Comics Waiting Room 4.0

CHEW 24

2012-02-22T04:09:43Z

CHEW #24
Written by John Layman and Illustrated by Rob Guillory
Published by Image Comics

Issue #24 of CHEW presents the fourth part of the latest ongoing story arc entitled ‘Major League Chew,’ which has been altering its focus each issue on different central characters in the CHEW universe. This book belongs to Olive Chu, daughter of cibopath Tony Chu (currently held hostage by baseball porn loving abusive freaks), and certified renegade badass, especially after this issue.

When Mason Savoy tried to force feed Olive his offer of training her to hone her unique gifts in part two of ‘Major League Chew’ (whereas Tony goes for the bite, Olive first goes for the sniff), she smacked him upside the head with spaghetti, but when presented with the opportunity to save the day from some java-jonesing psychos, Olive rose to the challenge and accepted Savoy’s tutelage…on her terms.

The book opens with a butter sculpting competition, where the competition, judges and fans are literally cut to shreds by a xocoscalpere, aka chocolate sculptor, denied the coveted trophy. (Hell will be blanketed in six inches of snow if readers ever become accustomed to John Layman’s brand of weirdness.) Hershel Brown, the tetchy cocoa lover and wanted arms dealer due to his capacity to replicate the abilities of whatever it is he is sculpting, is the intended target, but when things go south Olive learns her powers may be even more singular, and paramount, than she ever thought.

Layman and Guillory prove yet again how their comedic symmetry make them a modern Abbott and Costello with references to South Park, Dr. Evil and even a slightly creepy Robert Kirkman shout out. Olive is shaping up to be as resilient, and possibly a bit bitchier, than her sire, making her a deserving addition to the CHEW family. This untouchable team seems determined to prove with each and every issue that CHEW is a book worth following.

ROGUE ELEMENT 94

2012-02-20T20:45:23Z

Rogue Element #94: Kick-Start Your Dreams!

By Avril Brown

There is a fabulous new platform sweeping the nation, and no, I am not referring to anything associated with an elephant, an ass, or something green. What I am speaking of goes by the name of Kickstarter. A truly magnificent vehicle for fundraising and advertising, Kickstarter.com is a place for creative souls of all sorts to raise money for individual projects they otherwise would not be able to afford to launch themselves. From comic books to novels to pie shops and even environmentally friendly window baskets for growing soil-free vegetables, Kickstarter is the place to pitch your idea and get the dough you need to breathe life into your personal dream.

Utilizing a unique all-or-nothing funding plan, Kickstarter projects have a monetary goal and a limited time frame in which to raise the funds needed. If the desired goal is not reached by the stated deadline, anyone who pledged money to the project will not be charged for their attempted contribution. Aside from putting a fire under the creator’s ass to get the word out to as many people with wallets as possible to get their project off the ground, this money raising technique assures fewer risks for all involved, including the creator who may start on a ten grand project with only five grand in the bank and be stuck with a deficit they cannot overcome.

Hopeful creators must present their idea in a professional and enticing way to the Kickstarter team in order to earn their place on this world-wide project platform, which includes a video detailing why this idea is worth considering and funding. If approved, the video will be included on your personal Kickstarter page, giving potential pledges the opportunity to put a face to your project and you a chance to show off the passion you have in your work. Few things are as attractive to a philanthropist than a creator’s true love and dedication to their own idea.

Another exciting aspect of Kickstarter is the benefits program for backers. Although creator’s will gladly accept donations of any amount, each project has added incentives for pledges which are all unique to that particular project and become more lavish as the monetary amount increases. Donating $5 to the Bang Bang Pie Shop Kickstarter project will get you a mug of coffee and a slice of pie at their soon-to-be-open Logan Square location, and donating $20 to local Chicago artist Dave Punk’s ‘Robot Envy’ book project will net you a wallpaper, a robot song, a ‘Robot Envy’ PDF, a signed sketchbook and more.

Artist and robot enthusiast Dave Pasciuto, also known as Dave Punk, has started a Kickstarter project to fund his specialty sketchbook starring his lifelong passion: robots. “I’m not a robot freak or anything,” Dave claims, “I grew up on a classic dose of robot anime and toys…this is my tribute to that influence.” A unique collection of sketches, stickers and postcards, ‘Robot Envy’ is this nerd’s idea of a fun little booklet. “This project blends two things I’m interested in: robots and package/graphic design. I’m hoping it attracts a range of people from comic readers to illustrators to graphic designers and everyone else who just digs robot stuff.”

‘Robot Envy’ is an attractive and delightful collection of designs with some sci-fi flair in a very appealing package. Dave is fervent about proper printing and presentation of his work, so each ‘Robot Envy’ is offset-printed, not digital, which improves the quality of the book (and price, hence the Kickstarter campaign) and insures genuine craftsmanship in each page. Check out Dave’s Kickstarter page and let him tell you his tale while you peruse his project specs and backer benefits. His campaign is only open for two more weeks, so explore, donate if you can and pass the word along.

In many ways, Kickstarter is a dream come true for creators of all sorts. Not only does Kickstarter provide an easy-to-use fundraising forum, they also play upon the vast resources of the massively popular venue of social media, allowing creators to, at the very least, advertise their beloved projects for as long as they are attempting to raise money.

Personally, I envy these Kickstarters. They are clear-headed men and women who have a creative idea they want to share with the world, and they are utterly unafraid to make the best effort possible at making that happen. Hopefully, someday soon, I will count myself among them, offering rewards such as a half hour foot massage or a personal dedication on the first page for buying my collection of columns. Kickstarter is the reason thousands of creative babies are being born every day, across the globe, making their parents cry with joy that their own personal miracle actually came to be. Creativity is beauty, so pick a project, pitch in and help keep the world radiant.

DYNAMITE IMAGES

2012-02-19T01:36:35Z

DYNAMITE IMAGES
Written and Drawn by Various
Published by Dynamite Entertainment
Published by Image Comics

Reviewed by Marc Mason

Taking a look at some new series hitting shelves recently…

THE LONE RANGER #1-2 had huge shoes to fill. The previous series was one of the best things Dynamite has ever published, so it shows a lot of guts by writer Ande Parks and artist Esteve Polls to step in and start anew with the character. Is the result as good as the previous book? No. But it’s still a very good comic. Parks wisely realizes that he has to do something different, so he puts some focus on the Ranger in his role as an intervener in the lives of others. This means that we get a better idea of who the Ranger is helping out and why. The answers he gets and the people he meets have a nice variety to them, and Polls (who has experience drawing westerns) delivers the goods on the art side of it. The one thing I have a quibble with is that Tonto has taken a backseat as far as the narrative goes, but there’s plenty of time for Parks to get him situated right in the thick of things going forward. I was prepared to dislike this book, but it really surprised me. Dynamite has done better by the character than any other publisher ever has, and that’s quite commendable.

I was never interested in reading any of the old Extreme books, so when it was announced that those characters were returning, my response was a long, sustained yawn. The return issue of PROPHET turned out okay, but didn’t exactly curl my toes. So I was pretty stunned by how much I liked GLORY #23 by writer Joe Keatinge and artist Ross Campbell. The primary hook for me was Campbell’s art- I really enjoyed his WET MOON graphic novels, but I would have never guessed how well his art could translate to what is ostensibly a superhero story. It not only translates, it looks fantastic. Part of that is because Keatinge does some really smart things with the story. We may be picking up “mid-series” but we start from the beginning, introducing a new cast, creating a new quest, and mostly leaving the title character out of the primary mix. Instead, we’re given an audience surrogate who is really interesting and likeable in Riley Barnes, and her obsession with finding the missing Glory carries us through the tale briskly. This book is different, a little off the beaten path, and for that reason, I’ll be keeping my eye on it.

There’s already been a second printing announced for PETER PANZERFAUST #1 by writer Kurtis Wiebe and artist Tyler Jenkins, which indicates a nice level of success for this intriguing blend of Peter Pan and World War II. I can see why it’s finding a foothold with readers- the concept is clever, Wiebe keeps his script light (too much dialogue would spoil the soup) and Jenkins’ art has a pleasing aesthetic quality to it. That said, there isn’t as much here as you might want to see in an opening issue. It’s light on story, with the one major moment being Peter and the new “lost boys” taking flight while running from a tank, but that’s about it. The book also comes to an extraordinarily abrupt conclusion. I reached the final page, and kept turning to find more, but nope- we get a full page splash of the character making a strange noise and no indication of “to be continued” or “see you next month” or anything of the like. Again, the concept is clever, and there’s plenty of room for something spectacular to come of it, but the first issue comes up a bit short.

ROTTEN 10-11

2012-02-09T00:36:29Z

ROTTEN #10-11
Written by Mark Rahner & Robert Horton and Illustrated by Dan Dougherty
Published by Moonstone Comics

Reviewed by Avril Brown

In ROTTEN’s latest issues #10-11, which are found exclusively in the ROTTEN VOLUME 2: REVIVAL OF THE FITTEST trade paperback (on sale now), the plot most certainly thickens. Agents William Wade and J.J. Flynn are summoned to their latest assignment in yet another small, religiously fanatical town called Ezekiel. They are confronted with another incarnation of the “revenant” disease, as the partners have been calling the dead arising affliction, and this latest version is a doozy.

Father Von Becker has taken the town of Ezekiel under his self-serving wing and has been attempting ‘cleansing ceremonies’ for the sick. Needless to say, they have not been going well, especially judging by the infected gentleman who escaped from the church and immediately ripped the jaw off of Wade’s horse. Only a few of the townsfolk have fallen ill despite them all sharing the same water supply, so Flynn and Wade set to work on unraveling the mystery, and as with every situation they have come into contact recently, there is more going on in this town (specifically in Von Becker’s house) than meets the eye. Flynn runs into an old colleague from medical school who appears to have fallen under the thrall of Von Becker, while Wade manages to inspire a member of the younger generation to step up and start taking matters into his own hands…just before Wade finds himself in a heap of trouble, of course.

