Zorro, A True Hero

I really enjoyed reading the graphic novel Zorro.  This book was an action packed book with a great story and even better illustrations.  This was my first intimate look at a graphic novel and i must say it was impressive.  Graphic novel or "comic books" render memories of square superheros fighting crime in overly tight spandex suits;cheesy.  Zorro is a much more complex character and the story line in this graphic novel shows much more depth, both literally and metaphorically.  They make Zorro a great hero, and really developed his character by showing parallel stories from his youth and one of his adventures as Zorro.  This makes the reader get to know Zorro on a deeper level and learn his thought processes and motivations.  Unlike many other heroes, Zorro does not fight for revenge or vendetta, but rather for justice.  These principles put Zorro on a higher pedal stool, they also mix in the Robin Hood idea of stealing from the rich and giving to the poor.
The other thing that makes Zorro a great read is how the authors laid out the illustrations.  These drawings were vivid and did a great job telling the story all by themselves.  The artist has so much control over how the story comes across.  They did a great job of using various lighting in the slide to show a flashback, time of day, good and evil, or even joy or sadness.  Then by manipulating the gutter the illustrator can show the action from different speeds and views which also makes the story almost come to life right on the page.  This gives some advantages and challenges for authors of graphic novels.  There has to be a perfect hybrid of text, pictures, action,and storyline to keep the reader interested.  In my opinion Zorro did a fantastic job in mixing these together to produce a great graphic novel.

Borges

  It is clear why Borges is deemed one of the most intellectual writers to come out of South America.  His stories are beautifully mastered, and have a very deep meaning under the surface.  Borges was far ahead of his time when it comes to the ideas he was working with.  So advanced that many didn't fully understand or grasp the ideas and concepts he was writing about.  This would explain why he didn't receive the honors and accolades that his contemporaries received.  He must have been the Nikola Tesla of literature, smarter and ahead of everyone else; Borges was too intellectual, even for literary critics of the time.

I could closely relate to his stories and the critiques and ideas he was working with.  Like many author Latino authors he threw his two cents in when it came to the Catholic church.  Being raised Catholic, I understand where Borges is coming from in his critique of the church.  Latinos have seen first hand the corruption and hypocrisy that is the Catholic church, and it must be extremely difficult to see the community be so fixated and attached to a Church that has done everything it could to crush the local culture.  The perfect example of this is in "The Gospel According to Mark", the Gutres hold onto that salvation story so hard that they literally interpret the story and don't see the real message.  The Gutres represent the peoples of the past, those that knew nothing of Catholic Church or Jesus.  They receive this "word of God" and take it for face value while Spinoza is the exemplary Christian.  Of course the exemplary christian will always take the fall from the ignorant literalists.  Borges kills two birds with one stone in this story criticizing both the Catholic Church as well as the ignorance of people and how both can destroy great things when in the wrong hands.