Here’s a video preview of the last issue of The Comics Journal before the relaunch planned for next year. Enjoy.
November 7, 2009
Douglas Rushkoff’s new “comic” – our tax dollars at work
Telefilm Canada has ponied up cash for Douglas Rushkoff’s new digital graphic novel. (That label sounds like an oxymoron to me.) It’s titled X. (Of which the sub-title is possibly Rise Up, based on the web site.)
Vancouver-based game studio Smoking Gun is behind the launch, which explains how the government grant was approved. Two of their game concept artists are illustrating what’s billed as “the first graphic novel of its kind embedded with an interactive experience that builds a community around the story.” You can read 17 pages and access the game here.
I don’t want to spoil too much, but there are samples pages from a comics and one of the panels opens to a game that, once completed, brings you to a web site.I guess the plan is to make you feel like you’re tracking down this X-Files mystery and connecting with other players of this experiential game. If they’re trying to create a “down the rabbit hole”-type experience, they’ve succeeded. I have no idea how far down this thing goes. I stopped after spending about 45 minutes on it because I was supposed to be working and was taking a short break to write this blog entry
Okay, back to work.
November 7, 2009
Toronto comic shop news
The Joe Shuster Awards web site reports some good news/bad news about the Toronto comic retail scene.
The Good News: 3rd Quadrant Comics repoened its doors on Nov 5. The Shuster blog chronicles owner Daryl C. Collison’s trials and tribulations in finding a new location. Needless to say all the indie shops are getting squeezed out of Queen W, where 3rd Quadrant used to be located. Unfortunately for downtowners, it’s moved all the way up to Yonge and Steeles. The “new” Queen West is shiny and new, but it’s lost much of its personality.
The Bad News: it appears that Grey Region has closed its doors of its downtown location on Yonge near Wellesely. When it first opened back in the late 80’s, it too was located on Queen St. along with 3rd Quadrant, the Silver Snail (which is still there), and a few others who have since moved location or closed down. I shopped Grey Region because they had great prices on new paperbacks. I’ll also remember it as the store where I picked up the full run of Wintermen when I first got back into comics a few years ago.
If you’re shopping along Yonge, there are still 1,000,000 Comix, Hairy Tarantula and BMV Books next door to the World’s Biggest Bookstore near the Eaton Centre.
November 5, 2009
Dr. Strange days
Crazy. Trippy. I love it. Now this is Dr. Strange.
This image was originally posted on the Bad Librianship blog. It’s a promotional image for the upcoming Marvel Knights series Dr. Strange: Fever by Brendan McCarthy and Steve Cook that won’t ever see press (the promo image, not the series). But so very cool to gaze at.
November 2, 2009
This week: Toronto SpeakEasy Comic Book Show
Toronto SpeakEasy, a monthly gathering of the city’s creative community, hosts its annual Comic Book Show this coming Thursday, Nov 5, 8pm-midnight at the Gladstone Hotel (1214 Queen West, second floor lobby).
The main event is in the evening, but I think you might be able to pop in any time during the day to check it out. It’s pay what you can, but suggested donation is $4. Official blurb from the SpeakEasy web site.
Toronto is home to some of the best-known comics artists in North America. We have an active and vibrant community putting out some of the highest quality comics to be found anywhere. The SpeakEasy Comics Show features an eclectic mix of Toronto’s talented comic book artists – from those who do newspaper strips and political cartoons, to underground comix and mainstream superhero comic books! The event promises to display an exciting cross-section of the comics’ community here in Toronto, as well as a glimpse into how good comics are made. As the old cliché goes, there really will be something for everyone.
The complete list of exhibitors includes:
-
Hard Drive issue #1, Cyberpunk Comics
Toronto Comic Arts Festival (featuring work by Marc Bell, Darwyn Cooke, Evan Dorkin, James Jean, Bryan Lee O’Malley, Seth and more)
- Matthew Daley
- Ian Daffern, Freelance Blues
- DMF Comics & Elsewhere Media, Chris Hatzopoulos & George Todorovski
- George Michael Faust
- Gibson Quarter
- Lamin Martin
- Awesome Marcus Ninja, Joel Buxton & Shane Heron
- rutz (a.k.a. Ruth Tait), Talking Pictures
- David James
- Ben Rivers
- Dale Camus
- Greg Dunford, Cyberpunkcomics.com
- Shane Kirshenblatt Freefall Entertainment
- The Joe Shuster Awards
November 1, 2009
Preview: Steve Ditko’s Strange Suspense
Fantagraphics has collected horror and mystery stories preceding the comics code restrictions by comic master Steve Ditko in Strange Suspense: The Steve Ditko Archives Vol. 1 . Check out the video preview below.
Before the Amazing Spider-Man, before the mysterious Dr. Strange, before the black-and-white world of the Ayn Rand-inspired Mr. A, the legendary comic book artist Steve Ditko was conjuring all manners of horrors at his drawing table. In his first two years in the industry (1953 and 1954), Ditko drew tales of macabre suspense that were not yet hobbled by the imminent Comics Code Authority (adopted in Oct. 1954). These stories featured graphic bloodshed, dismemberment and blood-curdling acid baths as the ugly end to the lives of the dark and twisted inhabitants of Steve Ditkos imagination.
November 1, 2009
On tour: Seth in Montreal
Seth’s Canadian tour arrives in Montreal on November 3 at Drawn and Quarterly’s Librairie D+Q Bookstore. Get out and say hello.
His work also appeared in the Friday New York Times to illustrate a feature on haunted New York apartment living.