The gore factor in ROTTEN has taken an enthusiastic leap forward, not only with the mere appearance of the infected but also the new freaky factor of what happens to these poor souls following their final death. Rahner and Horton's ’s scripts maintain his trademark razor-sharp wit with Wade still on his game as the foul-mouthed, understandably bitter ex-patriot, and Flynn as the steady, sarcastic rock. The look of the book seems to have gotten a couple of shades darker, which suits as one of the themes touched on in these issues is somewhat somber, and the enigma of the white-haired man continues with a new, unexpected twist. Issues #10 and 11 are chock full of what readers have come to love and expect from ROTTEN: action, intelligent writing with slightly unsubtle social and political jabs, and a couple of badass heroes kicking ass and taking names. Essentially, this two-part story gives you every reason to pick up ROTTEN VOLUME 2 and crossed your fingers Wade will continue to knuckle-bolt another day.

AISLE SEAT 2.0.71

2012-02-05T21:44:21Z

AISLE SEAT 2.0.71: WORDS ~~WITH~~ BY FRIENDS
By Marc Mason

So RED SONJA: RAVEN shipped a couple of weeks ago, and it was a fantastic experience for me. Working for Dynamite Entertainment was an excellent experience, as was the kindness I received from retailers. I did a signing at Pop Culture Paradise here in Tempe that was a smashing success- thankfully, I wasn’t just signing books for people I knew- and my email inbox was full all day with notes from people saying kind things about the book. I couldn’t have asked for more.

In particular, some of my closest friends stepped up and helped promote the book to their readers and followers, which was incredibly kind on their part. I’m lucky to have the friends that I do- over the last few years, I have had the opportunity to meet and forge bonds with some of the coolest people I’ve met in my entire life. While there is plenty to find distasteful about geek culture, I tend to see it from a nicer POV. There are truly great people involved in this medium we love, and I am able to call many of them friends. That’s a gift.

Now, my sense of what is ethically appropriate generally keeps me from doing standard reviews of their work. I’m hardly an unbiased source. So don’t think of this as a review, because it isn’t. This is more of a heads up. I want to tell you about some of the work my friends are doing and why I think you’d enjoy it.

It’s hard to find something new to say about John Layman, as the multiple Eisner Awards he’s received for writing CHEW tend to speak for themselves. But if you aren’t already onboard the CHEW-train, here’s why you should be: it’s really fucking good. Month in, month out, John continues to dole out great stories, shocking plot twists, and hilarious dialogue. He always wants to tell me more about what’s coming up in the book, but CHEW is so fantastic that I refuse as many spoilers as I can. I like reading the book and experiencing it with a sense of wonder. CHEW would be one of my favorite books even if I had never met John; it’s just that good.

Upon my untimely demise, Brandon Jerwa inherits my comics and graphic novels. So if you are a policeman, please keep him in mind as a suspect. That said, I’ve co-written two plays with the guy, and we have a novel and screenplay in process as well. (Again, this may serve more as motive, but I digress.) I love not just the guy, but also his writing, and just recently he had a new trade paperback hit stands. HACK/SLASH/EVA crosses over the long-running horror comic with Eva, for whom Brandon has become the definitive writer. He does an excellent job of capturing the characters’ voices, and in structuring the crossover from a plot point of view. Brandon excels at doing this sort of thing probably better than anybody in comics. If you like good action and nifty horror, pick up this book. It’s a winner.

Brandon introduced me to Eric Trautmann a few years ago, and aside from having some of comics’ finest facial hair, he’s also a damn fine writer. Eric has been writing the main RED SONJA book for over a year now, and he’s done a spectacular job of maintaining the high quality readers have come to expect from the title. His Sonja is highly intelligent, cunning, and yet has an emotional core that makes her relatable to the reader. When I see people complaining that there are no strong women characters on the stands, that drives me nuts- Sonja is being written better than any other female lead out there. He’s also done the same for VAMPIRELLA. Oh, and in both cases, he’s dispensed with the costume that has offended women readers for years. What else do you need?

Elliott Serrano may be a drunkard and a traitor- apparently writing for this “Chicago Tribune” (as if there’s such a thing) is more important than continuing to write for the Comics Waiting Room- but he’s also a decent fellow with some grasp of personal hygiene. Oh, and he occasionally writes comics, too. He’s the scribe on the resurrected ARMY OF DARKNESS title coming next week, and I can’t imagine a more difficult job. You see, I’ve always found the AOD comics… lacking. I could never muster any real enthusiasm or interest in them. Yet, having read issue one, Elliott has changed that. By turning the focus to a new Ash- a female one- he immediately injects new energy into the entire concept of AOD. It was a revelation to read the book and see that there was something there that could capture my interest. So hats off to my buddy, and count me in for the long haul.

If I ever find myself in a Mexican prison, I know it will be Mark Rahner’s fault. The only saving grace is that he’ll be in the cell next to mine, and they’ll hang him first. His zombie comic, ROTTEN, has always been fun, but he’s taken a leap forward with GREEN HORNET ANNUAL 2 and WARLORD OF MARS ANNUAL 1. The Hornet book really caught my eye, because Mark’s writing is working on different levels. The plot finds the characters fighting human trafficking, but the real story is about the newspaper industry, something the Pulitzer Prize owning Rahner knows more than a little about. This personal connection to the work gives it wonderful depth. The Warlord book is also strong, showing off some tremendous dialogue. Two books deserving of your time and money.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Joe Dilworth as well. Joe’s the head honcho at Pop Culture Zoo and he’s so much better than me at running a website that I should be embarrassed about it. He’s skilled, dedicated, and cares about presenting the best and broadest look at pop culture on the web today. Joe’s also diving into writing comics as well, and he has a Kickstarter project going on right now. He and I also share a goal of one day having the rights to the Gerry Anderson universe shows in order to make comics about them. Wouldn’t you all enjoy that?

Anyway, that’s what some of my best pals are up to right now. I hope you’ll support them, and what they are working on, just as they have supported me. They’re good people doing good work, and if that isn’t worth your money, I don’t know what is!

DYNAMITE ANNUALS

2012-02-05T19:10:02Z

DYNAMITE ANNUALS
Published by Dynamite Entertainment

Reviewed by Avril Brown

Looking at two new books from ROTTEN writer Mark Rahner…

GREEN HORNET ANNUAL #2
Illustrated by Ronan Cliquet

The GREEN HORNET book thus far has maintained a pleasurable balance between blithe humor and heavy-handed themes, and while Mark Rahner’s GREEN HORNET ANNUAL #2 leans more towards the later, the somewhat dire theme of this book gives the story genuine emotional power and gives the reader more reason to respect the Hornet.

Britt Reid is a flawed and flippant hero, often cracking jokes while cracking jaws of the bad guys, but this issue opens with him losing his temper in a bar after overhearing a couple of jerks lambaste his newspaper The Daily Sentinel. Inherited from his murdered father, Reid’s newspaper is failing and he is feeling the heat, or rather the frustration of watching his father’s legacy die. As the Green Hornet he has an outlet for his anger, particularly after learning of a human trafficking ring in his town, but he allows his rage to bleed over to where he is unnecessarily snippy with his partner Kato, and excessively ruthless with his enemy to little gain.

Thankfully Kato Senior is present to dispense some invaluable advice with regards to Reid’s day and nighttime professions, and their conversation is interlaced with images of Hornet’s spotty solo attempt at shaking down the trafficking ring, providing excellent juxtaposition to the learning experience Reid is undergoing.

Rahner writes Reid as who he is: a man growing up and into his roles as a newspaperman, a vigilante, a student and a friend. Cliquet’s pencils are a pleasurable blend of modern and traditional lines and his fight scenes are fantastic, but the colors by Impacto Studios have an almost watercolor look to them, making the characters appear too washed out at times. Overall this issue is a revelational story for Britt Reid and an inspirational one for the readers, and the harmony of Rahner’s words and Cliquet’s action in the last panel will have readers punching the air in support of Dynamite’s coolest duo.

WARLORD OF MARS ANNUAL #1
Illustrated by Stephen Sadowski

The first WARLORD OF MARS ANNUAL is an emotional tale of the horror of warfare, and how the bond between brothers can be forged, tested and destroyed. Starring John Carter and Tars Tarkas, the two best warriors Mars has ever seen, this issue opens and closes on their unique relationship, but the majority of the story is that of Tars Tarkas and one of the worst periods of his life.

Before John Carter of Earth unexpectedly dropped in on Mars, turning the entire planet on its head, the Tharks or Green Men were a brutal, blood-thirsty people, existing for the joy of battle and slaughter. Tars Tarkas, however, though hailed as one of the strongest and most ruthless fighters of his people, was beginning to fully recognize how different he was from his peers, particularly his excessively brutal hatch mate Hok, and Tars’s bone-deep exhaustion with war and violence was becoming stifling. When he and his men discovered one of their incubators, the machines which grow their young, was destroyed along with all the young it nurtured, Tars was forced to make decisions which exposed his doubt and differences. As Hok, the closest thing Tars had to a brother, begins to question Tars’s lack of immediate bloody revenge, Tars himself begins to question his aloneness among his people in feeling emotions other than war lust, leading to an educational and painful confrontation.

This ANNUAL offers more interesting background story into the lives of the Tharks, and more reasons to love Tars Tarkas, a wonderfully unique character. Rahner injects more passion, humor and emotion in this one issue than an entire story arc in the ongoing WARLORD OF MARS, making Tars seem more human and relatable than ever before. Sadowski’s pencils are very similar to most of the art seen in the regular series, though his capability of conveying emotion in the Green Men is unparalleled. The panels of Tars’s almost childlike understanding in the midst of his epically vicious contest with Hok cement WARLORD OF MARS ANNUAL #1 as one of the best told stories in the series yet to date.

