On the New Experience

One sad fact is, once you've experienced a work of fiction (a book, a movie, etc.) you can never experience it again the same way you did the first time.

Especially hard is when you return to fiction with a twist ending. It doesn't age well. That's not fair, The Usual Suspects is still a good movie, but the participation in the mystery is gone the second time. The Sixth Sense holds up in the same way. There's some works that can still be rewarding even afterwards, but for the most part, "You can't go home again."

I wish that you could somehow. Just last Oct. 25th, the last issue of one of my favorite comics appeared on the racks after a SIX MONTH delay. That issue was Seven Soldiers of Victory #1.

Wait, #1, last issue?

I'll explain...Seven Soldiers of Victory was a "megaseries" (30 issues) beginning with Seven Soldiers of Victory #0, followed by seven 4 issue miniseries based around one of the seven soldiers, and culminating in Seven Soldiers of Victory #1.

So seven characters each with their own mini that could be read independently and two bookends to tie it all together. Written entirely by Grant Morrison and drawn by several artists.

They came out every other week. What I enjoyed best was the mystery building over the course of the series and the slow trickle of revelations every issue.

Now that the whole thing is over I've re-read the whole thing and it still holds up well. It's a great read.

But it'll never live up to the first time when it was all fresh and new.

What I wouldn't give to be able to make myself forget the project everytime I read it.

I've read plenty of books over and over again. I'm on my seventh with Catch-22, my second with Slaughterhouse 5, fifth with East of Eden. That doesn't even compare to how many times I've rewatched movies. The story is what attracts us the first time, the execution is what makes us come back.

I know what happens in East of Eden, but I could never remember the details that make it come alive and will make it live even on my future sixth and seventh time.

I guess what I love most in life are stories, the ones lived and the ones read.

So next to my Catch-22 and my Casablanca does my Seven Soldiers of Victory go.