Mysterius the Unfathomable

Welcome to What Are You Reading?, our weekly look at the comics and other stuff we’ve been enjoying lately. Our special guests this week are Aaron Alexovich (Invader Zim, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Serenity Rose, Fables) and Drew Rausch (Sullengrey, The Dark Goodbye, Cthulhu Tales), the creative team behind the horror/comedy comic Eldritch!

To see what Aaron, Drew and the Robot 6 crew are reading, click below …

*****

Carla Hoffman

The Mighty Thor

Of course I read Mighty Thor #2! I nearly loved it as much as I loved Mighty Thor #1; the first issue had an amazing balance of the incredible and those who try and understand what credible is to begin with. Don’t get me wrong, as long as Mr. Fraction continues to add nouns to Colossuses (Colossi?), I will be there and ready with cash, but there was just something missing, some spark of life that the first issue captured so well that the second issue lacked. My guess? This was the bridge that get us to the chorus of issue #3.

I also read FF #3, and I fully admit to having a hard time calling the book “eff-eff” rather than the Fantastic Four. The contents of the issue are well aware of the HUGE name change and its impact on the characters within and the universe without. Everyone in that book is important, no one goes without a piece of dialogue or business that is essential to the overall arc of what Mr. Hickman is doing. We’re talking Brubakerian levels of wheels within wheels storytelling that is fantastic to see unfold with every page. Maybe that’s why I keep calling it the Fantastic Four….

Because there was some catastrophically disordered back issues, I read Batman #614 rather by accident. In this issue, Batman thinks long and hard about himself and the Joker and makes a hard decision about his responsibility as a the better man. Holy crap does Jim Lee draw the ever-loving heck out of this issue. Every panel is just gorgeous and jaw-dropping in weight and stature as Batman fights himself more than the Clown Prince of Crime on why he just doesn’t off this guy by right of vengeance. Sure, Mr. Loeb is a little wordy at times but the pacing and tone is pitch perfect on modern day Batman theme. This is great issue on its own merit and while the Hush storyline may have had a sour note to end on for some fans, you have to admit the artwork is a symphony of expression.

Brigid Alverson

It’s hot, it’s a Saturday, and I felt like just vegging out, so I pulled out IDW’s collection Felix the Cat: The Great Comic Book Tails, edited by Craig Yoe. It’s a very nice lazy-summer book, with just enough background on the cartoon to make you feel like an expert on Felix the Cat, who really had his heyday as an animated cartoon in the 1920s. Charles Lindbergh had a Felix decal on the side of The Spirit of St. Louis, and when NBC wanted to test the first television camera, in 1928, they focused it on a Felix statue rotating on a turntable. There! Feel smarter? The bulk of the book is given over to Felix comics from the 1940s and 1950s, drawn by Felix creator Otto Messmer and his follower Joe Oriolo. The comics aren’t particularly eye-catching in terms of the art, but the stories have a hallucinatory quality that makes them entertaining reading for kids of all ages, as vegetables seek their revenge on humans for eating them, or Felix’s rocket comes to rest on the crescent moon—and drops away when the moon wanes to a sliver. It was certainly a pleasant way to while away a Saturday afternoon.

And hey, what’s summer without Archie? The Archie folks have been publishing a lot of collected editions lately, and Jughead: Crowning Achievements is notable because it includes “Something Ventured, Something Gained,” by Robot Chicken creator Tom Root. Chris Reilly called it “the best Archie comic I have read in decades,” and it certainly is a great story. There’s also a story on the origins of Jughead’s hat. Again, not rocket science, but a good read for the first weekend of summer.

Michael May

Western Classics

I finished Eureka’s Western Classics anthology this week. It’s the 20th volume in their excellent Graphic Classics series and a worthy heir to the others. Though I love Western movies and TV shows, I’m not well read at all in Western novels and short stories except for some O Henry, so these were all new stories for me. In fact, except for Zane Grey and Robert E. Howard, I wasn’t even familiar with any of the authors.

I especially enjoyed Tim Lasiuta and Dan Spiegle’s adaptation of Clarence E. Mulfurd’s Hopalong Cassidy story, “The Holdup.” Thanks to some vague, childhood impressions of the character, I’d always dismissed Hopalong as a comedic sidekick, not a leading man. “The Holdup” corrected that notion.

Wila Cather’s “El Dorado” -– adapted by Rich Rainey and gorgeously illustrated by John Findley -– was another treat. It’s the story of an Eastern businessman who’s swindled into coming West, but refuses to leave until he gets back the money he invested in the ghost town he now calls home. Findley’s precisely detailed artwork is incredibly eye-catching, but it’s the emotional ride of wondering whether Colonel Bywaters is a stubborn fool or a hero to root for that makes the story special.

