Articulate Nerd

Comics-and-More Podcast 24

2012-02-03T16:01:00.002-06:00

Dave Ferraro and I review four new debut issues from Image Comics in the latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast 23

2012-01-21T07:47:00.000-06:00

It's here. The latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast. As always, thanks for watching.

Maybe They Should Just Have Him Do All Of The New 52 Books?

2012-01-15T15:23:00.000-06:00

I don't usually post about publishing announcements, but coming as this does on the heels of my Rob Liefeld essay, it seemed worthy of a mention here. Apparently, DC will be softening the blow of the April cancellation of Rob Liefeld's Hawk & Dove considerably by assigning him to three of the New 52 titles this may. He'll be writing and drawing Deathstroke (image above) and providing plots for Grifter and Savage Hawkman. Very cool!

Wrong About Liefeld

2012-01-14T00:44:00.001-06:00

Note: The first draft of this essay was written before the announcement of the cancellation of Hawk & Dove. The following may be read, in part, as a kind of tribute to that series.

Cover art from Hawk & Dove #1

There is no comic book artist working right now whose work I am more excited about than that of Rob Liefeld. It's not that I think he's the best artist, or even that the comics he's producing now are the best things he's ever done. Rather, the (very good) work Liefeld is producing now, on the series Hawk & Dove and The Infinite, have caused me to re-evaluate my opinion of him, and to take another look at the older work for which he became famous in the early nineties. For years, I, like many others, had dismissed Liefeld as a talentless hack, but I have reversed that opinion, and want to explain why I now consider Rob Liefeld to be one of my absolute favorite mainstream comic book artists.

X-Force #1. Most of the characters pictured here were created by Liefeld during his run on New Mutants.

While I was just the right age to have appreciated it when it debuted in 1992, I was never a big fan of X-Force, Liefeld's phenomenally popular Marvel Comics series spun out of his run on New Mutants. My favorite comic book series at that time was Tom DeFalco and Paul Ryan's run on Fantastic Four, which was quite different in style and tone than the sort of work Liefeld was doing. All of my friends loved X-Force, though (maybe I was just trying to be a nonconformist?), and when Liefeld announced he was leaving Marvel to form Image Comics and release his creator owned series Youngblood, I jumped on the bandwagon and enthusiastically purchased the first issue. I remember pouring over the artwork, soaking in all of the details, although the story I remember as being mostly nonsensical. As I remember it, it wasn't long after the debut of Youngblood and Image that Liefeld's books began to be hampered by absurd delays in publication, and Liefeld's popularity among comics fans began to dim. I don't believe he was ever a favorite of critics. In 1996, Marvel invited Liefeld and Jim Lee to take over some of their characters in the "Heroes Reborn" initiative. Liefeld had a short run on Captain America, where he reimagined the character and created a female version of Cap's sidekick, Bucky, before being fired by Marvel. I bought those Captain America comics, too, and liked them well enough at the time. Mostly, I held the opinion of most comics fans, that Liefeld was an artist with very little talent, whose early success was undeserved and responsible for much that was wrong with mainstream comics in the

nineties.

The master gives his blessing. Variant cover art by Liefeld from Uncanny X-Force, a new series based on Liefeld's original concept that has become a fan favorite.

I didn't pay too much attention to Liefeld in the years since, with the exception of the work he did with Alan Moore for Liefeld's Awesome Comics on books like Supreme in the late nineties, although Liefeld was not the primary artist on that book. When DC Comics announced earlier this year that they would be relaunching all of their titles with new number one issues, I was surprised to see Rob Liefeld was to be the artist on a new Hawk & Dove series that would debut as part of the new line of highly publicized comics. I decided to give the book a shot. There was something amusing to me about a new Rob Liefeld book, and while I genuinely wanted to enjoy it, I think I had something of a condescending attitude going in. The new Hawk & Dove series is written by Sterling Gates (although Liefeld is supposed to take over the writing with issue six) and is an entertaining, somewhat silly superhero comic. Liefeld's artwork is more streamlined than it was during the X-Force/Youngblood era, but his distinctive style comes through loud and clear, although I don't know that the stories always play to his strengths.

The Infinite

I enjoyed Hawk & Dove enough to check out The Infinite, a new Image Comics series written by Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman and drawn by Liefeld. I love The Infinite. It is a tightly written story about a time traveller who travels back into the past to recruit his younger self in a war against a group of villains who have infiltrated the U.S. government. Liefeld co-created the series and is, I believe, primarily responsible for the look of the characters. I really like this book because I feel as though Kirkman is really pushing Rob Liefeld to "be Rob Liefeld." The Infinite, unlike Hawk & Dove, definitely plays to Liefeld's strengths, with a larger cast of wonderfully designed characters, lots of big guns and big gear, and plenty of high octane action. A great series that evokes the best of nineties superhero comics without seeming at all retro.

As much as I like the new work, I've been enjoying Liefeld's early work even more, via recently published collected editions of his work on New Mutants and X-Force. Marvel has released Liefeld's entire runs on those books in a series of "premiere edition" hardcovers. Liefeld's X-Force stuff, very little of which I'd actually ever sat down and read, is an absolute blast. Fabian Nicieza provides scripts, but these are unquestionably Liefeld's comics, as he introduces a staggering amount of brand new characters into the pages of New Mutants before the whole series is relaunched as the hyper-macho, ultra violent X-Force. These stories feature Cable, Liefeld's greatest creation, a grizzled cyborg mercenary (yeah, guys, I know he's not really a cyborg but that's what he appears to be in these early issues) with a seemingly endless supply of lethal weaponry, and a mysterious past that is never fully explored during Liefeld's time on the book.

Cable. Liefeld's greatest creation.

Cable is kind of the ultimate Liefeld character, as he represents a lot of the tropes Liefeld would become associated with. First of all, the guy is huge, with absurdly exaggerated musculature that conveys an overwhelming sense of masculine power. The classic male power fantasy on steroids, as it were. Big guns, gear, and shoulder pads bulk up this already considerably bulky character. Even the fact that his power and origins are so vaguely defined is typical of Liefeld, who is usually too busy introducing new characters into the pages of his comics to fully explore their abilities and origins. I realize many see this as a detrimental quality of Liefeld's work, but I admire his restless creativity. Especially during this era, Liefeld was a young creator always looking towards the next thing. Liefeld created a large cast of characters in X-Force, many of whom are still in play today at Marvel as some of their most popular characters. Not many writers and artists who worked after the time that Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Steve Ditko created the Marvel Universe and almost all of the Marvel characters, can make that sort of a claim. The look of Liefeld's comics was hugely influential, even more so than that of the other Image founders, and that style would define that decade of comics. Yes, a lot of what came after Liefeld looked terrible, and the dark, ultraviolent stories would lead mainstream comics down a strange path from which they have still not fully recovered, but we shouldn't blame Liefeld for the excesses of those who were influenced by him. Both as an archive of a specific era in mainstream comics histroy, and as terrific entertainments in their own right, Liefeld's X-Force comics are hugely entertaining and hold up remarkably well.

A cover from Liefeld's run on Captain America, featuring the female version of Cap's sidekick, Bucky.

The Youngblood material that Liefeld created immediately after X-Force was collected a couple of years ago in a somewhat unique form. The first five issues were rescripted by comics writer Joe Casey to make for a better, more coherent reading experience (Liefeld himself has expressed disappointment in Hank Kanalz's scripts for the original comics). Some sequences were also rearranged, and Liefeld and Casey provide a new ending for the comics collected in the hardcover Youngblood Volume 1, which also features brand new colors, an enthusiastic introduction by comics writer Mark Millar, and sample pages from an early version of Youngblood created by Liefeld in 1987 (Originally as an idea for a Teen Titans revival), plus other extras. Folks, I loved this book. Casey does a fine job crafting a new script that makes Liefeld's story much more coherent, albeit still rather unwieldy. As in X-Force, Liefeld introduces a staggering amount of new characters here, effectively introducing us to three teams of superheroes and one team of supervillains in the first issue! Youngblood also reads surprisingly modern, what with it's focus on celebrity superheroes in a media saturated world and conflicts in the Middle East. Make no mistake, the social and political commentary does not run very deep, but it is still interesting to consider how forward thinking this comic book was. Mark Millar suggests in his introduction that Youngblood presaged work like The Authority, and I think he's basically right about this.

Youngblood #1

What is it that I respond to so strongly in all of these works by Liefeld? I love his enthusiasm and creativity, which is in evidence in all of the characters and concepts he created during the nineties, most of which are still going strong today. Currently, Liefeld has recommitted himself to producing a larger body of work, pencilling two ongoing series, a rare feat these days but one to which Liefeld has thus far remained committed, with no noticeable drop off in the quality of the work. I love that Liefeld is a creator with such a strong personal aesthetic. Rob Liefeld comics always look like Rob Liefeld comics, but the fact that he has created and continues to create so many new characters and concepts keeps things fresh. And, yes, I love the big guns, muscles, and gear. I hope, especially in his work on The Infinite, he does not shy away from showcasing those tropes with which he has become most associated. Let Liefeld be Liefeld!

Youngblood Volume 1 features a new script by Joe Casey and new colors.

I'm really only interested in discussing Liefeld as an artist. Some of the criticisms levelled against him over the years are the result of accusations of morally questionable conduct in various business and publishing endeavors, particularly from around the time of his initial departure from Image Comics. I don't really have much to say about anything that may or may not have been going on behind the scenes. Some of the aesthetic criticisms of Liefeld's art I will address, however. The most obvious criticism of Liefeld is his lack of drawing ability, particularly when it comes to human anatomy. Much has been made about the fact that he can't draw feet. It is also probably fair to say that backgrounds are not a strong suit. I think it's kind of absurd for superhero comic book fans to criticize an artist for drawing his characters with exaggerated musculature. Almost all superhero comics do this; it is a staple of the genre. I suppose these critics feel that Liefeld goes too far with his hyper-muscled he-men, but it is that excess that I see as one of Liefeld's greatest strengths. Liefeld takes the tropes of superhero comics to their logical extreme. He goes all out with these absurdly exaggerated characters and weaponry, and to my eye the results look dynamic and thrilling. If I were to offer a criticism of Liefeld, I would say that his current work holds back a bit too much for a more streamlined approach, whereas I would love a return to the over the top approach of the early nineties material. Again, The Infinite seems to be leaning in that direction.

A couple of pretty sweet looking toys based on Rob Liefeld characters.

It is also fair to say that Liefeld is not a great writer. He has said so himself, which makes me a little nervous about his upcoming stint as the writer of Hawk & Dove, but we'll see. Liefeld's best work is always done in collaboration with a talented writer (Robert Kirkman, Joe Casey, Alan Moore), but even with a strong writer, Liefeld is almost always and very clearly the primary creative force behind his books. He is a somewhat restless creative talent who relies on scripters to finesse his work into a readable form. This is not really a criticism of Liefeld, just an observation of the limits of his creative abilities. A similar observation could be made about Jack Kirby (who's work was also maligned by comics fans during a certain period of his career. Actually, there are a lot of comparisons I could make between Kirby and Liefeld, but I won't push it).

Cable and Deadpool

So, Rob Liefeld can't do everything, but what he can do is something few can. Create comic books with a unique creative energy and power, comics that have lead to multiple still ongoing and hugely successful franchises. I believe Rob Liefeld is actually one of a very few true comics visionaries. What I mean by that is that he has a unique artistic approach to comics, one that helped define a decade of comics art, and which he continues to refine and develop today, as he recommits himself to the art form to which he has already given so much. I regret the years I dismissed Liefeld and his work, but look forward to getting caught up on all that I missed, and anticipating what he'll do next. I was wrong about Liefeld.

Comics-and-More Podcast 22

2012-01-13T16:56:00.001-06:00

Dave Ferraro and I look ahead to our most anticipated comics of 2012 in the latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast 21

2012-01-05T19:29:00.000-06:00

We've just posted our massive "year in review" episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, where David and I discuss our favorite comics of the year. This is by far our longest show, clocking in just shy of an hour and a half, but we've divided it into bit sized chunks for you to enjoy at your leisure. Please enjoy the show, and thank you so much for watching the podcast this year. I had a lot of fun doing it, and we've got a lot of great stuff planned for 2012!

Happy Birthday, Lynda Barry and Naoki Urasawa!

2012-01-02T13:12:00.000-06:00

According to Tom Spurgeon, two of my favorite cartoonists share a birthday today. Lynda Barry is unquestionably one of our greatest living cartoonists, and Drawn & Quarterly has just released Blabber, Blabber, Blabber, the first in a series of volumes collecting all of her work. I got a copy for Christmas and can't wait to read it!

Naoki Urasawa is the creator of the manga series Monster and the currently published 20th Century Boys, a complex thriller that I've fallen behind on reading and need to get caught up on. My absolute favorite of Urasawa's works (and one of my all time favorite manga) is Pluto (shown above), a reimagining of a famous storyline from Osamu Tezuka's classic children's manga, Astro Boy.

Comics-and-More Podcast 20

2011-12-29T17:20:00.000-06:00

Please check out the new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, featuring a discusshion of Walt Kelly's comic strip masterpiece, Pogo.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T09:07:00.000-06:00

Comics-and-More Podcast 19

2011-12-15T10:56:00.000-06:00

Dave Ferraro and I discuss the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast 18

2011-12-03T23:28:00.000-06:00

Comics featuring Disney characters are the subject of this week's Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast 17

2011-12-02T15:28:00.000-06:00

The Greatest Superhero Comic Currently Published is the subject of the latest Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast 16

2011-11-14T09:31:00.000-06:00

The new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, featuring a discussion of Sailor Moon, kicks off a special week of manga coverage at Comics-and-More, so check back often!

Comics-and-More Podcast 15

2011-11-11T23:13:00.000-06:00

Y'all had better head on over to Dave's site and check out the new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast right away, because we'll be posting the next episode in just a couple of days. Don't fall behind!

Comics-and-More Podcast 14

2011-10-29T07:55:00.001-05:00

Check out our special Halloween edition of the Comics-and-More Podcast, in which the work of horror cartoonist Richard Sala is discussed.....if you dare!!

Comics-and-More Podcast 13

2011-10-23T08:57:00.000-05:00

I embarrass myself by totally geeking out over Jaime Hernandez's work in the new Love and Rockets: New Stories #4 in the latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast. Dave finally had to cut me off at one point so he could get a word in. Ugh, sorry, Dave! In my defense, it is an extraordinary comic book. We also discuss Gilbert Hernandez's (also excellent) Love from the Shadows.

Comics-and-More Podcast 12

2011-10-17T08:50:00.000-05:00

Well I'll be damned if the latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast hasn't just been posted! This one focuses on Marvel Comics' recent reboot of their "Ultimate" line of books.

Comics-and-More Podcast 11

2011-10-12T09:39:00.001-05:00

Craig Thompson's Habibi is the subject of the latest Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast 10

2011-10-03T21:07:00.000-05:00

The new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, the fourth and final part of our look at DC Comics The New 52, has been posted.

Comics-and-More Podcast 9

2011-09-27T21:30:00.000-05:00

Another week, another new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, third in our four-part series examing DC Comics The New 52.

Comics-and-More Podcast 8

2011-09-17T22:03:00.000-05:00

Oops! I almost forgot to link to the new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, the second in a four-part series examing DC Comics The New 52.

The Comics Journal #301

2011-09-13T23:43:00.000-05:00

By Gary Groth (Editor), Michael Dean (Managing Editor), Kristy Valenti (Managing Editor), and a whole bunch of contributors

The latest "issue" of the venerable Comics Journal is, at 624 pages, less a magazine and more of a book. Handsomely designed by Eric Skillman (that's the book's cover up above, with the title featured on the impressively thick spine), the book is the first release under the Comics Journal banner since the more-or-less-monthly magazine ceased regular publication a couple of years ago in favor of a regularly updated website, now ably run by Dan Nadel and Tim Hodler.

The cover feature is The Book of Genesis Illustrated by R. Crumb, which is the subject of an interview with the author conducted by Gary Groth, as well as a roundtable critical discussion. While I personally feel that Crumb's version of the first book of the Old Testament is an extraordinary work, certainly deserving of all of the pages devoted to it here, its merits are hotly debated in the roundtable. The most entertaining and cogent arguments come from Jeet Heer (he likes it) and Rick Marschall (he doesn't, and comes at the book from the interesting perspective of a practicing evangelical Christian). Also participating in the roundtable are Donald Phelps, Robert Stanley Martin, Tim Hodler, Alexander Theroux, and Kenneth Smith. Fine writers and thoughtful critics all (although Smith more or less does his usual schtick, using Crumb's book to launch into a familiar sounding philosophical screed against modernity), whose opinions on Crumb's book vary wildly, making for an entertaining and enlightening exchange of ideas.

There are two other long interviews in the book, one a conversation between humor cartoonists Al Jaffee and Michael Kupperman (moderated by Gary Groth), and Groth's interview with Joe Sacco. These interviews are as insightful and rewarding as one might expect, given the participants. Also, Marc Sobel provides a too-cursory gloss of "the Decade in Comics," R. Fiore writes about the depiction of racial minorities in old comic strips, R.C. Harvey provides a glimpse at an unpublished comic strip from late Gordo cartoonist, Gus Arriola, Tom Crippin answers "Three Questions About Robert Crumb," Chris Lanier examines Brian Chippendale's Maggots, Warren Bernard makes the case for John T. McCutcheon as the father of the midwestern school of cartooning, and a handful of recent graphic novels are reviewed.

A generous selection of Gerald McBoing Boing comics are included, introduced by Gene Deitch. Most people probably don't even realize that there were Gerald McBoing Boing comics, based of course on the Academy Award-winning animated short subject, but there were, and they were pretty good, although it's a shame the artists and writers who worked on them were not able to be identified. The reprinting of rare and "undiscovered" comics was one of my favorite features of the previous incarnation of the Journal, and I'm glad to see they have made room for that sort of thing in this new format.

But wait, there's more! One of my favorite features was the artist sketchbooks, featuring work by Jim Woodring, Tim Hensley, and novelist Stephen Dixon. Each sketchbook section was preceded by a short interview with the artist. I also really enjoyed a feature by Rob Clough on the Center for Cartoon Studies, focusing specifically on the mentoring program. This feature offered great insight into the day to day experience of attending the school, as well as glimpses into the personalities of the various cartoonists who served as mentors to the students.

Along with the interviews (always a highlight of any issue of The Comics Journal) my favorite feature was Tim Krieder's excellent essay on Dave Sim's Cerebus. Initially, I was only mildly interested in reading this essay, having not read very much of Cerebus at all, but it quickly became apparent that Krieder is a writer whose intelligence and wit are capable of making any subject interesting, or at least that was certainly the case here. I would highly recommend this essay to anyone, regardless of your level of interest in Cerebus. It's just a fine piece of writing.

I like this new format for The Comics Journal. While the magazine was indisputably important and vital in the first several years of its publication, in its later years it could hardly be said to have had its finger on the pulse of the industry. The print magazine seemed to lose its way the last several years it was published, and, while it always contained a lot of good writing, it was clear the best venue for a vital discussion of comics had relocated online, amongst a variety of the better comics blogs and websites. After a rocky start, the regularly updated, online version of The Comics Journal has become a much more vital outlet for the serious discussion of comics, primarily thanks to the stewardship of online editors Dan Nadel and Tim Hodler. In its new format, the print Comics Journal is a fine companion to that ongoing effort. With the burden of remaining "current" lifted by the website, the print Journal is free to explore important works with a depth and seriousness rarely found online. The Journal's founder, Gary Groth, is much more directly involved with this book than he seems to have been in recent issues of the magazine or the website. This is a good thing, as Groth's editorial hand and distinct critical perspective (not to mention unparalleled interviewing skills) are what made The Comics Journal such an important voice in the comics community in the first place.

