Helen Linda
VLA News Editor/Editorial Committee Chair
NETSL President
Systems & Tech Services Librarian, Goddard College

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I gave this 4 of 5 stars on Goodreads

I enjoyed this graphic novel way more than I expected to. It’s not even that I agree with the author’s point of view — in most cases I just don’t — but he is totally committed to exposing himself with as much honesty and candor as is available. I really appreciate the effort. The story, like the drawing style, is simple but effective even for such complicated subject matter. Though he addresses this in the notes and it makes sense, I am still a little bothered by how one-dimensional the ladies are in the story. I also found I liked the story more before I read the extensive notes that only served as an extended diatribe that I wasn’t really in it for. But, those two things aside, I think anyone would benefit from giving this one a go. If nothing else, it will force you to think about this stuff, and it’s important!

I gave this 4 of 5 stars on Goodreads

I’m really not sure how to review this book. Everything I write sounds trite. I loved it, and it’s a wonderful story about families in the evolving cultural landscape of Japan. It’s also about being an outsider, being a little different, in a world that doesn’t seem to have a lot of room for that kind of thing, but it has more room than you would expect. It’s about complicated families. It’s a YA novel but it doesn’t feel like one.

Okay, well, it was better than the last one, that is something. It has an actor I like and I’ll take that. And Kirsty is in it, so welcome back Kirsty. Otherwise, I’m unsure what to say about it. I mean, even lighter on actual Hellraiser characters than the last one. One cenobyte like creature, but mostly it’s human halucinations. It begs the question: if Pinhead and the Cenobytes are hardly in it, is it a Hellraiser movie. I would argue no.  But, as far as being a good movie, I wouldn’t say this was bottom of the barrel. It has some intrigue. It has some mind screwy stuff. It feels disorienting. The twist ending was not predicted. So, I wouldn’t watch it again, but I am not filled with regret.

Could someone please explain to my why I did this to myself. I mean, isn’t this supposed to be fun? This movie was one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen…I’m borderline angry about it. I don’t even think it was a Hellraiser movie, actually. It was an attempt at a 1930′s detective mood with all the worst parts of a David Lynch movie and it was feat. some characters from Hellraiser. If Pinhead was too verbose in the last movie, he was almost non-existent in this one (except, you know, to punch us in the face with the MORAL OF THE STORY at the end). The new Chattering Cenobyte was way, waaaay too chattering. Went from being creepy to being irritating. The other new Cenobytes were okay, but they all looked the same, which is no fun at all. They used the same torture over and over and, as torture goes, it was all pretty mundane and human, not at all extra horrible and otherworldly. Instead of a sweeping classical score they went with new age porno music. And why was it called Inferno? I don’t even think they light so much as a cigarette. Skip right over this one if you care about anything in the world at all.

Hellraiser (IV): Bloodline

I may have reached the end of the line. This one started out well enough, I was certainly curious about the origin of the box. But, that story lead to another story, which would have been fine had it not lead to another story. And that thing I said about Pinhead getting chatty. Yeah, that’s much worse. And he has a pet. The pet, I think, is supposed to be reminiscent of Chattering Cenobyte. Yes, I miss him too, he was creepy. However, this weird animatronic critter is not really doing it for me. It’s too cartoony. I did like the new Twin Cenobyte, that one was the only one with any newness. It felt really, really long…I kept checking to see how much time was left. Could have done without it.

I had no expectations for this movie. None. So, that it far exceeded my expectations shouldn’t be a surprise. But it is! Third in a series, with the notable exception of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (a work of unparalleled genius), is usually a trainwreck. My only complaint about this movie was the lackluster new Cenobytes, and even one of those was pretty rad.

The gore was perfect, and that they found so many ways to kill that many people is pretty good! Pinhead is starting to get a little too, um, chatty. Let’s hope they don’t keep traipsing down that road. But the female heroine is terrific, and I’m not just saying that because I love her in Back to School (okay, you got me, I might be saying it because of that). All in all, a pleasant surprise!

As second in a series goes, I’ve seen worse. That said, this one suffers from the same problem that all sequels seem to suffer from: to much everything. Too many new effects. Too much back story. Too many villains. Just too much everything. I mean, they even had too many puzzle boxes.

This sequel picks up where the last one left off, and yes, Kirsty is still the heroine, though they give you another. And Pinhead and the Cenobytes are still the villains (yeah, and the other ones don’t have names, I looked it up, just referred to as Chattering, Butterball, and Female Cenobyte), though they give you another one. There’s still reanimation, and the gore is much more but still not really, really heavy handed…I’m expecting that in 3 and beyond.

We get a little more mythos, but I really didn’t care…part of what makes a good other worldly movie is not knowing anything about the why or the how of that other world. You take away a lot of the fear by explaining something. But, everyone did a fine job, we’re still working with a lot of original cast members, and what happens to the Cenobytes, that little peek of origin, was sort of fun.

New York Drawings by Adrian Tomine

I gave this 5 of 5 stars on Goodreads

This book is stunning. It compiles mostly Tomine’s work from The New Yorker (So THAT’S where all those cool images come from!) and a few strips and sketches and other work he’s done since he moved to New York. As a super fan of his comics, I am delighted to fill in the holes with this book. He does a lot of contract work (my favorite being the Super Girls panel for the Weezer poster way back when) I don’t read The New Yorker, so I would never have put this part of his career together without this collection. It’s beautifully done, and don’t skip the notes at the end. Some of the asides are priceless.

I think this might be a kinda remake. It’s about a couple renovating an old mansion and the architects daughter comes to live with them. She discovers a walled up room. Mayhem ensues. The general description and even some key details from the 1976 movie of the same name are very similar. I haven’t seen that version, so I think this may be part remake, part retelling, but the key thing I see in the new description and not in the old is the emphasis on children.

Either way, it’s good! I was skeptical when I saw it at the drive in but found I enjoyed it far more than I expected to. The creatures were not too dominant or cartoony, the acting was well done, and the set was gorgeous. This is not a gore movie, but they do get you right at the beginning with a great jaw clenching, cover the eyes, start going fetal scene…key to set the mood for any sort of psychological horror.

What’s so good about this movie is what the little creatures actually end up being…or suggested as being. It sticks with you, it makes your brain start thinking about the story long after the movie is over, imagining details, filling in holes. This is a good one for folks who like to jump but not be really scared, and for folks who can’t tolerate a lot of gore.