The book highlights the diversity of Western stories. There’s a horror story (Bret Harte’s “The Right Eye of the Commander,” adapted by David Hontiveros and Reno Maniquis), a romance (Gertrude Atherton’s “La Perdida,” adapted by Trina Robbins and Arnold Arre), and even an interesting treatise on faith (John G Neihardt’s “The Last Thundersong,” adapted by Rod Lott and Ryan Huna Smith). Even Zane Grey’s classic Riders of the Purple Sage (adapted by Tom Pomplun and Cynthia Martin) is a fantastic combination of romantic opera and Western pulps.

And for those who prefer their cowboys to be tough guys with six-guns, in addition to Hopalong Cassidy and some of Grey’s characters, Robert E. Howard’s “Knife River Prodigal” (adapted by Ben Avery and George Sellas) is exactly what the sheriff ordered.

I also started reading Charles Fulp and Craig Rousseau’s Uncouth Sleuth this week. I expected it to be an irreverent take on classic adventure pulp, but I wasn’t prepared for how irreverent. The main character is named Harry Johnson, so it’s my own fault for not realizing how far Fulp’s willing to take the sex gags, but “uncouth” doesn’t scratch the surface of Johnson’s behavior. It’s strong enough to be off-putting.

Still…Craig Rousseau. I’m a fan, so I’m going to let this sit for a couple of days and then come back to it better prepared.

Tom Bondurant

Green Lantern

Although its scheduling wasn’t optimal, I did enjoy reading this month’s three installments of “War of the Green Lanterns” in one sitting. (Green Lantern #66 was written by Geoff Johns and penciled by Doug Mahnke, GL Corps #60 was written by Tony Bedard and penciled by Tyler Kirkham, and GL: Emerald Warriors was written by Peter Tomasi and penciled by Fernando Pasarin.) It’s been a pretty decent crossover all around — Krona has captured all the various Lantern Corps’ patron entities and taken control of the Green Lantern Corps by putting Parallax into the Central Power Battery. Naturally, our four Earthling Lanterns are able to oppose him, mostly by donning the rings of other Corps. Thus, they get to do ring-slinging with a little bit of a twist, which is nice. What’s more, this arc gives everyone a turn in the spotlight, not just Hal. In fact (spoiler alert), Hal and Guy have to be rescued at one point by Kyle and John. Guy then plays an integral part in fixing the Central Battery, and Kyle gets to repair some lingering damage from when Guy was previously a Red Lantern.

Probably the most dramatic moment goes to John, though, who finds himself having to make an impossible choice. I’m not sure how I feel about this turn of events, but I have to say it didn’t feel as egregious or as gratuitous as I thought it would. On the other hand, having read John’s adventures off and on for a couple of decades now, I’m having a hard time reconciling these events with his past history. In the context of the story, it works, even if it’s by a slim margin. It’s also the kind of thing that I could see being reversed — maybe not soon, but eventually.

I have decided that this summer I will try to go through all of Jonathan Hickman’s Fantastic Four, in order to capture all the nuances and subplots which escaped me during the month-to-month experience. Accordingly, this week’s FF #4 (written by Jonathan Hickman, penciled by Barry Kitson) was both a good way to bring together two of Hickman’s plots (the Reeds and the Four Cities) while moving the overall story forward. I also appreciated Kitson’s work on this issue — obviously his storytelling skills are clear and precise, and he’s good with characters too — although I did have to work a little to follow his Spider-Man choreography. The issue ended on a clever cliffhanger, to boot.

Otherwise I still have a couple of books to read from this week, including the Strange Adventures special and Xombi #3, so I’d better get to those….

Tim O’Shea

Ruse

I was hoping for more out of Mark Waid’s Ruse (this week saw the release of issue #3 out of 4). I treasured his initial run on the original CrossGen series and was greatly enthused when Marvel tapped Waid on this for the miniseries revival. The appeal of the series to me was always Simon Archard’s assistant in name only/ partner in reality, Emma Bishop. Hell, the slogan for the miniseries is: “He’s the World’s Greatest Detective. She’s even better.” This miniseries has proven to me that she’s better at finding ways to sport her heaving bosoms in multiple scenes. While Emma is given moments where she is clearly a person of action, it is always beyond her control, frequently being set up by Simon. I guess in a sense, Bishop is Watson (always having to bail out her partner), but with a great pair of legs, as the reader is frequently reminded in some odd layout choices by artist Minck Oosterveer. Bishop is often left to react to plot events and have lines like “Who else could hide a trail this thoroughly?” I went in expecting too much of the miniseries, in the final analyses. But Waid has one more issue to surprise me and make the “She’s even better.” line accurate.

