Review: Zodiac Starforce Volume 1: By the Power of Astra

Zodiac Starforce Volume 1: By the Power of Astra by Kevin Panetta
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this book! The characters were realistic and fun, and I appreciated the diversity of the cast. Think Rainbow Brite meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in a modern-day teenage girl power story, where the students text instead of writing each other notes. :) I needed a fun fantasy story, and this volume gave me just that. It's another win for Dark Horse Comics, and I recommend it to anyone who loves comics and YA stories with empowered female protagonists. I already look forward to the next volume, as the epilogue has a nice twist to it. :)

View all my reviews

Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Old Demons

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Old Demons by Christos Gage
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this volume, and I think it goes deeper than some of the previous ones in terms of thematic content. Buffy and her friends have to fight a new Big Bad, the demon Archaeus, whose name literally denotes that he is old. The most dangerous thing about Archaeus is that he has a hold in Druscilla, Spike, and Angel alike. The Scoobies and friends have to fight old demons, both literally and figuratively. Angel's back in town to help, and he and Spike have to put their differences aside for the good of the cause. Also, Giles and the younger Scoobies alike have to deal with the good and bad consequences of getting older. Xander and Buffy both learn to better cope with their romantic relationship issues that reflect on getting hurt in the past. They truly are making the leap from adolescence to young adulthood, and as someone who is on the later end of my young adulthood journey, I can relate to some of what they are going through. Since I teach younger adolescents, I can't help but chuckle at middle school aged Giles's young boy struggles. The whole gang is growing up, in more ways than one, and it's entertaining to me to see how their interactions change with one another as a result.

View all my reviews

Review: Angel and Faith Season 10 Volume 5

Angel and Faith Season 10 Volume 5 by Various
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



View all my reviews

Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Love Dares You

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Love Dares You by Christos Gage
My rating: 4 of 5 stars



View all my reviews

Review: Angel & Faith: A Little More Than Kin

Angel & Faith: A Little More Than Kin by Victor Gischler
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

For those who are also a fan of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics, this volume crosses over nicely with Season 10 Volume 4 of that series. Angel gets an SOS signal from his friends in California and has to go and fight a demon. Faith and Fred, the faithful women of Angel's life, therefore have to hold the fort in magic town, England. Their duties take them to an undercover assignment trying to find and stop vampires at a private high school, with Faith as a Gym Teacher (Those Who Can't Teach Teach Gym is an issue title) and Fred as a lunch lady. As someone who teaches at a private K12 school, I appreciated the prep school drama and the humorous aspects of school life, along with the frightening aspects of the adolescent years. The reader also gets a glimpse of what is happening to Buffy, Spike, Willow, and friends back in California, which is fun. Fred starts to get stronger in this issue and better able to fight her Illyria demons, which is encouraging to see.

View all my reviews

Review: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: I Wish

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: I Wish by Christos Gage
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As a whole, I think Season 10 of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer has an edge to it that the others haven't had. I've always enjoyed the art work, but up to this point, I have felt that the writing, while enjoyable, fell a little bit short of the beloved television show. However, I haven't felt that way about the Season 10 comics. I think adding Nicholas Brendon to the writing team was a good move, as I feel that the humor from the television series has come back to life. Also, he really knows Xander and his relationships with the characters, and that comes through in the writing. Overall, I can't wait to keep reading these comics. They are a true delight. I'm even more excited knowing that Nicholas Brendon will be at DragonCon this year.

View all my reviews

Review: Dubliners

Dubliners by James Joyce
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was the perfect book for me to read soon after my sojourn to Dublin, Ireland, for a conference presentation combined with a mother-daughter vacation with my mom. I learned a lot about Irish culture, religion, and politics both from watching the play Ulysses at The Abbey Theatre and from reading these short stories. Believe it or not, I had not read or experienced Joyce's work in the past. But now, I am excited to read A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, which I know will be more of a challenge, but worthwhile, as I'll read it over a longer span of time. First of all, Ireland is very much worth experiencing as a country and as a culture. The people were very nice, and the country itself is beautiful. 99% of the people there speak English, and only 36% speak Irish, although many school districts are now requiring students to learn Irish. Between reading Joyce and Louise O'Neill this spring and summer, I feel that I have made a dent in Irish literature, although I realize there's so much more to experience. Dubliners is worth a read right now because it was written during an era of nationalism in Ireland, which is, I believe, what we are currently experiencing in the US.

View all my reviews