2020: The Elephant

Good afternoon amigo,

It has been a minute hasn’t it? Here I am picking, scratching and clawing my brains out here, I mean how do I even write about my hobbies in a blog in 2020? How do we even enjoy our hobbies in this world state? Or life in general for that matter. I feel like if I want to move forward with this page and with my life in general, I have to look at this beast in the eyes and really breakdown what all of this pandemic has done to me. Find out the why, discover the how and find my where. After everything we have faced this year, you would be crazy to not feel a thing, if anything the collective toll this has had on all of us on the planet, I hope it can bring us together for once. Lord knows we need it.

I hope we change, and change for the better for this planet and all who inhabit the beautiful green and blue rock.

The Elephant in the room.

So yeah, Covid-19. What an experience, feels almost surreal all that is happening. If you had told me this time next year we would all be isolating ourselves from each and that all flights had been practically grounded, I could never believe such a moment would come and yet here we are nearing the end of 2020, with no real clue when this pandemic will be over. What I really want to do more than anything is have the freedom to roam, to see my friends and family again, to do comic book conventions again and all the little things we lost when this all started. As much as this entire pandemic has been a thorn in our collective sides, I have to be grateful for everything I have and being able to connect with friends across the web on a daily basis, my inner circle has been a life saver in these past months and I will always be grateful for the love in my life. Where would I be without the foundation of my life which are my friends?

I have no idea what the world will look like once this is all over, when it is finally all over. But I will say this much, it is our choice how we react to it. We have to be strong and ready for whatever comes next, which can really be just about anything, we really have no idea. I am hopeful that together we can all get through this ordeal. And which comes back to comic books and this blog, I wanted to put out some good vibes into the universe and spreading the love of comics and such in general seems like a darn good idea. It is that or sit in my room in a constant state of paranoia and fear. Me talking about something other than the pandemic is not me denying what it is, in a way it is acknowledging it and the pain it has caused and trying to reminds us of the little things that we love and the big impact they have in our lives.

With nothing left to say, keep on reading until the world ends.

The First Issue

Welcome one, welcome all. For everyone who loves comics to those who have just started reading, this blog here is to challenge the way you read and view comic books. From the first page to the last, I will guide you to look between the panels and search for the deeper themes within comic books issues and graphic novels. This space will also be used to discuss any of the ins and outs in the world of comic books as well, issues that I feel need to be looked into more and promoting under appreciated works as well.

Before I get going, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Alvaro Cruz, the ChileanStorm on most corners of the web. I am Canadian born Chilean from the centre of the multiverse known as Toronto, Ontario. I am a comic book fanatic, I am currently working on my own comic book, illustrating and writing from the ground up. But I love reading comics, from single issues to fanzines, manga and graphic novels, I absolute love all forms of comics. Also a big fan of basically every form of fandom; video games, anime, movies, music, books, etc. I take it all in, and I do my best to put that love into all my pieces of work. Also it goes without saying but as a Toronto boy, I am a life long fan of the Maple Leafs, Raptors, Blue Jays and Toronto FC. Geek to my soul, but I still enjoy sports and wrestling as well from time to time.

Eat. Comics. Sleep. Repeat.

From the dollar bin to the top selling graphic novels, will explore all the fantastic books across the ages. A lot of classic books, some my personal favourites but also new books I feel you should be reading as well. Keep mind as well these won’t be reviews but breakdowns, but needless to say I highly recommend any comic book that I look at. I want to encourage more comic book reading in general, start a bigger conversation on comic books and this one of a kind medium, hoping to encourage all sorts of voices in writing and in the arts to add their experiences and imagination to the world of comics.

So if this seems like something that might interest you by all means follow along for the ride. I am happy to take any questions or even recommended readings as well. And I will be doing this in podcast form as well, so by all means give a listen as well. We got a lot of reading to do, so let’s get started.