With the latest installments of Secret Warriors (#27) and FF (#4), I have come to the (already obvious to many) realization that Jonathan Hickman’s complex machinations are best read as collected trades, as opposed to individual issues. This issue of FF sports art by Barry Kitson–with his art looking like the Kitson I adore. It would appear that Kitson is inking himself, which is critical for him to look his best. In recent years while working at Marvel, there have been times he’s been inked by others and his art has suffered for it. I throw this question out to the readers (as our great readers always know more than me): “Is Kitson’s work pace/quality that he can only do arcs these days? Is that why he’s not got a permanent assignment on any series?”

As a person who considers Avengers Academy to be the best Avengers book that Marvel currently publishes, I was pleased to see series writer Christos Gage writing the two-issue guest arc on the Amazing Spider-Man (featuring his Avengers cast). For Spidey fans not reading AA, Gage concisely built a tale that capitalized on Peter’s love of teaching and meshed the series’ lead character effectively with the guest stars. One hopes he converted a few Spidey fans to check out AA. Extra points to Gage for writing a funny Spider-Man (essential when writing him, but some writers give the character lines that they think are funny, but often miss the mark)–writing comedy is hard.

Venom #3: Remender had my interest with the first two issues, but he (or the dictates of Marvel editorial) has brought Peter Parker/Spidey into the mix a little too early for my tastes. Also, the revelation of his identity to a villain is being played out too quickly as well. Then again, after weeks of harping about books with glacial pacing, I am grateful for the impressive amount of narrative ground that Remender has covered in three issues. But the aspect that really caught my attention was a letter run in this month’s letter column. The reader explains that as a kid he never read comics, but decided to pick up some for he and his girlfriend after seeing AMC’s Walking Dead. In a market of seemingly decreasing numbers, it’s good to see at least two folks picking up comics for the first time.

The Incredible Hulks #629: For a longtime reader like me, who has always been partial to the soap opera lives of Betty and Bruce Banner, this issue delivered exactly what I wanted. Plus I love any comic that sports Tom Grummett’s clean line art.

Aaron Alexovich

I seem to be reading mostly history books these days… Fatal Purity is a good one. It’s about Robespierre and the French Revolution, but the thing reads almost like a slasher movie. “Who will be The Terror’s next victim?” You can almost FEEL the Guillotine stalking all these characters, waiting for them to slip up and fall under the blade. Which every one of them does… No “Final Girl” in Fatal Purity. Age of Wonder is pretty interesting, too. It’s about science during the Romantic Era, and has a section on all the strange people and bizarre public experiments that inspired Frankenstein. This one guy named Aldini used to plug corpses up to voltaic batteries and make them do tricks for spectators. One corpse “laughed and walked,” it says. Good stuff!

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec

As far as comics go, I’ve recently read Fantagraphics’ gorgeous new printing of The Extraordinary Adventures of Adele Blanc-Sec, which absolutely blew me away. I’m always impressed by people like Jacques Tardi, who can build these deep, rich worlds out of really loose, simple linework. It’s definitely not a skill I have. The book also has pterodactyls menacing early-1900′s Paris, so it’s pretty much required that I love it.

One of my favorite RECENT comics is Shadoweyes by Ross Campbell. The second volume just came out recently. It’s a superhero story, but not like any superhero story I’ve ever read. It’s dark and creepy and oddly emotional, fantastically well-drawn. Ross has this way of making bizarre things seem so down-to-earth and REAL, which of course just underlines their strangeness. Really recommend those books.

The last one I’ll mention is The Weird World of Eerie Publications. It’s a big, fat non-fiction hardcover about this fairly low-rent magazine publisher in the late 60′s/early 70′s that would redraw old pre-code horror comics with extra gore. (Warren Publishing’s cheapskate, disreputable cousin, in other words.) But what’s incredible about this book are the COVER reproductions… Every one of these Eerie pubs had a bold, garish, almost DELIRIOUSLY over-the-top cover. They’d have, like, robot Dracula and his hunchbacked Wolfman assistant surgically removing a fish-lady’s brain while, say, Mummy Devil kicks in the laboratory door in the background, bloody severed body parts in each hand. You feel INSANE just looking at these things. You’ve got to see this stuff to believe it.