October 30, 2009
This week’s haul
Just back from my local comic book shop. More superhero books than I normally buy for some reason:
Chew #5 – John Layman and Rob Guillory (Image): The final issue of this fun little read about an FDA agent who gets psychic impressions from whatever he eats (including severed fingers and deceased pets). Doesn’t take itself seriously, which I like in a comic.
Ignition City #5 – Warren Ellis, Gianluca Pagliarnai (Avatar): About time this one comes out. I love this series, but Avatar’s publishing schedule is giving me a headache. I guess these smaller press outfits (Boom! and IDW included) operate like the golden age of comics publishing – you get it when you get it. My series review is posted here.
Fantastic Four #572 – Jonathan Hickman, Dale Eaglesham (Marvel): The first arc by the new creative team. It’s really a Reed Richards solo story. The jury is out for me until the story is complete. I gave the Millar/Hitch a try, but abandoned that one two issues in because it wasn’t really doing much for me. I like my FF cosmic adventures and domestic strife.
Guardians of the Galaxy #19 – Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning and Wesley Craig (Marvel): Kang the Conqueror’s still around? I grabbed this one totally on a whim. I loved what Keith Giffen did with the team in Annihilation Conquest. There’s no Rocket Raccoon (presumable he’s dead?) but I was sold on Cosmo the dog. I’ll be curious to see if it’s still as much fun as Giffen’s run.
Die Hard Year One #2 – Howard Chaykin and Stephen Thompson (Boom! Studios): I don’t usually go for licensed books, but this one intrigued me based on the write-up on the Living Between Wednesdays blog. Definitely a slow build with the introduction of far too many characters. I’ll be interested to see how issue #2 unfolds. But I definitely prefer Brubaker and Phillips’ Criminal for a good crime/heist story.
Astro City Special: Astra #2 – Kurt Busiek, Brent E. Anderson (Wildstorm): The latest entry in the Astro City family. The book goes monthly starting with the next issue that comes out. I’m debating whether to keep picking this one up. It’s not at the top of my list, but it’s definitely not at the bottom (unlike the latest New Mutants series, sorry).
Madame Xanadu #16, cover
And finally Madame Xanadu #16 – Matt Wagner and Amy Reeder Hadley (Vertigo): New arc. The original creative team is back. Sexy magic – the best kind? Includes a preview of Luna Park, which look wicked.
Unfortunately, Northlanders #21 was sold out. I really enjoy Brian Wood’s DMZ, but haven’t tried this series yet. Based on some pencilled pages posted on the Vertigo blog recently, I thought I’d pick up this new arc.
October 30, 2009
The Comics Journal goes bi-annual
Hallelujah! The Comics Journal is making a super smart move for a periodical publication. They announced this week that they’re moving to a semi-annual publishing schedule for the magazine and unlocking the doors on their web site, upping the volume of content and frequency of updates. Kudos to them. This is exciting news. And if you’re a fan of TCJ or comics in general, you may want to pick up the November issue (#300) that promises to offer the first glimpse at what the new TCJ will look like.
The Comics Journals, issue 300 cover
This makes total sense both for both the business and the reader. The online subscription model doesn’t work terribly well. WSJ is one of the few success stories, but they also have a dedicated specialized audience. Even the NYT decided to open its archives a few years back when they realized they could make more money on open, free content. A TCJ.com with more content updated more frequently will increase their audience size and allow them to monetize the site better.
Print costs are on the rise, so producing the TCJ continues to cost Fantagraphics more. Circulation numbers are down for the vast majority of newspapers and magazines as people’s reading habits move online and to mobile. Aside from the books themselves, comics culture is almost entirely online. Reducing the frequency of TCJ but increasing the volume size (and likely price) ultimately nets them more money if they can hold the line on circulation. I anticipate they will increase their numbers. They could probably now market the Journal in bookstores if the book size is formatted properly and open up to a whole new segment of the consumer market.
I’ve been having difficulty getting my hands on a copy of TCJ. My local comic shop will only bring it in on special request, and I don’t necessarily want to buy every issue. But I am totally on board for picking up a nice, big, lush, beautiful book that comes out twice a year. Heck, I may even subscribe.
The Beat offers some context on the TCJ move in light of the sale of Newsarama and the changing face of comic news distribution. Some good discussion on the blog there as well:
At the same time, the rules are changing so fast and quick. Newsarama’s sale comes at a time when its position as the must-do news source has almost completely eroded. Everyone seems to use their own outlets for breaking news, and there are so many other choices. It’s notable that when Monday’s news of a new Stephen King comic at Vertigo came out, it was announced at Vertigo’s own blog and the first, presumably embargoed, interviews were at the NYT, the Daily Beast and AOL’s comics blog, Comics Alliance. Comics news is now big enough that it doesn’t even get broken on comics news sites any more — with a variety of “mainstream” news outlets covering comics on a regular basis, news can reach a (one hopes) even wider audience.
October 26, 2009
What happened to The Walrus Presents?
It’s been a while since I’ve had time to browse The Walrus web site, and it appears one of my favourite features is missing: The Walrus Presents. This one-page strip by Jason Sherman and David Parkins is a satirical look at (mostly) Canadian current events. It’s still running in the print edition, but they’ve stopped uploading the strip to the site after the July edition. Too bad.
At least they’ve posted their review of Canadian artist Marc Bell’s new book, Hot Potatoe (D+Q), from the current issue (Nov 2009). It’s too bad they don’t include any sample images from the book for the online version. That should be necessary for any comic and visual art book review that’s published.