Comics-and-More Podcast 7

2011-09-09T09:25:00.000-05:00

The new episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, the first in a four-part series examining DC Comics' The New 52 comic books, has been posted.

Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse Volume 1: Race To Death Valley

2011-09-06T21:45:00.000-05:00

By Floyd Gottfredson

A two week assignment. That was what cartoonist Floyd Gottfredson was told by his boss, Walt Disney, would be the duration of Gottfredson's run on the new Mickey Mouse comic strip. The strip, begun just a few months prior, was initially written by Disney himself, with art by Ub Iwerks (Mickey's co-creator and primary animator on the early cartoons) and Win Smith. Iwerks and Win soon left the strip, however (Iwerks to start his own animation studio, and Win over a falling out with Disney), at which point Disney himself gave up the reigns as writer and brought in Gottfredson as a temporary replacement until a permanent writer/artist could be found. That temporary fill in assignment would turn into a distinguished 45 year career, in which Gottfredson's work on the Mickey Mouse comic strip (always credited to Walt Disney, of course) would evolve into one of comics' all-time masterpieces.

In this Golden Age of Comic Strip Reprints, Gottfredson's Mickey Mouse was, I had long assumed, the one that had gotten away. Long acknowledged as a classic of the genre, the fear was that the gargantuan Disney corporation would have no real interest in preserving or showcasing the work of Floyd Gottfredson over and above that of the Disney brand. I had about given up hope when Fantagraphics (publishers of the Complete Peanuts and many other fine archival comics projects) announced at the 2010 Comic Con International in San Diego, that they would indeed be reprinting Gottfredson's work in its entirety. The first volume in this ambitious project has been released, with a second volume due in a couple of months. It should go without saying that Fantagraphics has done their usual stellar job in regards to editorial presentation (by Disney expert David Gerstein and Fantagraphics founder and publisher Gary Groth) and design (by Jacob Covey).

In addition to over two and a half year's worth of the strip, the book contains an impressive amount of introductory material and contextual essays, covering such topics as the origins of the strip (from which the information in the opening paragraph of this review was cribbed) to spotlights on characters and other cartoonists who contributed to the strip during Gottfredson's run. While Gottfredson was the primary ghost artist and chief architect of Mickey's comic strip adventures, many other artists were employed from time to time in the strip's production, and the editors go to great lengths to give everyone their due, regardless of how relatively minor their contribution. There are other neat bonus features, such as cover images from foreign editions collecting storylines from the strip.

As for the comics themselves, they entertain on a couple of levels. First, it should be of interest to comics fans as one of the Great Comic Strips Of All Time. While I would not place Gottfredson in the very top tier of strip cartoonists alongside artists like George Herriman, E.C. Segar, and Charles Schulz, he is undoubtedly a highly talented and imaginative cartoonist, whose primary strengths lie in story construction and the sheer manic, exuberant energy with which he brings those stories and characters to life. I would stop short of calling the artwork beautiful, but it is a lot of fun to look at, with rubber-limbed characters flailing across the pages in inky black and white, huge sweat droplets constantly flying from their brows. The comic strip should also be of great interest to Disney aficionados, as it represents one of the earliest transitions of the animated characters into another medium, and indeed was initially written by Walt Disney himself. The Mickey who appears in these pages is markedly different from the cutesy cartoon character modern audiences are familiar with. He is more of a scrapper, and it may surprise some that Gottfredson's Mickey Mouse takes the form of an adventure strip, a popular genre at the time. There are some decidedly un-P.C. elements here, as well. In one story, Mickey carries a gun, and there is even a brief storyline where Mickey is thwarted in his various attempts to commit suicide! It is admirable that Disney has allowed this version of Mickey Mouse to once again see the light of day, in the interests of preserving Gottfredson's work in its original, unedited form.

Shortly after the Mickey Mouse comic strip announcement was made, Fantagraphics announced that they would also be reprinting another Disney comic, the complete Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge comics by Carl Barks. If they do half as good a job with those books as they've done with Mickey Mouse, it is going to be a very good year for comics fans and Disney fans alike.

Comics-and-More Podcast 6

2011-09-05T13:50:00.000-05:00

The sixth episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast has been posted.

Comics-and-More Podcast 5

2011-08-27T18:15:00.000-05:00

The latest episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, starring Dave Ferraro and yours truly, has been posted for your viewing pleasure.

Comics-and-More Podcast: Manga Monday

2011-08-16T09:39:00.000-05:00

Dave Ferraro and I discuss Shimura Takako's Wandering Son in a special Manga Monday edition of the Comics-and-More Podcast.

Comics-and-More Podcast: Week Three

2011-08-11T10:35:00.000-05:00

The third episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast, co-hosted by myself and Dave Ferraro, has been posted.

Comics-and-More Podcast: Week 2

2011-08-02T16:43:00.000-05:00

The second episode of the Comics-and-More Podcast has been posted, featuring myself and Dave Ferraro discussing the work of writer Jonathan Hickman. Come for the funny faces I always seem to be making in the screen captures, stay for the discussion!

Comics-and-More Podcast

2011-07-28T10:27:00.000-05:00

I am the co-host, along with Dave Ferraro, of the new Comic-and-More Podcast. Please check out our debut episode. Regular blogging here at Articulate Nerd will resume this fall.

Links!

2011-03-27T19:18:00.000-05:00

As I suspected, most people seem to have enjoyed C2E2 a lot more than I did, which is great. I stand by my opinion that the programming schedule could be much more diverse than it was this year, although the con clearly does not HAVE to do this to have a successful show. Mostly I'm just glad that the Midwest has become a major part of the convention circuit again, and look forward to hopefully having a better time at the show next year. Onwards...

* Here's a typically sunny C2E2 report, this one focusing on children's comics at the show.

* Sean Collins interviews Yuichi Yokoyama for Robot 6, and previews his great looking new book. Really looking forward to that one.

* Todd McFarlane interviews Stan Lee, on the occasion of the 200th issue of Spawn. I wish McFarlane had let Lee talk more, but whatever. And hey, 200 issues of Spawn. That's pretty impressive, and also makes me feel old.

* OMG Benjamin Mara draws Savage Dragon! You know, I get the feeling a lot of the writers and artists I admire are Savage Dragon fans, but I rarely see any of them really talk about the series at length. C'mon, fellow fin-addicts, let's get to it!

* Yes, I'm linking to Roger Ebert's blog again. Here he is talking about one of my favorite new hobbies, streaming movies.

Con Report: C2E2 2011

2011-03-21T23:40:00.000-05:00

I've just returned from attending the Chicago Comics and Entertainment Expo (C2E2), now in its second year of existence. I attended last year, and now I really wish I had written a con report for that show, because, while I didn't have a great time this year, I am really pulling for C2E2 to be a successful show. With the decline of Wizard's once mighty and now marginal Chicago show, I think the Midwest really needs, and deserves, a first-rate comics show, and after a somewhat lightly attended but well-organized and entertaining first year, it looked as though C2E2 was poised to fill that niche.

As we* did last year, we attended all three days of the con. Attendance looked to be way up (I'm writing this report before reading any others, so I don't know the official numbers, if they've been tallied by this point). Also, industry giant Marvel seems to have given the show their blessing, unveiling several announcements at the con regarding upcoming projects, which I read as a vote of confidence in C2E2 as a major player on the convention circuit. Hollywood also seemed to have more of a presence this year, as well, with panels devoted to actors like Eliza Dushku, the cast of the hugely successful TV show The Walking Dead, and that guy playing Thor in the upcoming movie. My prediction is that the show will continue to grow in the coming years, and I expect that other comics companies like DC and IDW will follow Marvel's lead and treat the show as an important platform from which to unveil new projects.

So, with all of this good news to report, why didn't I have a better time? My biggest gripe was with the programming, which I felt was pretty terrible. I attended several panels at C2E2 2010, on subjects as diverse as Chicago subway poster art, the Golden Age of Chicago comics fandom, and spotlight panels and Jeff Smith and Archaia Studios Press. This year, there was literally not a single panel that interested me. Now, I realize that my tastes probably differ from those of the majority of the kinds of comics fans that attend these events. I completely understand the appeal of the TV and movie panels, as well as the Marvel and DC panels, even though I don't share most fans' enthusiasm for these sorts of things. I mean, I get it. As I said to David several times throughout the weekend, the mainstream is called the mainstream for a reason, and C2E2 is undoubtedly and unapologetically a mainstream comics show. And that's totally fine and awesome. I can't help, though, being disappointed that this year they seem to have completely disregarded the many, many sub-genres of comics fandom that fall outside of the superhero-dominated mainstream. It was perhaps naive of me to read the diverse programing of the con's first year, as well as choices like the selection of Jeff Smith as guest of honor, as a statement of purpose regarding the con's approach to representing a wider view of comics, even as its focus remained understandably on companies like Marvel and DC. Maybe I was hoping for too much, but it sure seems like a shame not to reach out to Chicago's rich alternative comics culture (Chris Ware lives there!), or throw a bone to fans of manga, or comic strips, or any aspect of comics HISTORY, and grant at least token representation to these aspects of the medium in the programming schedule.

In all fairness, I'm willing to concede that part of my frustration with the con may stem from the fact that I'm getting to the point where I might just not be the kind of fan who gets a lot out of even the best comics conventions anymore. I don't read a lot of Marvel and DC's current output and so don't really care about the direction of their respective "universes," I'm uninterested in celebrities, nor do I care about autographs or even interacting with comics artists whose work I enjoy other than through the work itself. For me, at this point, cons are pretty much all about the shopping (and even there I'm getting to the point of wondering how many more comics I really NEED to own) and attending panels. The shopping was pretty good (more on that below), but the panels, well, see above.

We did attend one panel, a spotlight on Marvel's upcoming "Fear Itself" crossover event. Not really the kind of thing I'm usually interested in, but, well, we had to attend SOMETHING. The (moderately) large room was PACKED. We arrived later than we should have (about five minutes before the panel was scheduled to start, I think) and had to stand in the back amongst a horde of other standing fans. I couldn't see the PowerPoint display very well, but Dave had a better view. Matt Fraction (who is writing the Fear Itself comic book), Brian Bendis, and some other guys I don't remember were on the panel. I didn't really catch a lot of what was said, as Fraction kind of mumbled through his description of what the comics were going to be about and also the doors to the room (which were directly behind us) kept opening and closing every couple of minutes to let people in/out of the room and into/out of the noisy hallway. The folks on the panel kept emphasizing that this storyline was going to be REALLY IMPORTANT and have MAJOR, LASTING CONSEQUENCES for the Marvel Universe, which I guess is really important to people for some reason. Actually, what little I caught of the description of the story sounded kind of cool to me, mixing aspects of the Captain America and Thor comics (both, probably not coincidentally, soon to be major motion pictures), but when I asked Dave about it afterwards he didn't seem too impressed, and he reads a lot more of those kind of comics than I do and knows a lot more about them, so, you know, take our respective opinions for what they're worth. Anyway, we left after about 10-15 minutes, which is when they opened the floor up to questions. If you've never had the pleasure(??) of attending one of the Marvel panels, they basically all follow the same format: ten to fifteen minutes of product announcements/hype, followed by Q&A, or, as I like to call it, PURE HELL. Seriously, and all respect to Marvel's fans (of which I am one, basically), but people ask TERRIBLE questions at these things, many of which the panelists CAN'T answer because the question falls so outside the scope of the panel subject/panelist's area of knowledge/panelist's job description, or WON'T answer because it would spoil some future plot point. Lots of questions about movies based on Marvel comics. Lots of requests for appearances by fan's favorite, obscure character. Terrible.

Wow, lots of snark in that last paragraph, huh? Okay, well, you know how you feel now that you've read this far? How you're sort of depressed about comics and annoyed with me and feeling like you've wasted your time/life? Yeah, that's how I felt after that panel, and a Saturday spent milling about aimlessly on the floor. Saturday's not a great day for shopping, either, as you've already nabbed your "must-buys" on Friday and the insane bargains motivated by dealers not wanting to haul all those comics and stuff back with them don't really show up until Sunday. So I was feeling a little blue. Sunday, though, was much better, partially because we only stopped by the con for about an hour to nab those Sunday bargains, and blew off the show for the rest of the day to visit the fine city of Chicago.

If the programming is C2E2's weak point, its greatest strength is its location at McCormick Place in glorious downtown Chicago. I remember some anxiety on the part of people talking about the show last year regarding its location downtown, how this may make the show difficult for some people to get to or somehow intimidating. On that front, and if you take nothing else away from this report, let me assure you that we found travel to downtown Chicago (we live in Milwaukee) to be a breeze, and our hotel provided fast and friendly shuttle service to and from the convention center. This really is one of the con's biggest selling points over the Wizard show, which is not really located in Chicago but rather in the suburb of Rosemont. Chicago is one of the Great American Cities, and if you're in town for the con, you'll want to take advantage of it. We spent our Sunday at the Field Museum, a beautifully curated natural history museum whose exhibit on the history of life on earth I found humbling, and, frankly, quite moving. We also visited the Hershey's Store on the Magnificent Mile, and had a great dinner at the downtown location of Bar Louie. The con was a month earlier than it was last year, so we didn't spend quite as much time strolling through Grant Park as we did last year, but it still provided a nice view just across the street from our room at the Essex Inn, and the weather wasn't so cold or drizzly as to hinder our short walks to downtown restaurants or El-Train stations in the slightest. Cabbies, shuttle drivers, and hotel staff were all incredibly helpful and friendly.

I also want to mention Graham Cracker Comics, a local chain of comic books stores with locations throughout the city. We visited the downtown store, which was a stop on the shuttle route to the convention center, a terrific idea that I have to believe gave a boost to the store's sales over the weekend. I certainly hope that was the case, as Graham Cracker (at least the downtown location), is a great comics store. The front windows, adorned with Marvel superhero characters and nothing but, did not inspire me with a huge amount of confidence. However, once inside, I found it to have a quite diverse stock, while still being primarily what I would think of as a mainstream comics store. After only a few minutes of being there, I stumbled across a trio of recent alternative comic books I needed (see below). I was impressed with their selection of new comics, back issues, and graphic novels. All categories looked to be basically well represented in this well-lit and nicely organized store, manned by a friendly and helpful staff. Apparently, Garth Ennis had been doing a signing there on the day we visited (Sunday), but he had left by the time we arrived. It's a safe bet we'll be adding them to our list of stores to visit while we're in Chicago, along with the more alternative flavored Quimby's and Chicago Comics.

And the food. My God, the food. Whenever we're in Chicago, we make it a point to stop at our favorite deep dish pizzaria, the original Gino's East. We also tried a rival chain, Lou Malnati's, on the recommendation of a friend. It was quite good (and they let you place your order before you're seated!), but Gino's is still king, as far as we're concerned. A great meal was also enjoyed at the downtown location of Flaco's Tacos, a place featuring really tasty Mexican food at really great prices that we more or less stumbled across. There are probably a lot of great breakfast places, too, but we were happy walking to one of two nearby Dunkin Donuts every day for our carb and caffeine fixes.

So, yes, as far as our visit to the city of Chicago is concerned, a great time was had, and I encourage everyone to visit. As far as C2E2 is concerned, I will be interested to read other people's reports. I will not be at all surprised to read many glowing reviews, as it is easy for me to imagine a lens through which this year's show could be viewed as everything a certain kind of fan could want out of a con and more. I'll be back next year for sure, although whether for one day or three, David and I are still deciding. Personally, I dearly hope that the show's organizers work to diversify the programming at least a little bit in order to highlight the diversity of the comics medium, lest the show itself be overshadowed by the wonderful city in which it takes place.

* The "we" I refer to here and throughout this report is myself and David Ferraro, who is my boyfriend and who also has a comics blog you should all be following, Comics-and-More, where he will doubtless be posting his own convention report, possibly featuring photos and/or jokes about how much I ate during our trip. David, thank you for putting up with my funk on Saturday and for helping to pull me out of it on Sunday.

.......

Addendum: Things I Bought

As I said, the show was pretty good for shopping. Below is a list of comic books and graphic novels I bought at the show, most for at least 40% off retail price:

Boody: The Bizarre Comics of Boody Rogers, edited by Craig Yoe

Archie Firsts

Krazy & Ignatz: 1943 & 1944 - "He Nods In Quiescent Siesta," by George Herriman, edited by Bill Blackbeard

The Golden Collection of Klassic Krazy Kool Kids Komics, edited by Craig Yoe

From Shadow to Light: The Life and Art of Mort Meskin, by Steven Brower with Peter and Philip Meskin

The Mighty Thor Omnibus Volume 1, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby

The Boy Commandos Volume 1, by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby

The Smurfs and the Egg, by Peyo

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures #8-18, 24-25, 28, 31, 33, 36, and 47, plus the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Meet Archie one-shot, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Presents: Donatello and Leatherhead #3 (of 3) (I sometimes like to try and collect a run of back issues at conventions only, without relying on the internet, and this year I thought I'd try and do so with the Archie Comics published Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures from the late 80s/early 90s. It was the first comic book series I followed and I remember it fondly).

In addition to the above, I bought these three handsome looking comic books at Chicago's Graham Cracker Comics:

Night Animals, by Brecht Evans

Crickets #3, by Sammy Harkham

Sammy the Mouse #3 (Book 39 in the "Ignatz" collection), by Zak Sally

Reader's Diary

2011-03-14T19:16:00.000-05:00

Oops! I had promised a new content post last week and totally dropped the ball. I apologize, and continue to try and improve both the quality and quantity of these posts.

Today, I thought I'd take a brief look at a handful of graphic novels I've read recently. I didn't have a whole lot to say about any of them, but I wanted to make note here of having read them. It was always my intention for this blog to be an accurate reflection of my comics reading life, so I may do more of these "Reader's Diary" posts in the future. All of these books are parts of series, many with new volumes just out or soon to be published. It's tough keeping up with reading all of the good comics out there, let alone blogging about them!

I purchased You Shall Die By Your Own Evil Creation, the second and final collection of comic book stories by the golden age artist Fletcher Hanks, during a recent Fantagraphics sale. While the stories in this volume aren't as good as those collected in I Shall Destroy All The Civilised Planets, it is wonderful to have the entirety of Hanks's work collected in these two books, both edited by Paul Karasik.

I also enjoyed Fantagraphics latest Jacques Tardi release, The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec Volume 1: Pterror Over Paris and The Eiffel Tower Demon. This book collects the first two adventures of Tardi's World War I era heroine, a crime writer who becomes involved in a series of complex adventures, often with supernatural overtones. Tardi is constantly confounding my expectations as a reader. I never know what to expect from this versatile creator, and was only slightly disappointed that this book does not follow the design of previous Tardi releases from the publisher. Also in the minor gripes department, I would have liked a little bit of context as to where these stories fall in Tardi's oeuvre, something that was nicely handled in the previous books. That information is available, of course....I found out from the Fantagraphics catalogue that Adele is Tardi's most popular creation, her first adventures were published in the 1970s, and there are nine volumes to date, with a tenth imminent.