Drew Rausch

I don’t get to go to the comic shop as often as I like, and when I do I end up grabbing trades, which then sit in a large pile (“no human being would stack books like this”) or a shelf ’til a moment in between drawing pages comes up. Still playing catch up, but here’s a couple recent ones:

Mysterius The Unfathomable by Jeff Parker and Tom Fowler: I have a soft spot for modern sorcerer tales. This one’s like taking the best things about Doctor Strange and Doctor Who and then have them illustrated in a Jack Davis-esque style. I really wish there more of these, sadly with Wildstorm going away, my hopes and dreams are once again extinguished.

Locke & Key

Locke & Key Vol 1 by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez: Was recommended this one a lot. I’m hoping it gets better in future installments. Either that or I missed something because I couldn’t get into it. It did a fine job of introducing the world and its rules, but I personally wanted it to be moodier. Gabriel Rodriguez can draw the heck out of some houses though, let me tell you.

Strange Science Fantasy by Scott Morse: Basically a collection of off the wall one shot stories that really capture the hey days of comics, the Jack Kirby pre-Stan Lee days. No frills, no mess, just FUN. I really dig Morse’s bold line art and color palette.

Secret Six: Unhinged by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott: My wife actually brought this one to my attention. Physically handing it to me after she was done, screaming “READ IT!” at me. I admit to it being a bit different than what I’m used to reading, but I was pleasantly surprised. The arc follows a group of DC bad guys (some of which I had to Google) on a mission to get a card forged by the devil, but the plot is almost secondary to Simone’s dialogue which was engaging, without being bogged down with tons of historical back story.

The Sixth Gun #1

One of the standout offerings from Free Comic Book Day was undoubtedly the debut issue of The Sixth Gun, a new supernatural Western from Oni Press that reteams The Damned collaborators Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt.

Set in the American West in the aftermath of the Civil War, The Sixth Gun centers on the pursuit of a pistol that possesses a dark and otherworldly power. The first issue will be re-released on July 14, the same day that Issue 2 arrives in stores.

In anticipation of that second issue, Robot 6 is featuring a series of posts dedicated to the new monthly series (we like to call them “Robot Sixth Gun”). You’ve likely already devoured the first issue, and gotten a glimpse of what the book’s creators are reading.

Today we talk to writer Cullen Bunn about the importance of setting the story in the Old West, the role of the supernatural, what we can expect from the second arc, and more.

For anyone who might’ve missed the Free Comic Book Day issue — and who, for some reason, still hasn’t read it online — what’s your sales pitch for The Sixth Gun?

My pitch would go something like this:

You like awesome, don’t you? Okay, just kidding. I sometimes wish I could channel my inner carnival barker, but today’s not the day. Let’s try again.

The Sixth Gun is a story about six magic pistols, each with a terrible gift. The most powerful of the guns falls into the hands of an innocent young woman, and the only person standing between her and the forces of evil is a gunslinger with questionable motives. Together, they travel across a mythical Old West, all the while pursued by an undead fiend and his hideous minions.

And let’s face it, if you’re not sure if you’ll like the book, there’s an easy way to find out. Oni Press has posted the entire first issue online for free. You can read it here. And, really, you like awesome, don’t you?

That FCBD book was a massive vote of confidence from Oni Press that seems to have paid off for the series, at least in terms of buzz. Were you surprised by the response to the book, both from the publisher and from readers and retailers?

I was really pleased with the reaction, and I was thankful that we could get the book out to so many people. Readers can be really selective about the books they’ll pick up for the first time, and one of the tough things about a western is that it comes packaged with a lot of preconceived notions. So, you could have someone who sees the book on the shelf, but won’t give it a second thought because they “don’t like cowboys.” But I had a feeling that if readers gave The Sixth Gun a chance, they’d like it. I really think it’s got something for everyone. I was excited to hear some people saying, “This isn’t the type of book I’d normally read, but I’ll definitely be following it now!” Score!

You’ve said your initial idea for The Sixth Gun took place in modern-day New York, but that you couldn’t get the concept to click until you changed settings. Can you pinpoint what it is about the Old West that made everything fall into place?

I’m not sure if there was any one thing that made the setting work for me. I think it was a catalyst that just helped things fall into place. As soon as I decided upon the Old West, the idea for Drake Sinclair popped into my head, quickly followed by Missy Hume and General Oliander Bedford Hume. Everything just took off from there. I love a good weird Western, and I was able to channel my enthusiasm for the genre into this story. Westerns, like fantasy stories, offer countless possibilities for great set pieces and characters and action, so there’s a lot of storytelling potential.

