Physical Comics Read: 55 (174/229)
Digital Comics Read: 0 (435/435)
Trades/Graphic Novels Read: 7 (14/21)
Books Read: 1 (112/113)
Movies Watched: 2 (185/187)
TV Shows Watched: 2 (57/59)
TV Seasons Watched: 1 (95/96)
Podcast Episodes to Listen to: 83

I was looking at my reading challenge on Booklist and saw that I’m way behind on my goal to 60 books for the year. I’m sitting at about 38. I’m trying to figure out how that happened, but I think it’s because I’d burned out a little on reading and work had gotten busy. I’d actually started The Road to Tender Hearts back toward the end of September but put it down to get work done and by the time I got back to it decided I just wasn’t in the mood to read it. So right now, I’m in the middle of another book and also going through the comics and trades/GNs that I picked up at the Baltimore Comic-Con.

Reading challenges are an odd thing. You want to absorb the books you read yet it’s all about quantity, so there are times when you mix up one book with another (especially if they’re in the same genre) or maybe even forget what happened after reading. Forgetting things right after I read them was always kind of an issue with me anyway; I could rock a discussion in class but give me a plot test and I bombed it. At any rate, I’m going to make sure that I don’t worry too much about whether or not I complete this challenge.

So, here’s two things I liked this month.

Pyscho. Yeah, yeah. It’s a cop-out. But I had been talking to a colleague last week and really wanted to watch it. Besides, I’d gotten it as part of a Hitchcock Blu-ray set a few years ago and had not gotten around to it yet. It had actually been years since I’d watched the entire movie and even though I knew every beat, I was sucked in right away. I just love how not only does the film turn on one scene, but Hitchcock makes the abandoned plot just as engaging as the rest of the movie. Oh, and it looks gorgeous on Blu-ray.

Visitations. I’d had Scott Larson on Pop Culture Affidavit as part of my Baltimore Comic-Con coverage and this week re-read the six issues of this series that I own. His story combines ghosts, the occult, and the history of Chicago in a way that’s so seamless and layered that repeated readings reveal a little more. Plus, I love how his artwork will change style with the setting or context of that particular story. I didn’t see him at the con this year, but I’m definitely going to buy more of his stuff.