2010 October
Robot 666 | Parasomnia, Part Four
Parasomnia
Courtesy of artist Greg Hinkle, we’re pleased to present the finale to his horror comic Parasomnia. Be sure to read the first three chapters (here, here and here) before reading the final one, which is written by Matt Silady.
Here’s what Matt and Greg had to say about this chapter:
“When Greg asked me to contribute to his horror anthology, I knew immediately I wanted to write a ghost story. So, here’s a little tale about an urban spirit who wants more than anything to rest in peace.
Happy Halloween!”
-Matt Silady (the upcoming The Delta of You, the Eisner-nominated The Homeless Channel)
“To be honest, when I asked Matt to fill out the roster on this book, I never thought he’d agree. I mean, he’s a very busy guy. So I figured my little anthology would be way down at the bottom of his list of priorities. Instead, he got right back to me, and we met up at the famous saloon, the Vesuvio, in San Francisco to discuss his piece.
Matt and I ended up working in the old Marvel style. He had an outline, with some rough layouts, and told me to work on the art, and he’d fit the story to the finished pages. It was great to have the liberty to help guide the story, but a little intimidating. I kept sending Matt thumbnails as I’d finish them, just to make sure I was headed in the ‘right’ direction. I wanted to blur the line between waking and sleeping a bit with the last dream, and Matt’s Ghost Story was exactly what the book called for.
Matt and Jason helped me tie up the ending as well, with an intense series of late night back-and-forth emailing. I had a certain ending in mind, and they helped talk me down from that clichéd ledge. Without their combined effort, and Josh’s lightning fast lettering, I don’t think I wouldn’t have had anything worth looking at.”
-Greg
This wraps up the comic, but tomorrow come back for Greg Hinkle’s illustrated Annabel Lee by Edgar Allan Poe. Print copies of Parasomnia are available from Greg’s Etsy shop.
- October 28, 2010 @ 01:00 PM by JK Parkin
I just realized Grant Morrison invented LOLcats in We3
OH HAI GUISE, IM IN UR ACCLAIMED 2004 3-ISSUE VERTIGO COLLABORATION WITH FRANK QUITELY, INVENTIN UR LOLSPEAK
- October 28, 2010 @ 12:30 PM by Sean T. Collins
Robot 666 | Take aim at The Walking Dead with Jordan Crane, Lisa Hanawalt, Johnny Ryan, and Jon Vermilyea
The Walking Dead print by Jordan Crane
Whoa. These are pretty much the last official promotional items I ever expected to see, but man am I ever glad I’m seeing them: Alternative-comics creators Jordan Crane, Lisa Hanawalt, Johnny Ryan, and Jon Vermilyea have each created a Walking Dead print. Made to look like shooting-range practice targets, the prints tie in with Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard (and Tony Moore)’s series, the television adaptation of which will make its debut on AMC this Halloween. Each print is signed by the artist and by Kirkman himself, emblazoned with the “Grant County, Georgia Law Enforcement and Public Safety” logo, limited to a run of 100, and priced to sell at $40. Best of all, each artist worked in his or her own inimitable style: Crane’s features linework so impeccable it actually becomes somewhat menacing itself, Ryan’s is spectacularly gross and upsetting, Vermilyea’s is a riot of squiggly detail, and Hanawalt’s has a cat’s head instead of a human’s.
The prints were curated by L.A.’s Secret Headquarters. Click here to see them all and buy them, but remember: If you end up using them for target practice, headshots only!
(Hat tip: David Paggi)
- October 28, 2010 @ 12:00 PM by Sean T. Collins
Bryan Lee O’Malley on how he makes the magic – Updated!
Bryan Lee O’Malley reveals a lot about his process, and the reality of the creator’s life, in a questionnaire he filled out for his pal Eric Kim’s class.
4. What do you feel to be the hardest part of making comics?
The hardest part is probably the consistency of it, the constant work and the constant practice required. Every day can feel like you’re starting over from scratch. The other hardest part for me as a maturing creator is, like I said earlier, the divide between writing and drawing. I’m constantly looking for ways to integrate the two aspects to my own satisfaction, but it’s difficult, because I like the structure of a solid plot and I like the spontaneity of coming up with jokes and images while drawing pages. I want it both ways, and that necessitates this division of labour.
There’s lots more at the link, including just how he divides his time between writing and drawing, his favorite equipment, and how he got into the biz to begin with.