From "The Sixth Gun" #1

In the opening pages you do a nice job of establishing that there’s a wondrous and terrible world beyond the quest for the Sixth Gun, with allusions to the Razing of Devil’s Forks, the Fool’s Lantern, the shaman Screaming Crow — or at least what’s being billed as his shrunken head — and more. Are these things simply part of world-building, or is there a chance we may see more of them as the series continues?

World-building is one of the most fun parts of this book. Right off to bat, I wanted to show the reader that The Sixth Gun takes place in the mythical Old West. Mentioning a few unique places, people, and objects was my way of showing that without saying, “Once upon a time …” You’ll definitely see more of that kind of thing in the first story arc. However, we’re going to be focused on the magical guns — the Six — throughout the first story.

That said, once I gave names to Screaming Crow and the Fool’s Lantern and Asher Cobb, I started thinking of stories about those characters and objects. So, yes, at some point they’ll probably reappear in some fashion.

I’m also working on a guide to The Sixth Gun, sort of an “Official Handbook,” if for no other reason then to help me keep all these different people, places, events, and items straight in my head.

Fantasy writers often have to grapple with the rules, and costs, of magic within the context of the story. Is that something you’ve worked out for The Sixth Gun, or do you approach it more instinctively? Do you already have a clear-cut idea of what supernatural elements exist in this world and what don’t (say, mummies but not vampires)?

The most important thing for me is that the supernatural elements in The Sixth Gun feel “right” in the Old West. It sounds crazy, especially in a story with undead generals and magical guns, but there’s a certain degree of keeping things “grounded” that I strive for if I want to make the story somewhat believable. So, you probably won’t see a giant stomping around with his head in the clouds or anything like that. That’s not to say we don’t have our monsters, but when they show up (in issues 3 and 4) they will fit seamlessly into the Old West.

The story has gone through a lot of changes since I first started kicking the idea around. First, there was only one magical gun. Then, there were six guns which were the only supernatural elements of the story. Then, I just opened the floodgates by changing the setting to a fantasy world. I think stepping into the magic of the world slowly helped me develop some of the rules of magic for the world.

As for other supernatural elements, you’ll definitely see more as the story progresses. I made a list of fantasy elements I’d like to write about (there are a lot of them) and I’ve started thinking about how to make them work in The Sixth Gun.

The Gallows Tree, from "The Sixth Gun" #1

My favorite image, and probably my favorite scene, from the first issue is the Gallows Tree. The creaking branches building up to the shot of the oracular spirits of dozens of hanged men dangling from the tree is beautiful and disturbing. Can you recall what inspired the Gallows Tree?

The Gallows Tree has been rattling around in my head for more than 30 years. It has appeared, in various incarnations, in a number of my short stories. In general, haunted trees frequently appear in my work, and I know exactly where that comes from.

When I was a kid, my friends and I spent a lot of time exploring the woods around my house. In the center of the forest was this massive, gnarled tree we all called “the Big Tree.” It became something of a landmark and a base of operations for us. We always met at the Big Tree when we set off on one of our adventures. I’m not sure how it got there, but there was a large, rusty plow blade embedded up high in the trunk of the tree, almost like it had been sitting in the ground and the tree grew up around it. That gave the tree this magical quality for us. It seemed to set it apart from the “real world.”

Pretty soon, we started making up ghost stories about the tree, and we all told tall tales about seeing a mysterious green light floating around the tree. Sure, we never saw the light when we were together, but if one of us was on our own, we almost always came back with a story of a harrowing encounter with this strange specter. To this day, not one of us has ever admitted to making those encounters up.

Anyway, that’s where my love of spooky trees comes from.

Drake Sinclair

What are you able to tell us about Drake Sinclair that won’t spoil what’s to come? He’s obviously no stranger to the supernatural, and if the spirits are to be believed, he possesses a “heart as black as chimney soot” and as “rotten as witch’s milk.” Sinclair himself teases that while he isn’t the Devil, he “does his business from time to time.” So, he’s not exactly wearing a white hat.

Drake will divide people a little, I think, but he definitely doesn’t deserve to wear a white hat. I don’t think I’m ruining anything when I tell you that in his first incarnation, Drake was the villain of the piece. He was downright evil. The “new” version of Drake is definitely rooted in that original characterization. Still, I don’t see him as a bad guy as much as an anti-hero. Others, including some of the folks at Oni, have a different opinion about him. I’m going to explore his nature quite a bit throughout the series, and I’ll be interested in how the readers describe him.

