un/usual

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As per usual paper return efforts lasted until I started using the reMarkable again (which takes forfuckingever to charge) and dutifully fell back in love with the thing while, as per unusual, a massive breakthrough in the MainThing rendered all previous efforts and mental gymnastics moot, a rendering which was, as per the usual in this particular unusual, a simple twist to one minor detail that produced large ramifications: this is the way, every so often.

WEB OF SPIDER-MAN, No. 103 (Kavanaugh / Saviuk; Marvel, 1993)

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Every Wednesday morning, I make a blind pull from Siri's (randomized) choice of one of the 20 alphabetically-organized shortboxes that constitute my comics collection, (re-)read it, write about it, and publish whatever emerges. Earlier installments live here.

(Box19): The more I encounter '90s Marvel (though DC was guilty of it too) comics in these Wednesday blind pulls, the more I'm amused by how every character's dialogue has the same rhythm: to imagine each being read by Paul Soles (Spidey's voice in the '67 animated series) is not only not a stretch, but adds an even deeper amusement (MJ and Peter's connubial woes, for example, are brilliant in a Soles voice; little wonder writers of the time wanted to ixnay the marriage – though that doesn't mean I agree with the decision).

But: MAXIMUM CARNAGE! And it was, indeed, Maximum, even down to the length of the crossover 14 parts... which would then prove to be not MAXIMUM enough, what with two-year-long CLONE SAGA a year in the future (but I'm sure I'll get to some of those issues as I do more of these). And this issue, in particular, opened with CARNAGE WITH A BIG GUN.

MAXIMUM!

Derision of the MAXimal thereness of much of the issue aside (being part ten of 14 tends to do that), I do have to mention here that Alex Saviuk draws one hell of a Spider-Man: his action scenes (of which this is wall-to-wall) MOVE and he can capture small emotional beats that would otherwise be (and were) glossed over in the hands of lesser artists. Should be mentioned as one of the definitive Spidey artists.

But yeah, Carnage with a big gun. Probably could have led with that and saved both of us some time. MAXIMUM time.

recharging

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While this would normally be the space where I would publish the week's Wednesday Random, I didn't wanna so I'll do it in the second block, maybe. See how I'm feeling.

(Seems my social exhaustion is stretching into the digital realm too – or, perhaps the digital exhaustion came first? Chicken/egg etc etc).

The thing that I knew would happen with the reMarkable but wasn't expecting until it happened finally happened: it needed recharged - badly - while I was working. Plugged it in, started using paper and pen – and found that I missed it, rather terribly. reMarkable solely for work writing? Perhaps. Might change tune when I have it back in my hands but IDK. It was pretty wonderful to use a fountain pen again.

Phone needs charged, Herbie needs charged, reMarkable needs charged / on the bright side I think I'm finally seeing what I wasn't seeing in the MainThing. TBD.

how i spent my afternoon

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Little did I expect that two+ hours of my day (before picking up The Morkie from her doggie day spa appointment) would be spent in an obscenely wealthy gun nut’s panic room listening to his dissemination of each firearm in his (admittedly impressive) WWII collection. And that was after accepting his invitation to fire a silenced pistol, a semi automatic rifle, and a fully automatic rifle from his deck at a target near his woods; a memorable experience, certainly, but not one that I care to repeat - my abject loathing for those things (guns and obscenely rich white people in love with guns) remains intact.