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Tim O Neill Byrne Robotics Security
Joined: 16 April 2004 Location: United States Posts: 10935
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Posted: 11 March 2008 at 7:53pm | IP Logged | 1
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Whenever the "Style" issue of The New Yorker arrives in my mailbox, I get
very excited. I think to myself - "Cool! I don't have to read the New
Yorker this week!" It's not that i don't like the magazine - I am a
longtime subscriber and some of the best articles I have read come from
those pages. But style and fashion do nothing for me, so the big chunk
of time it takes me to get through the mag each week can be devoted to
other important pursuits, like watching sitcoms and reading comic books.
Anyway, I still checked the contents and ran across this interesting essay
about superhero costumes written by Michael Chabon. The costume
threads that have played out here have always been great reads and I
thought you all might want to check this out:
"Secret Skin" by Michael Chabon
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Didier Yvon Paul Fayolle Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 25 January 2005 Location: Hong Kong Posts: 5251
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Posted: 11 March 2008 at 8:55pm | IP Logged | 2
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good read. Thanks.
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Bob Simko Byrne Robotics Security
Negative Mod
Joined: 16 April 2004 Posts: 5982
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Posted: 11 March 2008 at 11:47pm | IP Logged | 3
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After his Kavalier & Clay debacle, I can't bring myself to read anything that defecates from his pen. That book was the only one I've ever wanted to burn...followed by my eyes for having read it
Awful is nowhere near a big enough word, IMHO.
I do not understand how that won any accolades or prizes.
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Peter Svensson Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 30 January 2005 Location: United States Posts: 1470
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Posted: 11 March 2008 at 11:53pm | IP Logged | 4
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What was so bad about it?
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Bob Simko Byrne Robotics Security
Negative Mod
Joined: 16 April 2004 Posts: 5982
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 12:03am | IP Logged | 5
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I just thought the whole thing was uninspired drek. He clearly took a heavy template from the golden age heavies...I thought a lot was thinly veiled Lee-Kirby...and added absolutely nothing to it. Personally, I thought all the crap he added made it miserable, and at the end of the whole thing he brought nothing novel to the literary field. He would have been better served just writing a history of the comic book field, rather than wasting time on trying to add his imprint...which I found worthless on every level, and obnoxiously over the top on others...to other individual's histories.
I know a lot of people (obviously) loved the book, but to date, that book is the biggest piece of sh*t I've ever wasted time in my life reading.
typo
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Peter Svensson Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 30 January 2005 Location: United States Posts: 1470
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 12:08am | IP Logged | 6
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Okay. I enjoyed it, though as you mentioned, it more or less is "Every anecdote about Golden Age comic creators with the serial numbers filed off + Drama + Angst = Pulitzer!" I suppose it all depends on whether you like his writing style or not.
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Steve Swanson Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 26 December 2007 Location: Canada Posts: 333
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 1:19am | IP Logged | 7
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Not really my kind of thing, the analysis and the writing just seemed over the top on some levels. Though I did find it interesting that he chose to ignore Christopher Reeves' Superman costume which was faithful and looked perfect.
That might be the only superhero costume that Hollywood got right.
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 11 May 2005 Posts: 133266
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 4:55am | IP Logged | 8
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That might be the only superhero costume that Hollywood got right.•• Hollywood has had an unfortunate history with superhero costumes. There has been a tendency to literalize, as well as to overlook some of the simplest techniques workers in fashion have used for centuries. This is how we end up with the cumbersome pouch-belt worn by Adam West (on a costume that was, otherwise, quite faithful to the version of the time, including the cowl-as-helmet seen in the comics), and with all kinds of stitchery instead of simple silk-screening. That said, the costume worn by George Reeves as Superman was about as faithful an adaptation as limitations of the time would allow. Christopher Reeve's version was, without doubt, the best version of that costume ever brought to the screen, tho. And in no small part due to Chris himself having visited the DC offices, seen the costume "in person" and returned to Hollywood pointing out things the costume designer for the movie got wrong -- like the S emblem belt buckle. I also give high props to the Spider-Man costume seen in the movies. It is utterly absurd to imagine Peter Parker could have created it out of stuff he found lying 'round the house (an element of "realism" that didn't trouble Sam Raimi, evidentally) but it is easily one of the top three filmed superhero costumes. (Reeve's Superman, Spider-Man and the Batman of "Dead End".) I'll allow Lynda Carter's Wonder Woman a distant fourth -- tho that's mostly for content.
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Clay Adams Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 06 April 2005 Location: United States Posts: 411
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 5:20am | IP Logged | 9
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A friend of mine leant me this article, and much as I loved Kavalier and Clay,
I thought this was impenetrable. He has a way with words, but what the hell
is he actually saying? I honestly have no clue.
His editor should have told him to spend less time coming up with brilliant
turns of phrase and more time actually communicating.
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Steve Swanson Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 26 December 2007 Location: Canada Posts: 333
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 5:20am | IP Logged | 10
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"Tho that's mostly for content."
Okay, that made me laugh. Excellent content in that costume indeed.
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Pascal LISE Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 29 July 2006 Location: France Posts: 1111
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 5:45am | IP Logged | 11
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"Tho that's mostly for content."
Based on content only, she would rank number one ! lol
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Tom French Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 07 January 2005 Location: United States Posts: 4154
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Posted: 12 March 2008 at 6:15am | IP Logged | 12
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Though not normally my habit, Kavalier and Clay was one of the few books I didn't actually finish. I usually give a book a hundred pages to pull me in, but K&C never did. Interestingly, all my non-comic book reading friends "thought" of me when they read it.
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