2009 December
And the award for comics’ Tweeter of the Year goes to…
His comics ain't so bad either
Brian Michael Bendis! At least according to Samuel Rules of Are You a Serious Comic Book Reader? In a post stuffed with evidentiary linkage, Sammy proclaims “No one used Twitter better in 2009 than Bendis,” citing the Siege writer’s honesty and humor, as well as the “little insights into his life” he provided. “I used to talk a lot of trash on him,” Sammy recalls — “Upon discovering his Twitter, however, I started to understand him as a person, and then kinda wanted to hang out with him.”
Which got me thinking: Who would I proclaim comics’ Twitter-er…Twit…uh, Tweeter of the year?
Would I stick with Bendis, for his informative Q&A alone?
What about Matt Fraction, for his performance-art masterpiece Hobo Darkseid?
Michael Kupperman, for a consistently hilarious feed that’s like reading Tales Designed to Thrizzle in pictureless 140-character snippets?
Paul Pope, for his philosophical musings?
Kate Beaton and Dustin Harbin, the dynamic duo of Tweeting webcartoonists?
Ryan “Agent M” Penagos, for having more followers than the rest of the comics industry combined?
But then I remembered the one man whose Twitter account impacted my life, or at least the blogging side of it, more than anyone else. For my money, no one tops the ever-interesting, refreshingly candid Tom Brevoort. Why, just the other day he took to his feed to breathe a sigh of relief about Captain America: Reborn finishing before The Flash: Rebirth as he predicted, size up his chances regarding Siege finishing before Blackest Night, criticize Rebirth artist Ethan Van Sciver for drawing convention commissions while his book is delayed, and defend Reborn artist Bryan Hitch from accusations of habitual lateness. Can you imagine if everyone in comics were that forthright? I can, and it looks like heaven from here. Tweetin’ Tom Brevoort, we salute you!
- December 22, 2009 @ 01:59 PM by Sean T. Collins
Unbound: The year in webcomics
While the rest of the world went to hell in a handbasket, webcomics did pretty well in 2009, in part because the medium provided alternatives to structures that were cracking because of the poor economy. One of the most important events of the year had nothing to do with webcomics directly but probably had a huge effect on the medium as a whole: In January, Diamond Comics Distributors raised its minimums, that is, the number of units a comic would have to sell in order for them to carry it. As Diamond has a near-monopoly on distribution to comics stores, the result is that many comics will be squeezed out of the market—and webcomics became a more attractive alternative, especially for creators who are just building a following or are marketing to a particular niche. It’s hard to know how many creators turned to the web because of that—how do you measure a negative?—but James Turner’s Warlord of Io has been mentioned specifically as a comic that did not make Diamond’s minimums and wound up on comiXology’s iPhone app.
- December 22, 2009 @ 01:00 PM by Brigid Alverson
Robot reviews: GoGo Monster
Gogo Monster
GoGo Monster
by Taiyo Matsumoto
Viz, 464 pages, $27.99
GoGo Monster bears a number of resemblances to Matsumoto’s other, more well-known (at least in the U.S.) work, Tekkonkinkreet. Both, for example, feature two young boys as protagonists, one of whom is in touch with more primal, perhaps supernatural forces and possibly even in need of “saving.” Both feature a wise elderly man who serves as guardian for the pair. Both feature enigmatic narratives that tease at meaning. And both trade highly in allegory, with readers being able to draw all sorts of thematic possibilities from the elliptical roles the various character serve.
- December 22, 2009 @ 11:00 AM by Chris Mautner
Manapul teases his and Johns’ Adventure Comics finale
Adventure Comics #6 wraps up Geoff Johns and Francis Manapul’s short-yet-fun run on Superboy. And iit looks like the duo is going out with a bang in what will be a full-length story about the Boy of Steel, based on this teaser image Manapul posted on his blog:
Adventure Comics #6 preview
“It was an amazing ride and we’ll sorely miss working on the book,” Manapul said, as he and Johns prepare to move on to the Flash. “I’ll definitely miss drawing Krypto!” The book comes out Jan. 13.
