April 30, 2012
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Everythingness
What if the quest for meaning was itself meaningless? And what if Neil decided to draw the whole thing? Chances are that this isn’t anywhere near what Neil was going for with this comic, but that’s what I’m taking out of it, dammit. It’s been a few years since I’ve seen one of his comics (for you whippersnappers out there, Neil has several issues of his “Neil Jam” series that have been coming out for many years now), and it’s clear that his art has tightened up a bit, and it’s not like it was terrible to begin with. The people characters look more like people, and even the Tots seem somehow streamlined. Which makes no sense, as they look like tiny animated teeth and it’s hard to streamline that design much, but that’s what this old defective brain of mine is telling me. So what’s this comic about? The description on the inside front cover sums it up pretty well: “The totality of existence… and beyond!” You get a sense of where things are headed when Neil steps out from behind the curtain to introduce the book (in comic form, not a written introduction) and gets into a discussion with god about who is more responsible for the comic, Neil or god. It’s pretty much impossible to argue with his conclusion either, so score one for Neil. Other stories include a magical moment between Willis and Ona (see past issues of Neil Jam if you’re having trouble with the character names, which he also kindly lists on the inside back cover), differences of opinion on what constitutes a magic bird or fish, god deciding to share his burden with his creations just for a moment, not being bound by expectations, who might be watching you, and finally a literal search for meaning. And hovering over all of these stories is the constant presence of Neil and god, popping up here and there to keep various characters on their toes. And the eyes. It’s not possible to talk about one of Neil’s comics without referring to those black, soul-stealing eyes of all of the characters. They’re mitigated a bit this time around by the smiles on some of the faces and general upbeat nature of much of the comic, but those eyes can get to you if you’re not careful. I defy anybody to read all of the Neil Jam comics in a row, then go outside and talk to real people. Those eyes will follow you. Um, I got off on a tangent there. I’ve been a fan of Neil’s for many years now and am thrilled to see him getting published, as to me that’s one more small step towards him becoming rich and successful at his comics, which means he’ll devote more time to them, which means those solid black eyes will slowly take over the world. Hey, we all have our own quest for meaning, you know… $5
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Posted by Kevin
April 27, 2012
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Kekionga MiniWorks #34: Mailbox
All these years later, and I’m still torn: do I prefer using just the titles of each of Pam’s mini comics, or is it better to go with the “Kekionga MiniWorks” full title? The latter is definitely more impressive, as any mini comic that gets up to #34 is in a very select company, but I do enjoy the simplicity of her titles. This one features a hard-boiled version of Anubis (called Anpu here, and maybe there’s some history to explain that in a previous issue that I missed) investigating the disappearance of a mailbox. It quickly turns into an examination of society in general, as mailboxes are being removed to force people to use the mailbox outside of post offices, office hours at banks are being reduced to force people to bank online or by using ATMs, etc. If you are thrilled with every modern “convenience” and don’t understand the fuss about such things, it’s probably safe for you to skip this one. If you’re increasingly cranky about this state of affairs, you’ll get some joy out of watching them complain about all this for a bit, culminating in the delivery of an actual letter. As for the basics, Pam’s art is always gorgeous and this is a sweet little story. And who can resist a hard-boiled version of Anubis investigating a missing mailbox? $1
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Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2012
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As Eavesdropped #3
Ah, if only Suzanne was a comic making machine who could produce these things daily. I’ve enjoyed her comics for years, but these “As Eavesdropped” books are pure goodness and light. As the title implies, these are snippets of conversations that Suzanne hears while out and about, and even she rarely knows the larger context of these quotes. Which makes them even funnier! Once again, my biggest problem was limiting it to only one sample (and seeing as how these are 8 pages, it wouldn’t be at all fair of me to post more, as my only argument is “but I wanna!”), which is always a good sign in regards to the quality of a book. I’ll keep this as general as possible, but conversations overheard in this one include an awkward question about chickens, taking the name of a network too literally, having unimpeachable sources and Satan. There, that should be more than vague enough to pique your curiosity without giving too much away. One quick suggestion for Suzanne though: why not do one of these about your experiences at small press conventions? Granted, you may end up knowing the context for some of these conversations, but I’d think that those things would be a people watching bonanza. It already is for me and I’m actively wandering around at them, so if you’re stationary I’d think that it would be a gold mine. No price listed, but past issues of this were $.50, so…
