'Here, in your .... Fortress of Solitude'

So, first up, the title. If you hadn't guessed, it's a line from Superman: the Movie (as spoken by the recording of Jor-El) which I thought was somewhat fitting given the situation the world currently finds itself in.

Like practically everyone else in the world, I am now working from home and, in essence, self-isolating from the worldwide pandemic of the Coronavirus. As this is being written, I'm on day four of my own solitude and am finding it a bit of a struggle. My routine is totally out of whack and things like lunch breaks and bus trips to work, which I totally took for granted, are now no more, meaning that comic reading has been majorly scaled back as I reprioritise my time to ensure almost all of it goes to caring for my family.

I'll confess that it's a tough choice to make, despite my knowledge that my wife and kids are the most important thing to me. However, a small part of me remembers that comics are a big part of my life, whether reading them or writing about them. Therefore, the knowledge that may not be writing even a fraction of what I normally do in the next few months remains ever present in my mind and a little disconcerting.

That said, it doesn't change the fact than something's are more important in life.

So, what am I saying here? Well, essentially, I guess I'm trying to justify the fact that I may not be around for a while. With my time being rearranged to cover more important priorities, I realize I will have to scale back both the reviews for Pipedream as well as the blog posts and I just don't know if I have the time (bizarrely). Meanwhile, all of my other plans are on hold until I can better balance the home/work/comic life under this new dynamic (I mean, to give some insight, this post took two days to write at whatever five minute periods I could squirrel away).

Of course, on Saturday evening I cleared through two issues of Wonder Woman and so it does mean that there is hope and that I'm just being overly cautious.

That said, only time will tell.

Reading recommendations in a self-insulated life

What I was originally going to write, with the vast majority of the world now locked up in their own homes, many of whom now lacking a stable income, I thought I'd make some great reading suggestions to pass the time which cost nothing to check out.

These recommendations are:

Breaks (Malin Ryden/Emma Vieceli) - https://tapas.io/series/BREAKS

Scurry (Mac Smith) - https://www.scurrycomic.com/

Vanguard (Dan Butcher) - https://vanguardcomic.com/

Curia Regis - https://www.whatido.co.uk/

The Sorrowful Life of Putto - http://www.theputto.com/comic/

Eimurian Tales (Mark Penman) - http://www.eimuriantales.co.uk/

Ghost of the Gulag - https://www.ghostofthegulag.com/

The Pale - http://thepalecomic.com/comics/first

All of the above have reviews that I wrote for Pipedream Comics which can be checked out to give some insight (check out the page with all my reviews to find them).

The last suggestion is the Comichaus App which, while not a webcomic, is essentially Netflix for comics. Not only that but Comichaus offer a two week free trial as well as an additional free month to help combat COVID-19 (which is also the code). - https://t.co/5OEudbbhAk

What I read - March 2020 (Week 3)

So, due to the changes to my lifestyle (as with all of us, my reading pile was significantly reduced. However, when you think about it, a 13 issue trade isn't actually a bad inclusion.

Anyway  here are the comics for March's third week.

London Horror Comic #8 - Another review for Pipedream Comics, I have to confess that London Horror Comic #8 was a really great read, far better than I was expecting it to be (based on my memory of the first 3 issues from long ago). The first story has some great humour while the second has a real horror vibe laced into it. I thought the characters and dialogue are really well written as well. Meanwhile, the artwork for the big stories is gorgeous, particularly for the second story, with each style looking unique but really bringing the tone of their respective story to life. The last story meanwhile felt like a fun little add on in both story and art. Given it's an anthology, I think this is as much a perfect jump on for people as any issue and something I'd recommend people check out past issues for similar magic, as I'm pretty sure I'm going to.

Wonder Woman: The Rebirth Deluxe Edition Book 1 - A title I've had in my Comixology library for quite some time, Wonder Woman's first collected edition contains Greg Rucka's Lies and Truth arcs which sees Diana attempt to locate her home in the first arc while the second flashbacks to show her leaving it. Now, I'm a big fan of Greg Rucka (in case, via prior posts, that wasn't obvious) but I think I put this series on too much of a pedestal and gave it a wide berth in case it didn't live up to my expectations. This was certainly the case with the Rebirth special and the first issue proper, where I struggling to feel invested or entertained. However, upon beginning the second issue proper and the first of the Truth arc, Wonder Woman totally turned me around. This was such an engrossing story, both in the past and the present and it really sold me about the character being the most loving person in the DCU. This title also made me root for the supporting cast, particularly Etta and Barbara Ann, whose dynamic in the past very much intrigued me. Meanwhile, the art was (mostly) fantastic (a Sharp issue looked a little off), with Nicola Scott's arc being the art I (again) fell in love with. By the end, I was totally agreed in my mind to get the second book, because I need to know where everything goes next). I'll just remember not to put it off when I do get that book.

Total Reading Count: 14

There we go. Another week done and more comics to my 'one a day' reading list, bringing the total to 160 so far this year.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure if this is the end of such a run given all that is happening. However, there are always worse things in the world to suffer from beyond not reading comics.

So, for now, I'll do my job and if I get time to read then great but, if not, then it isn't the end of the world.

Because I can always read later, when the chaos has ended.

In the meantime though, to all who read this, stay safe, play it smart and don't put yourselves or anyone else in unnecessary risk from this virus.