SINA GRACE

2012-02-03T04:19:59Z

Artist Sina Grace is one of the busiest guys in comics right now and the book he draws, LI’L DEPRESSED BOY, has defied conventional wisdom about nonsuperhero comics and found an adoring – and well-deserved - audience. I caught up with him at the Amazing Arizona Comicon a couple of weeks ago.

Transcription assistance thanks to Brooke Unverferth.

MM: This is Marc Mason with the Comics Waiting Room. I’m here today with artist Sina Grace. Sina, hello.

SG: Hello!

MM: We are at the Amazing Arizona Comicon and you are here with the Skybound contingent in multiple roles. You edit, correct?

SG: Yes. I am Robert Kirkman’s editorial director for all of his Skybound books, so I am here hawking Invicible, Walking Dead, Super Dinosaur, The Infinite, Witch Doctor, and several other books that I’m proud to be a part of.

MM: But for me, I want to talk to you about The Li’l Depressed Boy.

SG: I’m not going to stop you!

MM: This book has really caught my attention since it’s been out. It’s something different on the stands. It’s not a superhero book.

SG: No. I mean, for anyone who doesn’t know, which is all of you, it’s about a ragdoll boy who looks for love in kinda the wrong places. He starts off with a punk-rock girl, and that leads to all sorts of hijinks. We’ll leave it at that, yeah?

MM: And he’s drawn as a ragdoll character when the rest of the cast is drawn as human, so he’s almost anthropomorphic. It’s a fascinating decision that really works. How did that come about?

SG: That’s more on the writer, Struble. That was his call before I ever came on as the artist. It was a drawing he had done in his notebook back in grade school, and he had been developing this notion of the Li’l Depressed Boy for near ten years before it became a comic book. He just took that design and went with it, and took a lot of his personal stories and injected those into the comic book that you guys are reading.

MM: One thing that also jumps out about the book is that it’s the closest thing we have to a music comic on the stands, I think.

SG: Yeah! I mean, I think Scott Pilgrim started that in the 2000’s, or you know of this generation, he tried to, Bryan Lee O’Malley tried to do that for comic books recently, and to put myself next to Scott Pilgrim is stupid, but, you know there are bands we like, and we put them in there, and it’s fun to draw, it’s also hard to draw all of their equipment and gear, but, you know, it’s a way for us to connect both with fans and the musicians, and for us to interact with artists and build up what we are trying to do artistically.

MM: I think what I really appreciated about it is the book is never condescending. You respect the audience and you bring them along with you. And it’s emotionally honest. Tell us a little bit about that.

SG: Again, I entirely credit the writer, Struble. He does not ever want to manipulate or take advantage of readers and go for kind of easy kills or what not. There’s a conclusion to a recent story arc that we argued about for a while because I thought it was like, “eh, the fans are going to get pissed.” But he wanted to make sure it was an ending that felt right for the characters regardless of the ending people want.

MM: Do you have people that come up and talk to you and say, “Yeah, I was that guy.”?

SG: Yes. A lot. A lot. Everyone is like, “I am L.D.B.” and I’m on g-chat and people are like, “I’m so L.D.B. today.” And I’m like, well that’s one of us.

MM: Artistically, you have a very clean look to your art, you have a very clean line, your storytelling is pleasing to the eye. When did you start drawing? Has it been a lifelong thing?

SG: Yeah, yeah, since I was five. I actually just found old notebooks at my mom’s place of me drawing Batman and his friends Catwoman and Penguin. I was like 19 – no, I was like five when I did that. Yeah, I’ve been drawing since forever and I’ve always wanted to draw comic books, I never, I never slowed down, and you know, when you want to do something you just keep trying and keep trying to figure out what you did wrong and then do it better the next time around.

MM: Who would you say your influences have been?

SG: Not even because I’m looking at my Skybound booth, but all of the Skybound artists are phenomenal, productive, timely, efficient people who I love. Namely, Charlie Adlard, Ryan Ottley, Cory Walker, Jason Howard. Lukas Ketner, who’s doing a book called Witch Doctor. They all do different things real really well. So, it’s kinda great that my day job is to look at other comic artists and watch how they do it.

MM: Does it get difficult having the day job and then finding the time and energy to draw the book?

SG: Yeah, absolutely. It’s a lot of nights. Again, you know, you have to do it. You’re working a weekend right now. It’s like, this is what we do when we want to pursue our dreams.

MM: You finished the second arc now with L.D.B., you’re heading into a third arc, and you’ve been getting some guest covers. How have you been going about getting these guest artists on covers?

SG: There’s a really long wish list. And then there’s a really short what we can pull off list. And it’s a lot of pulling in all of our favors. Rob Guillory did the cover for issue five, he’s the Chew artist, and Struble knew him because he used to work on Chew. And then Charlie Adlard, we got him because I worked on The Walking Dead, Jamie McKelvie we’re both friends with, Steve Rolston is Struble’s friend. We have another round of guest covers coming up. I just can’t say who will be on it, but again, it’s like, “who do we know, who do we love, who do we think would draw a really good L.D.B. and how do we go about begging them to do it?”

MM: Are you surprised at how you’ve defied the odds? A lot of comics these days don’t really get past their first arc. You guys are heading into a third.

SG: Your readers can’t see me shake my head in disbelief. Yeah, it’s really weird and the fans are so incredibly nice. I was having a really rough comicon, and a girl came up to me holding and L.D.B. ragdoll, you know, a stuffed doll that she made by hand, and I fucking, I died. It’s really weird and it means the world to me that people are looking for things to connect to and that it exists. I would say that anyone who has a story that personal should go out there and try to tell it. You’re not – no one’s going to take you down when you’re really trying to do something from the heart and not just for dollars.

MM: That is the best advice I’ve heard all day. Sina, thank you so much for joining us in the Comics Waiting Room.

SG: Thank you, Marc.

JOSHUA HALE FIALKOV

2012-02-02T02:28:54Z

Joshua Hale Fialkov is not only a prolific writer of comics- he’s a versatile one as well. Horror, superheroes, licensed books- he does it all, and he does it for virtually every publisher in the business. I caught up with him at the Amazing Arizona Comicon in early January.

Transcription assistance provided by Brooke Unverferth.

MM: This is Marc Mason in the Comics Waiting Room. I’m here today with Joshua Hale Flalkov, writer of a metric ton of things, so let’s get started. Josh, tell us a little bit about everything you’re writing right now.

JHF: That’s a broad question! I’m working on the Last of the Greats is coming out from Image Comics. My trade paperback is out in like two months or so. It’s about a family of superheroes who come to Earth and give us absolutely everything we’ve ever wanted. Right? And we hate them for it, we resent them, we despise them, and we systematically murder six out of seven of them. Finally, the aliens show up to destroy the Earth, and we have to go and beg this last Great to save our asses. Despite the fact that we’ve murdered his family. The book is really really dark and really is a lot of fun if you like books like Irredeemable or like Nemesis or you like dark superhero books, because this is my version of what does it mean to be a superhero in a world of people like us.

MM: It is a very dark book. I just read Issue 4 a few days ago, and there is a fairly unpleasant rape scene in it. So tell me about having to write that scene.

JHF: Well you know, let me ask you: when it happens, does it feel like it comes from somewhere?

MM: Clearly it comes from that character’s anger and hatred. I mean, it’s definitely an act of violence. Deeply expressed violence.

JHF: Well, and it’s also for me the idea that he was sitting in his ice castle while his siblings were out living and feeling and becoming part of the world and then kind of being demonized for it. For literally giving of themselves, they were murdered. And so it’s almost like an act of defiance. And you see, you see his kind of sexual frustration building up throughout the books until finally it barfs out in this horrible, horrible form. So it was really hard. I wanted it, I knew it was going to happen, I knew it had to happen, but in finding a way to do it that was, you know, shocking and grotesque in all the right ways, while still coming from somewhere and really being rooted in the story was a huge challenge. I feel like we did a pretty good job at it. We’ll see. It comes out soon. We’ll see what people say.

MM: Your writing has been on sort of a dark path lately, because I think –

JHF: Always.

MM: Yeah, starting with Elk’s Run- I suppose it was very dark. But Echoes was an incredibly dark project.

JHF: Yeah, Echoes is dark in a different way, I think. You know, Echoes is kind of near and dear to my heart, as my father, he is a serial killer….no..again, you know, I look at it, I start every story I do from a place of “what is the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to you?” You know? So the idea of Echoes came out of, you know, I was having a kid. And when you’re having a kid you start to realize that everything that is wrong with me…I have a lot of health problems, I have a lot of health issues and stuff like that, and knowing that I’m passing on this genetic weakness to my kid really kind of haunted me. And then, you know, as a writer, you start extrapolating from that. And then it suddenly becomes, well what’s a more engaging thing than me just having diabetes? What’s something even worse that you can pass on to your kid. The idea that being a sociopath and being a murderer and that being a genetic, you know, a genetic bond just was really vibrant and alive for me. And that’s sort of the idea behind the story. I think it’s also what makes it work for people is we all see that. The older you get, you start looking at your dad or your mom, and are, “Oh my god, I’m them!”

MM: It had one of the darkest endings I could remember in a recent comic. Were you really, this is kind of a weird question, but were you excited to get sort of really, horrible dark place at the end?

JHF: That’s what’s great about comics is that you can do that. You can get away with it. I’ve got a book published through one of the major publishers that has the most depressing, sad endings you can do in books where it’s like the bad guy wins and everybody else is just left for shit.

MM: I sat there going, “Jesus!!” Wow…gutsy move, I thought.

JHF: Thank you. Well, you know the idea is that if the book does well, we have a sequel actually. There’s more! It is no happier, but there is more. And I hope we get to do that, Rahsan and I are chomping at the bit to do more.

