2010 December
New York magazine’s Top 10 comics of 2010
Chew #15
New York magazine’s Vulture blog has unveiled a diverse list of the best comics of the year that, while it doesn’t include any superhero selections, features just about everything else.
10. A Drunken Dream and Other Stories, by Moto Hagio (Fantagraphics)
9. Sweet Tooth, by Jeff Lemire (Vertigo)
8. Pang the Wandering Shaolin Monk, by Ben Costa
7. Chew, by John Layman and Rob Guillory (Image Comics)
6. Make Me a Woman, by Vanessa Davis (Drawn & Quarterly)
5. Set to Sea, by Drew Weing (Fantagraphics)
4. Pluto: Urasawa x Tezuka, by Naoki Urasawa (Viz Media)
3. Denys Wortman’s New York, Edited by James Sturm and Brandon Elston (Drawn & Quarterly)
2. Duncan the Wonder Dog, Show One, by Adam Hines (AdHouse Books)
1. Wally Gropius, by Tim Hensley (Fantagraphics)
- December 14, 2010 @ 02:00 PM by Kevin Melrose
Steel #1 and the state of the superhero comic
There’s so much I find fascinating about Vaneta Rogers’s Newsarama interview with Steel #1 writer Steve Lyons that I hardly know where to begin. I suppose I’ll start by saying that there’s a lot to be excited about in the comic, which kicks off DC’s “Reign of Doomsday” event. For example, I’ve long argued that Steel is one of the most undervalued characters and designs in DC’s pantheon. Iron Man’s powers, Thor’s hammer, Superman’s cape, and an African-American folk hero’s name? That’s pure gold. And seriously, what a great design: The Alex Garner cover to the issue — itself part of DC’s genuinely awesome iconic-cover line-up for the month of January — is practically payoff enough. Plus, in a genre often (and accurately) decried for its lack of strong non-white heroes, John Henry Irons is an armor-clad, hammer-wielding, ‘S’-shield-wearing super-genius whose role in Metropolis’s scientific and business community is basically “the anti-Lex.” Tough to top that.
Similarly, at nearly two decades’ remove from the controversial “Death of Superman” storyline, I’m much better able to appreciate Doomsday him/itself. He’s no longer just the out-of-the-blue newcomer who got to deliver the coup de grace to the Man of Steel over more “deserving” villains like Lex Luthor (and set sales records in the process). Rather, he is to the villainous side of the superhero genre what the Hulk is to its heroic half: The power fantasy in its purest form, i.e. giant unstoppable guy pounds the crap out of everyone in his way. On an inner-eight-year-old level, that’s a thing of beauty. And remember how in his original appearances he slowly shedded a Kirbyesque jumpsuit-and-goggles look to reveal badass bone spikes and claws jutting out of every possible place on his body? He’s basically a microcosm of the direction of the entire superhero genre from that period, a walking symbol of ’90s excess at its boldest and best. Finally, in story terms, he accomplished the pinnacle achievement for any DCU villain: He killed Superman! Okay, so he got better, but still. As I believe Geoff Johns has argued, Doomsday’s name alone should scare the crap out of every character in the DC Universe. As such he’s a terrific basis for a crossover event.
- December 14, 2010 @ 01:30 PM by Sean T. Collins
Darryl Cunningham on climate change
Darryl Cunningham is carving out a nice little niche for himself as the Malcom Gladwell of comics, with sequential-art debunkings of moon-landing hoax theories, homeopathy, and the link between vaccines and autism. In his latest comic, he takes a look at climate change, both the scientific reasoning behind it and the political controversy surrounding it. Cunningham’s cartoons tend to be a bit didactic, leaning on text boxes to convey chunks of facts and statistics, but they also do a good job of explaining the issues in a straightforward way; this is as good a primer as you’ll get on the topic, and it’s a nice read, too.
- December 14, 2010 @ 01:00 PM by Brigid Alverson
The grim economics of the $65-million Spider-Man musical
From the "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" video
It will take the troubled Broadway musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark four years to recoup its initial $65-million original investment, according to number-crunching by The New York Times.
Writing on the newspaper’s Economix blog, economics editor Catherine Rampell cautions that’s just a rough estimate that excludes merchandising sales — those can be lucrative for hit shows on the scale of The Lion King or Wicked — but somewhat generously assumes that 96 percent of the Foxwoods Theatre’s 1,932 available seats will be sold each week.
