I’m actually very, very busy doing lots of things that are, by every sane standard, a lot more important than blogging, so expect a lot o’ quickies in the near future. If I gloss over stuff you’d actually like to know, you can always pop a question in the comment section. It’s all right - I won’t bite… very hard.

But! Enough talk, let’s nerd it up with some comic book talk.

“Goldfish”, which is an original graphic novel written and drawn by Brian Micheal Bendis (of “Ultimate Spider-Man” and “Secret Invasion” fame) which was first published on a small print called Calilber Comics, back when Bendis was living on Ramen and begging on street corners to get by. Later on it got reprinted into the fine edition you see pictured on the right, by a slightly bigger company called Image.

One reason was probably because Bendis was starting to be a big name in the biz and they figured they could make some quick money off his more unknown work. Another reason, however, was probably that this crime novel is really, really good. I mean, some parts of it is actually approaching genius.

The story is about this guy named Dave Gold, a.k.a. “Goldfish”, who returns to the city after having been gone for ten years. Goldfish was a confidence man, a card-sharp who had run-ins with most of the city’s low-life. Upon his return, he discovers that his old flame has become the city’s crime queen. But that doesn’t matter to him. He’s only back for one reason: To rescue his son from the clutches of his criminal mom.

Yes, I can hear you cringing - that’s not a very intriguing story sampler, is it? And to tell the truth, the story is also this novel’s weak point. Not that it’s actually bad; it’s just not approaching anything called fresh.

Now, in some cases this could kill a book, but not so with “Goldfish”. Bendis is such a great writer that he makes this noir tale sing with sheer craftsmanship. The dialogue is just so delicious I could carve it up and schmear it on a bagel, and while the art sometimes leaves something to be desired, it’s more than sufficient to tell the - admittedly - well-plotted tale.

I’ll definitely be picking up more of this guy’s independent work, because this one here wound up being highly recommendable reading. I give this Bendis fellow two thumbs up and a very red cherry on top.