MM: Now, on a bit of a happier flip side, you’ve gotten involved with Dr. Who. How did that come about?

JHF: Um, I’ve known those guys, the guys at IDW, I’ve been friends with Tony Lee who’s the writer on Doctor Who for years. Whenever, you know, we have a Dr. Who convention in L.A., every year I’m a guest and I go, so I’ve just kind of gotten to know those guys and they know that I’m just a huge huge huge nerd and would do anything to work on the characters. And you know, the time came when Tony had to move on for other reasons and they came to me and asked what would I do? And I pitched something they liked. You know, for four issues I get to do something that five year old Josh would have crapped his pants to know he would do.

MM: I think what makes me curious about the Doctor Who gig is that Doctor Who has one of the most rabid fan bases on the entire planet. Did that add extra pressure to having to write stories?

JHF: It’s terrifying. Like I, this sounds horrible, it sounds egotistical, when I read review, because generally, my reviews, I’ve been treated very well by critics throughout my career. I think this week will be the first time where they will come out and I just don’t want to see any of them because I’m terrified. I set out to write the book to not disappoint myself because I am a rabid rabid Doctor Who nerd. And I knew I had to get the voices right. Like I know the fact that I’m American is a huge huge handicap in trying to get things to feel authentic and feel real, but I really, I feel like I got the voices down. I know BBC was really happy with the issues. I’m very excited to hear what people think, but at the same time I’m really not looking forward to it out of terror.

MM: Is it also a relief to sort of work outside of the darker realm a little bit?

JHF: Yeah, you know the funny thing is I have a kind of staunch belief of the big thing missing in comics is comics for all ages. And that’s not kids’ comics, that’s comics that you can give to anybody. And a lot of the stuff I’ve done at Marvel is that. Whether it’s, I did a Marvel Girl one-shot that was for the First Class stuff, I did a Fantomex versus Batroc story, like everything I did over at Marvel was sort of me being like, “No no, look! These should be fun!” I have a Spider-man I wrote for them that’s the same thing, that was sort of a fun, all-ages Spider-man. I really feel like comics are sort of missing that element. And part of it is me being like, well I can’t bitch about it and then make literally the most miserable books in the world that are appropriate for, like you can’t show them to, you literally can’t even be like, “Look at this cool comic!” So whenever I get the opportunity to do something that is all ages, that is, you know, lighter, it’s a huge relief. It’s just so much fun. Because you can worry about – the emotions you’re playing with are so much less upsetting as a writer. Because you really get into the head of your characters, you feel what they feel and you go through what they go through, and that’s the thing – I didn’t even write a horror Doctor Who! Like, I wrote a fun, it’s still crime noir-y, I guess, it’s like a fun, 40’s adventure serial with the Doctor. And it’s like I said, it was a dream come true and it’s exactly what, what I think about what I think the comics should be, that’s what I tried to do with the book.

MM: Well, it just goes to show what a versatile writer you are. Mr. Fialkov, thank you for taking the time to be with us, and continued success.

JHF: Always a pleasure, thank you.

ROGUE ELEMENT 93

2012-01-29T22:34:50Z

Rogue Element #93: The Future of Forteza

By Avril Brown

Fitness is the wave of the future. People are waking up from their high fructose corn syrup comas and realizing that our bodies are temples: you are either a ward or a sacrifice. Eating healthier and engaging in some form of regular exercise is not as painful as people think, and can actually end up being fun and addictive (my first, and certainly not last, tattoo artist told me the same thing about body art. Five tattoos and counting…).

Swordplay is the fighting style of the past. Years ago, people used to live, and die, by the sword. How one handled a blade could determine his or her station in life, the length of said life, and how much poontang was received. Though people are still fascinated by the art and culture of swordplay as evident by wildly successful sword and sorcery series, such as ‘Game of Thrones’, few people have any knowledge of how to actually use one.

Forteza Fitness, Physical Culture and Martial Arts is a brand new facility where the future and the past collide in a flurry of coordinated movements and metal sparks. Western martial arts meets modern fitness in methods and styles unseen in any part of the world in recent history. The range and diversity of skills amassed by the staff of Forteza Fitness is astounding, and the location and setting are ideal for what they offer. In addition to having a separate area for traditional personal fitness training, Forteza will also serve as the practice arena for the Chicago Swordplay Guild which studies close-quarter combat, Renaissance rapier and Armizare, an Italian style of longsword fighting. Membership packages will be available, such as the Modern Combative Membership which will include bi-weekly Martial Blade Concepts classes and several FightingFit bootcamps, and for those interested in joining the Guild the Swordsman Membership offers several Swordsmanship Foundation classes, bootcamps and a variety of Taster and Focus classes. Both packages include additional perks, and for those in need of even greater flexibility in their training schedule, a Multi-Class Punch-Card will be offered for your drop-in convenience.

Forteza Fitness offers a bit of everything for the work out, fighting and fantasy fanatic, all within a few steps of the Montrose Brown line station at 4437 North Ravenswood Ave., Chicago, a location that is well on its way to becoming the most beautiful and architecturally inspiring private gym and training arena. The high ceilings and distinct lack of walls in the center space open the floor, keeping it airy and giving the area an energy all its own. The newly finished wood floors give off a resplendent shine and a tasteful nod to their modern fitness culture, while the original brick walls are a visual reminder of the ancient styles from which many of their teachings are drawn from. There is also a “gymuseum” displaying several pieces of antique exercise equipment, making Forteza even more of a perfect venue for their first major seminar: an introduction to the art of Bartitsu.

What is Bartitsu? Ask Tony Wolf, a New Zealand native and Chicago resident, and the man responsible for bringing Bartitsu back to the Midwest. A fighting method created in the late nineteenth century, Bartitsu combines martial arts, British fisticuffs and stick fighting to produce a practical self-defense style that refuses to fade. Though the original London Bartitsu Club closed in 1902 only a few years after its founding, the art was given a vague reference in one of the greatest ‘Sherlock Holmes’ stories ever penned, and Bartitsu lives on through people like Mr. Wolf who kept it alive and continue teach their skills. Now Chicago residents can feel safer and stronger as they walk the city streets armed with knowledge, confidence and a cane, and what better way for a unique gym like Forteza to open its doors than to a Bartitsu seminar?

Tony’s introductory session on January 22nd called to history buffs, fighting fans, Guild members and Steampunk squires alike. They listened with rapt attention as Tony spoke of the history of this fighting style he is so passionate about, and soon enough he had his new students walking the room, introducing themselves to one another and learning and practicing balance and synergy. “Trust in the sensation,” he instructed as a range of disciples stood with backs pressed together, lowering themselves to the floor and raising themselves back up utilizing said synergy. The connection, unity and sense of strength he inspired in his pupils were a joy to watch, let alone participate in. Laughter erupted periodically as Mr. Wolf’s quips and quirks kept people entertained as well as educated.

“The counter attack is based solely on your opponents’ actions, which is a lovely thing,” Tony told his listeners as he began another demonstration and went on to explain how Bartitsu covers every possible eventuality. There was a tangible hum to the air when Tony told his followers to fetch their sticks (plus a few chuckles as well), and grins erupted on eager faces as they scurried to begin their training with tools. Soon enough the halls of Forteza echoed with the crack of wooden sticks meeting in mock battle and clattering against the floor as partners were disarmed. The flexibility and versatility of Bartitsu is an understandable attraction for a man with interests and skills as eclectic as Tony Wolf, and now he is sharing his passion with those fortunate enough to register for his upcoming six week class (registration is still open for those inclined, and all pertinent information can be found at www.bartitsu.org).

Though the men outnumbered the women in the Bartitsu introductory seminar, the numbers are not as skewed as one might think. As with Comic Conventions and varying forms of nerd-dom, women are no longer shy about expressing their interests, though there is photographic evidence of women’s historic involvement in the Bartitsu culture. On the Bartitsu homepage there is a picture of Edith Garrud, a former jujutsu instructor for the English women’s suffrage movement and who studied under a Bartitsu Club instructor, demonstrating a jujutsu wrist lock on her interviewer Godfrey Winn.

Tony varied his choice in demonstration victims, every student both excited and concerned about being Mr. Wolf’s latest punching bag. He remains, however, a gentlemanly professor, and consistently offered clear instructions that were firm but non-painful. A charismatic creature, Tony is an impossible man to ignore, and his teachings are only a taste of the variety of forthcoming programs Forteza has to offer.

Early morning Fighting Fitness classes, Martial Blade Concepts courses (modern, practical self-defense) taught by one of the only local and fully vested instructors in the art, medieval swordplay and premiere personal training are just the beginning. Find Forteza on Facebook and keep watch for the launch of their website, opening galleria and oodles more to come. The future of Forteza looks bright, lit by the rising stars of modern fitness and the glean of polished swords. En garde!

UNTERZAKHN-UNITE

2012-01-29T22:25:54Z

UNTERZAKHN/UNITE
Written and Drawn by Leela Corman
Published by Schocken Books
Written and Drawn by Various
Published by SpazDog Press

Reviewed by Marc Mason

Taking a look at a couple of new graphic novels…

UNTERZAKHN is a powerhouse effort by writer/artist Leela Corman, and one that will stick in readers’ memories for a while once they put the book down. Set in the early 20th century, we meet sisters Esther and Fanya as they navigate immigrant life in New York City. As they get older, their lives take wildly divergent paths- Fanya goes to work for a woman who performs abortions, and Esther takes on a new name while dancing burlesque and working as a prostitute. Yet as different as their lives seem to be, the two sisters live parallel existences in ways they could never guess. Everything here is really excellent- Corman’s character work captivates, the dialogue has an authentic ring to it, and she makes you believe in and understand who these two women are. The art is just detailed enough to immerse you in the world, letting you truly feel like you’re back a hundred years and seeing what life was really like for people. If it sounds like the book isn’t a bundle of laughs, you’re right- what humor is here is outweighed by tragedy. But happy endings weren’t exactly the norm back then. I have the feeling that next December, when I start whipping up a top ten list, this book will require some more discussion.