I spent some time recently catching up with The John Stanley Library, a series of hardcover books published by Drawn & Quarterly and beautifully designed by the cartoonist Seth. I read the 2nd volumes of Melvin Monster and Nancy, and the first volume of Tubby. I like how Stanley always finds a way to inject fantasy into all of his comics. In Little Lulu, this is accomplished by the stories Lulu tells her bratty neighbor, Alvin. Tubby is visited in some of his adventures by a tiny Martian friend, and Nancy is reluctantly befriended by the creepy Oona Goosepimple, a great character who injects a bit of Adams Family style weirdness into the stories. Melvin Monster is of course a full-on fantasy story about a family of monsters, and is my favorite of all of Stanley's works. A third volume has just been published.

Finally, The Smurfette is the fourth book in Papercutz's new series of Smurfs graphic novels, reprinting the original comics by Peyo. I caught a bit of the old Smurfs cartoon on TV last night, and realized that the Smurfs have to be the most faithful adaptation of a comic to another medium ever. Stories, characters, and drawing style all made the transition from page to screen virtually unaltered. Too bad the producers of the upcoming film seem not to have taken the same approach...

Links! The Comics Journal

2011-03-08T16:25:00.000-06:00

What the..?? More linkblogging?? Yes, I had planned on a more substantive post today, but I wanted to comment on The Comics Journal's revamped online presence while it is still sort of news. Check back tomorrow for some actual content.

* So, yeah, Dan Nadel and Tim Hodler have taken over as editors of the online Comics Journal. I'm actually really excited about this and cannot imagine a better choice, as the now defunct Comics Comics came closest to the sort of "finger-on-the-pulse" coverage I've always felt the Journal should provide. I spent a lot of time at the new site yesterday, and, in short, it's exceptional. It looks like it is going to be everything I had wished the Journal would be when they moved the magazine online over a year ago. Beautiful site design, a stellar list of contributors, some really exciting columns (Cartoonist's diary! A history of alternative manga!), complete magazine archives available to subscribers, and an initial barrage of features that equal or surpass the best of those offered by the previous incarnation of the magazine over the past year or so. Rather than pull out any one piece, I encourage you to visit the new site and explore. This could really be something.

* In addition, please take the time to read this interview with Nadel and Hodler, conducted by Tom Spurgeon.

* Sadly, as we welcome the new incarnation of The Comics Journal, we must say goodbye to Nadel's and Hodler's previous online magazine effort, Comics Comics. The final, regular post there is a good one: Frank Santoro muses on an Ogden Whitney comic drawn in the style of Jack Kirby. Weird and wonderful. And, yes, Santoro will of course be a regular columnist for the new Comics Journal.

* Finally, having nothing to do with The Comics Journal and everything to do with me clearing out my links folder, Tom Spurgeon interviews Renee French.

Links! Fantastic Four

2011-03-03T16:59:00.000-06:00

Four fantastic links, that is. They don't have anything to do with the Marvel characters, but I think they're pretty nifty, anyway...

* First up, Gary Groth talks about the upcoming Fantagraphics reprints of Floyd Gottfredson's Mickey Mouse comic strip (and a little about the Carl Barks Donald Duck/Uncle Scrooge books, too). God, these are going to be great.

* Jeet Heer muses on a subject I've often wondered about but have never seen discussed: the sometimes odd placement of word balloons in the earliest comic strips.

* Roger Ebert talks about drawing.

* Finally, check out this massive list of horror movies, newly available for instant streaming from Netflix.

Sundays with Sunday Press

2011-02-27T16:01:00.000-06:00

Every Sunday morning, I give myself a little treat. I read a single page from two extraordinary books published by Peter Maresca's Sunday Press Books, Sundays with Walt and Skeezix and Little Nemo in Slumberland: Many More Splendid Sundays. The Little Nemo book is the second oversized collection of Winsor McCay's comic strip masterpiece. The first volume (now out of print) justifiably received a lot of attention when it was first published, as it represented the first time since their initial publication in newspapers that the Little Nemo strips were published in their original size, allowing readers to experience the strips as they were meant to be seen. It is probably fair to say that reading the strips this way is the only way to truly appreciate the artistry of Winsor McCay. A Selection of extended adventures are reprinted here, many for the first time, wherein Nemo and his pals are enveloped in the fantastic, shifting dreamscape that is Slumberland. There will never be another strip like Little Nemo, and Maresca has provided a great service in preserving some of it in this handsomely designed book.

As much as I adore the Little Nemo strips, I actually prefer Sundays with Walt and Skeezix, reprinting, in the same oversized format, the best of Frank King's Gasoline Alley Sunday strips. While the Gasoline Alley daily strips followed a kind of soap opera structure, with the characters famously aging in real time, the Sunday strips were usually one-offs, often depicting dream or fantasy scenarios that showcased King's extraordinary draftsmanship and sense of design. In these Sunday strips, Skeezix travels to the North Pole to visit Santa Claus, cavorts with witches and black cats on Halloween (in a strip drawn entirely in silhouette), and observes the changing of the seasons with his Uncle Walt, as well as many other adventures. Wonderfully, Maresca has recruited Chris Ware, who designs Drawn & Quarterly's Walt and Skeezix daily strip collections, to design this volume as well. Thus, the book design matches that of the daily series and is a perfect companion to it. Indeed, the Sundays book is necessary if one is to have a full understanding of King's achievement on the Gasoline Alley strip.

There are a handful of other books available from Sunday Press, with more to come. All look wonderful, but I think at least one volume of the Little Nemo material and the Walt and Skeezix book are essential.

Links! Long Time, No Blog...

2011-02-26T22:17:00.000-06:00

Sorry about the lack of posts around here lately. I had been doing pretty good for a while, though, don't you think? You may have noticed that I changed the background of the blog from black to white, which I think makes it easier to read. Also, I spent some time updating the links in the column to the right. Click around, won't you?

* Hilobrow is doing a series of posts called Kirb Your Enthusiasm, wherein various folks discuss a single panel from a Jack Kirby comic. Especially noteworthy is an entry by the great Gary Panter!

* Wow, The Comics Journal's R.C. Harvey really didn't like that new Chip Kidd Shazam book.

* Here's a really entertaining interview with Lynda Barry, conducted by Nicole Rudick, which I think is either trimmed or excerpted from a longer piece. Lynda Barry is always worth paying attention to, of course.

* I'm looking forward to The Comics Journal's return to print in its new format. Here are some details on that release.

* Finally, feast your eyes on this nifty John Byrne cover gallery. I like that some of the recent Star Trek work is included. (via Tom Spurgeon)

Links! Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T19:57:00.000-06:00

The following aren't really Valentine's related, but I've got a lot of good stuff for you this week that I hope you'll consider a kind of Valentine, from me to you. Awww...

* We'll start with your Must Read of the Week: Jog on late period Steve Ditko.

* A massive, two-hour audio interview with Al Columbia at Inkstuds.

* Speaking of interviews, this one with Christopher "C. F." Forgues , conducted by Matt Seneca, is among the best cartoonist interviews I've ever read.

* These have been online for a little while now: Chip Kidd is interviewed by both Vice and Comic Book Resources on the subject of his new Captain Marvel book, which I reviewed last week. I liked the book more than I think came across in that review.

* The awesome manga blog Same Hat! has posted a terrific profile of cartoonist Go Nagai from an old issue of Epic Illustrated, as well as a Nagai story from that issue. I love reading about artists like Nagai and being reminded of the depth of manga's publishing history and how relatively little of this sort of material we've seen translated, even with all the manga out there.

* Nothing real new or revelatory in this Erik Larsen interview about the new direction of Savage Dragon and an upcoming anthology comic book by Larsen, but I'll take any opportunity to mention The Greatest Superhero Comic Currently Being Published I can get.

* Roger Ebert's blog is always worth reading, but I found the elegiac tone of this latest entry to be particularly moving. God, that last paragraph. That last sentence.

* Finally, I kept forgetting to link to this amazing gallery of VHS horror movie box art at Monster Brains while it was being posted. Now it's all online for you to go and stare at. (via Sean Collins)

SHAZAM: The Golden Age of the World's Mightiest Mortal

2011-02-06T14:17:00.000-06:00

I've talked before about how much I love Chip Kidd's art books, and I've long considered the Fawcett Captain Marvel comics among the best comics I've never really read (meaning I've enjoyed greatly whatever reprints I've been able to get my hands on as they've trickled out over the years, but to date still haven't read much of it), so you would think this latest of Kidd's books would be pure heaven for me. Unfortunately, while I enjoyed the book, it nevertheless came as something of a disappointment.

The fault it mine, and not Kidd's. I was under the impression the book would be an examination of the original comic books and related merchandise of the Golden Age Captain Marvel. In reality, the book focuses, almost exclusively and by design, on the merchandise. Kidd is upfront about this in his introduction, and I can't really fault this fine book for not being what I wanted it to be. I do like looking at all of the toys and things, beautifully photographed by Kidd's constant collaborator Geoff Spear. In addition to the toys and other merchandise, Kidd publishes a lot of the ancillary material, such as letters from Captain Marvel to members of his fan club, and comic strips developed to sell the license to toy manufacturers. There's also a section devoted to the 1941 Captain Marvel movie serial starring Tom Tyler, for which Kidd has obvious affection and admiration. There is room for some discussion and presentation of the comics themselves: An early Captain Marvel story by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby is reprinted in its entirety, and I particularly enjoyed the section of the book which discussed the work of artist Mac Raboy on Captain Marvel Jr.

The book succeeds admirably at being precisely what it set out to be, although it certainly left me wanting a more thorough examination of the comics themselves. Kidd claims in his introduction that the comics are "very well archived in popular reprint editions," but I'm not so sure that's the case. DC, who now owns the rights to the characters, has put out four volumes of Captain Marvel comics in their expensive Archives editions, and one volume of Captain Marvel Jr. material in the same format. As far as I can tell, all of these volumes are now out of print and I've heard of no plans to continue the series, which I'm pretty sure is still a few years away from the "peak" material, anyway. A plan to publish a famous Captain Marvel storyline has apparently been put on indefinite hiatus.

At the risk of turning this review into another diatribe about the state of archival comics collections from the mainstream comics publishers, I hope someone at DC might be inspired by Kidd's book to bring some more of this material back into print. It seems the least they could do. It was DC who effectively ended the golden age of what at the time was the most successful comic book running when they sued rival publisher Fawcett over copyright infringement. The feeling was that Captain Marvel was too similar to their Superman character. Kidd reprints some transcripts from the 1948 trial, and it's pretty clear what side of the argument Kidd himself comes down on. Kidd writes about the end of Captain Marvel's golden age and DC's subsequent purchase of the characters, concluding "The future of the Marvel family was from then on in the hands of DC." It seems to me that DC is ethically bound to make available again the material they once censored.

Links! Angouleme Follow-Up, More

2011-02-03T17:02:00.000-06:00

First up, a couple of links following up on Monday's Angouleme post...

*Here's part three of the Tom Devlin,/Peggy Burns Angouleme photograph series, now with video!

*An interview with Art Spiegelman on winning the Grand Prix.

*Speaking of Spiegelman, Jeet Heer offers a defense of the artist and his career, which I would link to even if the essay didn't have an awesome title.

*In non-Angouleme news, I greatly enjoyed this history of the Smurfs and their creator, Peyo, by R.C. Harvey.

*Finally, an audio interview with Jean Schulz, Kevin Fagan, and Nat Gertler on the legacy of Charles Schulz and Peanuts.

Snow Day Rant: A Few Thoughts on Archival Comics Projects

2011-02-02T14:51:00.000-06:00

So I just finished reading volume two of the Fantastic Four Omnibus, collecting the second third of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's epic run, and it's got me thinking about the ways in which Marvel handles their archival projects. My thoughts run something like, "It really frustrates me, the way Marvel handles their archival projects." Don't get me wrong, the two-volume Fantastic Four Omnibus series is terrific, a great way to read some of the greatest superhero stories of all time, but, I mean, why is it only two volumes? Or will it eventually be three volumes, completing the run? I would have assumed a third volume was forthcoming, but volume two was published in 2007, only a couple of years after volume one, and I haven't heard anything yet, so...?

This obscurity of intent is a major problem. I adore the Lee/Kirby Fantastic Four, and I now, finally, own reprints of the entire thing in hardcover, but it's a wonky, mismatched set. I began purchasing the hardcover Marvel Masterworks years ago, and own the entire run in this format, but, since Marvel changed the design of the book jackets several times during its glacially slow publication, the volumes don't match (I know we're deep into nerd territory here, but if you've come this far I'm assuming you're the sort who maybe gets annoyed by this kind of thing, as well). Worse yet, the binding on at least one of these volumes has broken, and several of the pages have come loose. Friends, this is the volume containing "The Galactus Trilogy." Clearly, this just won't do. When they began putting out the Omnibus series, I thought, "Okay, this is it...this is the definitive format for the Lee/Kirby run. It even included the letters pages, which are absent from the Masterworks volumes. But, again, no third volume, so the run in the Omnibus format remains frustratingly incomplete. Now I see that Marvel is releasing their Masterworks volumes in softcover. Perhaps that will be the best way to obtain a complete, matching set, but they've got a ways to go before they reach the end at this point. Also, surprisingly, the Marvel Masterworks volumes continue beyond the Lee/Kirby issues. How long is this series going to run? It's just weird.

Another problem is the pace at which these things go out of print. I know at least one of the Fantastic Four Omnibus volumes is no longer available, and God help you if you decide to start buying the hardcover Masterworks at this point. It sometimes seems as though Marvel treats these books in the same way they do monthly comics, with no effort to keep anything in print for any length of time.

I'm sure a lot of these complaints can be leveled at DC, as well. These companiess have the rights to some of the finest comics art ever produced, but it sadly often goes unprinted or is collected in a haphazard and confusing manner. WHY is the long anticipated (well, by me and I'm sure at least a couple of other people) Sugar and Spike collection being published in the abysmal "Archives" format? WHY is their no sustained effort to reprint the Golden Age Captain Marvel? Or Plastic Man? What about Jack Kirby's Kamandi, two volumes of which were published in the Archives format, and then nothing? Will it eventually be republished to match the other Kirby reprints DC has been doing or continue in the Archives series? Or both? Or neither?? What in God's name is going on???

Okay, there's a part of me that feels bad complaining about this. I mean, I've got a whole SHELF of Kirby books that are pretty nice looking, all of Ditko's Spider-Man is contained in a single volume, I really like DC's "Chronicles" books, etc. I should be grateful. And I am. I just think a lot of this work deserves better. I wish Marvel and DC would take an approach similar to publishers like Fantagraphics, Drawn and Quarterly, and IDW, who have all done extraordinary work publishing archival editions of classic works, mostly comic strips, with a thoughtful editorial approach that shows the editors and publishers recognize the importance of the work they're publishing and feel a sense of responsibility to keep the work in print in a permanent form. My fantasy scenario would be to have Marvel and DC hire one of these smaller publishers to take over some of their reprints. Imagine a Fantagraphics published Plastic Man designed by Adam Grano or something. Failing that, I at least wish the Big Two were more up front about their reprint efforts. It feels like anything could show up in any format at any time (or not at all), which makes it really hard to commit to any one particular series of reprints.

Hopefully the rambling, near-incoherent nature of this post has prepared you for the fact that I have no real conclusion or final thought. Just wanted to vent a bit on the old comics blog. Hey, it's a snow day. I'm taking it easy.

Links! Angouleme

2011-01-31T17:58:00.000-06:00

Although I'll likely never attend, I always love reading reports from the annual Angouleme comics festival in France, one of the largest and most important comics events in the world. As always, Bart Beatty provides excellent coverage at The Comics Reporter. Here are Beatty's opening, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday reports. Mathias Wivel also reported in from the festival over at The Comics Journal, with Friday and Saturday reports, as well as commentary on this year's Grand Prix winner. Drawn & Quarterly's Tom Devlin and Peggy Burns have also posted an extraordinary collection of photographs from the festival, here and here.

That's a self-portrait of this year's Grand Prix winner, only the third American cartoonist to be thus honored. The winner of Angouleme's top prize serves as festival president the following year.

Review Roundup: Yoe Books!

2011-01-17T14:07:00.000-06:00

Let me try and explain what I like about the archival comics collections edited by Craig Yoe in general, before taking a closer look at some of the individual books in this Review Roundup. There is no doubt that we are living in a Golden Age of classic comics reprints. Several publishers have made available a wealth of material, often in "complete" editions which offer extensive historical and biographical information to give context to the work. Drawn and Quarterly's Walt and Skeezix series, reprinting Frank King's Gasoline Alley comic strip, is a fine example of this approach. I love reading these books and appreciate the efforts of these publishers and editors. It is a wonderful way to revisit this material or experience it for the first time.

However, I sometimes feel that I am missing out on something reading these comics in these handsome, hardcover volumes. Encountering the material for the first time in this way, it's easy to forget that these works were originally cheap, disposable, mass produced entertainment that the original audiance encountered first in short, daily installments in the newspaper or in children's comic books. Craig Yoe's books are neither cheap nor disposable, in fact they are beautifully designed hardcover books, but something in Yoe's off-the-cuff editorial approach restores a sense of "fun" to the experience of reading these comics. His books do not convey a sense of themselves as being the final, definitive way in which this material was meant to be read. Rather, one has the sense, when reading Yoe's books, of visiting with a good friend, one who is enthusiastic and knowledgable about the medium and is eager to share with you his latest uncovered comics gem. For some of the comics Yoe has reprinted in his books, this is the perfect approach. For others, one perhaps hopes for a later, "definitive" collection while still being grateful for the initial glimpse provided. They're all a lot of fun to read.

Below, I briefly examine a half dozen of the books published over the year just past from the Yoe Books imprint of publisher IDW.

* The Great Treasury of Christmas Comic Book Stories - I read this over the holidays and enjoyed all of the stories to one degree or another, many of which featured Santa Claus. There's some fine work here from artists like John Stanley and Walt Kelly, and even a cameo appearance by famed children's book illustrator Richard Scarry, who provides an adaptation of The Shoemaker and the Elves. This book was a great reminder of all of the wonderful comics that were produced for children during comics Golden Age.

* George Herriman's Krazy + Ignatz in "Tiger Tea" - This was my favorite of the books under review here, just for the quality of the material. I mean, it's George Herriman's Krazy Kat, you know? The hook is that the "Tiger Tea" strips represent Herriman's one and only attempt at a continued storyline in the Krazy Kat daily strip, although really the strips herein are more thematically linked than they are a sustained storyline, and kind of peter out by the end of the book rather than coming to any sort of resolution. But, who cares? Herriman's art looks really good reprinted large, as it is here, and the strips are really weird and funny. A neat look at one of the all time comics masterpeices in the form of a handsome little storybook.

* Dan DeCarlo's Jetta - This is the first in "The Good Girl Art Library" series. There were only three issues produced of famed Archie artist Dan DeCarlo's Jetta, a sexy teen girl from the future similar to Judy Jetson but who predated that more famous character. The comics are funny and well drawn without being remarkable, and the book is supplemented with 37(!) pin-ups of the title character by a variety of contemporary cartoonists. This is the kind of book Yoe's editorial approach is perfect for.