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Posted by Kevin
April 25, 2012
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The Life and Death of Mr. Burger
Hamburgers! You know they’re always one bad day away from turning evil. Well, this particular hamburger is, anyway. Things start off with our hero missing his bus, which causes him to miss an important meeting, which causes him to get fired from his job. And, what with the economy still being terrible and all, he decides to dress up as a lady hamburger and attack his old office and workmates with a chainsaw. He ends up in prison for 18 years and finally gets out, but things have changed considerably since he went in. It’s better if I don’t get into too many spoilers from there, even though the title does kind of give things away. This is Derek’s first comic that I know of (not a “graphic novel” as he mentions on the inside cover though, unless that’s become an all-encompassing term for all comics and nobody told me about the rule change) and it’s funny as hell, which always helps. I’m not a big fan of the computer animation turned into a comic idea, as everything comes off as slightly blurred. A background or two after the first page probably wouldn’t have killed the guy either, as it often appeared that the characters were talking to each other in a vacuum. But hey, first comic = learning experience, right? And he got a lot right (that ghost garden panel especially was fantastic). It’s worth a look, especially if you like to see hamburgers on an extreme downward spiral. $3
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2012
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Cornelia Cartoons #11
Ah, the first of the random grabs from SPACE 2012. Random grabs for comics to review, that is, as I already have a few of Kel’s comics up here and I was actively looking for more of his work at the convention. This one is the first of two parts (which I believe is a first in this series, as there are usually a few shorter stories in each issue), and it deals with an interesting hypothetical discovery. A drug has been discovered that will “permanently remove all negative energies and self doubt.” Great, right? Not necessarily, especially if you take a step back and think of the many monied interests that would be affected. The drug companies are mad, the therapists are going out of business and there’s still the slight problem of a lack of overall testing on the drug and any possible side effects. So on the off chance that you bought past issues of this series and were wondering why it was mostly focused on a few characters (outside of the fact that it’s called “Cornelia Cartoons” and is mostly about Cornelia), well, this one is about the world in general and their reaction to this discovery. Mix in a fully automated therapist, a visit from a sleazy therapist that gets an old enemy drunk to trick her, a few belated ethical quandaries and a cliffhanger ending and you get this book. To be concluded in the next issue, so I’ll have more thoughts on the whole story then, but as the first part of a storyline this one had it all. All kinds of situations to be resolved and, while I have a few ideas of where this series will NOT be going based on that ending (just assuming from Kel’s past work on this front), I admit to have no idea of where it WILL be going, which is always nice. It’s worth a look, and if you’ve resisted trying his stuff over the years these two issues make up a nice hefty story for you to give it a shot. $2
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Posted by Kevin
April 20, 2012
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Sammy the Mouse Book 1
There is one benefit to my sticking to mostly self-published mini comics and things of that nature instead of also reviewing a whole bunch of Fantagraphics/Drawn and Quarterly stuff: I get to read the series when they come out in collected editions, removing the ambivalence that can come with reading one issue of an epic series. In this case Zak put out the first three issues with Fantagraphics, then hand-made each copy of this collected edition on a machine that contains all sorts of numbers that I won’t even pretend to understand. So if you like the personal touch in your books, it’s hard to get more personal than that. As for the book itself, it feels like cheating when two of the quotes on the back cover call this a revelation, but, well, this book is a revelation. The closest thing I can compare it to is being in one of those old timey scuba suits, the kind which were designed for walking along the ocean floor, while examining the effects from an oil spill. The sea creatures that you expected were there, but damaged and corrupted, and there were also several creatures that you were expecting, that seemed to be perfectly normal until you get right up next to them and see the sores. Utterly hopeless with a