2010 June
What Are You Reading?
Fantastic Four
Welcome once again to What Are You Reading? This week our special guest is Justin Aclin, editor of ToyFare magazine and writer of Hero House and S.H.O.O.T. First, which you can read on MySpace Dark Horse Presents. To see what Justin and the Robot 6 crew have been reading lately, click below …
- June 13, 2010 @ 01:26 PM by JK Parkin
New Marvel Vs. Capcom 3 trailer teases Dante’s badassery, Tony Stark’s sex appeal
Courtesy of GameTrailers.com, check out a new teaser trailer for Marvel Vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, featuring Deadpool, Ryu, Wolverine, Dante from Devil May Cry, the Hulk and more .
- June 12, 2010 @ 08:22 AM by JK Parkin
The Fifth Color – From Start to Start
Congratulations! We have cornered the market on being succinct! For new readers and old alike, Marvel Comics are definable in a universal fashion. Retailers hear “Oh, I don’t know anything about comics” on a daily basis, so now there’s a very simple and interesting way to talk about the Marvel Universe in general. As of the start of the Heroic Age, Marvel-flavored comics are about (now right this down): heroes, both mortal and super-powered, coming together to form alliances and make the world a better place despite past mistakes.
Tah-dah! From this humble little back jacket blurb, the new reader can be directed to a number of #1 issues coming out this summer that will illustrate this point to some degree. The Avengers is now a self-styled franchise, this week the Avengers Academy showed us a great setting to hook younger readers in with, some old characters have been dusted off, given a new look and fresh start on their fictional lives. Welcome to the beginning.
Again. We’ve already had that beginning/fresh start/young new characters/slew of #1 issues before. The Heroic Age has thus been more roll call than running start. In our new Avengers books (as opposed to our New Avengers books) thus far, the action is brief and cliffhangery; you just get to the action in time for the twist ending that is supposed to catch you into the next issue. This is a great way into introduce new readers to characters they haven’t been following before or get people settled into the all new, all different setting (that looks a lot like Marvel say seven years ago or so) , but these kind of get-togethers can leave the long reading fan feeling déjà vu. It’s like getting an appetizer when, no thank you, we’ve been waiting for this meal since January when the Heroic Age was announced so let’s get to the main course. For we True Believers, another refresh might seem a little unsatisfying.
The reason why you may be still hungry is decompressed storytelling. And possible bad eating habits; if either of these relate to you, please see a professional about the latter and follow me about the former.
- June 11, 2010 @ 03:00 PM by Carla Hoffman
My HeroesCon 2010 Perspective
This shot from Heroesonline's Flickr account captures just how stunning this year was. All in one corner, you could see Evan Dorkin (cutoff on far left), Jill Thompson, Roger Langridge, Dave Roman & Raina Telgemeier. One corner!
All week I’ve been reading other people’s HeroesCon reports and thinking “Man I really need to get cracking on mine.” And yet I have not. I’ll be honest, unlike my friend Johanna Draper Carlson (“being sensible about things like leaving the floor to have lunch and going back to the hotel room in the afternoon to change clothes and shoes“), I wore the wrong dang shoes (“Sandals? Really? You flat-footed fool!” I now say to myself) for the concrete con floor. By Saturday afternoon I was limping anywhere I went. Then when I got back to Atlanta, my full-time job demanded a great deal more of my attention than usual. Excuses, excuses-all. But really when you stay up Friday and Saturday until 3 AM talking in the Westin bar, you have a harder time recovering (or at least I do). And as the week progressed, I was amazed at the level of detail and perspective that many folks offered in their con reports. I felt my report had to be just as good–among the best con reports. And then today, my Robot6 pal Brigid Alverson let me off the hook when she wrote of Tom Spurgeon’s con summary: “Tom Spurgeon, of course, has the ultimate con post, because he went everywhere and saw everyone.” Once he has written the ultimate post, what can I do, eh? (Side note: Tom, I gotta say I cracked up when you called the report “A Few Notes on Heroes Con 2010″. A few notes Tom? Try 3,000+ words, Tom. My god, your writing and analysis blows my mind.)