* Felix the Cat: The Great Comic Book Tails - Over 200 pages of classic Felix the Cat comic books you can breeze through in less than an hour. Seriously, these are some fast paced, vibrant, fun comics drawn by Otto Messmer, Joe Oriolo, and Jim Tyer. An extensive introduction provides context for the character and the comics. Did you know that Felix was the first cartoon character featured as a balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade?

* Barney Google - This would be a good example of a strip I would like to see picked up by another publisher for a full, "complete" reprinting. Billy DeBeck's creation is a diminutive gambler who goes from rags to riches and back again. The book reprints the first storylines involving Google's race horse, Spark Plug. Lively, "big-foot" cartooning at it's finest. I'd love to read more of this wonderful comic strip.

* Dick Briefer's Frankenstein - First in another sub-imprint, "The Chilling Archives of Horror Comics", Briefer's Frankenstein comics are notably not only for the expert cartooning chops of their creator, but for the fact that the series had both "serious" and "funny" incaranations. The series started out as straight-up horror, was reinvented as a comedy, and ended again as horror to meet the demands of the market. I liked the first two thirds of the book a lot. The early horror material was of the crazy, off the wall, I can't believe they used to make comics like this variety, while the comedy material is just wonderful. I would have liked to have seen a lot more of the funny stuff and less of the later, "serious" material, which, while well written and drawn, was pretty uninspired compared to the earlier versions of the character. Still, a nice look at a lesser known, quality comics series that I hope to see more of.

**

Addendum: A while back, I reviewed another of Yoe's books, The Art of Ditko, as part of a series of posts about Steve Ditko. You can read that review here.

Links! Tom Spurgeon and Jeet Heer Talk About Things

2011-01-13T14:48:00.000-06:00

*I've mentioned Tom Spurgeon's now completed Holiday Interview Series a couple of times on this blog already. Here's where you can find links to all of the interviews in the series.

*Jeet Heer made some smart comments recently about DC Comics announcement to reprint Sheldon Mayer's Sugar and Spike comics in their controversial "archives" format, comments to which Spurgeon responded, prompting a follow-up post from Heer. Here's a link to that second post by Heer, where you can also find links to the earlier parts of the discussion. As someone who is attempting a re-read of the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby Fantastic Four run, I've been thinking a lot about the Big Two's approach to their archival projects and will likely be posting more on this topic in the near future.

*With all of the great comics currently available, it's astonishing how many unexplored corners still exist. Just one of the reasons I really enjoy Jeet Heer's "Pay Attention" posts at Comics Comics, like this one discussing the cartoonists of National Lampoon. Lots of good comments in that post, too, including some from....Tom Spurgeon!

"... wearing a big grin and a custom-designed work apron featuring the dust sprites from Spirited Away."

2011-01-03T08:44:00.000-06:00

Well, of course you all should have taken my advice and be following Tom Spurgeon's excellent Holiday Interview Series over at The Comics Reporter, but just in case you haven't been keeping up, do yourself a favor and scroll to the bottom of this interview with the Cartoon Art Museum's Andrew Farago for the best "meeting a cartoonist" anecdote EVER.

My Favorite Comics Published in The Year Of Our Lord, Two Thousand and Ten

2010-12-31T20:37:00.000-06:00

Preamble: Good lord, am I ever unqualified to present a "Best of the Year" list. Looking over my bookshelves and longboxes in preparing the list that follows, I was astonished by how many books I would have liked to include here that were actually published in 2009. I should probably be doing the 2009 list now, and the 2010 list a year from now when I finally catch up with all of the great books published this year that I haven't gotten around to yet.

Fortunately, I'm more comfortable now than I've ever been with the idea of these lists as more a kind of biography of the list-maker than any kind of authoritative statement about the current comics publishing landscape, unless that statement is "there are too damned many good books for any one blogger to keep up with!" Seriously, there is just a glut of quality material out there right now, and while I want to read as much of it as possible for my own pleasure, the days when I could make any kind of attempt at "keeping up" are at least a couple of years behind me. And, as I said, I'm mostly fine with that. Do note these are MY FAVORITE 2010 comics, as opposed to THE BEST.

This is a ranked list, with the number one pick being my favorite comic of the year, although with the exception of the number one (and possibly number two) comics, the ranking is more or less arbitrary and would probably be different if I came back to the list a week from now. I considered everything: comic books, comic strips, graphic novels, reprints, manga, etc. The one exception I made was books about comics, of which Jaime Hernandez: The Secrets of Life and Death by Todd Hignite was the best of the year. I believe the final volume of last year's number one comic, Naoki Urasawa's Pluto, was released at the very beginning of this year, but I did not include it as I consider Pluto a 2009 work. It was a great year for comics. Please enjoy this list of books, and have a safe and happy new year.

****

10. If N' Oof, by Brian Chippendale - One way of looking at this past year is to acknowledge the rise of the so-called "new action" or "fusion" (to borrow a term from Frank Santoro) comics. Alternative cartoonists who embrace the conventions of genre comics to create thrilling new visions were in ample supply this year, including new volumes of Johnny Ryan's Prison Pit, C.F.'s Powr Mastrs, and Bryan Lee O'Malley's Scott Pilgrim, plus new comics like Shaky Kane's and David Hine's Bulletproof Coffin and James Stokoe's Orc Stain. My favorite book of this type was Fort Thunder alumnus Brian Chippendale's massive and massively entertaining If N' Oof, the story of two pals traversing a bizarre alien landscape. Chippendale's most accessible book to date may also be his best, as the one panel per-page approach he takes here provides us a new way of looking at his artwork and a greater than ever level of control over the pacing of this wildly entertaining story.

9. X'd Out, by Charles Burns - Burns' follow-up to his extraordinary horror graphic novel Black Hole is hard to describe, combining influences from punk culture, horror films, and European comics albums, most explicitly Tin Tin. The way Burns uses color in this book is perhaps my favorite use of color in comics this year, which is great for an artist whose last and most high profile project was known for its stunning black and white artwork. I also love that this is the first in a series of volumes, because I reeaaaallly want to read more.

8. Picture This, by Lynda Barry - I suppose another way of looking at the year in comics is as the year a lot of established masters of the form came out with some excellent, potential career-best books. That's certainly the case with Lynda Barry's Picture This, her follow up to 2008's What It Is. These books both combine comics, painting, and collage to explore Mrs. Barry's philosophy and approach to art and writing, the newest volume focusing more explicitly on drawing and image making. If you make, have ever made, or have ever wanted to make any kind of creative work in any medium, you MUST read these lovely and inspiring books.

7. The Complete Peanuts 1975-1976, The Complete Peanuts 1977-1978, by Charles M. Schulz - Yes, it's the inevitable appearance of this year's Complete Peanuts volumes, with the series moving just past the halfway point and into the late 70's. After the fascinating early years of the strip in the 50's and its evolution and refinement into one of the all-time great strips in the 60's, it was a delight to rediscover these wonderful 70's strips, which to my mind strike a perfect balance between the ever present serious and silly sensibilities of Peanuts. Schulz's life's work is all things to all people, with a cuteness and sweetness on the surface, a razor sharp wit just underneath, and depths of poetry and sadness at its heart. The Platonic ideal of a comic strip.

6. Walt & Skeezix 1927-1928, by Frank O. King - Or, how about we consider this year yet another step forward in the Golden Age of Classic Comic Strip Reprints (see above)? Finally returned after a three year hiatus, Jeet Heer and Chris Ware edit and beautifully present a fourth volume in this invaluable series reprinting Frank King's Gasoline Alley comic strip. This volume contains some fairly significant developments in the lives of the cast of characters, who famously age in real time. A year-long custody battle for Skeezix when his previously absent birth parents return, and the birth of Walt and Phyllis's biological son, Corky. As in previous volumes, a wealth of biographical material and King family photographs add context and poignancy to this previously obscure comic strip gem, one of the most moving and lovingly drawn narratives in comics history.

5. A Drunken Dream and Other Stories, by Moto Hagio - I've been waiting years for someone to publish something by Moto Hagio, and I was not disappointed in the slightest by this book. In fact, I loved everything about it, from the drop-dead gorgeous design work by Adam Grano, to the fine selection of stories by editor Matt Thorn, to the reprint of Thorn's definitive interview with Moto Hagio reprinted from the issue of The Comics Journal where I (and, I assume, most North-American comics fans) first became aware of the artist, to the fact that the master cartoonist herself attended Comic Con International: San Diego and reportedly had as great a time as the fans who were lucky enough to meet her in person or attend one of her panels. None of this would mean much if the stories weren't any good, of course. Fortunately, they're exceptional. These exquisitely drawn short narratives across a variety of genres spanning Hagio's decades-long career are terrific reads in and of themselves, and provide a fascinating glimpse into a tradition of comics-making we've still seen very little of. More like this, please.

4. The Acme Novelty Library #20, by F. C. Ware - This may be the single best work of Chris Ware's career. The fact that it is merely a part of (or supplement to?) a longer, as yet uncompleted graphic novel is mind boggling and kind of frightening. One of two great works by two great comics masters experimenting with the comics medium to tell the life's story of an unlikeable protagonist released this year, I liked best Ware's seemingly effortless employment of art styles vastly different than what we're used to seeing from him to tell certain parts of the story. I'm glad this is showing up on a lot of other people's end of the year lists, and that discussion is happening around this book. There's a lot to talk about here. A book whose virtues should only multiply upon the inevitable and necessary re-readings.

3. Wilson, by Daniel Clowes - I really liked Wilson. For my money, the laugh-out-loud FUNNIEST comic released this year, and also one of the smartest and most formally thrilling. The way Clowes structured the book, as a series of one page "gag" comic strips which reveal the character of Wilson and tell this sad chapter of his mean little life opened up a whole new way for comics to explore long-form narrative. I was also pleased that my initial reading of the book as being heavily influenced by Charles Schulz's Peanuts was confirmed by the author himself in numerous interviews, but, y'know, that's beside the point. The nature of the character and the pitch-blackness of the humor aren't for everyone, but if yours is the type of sensibility that can appreciate this sort of thing, you'll find Wilson a delight from first page to last.

2. Savage Dragon #156-167, by Erik Larsen - Well, here's a fine example of how these sorts of lists can be sort of ridiculous. I would hate to be put in the position of arguing the case for these issues of Erik Larsen's long running superhero comic as being "better" than Daniel Clowes' Wilson, but I'm CERTAIN I had more fun reading these than almost anything else this year. Savage Dragon is everything I want out of superhero comics and then some. Larsen has been writing and drawing his comic since the early nineties, and it is better now than it has ever been. The latest issue is the best in the entire run. Constantly surprising, energetically drawn, and fun fun FUN. I've not missed an issue in all these years, but in 2010, with the status-quo shattering "Dragon War" and "Emperor Dragon" storylines, it again became a "read it on Wednesday" release. I wrote about the series at length here.

1. "Browntown" and "The Love Bunglers, Parts One and Two," by Jaime Hernandez, from Love and Rockets: New Stories #3 - Jaime Hernandez is my favorite living cartoonist, and these short stories, which MUST be read in conjunction with each other, are my favorite thing he's ever done. What a thrill to witness first hand the publication of a certain All Time Great Comics Work from an artist whose place in the cannon is secured ten times over. I missed out on "Flies on the Ceiling," "Wigwam Bam," and "The Death of Speedy Ortiz" upon their initial publication, but I was there for "Browntown" and "The Love Bunglars," and for that I will always be grateful. Read my full review of Love and Rockets: New Stories #3 here.

My Favorite Christmas Comic

2010-12-25T09:06:00.000-06:00

(click to make big)

scanned from a book you should buy

Links! Happy Holidays!

2010-12-24T15:36:00.000-06:00

No joke, one of my absolute favorite holiday traditions is Tom Spurgeon's annual holiday interview series. The belle of the ball so far is the lengthy chat with Matt Seneca, a cartoonist and blogger who was barely on my radar before but who I will definitely be keeping a close eye on now. Anyway, read all the interviews posted so far and check back every day for more, Spurgeon does a really good job with these. (That link is to the Seneca interview because I couldn't figure out how to link to the series, but, again, they're all worth reading).

Jeet Heer debuts a new column at Comics Comics spotlighting books that may not have received the attention they deserved upon initial publication. This seems like a potentially excellent and NECESSARY column, as there is just a glut of quality material out there and things can easily get lost in the shuffle. Join me in the comments section of that post to suggest your own overlooked gems.

Merry Christmas!

Peanuts: The Art of Charles M. Schulz

2010-12-14T16:54:00.000-06:00

I'm going to say right up front that I loved every page of this book. That's no surprise. I adore Peanuts and am a great fan of Chip Kidd's art books, particularly Batman: Animated and the under-discussed The Golden Age of DC Comics: 365 Days.

What is surprising is that it took me this long to get around to reading the damned thing. Published way back in 2001, the book seemed particularly noteworthy at the time for showcasing some of the earliest Peanuts strips, which as aficionados are aware are quite different from what the series would eventually evolve into. Fantagraphics started up their complete reprinting of the strip a few years later, but before that I don't think those early fifties strips were readily available anywhere. Actually, The Art of Charles M. Schulz makes a great companion to the Fantagraphics series. Those books, reprinting two years worth of strips per volume, are about at the halfway point right now, so reading the Chip Kidd book now reminded me of how much the strip changed over the course of its long run, a change that appears much more gradual when reading the Fantagraphics volumes. It's neat to see the changes take place within the pages of a single volume, and the eighties and nineties strips reprinted here by Kidd serve as a kind of preview of what's to come in the Fantagraphics releases.

For those unfamiliar with Chip Kidd's books, they take an art-heavy, text-light approach to their subjects. Printed here are strips photographed from the original artwork or from the pages of the newspapers in which they originally appeared, with minimal interjections by Kidd, usually noting subtle changes in Schulz's drawing style or the first appearance of a major character. Also present are photographs of various Peanuts merchandise, to the chagrin, I'm sure, of those comics purists who are uncomfortable with this aspect of Peanuts. Readers of this blog know I have no such problem, so I enjoyed this aspect of the book greatly. Both strips and merchandise are lushly photographed by Kidd's frequent collaborator, Geoff Spear, who does his usual exemplary job and probably should have his name on the cover of the book along with Schulz and Kidd. Spear's photography transforms mass-produced, off model toys into fine art that is just lovely to look at and, in its way, quite moving.

I'm not sure there are many like me who love Peanuts and haven't gotten around to this book yet, but on the off chance that there are, consider this your reminder that it is out there, and that it is well worth your time.

Links! Good Writing About Books I Haven't Read

2010-12-13T15:11:00.000-06:00

The essays linked below contain great writing on interesting topics, even if (like me) you haven't read the particular works being discussed.

* I really liked David Ferraro's review of Thor: The Mighty Avenger at Comics-and-More, particularly the digression about the difference in sales between serialized children's comic books and the bound collections of same. I believe that's the cover to the forthcoming collection of the Thor comics, above.

* Tom Crippen has revised his essay on Alison Bechdel's Essential Dykes to Watch Out For at The Comics Journal, giving me the perfect excuse to link to it. Some really fine, thoughtful writing here.

Links! Miscellany

2010-12-04T16:59:00.000-06:00

Three links with no relation to one another, other than the fact that they all pertain to comics...

*Lots of folks linked to this Vice profile of Jack Kirby by Dan Nadel, and rightly so. It is quite good, and contains a generous sample of Kirby artwork.

*Dash Shaw gives an enthusiastic recommendation for an Osamu Tezuka documentary DVD that accompanies Helen McCarthy's The Art of Osamu Tezuka. I second the recommendation...that is a great DVD. That's a Tezuka self-portrait, above.

*Finally, Diversions of the Groovy Kind provides a nifty gallery of John Byrne Avengers splash pages.

Cover of the Year

2010-11-25T12:59:00.000-06:00

Today is Thanksgiving, and one of the things I'm thankful for is that Erik Larsen is still writing and drawing his long running superhero comic, Savage Dragon. The series has been excellent lately, and the latest issue was one of the best yet. That cover image has great significance for someone like me, who has been reading the series since the beginning. If you haven't been following along, though, don't be afraid to dive in NOW. Simply put, if you're not reading Savage Dragon, you're missing out on the best superhero comic currently being published. 'Nuff said.

I Dearly Love Old Marvel Comics Letters Pages

2010-11-21T19:57:00.000-06:00

"Now before closing, we just want to mention, in answer to many requests, we will have a special pin-up page of Sue Storm, the gorgeous Invisible Girl, next issue. See you then!"
- "Fantastic 4 Fan Page," Fantastic Four (Vol. 1) #10

...they advertised the pin-up on the cover to issue ten, as well. See what all the fuss was about below....

hubba hubba. In related news, I have a new scanner.

Links! Santoro's Faves, Scott Pilgrim, and Yet Another Reason to Love Lynda Barry

2010-11-18T15:49:00.000-06:00

* The Best of the Year lists are starting to trickle in. I particularly liked Frank Santoro's list, and his smart reading of C.F.'s City Hunter Magazine #1.

* Shaenon Garrity has an excellent review of Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour up at the Comics Journal site.

* This National Post profile of the incomparable Lynda Barry is pretty great. I was delighted to learn that one of my favorite artists is a fan of one of my favorite guilty pleasures: Bravo's The Real Housewives tv shows! Do you think Mrs. Barry is on Team Bethenny or Team Jill??

Links! Special John Byrne Edition!

2010-11-11T16:56:00.000-06:00

A couple of John Byrne-related links this time out. I think I came across both via The Comics Reporter.

* How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love John Byrne is a cute fan video made from J. Torres' and Tim Levin's comic of the same name. I love John Byrne, too, but I spend a lot of time worrying about it.

* Letters of Note offers up Byrne's original letter to Uncanny X-Men co-writer Chris Claremont re: the introduction of a new character.

Fantastic Four: Year One

2010-11-07T16:39:00.000-06:00

I wanted to take a look at Fantastic Four (Vol. 1), #s 1-7, those issues released during the first year of the title's publication. While Stan Lee's and Jack Kirby's finest work on the series was still several years away, I have always had a particular fondness for these very early issues of Fantastic Four. I have fond memories of devouring the hardcover Marvel Masterworks volume collecting the first ten issues when I was a child, indisputably one of the greatest Christmas gifts I ever received, and one of my first exposures to "old" comics and, most importantly, the work of Jack Kirby. I've recently begun a re-read of the series as collected in the awesome Fantastic Four Omnibus series, and have been delighted to find that these early issues stand up very well to my nostalgia-tinged recollections of them. Indeed, Fantastic Four was a really great comic right out of the gate.

The first issue is one of the all-time great comic book origin stories, and confidently ushered in a new style of more "realistic" superhero stories, with characters who did not fit the mold of the then-fashionable clean-cut superhero. There is of course a lot of debate about how much (if any) credit Stan Lee should be afforded for the creation of these characters and this type of storytelling. The true "authorship" of these comics has been the subject of much speculation over the years, but I don't really want to get into that here. The long and the short of it is that I think it entirely appropriate to assume the credits in the actual comics are more or less accurate, and consider Stan Lee to be the "writer" and Jack Kirby to be the "artist," inasmuch as those clean distinctions even apply to comics, at least for the purposes of this review. But I digress.

Anyway, in the first issue they fight the Mole Man, and in the second the foursome battle the shape shifting Skrulls From Outer Space. They don't have their costumes yet, but their personalities are pretty well formed. These early stories strike me as a kind of mixture of traditional superhero yarns and the kinds of monster and science fiction stories Marvel was publishing in books like Journey Into Mystery and Tales to Astonish. I don't know if this is what Lee and Kirby had in mind, and I haven't seen anyone make that comparison before, but it is interesting to examine the Fantastic Four in the context of what else was being published at the time.

