CROSSED: BADLANDS #14 - #18

For those who read CROSSED you pretty much know what to expect. It's a post-apocalyptic zombie comic but without zombies in the traditional sense. The "Crossed" are the result of some unexplained plague that turns humans into degenerate murderers, perverts, psychopaths, and deviants. So while this series functions very much like a post-apocalyptic zombie story, the monsters the survivors are escaping from are actually a helluva lot worse than your garden variety zombie. In fact, this comic is so "out there" that I think readers turn to it to see what levels of depravity the creators can come up with. And, the good news is this series rarely disappoints. Unlike Robert Kirkman's THE WALKING DEAD, which has held a linear storyline for over 100 issues now, CROSSED tells it's story in shorter story arcs handled by different writers and artists. Unsurprisingly, Garth Ennis kicked this whole journey through hell on earth off several year ago, but the publisher continues to successfully pump this series out even after Ennis' initial run. I highly recommend it to those who like blood, guts, and depravity (in every sense of the word) in heavy doses. This latest story arc, written by David Hine, is one of the better ones thus far. It pretty much gives readers of CROSSED everything they look for and in a well-written and easy to follow story. BIG THUMBS UP on this one -- recommended for all sickos everywhere (like me)!

REVIVAL #1 - #5

After all the glowing reviews I read about this series I was expecting great things, but I was somewhat disappointed after reading the first five issues. It's an intriguing premise about a small town where, on one day ("Revival Day"), some of the town's residents died and came back to life. Now the government has quarantined the area so the townsfolk are left to figure out what's going on while shut off from the rest of the world. Oh, and the "revived" aren't your usual brain-chomping zombies -- they're more or less the same people they were before they died the first time. Or maybe they are dangerous? Sounds pretty cool, right? Unfortunately, this series meanders around, moves slow, and is even kind of difficult to follow. I found it to be far more work to get through than it was worth. In my opinion, this is a case of a good premise bogged down by sub-par writing. Oh well, at least now I know I can check this one off my "buy" list.

THE NEW DEADWARDIANS #1 - #8

I really enjoyed this series from Vertigo Comics. Good premise, well-executed from beginning to end -- a complete story! So many comic book series start promising but fizzle out as they go along showing the creators had no clue how to end their story. This is not one of those. My only nitpick on this series is that at times the art looked kinda wonky to me, but overall it worked. If you're looking for a good solid read then check this series out.

LAND OF HOPES AND DREAMS

Yes, by Bruce Springsteen. This song has been spiraling in my head quite a bit lately, most likely started because it was used by MLB as a theme song of sorts during the MLB playoffs and World Series. But I have also been listening to Springsteen's latest album of late because I'm seeing him in concert on November 30th (yay!). Honestly, it's always seemed the songs in my head are much more random and "out of nowhere" than they've been since I started keeping track here. Oh, and the reason I did not post over the weekend is I did not have songs in my head when I woke up on Saturday and Sunday mornings. I wonder if it's because I get more sleep on the weekends (usually) and don't wake up in such a panic as I do on the weekdays?

WARREN ZEVON!!!

This morning's song was "Excitable Boy" by Warren Zevon. Again, I had heard this on the radio within the past few days so it's not totally surprising it's circling around in my brain today. It made me think about Zevon's death and how bizarre it was that he knew he was dying but was able to go about his career for a couple of years, do farewell projects, and probably say his farewells to family, friends, and fans. While he certainly went too young, not many of us get such an opportunity to "wrap everything up" at the end of our lives. Yeah, I probably think about death too much.

BRUCE HORNSBY

The song in my head this morning was "Mandolin Rain" by Bruce Hornsby. Makes sense because heard this song on the radio when I was driving home from work last night. Fascinating, huh?

CHRISTMAS???

Happy Halloween! This morning the song I woke up with in my head was "It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas." Strange, but maybe I saw a Christmas commercial on TV or something that triggered it.