The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, February 02, 1998, Image 3

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    □nday • February 2, 1998
The Battalion
JBkGGi p i 1 P
■ ■■■■ Hffii ■ ■
(»- —" ■' —~ " " "—“SSLjy
| udents immerse themselves in a world of adventure within pages Jrcomic books
By Travis Irby
Staff writer
"y omic books provide college students with
an affordable and accessible method of es-
^ Caping from the sometimes mundane col-
■ existence.
ans of funny books will be the first to point
today’s comic books are more than a bunch of
i in tights.
Dsefina Morales, who co-owns Lytle’s Comics
Games with David Lytle, said comic books
v on a wide range of fans and genres.
We have kids, students and even professors
QUATRO OAKLEYAhe Battalion
come in,” Morales said. “And they’ll go for super
hero books, realistic books, fantasy books or some
other type (of book).”
Morales, who was raised in Chile, said comics
books are viewed differently in the U.S. than they
are in South America.
“In Chile, they are a very disposable form of
entertainment,” Morales said. “We read them
until they fall apart.”
Morales said she was shocked when
she saw how the books were treated in
the states.
“I was like, ‘what are you doing,’
when I saw the comics books in
plastic bags,” Morales said.
She is now used to bag
ging comics after working
in the store.
Morales said many
college students are
involved in collect-
ing comics.
“I’d say about half
the customers are college
students,” Morales said.
John Willis, a junior busi
ness major, unlike many collec
tors, only recently started collecting.
“A lot of people started when they
were kids,” Willis said.
“While I read some books, I really didn’t
start collecting and following certain titles until
I came to college.”
Willis said he prefers the traditional super
hero books.
“Some people are kind of down on super hero
books, preferring realistic-type comic books,”
Willis said. “Super hero books are fun; right now
I’m into the likes of JLA, Flash and Captain
America.”
While there is a cornucopia of comic book
types and the fans who follow them, when it
comes to what makes a comic book good, some
think it is an issue of write and wrong.
Robert Colon, an avid reader for 15 years, said if,
the story is not strong, his interest won’t be, either.
“I really follow writers,” Colon said. “I mean there
are some incredibly good writers in comics today.”
Morales, however, is into the look of the book.
“I’m more attracted to a book because of its
art,” Morales said.
Christie Cooper, a junior chemical engineering
major, said comics
provide the best of
both worlds.
“I am really into the mixture
of art and writing,” Cooper said.
“In comics, I enjoy artists and writ
ers I can’t see anywhere else.”
Comic books often have been seen as a
male-dominated and driven market.
Morales said she believes there is some truth
to such thinking, but things are changing.
“One of the things I think is great is more
women are getting into comics these days,”
Morales said. “We have a wide age range of
women getting into comics.”
Cooper said she has noticed the gender differ
ences in comic readers, but it does not bother her.
“There will be times when I’m with a group of
people and we start talking about books and
then I’ll look around and I’ll be the only girl,”
Cooper said.
One of the defining characteristics of the com
ic book market is its readiness to follow trends.
<l( In Chile, they are a very''
disposable form of enter-
^ tainment. We read them
until they fall apart.”
— Josefina Morales
Co-owner of Lytle’s Comics
and Games
Guy Jones, owner of B-CS Books and
Comics, said current trends tend to be the use
of “bad girls.”
“I thought bad girl books were on their way out,
but they have been strengthened by a number of
titles, like Shi and Witchblade,”]ones said.
Please see Comics on Page 5.
Noises Off
N o one heard
of this movie
when it was
released, and even
fewer have heard of
it now.
In spite of some
redundant dialogue
and having to watch
Nicolette Sheridan
run around in her
underwear through
out the movie, it is
actually entertaining
and funny.
The cast of the
movie includes such
timeless comedians
as Carol Burnett,
Christopher Reeve
and John Ritter. And,
although it has a slow
start, the characters
will have audiences
laughing at the ways
they tackle the chaot
ic task of putting on a
Broadway play.
— April Towery
TV "Tbises Off does
j \ / not represent
JL V the standard
’80s fare. Movie
watchers expecting to
see thin ties, pastel
clothes and humor
less substance abuse
centric plot themes
will be disappointed.
What this flick does
offer, however, is a
beautifully crafted
story revolving
around a love dodeca
hedron that changes
so rapidly it becomes
lunacy to attempt to
keep track of it.
Instead, viewers are
welcomed to shut off
the reasoning part of
their brains and enjoy
the fireworks as they
occur, leaving to the
actors the responsibil
ity to stay abreast of
new developments.
After all, the viewers
did not sign on to ex
pend mental effort.
This was the ’80s.
— Stephen Wells
O f all the movies
I have ever
seen in my life
time, I can honestly
say without a scantil-
lion of hyperbole that
Noises Off is the latest.
It stars a company
of bad actors belch
ing forced dialogue
about a company of
bad actors. It’s like
watching the Stone
Temple Pilots pretend
to be Kiss.
The sparkling cast
includes skeleton girl
from Airplane,
Cousin Larry from
“Perfect Strangers,”
and Superman.
Rounding out the
roster are iiberwussies
Michael Caine and
John Ritter.
You know who
would win in a fight
between those two?
Humanity, pending
they destroy each oth
er like matter and
anti-matter.
— Chris Martin
GOING FAST!!!
F Q %.
C' ^
Qa
SioV ll
and scC u
VO
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