By issue number three, Lee and Kirby seem to have realized they had a bona fide hit on their hands. The cover proclaims it to be "The Greatest Comic Magazine in the World!!" This phrase would of course be modified in the following issue to "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine," and be a more or less constant presence on the covers for years to come. The off-beat group finally accepts some of the more traditional superhero trappings in this issue, as well, with the debut of their superhero costumes, their secret base of operations in the Baxter Building, and their flying vehicle, The Fantasticar. They fight the Miracle Man in this issue.

Things really get cooking in issue four, wherein Namor, the Sub-Mariner, a hero from the Golden Age of comics, is reintroduced as a villain. The anti-hero status of a character like Sub-Mariner was a clear indication that we were entering a whole new era of comics, and Namor's affection for the Invisible Girl (and hers for him?) further blurred the lines between hero and villain.

Dr. Doom, generally considered one of the greatest villains in superhero comics, is introduced in issue five, and in issue six he and the Sub-Mariner team up to battle the Fantastic Four. The story ends with Doom betraying Namor, leading the Atlantean prince to team up with his sworn enemies to defeat Doom. The issue also features the first of many "deaths" for Dr. Doom, as he hurtles into deep space at the story's conclusion. He would return and "die" again many times.

Issue seven is an odd one-off that I'm actually quite fond of, featuring a villain called Kurrgo, Master of Planet X. This story reads like one Stan Lee may have had in the vault, a story that could have appeared in one of the sci-fi anthologies with the Fantastic Four grafted onto it. Still, it's a nifty little tale with a twist ending, the type we wouldn't see much more of as the series moved forward and further away from its sci-fi and monster comics roots.

Stan Lee's and Jack Kirby's long run on this title is unquestionably one of the greatest superhero epics of all time. The series' "golden age" begins, for me, in issue forty-four with the introduction of the Inhumans and a particularly fruitful artistic collaboration between Jack Kirby and inker Joe Sinnott. If you haven't read these comics and want a sample, by all means, start there. But if you enjoy that later work, don't hesitate to jump back to these very early issues which, besides being great entertainment in their own right, lay some important groundwork for one of comics' truly great works.

Expect the Unexpected

2010-11-01T09:17:00.000-05:00

I really have no idea where Brian Chippendale is going with his webcomic Puke Force, but I certainly wasn't prepared for a freakin' Smurfs homage! Gnap!

Links! Horror, Hunger Games, More

2010-10-22T19:30:00.000-05:00

I don't get how people do this blogging thing. It seems as though I always have to choose between reading comics and blogging about them. That doesn't seem right, does it? Anyway, here are some links to folks who seem to have a better handle on this whole Internet thing...

*I really liked this interview with Johnny Ryan at The Comics Journal site, on the subject of his excellent horror comic Prison Pit, one of my current faves.

*Dig this comics adaptation of YA novel The Hunger Games by Faith Erin Hicks.

*Although he was not in attendance, Tom Spurgeon provides the best post-game analysis of New York Comic Con I've come across. If you only read one NYCC report, etc.

*Moviefone counts down the 20 Most Iconic Horror Scenes of All Time, and provides video clips. A pretty good list so far, I thought.

Links! Peanuts, Mome, more

2010-10-13T21:28:00.000-05:00

Yes, it's time for another link roundup here at Articulate Nerd. I want to try and alternate these posts with posts featuring original content, but most of my free time lately has been spent reading David Foster Wallace's excellent (and, like, really, really long) novel Infinite Jest. Now that I'm finished reading that formidable tome, I should have more time to read and review comics. I hope. I also haven't had time to read most of the pieces I'm linking to here, but don't let that stop you!

*First up, a couple of links related to Fantagraphics' quarterly anthology, Mome, which is celebrating it's fifth anniversary. That's the subject of this interview with Mome editor Eric Reynolds at Robot 6. Also worthy of your attention is Rob Clough's review of Mome vol. 19 for The Comics Journal. Seems like Rob liked this newest issue as much as I did. That D.J. Bryant story was the star of the show for me, but almost every contribution to this volume knocked it out of the park, and Clough does a great job examining each story.

*I'm really looking forward to reading this interview with Charles Schulz's widow, Jean, about the future of the Peanuts franchise. Ditto this article on upcoming plans for Peanuts merchandising, which I'm guessing may cover some of the same subjects as the interview.

*Here's a good one for the weeks leading up to Halloween. The great Richard Sala is posting portraits of various nefarious looking characters in a blogging project he is calling "Unmasked." (via The Comics Reporter)

*Jog used to post long pieces of comics criticism on a regular basis, and now does so only occasionally. He remains the best he is at what he does, so this long essay re: Alan Moore's Neonomicon #2 is certainly worth noting.

*Sean Collins (who is also responsible for the Eric Reynolds interview linked above) is blogging his way through Los. Bros. Hernandez's comics masterpiece Love and Rockets this month, and supplements that ambitious project with this previously posted interview with the superhumanly talented cartoonists.

*Holy crap, Josh Simmons comic Cockbone is online! (Um, NSFW) I've wanted to read this for quite some time. Simmons also has work in the new issue of Mome. It's all coming back to Mome this week, which is why I've chosen to illustrate this post with Simmons' cover to the new volume.

Links!

2010-10-03T13:02:00.000-05:00

I'm going to try and post a little roundup of links to cool or noteworthy stuff every week. Here are some goodies I stumbled across in the past week or so....

*Over at Comics Comics, Dan Nadel has been posting excerpts from "Right Thing the Wrong Way: The Story of Highwater Books," a catalogue for an exhibition opening October 1st at Fourth Wall Project in Boston. Highwater was a terrific and important arts-comics publisher, and this sounds like it would be a great show. Here are the first two excerpts, with more on the way, presumably.

*Bob Levin is one of the greatest writers about comics around, so you won't want to miss his essay on underground cartoonist Greg Irons.

*My boyfriend has a new blog! Teen-sy Little Book Blog examines young adult literature. Maybe start with this post about author Christopher Pike, a good example of the kind of writing David does very well. David also has a comics blog, Comics-and-More, that you should all be following.

*Publishing news: I am a great fan of the 1960s Batman tv show, and I think it would be great to have a comprehensive book that would be kind of a complete guide to the series, with interviews and lots of photographs and images from the series. This isn't that, but it could be sort of interesting, and it gives me an excuse to post a picture of Yvonne Craig as Batgirl, sporting one of my favorite superhero costumes ever. Really, that costume is gorgeous.

Adam Grano: He Just Kinda Loves the Smurfs and is Awesome at Book Design

2010-09-29T00:23:00.000-05:00

Is it weird to do a post about a book designer? Probably, but whatevs. I read a couple of great graphic novels last night, back to back: The Smurfs and the Magic Flute by Yvan Delporte and Peyo, and You Are There by Jacqes Tardi and Jean-Claude Forest. I knew the Smurfs books were designed by Adam Grano because of his successful public appeal for the job from several months back, and I was pleased to note that Grano also did the design work for the Tardi book (I think I had known this but had forgotten until I checked again). Anyway, two great designs for these very different series. I love the bright, simple, open and easy to read look of the Smurfs books, appropriate for a series aimed at young readers. There's a little Smurf profile in silhouette near the top that indicates the number of stories you'll find inside, in this case a single book length graphic novel. The first volume had three stories and three little Smurf silhouettes. The Tardi books also have a simple, uniform design. So far all of the covers have been composed of a black and white detail from one of the interior pages, with the title and creators' names in a different colored box, in this case green. A book designer is responsible for more than just cover images, of course, and these books just have a lovely overall look that flatters the material. Just an all around great presentation. Grano also did the design for the excellent Moto Hagio anthology, A Drunken Dream, easily one of the year's best and best-looking hardcover releases. Beautiful work.

Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days

2010-09-25T14:23:00.000-05:00

Imagine the dream that may result from lying on the couch late at night with a fever, having just fallen asleep to David Lynch's Lost Highway on the television, followed by black and white Fleischer Brothers cartoons that you maybe catch bits and pieces of as you drift in and out of semi-consciousness, and you'll get some idea of the sorts of feelings Al Columbia's book, Pim & Francie: The Golden Bear Days will conjure within you. The book is a collection of short stories, most only partially completed, as well as drawings and single-panel cartoons, all centered around the Pim and Francie characters, a creepy-cute boy and girl cartoon duo who sometimes seem to be lovers, sometimes brother and sister, sometimes maybe both. The black and white comics and art are often printed as visibly damaged, with creases, tears, and tape visible over the original artwork. There is not a narrative in the traditional sense, only the barest suggestion of stories about these characters and their nightmarish world. As in a dream or nightmare, just when you think you've got a handle on things, perspectives and identities shift. Pim and Francie are sometimes the victims in these horror stories, sometimes the monsters. Their grandparents are depicted both as loving caregivers and as dangerous maniacs. A few motifs show up several times throughout the book: the haunted forest; broken dolls or other cartoon figures; knives and razorblades; a cartoonish, sunny landscape revealed as a frayed illusion obscuring a dingy reality behind the curtain. Al Columbia has worked in comics for a long time and been long-admired. This first published collection of his work shows off his talents to great effect. A frightening horror show of a comic you won't soon forget.

"Do you think the sun is yellow or blue?"

2010-09-18T20:09:00.000-05:00

Love and Rockets: New Stories #3 is the best issue so far since the relaunch as an annual, and contains a story by Jaime Hernandez that is as good as, or better than, the very best of his many great works. Much more on that shortly.

First, let's take a look at Gilbert Hernandez's contributions to the book, the short stories "Scarlet by Starlight" and "Killer * Sad Girl * Star." As faithful Gilbert fans are aware, he has been releasing a series of graphic novels which are meant to be "adaptations" of films in which L&R fan favorite Fritz has starred (or played supporting roles) in over the course of her career as a cult B-movie actress. The graphic novels Chance in Hell and The Troublemakers comprise this series, and are of course highly recommended, as is Speak of the Devil, a comic book mini-series (later collected) that is meant to be a depiction of the actual events that inspired one of Fritz's films, as opposed to one of the adaptations of the films themselves. Still with me? If not, don't worry about it. All you really need to know is that Gilbert Hernandez has been producing some pretty amazing comics in a variety of genres over the past few years, and he offers another one here in "Scarlet by Starlight," an adaptation of a science fiction film in which Fritz "plays" a kind of alien cat-woman named Scarlet who becomes infatuated with a human male. I was pretty excited by the idea of reading a story where Fritz is depicted as a nonhuman character, and I was not disappointed. Gilbert expertly uses the tropes of pulp sci-fi and exploitation pictures to tell a story that delves first into eroticism and spirals quickly into depravity and violent horror. I was reminded of the classic R. Crumb comic "Whiteman Meets Bigfoot," as well as the recent horror film "Splice." I'll leave it at that, and let you uncover the perverse pleasures of this strange and wonderful story for yourself.

I haven't got as much to say about Gilbert's "Killer * Sad Girl * Star," except that it brings us up to date with some of the players in the ever expanding "Palomar/Luba" universe, and makes a place in that world for the great "Dreamstar" superhero comic Gilbert did for Dark Horse's online Myspace effort.

As good as Gilbert's work here is (and it's fantastic), Jaime steals the show this time around with his sure to be classic short story "Browntown," wherein we bear witness to a previously unseen chapter in young Maggie's life, a time in which she and her family moved away from the familiar environs of the neighborhood that would come to be known as "Hoppers" for a few years. Maggie is eleven at the beginning of the story and thirteen at the end, when her family moves back to Hoppers. Crucial years for just about anyone in any circumstance, made more painful and difficult for Maggie as she must adjust to a new town she doesn't much care for. As it turns out, these are a crucial few years for the entire family, as Maggie's father's infidelity is brought to light (by a guilt-ridden Maggie herself), and her younger brother, who a preoccupied Maggie doesn't seem to pay a great deal of attention to, enters into an increasingly toxic relationship with an older neighborhood boy who Maggie may be developing a crush on. In fact, while Maggie is ever the star of the show and the emotional journey she endures in this story is compelling and significant, at its heart "Browntown" is a story about her little brother Calvin and his relationship with the unnamed older boy. Their relationship begins with Calvin's being bullied by the boy and his friends, then brought in as a junior member of their group and later a particular friend of the unnamed boy, before taking a dark turn that would have lasting, tragic consequences for Calvin and his entire family. Jaime depicts all of these events with an almost superhuman level of skill, compassion, and subtlety. There are so many great moments in this short story, simply depicted but pregnant with meaning. Maggie's letters home to her friend Letty. Maggie's chastisement by her father when she tries to sit on his lap, as his young mistress looks on. The heartbreaking changes young Calvin undergoes over the course of the story, depicted partly through body language, like the young boy's exuberant leap into the air when watching a passing parade contrasted with his more contained, hunched posture as the story progresses before reaching its violent and devastating conclusion. To read this expertly crafted story by our greatest living cartoonist is to be haunted by it.

At first, I sort of wished that Jaime had not included his two-part "The Love Bunglers," which reunites Maggie and ex-boyfriend Ray in the present day, not because it isn't very good, but because "Browntown" was such a powerful piece of cartooning I felt perhaps it should stand alone. That is until it becomes apparent in the final pages that the latter story comments on the former, and the way in which Hernandez connects these two stories adds an additional, powerful layer to an already powerfully moving story.

I honestly didn't really know what to do with myself after having read this book, other than just to sit and think about what I had just read, about the characters(people) whose world I had just lived in and the ways in which their stories(lives) had resonance with my own. Finally, I picked the book back up with the intention of perusing Jaime's gorgeous and perfectly composed artwork one final time before putting it on the shelf for a while. I ended up turning the pages slowly, being drawn in again by the story. I closed the book and stared for some time at the cover, a depiction of Maggie and her siblings that seemed like a nice enough drawing before I had read the stories inside, and which after having read them had become a perfectly composed image containing multiple layers of nuance and meaning. The gaze of the children is intense but focused in different directions. They do not look at each other. They are unobserved by the adults in the background. In the sky above them, a strange blue light hovers mysteriously, a light perhaps only one of them will see, or perhaps has seen, or perhaps not. It is an image not of innocence nor of innocence lost, but of three children who have each come to regard the world a little differently than they had before; a world filled with beauty and decay, grace and sin, in equal measure, as the children themselves are filled. Yeah. It's that kind of comic.

Your Quote of the Day

2010-07-09T08:55:00.000-05:00

"I try to find a balance between sophistication and fun, in type, palettes, layout, and materials. Sophistication and fun are opposites in many people’s minds. But I like to respectfully present comics as art, while always keeping in mind that they are – or should be – F-U-N. God save us from dry, academic, pretentious, or even bleak approaches to writing about – and designing books about – comics. Fuck that shit!"

- Craig Yoe, from this imprint interview.

In truth, I greatly enjoy and value many of the "academic, pretentious" books Yoe is probably thinking of, but as I tried to make clear earlier, I really enjoy Yoe's approach, as well, and it was great to get this "statement of purpose" from him in an entertaining interview.

The Smurfs, Vol. 2, No. 1

2010-07-09T00:05:00.000-05:00

I'm not really much of a Smurfs fan. Of course I watched the cartoons as a kid and remember liking them, but I haven't really thought about them in years. I was aware that the characters originated in comics, created by Belgian cartoonist, Peyo, but I had no idea if these comics were supposed to be any good or not, nor did I have any real knowledge of their publishing history. I went into this $1 preview comic for the upcoming series of Papercutz graphic novels pretty fresh; optimistically curious.

The twenty page comic book reprints the first appearance of Smurfs nemesis Gargamel, who captures one of the little blue guys with the intention of using him as a key ingredient in the creation of a philosopher's stone. Most of the story takes place after the Smurf is captured, and Papa Smurf leads a group of Smurfs in a rescue operation. The tone is one of light adventure/comedy, smartly written and appealingly drawn, with many pages broken into several small panels which serve to pack in a lot of story even while keeping the pace brisk and the action flowing. I enjoyed it quite a bit.

The Smurfs themselves don't really seem to have distinct personalities, or even names, except for Papa Smurf. Just a bunch of funny looking little blue guys bouncing around the page, trying not to get eaten by Gargamel's cat, Azrael, and rescue their friend from the evil alchemist. There's not really enough here for me to make up my mind as to whether or not Peyo's Smurfs is a great comic, but I enjoyed reading this story and now intend to pick up the first of the Smurfs graphic novels. So, for this preview effort, mission accomplished.

Ditkoblogging: The Art of Ditko

2010-07-04T19:16:00.001-05:00

The Art of Ditko, edited by Craig Yoe, is the first book produced under Yoe's new imprint at IDW, Yoe Books. Like Blake Bell's Strange Suspense: The Steve Ditko Archives from Fantagraphics, Yoe's anthology collects work original published by Charlton. Unlike Strange Suspense, this book is more a "best of" sampler than a complete archival project. Most of the stories collected here are from later in Ditko's career than those collected in the Fantagraphics volume, and are closer in style to the Ditko most comics fans are familiar with. There is one story that is reprinted in both books.

There has been some criticism of Yoe's approach to these sorts of reprint projects. It has been argued that in this, the Golden Age of Comics Reprints, Yoe's books don't always measure up to the quality that comics fans have come to expect; that his editorial approach is somewhat slapdash and does not always present his subjects in the most appropriate context. Certainly, a comparison of the two Ditko books shows this to be basically true. If you're looking for an important archival document that provides an accurate context for an important and previously under-represented aspect of an important artist's career, Bell's book is the one you want to have on your bookshelf.

Having said that, I'd hate to think that such an approach is the only way this material can or should be experienced. Personally, I've always been quite fond of Yoe's editorial approach, which I first encountered in his "Arf" anthologies, published a few years ago by Fantagraphics. In tone, presentational style, and choice of subjects, Yoe brings across the feeling of an enthusiastic and knowledgeable friend bursting with enthusiasm to show off his latest collection of way cool and crazy comics. I find that incredibly appealing and, well, fun. If I had to pick one of the two Ditko anthologies to own, I think I would have to choose the Bell-edited volume. But, in a way, I enjoyed reading Yoe's book more. I liked his choice of stories, which showed off many of Ditko's well-known trademarks, such as hallucinatory alien dimensions and a creeping sense of intense paranoia, to great effect. I liked the big pages and short essays by Stan Lee, John Romita, Jerry Robinson, P. Craig Russell, and Craig Yoe himself. I liked the selection of quotes from the notoriously reclusive Ditko, culled from his personal correspondences with Yoe, that closed the volume. It's a fun book.

I don't have much to say about the stories themselves. They're all pretty silly, and like the other book, represent a variety of genres, primarily horror, although most of the ones presented here are "Post-Comics Code," and thus much tamer than what you'll find in Strange Suspense. If you like Ditko, you'll like this book. Yoe and Bell have both promised further volumes in their respective series. I say bring 'em both on, and if anyone else wants to get into the game, they have my full and enthusiastic support.

Ditkoblogging: Strange Suspense: The Steve Ditko Archives, Vol. 1

2010-06-29T13:40:00.000-05:00

This handsome book collects over 230 pages of early work by the great Steve Ditko, specifically the comics he produced for Charlton in 1953-54. Compiled and edited by Blake Bell, who also provides an introduction, the book can be seen as a kind of companion to Bell's Ditko biography, Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko.