- June 11, 2010 @ 02:00 PM by Tim O'Shea
Robot reviews: Wally Gropius and Dungeon Quest
Wally Gropius
by Tim Hensley
Fantagraphics Books, 64 pages, $18.99
Wally Gropius can be a tough book to describe. It seems to revel in its contradictions. It’s both an affectionate paean to the Archie/Harvey/Dell comics of yesteryear and a blistering critique of them. It has contains disturbing imagery and themes that will shock the unexpectant reader, but is also utterly silly, joyfully so at times. It comes off as jarring, even downright bizarre, in its blend of word and image, yet at the same time feels strangely familiar. Even with its influences writ largely on its sleeve, it’s hard to find a book to compare it to.
I had never warmed to Hensley’s work prior to this story, originally serialized in the Mome anthology. The few short pieces he did in anthologies like Dirty Stories left me befuddled and cold. His work seemed so deliberately off-putting, so more concerned with being clever than good, that I honestly didn’t quite know what to make of it.
- June 11, 2010 @ 01:00 PM by Chris Mautner
Buenaventura Press closes its doors
Kramers Ergot #7
Some sad news today out of Oakland … Alvin Buenaventura announced today that he shut down his company, Buenaventura Press, in January.
“I was forced to let go of the dedicated employees who had worked so tirelessly for so little money in order to create art that we all believed in,” Buenaventura posted on Blog Flume earlier today. “This meant that I had to abandon all current and future projects and discontinue sales and distribution. I deeply regret having to take these actions, but the press experienced a devastating financial blow that made it impossible to continue. (I will release more details about this problem in the future.)”
Robot 6′s Sean T. Collins reached out to Buenaventura today, and he added that the situation comes down to a single problem that is legal in nature.
Buenaventura Press published many independent comics, high-end anthologies, graphic novels and prints by creators like Ron Rege Jr, Ted May, Kevin Huizenga, Eric Haven, Lisa Hanawalt and Matt Furie. Back in 2008 they received a lot of attention when they published the massive Kramers Ergot 7, an “olympic-sized” anthology that included contributions from Matt Groening, Daniel Clowes, Seth, Gabrielle Bell and many more. They also published Comic Art Magazine.
- June 11, 2010 @ 12:31 PM by JK Parkin
Scanlation site shuts down following legal threat from manga publishers
MangaHelpers
Just days after a coalition of Japanese and U.S. manga publishers threatened legal action against 30 scanlation websites, the effort has scored its first victory.
Administrators at scanlation aggregator MangaHelpers announced this morning that they’ve begun shutting down the site, disabling uploading and linking for scans and making existing files available only to scanlators so they may back up their work.
“The publishers will no longer sit idly by and watch the scanlation community spread their work,” reads the announcement. “They have identified some 30 larger websites, and have given a last warning to the scanlation community to voluntarily remove all infringing content, or face legal repercussions. Yes, we believe MangaHelpers is one of them, despite not being contacted by any legal representatives about this specific announcement at this time.”
The website also announced the launch of OpenManga, a platform designed to allow manga creators to distribute their work digitally.
On Tuesday a group of American publishers revealed they had joined forces with the 36-member Japanese Digital Comic Association to fight unauthorized online distribution of manga. In a press release, the coalition issued a warning to scanlation sites to “take it upon themselves to immediately cease their activities.”
“Where this is not the case, however, we will seek injunctive relief and statutory damages,” the group’s spokesperson said. “We will also report offending sites to federal authorities, including the anti-piracy units of the Justice Department, local law enforcement agencies and FBI.”