In the prose pieces I’m working on, I’ve decided to explore Drake’s adventures between the Civil War and the beginning of the first issue of the comic. You’ll see a little more of his treasure-hunting side in those stories, and he’ll certainly be facing some supernatural menaces. The first of the stories, “Them What Ails Ya,” was posted on Oni’s site. I’m working on the second story, “Mama Raptor,” right now, and I’ve got a third, “Darker Than Witch’s Blood,” on the way. I’m not sure just yet how those will be made available.

Aside from Becky Montcrief, who comes into possession of the Sixth Gun by accident, the first issue is populated largely by sinister figures, from the Widow Hume and her Pinkerton agents to the wild-eyed General Hume and his gang. What more can you reveal about the story’s heavies?

You know how there are some villains you can almost sympathize with? Well, not these guys. I really wanted this group of bad guys to be really mean and cruel. They’re a nasty bunch. You can measure the hero by the villains they face. I wanted Drake and Becky to square off against some really tough opposition, just so you know they can handle themselves.

The General is our big bad. He’s a ranting maniac, yes, but he’s also extremely powerful. He’s the wizard of the first arc. He’s been trapped by the man who “killed” him, and he’s weakened in the beginning. He steadily grows stronger as the story progresses.

The General's minions

His minions include Silas “Bitter Ridge” Hedgepeth, “Bloodthirsty” Bill Sumter, “Filthy” Ben Kinney, and Will Arcene. They make their first appearance in the final scene of issue 1. They’re dangerous in their own right, but each of them possesses one of the Six. You get to see a glimpse of what Bill Sumter, Ben Kinney, and Silas Hedgepeth’s guns can do in the very first issue (although some of the powers are more clearly illustrated than others). By issue 3, you’ll know exactly what the six-shooters can do. The guns, though, come with a pretty heavy price, and they have “changed” those who wield them in subtle (or not so subtle) ways.

That brings us to Missy. She’s near and dear to my heart, because she is just so damned awful. She’s a driving force of the series, and her vileness is something of a slow burn. Once it reveals itself in all its glory, readers will be booing and hissing. She’s the proud owner of one of the magic guns, too, and it makes her very dangerous.

I understand you’ve already begun work on the second arc. Is there any chance you’ll give us a glimpse of what we can look forward to?

I’m sworn to secrecy! All I say is that the second arc takes place a few weeks after the close of Issue 6, and some of the characters may be having a hard time dealing with the fall-out from the first arc.

There’s a panel in the sixth issue that is sort of a teaser of “things to come.” When Brian read that, he called me up and said, “Well, you certainly put a stake in the ground for the second arc, didn’t you?” And that’s exactly what I did! I had these cool ideas that I wanted to make sure were staged and ready to go.

I think the second arc will be a refreshing change of pace after the first six issues. It’s a different type of story. Brian and I did the same thing with The Damned. The first story was a noir mystery, while the second arc was more of a pulp adventure. Changing things up keeps the book interesting. I like to play around with expectations a bit.

Beyond the second arc … Well, we have a lot of awesome stuff planned. We’ve pretty much figured out where we’d like to go with the entire series, and I think it’ll be one helluva ride.

My thanks to Gervasio and Jok for their artwork on this series.

Yeah, wrap-up will be coming later. Thanks for reading along, folks.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Still gonna be at Wonder-Con. Still gonna be in the small press area. And I’ll bet you a dollar that nobody will ask for a five minute story, even though I don’t usually charge for them. Betcha.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

And as a reminder, I’ll be at this weekend’s Wonder-Con in San Francisco, over in the small press area. Probably going to be at the thing at the Isotope on Saturday. And eating at Henry’s Hunan sometime. Mmmm…Hunan ham…

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

If all goes well, I’ll see you tomorrow.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Dayum.

Back next week.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell

Back next week.