The stories reproduced here, originally drawn for such Charlton titles as The Thing, This Magazine is Haunted, Space Adventures, and Strange Suspense Stories, represent many different genres popular in comics at the time, including science fiction, western, and romance. Most of the stories, though, are short horror tales in the Pre-Code, EC Comics tradition. In truth, the stories themselves aren't much fun to read. Most are formulaic plots with requisite twist endings, a style of comics storytelling that has not aged well. What makes these comics great, though, is of course Steve Ditko's dynamic artwork. While he is years away at this point from developing his signature style, the dynamic figure work, thoughtful panel composition, and the frenzied, kinetic energy are all here, in service to the types of stories I have to believe Ditko would have found offensive as he developed his unique philosophical outlook later in life.

He holds nothing back here, though. While Charlton as a publisher had notoriously low standards for what they would print in their magazines, Ditko seems to be putting forth his best effort in his meticulously rendered comics, apparently doing his best to carry on the EC Comics tradition of high quality craftsmanship. While I can't say it's always a lot of fun to read a bunch of these comics in one sitting, this book is unquestionably a valuable resource for those interested in Steve Ditko's career. A second volume is forthcoming.

Nobody Does It Better

2010-06-26T10:45:00.000-05:00

I have zero interest in reading Marvel's new Avengers comics, but I sure loved reading Brian Chippendale's review of them.

Splice

2010-06-22T18:04:00.000-05:00

The movie to see in theaters right now is Splice, a good film utterly committed to following it's creepy premise through to it's logical conclusion and beyond. I admired the bizarre and sometimes shocking plot turns, and was delighted the story never devolved into a series of horror movie cliches. It's much better, and weirder, than the trailers would have you believe. Highly recommended.

Ditkoblogging: Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko

2010-06-15T14:40:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure I have a whole lot to say about Blake Bell's wonderful biography Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko, but I promised more Ditkoblogging, so more Ditkoblogging is what y'all are gonna get. This lovely, over sized hardcover is equal parts art book and biography, showcasing many examples of Ditko's work from various points in his career, including images both famous and obscure. Bell provides what may be the most comprehensive biography of the artist we are ever likely to get. He does a fine job explaining the pervasive influence of Ayn Rand's Objectivist philosophy on Ditko's life and work, and one can see how Ditko's adherence to a strict moral code makes him both one of the most fascinating artists ever to have worked in comics, and also one of the most frustrating, as he routinely refuses interview requests and has in effect alienated himself from most of the comics industry. Bell also does a great job taking a close look at Ditko's artwork and storytelling, breaking down what makes Ditko's art work so well with clear, passionate writing.

I don't know that it would be possible to get a better understanding of Ditko's work from a single volume, but, frustratingly, the man himself remains elusive. There is precious little personal information provided in this biography. No fault of Bell's, of course, due to Ditko's notorious reclusiveness. Still, one can't help but wonder after such information, particularly when, after having finished the book, the question of "Who is Steve Ditko?" remains largely unanswered. While we may come to understand how Objectivism shaped Ditko's work and professional relationships, we have little clue as to WHY Ditko was so susceptible to this philosophy taking over his life so completely. Certainly, many people have read and continue to read Ayn Rand and even find tremendous value in her ideas, without alienating themselves to the extent Ditko seems to have done. What about Ditko's personal life, almost a complete blank here? I assume he did not marry or have children. Does he have many friends? What about his relationships with his family?

Again, I want to reiterate that the absence of such information is no fault of Bell's. Indeed, it is to his credit that the compelling portrait of the artist provided here makes one so hungry to learn more about the man. As I said, though, this is likely as close to a definitive Ditko biography as we're going to get. If we cannot know Ditko himself, at least we can know his work, which is beautifully presented here. Bell obviously has a great deal of affection and admiration for his subject, as well as the skills to put together such an important book about the life and legacy of one of comics' true masters. I would think this book is a "must" for the library of any serious student of comics.

Ditkolinkblogging

2010-06-10T21:07:00.000-05:00

Consider this post a sort of "placeholder" to let you all know I haven't forgotten about those promised Ditko posts. I'll be out of town and away from the Internet for at least a few days, but I'll be back soon with a review of Blake Bell's Ditko biography, Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko. Until then, check out these great Ditko stories presented by my blogging betters:

Machine Man #10

"The Hammer of Thor"

(Both links via The Comics Reporter)

Ditkoblogging: In Search of Steve Ditko

2010-06-04T16:41:00.000-05:00

I'm really into Steve Ditko right now, thanks in no small part to the wonderful Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus. I'm going to be purchasing some of the other Ditko collections that have been put out recently, and hopefully blogging about them here soon. As a sort of prelude to those posts, here's a link to the first part of a very good BBC documentary, In Search of Steve Ditko, posted on YouTube. You should be able to find and watch the following six parts easily. I know it's been online for a while now, but I had forgotten about it and only just recently got around to watching it, so I thought some of you may appreciate the reminder that it's out there. Check it out, and then check back here for more "Ditkoblogging!"

Old Marvel Comics Letters Pages

2010-05-30T14:14:00.000-05:00

I've been reading this great book, the Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus, a mammoth tome collecting the entirety of the Stan Lee/Steve Ditko run in a single volume. I don't really want to review the book here. I mean, if a mammoth tome collecting the entirety of the Stan Lee/Steve Ditko Spider-Man run isn't inherently appealing to you, I can't really help you. I did want to mention one particularly enjoyable aspect of the book, though: The letters pages from the original comics are reproduced here in all their glory.

It seems like I'm always talking about letters pages. I like 'em. Especially in comics released pre-internet, I find them to be a really useful and entertaining way to engage with the mindset of early comics fandom. Now, of course I realize that the letters reprinted here represent a consciously edited version of early Marvel comics fandom, namely the version Stan Lee wanted his readers to see, but that's sort of fascinating and useful, too. The warm atmosphere and distinctive editorial "voice" Lee employs in these pages was a huge part of what made those Silver Age Marvel comics so appealing to so many kids (and adults). It's a real treat to see firsthand how Stan Lee thought about the books they were publishing, and how he wanted the readers to think about them. While most of the missives were filled to bursting with praise, a fair amount of negative letters are printed as well, with more than a few coming down hard on Steve Ditko's "weird" drawing style.

As much as I love reading these old ones, I don't really think many of today's comics would be well served by bringing back letters pages. The discussion of comics happens in a different way now. Namely, online, and by a more informed and sophisticated network of fans and semi-professional websites reporting comics "news." Still, letters pages were once a crucial factor in what made those old Marvel comics so unique and wonderful, and the Omnibus books provide a valuable service in preserving this piece of the company's history. Plus, you know, the entirety of the Stan Lee/Steve Ditko Spider-Man run in a single volume! Did I already mention that?

Fantastic Four #570-578

2010-05-02T19:15:00.000-05:00

I don't read a lot of new Marvel comics these days, but I was intrigued when I heard there was considerable buzz attached to the current work being done on Fantastic Four by writer Jonathan Hickman and artist Dale Eaglesham. Fantastic Four was the first superhero comic I followed regularly, and although I haven't read any new issues in several years, the idea of a really good Fantastic Four series definitely appealed to me. The first five issues were recently collected in a nice hardcover, giving me the perfect opportunity to get caught up and see what all the fuss is about.

I gotta say: I liked it. Hickman kicked off his run with a bang, with a three-part arc wherein Reed Richards discovers a parallel dimension populated by multiple versions of himself, dedicated to the goal of solving all the problems of the multiverse. This great concept was enhanced by the creative designs of the various Mr. Fantastics, and Hickman's inventive twists on familiar concepts like the Infinity Gauntlet, Galactus, and the Celestials. The crux of the story involves Reed's decision whether to remain with the multiversal collective or return to his family. While the outcome of this story is never really in doubt, it was nevertheless a nice showcase for the character and a good opening salvo to Hickman's run. The following two issues weren't as good. Featuring guest-art by Neil Edwards, these one-offs focused on an issue wrapping up some plot threads from I think Mark Millar's recent run on the title (which I didn't read), and an issue built around young Franklin Richards' birthday party. Hickman planted a lot of seeds for future storylines in this issue, including a prophecy from the future delivered by an adult Franklin to his little sister, Valeria. While these stories may not have packed the punch of the initial storyline, I was entertained enough to want to keep reading.

I bought the next four issues in single issues. Each of these is a self-contained story that add up to a larger arc wherein the Fantastic Four discover and explore different super-cities around the Marvel Universe. This all ties into the prophecy from the birthday party issue. These issues were pretty great. I liked seeing the team act less like superheroes and more like explorers, and the new locales and characters Hickman introduced here again provided unique spins on familiar concepts. There were some nice character moments for the individual team members, particularly the Invisible Woman in issues 576 and 577. On the whole, Hickman seems to have a good handle on these characters, although the Thing seems thus far somewhat lethargic and underutilized.

I haven't really talked about Dale Eaglesham's artwork. He does fine work on the series. The covers are by Alan Davis, and Eaglesham has a similar style to that artist. His drawings are very clean and polished, with clearly defined characters and dynamic action sequences. It's not the kind of artwork I tend to get really excited about, but it looks great on the page and is a good fit for Hickman's writing. I hate to fall into the cliche of the comics reviewer who spends multiple paragraphs on the story and only one on the artwork, but I'm not sure there's much more to say about Eaglesham's contribution at this point. It seems to me like a very writer-driven book, but I may be completely underestimating Eaglesham's contributions, I don't know. It looks nice. Kirby he ain't, although that's, of course, a ridiculously unfair comparison.

You know another thing I like about this comic? It has letters pages! They get pretty good letters, too, and Hickman himself answers them in a very forthright and honest voice. Okay, sometimes he answers in the voice of Franklin and Valeria, which is kind of annoying, but still...letters pages! Just like in olden times.

So, I'm going to keep following this series in single issues, something I don't do a lot of these days. I'm genuinely really excited to read the next issue, even though it has a guest artist. There's a real sense of exploration to this book that I enjoy. It's not in the same league as Lee and Kirby's legendary run, of course, and not even as good as John Byrne's work with the characters from the eighties, at least not yet. It's been a great entertainment so far though, and has a lot of potential. I think Hickman says he has plans through at least issue 600, so I'm looking forward to seeing his master plan unfold. Like, you know he's got something great planned for Doctor Doom. It's been great fun spending time with these characters again, in the company of a creative team who is doing right by them. So, um, make mine Marvel, I guess. Excelsior?

Wilson

2010-04-26T14:17:00.000-05:00

Wilson is the new graphic novel by Daniel Clowes, his first comprised of all new material not previously serialized. The structure is unique: 77 single page cartoons, drawn in a variety of styles, in which the narrative of the miserable life of the titular protagonist begins to emerge. The single page cartoons follow a classic Sunday comic strip format, many ending in very funny punchlines, some ending in profound moments of intense sadness.

The story concerns the social misfit, Wilson, an obnoxious blowhard whose intense rudeness and misanthropy conceal a deep loneliness. After a series of darkly comic vignettes establishing Wilson's life and personality, the plot gets rolling when he receives a call informing him that his estranged father is dying. The severing of this last, tenuous link to family sets Wilson on a course of reconciliation with his ex-wife, and eventually to the discovery of the existence of a daughter he never knew he had. If that all sounds a bit treacly, rest assured that the shape these reunions take pushes the narrative into some surprisingly dark areas, including kidnapping and a stay in prison for Wilson.

Clowes' thoughtful construction of this graphic novel is nothing short of brilliant. The use of single panel cartoons to tell this story seems less like an artist "experimenting" with form and more like the logical extension of the comic strip narrative. It actually reminded me a lot of Charles Schulz's Peanuts, in the way an accumulation of short "gag" strips reveal a deeply sad narrative just underneath the surface. Some of the cartooning styles Clowes employs even resemble the drawing in Schulz's strip. Wilson's dog looks a lot like Snoopy. Should I mention here that Dan Clowes' son, Charles, is named for a certain famous comic strip character? You get the point.

Wilson is one of the saddest and laugh-out-loud funniest graphic novels I've come across in quite some time. It is among the author's best work, which is saying something, and is the best comic of the year so far. Oh, and that last page is brilliant.

Alec: The Years Have Pants

2010-03-25T14:15:00.000-05:00

This giant omnibus collects seven previously published autobiographical graphic novels by the great cartoonist Eddie Campbell, perhaps best known as the artist of the Alan Moore-written From Hell. The "Alec" stories, though, are his life's work, essentially a diary comic featuring Alec MacGarry, a thinly veiled stand-in for the author, created over the course of several years.

The earliest books collected here, "The King Canute Crowd" and "Graffiti Kitchen" comprise the Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man segment of this massive autobiographical project, a series of anecdotal tales of Campbell's and his friends' barhopping misadventures and romantic escapades in and around Scotland, and abroad. Although Campbell employs a variety of artistic styles and narrative techniques throughout the book, these early efforts essentially set the tone for what is to follow: a scratchy, black and white art style vaguely reminiscent of Jules Feiffer. A somewhat detached, bemused, and highly witty tone. The stories are keenly observed and highly intelligent. Campbell and his friends seem like a swell bunch of blokes to spend time with.

The best book is the third collected here, "How to be an Artist," wherein Campbell details both his career as a cartoonist and the ways in which it intersects with his colleagues, as well as expounding on his philosophies on the life of an artist in general. He makes a special point of this section's title: "How to be an Artist", as opposed to "How to become an Artist." Less a how-to career guide, then, and more a philosophical approach not just to art but to life itself. I also enjoyed this book for its glimpse of the small-press scene in the U.K. in the 1980s, and it reminded me in some ways of Yoshihiro Tatsumi's very good A Drifting Life, in that both works examine important eras in their respective nation's developing comics cultures, although Campbell's work has a more refined and literary approach.

"Little Italy," "The Dead Muse," and "The Dance of Lifey Death" explore Campbell's time with his wife living in her native Australia, and other events in Campbell's life. The work grows more ruminative and introspective as Campbell grows older, without losing any of its wit. If I haven't made it clear already, and I fear I haven't, The Years Have Pants is frequently laugh-out-loud funny.

The final full graphic novel collected here, "After the Snooter," is quite strong. The Snooter is the manifestation of Alec/Eddie's fears, doubts, and insecurities, pictured by Campbell as a sometimes human-sized beetle with an elongated, curled proboscis. Following Snooter are the first chapters in an unfinished graphic novel in which Campbell attempts to chart the "History of Humor," followed by several short, anecdotal tales as epilogue.

Between the covers of this 638 page tome you will find the bulk of the life's work of one of our most talented working cartoonists. Still, there was something vaguely unsatisfying to me about this book. I'm not sure that this omnibus volume is the best way to experience this material for the first time. It can be both overwhelming (due to its sheer length), and underwhelming (not all of the pieces cohere into the kind of finished narrative in the way I had expected. The unfinished work and short anecdotes that close the volume felt like something of an anticlimax). It was also really hard to comfortably hold while reading. Of course, all of these gripes are relatively minor, especially when measured against Campbell's considerable craft and ambition, his extraordinary skills as a cartoonist and storyteller, and his staggering commitment to this project in particular and his art in general. There is a lot of wisdom to be found here, and a lot of laughs. Perfectly observed moments of both tragedy and triumph. Despair and Hope. Something very much like a life, well-lived.

C2E2

2010-03-22T10:49:00.001-05:00

The Comics Convention Chicago deserves has announced their programming schedule.

Glee

2010-03-22T10:42:00.001-05:00

This isn't new, and I suppose most people who are interested have already read it, but I just started watching Glee so I'm linking to this interview with Chris Colfer, who plays one of my favorite characters on the show, from The Advocate.

Roger Ebert's Journal

2010-03-17T16:43:00.000-05:00

Occasionally, I'd like to draw special attention to one of the websites featured in the Other Voices, Other Rooms column on this blog. Film critic Roger Ebert's official website is my primary source for online film criticism, and has many exceptional features, in addition to regularly posted reviews of newly released films, that are well worth your time. Of particular note is Roger Ebert's Journal, a blog hosted by the Chicago Sun-Times and linked to Ebert's homepage. This blog regularly features some of the finest writing to appear anywhere online, on a variety of subjects. Ebert writes about movies here, but he writes about a lot of other things as well. He writes about politics, Darwin's Theory of Evolution, Cooking, the ways in which his recent surgeries have affected his life, and whatever else happens to be on his mind. His travel writing in particular is exceptional. His posts here are always interesting, and often moving and inspiring. I highly recommend regular visits.

Everything all of the Time.

2010-03-11T15:14:00.000-06:00

If you're so inclined, you may now follow me on Twitter. I've added a widget showing my latest tweets over in the sidebar.

GOGO MONSTER MINI-REVIEW

2010-03-08T14:07:00.000-06:00

Just a few quick words about Taiyo Matsumoto's GoGo Monster. I really enjoyed this book, about a young boy who may or may not be in contact with otherworldly spirits who inhabit the restricted fourth floor of his elementary school. Mastumoto's distinctive, European-influenced artwork elevates what in other hands may have been a too on the nose parable about growing up, and losing that childlike sense of the world as a magical place we all once had but that many lose. The story culminates in a bravura sequence, a dark night of the soul in which Our Hero discovers a fifth floor in his four story elementary school, and engages in a kind of spiritual battle with the beings he finds there. Scary stuff. I liked that the spirit creatures did not appear in the actual book, only on the cover, and that they do so there in colorful, fully painted brilliance. This book would have made my Best Comics of 2009 list had I gotten around to reading it in time. Great ending.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

2010-03-04T14:19:00.000-06:00

If you are among the proud few who have been following me on Twitter, you know I've spent a lot of time recently watching the TV series, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, on DVD, and having a hell of a great time doing so. I watched the later seasons of the show when they originally aired and remembered it fondly, but watching it again from the beginning on DVD has significantly raised my opinion of this extraordinary series.

DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller as a spin-off of Star Trek: The Next Generation, thus making it the third series in the Star Trek franchise. I think DS9 began during the fifth or sixth season of TNG, and it ended its 7-year run while a fourth show, Star Trek: Voyager was still on the air, meaning that DS9 was never the ONLY Star Trek show on television. On the one hand, I think this caused it to be overshadowed somewhat by the other series. On the other hand, I think it was also good for the show, because it did not bear the weighty responsibility of being the "main" Star Trek series, embodying all of the values and tropes traditionally associated with Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future. I have no idea if this kind of thinking was in the minds of DS9's creators, but as the series progresses it becomes, delightfully, very much its "own thing," with a style all its own, quite different than what you would find on other Star Trek shows or films.

The premise, in brief: Deep Space Nine is a space station built and once occupied by a hostile alien race called the Cardasians. It orbits the planet Bajor, which the Cardasians had conquered and ruled for several years until the Bajoran resistance eventually overthrew them and won back their planet, as well as the space station. While Bajor is NOT a member of the United Federation of Planets, the Federation nevertheless takes an interest in the Bajoran people and Deep Space Nine, placing Commander (later Captain) Benjamin Sisko in charge of the station and it's crew of both Starfleet and Bajoran officers. Things get a bit more complicated when a stable wormhole to the distant Gamma Quadrant is discovered near Deep Space Nine, an event that has great religious significance for the Bajorans and great political significance for everyone else. So, there's a lot going on.