(via Scott Green, Anime News Network)
- June 11, 2010 @ 12:00 PM by Kevin Melrose
The proper use of photos
Faith Erin Hicks used photos of her hometown, Halifax, to create settings for her graphic novel Friends With Boys, and she puts up a few side-by-side comparisons of photos and drawings in her LJ. It’s interesting to see how she transforms them—the finished drawings are not only livelier than the photos, they are quite different in composition and details. Compare that to the obviously photo-referenced panels that Frank Santoro was complaining about the other day—it’s a whole different world.
- June 11, 2010 @ 11:30 AM by Brigid Alverson
Makoto Takahashi, the godfather of cute
Drawing by Makoto Takahashi
The Japanese newspaper Daily Yomiuri has an interview today with artist Makoto Takahashi, who is known for his shojo-ga, drawings of girls, which were featured in manga magazines as well as in other girls’ magazines and on stationery. Takahashi cites an odd beginning for his love of drawing girls:
“Why do I always draw girls? I have this lingering image I had when I was a sixth-grader, right after the war,” Takahashi told The Daily Yomiuri in a recent interview. “There was a church of the Allied Occupation Forces near my house, and one day I saw a girl over the fence. She was about 5 and was playing in the garden filled with flowers.
“The girl, her leg in a cast, was called by her mother. She turned around and ran to her mother, her beautiful blond hair flowing. It was such a beautiful scene in such a gloomy time as was postwar Japan. The image stuck with me, and I came to want to paint that girl.”
At 75, Takahashi isn’t slowing down much. “I want to make drawings of girls in the image of the French revolutionary calendar, [which was used from 1793 to 1804], which starts with venedemiaire, or grape month,” he told the Daily Yomiuri. “I would like to draw girls based on the lunar calender, too, and then compare the two.” Takahashi’s work is the subject of an exhibit at the Hachioji Yume Art Museum, where curator Takahito Kawamata credits him with the creation of kawaii (cute) culture: “If you follow the stream of kawaii culture to its source, it will take you to Takahashi.”
(Image taken from a collection of Takahashi’s work at Kurutta.)
- June 11, 2010 @ 11:00 AM by Brigid Alverson
New Aqualad to debut in Brightest Day, Young Justice cartoon
Back in April DC announced a new Young Justice cartoon starring Superboy, Robin and several other young heroes, including a Black Aqualad. “…a lot of people asked who the new Aqualad was,” DC CCO Geoff Johns wrote on the Source blog today. “And a lot of people thought they’d have to wait for the show to start. But you won’t.”
Turns out the new Aqualad will debut in comic book form as well; witness the cover to Brightest Day #10:
Brightest Day #10
“Aqualad’s story actually begins in a few short weeks in BRIGHTEST DAY #4,” Johns said. “I won’t tell you much yet, but I will tell you – he has no idea he’s about to become Aqualad. In fact, he lives in one of the driest places in America – Silver City, New Mexico.”
(And yes, I’m purposely not going with the obvious joke here … I’ll leave that for the comments section.)
- June 11, 2010 @ 10:30 AM by JK Parkin
Gareb Shamus acquires Connecticut convention, brushes off critics
Gareb Shamus
Just as his Wizard World Philadelphia Comic Con kicks off today for its 10th year, Gareb Shamus announced he’s acquired another convention, bringing the total to 13. This time it’s the fledgling ComiCONN, which was held for the first time in May in North Haven, Connecticut.
In what’s become standard practice for these Wizard World acquisitions, the convention’s organizers will remain to “promote, advise and consult on the show.” They’ll also continue to operate their own local events.
The renamed Wizard World Connecticut Comic Conn will debut sometime in 2011 in Hartford.
But back to Shamus and his Philadelphia show, the subjects of a fawning preview — the convention “appears to be bigger and better than ever,” mainly because “Gareb Shamus is back in charge” — in this morning’s Philadelphia Daily News.
