The Men in the Road

Finished Reading: AD2

Have returned home. Oddly enough, last night wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. The fact that wine was served didn't hurt. It loosened everyone up, and even the teenage kids of the neighbors seemed to catch the infectious spirit.

So what kind of loot did I get? Aside from the usual Christmas brick-a-brack, I picked up what I really enjoy. Peanut butter fudge, for one thing. And....books. Such as:

The Marvel Encyclopedia. "The Definitive Guide to the Characters of the Marvel Universe". A picture book suitable for middle-aged twelve year olds, to provide many reminders as to how I used to spend the bulk of my time.
The Super Bowl of Advertising: How the Commercials Won the Game by Bernice Kanner. This book is a history of the "Super Bowl Commerical", and how commercials during the game -- starting with the MacIntosh "1984" commercial -- became more and more high concept.
The Bathroom Baseball Book. "Hardball Trivia for the Best Seat in the House". "Where was baseball's first night game played?" and other trivia questions for distraction during those necessary trips to the smallest room.

(* * *)

I've took a brief look at AD2. Even though Part 2 isn't a "Part 2" in the sense that a story by Richard Lobinske is a "Part 2" -- a Lobinske Part 2 would be a complete story; AD2 is just a scene from a larger narrative -- there are some elements that piqued my interest.

First, the fact that during the story Daria is blinded in the left eye. (I don't have the story in front of me; I refuse to look at it again.) It doesn't really matter which of the two eyes is wounded; the fact that one eye is wounded is remarkable. I always called this "Claremont's Rule" after Chris Claremont, the years-long X-Men writer, who claimed the key to good writing as "put the characters in the worst situation you can, and then make it worse". I'm glad that despite the fact that Daria and Jane are starting out with the clothes on their backs, the story won't be an upward climb.

Secondly, there is the matter of "the men at the road". Daria and Jane are almost stopped by a group of men in the road, but when they notice a body nearby, they decided to zoom right by and take their own chances. Who are "the men in the road"? Why have they tried to block the road? What was their purpose? We don't know, and hopefully, we won't know. Most people's lives are filled with unanswered questions: "what happened to that cute girl I sat behind in seventh grade class?" The fact that Doggieboy isn't going out of his way to provide answers to everything is a good sign.