At first, the primary difference between DS9 and the Trek series that preceded and followed it was that DS9 was a "land based" show. All of the other Trek series involve a spaceship exploring the galaxy, whereas DS9 presented the inverse: Hundreds of alien races of diverse origins and agendas would pass through the station. Because the characters on the show were more or less fixed in a central location, the series began to differentiate itself further by building a rich continuity and continuing storylines of the type Star Trek had always shied away from. As the series progressed, episodes became less episodic and standalone. Characters developed and grew together in ways that were unprecedented in the Trek universe, culminating in a marriage between two of the lead characters, Lieutenant Commanders Dax and Worf.

DS9 was also a darker, much more cynical series than any of the other Star Trek shows. It dealt with complex issues like religion. Eventually, a galaxy spanning war broke out between the Federation and their allies and a sinister force from the Gamma Quadrant known as the Dominion. This conflict played out over the last three seasons of the series, and the majority of the episodes were devoted to it in one way or another, taking the show to some very dark and intense places, and there is some controversy among fans that it may have strayed too far from Roddenberry's Utopian vision for Star Trek.

I want to be careful not to suggest that the fact that DS9 was the "darkest" of the Star Trek shows means that it was the best. I think there is a tendency among some to equate darkness or seriousness with quality. I don't believe this is the case. I would not have wanted another Star Trek show like DS9, because I think that would have turned the franchise into something it was not meant to be. However, since DS9 was never the only Star Trek show going, it was allowed to explore some stranger aspects of the vast Trek universe, while shows like TNG and Voyager carried on Roddenberry's vision of peaceful exploration, a vision I find great excitement and pleasure in.

It's difficult to summarize all of the things I enjoy about a show as complex as DS9. The writing is often incredibly strong. The special effects hold up surprisingly well and look terrific on DVD. Mention must be made of Michael Westmore's extraordinary work with the makeup and prosthetics of the various aliens, many of which are so ugly they are almost beautiful. I think, though, the thing that makes DS9 truly outstanding is the wealth of terrific characters, both regular stars and recurring guest stars, and the wonderfully talented actors who bring them to life. Avery Brooks as Captain Sisko brings an energy and intensity to his role that reminds me in some ways of William Shatner's iconic Captain Kirk. Armin Shimerman as the Ferengi bartender, Quark, and Michael Dorn, as Lieutenant Commander Worf(who started on Star Trek: The Next Generation) bring their characters to life despite extensive makeup and prosthetics, creating two of the most well loved characters in all of Star Trek. Nana Visitor's Colonel Kira is a character I didn't fully appreciate the first time I watched the show....she seemed cold and harsh to me then, whereas now I can see the layers of the character's history embodied in the performance.

The best actors among the regular cast are Rene Auberjonois as the shape-shifting security chief Odo, and the great Colm Meany as Chief Miles O'Brien, another Next Generation transplant. Auberjonois is one of the great character actors and is always a delight whenever he appears on the big or small screen, and, like Shimerman and Dorn, creates a fully realized, a fully "human" character despite a heavy make-up job. Meaney's Chief O'Brien is a delightful "everyman," a capable engineer who is good at what he does and strives to do right by his friends and family, played by an actor I'd love to see offered a starring role in a feature film.

This is getting long, and my going on about the actors and how great they are is probably getting kind of boring, so I'll forgo the extensive list I made of some of the wonderful recurring characters and conclude by discussing one in particular, a character whose presence always elevates the episodes in which he appears. I am speaking, of course, of the great villain Gul Dukat, played to perfection by Marc Alaimo. The former Cardasian overseer of Deep Space Nine, Gul Dukat had a fascinating character arc throughout the course of the series. He had been a dictator, a rebel, a grieving father, a madman, and a religious leader, slipping into each role as naturally as the snake he resembles sheds its skin. Dukat's relationship with Sisko was complex and intense, a mixture of loathing and admiration on Dukat's part and basically just loathing on Sisko's part. As Gul Dukat, Marc Alaimo had the richest part on the series, and he took full advantage of it, bringing the full force of his oily charisma to bear in each and every scene. I could never keep a small smile from my face whenever Dukat appeared on screen, regardless of how dire the situation of our heroes was doubtless about to become.

So, Deep Space Nine: Easily the best show I'm watching right now. I don't know if I'd call it the best of the Star Trek shows, but it is certainly the most unique, and more complex and entertaining than those who are dismissive of all things Trek probably realize. Their loss.

Peanuts Lanterns

2010-01-28T11:55:00.000-06:00

Red = Lucy

Orange = Snoopy

Yellow = Sally

Green = Charlie Brown

Blue = Linus

Indigo = Woodstock

Violet = Violet

Black Lantern Avatar = Shermy

Black Lantern Guardian = Miss Othmar

Lucy was a natural fit for red, as she is the character who is shown to be angry most of the time. I don't really think of Snoopy as being very greedy, but the gags about all of the treasures stored up in his dog house made him the character most associated with physical objects other than Linus, who I felt was a better fit as a Blue Lantern. I've always thought of Linus as a more optimistic version of Charlie Brown, maybe who Charlie Brown would have been had he had a source of security and constant companionship as Linus had with his blanket. There's hope in that idea, I think. Also, as the character who most often quotes scripture, Linus was a nice fit with the messianic overtones of the Blue Lantern Corp. A lot of the Sally gags seem based on her anxieties. I think Peppermint Patty is a better fit for Green, actually, but I had to get Charlie Brown in there somewhere. The trait I most associate with Woodstock is friendship, so he seemed like a good pick for the Indigo Lantern....also, his speech is portrayed as illegible dashes, similar to the alien speech of the Indigo Lanterns. The Violet thing was too obvious not to use. I like the idea of the Black Lantern Corp. consisting of the forgotten Peanuts characters from the early days of the strip who didn't quite work out, and one of the unseen adults as the mastermind behind the scenes.

The fun started here, I saw it first here.

Good Grief.

YES

2010-01-24T17:26:00.000-06:00

...what he said

Two From PictureBox

2010-01-21T15:25:00.000-06:00

I just received two nifty publications from the wonderful publisher PictureBox, C.F.'s (Chris Forgues) City-Hunter Magazine #1, and a new Jimbo mini-comic from Gary Panter. Both of these I believe debuted at the first annual Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival earlier this year, but you can still order them directly from PictureBox, which is how I got my hands on them.

The Jimbo comic is eight pages long, with the first page of the story serving as the cover and the last page of the story as the back cover. The first two pages (the front and inside cover), and the last two pages (the back and inside cover)are a bright green, while the inside pages are bright orange. Each copy of this limited edition comic comes signed by Panter and stamped with a date and number. It's an intimate little package that Panter fans will want to have. The story concerns Panter's long running Jimbo character squatting inside a billboard, below which another character is harassed by a couple of robots who seem to be in some position of authority. Given that the story is so short (albeit densely packed with drawings and symbols), I don't want to give away the entire plot by describing exactly what happens. Suffice to say there is a lot of great Pantery stuff to look at here (Monsters, Robots, a terrific Frank King-esque full page look at Jimbo's digs inside the billboard divided into twelve panels). It's a story about Jimbo trying to find some peace in a loud and busy world populated by bullies and monsters.

C.F.'s City-Hunter Magazine #1 is something completely different, and difficult to describe. PictureBox's site describes it as a 'zine, which I suppose is a more accurate description than "comic," as it contains drawings and text pieces as well as a comics feature, "Main Dice," wherein on oddly dressed little dude explores a nameless city in a series of landscape panels. The whole package had for me the feel of an artist's sketchbook, with all of the drawings, comics, and text circling around the vague idea of community in one way or another, with a great deal of energy and humor. I didn't really know what was supposed to be going on a lot of the time, or where C.F. was coming from, but I'd love to read another issue. C.F. is one of the most original and entertaining cartoonists working right now, and there's a great deal of pleasure to be had in a magazine in which such an artist draws exactly what he wants to draw, exactly as he wants to draw it.

The Troublemakers

2010-01-17T11:40:00.000-06:00

I'm afraid your Friendly Neighborhood Articulate Nerd is going to have some trouble living up to the "articulate" half of that moniker when discussing the work of Gilbert Hernandez. Gilbert's work, and that of his brother, Jaime, is so appealing to me that it is difficult for me to analyze just what makes it "work" so well. I almost always enjoy reading comics by Gilbert Hernandez, and the new, original graphic novel, The Troublemakers, was no exception.

This is the second in the "Fritz B-Movie Collection" of graphic novels, a series of books which are supposed to be adaptations of films in which Hernandez's Love and Rockets character Fritz has starred in over the course of her career as an actress. The first in the series was the excellent Chance in Hell. You don't really need to understand all of that to enjoy the individual books, though. They are completely unconnected to the continuity of the Love and Rockets stories, and from each other.

The Troublemakers is a crime story about three con-artists who at various times in the narrative are working with or against one another, in an ever shifting series of alliances and betrayals. Fritz "plays" Nala, one of the con-artists, alongside Vincene (who reminded me somewhat of Jaime's character, Hopey Glass), and a young man named Wes. The specifics of the plot are difficult to track, as you are never quite sure who is telling the truth or what the real motivations of the characters are. But that's kind of the point of the book, I think. It's a lot of fun trying to keep up with all of the twists and revelations Gilbert provides over the course of this short graphic novel. It's not meant to be anything more than good, pulpy fun and that is exactly how it comes across. I enjoyed it a great deal.

Now that there are two of them published, I can say I really like this publishing project of Gilbert's. It feels to me like Hernandez is playing the role of a late-night movie host (of the type we don't see much of these days, sadly), uncovering obscure films starring this cult actress. It's a lot of fun and provides a perfect vehicle for Hernandez to explore his pop culture influences. I hope there are lots more. It's also great to read an entire book of new comics from Gilbert that haven't been previously serialized. A terrific new vehicle of expression for a master cartoonist who continues to evolve.

Happiness is a Good Desk Calendar

2010-01-10T12:47:00.000-06:00

Charles Schulz is sometimes criticized for the extent to which he allowed his famous Peanuts characters to be merchandised. I suppose the thought is that all of the toys, t-shirts, mugs, animated specials, Met Life commercials, et cetera, somehow tarnish the purity of Schulz's vision. The polar opposite example would be Bill Watterson, and his refusal to allow any ancillary Calvin and Hobbes products or animated specials to be produced.

I don't subscribe to this line of thought. While I applaud and support Watterson's decision, I have no problem with Schulz's. In fact, I think the Peanuts characters adapt quite easily to other media while still retaining the essence of what makes the characters and comic strip so great. Case in point: The annual series of Peanuts desk calendars, the latest of which is sitting just to my left as a write this.

The daily comic strip is a natural fit for these daily calendars. I'm not sure how long they have been in production, but this year's takes the same approach as last year's calendar, presenting the cartoons from a single year of the strip in chronological order. Last year it was the strips from 1973, a point at which most of the cast was in place, firmly established in the roles they are famous for. This year's calendar jumps back in time to 1960, an earlier point in the strip's history where the drawing style is subtly different than what many would identify as the "classic" Peanuts look; Schulz's line is tighter, Charlie Brown appears more squat with a thicker neck. Not all of the characters had yet been introduced (Peppermint Patty, Marcie, and Woodstock are all several years away at this point). Shermy is still around.

Curiously, characters who do not appear in the 1960 run are used as spot illustrations underneath each daily strip. Perhaps the makers of the calendar didn't want to upset any die-hard Peppermint Patty fans by having her absent. All of the strips are colored, with a simple, primary-color focused palette, and on the back of each page there are games (crossword puzzles, mazes, trivia), a neat little extra that was not present in last year's calendar.

All in all, it's a nifty little package, something that puts a smile on my face every morning. 1960 is a pretty good year for the strip, too. Sometime this summer, one of the funniest single Peanuts strips (and I believe Schulz's personal favorite) should appear, having to do with Charlie Brown and Linus remarking on the shapes taken by clouds. I won't spoil the gag here.

There are two other Peanuts calendars released annually: a "mini" desk calendar and a wall calendar. Those are probably great,too.

2010

2010-01-07T11:25:00.000-06:00

The following is a list of ten comics I'm looking forward to reading in the year ahead. I chose to list only those publications with an official release date. Keep in mind, too, that these dates may be subject to change.

1. New Books by Los. Bros. Hernandez: Gilbert's latest original graphic novel, The Troublemakers, is available now, and will be followed in April by The High, Soft Lisp, collecting stories featuring Fritz, one of my favorite of Gilbert's creations, from the second volume of Love and Rockets. Do note that a dozen new pages have been added specifically for this collection. As for Jaime, Penny Century: A Love and Rockets Book(also due in April) collects the wonderful wrestling comic book Whoa, Nellie!, as well as the Penny Century series, in the same handsome, square bound format as the recent re-releases of the first volume of Love and Rockets.

2.New Books in the John Stanley Library Series: New editions to this terrific series include the teen comedy Thirteen Going on Eighteen in January, and Melvin Monster: Volume 2 in March.

3. Black Blizzard: This historically significant work from Gekiga pioneer Yoshihiro Tatsumi is the kind of thing I would love to see more of. A crime story originally published in the late 1950s in Japan, a landmark work that created a whole new genre in Japanese comics. Read this in combination with A Drifting Life, Tatsumi's compelling autobiography that details his career in manga and gekiga, including the creation of this work. April.

4. Wilson: Obviously, this brand new graphic novel from Daniel Clowes is one of the major releases of the year. It's May release is also just the excuse I've been looking for to re-read Clowes' impressive back catalogue, as he is a cartoonist I don't think I've given the attention as a reader that he deserves.

5. Artichoke Tales: Another May release from Megan Kelso. I've been dying to read these stories since I read a review of the mini-comics in which they were originally serialized in The Comics Journal ages ago. Kelso's fantastic 2006 story collection, The Squirrel Mother, promised an Artichoke Tales book in 2007, but I hadn't heard a word about it since then. I was therefore delighted to see it finally show up in Fantagraphics' spring catalogue.

6. If N' Oof: A NEW 650 PAGE(!!) BOOK FROM BRIAN CHIPPENDALE!! JUNE. 'NUFF SAID.

7. Walt and Skeezix Book 4: 1927-1928: Another one I was beginning to think may never happen. I think there were some legal difficulties with the syndicate, but I'm very happy to see this new volume collecting the marvelous comic strip by Frank King on track for a June release.

8. Ax Volume 1: A Collection of Alternative Manga: I think this was originally supposed to be out in 2009, but now has a July release date. Just what it says in the subtitle, a welcome addition to America's expanding view of the diversity of material Japanese comics have to offer.

9. Nancy is Happy: Complete Dailies 1942-1945: Probably THE major new effort in the Golden Age of Comic Strip Reprints (I think we can start capitalizing that now, no?), Ernie Bushmiller's Nancy is beloved by many, and in July the rest of us will get a chance to see what all the fuss is about. Oh, and don't forget Paul Karasik and Mark Newgarden's How to Read Nancy, an expansion of their well-regarded essay of the same name into book form, also out in July.

10. Shazam: The Monster Society of Evil: I think this one has been delayed a couple of times, too, but it looks like September is when we can expect to see this collection of the classic Captain Marvel storyline from writer Otto Binder and artist C.C. Beck. Long considered one of the greatest superhero comics of all time, DC has been frustratingly stingy with reprints of the series' peak material. I'm hoping this book is only the first step in correcting that.

My Favorite Comics of 2009

2009-12-31T13:12:00.000-06:00

It's come at last, at last it's come. I really went back and forth on whether or not I was going to do a "Best Of" list this year. The strongest argument for my not doing one is that I haven't read NEARLY enough 2009 published comics to honestly present a fair and accurate list of the "best," thus the "Favorite Comics" heading seen above. In the end, I decided that it couldn't hurt to point out ten great books (well, twelve, counting one tie and an honorable mention) that I read and enjoyed this year.

I considered all types of comics when compiling this list, including serialized comic books, graphic novels, archival collections of older material, everything. The list is ranked, with the number one choice being the comic I most enjoyed this year. It was a fantastic year to be a comics reader (it's gotten to the point where I truly feel SORRY for people who don't engage the medium at all), and I hope that in 2010 I can get caught up on all of the worthy 2009 releases I have not yet had a chance to read, and do a better job of keeping up with new comics as they are published.

10. West Coast Blues by Jacques Tardi and Jean-Patrick Manchette: The first in Fantagraphics ambitious publishing plan to present American readers with the work of French cartoonist Jacques Tardi. A masterfully constructed crime story with an unlikeable protagonist caught in an unlikely circumstance, this very French graphic novel is superior to anything I've seen in the genre from an American cartoonist. I also really like the design of this and other books in the series by Adam Grano.

9. Abstract Comics edited by Andrei Molotiu: Handsomely designed and smartly edited, this anthology of non-narrative comics was one of the year's most unique releases. Featuring contributions from cartoonists both famous and obscure, I appreciated all of the "stories" to one degree or another, and the cumulative effect of "reading" them all together was thrilling.

8. Prison Pit Book One by Johnny Ryan: And now for something completely different. I'll cop to being one of those who has perhaps been too dismissive of Ryan's cartooning chops in the past. You can bet I (and probably a lot of others) will be paying a LOT more attention to him in the future, following this expertly cartooned story of an ugly bruiser's violent encounters on a prison planet. Refreshingly devoid of any literary or artistic pretensions, this first of what I hope will be many, many volumes nevertheless comes across as somehow one of the smartest and well crafted books of the year. No, really.

7. The Complete Peanuts 1971-1972 and The Complete Peanuts 1973-1974 by Charles M. Schulz: Well, what can I say? What hasn't been said? I enjoy Peanuts more than just about anything I read in a given year, and these volumes are maybe the last covering the strip's late 60s- mid 70s golden era (although I look forward to being proved wrong on that point in subsequent volumes). Really strong stuff here, including the "Charlie Brown wears a sack on his head to summer camp" sequence, surely the "Poison River" of Peanuts. These two volumes also featured some of designer Seth's best covers for the series, with the bright yellow background of the Sally cover, and the visual gag of Woodstock's diminutive proportions on the latter volume. I also just love that Woodstock got a cover.

6. Asterios Polyp by David Mazzucchelli: This was a lot of people's number one book, and I don't begrudge it that ranking. A fine graphic novel from a master of the form, thoughtfully constructed and emotionally powerful. Every line, every color is here for a reason. Form is substance, medium is message. Comics. Read it.

5. Multiforce by Mat Brinkman: Years ago, after having read a few of these strips in some old issues of Paper Rodeo that a friend lent me, I put the collected Multiforce on a list of comics projects I most wanted to see published. This year, the extraordinary publisher PictureBox made it happen with this under publicized and unpretentious release. I don't know if we're going to see a lot more comics from Brinkman (I'd love to be wrong), which makes this comic all the more precious. Really funny and well drawn.

4. The Book of Genesis Illustrated by R. Crumb: I know some people were disappointed that Crumb didn't take more liberties with the source material, but for my money, his restraint and fidelity to the text made this work all the more powerful. I don't think anyone can argue that this isn't one of the most beautifully drawn books of the year, probably of the decade, and the subtle ways in which Crumb teases out characters and themes through facial expressions and body language are a wonder to behold, but you have to be paying attention. Fortunately, it's a book worth paying attention to, a true "bookshelf" book, one any serious comics fan will want in her library.