Some local Arizona folks have joined together for UNITE AND TAKE OVER, an anthology featuring short stories inspired by the music of The Smiths. Much like other efforts dealing with Tori Amos, Belle & Sebastian, and Bob Dylan, the creative teams have been granted a lot of latitude in interpreting the work for the page. What this means isn’t really any different than what you get from most anthologies: a mixed bag of results. Some of the work here is really very good, and really catches the eye- Sterling Gates’ “William It Was Really Nothing” is as good as any piece that I’ve read in an anthology of this type. But some of the work is not yet ready for primetime, even in the alt-comix arena. Perhaps the strongest aspect here is in the book’s conceptualization and design- UNITE looks a lot better than most small press collections tend to. SpazDog has made rumbles that they’re going to continue doing more books in this vein, and as they do, the artistic talent level should continue to improve, as well as the overall execution. I’ll be watching and rooting for them.

ALPHA GIRL 1

2012-01-29T04:03:48Z

ALPHA GIRL #1
Written by Jeff Roenning and Drawn by Robert Love
Published by Image Comics

Reviewed by Marc Mason

A young woman walks into a diner and begins to tell the story of the apocalypse in ALPHA GIRL, an interesting- if unsatisfying- debut hitting shelves right now. Our narrator, Judith Meyers, lights up a cigarette once she sits in a booth, which tells you immediately that something has gone horribly wrong in society. I’m not sure that there’s anyplace left you can do that anymore- at least not without getting arrested. While that’s supposed to tell us a little bit about the state of the world, the smoking is also meant to give our lead character an “edgy” quality. That part doesn’t quite take, though.

Apparently the apocalypse was started at a cosmetics company (shades of RESIDENT EVIL?) and has to do with an experiment in pheromones getting out of control and spreading. Indeed, we spend a little over half the book following the two scientists responsible and the sequence of events that leads to the outbreak. The sequence is actually quite entertaining, and has a nicely subtle sense of humor about it, which I respected. The writing is very light and the pacing is strong. But there’s also a disconnect- Judith describes them as “assholes” but the duo never quite come across that way on the page. Instead, the shit that the scientists get put through paints them more as tragic figures forced into a corner.

Now, perhaps we’re meant to see Judith as unreliable narrator, but there are no other clues in the book to indicate that to be true. Indeed, the real issue I have with ALPHA GIRL is that we end issue one knowing very little about the title character at all. She had a shitty home life and she and her brother got put into foster care. That’s about it. You know a lot more about the scientists after reading this comic than you do Judith, and that’s a problem from a structural point of view.

I’m not suggesting this is a bad comic- it has some conceptual wit, the art tells the story effectively and is pleasing to the eye, and the dialogue is nicely executed on the page. But it isn’t as successful as it should be. When the book is called ALPHA GIRL, then at the end of issue one, I should have an idea of who she is, what her mission is in the story, and an idea of where things are headed. But the backstory of the apocalypse interrupts that. I’d have rather gotten more Judith and seen the apocalypse material held off until issue two. Your mileage, of course, may vary.

CHEW 22-23

2012-01-17T03:11:01Z

CHEW #22-23
Written by John Layman and Illustrated by Rob Guillory
Published by Image Comics

Reviewed by Avril Brown

CHEW’s latest story arc ‘Major League Chew’ is in full swing with parts two and three covering a lot of (rather painful) ground for our hero. Just when Tony Chu thinks he will be able to settle in nicely in his new position as a traffic cop where he is beloved, appreciated and celebrated, he gets the living shit beaten out of him by a blast from the recent past.

Before readers are given the story behind Chu’s run in with a baseball bat, issue #22 covers the variety of shit assignments Agent Caesar Valenzano has found himself saddled with since Chu’s transfer to traffic, and what Caesar’s former partner, Savoy, has been trying to accomplish with Chu’s daughter since he kidnapped young Olive. When that issue wraps up, you can practically hear the ominous music playing in the background as Olive finally shows us what she’s got.

Issue #23 shows readers what Colby’s been up to since his transfer…to the all-female (and animal) operated USDA. We got a glimpse of these badass chicks and their animal partners in the final showdown involving Poyo, the homicidal rooster, and they are unsurprisingly a little frosty towards their new male recruit. Colby is left trying to solve cases with his new partner, Buttercup the lion, and having to deal with his cantankerous boss (a peace with he is hoping to achieve by utilizing a method we’ve seen before), all the while trying to get a hold of Chu, who seems to have disappeared.

Back to the baseball bat, as Tony is being held hostage by a rather unstable gentleman with an unorthodox mission which is so bizarre, even by CHEW standards, that you have to read it to believe it. CHEW continues to score points on all the boards it has become famous for, and as always delivers a great story while leaving readers hungry for more.

ROGUE ELEMENT 92

2012-01-17T03:09:01Z

Rogue Element #92: Caught in a Love Triangle

By Avril Brown

I am a Rogue and Gambit fan. This is evident by the first comic book I ever purchased, my many rants on the subject, the rather large tattoo on my upper back, and the multitude of prints, posters and pictures covering the walls of my petite studio. They are one of my favorite couples in all of fandom, and I cherish every panel starring the two of them where they are not fighting, breaking up or trying to kill one another.

When I first met the X-Men, they were a cartoon show I obsessively watched after school in the early ‘90’s. I immediately fell for Rogue’s sauciness and Gambit’s sexiness, they way they snipped at each other but obviously still cared for one another, and the bittersweet tension between the two of them due to her inability to have skin-to-skin contact without draining him of his life force. Manna from heaven for an eleven-year-old Cancer sign with a penchant for fantasy and true love. I can still remember how my heart lurched during one episode when she lost her powers, and right before she’s about to be experimented on by the bad guys Gambit confesses his love and kisses her. Oh, swoon…

The possibility exists that I am still in love with that cartoon couple. Though Rogue and Gambit from ‘X-Men: The Animated Series’ are the reason I got into comics in the first place, comic book Rogue and Gambit are different creatures than the moving pictures. A lot has happened in the years since these characters were first created, both before the show and after, changing the couple for the better, and for the worse, and back again.

One, or even ten columns would not be sufficient space to dive into the details of Rogue and Gambit’s relationship, so fast forward to the latest drama: Rogue recently acquired control over her life/power-sucking powers, which have long been an understandable thorn in the side of their on-again, off-again affair. Though Rogue requested breathing room following this immense alteration in her life, it appeared, briefly, that she was going to spend her time with Gambit. Enter the third party.

Magneto, the Master of Magnetism, is as old a character as the original X-Men. He was their first, and arguably their greatest, villain. A complex, scarred, and incredibly powerful individual, Max Eisenhardt aka Erik Lehnsherr has been a foe, a friend, a hero, and a teacher, but most of all he has been the source of many an unforgettable story.

One such tale occurred years ago in the Savage Land, Marvel’s equivalent to the Lost World, complete with dinosaurs, pet saber-tooth kitties and hot people in skimpy animal print scraps. For reasons too complex and comic-y to get into, a de-powered Rogue and a weakened Magneto had teamed up with Savage Land native Ka-Zar to save his people from the evil Zaladane. Though nothing was explicitly stated, several panels and well-chosen words alluded to the fact Rogue and Magneto had something akin to a relationship while fighting side-by-side. However, by the end of the story arc Magneto had in essence declared himself when he killed Zaladane over Rogue’s protests that they bring her in alive, thus ending whatever it was they started in the Savage Land.

When Rogue returned to Westchester with her powers intact she met recent X-Men recruit Remy LeBeau, a red-eyed, sweet-talking scoundrel who seemed to take a liking to her despite her untouchable nature and his obvious love of skin-to-skin loving. Sparks immediately flew between the Southern Belle and the Cajun Swamp Rat, and twenty years of heartwarming and soul-crushing stories have followed as their relationship has taken up-turns and downward spirals. One could even argue that they were written for each other: the beautiful, emotionally damaged woman who cannot touch, and the handsome, womanizing man who cannot stop. Both Southern, both spicy, both former villains trying to walk the straight and narrow.

However, change is constant in the comic book world, thus bringing us back to the love triangle. Following the devastating effects of three little words uttered by a crazy witch (“No more mutants”), the mutant race went from being one step away from dominating the planet to numbering under two hundred individuals. A lot of craziness followed, and in the midst of it all Cyclops, an original X-Man, became a general and leader for the remnants of mutant kind, relocating them to an island off the coast of San Francisco known as Utopia.

Magneto has been many things, but his primary goal has never changed: he seeks unity among mutant kind. After witnessing Cyclops’ success, he bent the knee and acknowledged him as leader, abandoning his life of villainy and joining the X-Men, thereby putting him on the same island as a recently-made-touchable Rogue.

There have been several hints, heated words and light touches between the two since his arrival, and the frequency of those moments increased after Gambit called an end to he and Rogue’s holding pattern and asked her to either be with him or set him free. Rogue did not say yeah or nay to Gambit’s request, but neither was there anything concrete witnessed between her and Magneto…until last issue where they were naked in bed together. My good friend and fellow nerd Ms. Molly Jane was eager to see my response to that particular scene as I read the issue in front of her, but she was a little shocked at my outrage and pain. Her reaction made me wonder: am I living in the past? Are Rogue and Gambit as a happy couple a fanciful notion that has long since been retired? Is it time for her to move on?

The more I think, and write, about it, the more I realize no matter what has occurred in X-Men history and what is to come in their future, Rogue and Gambit are still my favorite couple. I love Magneto as a character; I think he is fantastically multi-faceted, and in some circumstances I like the idea of him and Rogue as a couple. However, Rogue and Gambit, as I have read and experienced and adored the characters throughout the years and their evolutions, remain to me the perfect pair.

