The Man who Never was

The Book of Five Rings: A Graphic Novel by Miyamoto Musashi My rating: 3 of 5 stars A good graphic novel adaptation of the simple yet informative treatise by Miyamoto Musashi. It was not as kinetic as you'd expect; but the serene almost Zen like artwork meshes well with the spiritual nature of Musashi's work, especially highlighting the wizened sage like austerity he seemed to imbibe during his twilight years. This would be a good companion piece for those who've just finished reading the original text, to reinforce its teachings. View all my reviews

Fragments of Horror by Junji Ito My rating: 4 of 5 stars View all my reviews Junji Ito is to Graphical body Horror, what Lovecraft was to cosmic existential horror.  His stories are anthologies, often set in the Japanese countryside, where mysterious things are afoot, and just around the corner one might encounter the paranormal, that can, for no particular reason latch on to you, ruin your life, and oftentimes end up taking it as well.  They often feature a coterie of everyday people, who are afflicted with, or experience the horrors on the other side of the veil. Where malicious, whimsical and mostly evil incarnate entities toy with you for their own perverted amusement. And there is little you can do to combat them.  The characters of Junji Ito rarely try to fight against their oppressors; you won't find wooden stake wielding, silver bullet shooting monster hunters. Just what one would expect if you were to encounter the monster that goes bump in the night. You...

The Young Woman and the Sea by Catherine Meurisse My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rating 3 out of 5 | Grade C+ Lot's of Pwetty pictures. I've always admired the nation of Japan. For its beautiful culture, rich & storied history, mythology, cuisine, for anime & nerd culture, and it's unique natural landscapes. The sight of Mount Fuji rising from the horizon as if rising to the sky, or Hokusai's violent and thought inducing depiction of Kanagawa off the wave, or was it the mist filled fantasy-esque opening to Tom Cruise's 'The Last Samurai', it's a land which has captured my imagination. And someday I hope to get acquainted with her intimately. So, it was with intrigue that I delved into The Young Woman & the Sea by Catherine Meurisse. It was a mixed bag. On one hand I don't feel that the author, while rambling on about a lot of things, wasn't really able to connect to that vein of the culture. Nor was sh...