Chapel Hill Comics

Retailing | Ada Price surveys six retailers from across the United States about weathering the tough economy, what’s selling (and what’s not), and the effects of price increases and “event fatigue.” “Event titles brought people in last year, both long-time fans and new readers, but [this year] people are suffering from event fatigue,” said Eric Thornton of Chicago Comics. “The last year and a half [crossover] events didn’t bring people in, and catered to people who are [already] fans.” [PW Comics Week]

Publishing | Manga sales in Japan fell 6.6 percent to $4.63 billion in 2009, the largest annual decline in market history. The Tokyo-based Research Institute for Publications points to fans reading in manga cafes instead of buying in bookstores because of the recession, and the release of fewer hit titles. [Anime News Network]

Wandering Son, Vol. 1

Publishing | Matt Thorn, editor and curator of Fantagraphics Books’ recently announced manga line, reveals plans for four releases a year with print runs of 6,000 to 8,000 copies each. [PW Comics Week]

Legal | The vote by the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly on the proposed legislation to restrict sexual provocative “visual images” of characters that appear or sound to be younger than 18 years old apparently will be postponed until June. The amendment, which would affect manga, anime and video games sold in metropolitan Tokyo, was protested earlier this week by manga creators. [Anime News Network]

Conventions | Reed Exhibitions Group Vice President Lance Fensterman discusses the debut Chicago Comics & Entertainment Expo, set for April 16-18. There’s also a brief preview of the Diamond Retailer Summit, which will be held April 14-16 in Chicago, in conjunction with C2E2. [ICv2.com]

American Vampire #1

Creators | The American Vampire promotional tour continues as writer Scott Snyder discusses working with Stephen King, and why he focuses on vampires, rather than, say, zombies or werewolves, for the new Vertigo series: “What’s so scary about vampires is that they are the same people — they just come back from the dead and they have this infection, this abomination of the blood that makes them into something that’s unnatural. For me they were always the scariest creatures for that reason. Scary zombies are sort of No. 2, where your father can come back and try and kill you. Vampires come back and are actually knowledgeable. It was the people around you turned into these monsters — the people you trusted like your neighbors in Salem’s Lot, or the people who live in the trashy trailer next door in Near Dark, or the kids you look up to in Lost Boys.  It’s that idea of someone you care about or somebody you trust coming back and being this evil version of themselves that Stephen King does so well.” [USA Weekend]

Madman Gargantua!

Creators | Brandon Burpee posts a video interview with Mike Allred from last weekend’s Emerald City ComiCon. [Multiversity Comics]

Creators | Stumptown Trade Review has audio interviews with Jeff Lemire and Terry Moore from Emerald City ComiCon. [Stumptown Trade Review]

Creators | Bob Fingerman discusses From the Ashes, the End of Days, his upbringing and more. [Heeb]

Creators | Brian Heater talks with artist Ryan Alexander-Tanner about his Xeric-winning book Television #1 and his collaboration with Bill Ayers on To Teach: The Journey, In Comics. [The Daily Cross Hatch]

Comics strips | Greg Evans’ syndicated strip Luann turns 25 years old today. [North County Times]

Comic strips | Olivia Putnal names seven comic strips, now in collected form, that deserve a second look. [Woman's Day]

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell

Back Wednesday. Hopefully less grouchy, but wouldn’t bet on it.

From the "American Vampire" trailer

On the heels of this morning’s interview and preview, Stephen King’s official website has debuted a 40-second trailer, complete with an Omen-style musical score, for American Vampire, the author’s comic book-writing debut. The Vertigo series, by King, Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque, premieres this week.

From "American Vampire" #5

At The Daily Beast, Shannon Donnelly speaks with Stephen King about American Vampire, his collaboration with Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque that debuts this week from Vertigo, and offers a three-page preview of the first issue.

In the interview, King admits to the challenges of his comics-writing debut, and confesses his disappointment after learning that thought balloons have fallen out of vogue: “I got this kind of embarrassed call from the editors saying, ‘Ah, Steve, we don’t do that anymore.’ ‘You don’t do that anymore?’ I said. ‘No, when the characters speak, they speak. If they’re thinking, you try to put that across in the narration, in the little narration boxes.’ … I think it’s a shame to lose that arrow out of your quiver. One of the nice things about the written word as opposed to the spoken word in a movie is that you can go into a character’s thoughts. You do it in books all the time, right?”

Blackest Night #7

Publishing | The penultimate issue of DC Comics’ Blackest Night miniseries led a weak February in the direct market, which saw comic-book sales slip 3 percent from the same month a year ago. Sales of graphic novels, on the other hand, actually rose 1 percent — the category’s first increase since March 2009 — which the retail news and analysis website ICv2.com notes is “somewhat remarkable given that over 12,000 copies of Watchmen were sold in February 2009, over 10 times the number sold in February of 2010.”

Blackest Night #7 sold more than 130,000 copies, followed at No. 2 by Marvel’s Siege #2, with about 108,400. They were the only titles to break 100,000 in February. ICv2 notes that sales of Blackest Night increased some 30 percent from the previous issue’s first month while those of Siege were virtually unchanged. That seems like an impressive performance for both titles.