I’m a sucker for bad boys who better themselves for love, and while Gambit’s road to redemption includes his own motivations apart from Rogue, there is no doubt she has been a large part of his determination to stay on the wagon. While Magneto obviously cares for her, he had several chances to choose love and redemption over his own goals and refused, and even now it was solely for the good of his people that he hung up his villainous spurs. Gambit is cheeky, lively and loves to tease, while Magneto is largely reserved. Gambit has been there for Rogue as a friend, a non-consummate boyfriend and a lover, while Magneto has barely been there at all.

I know where I stand and for whom my heart beats, but frankly it is all a moot point anyway, and not just because they are fictional characters. The writers of the X-Men books, and almost every major comic on the market, are always changing, therefore the characters are always changing. The creative minds behind the books can stick to a general idea of a character’s personality but they will write the story they want to write, and the editors in turn will publish at will. Fans have no control over what direction the books take (hence the need for fan fiction), only our choice of whether or not we want to continue to follow. Besides, even if Rogue and Gambit get back together, it will only be a matter of time before something else arises to challenge their relationship and their love. Comic books are like soap operas: there are no happy endings for anyone, because there are no endings. The stories (fans, fate and reasonable fees willing) will go on, as will Rogue and Gambit, one way or another.

AISLE SEAT 2.0.70

2012-01-14T21:14:45Z

AISLE SEAT 2.0.70: WRITING RED SONJA

By Marc Mason

This coming Wednesday, I am making my comic book debut on the stands.

There. I said it. Okay, I’ve been saying it since November on my Twitter feed and my Facebook account, but I’ve never really been quite sure of how to talk about it here. CWR was something I started in order to talk about other peoples’ comics. I wasn’t sure of how self-serving it would be if I spent a lot of time talking about mine. Thus, I have hesitated on it. But now I’ve reached the “fuck it” point- my book is on stands next week and it is something I am incredibly proud of.

I first pitched RED SONJA: RAVEN to Dynamite Entertainment in September of 2009. The story went through a long gestation period, until late this past August, editor Joe Rybandt asked me to pitch a slightly altered version of the story. I did, and it got the green light. I spent the next couple of weeks working on it, getting some excellent early notes from Joe that really guided me in the right direction, then it went out to the amazing hands of artist Lui Antonio (he’s done Sonja before, as well as TERMINATOR and WARLORD OF MARS stuff) and he put my words to page. I’m serious when I tell you this: Lui is a terrific talent. He can do stunning action, quiet moments full of emotion, and everything in-between- and do it well. I couldn’t ask for a better looking book for my first time on the stands. Lui made RAVEN better than I could have hoped for, and I would write something for him again at the drop of a hat. Really, the entire crew at Dynamite is awesome- there is a reason that huge names like Garth Ennis, Alex Ross, and Kevin Smith do books at DE. From Nick Barrucci on down, the place is filled with smart people dedicated to making great comics. The entire process was pain-free.

The genesis of RAVEN came one evening when I was at the grocery store. I was looking at the covers of the awful tabloids at the checkout counter and almost all of them were talking about men leaving women for younger, more attractive mates and/or offering ways for women to make sure that their men never leave them for younger, more attractive mates. It was appalling, a stunning reminder of just how terribly we treat women in our society. As progressive as we like to believe we are, this is still a patriarchal society that is politically and financially dominated by males. Women are making progress but still facing a stacked deck.

Anyway, I went home that night and was reading some comics, and an issue of RED SONJA was one of them. I have a solid history with Dynamite’s version of the character; when I resurrected The Aisle Seat for the magazine version of CWR, the first column was was a lengthy look at the character and the series. A number of outstanding talents have been writing her adventures over the past few years- Mike Oeming, Brian Reed, Eric Trautmann, Arvid Nelson, Luke Lieberman- and the stories have been excellent. So as I read that evening, the thought popped into my head that at least Sonja never had to worry about being replaced by a younger woman…

And then it hit me- what if she was?

Since she doesn’t have a husband or steady lover, it would have to mean that she was replaced in another way. Sonja was resurrected and made into a warrior by the goddess Scathach. What if the goddess found another girl in the same situation she had found Sonja and turned her favored eye to her instead?

What would that mean for Sonja? And what kind of warrior would the new girl turn out to be? Dynamite’s version of Sonja is an intelligent, clever warrior, and though she isn’t exactly enamored of men, she has taken a lover in the series. She accepts that there must be peaceful coexistence between the sexes, even as she proves time and again that a woman is the greatest warrior in the land. The previous Marvel incarnation of the character was more militant about gender issues, which was one of the reasons I never cared much for her. The nuances of that idea were never fleshed out particularly well. Then my nerd side kicked in hard- I had this particular thought roll through my head:

“Dynamite Sonja is kinda like Professor X and Marvel’s version was a little more Magneto.”

That’s when I knew I had my story. Sonja’s replacement was going to turn out to be militant, but with good reason (much like Magneto is, really). She would repudiate Sonja’s ability to live and work alongside men. She would rip Sonja for her costume. She would be the flip side of the coin to the legendary redheaded heroine. She would also be a brunette, just to set the physical differences up as well.

I went back through my Sonja comics and noticed that her primary villains were men. Kulan Gath. Thulsa Doom. Even Loki in these past couple of years. One miniseries did set her up against a sorceress, but it really felt like I had some room to create someone new for Sonja’s rogues gallery: a dark mirror of who Sonja could have been had things turned out slightly different. I named her Raven, wanting to symbolize that dichotomy. From there it went to laying out the details. The one thing I knew was that I had a story that was about something. There was an underlying theme to the action, and a hero’s journey for Sonja to take – as well as one for Raven – for the first time, I genuinely felt like I could step across the line and write the comics instead of just write about them. It was a damned fine feeling.

So I went to work writing the pitch and waited to see how it would all fall out. Some time passed, but now here I am, four days from the book hitting the shelves. I’m not harboring any illusions- I’m an unknown name to most comics readers so it’ll be easy for RAVEN to get lost on the shelves. But I am hopeful that those that find the book enjoy it and see that I did my best to give them their money’s worth.

I’ll share this with you: writing action sequences is not easy. I went into the scripting figuring it would be the easiest part, but it turned out to be far more difficult than I could have ever imagined. But the moment I was most worried about turned out to be my favorite panel in the book. Here is the script for the top of page thirteen:

Panel one:
Let’s go for the iconic shot here, a panel taking up two-thirds of the page, showing why Sonja is the deadliest warrior in the land. On the left side of the panel, which is SONJA’s rear flank, she is being attacked by an ELITE FOLLOWER- and SONJA has blocked the woman’s attack by using the previous ELITE FOLLOWER’s dead body to catch the sword being thrust at her from behind. She is holding the body up by the neck with her right arm. On the right side of the panel, she is blocking the swords of the other two ELITE FOLLOWERS using her own sword in her left hand.

Here is Lui’s incredible version of that panel:

RED SONJA: RAVEN goes on sale Wednesday, January 18th. If your shop doesn’t have it or is out, ask them to reorder. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

FATALE-WHISPERS

2012-01-08T18:53:00Z

FATALE #1/WHISPERS #1
Written by Ed Brubaker and Drawn by Sean Phillips
Written and Drawn by Joshua Luna
Published by Image Comics

Reviewed by Marc Mason

Two new high-profile releases from the Image crew have crossed my desk. Let’s take a look…

FATALE arrives with more heat than any Image book I can recall in recent memory. This is of course due to the creative team. Ed Brubaker has become a household name over the last few years thanks to his Marvel work (especially CAPTAIN AMERICA), and his previous collaborations with Sean Phillips have all been excellent (POINT BLANK, SLEEPER, among others). So the odds were that this was going to be a pretty good book, and… this is a pretty good book. The story follows two different time periods, a corrupt cop, a reporter, a patsy, and a woman who appears to be an immortal femme fatale… plus a little bit of occult drama thrown in, to boot. The script is fantastic, the art is gorgeous, the story captivates. It is precisely what you would expect from this creative duo. I saw that issue one is already heading for a second print, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it had to go to a third. Comics readers are going to want this. It’s definitely something to seek out.

The Luna brothers have made a strong name for themselves through their first three Image series they’ve done together. ULTRA, GIRLS, and THE SWORD all showed a distinctive look and voice from the pair, something that is to be treasured and respected in an era that too often produces bland-looking comics. But now, we have our first Luna solo project. WHISPERS is the story of a young man afflicted with a horrific case of OCD named Sam. However, his disorder is the least of his problems, because Sam is now discovering a new ability- when he sleeps, he leaves his body and can travel to those he knows and hear their thoughts. To say that it becomes sad, as well as creepy, would be underselling it. We don’t get a lot of story in issue one- the pacing is off a little bit- but you do see the potential for where Luna might take the book. I suspect a high level of interest for this book is out there, but Luna is going to have to pick up the pace in order to keep it going.

AISLE SEAT 2.0.69

2012-01-08T05:29:25Z

AISLE SEAT 2.0.69: AMAZING ARIZONA COMICON

By Marc Mason

The new year is here, but that isn’t such a big deal- comics come out every week, holidays be damned. However, when it comes to comics conventions, things are a little different. There is a definite “convention season” that runs through late summer, though there are smaller cons running across the country year-around. Phoenix has a decent sized one that’s been running for a few years now, taking place on Memorial Day weekend. But last year, my home town got a second show- the Amazing Arizona Comicon.

I promptly missed the entire thing.

In a lovely bit of irony, I was in San Diego last year during the first Amazing con. The American Library Association’s Midwinter Conference was taking place in the exact same venue where I and 125,000 other people spend a week every July for the largest comicon of them all. As I sat on the edge of the ocean having drinks and dinner during that trip, I texted a couple of friends that I felt like I was cheating on them. All the while, my local comics pals were back here having a good time without me, and all reports indicated that the first year of this new show was a hit.