sense of inevitable fatalism and just a dash of a higher purpose that might fix a thing or two, maybe that’s what I’m getting at. Anyway, things start off with Sammy sitting around his house. He just wants to be left alone, but a strange voice above him tells him that he has to answer his door, as this is “the start of something.” Sammy resists, but finally answers the door to see a duck who’s too drunk (and broke) to buy booze. From there Sammy runs into another friend who’s in a coma and a creepy-as-hell skeleton kid who delights into scaring the shit out of people for what appears to be no good reason. From there we get a few drunk characters (and another one of them seems to be in the direct control of that voice from on high, although we never learn if it is the same voice or a different voice), a bar that’s made out of a hollowed out baby (although the baby doesn’t seem to mind, unless it was just frozen in that pose; either way it’s horrible to think about for too long), a moustache that seems to be the key to something, some poison that is imminently going to start spewing out, and a nail in the forehead. And a sasquatch-like creature. And a butterfly. Once again I’m stuck not giving too much away, as this needs to be seen by all folks who like these funny pictures on paper. You may want to have a large glass of booze on hand, but I wouldn’t recommend drinking too much before reading it. Wouldn’t want too much of this stuff to get into a drunken, vulnerable mind… $18
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Posted by Kevin
April 19, 2012
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Ritual: Real Life #1
Wow. I think that any fans of horror or surreal comics should just buy this sight unseen (when it comes out in a few weeks), and that almost anything that I have to say about it will just spoil bits for you. So with that said, fans of Malachi’s past work or fans in the general of the comics that Revival Press have released so far, please go on your way and wait patiently until the book is released. Or you could pick it up at the Stumptown convention on April 28th. For the rest of you, I will now try to convey what I liked about this book without giving anything away. It’s a delicate dance and it’s almost impossible to be entirely successful, but you have been warned. That cover should be your first hint that this isn’t just another typical comic, and the first page will confirm that. We see a clear night sky, then a disembodied hand floating down, then a flash of light from the hand, then the hand is gone. From there we go to a couple in bed, with the woman awake and watching bugs crawl into the skin of her lover. It’s a sign of things to come, and pay close attention to her “nonsensical” words at the beginning, as they all come together by the end. Both members of the couple wake up, they go about their day as usual, and the reader is lulled into a false sense of security rather nicely. Then the power goes out (but only in their house), and we get to the page sampled below, and I’m going to stop talking about it right now. I looked through Malachi’s website before writing this (mostly to make sure I had the right order of the title) and it looks like “Real Life” is projected to be a series of stand-alone stories, although I’m not sure if they’re all going to be horror stories. All I can say to that is: yes, please. There are far too few genuinely scary or unnerving comics out there and more are always welcome. If this ends up being a series of stand-alone tales that eventually come together or make a larger sort of sense, I’m all for that too. Just keep drawing, that’s all I ask. Malachi has clearly grabbed onto something here and it’s far better to keep that roll going than it is to stop it for “real life” and then try to start it back up again. No price (as it’s not out yet), but I’d guess at least $6 for something this hefty.
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Posted by Kevin
April 17, 2012
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Robbie and Bobby
It took me a lot of years, but I’m officially starting to regret not paying any attention to web comics for this long. Sure, I’m relatively busy keeping up with printed small press comics (which is also why I’ve ignored text zines for years), but great stuff does exist out there that I’ve never seen. Luckily people like Jason occasionally send me a copy of their first book, so at least I can get caught up on it after the fact. If you’ve never seen any of his strips and are about to run away after seeing a picture of a kid and a robot on that cover, don’t panic: this is some uniquely strange and funny stuff, and adorable kid poses will not be found in this volume. In fact, Bobby (who is the boy, not the robot, in case you were wondering) doesn’t seem to have any kind of authority figures in his life outside of Robbie, and it’s very much up for debate whether or not Robbie is even supposed to fill that role. Instead these two get up to all sorts of (mostly) good-natured trouble that may or may not be wrapped up by the end of the strip. Unless one or both of them end up dead, but that little problem is always corrected by the start of the next strip. So what’s it all about? Bobby is a young boy whose main interests seem to be pizza, Robbie, taking