- December 22, 2009 @ 10:30 AM by JK Parkin
Straight for the art | Swanderful, a blog devoted to the work of Curt Swan
From a guide to Superman's facial expressions, by Curt Swan
Dale Lazarov, writer of Sticky and Manly, has launched Swanderful, a blog devoted to his favorite comic-book artist, the legendary Curt Swan. “Lex Luthor Week” is in full swing, but if you browse earlier pages you’ll find scans of classic Superman and Action Comics pages, house ads, Swan-drawn artist guides to the Man of Steel’s facial expressions and more — all with commentary from Lazarov.
(via QueerSUPE)
- December 22, 2009 @ 10:00 AM by Kevin Melrose
Thin wallets, fat bookshelves: First Second’s spring catalog
Booth
As we head into the new year, we’ll be taking a look at what’s coming up in 2010, publisher by publisher. We’ve already run through Fantagraphics and Drawn and Quarterly’s plans, today we’ll be trapsing through First Second’s spring catalog. Join us, won’t you?
- December 22, 2009 @ 09:30 AM by Chris Mautner
A roundup of best-of comics lists
"Family Man," by Dylan Meconis
• I keep forgetting to post a link to ComixTalk’s 2009 roundtable, so this is as good of a place as any for me to point you in that direction. Led by Xaviar Xerexes, it’s a great discussion of webcomics by creators and commentators Brigid Alverson, Derik A. Badman, Larry Cruz, Johanna Draper Carlson, Fesworks, Shaenon Garrity, Gary Tyrrell and Delos Woodruff. I like Tom Spurgeon’s take on the article as a guide to new webcomics.
• New York magazine’s Dan Kois selects his 10 favorite comics of the year. Among them: David Mazzuchelli’s Asterios Polyp; Joe Kelly and J.M. Ken Niimura’s I Kill Giants; and Kevin Cannon’s Far Arden.
• At About.com, Deb Aoki lists the 25 best new manga of the year (organized by category), with Daisuke Igarashi’s Children of the Sea taking top honors.
• David Ferraro names the 10 best manga of 2009, including Naoki Urasawa’s Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka and Miki Aihara’s Honey Hunt.
• Brian Heater assembles a group of creators ranging from Jeffrey Brown to Susie Cagle to Neil Kleid to name “the best damned comics of the decade.”
• Johanna Draper Carlson reviews the best comics of 2009: R. Sikoryak’s Masterpiece Comics; Erika Moen and Lucy Knisley’s Drawn to You; and Fred Chao’s Johnny Hiro.
• At Comics Waiting Room, Marc Mason rattles off the “Ten Books That Made Me Glad I Read Comics in 2009,” including Emmanuel Guibert’s The Photographer and Fred Chao’s Johnny Hiro.
• The children of GeekDad contributors recommend the best (kids’) comics of the decade.
- December 22, 2009 @ 08:48 AM by Kevin Melrose
What does Fall of an Avenger mean to the future of Incredible Hercules?
Hercules: Fall of an Avenger #1
As writer Fred Van Lente promised last week, Marvel’s March solicitations hold some clue to the future of The Incredible Hercules. Some, but not much.
Rich Johnston had reported that the low-selling but critically acclaimed series would end with Issue 150, almost a year from now. However, the solicitation for the two-part Hercules: Fall of an Avenger would seem to indicate the title comes to a close with February’s Issue 142, the conclusion of the four-part “Assault on Mount Olympus” storyline. The assault didn’t go well for the son of Zeus, I guess.
The miniseries, which includes an Agents of Atlas back-up story, is billed as a “two-part mini-epic that marks the end of an era and the beginning of something utterly unexpected for Hercules, the Lion of Olympus.” That obviously hints at a continuation for the title, but whether that’s as a relaunched series, a back-up feature or something else entirely remains to be seen.
