-handed and weak, he's usually entertaining and a damn good storyteller.

And of COURSE you like SP. Everyone likes it! I don't get it! GAH! Maybe it's my general unease with indie culture? I dunno. But no, it has to be more than that!

I hate when there's something that everyone I know adores but I just don't feel anything for at all, except maybe mild annoyance (which could solely be due to everyone but seemingly be adoring it). It's like THE PRESTIGE all over again.

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Haha, no, I know what you mean. I felt the same way when Tough Love came out and started getting all that praise for being a graphic novel geared towards young queers - I think it's crap, honestly, but no one seems to agree with me!

Drives me nuts, too. And it does make it worse that everyone else seems to be so happy-happy about it. But ehn, what can you do.

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Yeah. Bah. Everyone should be miserable bastards like me!

*retreats to my Latverian castle, swooshing my cape dramatically behind me*

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A brief addendum, one day later:

Can't get the new League of Extraordinary Gentlemen trade in Canada.

I shake my fist at the heavens. Also at DC, whose little bitchfest with Alan Moore is apparently to blame for this.

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Like I said above, maybe you could try eBay or the American amazon.com? The exchange rate isn't too terribly horrible, not compared for my overseas friends.

Also, Moore seems to be involved in a number of bitchfests, far more than your average comic writer, and the only common factor is Alan Moore. Kinda makes me wonder, y'know?

From:

kosher-jenny.livejournal.com

FUCKING DO WANT

...what a rotten time to be broke :'(

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Yeah, and it's thirty smackers, to boot! Yeeeelll!

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lairdofdarkness.livejournal.com

The suckiest suck suck thing about this book?
I cannot get it over here!!!
Moore falling out with Dc (or more likely Warners and everything associated with it) means that it will never get over to blighty (possibly)
Bit like Lost Girls I suppose, although that should make it here next year sometime (allegedly).
So I am a wee bit green with envy of you.

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Yes, well, we still don't have SPACED (but are getting an American remake, from which Edgar Wright and company get neither involvement nor money).

And I've heard seriously mixed about LOST GIRLS, discouraging me from the mighty price tag.

Try ebay, can you not? I bet you could get LoEG III there, or possibly via the American amazon.com, if one can order from other countries' sites (as I wondered when I was considering buying Harry Potter on CD, read by Stephen Fry).

From:

lairdofdarkness.livejournal.com

A SPACED remake!!!!!!!!!
Oh no, thats not good. Seriously, it really isnt. I sincerely hope you have seen the originals in some form? I think they would be right up your street.

I think with Lost Girls its more the fact that Moore is trying something I didnt expect (though why I dont expect the Magician from Northampton to write erotica using classic literary characyers I dont know).
I have been on the Amazon.com site, with the dollar being so weak against the pound (sorry but it is!)I am sorely tempted. Just waiting to hear if any other brits have had problems getting it from there, what with the DC warning that went out a while ago.
Let me know what you think once you've finished it.

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