So, yes, Rampell’s calculations require some educated guesswork, but they make it clear that, even with the repeated delays, injuries and a problem-filled preview seemingly behind them, the producers of Spider-Man still have a difficult row to hoe. The combination of an established property with a visionary creative team might seem like a formula for success, but as Rampell notes, for every Lion King or Wicked there’s a Little Mermaid or Shrek the Musical. The latter, which cost an estimated $24 million — until Spider-Man came along, it was the most expensive production in Broadway history — ran for slightly more than a year, before closing in January.
- December 14, 2010 @ 12:00 PM by Kevin Melrose
CBLDF notes rise in border authorities seizing devices containing adult comics material
CBLDF
If you’re planning on traveling abroad this holiday season, you may want to be wary of what comics you’re bringing on your computer, phone or other device. During a call with his fellow Comic Book Legal Defense Fund board members yesterday, writer Neil Gaiman tweeted about a trend the CBLDF has been watching: “On @CBLDF Board of Directors call. Just learning about Customs officers confiscating computers because they didn’t like the comics on them.”
According to Executive Director Charles Brownstein, both the CBLDF and the American Civil Liberties Union have been tracking the trend.
“The CBLDF legal team has been tracking trends in customs here in the U.S. and abroad that show authorities searching, and,in some cases, seizing the computers, portable devices, storage devices, and other items of travelers who have adult comics material stored on those devices,” Brownstein told Comic Book Resources. “The ACLU is tracking similar customs abuses from a privacy point of view. There’s a recent incident about which we’re not at liberty to discuss specifics involving this trend, where we were asked to provide information and letters of support. Because this is a pending matter, I’m not at liberty to discuss further specifics at this time.”
He added that in response, the CBLDF is working on a “best practices” document for comic fans going through customs. “This document will cover what they need to know to help mitigate their risks in this area,” Brownstein said. “We plan to issue this document in the first quarter of 2011.”
- December 14, 2010 @ 11:00 AM by JK Parkin
Henry & Glenn (i.e. Rollins & Danzig) wish you a merry Anti-Christmas
Move over, Rudolph and Charlie Brown: There’s a new Christmas cartoon classic in town. Exploding from the pages of Henry & Glenn Forever — the very very funny romance/gag-strip comic chronicling the eternal love between musclebound, black-clad hardcore progenitors Henry Rollins and Glenn Danzig — comes the Henry & Glenn Forever X-Mas Special, an animated short by cartoonist and animator Tom Neely. Neely, who co-created Henry & Glenn Forever with fellow Igloo Tornado art-collective members Gin Stevens, Scot Nobles, and Dino Fucker, serves up a heartwarming tale reminiscent of O. Henry’s “Gift of the Magi” — if, that is, “Gift of the Magi” included a visit from Black Santa and Krampus, a jam session with notorious Satanists Darryl Hall and John Oates, and an exchange of thong underwear and a book about Nazi werewolves, all in honor of the birthday of H.P. Lovecraft. It’s the perfect reminder that the Henry & Glenn Forever comic makes a great fishnet-stocking stuffer. Season’s greetings, you goddamn son of a bitch!
- December 14, 2010 @ 10:15 AM by Sean T. Collins
DMP launches manga for the Nook
I’m not sure, but I think this is a first: Digital Manga Publishing is publishing manga on the Nook, Barnes & Noble’s proprietary e-reader. (Like all smart e-readers, the Nook is available not just on the device itself but also as an iPad, iPhone and web application.) There are only a handful of graphic novels available for the Nook, mostly indie material; the best known is probably Mike Jasper and Niki Smith’s In Maps and Legends, which started out as a Zuda comic.
Digital, which has been in the vanguard of, well, digital manga publishing, with their eManga website and Digital Manga Guild, will launch with Vampire Hunter D, in both color and black-and white-versions, divided into two parts for $3.99 each. It’s also available on Kindle for $7.95, and the cheapest way to read it is on the iPhone/iPod Touch, where each of the six chapters in volume 1 is priced at 99 cents. You get what you pay for, though—I read the first volume on the small screen, and it doesn’t adapt well. This is a book that needs a little breathing room.