Van Lente, who writes The Incredible Hercules with Greg Pak, offered little by way of elaboration. “The future of Incredible Hercules begins here, folks,” he wrote on Twitter. When asked by a fan whether Fall of an Avenger simply means a break for the series, Van Lente replied: “Mmmmmmmmaybe … Keep watching the solicits! More surprises to come.”
The Incredible Hercules debuted in January 2008 in the aftermath of World War Hulk, with the boisterous demigod and teen sidekick Amadeus Cho simply taking over the Hulk’s title.
- December 22, 2009 @ 07:30 AM by Kevin Melrose
When a plan comes together: IDW’s A-Team comics coming in March
The A-Team: War Stories: B.A.
IDW‘s solicitations for March 2010 came out yesterday, and in them were four different A-Team books — two issues of a mini-series subtitled “Shotgun Wedding,” and two War Stories one-shots focusing on two of the members, Hannibal Smith and B.A. Baracus.
The books are tie-ins to this summer’s A-Team movie, which stars Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel, Sharlto Copley and Quinton Jackson. And longtime Marvel fans may remember that this isn’t the first time the A-Team have appeared in comics, as the House of Ideas published an A-Team mini-series back in the 1980s to tie into the TV show. I don’t remember much about the show beyond a few of the catch phrases, and that my dad thought it was utterly horrible television, so it was a battle to get to watch it each week.
Splash Page has a preview of “Shotgun Wedding,” which features someone you might recognize:
The mini-series is written by Joe Carnahan and Tom Waltz, with art by Stephen Mooney. The one-shots are written by Chuck Dixon and Erik Burnham, with Hugo Petrus drawing the Hannibal one and Casey Maloney doing the B.A. one.
- December 22, 2009 @ 07:00 AM by JK Parkin
Comics A.M. | The comics Internet in two minutes
The W Files
Digital comics | A free digital comic starring Wallace & Gromit, the popular animated UK duo, has been downloaded more than 500,000 times since Nov. 7, leading one eBook blogger to wonder whether The W Files is the “FIRST eBook best-seller.” (If it’s free, can it still be considered a bestseller?) Released by Titan Publishing, the free iPhone app marks the 20th anniversary of Wallace & Gromit. Subsequent issues cost 99 cents each. [GalleyCat]
Digital comics | Marvel is giving away 1,000 one-year subscriptions for its Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited online service to enlisted military personnel through Jan. 7. [Air Force Times]
Naruto, Vol. 1: The Boy Ninja
Publishing | Reed Stevenson looks at the growth of manga in Europe, where the market is expanding at a pace of 10 percent to 15 percent each year: “Sales of printed manga books have fallen in Japan in recent years but grown elsewhere, particularly among European young people who are consuming such titles as Naruto, Fruits Basket and Death Note with the same appetite as an earlier generation showed for The Adventures of Tin Tin and The Adventures of Asterix. [Reuters]
Publishing | Retailer Christopher Butcher considers Dave Sim’s recent move to print on demand for back issues of Cerebus Archives. [Comics212]
- December 22, 2009 @ 06:51 AM by Kevin Melrose
Marvel to publish Stephen King’s N. comic
Stephen King's N.
Marvel announced yesterday that they will adapt Stephen King’s N., a short story that appeared in the author’s latest collection, Just After Sunset, into a four-issue mini-series.
The story also appeared online as a motion comic last year, which was co-produced by Marvel. Writer Marc Guggenheim and artist Alex Maleev will turn the story of “something terrifying hidden in Ackerman’s Field” into a comic.
“It’s absolutely thrilling for Marvel to be working on ‘N.’ again and having the honor to publish it as a comic book miniseries,” said said Ruwan Jayatilleke, Marvel senior vice president of development & planning, print, animation and digital media. “Both as a fan of the story and a producer on the ‘N.’ motion comic, I am absolutely psyched for the terrifying ride that Marc, Alex, and the editors have planned for readers!”