After the repeated drubbings the Wizard empire has received, maybe it’s due a softer spotlight. Still, even the company’s defenders are likely to admit the article is a little … much. Witness, for instance, this passage, explaining away the recent decline of Wizard’s convention arm. It turns out it was an unfortunate result of Shamus’ flirtation with mixed martial arts fighting and the International Fight League:
“I had left Wizard for a number of years,” said Shamus, whose Wizard brand is arguably the most popular, powerful and influential name in comics. “Around 2003, when I felt the company and conventions were healthy and in good hands, I decided to try something different.” [...] “These shows take a lot of time and a lot of money,” Shamus said. “I thought others could handle them, but then decided I had to get back to the company.
And the cancellation of shows in Los Angeles and Arlington, Texas? That was “all just part of a grand plan dating back to when I came back in 2008.”
- June 11, 2010 @ 10:00 AM by Kevin Melrose
Straight for the art | My lord
Um, congratulations?
Via The Daily What
- June 11, 2010 @ 09:30 AM by JK Parkin
Her strip canceled, Little Orphan Annie heads back to Broadway
Annie and her pal Sandy
The sun may be setting on her comic strip, but Little Orphan Annie will rise again in fall 2012 — on Broadway.
The Associated Press reports that producer Arielle Tepper Madover (Hair, Frost/Nixon) has acquired the rights to mount a revival of Annie, the award-winning musical that debuted in 1977 on Broadway.
The adaptation of Harold Gray’s comic strip was transformed into a feature film in 1982 and a TV movie in 1999. With music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and book by Thomas Meehan, Annie features such well-known songs as “Tomorrow” and “It’s the Hard Knock Life.”
Tribune Media Services announced last month that Sunday will mark the final installment of Little Orphan Annie. The strip, which debuted on Aug. 5, 1924, once appeared in hundreds of newspapers. Now it runs in fewer than 20.
- June 11, 2010 @ 08:46 AM by Kevin Melrose
George Pérez to undergo eye surgery today
George Perez
George Pérez, who’s long struggled with diabetes and high blood pressure, revealed he’ll undergo laser retina surgery today after doctors discovered blood vessels forming in the back of his eyes.
“Thankfully, it’s been caught at the treatable stage and the prognosis is good,” he wrote this morning on his Facebook fan page. “I’d been noticing difficulty in focusing for some time and thought it was merely eyestrain and let it go unchecked too long. My own fault, I’m afraid. However, it’s likely I’ll come out of it with better vision than I had before, so I’m definitely optimistic about this. Up to now, only my immediate family knew of this, but there a lot of really good friends out there who I felt should know as well and this seemed the best way to contact all of you at once.”
Pérez, who turned 56 on Wednesday, is penciling issues five and six of DC Universe: Legacies. Teen Titans: Games, his decades-in-the-making graphic novel with Marv Wolfman, is set for release later this year.
- June 11, 2010 @ 06:57 AM by Kevin Melrose
Grumpy Old Fan | Another look at “I’m for everyone”
"I'm for everyone."
(Today’s post might ramble a bit — shocker! — but I want to lay a little groundwork for future posts on this topic. )
Frequently I’ll mention DC’s seven “foundational” franchises and the nine books which showcase them. These are the features to which DC has shown unflagging commitment over the past five decades: Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Green Lantern, the Justice League, and the Legion of Super-Heroes. When the fire of DC Comics finally burns out, these seven titles (plus Action Comics and Detective Comics) will be its last flickering embers.
Of course, within that select group is the Trinity of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, which itself has been retroactively made the emotional/ethical/spiritual core not just of the Justice League, but of DC’s entire superhero Multiverse. It’s a relatively recent idea, borne out by such comics as the 2008-09 Trinity miniseries and Brad Meltzer’s Justice League of America #0 from 2006 (drawn, fittingly, by an all-star lineup). Despite its novelty, I don’t see this tenet being challenged anytime soon. This is because the Trinitarians’ basic details are never going to change. Superman will always be Clark Kent, strange visitor turned mild-mannered reporter, etc., Batman will always be Bruce Wayne, and Wonder Woman will always be the Amazons’ emissary.
- June 10, 2010 @ 02:00 PM by Tom Bondurant