Media Roundup: Mostly Superheroes
Apr. 25th, 2026 10:36 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
forestofgloryA few days ago I did something in the middle of the night that agitated my foot and its been more painful ever since. I've been spending even more time sitting and reading as result. At least the cats are happy. Anyways have some thoughts on my recent reading:
The Prettiest Star written by Jadzia Axelrod, art by Jess Taylor—I picked this up because it's about an alien princess who is disguised as a human teen boy. I was hoping it would hit some crossdressing girl media troupes. However the disguise stuff was pretty much just a straightforward metaphor for trans-ness. It was a cute story but it wasn't the thing that I hoped it would be. I did appreciate that the town it took place in was called Ozma Gap though
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girlvol 8-12 by Ryan North, Erica Henderson, Derek Charm et al— These are still very fun! I love Doreen and Nancy’s friendship a lot.
I appreciate that this references the myth of Redemptive violence and all but I don't really think it's making a coherent moral point or like succeeding in refuting the myth here. (I’m not sure that you can do that and be a superhero story – its a genre that’s built on punching people being cool)
Mostly my read through of Squirrel Girl has been technically a re-read though it was all long enough ago that I didn’t remember much, but these last couple of volumes I hadn’t gotten to. It’s nice to have finished it all now.
The Mystery of the Meanest Teacher: A Johnny Constantine Graphic Novel by Ryan North and Derek Charm—One of the things I checked out when I was wondering what Ryan North was up to recently. John Constantine is a bitter British magician who shows up in fics occasionally to help with inadvisable magic, but I don't really know much about him. This is a graphic novel about him as a kid. I can’t really speak to how this related to his other comic appearances but it's very cute and fun as its own thing.
Batman: Bruce Wayne, Murderer/Fugitive by Greg Rucka et al —The next big bat family crossover after No Man’s Land. Bruce Wayne is accused of murder, which of course creates a lot of problems. I really liked some parts of this (people teaming up to solve a mystery!) and really didn’t like other bits (The prison sequences made me want to yell at someone about prisoners deserving human rights, and what even was going on with Azrael?)
The Prettiest Star written by Jadzia Axelrod, art by Jess Taylor—I picked this up because it's about an alien princess who is disguised as a human teen boy. I was hoping it would hit some crossdressing girl media troupes. However the disguise stuff was pretty much just a straightforward metaphor for trans-ness. It was a cute story but it wasn't the thing that I hoped it would be. I did appreciate that the town it took place in was called Ozma Gap though
The Unbeatable Squirrel Girlvol 8-12 by Ryan North, Erica Henderson, Derek Charm et al— These are still very fun! I love Doreen and Nancy’s friendship a lot.
I appreciate that this references the myth of Redemptive violence and all but I don't really think it's making a coherent moral point or like succeeding in refuting the myth here. (I’m not sure that you can do that and be a superhero story – its a genre that’s built on punching people being cool)
Mostly my read through of Squirrel Girl has been technically a re-read though it was all long enough ago that I didn’t remember much, but these last couple of volumes I hadn’t gotten to. It’s nice to have finished it all now.
The Mystery of the Meanest Teacher: A Johnny Constantine Graphic Novel by Ryan North and Derek Charm—One of the things I checked out when I was wondering what Ryan North was up to recently. John Constantine is a bitter British magician who shows up in fics occasionally to help with inadvisable magic, but I don't really know much about him. This is a graphic novel about him as a kid. I can’t really speak to how this related to his other comic appearances but it's very cute and fun as its own thing.
Batman: Bruce Wayne, Murderer/Fugitive by Greg Rucka et al —The next big bat family crossover after No Man’s Land. Bruce Wayne is accused of murder, which of course creates a lot of problems. I really liked some parts of this (people teaming up to solve a mystery!) and really didn’t like other bits (The prison sequences made me want to yell at someone about prisoners deserving human rights, and what even was going on with Azrael?)