- December 14, 2010 @ 09:30 AM by Brigid Alverson
Comics A.M. | Witness testifies in George case, publishers rebuke Apple
Legal
Legal | Michael Renaud, the only witness who can place retailer Michael George at his comic store around the time his first wife Barbara George was killed, testified Monday that a meeting with detectives shortly after the 1990 murder detailed in a recently published book did take place, despite its lack of mention in police files. Defense attorney Carl Marlinga questioned during the evidentiary hearing whether Renaud, who admitted to smoking marijuana, has a reliable memory of events. [Detroit Free Press]
Digital piracy | Four publishing groups in Japan, including the Digital Comic Association, is demanding that Apple stop selling pirated works of Japanese authors in its App Store. Apple says that it removes pirated material upon notification by the copyright holder. [The Wall Street Journal]
Publishing | Although a bill to further restrict the sale in metropolitan Tokyo of manga and anime depicting “extreme” sex won’t be voted on until Wednesday, some creators say the legislation has already had a chilling effect. For instance, one boys love artist contends her publisher is refusing to release works set in schools or featuring school uniforms. [Sankaku Complex]
- December 14, 2010 @ 08:24 AM by Kevin Melrose
Comic-Con International to test new badge registration system on Wednesday
Comic-Con International
After two unsuccessful attempts to sell tickets to next year’s Comic-Con International in San Diego, CCI will test a new system this Wednesday, Dec. 15 that involves two separate vendors.
In addition to EPIC, the registration company they’ve used in their previous two attempts, they’ve added a ticket seller, TicketLeap, into the mix. According to CCI’s site, TicketLeap will manage initial badge requests, while EPIC will send unique registration log-in codes, and process badge registration and payment. It sounds a little complicated, but the idea seems to be to keep the massive numbers of people who want to attend the con from bringing down the EPIC site again by sending them to a different site first for their golden ticket.
“We realize having to log in to two separate sites is an inconvenience, but we hope this will result in a successful and less stressful experience for attendees,” the site reads.
They plan to test this new system by selling 1,000 four-day badges (without preview night access; those sold out before this year’s event ended) beginning at 8 a.m. Dec. 15. If you are planning to attend and want to help test the system, you can find more details on their website.
- December 13, 2010 @ 09:08 PM by JK Parkin
Talking Comics with Tim | Christos Gage
Avengers Academy 7
A few weeks back, while I was in the midst of finalizing this email interview with Marvel exclusive writer Christos Gage, Marvel was kind enough to share preview pages from Gage’s Avengers Academy 7 (set for release this Wednesday, December 15). I contacted Gage to discuss the appeal of going exclusive with Marvel, his work on Avengers Academy; his collaborations with Mario Alberti; the Invaders Now miniseries; and his love of letters columns–as well as juggling myriad assignments along with his video game writing.
Tim O’Shea: In terms of the life of a freelancer, how less stressful is it when you gain an exclusive contract as you currently have with Marvel?
Christos Gage: Well, as any freelancer will tell you, a big part of your job is lining up future work. So knowing that I am guaranteed work from Marvel is a load off my mind, allowing me to focus less on nailing down that next job and more on making the stories I’m writing the best they can be.
O’Shea: With Avengers Academy–while the students are the core of the series, it’s the instructors that offer almost as much interest for me. For example, I love your use of Quicksilver. Was it your idea to have him in the cast, or how did he get added? Are there certain eras of Quicksilver history that appeal to you and fuel your approach to the character?
Gage: I asked for Quicksilver because I thought he fit in perfectly with the theme of the instructors being Avengers who have flawed, checkered pasts. Avengers Academy is meant to be a place of redemption for student and teacher alike. Just as the best counselors for people trying to stay off drugs are recovered addicts, the Avengers Academy teachers are people who’ve been down some tough roads and come back. Quicksilver was a teen villain, then a teen hero. He was raised to be a terrorist and grew to be an Avenger. My favorite point in Quicksilver history is when he first joined the Avengers…he did this incredibly heroic thing in terms of breaking from Magneto, and putting himself out there in front of a world that hates and fears mutants…but the whole time he was constantly backseat driving and second-guessing Captain America, of all people! Now that’s what I call cojones. Quicksilver is so much fun to write because he gets to say all the snarky things I want to say to people who irritate me, but don’t want to get smacked in the mouth for.