part in whatever adventure crosses his path and occasionally trying to impress a girl. Robbie… is. We don’t get an origin story and we really don’t need it, but he’s always there, either taking care of or taking advantage of Bobby. Some of the many subjects tackled in this mammoth (120+ pages) book include Robbie’s awesome power form, some seemingly sweet birds taking some of Bobby’s hair, the most terrifying strip I’ve ever seen involving a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, Science Cat calling for help, the war against math users, marrying a pizza, and turning into a Netflix envelope to win hide and seek. Strips range from the very occasional three panel format to several pages long and damned near all of them either made me chuckle or at least smile, which is fairly remarkable in a book this varied. There are also some of his college strips in the back (which could maybe all come together in a single volume if this one is successful, hint hint) and a few pages done by guest artists which also managed to be hilarious. Maybe you’re like me and you don’t really read webcomics, but it would be a good idea to bookmark his site now and go back through it at your leisure. You’ll thank me later…
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Posted by Kevin
April 16, 2012
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Stranger Two Stranger #3
For those of you who haven’t been reading this series, a quick recap: R. Hendricks finds some of the more ridiculous/heartbreaking/bizarre Craigslist ads about missed connections and illustrates them. His illustrations generally elevate these ads into another art form entirely, and I’ve been thoroughly impressed with his efforts so far. That being said, take a moment to embiggen that sample below and read it, because it has to be the most delusional thing I’ve ever seen in any kind of personal ad. Done? Yeah, that guy actually thought that he might have a shot with that woman AFTER RUNNING OVER HER DOG. I’ve surely had my clueless moments in dealing with the ladies over the years, but that level of willful ignorance is astounding. But hey, at least he’s offering to buy her a new dog! Madness. This is an extreme example of what you’ll find in this volume, but several of them are along the same vein. There’s one from a woman who researched who David Lynch was after having a cute guy ask her about him, a guy looking for another guy he had met with huge feet, another guy who’s looking for the guy that he gave an oral exam (in a dentist’s office) to, a guy who sneakily took a picture of a the feet of a woman and another guy who’s just looking for a “female wrestling partner.” There are also a few more surreal entries, like the one that says that “love lies do not mix well with love” and another that simply says “I screw you.” Overall I’m leaving a large chunk of these for you readers to discover, as there’s no sense in ruining such a delightful surprise, but rest assured that there are some doozies in here. And if you go to his website you’ll see a few new entries that are not in this volume, which tells me he’s keeping this up, which is good news to all of us. $2
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Posted by Kevin
April 12, 2012
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Silent V #5
Oh Silent V, if only you would put any kind of a synopsis at the start of the book. I was going to read the previous issues of this series before reviewing this one, but after looking at the mess of my room I’ve changed that and decided that I’m going to do that before I review #6. As it does appear to be heading towards a conclusion of sorts, that probably makes more sense anyway. Or I could write clearer reviews so that I’d be able to get myself caught up on past issues more easily, but let’s not get crazy here. This issue maintains the pattern started in the last issue of being more linear than earlier issues, which is always helpful. This time around the Lord (of some sort) has been born. He takes his faithful disciple and goes into the future to look for a bizarre living doll of some kind that is currently under construction. And, really, that’s pretty much it. The Lord and his servant have some funny conversations, the doll thing reaches completion, we get a mystifying last page (good to see that Kyle isn’t losing his touch in that regard) and that’s it for the issue. Well, there is also another story that takes up the second half of the book, it’s just that it isn’t related to the main storyline in any way. It’s about two guys gorging themselves on all the food in the room until all they’re left with are the dishes, so they gorge themselves on that. And you know what happens after you have a giant meal, right? Well, things in the story only get uglier than there. It’s a funny enough silent story, but Kyle asks on the back page if people think this is a good idea, and I have give my usual equivocal answer: sure, it’s a fine story, but what about the opus that you’ve been working on? Better to wrap that up first, then put out an issue of all the unrelated stories that you may have floating around. But I also want everything right now, so what do I know. Don’t go into this one blind, but if you’re read the rest of this series it doesn’t make any sense to stop now, does it? $3 (?)