3. BodyWorld by Dash Shaw: Dash Shaw is one of the most exciting and talented cartoonists currently working, and this is the best thing he's done so far. I don't read a lot of webcomics, but I'm glad I took the plunge with this really funny and subversive science fiction story when it's serialization was completed early this year. Shaw's depictions of telepathy, his use of color (my GOD that color!) and the way in which the alien invasion plot slowly comes into focus in the background while never taking away from the story of the hapless protagonist who couldn't care less all contribute to making this one of my favorite comics of the year. Look for the book in 2010.

2. The Squirrel Machine by Hans Rickheit: Man oh man did I enjoy this book. Rickheit has flown under a lot of people's radar (myself included) for years, so I was pretty well blown away by what a confident and talented cartoonist he proves himself to be in this bizarre and haunting graphic novel, about two brothers whose strange experiments alienate them from the people in their lives and eventually from each other. Reminiscent of the best work of David Lynch, there are a lot of powerful themes humming just beneath the surface of the creepy and dreamlike narrative. This one hit hard, and I can't wait to read it again. Really, really impressive.

1. Pluto: Urasawa X Tezuka by Naoki Urasawa & Osamu Tezuka, co-authored with Takashi Nagasaki: No surprise to anyone whose had the (mis?)fortune of discussing comics with me this past year, I decided pretty early on that Urasawa's brilliant re-imagining of Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy would take the number one slot on this list. I've already reviewed the series on this blog, so I don't want to repeat myself too much here. I'll just reiterate that there was not a comic I flat out ENJOYED reading more this year. The best example of it's type, I don't understand why all "mainstream" comics aren't like Pluto, or at least why they don't try to be. Extraordinary.

Honorable Mention: Naoki Urasawa's 20th Century Boys by Naoki Urasawa: I'll be damned if I could figure out how to place Urasawa's OTHER genre masterwork, about a group of friends whose childhood fantasies come back to haunt them as adults, on this ranked list. It's ALMOST as good as Pluto (and, judging by the just released sixth volume, stands a good chance of surpassing it), but it didn't seem right to rank it over Squirrel Machine and BodyWorld. Didn't seem right to have it too far away from Pluto on the list, either. Didn't want to take away from Pluto by having the two works share the number one slot. Gosh, these lists are silly, aren't they? So, honorable mention. Read this too, along with all the other great books I didn't mention. Ah, comics! Ah, life!

Mini-Review: The Collected Doug Wright: Canada's Master Cartoonist

2009-12-27T14:49:00.000-06:00

This handsome book, lovingly edited and designed by the cartoonist Seth and Brad Mackay, collects the first years of Canadian cartoonist Doug Wright's wordless strip Nipper(also sometimes known as "Doug Wright's Family"), as well as magazine covers and illustrations and other work from the cartoonist. There is also a long, introductory essay by Mackay detailing Wright's life and career. The first of two volumes, the editors are very obviously making the case for Wright as one of the most important and under appreciated Canadian cartoonists. Does the work itself hold up to the lavish presentation? In a word: Yes.

While the Nipper strip does not contain the depth or complexity of the all time great comic strips like Charles Schulz's Peanuts or George Herriman's Krazy Kat, it is nevertheless a gorgeously drawn (sometimes jaw-droppingly so) and oftentimes very funny and sharply observed series of cartoons. The closest comparison to an American cartoonist I can come up with is Hank Ketcham and his work on Dennis the Menace, a strip wherein the elegant line work is valued over the relatively thin and unremarkable gag work and characterization. But Wright is actually funnier than Ketcham, I think, and as the strip progresses over the course of this first volume, Wright brings the world of Nipper and his family to vivid and evocative life, creating a real and tangible sense of a specific time and place through his mastery of line and remarkable drawing ability. I really liked reading these cartoons, and look forward to the second volume as the completion of this worthy and important archival project.

LOL

2009-12-03T19:23:00.000-06:00

I've got to knock it off with these linkbloggy non-posts, but this line from Sean Collins' entertaining review of Image United #1 had me laughing out loud, so I had to share:

"...the long-running Erik Larsen character Savage Dragon, whose appearance in a book filled to the brim with Silvestri and Liefeld creations feels like a walk-on by Glenn Ganges by comparison..."

Roger Ebert

2009-12-02T11:36:00.003-06:00

On his blog, which regularly features some of the best writing on the Internet, Roger Ebert offers a heartbreaking essay on the end of his relationship with the long running television show he helped create. I was saddened to read of Disney's cold response to Ebert's endorsement of the current incarnation of the show, hosted by A.O. Scott and Michael Phillips, but I was glad to hear that Ebert does approve of the new hosts, as I think they've been doing fine work on the program.

I've Always Liked This Cover

2009-11-22T10:35:00.000-06:00

First in Jack Kirby's stellar run on "Thor" in Journey into Mystery.

Linkblogging

2009-11-15T11:18:00.000-06:00

Some good old fashioned linkblogging on a Sunday afternoon...

First, I wanted to point out the newest addition to my sidebar, the excellent comics blog Hooded Utilitarian. I hadn't paid much attention to these guys until it was announced that The Comics Journal would be incorporating them into their upcoming relaunch of the magazine's increased online presence. The HU blog features a group of talented writers discussing a variety of comics related topics (Wonder Woman, reviews of Yaoi manga, and a great roundtable on race in comics have been recently featured), and if it is any indication of the quality and type of approach the Journal intends to bring to it's revamped website, I'm very optimistic about that endeavor.

Elsewhere in the comics blogosphere, I greatly enjoyed this post by Jeet Heer at the Comics Comics blog, featuring Dave Sim dissing Jack Kirby's work in a '70s fanzine. I'm really interested in Kirby's work from this period, as well as fandom's reaction to same at that time, so this post really hit a sweet spot for me.

Not comics, but this essay by Tom LeClair at the Barnes & Noble review examining the nominees for this year's National Book Award was a great read. I particularly liked that LeClair focused his essay on the books' style, rather than on their substance.

Finally, been confused about which version of the new Star Trek movie to buy when it's released on November 17th? No? Well, I have, and it's my blog so I'm linking to this helpful IGN page which breaks down the differences between all of the DVD and Blue-Ray versions.

1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up

2009-11-12T11:11:00.001-06:00

1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up, edited by Julia Eccleshare, is the latest in the "1001" series that also includes books on "Albums You Must Hear," "Books You Must Read," "Foods You Must Taste," and others. I've really been enjoying it. The 960 page brick of a book is divided first by age categories (0-3, 3+, 5+, 8+, and 12+), and chronologically by publication date within those categories. There is a short essay for each of the books featured. Many feature sample artwork or covers, and some include suggestions for further reading.

One of the great joys/frustrations of books like these is the inevitable fact that some of your favorites are not featured. I'll leave the debate over omissions to others, though, and say that, generally speaking, Eccleshare and her contributors have done a fine job of selecting a wide range of great children's books from around the globe. Some of the people who I've discussed the book with seem frustrated by the fact that some of the selections seem deliberately obscure, but I actually enjoy this aspect of the book. I think it's fair to say that Eccleshare, children's book editor at The Guardian, is perhaps more interested in sketching a history of children's book publishing than she is in providing a useful reading list that must be got through. I don't know that your child really needs to read a collection of Traditional Chinese Folktales dating from the Qin Dynasty (221-206 B.C.E.), or Charles and Mary Lamb's 1807 adaptation of Tales from Shakespeare, but it was interesting to learn that the former "is considered the earliest children's book on record," or that the latter "was written mainly for girls because boys tended to have access to the original plays at an earlier age. Boys are asked to explain the difficult passages and select suitable sections from the originals for their sisters to read." As someone interested in children's books and their history, I found these sorts of insights fascinating.

The best feature of the book, though, has got to be the terrific artwork on display. Wherever possible, Eccleshare has attempted to locate artwork featured on the covers of the original editions of the books, even as they appeared prior to English language translation in the cases of works from other countries. There is great pleasure to be had in flipping through this book and marveling at the gorgeous, vintage children's book art on display, and noticing how the aesthetics of children's books has changed over the years.

Lest my enthusiasm for the historical insights provided by the book make it seem useless as a practical reading guide, rest assured that, though I believe the book's aims to be more than that, Peter Rabbit, Max and his Wild Things, the Hungry Caterpillar, Harry Potter, the Cat in the Hat, Frog and Toad, are all here. If you're looking for great recommendations for you own children or students, they're here. The book can certainly be used as a useful resource for parents, teachers, students, librarians, and booksellers, and those readers will also be rewarded with a glimpse into a history of children's literature that is richer and deeper than they may have imagined.

***

For those interested in a more focused attempt at building a cannon of great children's books, I highly recommend Anita Silvey's 100 Best Books for Children. Less interested in providing a history of children's publishing or showcasing artwork (only a few black and white spot illustrations appear in the book), I have nevertheless found it to be a valuable resource.

Kid Stuff

2009-11-07T16:43:00.000-06:00

One of my favorite things about the end of the year is all of the "best of" lists that start popping up. A particular favorite is the New York Times' Best Illustrated Children's Books list, just posted to their website.

You may have to register to see it.

Savage Dragon

2009-11-06T11:18:00.001-06:00

I've wanted to write about Erik Larsen's long-running comic book series Savage Dragon for quite some time, in part because I never see anyone else discussing it, and also because my own relationship with the series is somewhat unique among my comics reading, and has changed over the years I've been following it. I wanted to sketch my own history as a Savage Dragon reader, and in doing so, sort out those elements of the series that continue to make it, for me, one of the most entertaining and unique comic books currently published.

I picked up the first issue of Savage Dragon when it was first published, in 1992. I was twelve. Actually, in the interests of full disclosure, I believe it was my brother, two years my junior, who actually purchased the comic, but we both read it, and loved it. This was the first issue of the initial three issue mini-series that preceded the ongoing series. For a while I think I read my brother's copies, and then we both purchased our own copies of every issue. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

As I'm sure was the case with the majority of Savage Dragon and early Image Comics readers, my brother and I had been primarily fans of mainstream Marvel and DC comics. Mostly Marvel. I think I had been reading superhero comics for a year or maybe a couple of years when Image Comics happened, and I was just beginning to differentiate between artists and writers. I had my favorites, particularly John Byrne (whose excellent run on Fantastic Four I was then discovering via back issues), a major influence on Erik Larsen. We knew Larsen's work, too, from an excellent run on Spider-Man following Todd McFarlane and featuring the Sinister Six. I remember thinking Larsen's art on that storyline was some of the best I had ever seen in comics. It looked so sleek and modern to my eyes, and the story contained everything a twelve-year-old could want out of a Spider-Man story. All of the major villains, cyborgs, monsters, big-name guest stars from across the Marvel Universe, lots of action. Lots of violence. The Sandman was turned into glass at one point, shattered, and then he came back as a guy made of glass shards. It was that kind of comic.

We hadn't seen anything yet.

We were vaguely aware of the behind-the-scenes drama that would lead to the formation of Image Comics around this time. Mostly these glossy new books that began appearing were understood to be new creations by many of the "hot" Marvel artists. They were edgier, darker, more "grown-up" somehow. Savage Dragon was pretty much a more violent version of the type of superhero story Larsen had done for Marvel. There was a lot of blood. The women were more voluptuous and more scantily clad. I think there was some swearing. The pages were glossier. It felt a little dangerous.

The story and characters were tremendously appealing. Larsen had a real knack for impactful character design, and the heroes and (especially) villains he filled the book with were so cool looking, so original, so unlike what you would see in a Marvel comic of the time. Another great feature of Savage Dragon was the letters pages. These were often very lengthy, and Larsen would answer fans' questions with a frankness that was completely unlike anything I had encountered in comics letters pages up to that time. This was pre-internet (at least for us), and I was just beginning to read Wizard, so the kind of all-access, behind-the-scenes quality of the Savage Dragon letters pages was a revelation. I remember Larsen talking once about that Spider-Man story I mentioned earlier. He spoke about how he had thought Doctor Octopus had been coming across as a goofy weakling in his recent appearances, so he had the idea to change that by updating his look and giving him adamantium arms. It sounds simple and obvious now, but I remember being really delighted by an artist discussing the ideas and intentions behind his work, and then being able to see that work realized on the printed page. Amazing! These comics were made by real people!

One of the signature qualities of Savage Dragon is Larsen's commitment to his project. He has stated numerous times that working on a series like Savage Dragon had always been his goal (indeed he had created the character as a teenager), and his intention was to continue to chronicle Dragon's adventures in the series for the rest of his life. The characters would age in real time, marry, have children, grow old, die. I think it was this quality of the series that lead me to at one time consider it "the ultimate comic book." It just seemed kind of perfect, you know? A talented creator working on a creator-owned series, utterly committed to the long term development of the characters and their world. It seemed to me in those early years as though Savage Dragon encompassed all of the best qualities of comics.

Okay, so here's where the changing nature of my relationship to the series comes in. Obviously, I no longer consider it "the ultimate comic book." If I had to apply that goofy, adolescent designation to something, it might be to something like Los Bros. Hernandez's Love and Rockets. Basically, what happened was, I discovered comics beyond superheroes. I discovered, as so many others have, the wider world of comics, and all of the different ways artistic expression can be filtered through them. I discovered artists like the Hernandez brothers, Chris Ware, Dan Clowes, others. I started looking seriously at comic strips. I stopped reading Wizard and started reading The Comics Journal. You know this story. You've heard it a million times before, and, if you're reading this blog, have probably lived some variation of it yourself. I grew up.

I kept reading Savage Dragon, though, even though Larsen's work no longer looked the same to me. I began to see his influences more clearly, and understand that some of the qualities I had once considered so original were not that original at all. Larsen is an artist who wears his influences on his sleeve, and doesn't always synthesize those artists he admires (Jack Kirby, Gil Kane, John Byrne, Walter Simonson, Frank Miller), into a cohesive style of his own. Larsen, an artist I once revered, began to seem to me to be a little naive. It was an odd period of adjustment for me, but I kept reading, I kept buying the new issue every month.

The thing is, I think I enjoy the book now more than I did then, if not as much as I did when I was twelve years old. I've often wondered if the primary reason I keep reading the book is habit or nostalgia. Certainly, I am still very attracted to the idea of Larsen's total commitment to the series. I love the fact that Dragon's son, who I remember being born, is now a teenager. I don't think, though, that nostalgia/habit/loyalty/whatever is the primary reason I am still a Savage Dragon reader. I know it's not. There's a lot that Larsen does really, really well. The kind of things I can't really find anywhere else. What once seemed cutting edge now has a delightful, "retro" quality. There is a pure joy to be had in reading Savage Dragon, the joy of a superhero comic that aspires to be nothing more than a really, really good superhero comic. I still love those character designs. Larsen does action very well, moving his bulky characters across the pages with a kind of grace and energy that a lot of current mainstream artists would do well to emulate. He is not a great writer, but he is a gifted cartoonist and a capable storyteller. He does great covers. I still enjoy the violence. While his ideas are not as unique as I once perceived them to be, he continues to combine familiar comic book story elements in surprising and sometimes thrilling ways. It is, perhaps, the ultimate superhero comic.

I particularly enjoyed a recent storyline, the latest "Death of Dragon" sequence (yeah, there've been a few at this point), wherein Dragon fought a monster capable of absorbing people's appearances, powers, and some aspects of their personalities and memories, leaving his victims lifeless husks. Dragon's memories and powers were absorbed by the creature, and the skull of his lifeless body was crushed. However, because of Dragon's healing factor (something Larsen has taken full advantage of over the years), his personality was able to dominate that of the creature, and the creature effectively transformed into a new Dragon, with all of Dragon's powers, memories, and personality, and no evidence of the monster left intact. Dragon's dead and decimated body was put in stasis, just in case. Then, the "new" Dragon was "killed" by the villain Overlord. The remains of that Dragon's body reassembled as a monstrous version of Dragon, while the original Dragon's body was brought back to life via a blood transfusion from his son, albeit without his memories since his brain had been destroyed. Pretty cool. I mean, I'm glad there's a place I can still read stuff like this, you know?

That's the cover to the latest issue up above. I'm looking forward to reading it, and whatever comes next.

DKR2

2009-10-29T10:16:00.000-05:00

Man oh man, did I enjoy this excellent review of Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Strikes Again by Sean Collins! Read it, then read the book!

"Real" blogging returns soon, I promise.

Melvin Monster

2009-10-08T10:36:00.000-05:00

Rather than make a nitpicky complaint about the lack of covers in the otherwise excellent book The John Stanley Library: Melvin Monster, which collects the first three issues of the series, I'm going to post a link to the cover gallery featured at the Grand Comics database for your viewing pleasure. They're pretty great covers, too.

Seriously, the book is a real treasure. The comics themselves are terrific, and the book is ridiculously well designed by the cartoonist Seth. You'll want to get your hands on this one.

Comic Books

2009-10-03T11:27:00.000-05:00

The following is a list (with comments) of comic book series I'm currently following. This list does not include graphic novels, manga, comic strip reprint volumes, or "alternative" comic book series that come out only once a year or so (Acme Novelty Library, Love and Rockets: New Stories, Uptight). The list only includes good old-fashioned comic books, ongoing and mini-series. A lot of my comics reading falls under those categories not featured here, and thus the list is not really an accurate portrait of my comics reading habits, but it should give you a good idea of the kinds of things I come home with from the local comic book store every week or couple of weeks. I was surprised by how few titles I follow, actually...

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - This is the series I most look forward to reading new installments of. In fact, it's really the only one I always make a trip to the comic book store to pick up. The series is at its best when it allows the principal characters to move in new and surprising directions.

Ultimate Spider-Man - I've been following this from the beginning, and it's been quite good for most of that time. The recent relaunch seems to have injected new life into the series, and I'm really enjoying it. I dig the new artist, too.

Green Lantern - Green Lantern, as currently written by Geoff Johns, is not usually the sort of thing I go for in superhero comics. Reading this series is sort of my experiment in following a corporate-owned character who is at the center of one of those big, company wide event crossovers. In this case, Blackest Night. I don't think I'll ever become a huge fan of this sort of thing, but at its best it's great fun, easily digestible pop entertainment.

Green Lantern Corps - See above.

Blackest Night - See above. I like the art on this one a lot.

Blackest Night: Batman - Hey, if you're gonna go, go all out.

Blackest Night: Superman - I've been surprised while reading this one by all of the changes that have apparently taken place in the Superman books the past couple of years. It seems like they took the admirable approach of making the character not boring.

Blackest Night: Titans - Yep.

Cold Heat - I frickin' love all things Cold Heat. I love that Jones and Santoro are determined to release it as a comic book despite a hostile/indifferent direct market. I love the specials by various artists. Yes.

Angel - I keep waiting for the quality of this to drop off enough for me to want to stop reading it, but, surprisingly, that hasn't happened yet. Better than you'd think.

Angel: Only Human - Not as good as the single issue of the main title that it spun out of, but not bad. New issue out this week.

Star Trek: Romulans - Schism - Wow, I read a lot of comics based on t.v. shows. I love Star Trek and am sort of fascinated by John Byrne right now, so there you go.

Savage Dragon - Eric Larsen's long-running superhero series continues to entertain. I've been following this one from the beginning, and love that he's still at it.

Citizen Rex - Gilbert and Mario Hernandez!

Batman & Robin - Easily the best crafted superhero comic I'm following, at least while Frank Quitely was drawing it. The dynamic between the new Batman and Robin is a lot of fun. I like this one a lot.

Strange Tales - The first issue of this was pretty good.

RASL - I love that there's a new Jeff Smith comic coming out on a semi-regular schedule.