- December 13, 2010 @ 02:12 PM by Tim O'Shea
Kate Beaton’s New York Diary
The Big Apple giveth, the Big Apple taketh away: After losing what would have been her latest Hark, a Vagrant! comic strip somewhere on the streets of SoHo, cartoonist Kate Beaton made lemonade out of lemons by instead posting “New York Sketches” — a sizeable selection of diary-comic strips about her life and times in New York City. From attending the New York Comic Con (see above) to dealing with drunk and disorderly fellow New Yorkers to assuaging the fears of her mom back in Nova Scotia, it’s a fun little portrait of the artist as she navigates the concrete jungle where dreams are made of [sic].
- December 13, 2010 @ 01:00 PM by Sean T. Collins
When action figures go bad…
Troops of Doom is a photo-comic featuring creator Kraig Furtado’s action figures. He has a bunch of them, and he has no problem mixing and matching figures from different universes. (He actually lists the names of the figures used in each comic in the archive.) Now he is coming up on the 300th strip, and that means an anniversary celebration that will include several “Become a Troop of Doom” contests, in which lucky readers can have a figure named after them and be incorporated into the comic. Considering how much of the time the figures spend taunting one another, it’s a dubious honor, but this is as good a time as any to go check it out. The comics are basically stand-alone gags (although sometimes Furtado riffs on a theme for a couple of days), so you can dip in anytime.
- December 13, 2010 @ 12:00 PM by Brigid Alverson
Robot Reviews: The Great Treasury of Christmas Comic Book Stories
The Great Treasury of Christmas Comic Book Stories
Edited by Craig Yoe
IDW, 176 pages, $34.99
When I was a kid, the word “treasury” promised delights beyond measure, and Christmas was the time when treasuries—of comics, fairy tales, Christmas stories, and other delights—showed up under the tree.
Craig Yoe’s The Great Treasury of Christmas Comic Book Stories is a throwback to those days when a big, fat, colorful book was the centerpiece of the Christmas swag. It is very much a baby-boomer book, chock full of colorful stories from the 1940s and 1950s, but most of the material has aged pretty well and there are some solid classics in there. Of course there are some clinkers, too, but that’s the way of anthologies.
Most notable among the good stuff are several stories by Walt Kelly. His Santa tales are a far cry from Pogo, with a massive, good-natured Santa surrounded by cherubic elves, while his winsome animal stories are more familiar but all sweetness and no bite. The most imaginative of his stories is “The Great Three-Flavored Blizzard,” a classic fairy-tale type story in which weather problems threaten Christmas (no snow, no sleigh) until an elf and the Easter Bunny solve the problem by using ice cream for snow.
- December 13, 2010 @ 11:00 AM by Brigid Alverson
Cloonan illustrates My Chemical Romance for UK magazine
My Chemical Romance by Becky Cloonan
Demo and recent Northlanders artist Becky Cloonan shares a poster she created for the British music magazine Rock Sound. The poster features the band My Chemical Romance in their “Danger Days” identities, as we’ve seen recently in the killer videos featuring super villain Grant Morrison.
Cloonan, as you may have heard, is the artist for the upcoming Killjoys comic by MCR frontman Gerard Way and co-writer Shaun Simon. “Featuring Gerard and Mikey Way, Frank Iero and Ray Toro as they’ll appear in the comics, this is the first glimpse of what they’ll look like in 2D format when the stories surface next year,” the Rock Sound website reads. Announced in 2009, Killjoys was initially set to show up this year but was delayed due to Way’s music schedule.
- December 13, 2010 @ 10:15 AM by JK Parkin
In 2010, comics owned the iPad
The Marvel app for the iPad
Apple has released a list of the top apps for iPhone and iPad in its iTunes store, and three of the top five grossing book apps for the iPad are not just comics readers, they are all from comiXology: Marvel Comics, Comics (their multi-publisher reader), and DC Comics. This reflects not just the quality of the iPad as a comics medium for comics but also the large numbers of comics that must be selling through those apps (the apps themselves are free). The top grosser in the book category is The Elements, a visual exploration of the periodic table, which probably doesn’t have a lot of mass appeal but sells for $13.99, and the number five app is The Cat in the Hat, which does have a lot of appeal and sells for $3.99. That three comics apps can match that tells me that people are buying a lot of comics through them.
The pattern is the same for the rest of the top ten book apps—all but the comics apps are single-book apps (as opposed to an e-reader like Stanza), and none are free: Alice in Wonderland, the Bible, a Toy Story read-along, and two more Dr. Seuss books.
The Marvel and DC apps are number three and six, respectively, on the list of most downloaded free apps.
- December 13, 2010 @ 09:30 AM by Brigid Alverson