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Posted by Kevin
April 11, 2012
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Blink: So It Goes #1 – Wonka Wonka Kochalka
Huzzah for a master plan! It seems like there have been very few epics in the small press world since Cerebus ended (or at least epics that actually came to fruition), but Max is planning 13 chapters to finish this story, ending up at some point in 2016. One suggestion/quibble before I get started on the book itself: why not list projected publication dates for the chapters? Sure, there are almost certainly going to be various problems along the way that prevent it from going exactly as planned, but maybe it would be useful as a motivational tool? Eh, with the way Max has been going over the years, he probably doesn’t need the additional motivation. Anyway, this graphic novel is called “So It Goes” and this volume is called “Wonka Wonka Kochalka,” as Max admirably makes clear in his introduction. This volume is all about Blink, Sam, Hank and their group of friends, many of whom are introduced here (unless I missed them in a mini comic appearance). Hank plays some songs, the gang wanders around to different bars chatting about various topics, and I’m on the verge of making this sound incredibly boring, which it’s not. But it’s also most likely not going to be action packed, so you should get that out of your heads early on. Instead it’s just natural conversations, happening among people who might not otherwise interact (Sam especially does not suffer fools gladly), and it’s wildly entertaining. There’s not a whole lot more to say about the story, frankly, as this is very early days of this series. If you’ve liked previous Blink stories (like the many mini comics floating around or the first collection of his work), then you’ll be happy to know that Max has stepped it up yet another notch this time around. If you’ve never seen his work, well, this seems like a good investment to me. It’s rare that I’d be more surprised if an artist DIDN’T finish his proposed epic, but I have full faith that Max will manage to pull it off. But there’s more to this comic than just the comic itself. The comic is 32 pages (which doesn’t technically qualify as a “graphic novel,” but calling it a “chapter” is awkward as hell) and there are another 24 pages of extra material. When I first flipped through the book I noticed this and was instantly wary, as it looked like padding to jack up the price on this book. Then I flipped the book over and saw that it was a relatively measly $7, so that clearly wasn’t the reason for all the extra material. First off, he’s doing a letters column, something that has been sadly lacking in comics lately, and he’s already gotten some interesting material to work with. Then there’s a few sketchbook pages (with promises of much more at his website if you’re interested), a listing of the folks who donated to the Kickstarter campaign that essentially got this comic published, a story about his art gallery showing, a story about Max from a local paper and a listing of all of the future chapters. And there’s arguably the most important part of the book: his descriptions of various places that you see and various things that people are talking about. I like to think that everybody knows Joss Whedon by now, but Max sprinkles bits of Columbus throughout his stories and he takes a minute here to explain these places. It’s been said by other reviewers, but his comics just feel like Columbus, mostly because of all the local landmarks. Which is what makes his use of things like SPICE (for the annual small press convention) instead of SPACE a little jarring, as you’d think he’d go one way or another with that sort of thing. Hey look, I found a complaint! Anyway, you people should buy this book to make sure he stays nice and motivated in this endeavor. I doubt very much that you’ll be disappointed when it’s all over… $7
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Posted by Kevin
April 10, 2012
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The She-Ma’am Fella Hatin’ Sorority #2
The story of these four ladies continues, but without the “Feminazi” bit in the title. Which is probably for the best, as it’s never a good idea, however unintentionally, to give Rush Limbaugh even the slightest bit of free press. Once again, this comic is not for the people who cannot look at naked lady bits (or a strapped-on dildo) without bursting into flames, but the rest of us should get a kick out of it. First up is the Feminazi story called “Jewkkaki,” which you can possibly piece together if you look at any kind of online porn. Which you probably do, as otherwise you would have been offended at my previous warning and quit reading this review. Our heroine is forced to prove that she doesn’t hate Jewish people and that she just wears the uniform because it gives her super powers. Next is Roswella’s story, as she continues on through space searching for a good fuck. Yes, that does seem to the driving force behind her. She thinks she has finally found what she’s looking for, but we all learned way back in Star Wars that it’s dangerous to assume something when you’re only seeing part of a creature. Next is another story of Jungle Jane, this time dealing with a young man who tries to get her to have sex with him, only to have her point out that she’s fucked pretty much everything in the jungle and that his tiny man bits don’t have a thing to offer her. He makes a bargain to change things around a bit, but it’s always dangerous to transform yourself into a jungle creature. Finally there’s Sequential Sally, this time trying to nail down a publishing deal. I sampled the page that had the actual reaction to her work from the publisher, and the rest of the story has her trying to “convince” the publisher to change his mind. So far these stories are a blast (once again provided that you don’t mind a bit of nudity), and I think you people should send the man some money to buy some books. Or be cheap and read through the many free samples on his site, but you know deep down that you should order some comics after you do that. No price again, and again I’m guessing $4.