Still, if I had been here, I’m not sure I would have ultimately enjoyed it. The Saturday of that first show (today is the exact same Saturday, one year later) was the assassination attempt on Gabrielle Giffords. Over in San Diego, I was hanging out with some fellow Arizona library peeps, and we were all pretty freaked out. I took time out of the day to watch some truly terrible news coverage, and that was a mistake that I still wish I could take back. I was also frantically texting friends who live in Tucson, trying to ascertain if they were safe and unharmed by the gunman’s rampage. In short- like many, I was buried in my thoughts for a while, and it was a rough day. Had I been home and the con that day, I would have actually heard the news earlier and likely left the show anyway.

I thought about that a lot today.

But it’s a new year and this time around I’m sitting out the ALA conference, so this afternoon, I made my way to the Mesa Convention Center to check out the new kid in town. The venue itself is one I’m very familiar with- the Phoenix con used it for a few years, and the Arizona Library Association has also used it for annual conferences in the past. It’s a decent venue with many problems- space is limited, and public transportation sucks beyond belief. A big key to getting kids to turn out for a show is making it easy for them to get there. If they struggle to get a ride, well, you’re boned. The Phoenix con now sits right off of the light rail, which has really driven attendance upward. Still, as I arrived, I couldn’t help but notice that I had to park in East Jesus, Ohio- the parking lot was packed. As I and my Sherpa finally made it to the front door, I could see that the show was definitely hopping, which was nice to see.

The front desk was easy to spot, and the staff was very friendly and helpful. This in itself is huge- new shows usually struggle a bit to pull things together and find something resembling efficiency, but Amazing was a smooth operation. I got my wristband and headed in.

As I did my initial walk through the floor, I bumped into John Layman (CHEW) who was off to do a writers’ panel. That sounded like a good way to get my feet wet with the show, so I joined up and we wandered the convention center until we found the room. The panel was pretty entertaining- John, Joe Casey, J.T. Krul, Scott Lobdell, Kyle Higgins, Joshua Hale Fialkov, Tom Hutchison, and moderator Brian Augustyn entertained the crowd with their thoughts on scripting, pacing, structure, and planning. We got a couple of interesting glimpses of what it’s like working in DC’s new 52, discovered just how differently everyone handles the writing process, and Lobdell- a former standup comedian- did his best to get the audience laughing. The only downside was that the room had no microphones (whoops!) and the guys wound up removing the table and sitting in a semi-circle. I would have liked to tape it, but there was no place to put my recorder. Oh- and I also came to the realization that, as strange and offbeat as his comics are, they are merely a reflection of the real Joe Casey. He might just be the lunatic you’re looking for.

(Apologies to Billy Joel.)

From there, it was down to business. I wanted to get a few interviews done, but crowds were so steady, it was difficult to carve out time to talk. I managed to get Joshua Hale Fialkov and Sina Grace done, and I’ll have those online in the next couple of weeks. They were both excellent subjects and offered up great material. You’re gonna love ‘em.

I also did some shopping. Spazdog Comics, who are local, had a large chunk of cheap graphic novels, and I got four books for $20. Can’t beat that. I also had a good chat with the always excellent Henry Barajas, who was stepping away from doing standup for the weekend to help out his comics pals. I also managed to squeeze in brief chats with some of the folks I know on the Phoenix retailer scene, including Marco Regalado of Pop Culture Paradise. PCP is the shop closest to my house, the one shop where I still pop in and occasionally drop cash, and also the place where I’ll be signing on the day that RED SONJA: RAVEN comes out. Marco was set up at the show with a really nice booth, and he had child actor Chandler Riggs signing. Riggs plays “Carl” on the TV version of THE WALKING DEAD and that’s a huge coup for the store. Hopefully it brings Marco tons of traffic and wallets waiting to be emptied.

If there was a truly disappointing aspect to the show, it was Artists’ Alley. The size and layout were fine, but… Look, there were just way too many people there with banners featuring ridiculously drawn women. Poses that would result in a broken back. Tits that would result in a broken back. There were far too few people with, y’know, actual sequential art skills. I get that everybody has to do their own thing, but there was a lot of arrested development in that area of the show.

I was also surprised at some high profile absences. Todd McFarlane and his company were absent. Some other local pros like Jay Fotos and his crew weren’t there. And shops like Collector’s Paradise and Gotham City Comics didn’t set up, either. If this show continues to stick around, I’ll be interested to see if more of the locals filter in.

The big draw of the show was the presence of writer Robert Kirkman. At this point, Kirkman has come close to establishing himself as the face of the American comics market. THE WALKING DEAD remains a ratings juggernaut on television, and the comics continue to rise in sales. Throw in his incredible trade paperback sales, and it is entirely possible that he could have bought a ton of cars and had them parked in the lot, just to make me have to walk that far to get into the show.

He could do that. Really.

I’d have tried to set up an interview with him, but at this point, it may require the sacrifice of a fatted calf. I’m not sure what I’d ask him anyway. Besides “can I have all the cash in your wallet?” I suppose.

Kirkman’s presence was another way in which the show impressed me. The lines were orderly and never blocked any of the nearby aisles. Trust me when I tell you: that never happens in San Diego. The convention folks showed great wisdom in where they placed the Skybound booth, period. This is the kind of detail that can easily get lost or overlooked, but the Amazing folks did a terrific job of laying out the entire show- traffic flowed smoothly at every hour of the day.

So, yeah- Amazing is a solid little show. Here’s the issue, though- it’s going to remain little if it stays in Mesa. Space is limited there. Maybe that’s a good thing- a convention should never try to be more than what it really is. It’ll be interesting to see what happens, and I honestly don’t know where they could go that would give them greater space without them fully duplicating the May show. For now, though, I’ll give this one a tip of the hat and suspect that you’ll see me there again a year from now.

BOOM REVIEWS

2012-01-06T17:01:56Z

BOOM! Reviews

By Avril Brown

Irredeemable #33
Written by Mark Waid and Illustrated by Diego Barreto

‘Irredeemable’ opened with the world’s greatest, and more powerful, hero flipping out to an extreme degree as he murders several of his former teammates and millions of people. Building upon that amazing introductory issue this book has evolved into one of the most entertaining superhero dramas available on the racks today.

The Plutonian has been through a lot since his little tantrum on Earth, and now after working as alien slave labor, battling (and recruiting) his way through an intergalactic insane asylum and sneaking a teleport back to Earth, readers finally learn his origin. We know why the Plutonian snapped, we’ve seen some of his past, but now we witness his origin and what made him a hero.

‘Irredeemable’ is at a great point right now for new readers as the crossover between its sister series, ‘Incorruptible’ is in full swing, and as they both are explaining the beginnings of their title characters it allows first-timers a chance to enjoy the story without getting confused by continuity.

Incorruptible #25
Written by Mark Waid and Illustrated by Marcio Takara

The writing on ‘Incorruptible’ has not been as consistently entertaining as that on ‘Irredeemable,’ but I do still enjoy watching Max Damage attempt to figure out what the hell he is doing. The concept was intriguing enough from the beginning: a super villain goes straight after watching the straightest superhero eviscerate several continents, and after two years of up and down story lines I feel like the book is finally getting somewhere.

Max has been a little slow on the uptake since he went un-evil, but although he does not always go about things the smartest way he does seem to genuine want to do good in the post-Plutonian world. Now his actions are shrouded in mystery as he has been cut off from every person he ever trusted and invested himself on an unknown project.

As with ‘Irredeemable,’ this book is primed for new readers due to the origin crossover happening now for both titles, and with the next issue of ‘Incorruptible’ it will be concluding, hopefully with one hell of a bang. All readers, both fresh and vintage, will be granted new information about Max Damage, and hopefully inspiring new creative avenues for this former bad boy.

7 Warriors #1-2
Written by Michael Le Galli and Illustrated by Francis Manapul

I was intrigued by the idea of a title starring seven women warriors, but two issues in and I am not impressed. Seven warriors are recruited in a monarchial society by a worried queen who wishes her son to be transported to a safe location, where he is to breed with the healthiest and most genetically viable high-born woman there to preserve the royal line.

SPOLIER ALERT: The fact that these seven top female warriors are serving as stud-escort aside, three of them also happen to die by the end of the second issue, thus confusing me as to why this title is called ‘7 Warriors.‘ I will give it a couple more issues to see if ‘7’ fleshes out anymore, but I was hoping for a bit more from such a promising premise.

Key of Z #1-3
Written and Created by Claudio Sanchez and Chondra Echert, and Illustrated by Aaron Kuder

Attempting to bring in ‘yet another zombie comic book’ in this saturated market means the book needs a good strong start and something new to bring to the zombie-infested table. Though it has yet to be confirmed, three issues in and ‘Key of Z’ would hint as to possessing both.

There is a supernatural aspect to this book, besides the obvious, in the form of some form of musical mind control over the undead. Politics and weapons dominate almost every zombie story at some point or another, and this one is no different. ‘Key’ also takes place in Manhattan, which is unoriginal but practical for a post-zombie apocalyptic world as it provides lots of architectural variety within a smaller space.

Time will tell if ‘Key of Z’ will be able to hold its own against the other zombie books present today, but ideally there are enough different subsets within the zombie world that ‘Key’ will be able to present itself as a fresh concept worthy of a comic book and/or zombie lover’s attention.

ROGUE ELEMENT 91

2012-01-05T17:48:16Z

Rogue Element #91: Almost Famous

By Avril Brown

When I am not off gallivanting half-naked at various Comic Conventions across the country, I have a day job working in the Animal Behavior and Training Department at the Anti-Cruelty Society in the River North neighborhood of Chicago. The ACS is Chicago’s oldest animal shelter, founded in 1899 with the objective to improve the lives of working horses, and it has grown over the years into a multi-faceted animal welfare organization, not only adopting out dogs and cats to new homes, but also spaying and neutering thousands of animals every year, educating the public in animal care, responding to animal cruelty calls, offering dog training classes and providing a free animal behavior hotline.