- December 22, 2009 @ 04:00 AM by JK Parkin
Talking Comics with Tim: Cullen Bunn & Brian Hurtt
The Sixth Gun's Them What Ails Ya: A Christmas Yarn
Tomorrow, writer Cullen Bunn and artist Brian Hurtt‘s holiday prose/sequential art tale, The Sixth Gun Short Story, Them What Ails Ya: A Christmas Yarn, reaches its final installment at the Oni Press blog. As described when initially announced: “A tale of medicine shows, magic tonics, outlaws, cannibals, and bona fide Christmas miracles will run every Tuesday beginning December 1st and ending December 22nd on the Oni Press blog. Each segment will feature another chapter of Cullen Bunn’s prose short accompanied by a Brian Hurtt illustration and an original comic-strip will bookend the story.” My thanks to Bunn and Hurtt for their time.
Tim O’Shea: In what ways has your collaborative style evolved–comparing your present day work with the experience of creating The Damned?
Cullen Bunn: Over the years, I think Brian and I have gotten more comfortable working with other. We really have a good feel for how we work best. We’ve thrown ideas for collaborations around for years, but I don’t think we realized how often we were “on the same page” until we started working on The Damned and The Sixth Gun. I can’t tell you how many times one of us has come up with a “brilliant idea” only to learn that the other had a similar or complementary thought. We’ve also gotten a lot more comfortable letting each other know when we’re traveling down the wrong path. With the Sixth Gun, we spent a lot more time at a white board, thumbnailing, outlining, and even scripting certain scenes. It’s a different approach for both of us, but it has been successful. We’ll probably do more of this with future projects.
- December 21, 2009 @ 03:22 PM by Tim O'Shea
Comics College: Robert Crumb
The Complete Crumb Vol. 4
Comics College is a monthly feature where we provide an introductory guide to some of the comics medium’s most important auteurs and offer our best educated suggestions on how to become familiar with their body of work.
With everyone and their uncle sounding off about his new adaptation of the Book of Genesis, I thought it might be a good time to look at the work and career of Robert Crumb, and offer an introductory entryway for those who up till now have been hesitant to dip their toes in his water (so to speak).
- December 21, 2009 @ 02:00 PM by Chris Mautner
Strangeways – Winter Solstice (1)
No comics this week. Only stories without pictures.
Part 2 drops Wednesday. Hoping it’ll be wrapped up then, but it may not yet be so.
STRANGEWAYS – WINTER SOLSTICE
The crescent moon hung low, sickle-silver and cutting. Collins stopped and watched it a moment, though if he’d had any sense at all, he’d have pressed on. The cold outside was nothing to joke about, and while it wasn’t the bone-gnawing chill of the Georgia swamps he’d once trudged through, it had fingers that found every popped seam and tear in his clothes. But still, there was a real beauty in that sky, all purple and red velvet as the sun went down. He got the feeling that the moon wasn’t so much following the sun so much as it was chasing, sharp edge hungry.
The horse chuffed once and swished his head back and forth, impatient. It occurred to Collins that he didn’t even have a name for this one.
“What you want, hoss? You tired of standing in the cold?” He patted the horse’s neck and waited for a reply. “All right then, let’s us move on a bit.” Collins gently spurred him on and down the rolling hill.
Where not smothered in snow, the grass was long and stringy like a dead man’s hair, pushed listlessly in the chill breeze. The last of the sunlight laid out a tarnished gold glow that was not warm in and of itself. If anything it only served to remind Collins how cold it actually was. Up ahead, the grassland gave way to a tangle of spreading oak and scattered granite boulders like giant knucklebones dug out of the soil.
Wind through the trees hummed and rustled, and something else. What was that sound?
“The hell?” Collins muttered. “Is that a, a horn?”
- December 21, 2009 @ 01:00 PM by Matt Maxwell
Comics Cavalcade: A Christmas bonanza, plus the Devil
A Visit from St. Nicholas (to the Moon) by Walt Kelly
- December 21, 2009 @ 12:00 PM by Chris Mautner