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Posted by Kevin
April 9, 2012
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Riptoid
If I ever set up a ratings system here it would have to be something based on food. Hear me out before you wander off in bemused annoyance, please. See, the quality of any book is bound to be subjective, excepting obvious errors like misspellings or forgetting to draw eyeballs on a character. So it’s always seemed like the height of hubris to me to place permanent (after all, reviews generally come up quickly when you do an internet search for a book) ratings on books where you’re likely to have your opinion change over the course of years, especially when an artist improves significantly in later work and that lets you have a fresh opinion of an earlier comic. The food analogy comes in when you think about what you get out of a comic. Some hefty, wordy minis are full course meals, while other tinier minis (you know, the kind that you can read in about 20 seconds) are, say, popcorn shrimp. One of them is hardly a meal, but that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with it. And with that we finally get around to talking about this comic, which is definitely one of those popcorn shrimp. This is a rhyming tale of a creature called Riptoid as he tries to escape from people who are trying to kill him for mysterious reasons. It’s six pages of story with one completed rhyme on each page, so it’s over pretty damned quick, but it’s still a fun comic. A little insubstantial maybe, and it’s not like that ending cleared anything up, but who says there’s anything wrong with being mildly insubstantial? I did enjoy the art, although I’d have to see it in a longer story to make any kind of conclusive judgement on it, but it did make me want to see more of his work, which is all you can ask for in a tiny thing like this. $1
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Posted by Kevin
April 6, 2012
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Andros #5
For what it’s worth (and it shouldn’t be all that much, as everybody gets an opinion), I approve of Max’s recent shift into double page spreads of his art, or silent work in general. Sure, I bitch about silent comics at times, but not THESE comics. And yes, that’s supposed to make total sense. In past issues of his comics we would get the occasional glimpse of the oozing, seething horrors that populate his art, but in the last few issues I’ve seen we get to see these monstrosities in better detail. In this issue we get two double page spreads, both on the inside front cover and the centerfold of the book. Is it still called a centerfold if it doesn’t involve a naked man or woman? Let’s just say that it does. The center image is the more powerful of the two, mostly because it’s uninterrupted. Is the gelatinous pile of tumors holding a speared child of the cowering, weeping creature backed up against a tree? Why is the man (if it is indeed a man under all those clothes, but it least it has a manlike shape) holding a gun up to that cowering creature? And are all the creatures of the forest on its side, or have they merely been backed into the same corner? I probably should have put that image as the sample just so all that made sense, but trust me, you’ll be glad that you discovered it for yourself. Other bits in here that are generally more examples of linear storytelling include Max’s memories of meeting Mr. T. as a child (and how he’s confronted with the reality of that meeting as an adult), begging for food at a flea market, seeing a guy jerking off on a bus, and ending up getting way too many eyedrops when taking drugs. There are also more than a few silent pages or short stories that defy conventional explanation, and as a whole comic it’s pretty damned impressive. My only confusion is that I remember Andros as being an anthology, but it’s from a long time ago (way, way back in the fuzzy days of the 90’s), and who can remember that far back anyway? $2
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Posted by Kevin
April 5, 2012
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Oak and Linden #4 – Dental Damned!!
If you’re at all squeamish about dentists, run for your lives! Well, maybe that level of panic is not warranted about a comic that nobody is forcing you to read, but if you get a bit green around the gills at any mention of dental work then this thing will scare the crap out of you/force you into your underground bunker. This is the story of Baby Pat (which is maybe supposed to represent regular Pat the creator) as he goes about his day. He’s missing a tooth, so all sorts of people he meets along the way want to learn what happened to the guy. He tells each of them a different story, each more manly and impressive than the last, until he eventually runs into a guy who cannot be snowed: his dentist. This is not the gentle, careful dentist that you might tell your kids about to get them to go get their teeth cleaned. This guy carries a grudge and does not suffer fools lightly. I’d be a jerk if I described the story any further, but a lesson was definitely taught to that lying young man. This is the first of a whole bundle of comics that Pat sent me (well, the first that I’m reviewing anyway) and I’m excited to see more. The art is a pleasing blend of classic cartoons with a smidge here and there of some of the great underground artists, but all very clearly his own style. Baby Pat’s beatific face as he gets ready to tell his story to the mail carrier, or how his posture changes between approaching the dentist’s office and seeing the dentist, and really the entire encounter with the dentist, were all things of beauty. We’re all going to be seeing a lot more from the students of The Center for Cartoon Studies in the days to come and, based on what I’ve seen so far, we’re all in for a treat. And it’s in full color for a measly $2!