UPDATE: And he has posted a huge Flickr set of work-in-progress pictures.
- October 28, 2010 @ 11:30 AM by Brigid Alverson
Exclusive: Sheldon Vella jams with Ghost Rider in Strange Tales II #2
And finally, here’s a look at a page from Super-Tron creator Sheldon Vella‘s heavy-metal Ghost Rider tale that will be featured in the upcoming second issue of Strange Tales II. Check it out in all its glory after the jump.
The book lands in shops next week and includes contributions by, among others, Paul Hornschemeier, David Heatley, Scott Richardson and Jaime Hernandez (who did the cover).
- October 28, 2010 @ 11:00 AM by JK Parkin
The return of Li’l Mell
First page of the new story arc!
Shaenon Garrity is not just a perceptive commentator on the comics scene, she’s also a comics creator herself. Her Skin Horse has been getting a lot of good reviews, and now she is bringing back one of her earlier webcomics, Li’l Mell, with a new story arc and updates every Wednesday. Garrity writes the strip, and Cameron Nielson will be handling the art.
- October 28, 2010 @ 10:30 AM by Brigid Alverson
Robot 666 | Behind the scenes of a Christian haunted house in “Crossfader”
from "Crossfader" by Dan Zettwoch
Another day, another link to Jordan Crane’s must-read What Things Do webcomics portal. This time it’s Dan Zettwoch’s “Crossfader,” which originally ran in the equally indispensable print anthology Kramers Ergot 6. Using Zettowch’s trademark diagram-style layouts, it’s a good-natured look at a fictional midwestern church’s Fall Festival “haunted house,” the centerpiece attraction of which is a lighting trick that transforms a girl into a gorilla. (I think this represents “the horrors of evolution.”) Chances are good you’ve never read comics quite like Zettwoch’s before — it’s no sin to check ‘em out.
- October 28, 2010 @ 10:00 AM by Sean T. Collins
Robot 666 | Kate Beaton draws Dracula
Becky Cloonan’s “Sluts of Dracula” post hinted that this might be on the way, and behold, it’s a thing of beauty: Historical and literary gag cartoonist extraordinaire Kate Beaton takes on Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the Victorian classic of horror and sex (and horror of sex). She nails it. Or drives a stake through it, whichever. Read the whole thing.
- October 28, 2010 @ 09:30 AM by Sean T. Collins
Exclusive: Paul Hornschemeier tests mutant mettle in Strange Tales II #2
As promised, here’s another preview page from next week’s Strange Tales II #2, Marvel’s sequel to their indie/superhero mash-up anthology. This page features Colossus vs. Colossus (Colossi?) by Paul Hornschemeier (Mother, Come Home; The Three Paradoxes).
Check it out after the jump, then be back at 11 a.m. Pacific for one more!
- October 28, 2010 @ 09:00 AM by JK Parkin
Comics A.M. | The comics Internet in two minutes
Comic-Con International
Comic-Con | A reminder: Four-day and single-day passes for Comic-Con International go on sale Monday at 9 a.m. PT. Note, though, that four-day memberships with Preview Night sold out on the last day of this year’s convention (more could be released later, depending on returns and cancellations). Prices have increased oh so slightly, from $100 to $105 for four-day memberships and from $35 to $37 for single-day passes.
Convention organizers also announced the first 20 special guests for the 2011 event, including Jordi Bernet, Jo Chen, Alan Davis, David Finch, Dave Gibbons, Jonathan Hickman, Jamal Igle, Mark Tatulli and Roy Thomas. [Comic-Con International]
Legal | A federal judge on Wednesday blocked a new Massachusetts Internet law designed to protect children from sexually explicit material, say the legislation was so broad that it would criminalize legitimate websites and electronic communication. The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund was among the plaintiffs in the lawsuit opposing the statute. [The Boston Globe]
- October 28, 2010 @ 08:07 AM by Kevin Melrose
Shuho Sato looking for volunteer translators
Translate this and you could be a (volunteer) translator
Manga creator Shuho Sato has certainly done his best to shake up the Japanese publishing industry; not only did he take his Say Hello to Black Jack online, he started up a website (in Japanese) for other creators to post their work as well.
How’s that working out? About as well as webcomics always do, which is to say, there’s a sharp divide between the top dog and everyone else. Sato expects to take in over 1 million yen (around $12,000) from the site this month, which is a significant milestone; however, he says the other creators on the site are only making around $100 per month.