The 13th volume of Vertigo’s Fables topped the graphic-novel chart with sales just shy of 12,000, followed by the Kick-Ass Premiere Hardcover with just over 9,000. [ICv2.com]

Wandering Son, Vol. 1

Publishing | Deb Aoki speaks with Gary Groth, president and co-publisher of Fantagraphics Books, about the company’s newly announced manga line. [About.com]

Publishing | Mark Siegel, editorial director of First Second Books, talks briefly about the publishing imprint’s moves into webcomics with his Sailor Twain, or, the Mermaid in the Hudson, Amir and Khalil’s Zahra’s Paradise, and Derek Kirk Kim’s Tune. [ICv2.com]

Publishing | Sarah Morean talks with cartoonist Box Brown about his experience with Kickstarter, the social-networking fundraiser site. [The Daily Cross Hatch]

Publishing | U.K. publisher Titan Books is searching for a senior acquisitions editor for “illustrated books in the art, comics reference and related categories, plus graphic novels.” [The Bookseller]

San Diego Convention Center

Conventions | Jennifer de Guzman, editor-in-chief of SLG Publishing, considers the “sometimes touchy” relationship between San Diego and Comic-Con International. [PW Comics Week]

Conventions | Rick Klaw reports on the comics-related elements of last weekend’s STAPLE! Independent Media Expo in Austin. [San Antonio Current]

Creators | Bob Minzesheimer profiles legendary cartoonist Jules Feiffer, who discusses his new memoir Backing Into Forward. [USA Today]

Creators | Writer Fred Van Lente (The Incredible Hercules, Marvel Zombies 5) has signed an exclusive agreement with Marvel. [Comics Alliance]

Red Robin #13

Creators | Fabian Nicieza will be the new regular writer of DC’s Red Robin beginning with June’s Issue 13. [The Source]

Creators | Caroline Small wraps up a two-part interview with cartoonist Nina Paley. [The Hooded Utilitarian]

Creators | Ryan K. Lindsay interviews Justin Greenwood, artist of the Oni Press series Resurrection. [The Weekly Crisis]

Creators | John Geddes spotlights Mark Rahner and Robert Horton, creators of the Western-horror series Rotten from Moonstone Books. [USA Today]

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Silent panel. Does it work? Does it not? Still feelin’ that out.

And again, as a reminder, I’ll be up at the Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle this weekend (first big show of the year for me!). I’m in the C’s of Artist’s Alley, so come on by and say hello and remind me that real people do indeed read this strip on a weekly basis, or I’m gonna end up thinking that all my commentors are just figments of my imagination.

As usual, Five Minute Stories will be available for those who ask nicely, provide three words and something to write upon. If you don’t provide those, how can I be expected to provide a story in return? Plenty of show-priced collections of MURDER MOON, as well as the ashcan version of the first chapter of THE THIRSTY. And you can even hit me up for a sketch, but it’ll probably end up coming from my extensive swipe file.

See you back here next week.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Joe’s dead, baby. Joe’s dead.

Just the first of many reminders, but I’ll be up at the Emerald City Comic Con this weekend, somewhere in the J tables of Artist’s Alley. Looking forward to the show, may even get a chance to see some of it, as I’ll have tablemates to help watch things if I want to stretch my legs. The guys from BRAINS, Anthony Leano and Paul Allen, will be splitting the table with me, so you can wet your horror whistle in more ways than one. Should be a good show.

Hey, anyone know a good Mediterranean/Persian restaurant in Seattle? I could do with some koubideh. Or maybe a nice shawerma.

Back on Wednesday.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Uh-oh. That can’t be the way they planned all that.

See you all next week.

Of course, now that I’ve said that, I’ll cut my pinky off or something…

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell.

Well, looks like someone has a bunch of new best friends.

Let’s see how that works out on Wednesday.

Art by Gervasio and Jok. Written by Matt Maxwell

Looks like someone wants to make a couple of real good friends. This oughta end well.

Back next week.

Art by Dan Hipp

Ridiculously talented cartoonist Dan Hipp — he of The Amazing Joy Buzzards, Gyakushu! and Ben 10: Alien Force fame — has posted a couple of pages from a spaghetti Western comic (with “monsters and stuff”!) that I dearly hope will see the light of day sometime in the not-too-distant future.

“It’s not something I’m actively working on, as there isn’t much of a climate for westerns in comics these days,” Hipp writes. “Yeah, I know there are some good ones out there, and I love them, but getting a publisher to want to pay you for one is a different thing all together.”