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Posted by Kevin
April 4, 2012
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Star Pilot #7
This is apparently the issue where all ties with space pilots, rhinos and chimps went by the wayside. Which is a shame, as this issue is much more straightforward than previous issues, but it’s impossible for it not to lose some of that madcap charm in the process. This is the story of a journalist who goes to study the musical history of a country that had been violently overthrown 40 years earlier, leading the new dictator to erase all records of music and the musical history of the country. The journalist finds one image in the archive that hasn’t been completely blacked out and goes on a quest to get to the bottom of things. From there we get a retelling of the history of the region before our hero does manage to find the mysterious musician from the photograph, which leads right into the finale. You know, come to think of it, that chimp might just be the journalist. It’s hard to say for sure, but he sure looks a lot like a monkey. And yes, even though the story has been toned down a bit from previous issues, the art is still inspired in its lunacy. Frank does a great job with his “camera angles” for panel placement, which is more than enough to make up for the fairly straightforward story. Which, again, isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but I’ve been trained for two issues to expect more outside-the-box kind of stuff. So if you’re looking for more complete madness you should check out some earlier issues, while if you like your madness tempered just a bit then you’ll be just fine with this one. No price listed (I’m guessing somewhere around $3-4), and you can see the first few pages for free at Frank’s website.
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Posted by Kevin
April 3, 2012
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Genetically Modified Punk Rock Pandas
Oh parody comics, you are the proverbial red-headed stepchild of the small press business. Sometimes they’re a ton of fun, sometimes they improve on the thing that they’re trying to parody and show us something new, and sometimes they just exist. This one goes under the “fun” category. There’s no “#1” listed on the cover, which is probably for the best, as this would get old in a hurry. But 8 pages of these punk rock pandas beating the crap out of some cops is just good clean fun. Well, not “clean,” as there’s puke all over the place, but you know what I mean. Things start off with our four heroes facing off against the cops. They pull their weapons out (switchblade, bat and chain) while the last panda has had too much to drink to be much use in the fighting. Or so they thought, because as it turns out puking all over some cops can really throw off their game when they’re trying to shoot/fight you. Mayhem ensues, cops are beaten up, pandas run from cop reinforcements, and we’re left with a pretty funny final page. Whether or not you should seek this one out should be obvious to you from that title and the sample, but if this is something that sounds like fun to you, trust me, it is. $1
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Posted by Kevin
April 2, 2012
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Monkey Squad One #8
One thing that bugs me about most of the zombie apocalypse fiction/shows/games out there is that they rarely bothers to explain WHY said apocalypse is happening, mostly because 60 years or so after “Night of the Living Dead” everybody just understands that it’s bound to happen sooner or later and nobody knows why. Well, that’s lazy storytelling right there. Doug, to his credit, has an inspired explanation for this version of a zombie attack: they raised up just as the saddest song ever written was being sung by a man who was perfecting his depression for years. This man can also prevent the zombies from eating him if he keeps playing, but has no control over them other than that, and I’m getting ahead of myself. This one starts off with the origin story of the man who kicks things off, and it turns out that he knew Doug (Monkey Squad Doug, not real life artist Doug) back in the day and they had their own band. When things get back to the present we see the current members of Monkey Squad One gleefully taking advantage of this rare opportunity to shoot zombies at close range, while the people at their headquarters are trying to figure out how to rein things in. The sad rocker, Monkey Squad One and the other group of Monkey Squad types (I don’t remember their number) eventually all meet up, and I can’t get too much further into things without giving away large spoilery bits. I loved that cliffhanger ending, and it would be tough to think up one that was much more dramatic than that. I may have been slow getting on this particular bandwagon, but Doug (the creator, not the character) won me over the old-fashioned way: through interesting stories that were well thought out and put together. The art doesn’t hurt a thing, as he clearly spent some time on damned near every zombie in the background when he probably could have gotten away with a few faceless blobs here and there. And the violence! I’m not sure if depicting intestines as striped is anatomically accurate, but it makes for a nice touch in the double page spread of zombie mayhem. Next issue wraps up this storyline, so if you’re looking to jump into this series but are intimidated by that “#8” on the cover, pick up the last issue, this one and #9 when it comes out. One complete story just for you! $2.50