And despite all the money Sato is raking in, he can’t afford to hire help, so he is looking for volunteer translators to render his work into English. As a sort of audition, he posted the first chapter of Say Hello to Black Jack to his Twitpic account and invited people to send in their translations. Looking down the comments string is like watching a game of Telephone; the translations all contain the same basic elements but they are mixed and matched and misspelled in different ways. Hard as it is to believe, skilled translators don’t seem to be flocking to give away their work for free.
- October 28, 2010 @ 07:00 AM by Brigid Alverson
Exclusive: The Pack is back in David Heatley’s Strange Tales II story
Courtesy of our friends at Marvel Comics, we’ve got not one, not two, but three exclusive looks at next week’s Strange Tales II #2. First up, after the jump, check out a page from a Power Pack/Wolverine team-up story by David Heatley (My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down). Then come back at 9 a.m. Pacific for another one!
- October 28, 2010 @ 06:00 AM by JK Parkin
Gorillas Riding Dinosaurs | Boneyard
Boneyard, Volume One
Boneyard, Volumes 1-7
Written and Illustrated by Richard Moore
Published by NBM
I’m trying to figure out how to use the words “Monster Decadence” to describe Boneyard without sounding mean about it. It’s a wonderful, fun, involving series, but there’s an element to it that reminds me of the problem with having Speedy beat crooks up with a dead cat or Guy Gardner vomit blood all over the cover of a comic. I’m not suggesting that Richard Moore’s done anything wrong – it’s his series, he created it; he can do whatever he wants with it – but on its surface Boneyard appears to be simply a cute story about an unlucky everyman who inherits a graveyard full of funny monsters. There’s something very Bone-ish about the concept and kids would love the creature designs and giggle at some of the jokes. But it’s not a kids’ book. At all.
Again, I’m not faulting Moore. He’s got an appealing, humorously animated drawing style, but it would be foolish to suggest that he should tone down his writing because of that. On the contrary, it’s very cool that he’s been able to create such a grown-up story with such attractive, endearing characters. And as much as I kept thinking, “My son would love this if only…,” Boneyard is a whole different creature from “adult” superhero comics.
This is ironic since Boneyard is a monster comic, but it’s nowhere near as bloody or violent as the Superhero Decadence crowd of books. What puts it out of kids’ reach is mostly its playfulness about sexuality. There’s plenty of cheesecake, but nothing graphic; just good, naughty fun.
- October 27, 2010 @ 04:00 PM by Michael May
Robot 666 | The Silent Auction by Cullen Bunn
Cullen Bunn
As I mentioned earlier this week, The Sixth Gun writer Cullen Bunn has written a horror story starring an old woman named Mrs. Friedly at Halloween for the past few years. This year, to help us celebrate Robot 666 Week, Bunn sent us all three of the previous Mrs. Friedly tales to share with our readers, along with a brand new one that we’ll debut right here on Halloween.
So a big thanks to Bunn and Mrs. Friedly for sharing their Halloween with us. “Gone Fishin‘” went up on Monday, and you can read “The Silent Auction” below. Check back Friday and on Halloween to read more.
The Silent Auction
By Cullen Bunn
“My word, Mrs. Friedly!” Claire tapped the tiny, elderly woman on the shoulder. “I’ve never heard such questions in all my life!”
Mrs. Friedly turned and regarded her new neighbor over the rim of her round-framed eyeglasses. “What’s that, dear?”
“These questions–” Claire waved towards the gorilla-suited MC, who was busy reading trivia questions from a crumpled sheet of paper. Behind him, a banner was tacked to the wall. HALLOWEEN TRIVIA NIGHT, it read. “–They’re dreadful!”
Mrs. Friedly smiled sweetly and nodded.
“OUR NEXT QUESTION …” The MC’s voice, muffled beneath his ape mask, boomed over the microphone. “…NAME, IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, THE VICTIMS OF JACK THE RIPPER.”
- October 27, 2010 @ 03:00 PM by JK Parkin
Send Us Your Shelf Porn!
Welcome once again to Shelf Porn! This week’s shelves were submitted by Rey Taira from San Francisco, who shares his collection of comics, original art, Gundams and more.
If you’d like to contribute to Shelf Porn, it’s easy — just send your photos and write-up to jkparkin@yahoo.com.
And now let’s hear from Rey …
- October 27, 2010 @ 02:00 PM by JK Parkin