Needless to say, the ACS is no stranger to the media, particularly since exposure to the public is essential for a non-profit agency that depends solely on donations. The work my colleagues and I do, however, is not normally advertised. We make no secret of the fact Anti-Cruelty is an open admission shelter: we will accept almost any dog and cat, regardless of health or behavior. Given the fact we are a large but not limitless facility, this naturally means we cannot guarantee that every animal we take in will find a home. There are several reasons why an animal cannot be re-homed, but the two most common are medical and behavioral. The latter is where I come in.

A large part of my job entails performing temperament evaluations on shelter dogs to learn more about their personalities (whether or not they know basic obedience commands, or if they like to play fetch, for example), and to test for aggressive tendencies. The animals who demonstrate a dangerous level of aggression are euthanized, but there is a whole lot of gray area in between ‘mushy mutt’ and ‘deadly dog.’ Given my knowledge and experience in animal behavior, shelter workings and dog training, I have to make the decision of what animals can be saved.

A little over a month ago this aspect of my job was featured in the Chicago Tribune newspaper, written by reporter John Owens and photographed by Nancy Stone. The front page had a picture of my boss and I sandwiched around a little feathery yapper of a dog named Lily, who was in the process of licking our faces, and the main article found on page seven boasted a ginormous picture of yours truly, getting all smiley and curvy with a mutt named Oscar. My boss loves that picture, citing how “awesome” the body language is on both me and the dog. (I must admit, my admiration of the quarter-page-sized picture extends beyond body language and into somewhat vain territory, such as how great my hair looks.) The article itself was much larger than I had anticipated and it expanded beyond the pages of the Tuesday Tribune; an online version coupled with the companion video Mr. Owens put together and released several weeks before the article came to print was available on the Tribune website, and the Chicago Redeye featured an abbreviated version as well.

Though initially I bristled at the headline, “Making life-or-death choices,” I realized it was a knee-jerk reaction to a familiar sore spot, because that is the truth. I do make life or death decisions every single work day, and more often than not, I hate it. My co-workers and I are only half-joking when we say we love dangerous, aggressive, I-want-to-feast-on-your-entrails type dogs. They make it easy. All dogs CAN bite, just like all humans possessing the necessary motor functions CAN pick up a gun and shoot someone, but that is not to say either species WILL do such a thing unless provoked to a breaking point. The truly terrifying animals are the ones who barely need a nudge one way or another before deciding to act with extreme prejudice, because they are in fact faster, stronger and deadlier than us puny humans. If a dog wants to bite you he or she is going to bite you, therefore allowing one of these hair-trigger canines out into the world is the equivalent of handing a loaded gun to an unstable person in the middle of Daley Plaza. Someone IS going to get hurt. So when it comes to making a life or death decision about such a dog, I do not hesitate. I actually feel like I am doing a good thing by choosing death, because with that choice I could very possibly be saving a life.

Fortunately, there are few animals surrendered to the shelter that are considered to be extremely dangerous. Unfortunately for me, my job is emotionally harder because I am choosing death for some dogs that, for any number of reasons, may not necessarily need to be euthanized. I never make the decision lightly, and I do feel I am making an educated and informed choice, but my soul still aches.

When John Owens asked if he could write an article about my work, I made it abundantly clear what exactly it is I do and I explained the strength and range of my emotions regarding my position. Like a good reporter, he didn’t let it go and pursued what he felt was something worthy of an article, and like a good writer, he presented the subject matter in a clear, engaging manner. After reading the article, I was impressed, relieved and grateful. He understood the job, he did not pass judgment, and he included quotes which demonstrated our love of animals in addition to the necessity and the positives of what we do.

Having the details of my job illustrated in a major Chicago newspaper felt…good. There were the obvious upsides to my new-found fame: my phone was blowing up all day with congrats and comments from friends and family. Over the holidays I had several relatives tell me how they saved a copy, they pointed it out to their co-workers, I look so adorable in the pictures, etc. Even my gynecologist sent me a copy of the Redeye article with a note saying she enjoyed the read. Of course, there were a few scathing comments left on the online version, mostly from inflexible “no kill” advocates with one or two made by obvious idiots, but for the most part the feedback was positive. I am not so malleable where my entire world is comprised of other people’s opinions, but it lightens my heart to know people can read that article and tell me they understand the difficulty of my every day decisions.

Emotional heaviness aside, being almost famous is pretty cool. Admittedly, I sort of enjoy being in the spotlight (shocking, I know, coming from someone who traipsed about three comic conventions this past year wearing nothing but white straps). This may be a childhood thing, but growing up (and GOD do I feel old just starting a sentence like that) the newspaper was still a big deal. Naturally the really famous people are the ones frequently seen on movies and television, but it still meant something to be written about in the paper. Though the abundance of social media platforms have diluted the strength of the paper, my feelings about making the front page of the Chicago Tribune are as giddy now as they would’ve been when I was ten.

Yes, I enjoy being a feature here and there, and although Mr. Owens’ article made me happy, and sad, just like my work, the question remains of whether I want to continue making headlines as Avril Brown, Animal Behavior Specialist, or Avril Brown, Writer, Interviewer, Reviewer, Professional Nerd. I like being photographed at Cons and interviewed by people in cosplay. When donning my Clark Kent clothes, I also relish being the interviewer, razzing with my subject and learning more about comics and the culture. I love immersing myself in almost every aspect of the comic world, in front of the camera or behind the lens.

Making life-altering decisions has never been my strong suit, but it is beyond time I gain some clarity and focus. Though I would never be able to choose one or another (I will always be an animal advocate, and I will always adore comics and nerdy pop culture), here’s hoping with a brand new year and the dreaded 3-0 creeping up (in six months, people, so let’s not go crazy) I will be able to make some choices on what life I want to live.

AGNES GARBOWSKA

2012-01-04T23:49:13Z

CWR's Avril Brown interviews artist Agnes Garbowska!

AISLE SEAT 2.0.68

2011-12-24T22:40:36Z

AISLE SEAT 2.0.68: TEN FOR 2011

By Marc Mason

Even though it seems like it, I have not read every graphic novel released in the past year. So it would be foolish, not to mention arrogant, to put together a “ten best” list. What I can do, however, is give you a list of ten outstanding books and point you in their direction. With this list, I can at least guarantee you a reading experience that is more than worth your time and money. Oh, and I will, at least, name a “book of the year.” Again, this is all my opinion- and I am more than happy to argue with you!

DAYTRIPPER (DC/Vertigo) collects the award-winning miniseries under one cover. Writer/artist/wonder twin combo Fabio Moon and Gabriel Ba had long been proving how amazing they are, but DAYTRIPPER represented a leap even further forward into greatness.

ANYA’S GHOST (First Second) by writer/artist Vera Brosgol was the most stunning rookie debut that I saw this year. By turns humorous and flat-out frightening, this was also the best book for teen girls that I read this year as well.

LITTLE NOTHINGS VOL. 4 (NBM) is another amazing installment in writer/artist Lewis Trondheim’s art blog. I consider Trondheim to be the great living comics creator in the world right now, and this book shows him at the height of his powers.

THOR BY WALT SIMONSON OMNIBUS (Marvel) is not only an outstanding book, but also a potential murder weapon. This 1200 page beast collects the defining run on the character by the character’s defining creator. Great stories, great art, don’t drop it on your foot.

LEVEL UP (First Second) by writer Gene Luen Yang and artist Thien Pham captures the angst of young adulthood perfectly, throws in an interesting conceit involving the nature of spirituality and death, and also tickles the funny bone a bit. Yang is a force to be reckoned with.

SIXTH GUN VOL. 1-2 (Oni Press) is the cream of the crop when it comes to Western horror right now. Exciting stories, great characters… writer Cullen Bunn and artist Brian Hurtt have sucked me into their world in a genre I tend to ignore. I read the first two trades back-to-back, not able to put them down.

RASL VOL. 3 (Cartoon Books) propels writer/artist Jeff Smith’s latest epic into the stratosphere. Sexy, action-packed, inventive… and he makes you think about what’s going on. The over-sized trade paperbacks allow the gorgeous art to breathe. One volume to go, and I can’t wait.

CHEW OMNIVORE EDITION 2 (Image Comics) won the Eisner for Best Continuing Series, and it isn’t hard to see why. Writer John Layman and artist Rob Guillory are telling one of the most complex stories on the stands, and the book rewards you at every turn for paying attention. Funny, romantic, sick, and twisted. Brilliant.

ASTRONAUT ACADEMY (First Second) by writer/artist Dave Roman was the best all-ages book I read this year. Period. I have managed to give away both of my copies and need a new one. Great stories, great characters, great art, clever payoffs… there is nothing here to not love.

And… my book of the year:

HABIBI (Pantheon) by writer/artist Craig Thompson. It had been seven long years since Thompson had released new work, but it was worth the wait. Staggering in scope and ambition, this massive book (700 pages) delivers page after page of art that your eyes can get lost in. The love story at its core is warm, yet also horribly tragic, and while many will quibble with aspects of the tale focused on religion and culture (and I would agree with some of those quibbles) you cannot deny the sheer power that the book carries in its pages. Thompson carries you to someplace new and different, asking for your trust in his pen and ink, and if you give it to him, the rewards are grand.

Read my interview with Thompson here.

Looking over my list, I suppose I have a “publisher of the year” as well. First Second had another outstanding year- just another in a remarkable run as of late. I can’t remember the last time I read one of their books and felt “bleah” or “meh” about it. They don’t get a lot of play in the mainstream comics media, but that doesn’t matter- they just produce great books.