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Posted by Kevin
March 29, 2012
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Cigghartha
See, artists with crappy titles, this is how you make it easy for people to find you on the internet. I did a search for this title and (after I reminded Google that I wasn’t actually looking for “Siddhartha”) only came up with four hits. People who go with untitled books or “my first mini comic by Dan Smith,” take note. This book was hand-made (which you can tell by the string used as binding, among other things) and it’s gorgeous. The description of it is “one man’s spiritual journey,” and that works. This starts off with a man being born as a full grown man, complete with a cigar in his mouth. You may start to see a theme on this front. The man sets off on his own, trying to learn from a mystic of some kind, before eventually finding himself on the street, begging for money. He solves this problem rather deftly and manages to enjoy life for a bit, but those good times could only last for so long and he soon finds himself back on the streets. Well, the forest, in this case, but I can’t say much more without telling you everything. On the whole this book is an interesting search for meaning, and we’re happily not left with much of an answer one way or the other. Which, if you think about it, IS the answer, and it eventually becomes obvious to everybody. Well, it does in my happy version of the world, anyway. This couldn’t be more different in tone than the other book I’ve reviewed from these folks (Seething With Hatred), but they’re both well worth a look. It’s kind of expensive, as hand-making your books will do that to the price, but hey, who needs food anyway? $6
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Posted by Kevin
March 28, 2012
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Vortex #2
Ack, this is one of those times when I wish I knew more about the creator, and there’s no website to be found. Which makes perfect sense if you read the comic and start to get a sense of his opinions on the vast wasteland that is large chunks of the internet, but this comic reads like something put out by a professional with a couple of decades in the business. Which leads me to conclude that “Donny Robinson” is either a fake name or this man has the best sketch books of any artist in the world. This is a collection of short stories with a variety of different themes, and each one of them looks incredible. It starts off with an introduction explaining how Donny was first driven to draw by his inability to get a dream car in his head accurately on paper, and calls his comics “psychological run-off.” Which is a pretty apt description for a lot of comics, I think. Also on that page is a listing of the tools that he used to make the comic (which might come in handy for some of you young, impressionable creator types), aliens, a flamethrower, a joking skeleton, a biplane, some rooftop protesters and a hippie with no pants. The man doesn’t leave a single space of this comic bare, is what I’m saying. Oh, and if you’re offended by marijuana use: run away! Keep that precious mind of yours safe from all drug talk for a bit longer. The cover price is $4.20, which should be a bit of a giveaway. Anyway, stories in here include a stunt driver with a habit of smoking up before his stunts, a fantastic EC comics style story about a man who goes to an old army friend to patch up a bullet hole as he makes his escape and his inevitable comeuppance, Fred and Barney smoking pot, his thoughts on the internet, theories about being stoned and experimenting to make sure about it, the last excesses in a world of conformity, Sally Saturn, the world on too much cough syrup, and an adaptation of a song by Townes Van Zandt that I completely loved. There’s also the sample page (it always makes me happy when comics actually tackle current political events, as it happens so rarely) and a two page centerfold that has to be seen to be believed. There’s the merry-go-round with spiders and centipedes riding it, the medieval heroine on a skateboard, and a worm (wearing headphones) fishing inside of a cracked egg. And probably a few hundred other images, which all kind of somehow work together. Dexter Cockburn has been putting out a whole bunch of adult comics under his “Comix Company” banner, but there’s no nudity in here to scare anybody away. Just a lot of drug use and some minor acts of violence. So read it, as maybe that way we’ll get more comics from this mystery man. $4.20
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Posted by Kevin
