New review for Pork Belly #3 edited by Dan Taylor and you know what? I probably have enough of his comics to make this “Dan Taylor Thursday,” at least for the next month.
Update for 10/21/10
October 21, 2010
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Posted by Kevin
Taylor, Dan W. – Pork Belly #3
October 21, 2010
Pork Belly #3
One of these days I’m going to ask Dan at a con what exactly are the differences in his various anthology titles. Theoretically he could just put them all out under one title, or there are basic structural details I’m missing. As they’re pretty consistently entertaining it’s a bit of a moot point. No sense in me complaining about one of the few guys in the business who puts out comics on such a consistent basis. So how about the actual contents? Things get started with a delightfully disgusting piece by Kel Crum about the standards of bird vomit, Macedonio has a piece about “illegals” and who to really be worried about and a piece about ethnic birds, and Dan has mildly awful pun on the cover and two other pieces inside. Those two are fantastic, one dealing with a man shipping himself to save money on a trip and the eventual consequences and the piece I sampled below. Embiggen that sucker and be amazed at how the encroaching police state hits even little kids, then get mad and do something about it. I recommend watching some TV, like I’m one to talk about political activism. It’s another pile of great stories for a measly buck, so what exactly is stopping you?
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/20/10
October 20, 2010New review on this Steve Seck Wednesday for Life is Good #3. One more to go unless the guy can crank out another comic in a serious hurry…
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Posted by Kevin
Seck, Steve – Life is Good #3
October 20, 2010
Life is Good #3
Reality is starting to sink in by this issue for Brownie, as he sees that those precious unemployment benefits aren’t going to cut it but he still has time to kill before he can find another job. While having no money and living in a big city. Hijinx ensue, as it really is tough to find anything entertaining to do for free in such an environment. Then there’s the return of the altruistic hippies who are, surprise surprise, mostly in it to make themselves feel better and not so much to help others or the world. I know, that’s a horrible thing to say about the hippies who really are trying to save the world, but I’ve met a lot more hippies in my time who just wanted the moral high ground than I have hippies who really wanted to save the planet. The ones who were most amusing were the ones who didn’t get the disconnect, but then again I am generally profoundly cynical and the inevitable destruction of the planet doesn’t amuse most people as much as it does me. Yep, I can still bring a review down, no question about it. Other happenings this time around include a drunk fight on the street that costs money to watch (and the method for blocking out this fight was hysterical), hanging out with a friend who used to be cool and seeing how sad his life has gotten, and the lengths these two will go to in order to get booze when they’re both broke. Once again it’s a pile of funny, especially if you’re unemployed or have been recently and can relate to exactly what these sad sacks are talking about. Check it out why don’t you, that creature that blocks their view of the fight is worth the price of admission all by himself… $4
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/19/10
October 19, 2010New review today for Winter Break 2010 by Lisa McDonnell, as I am apparently out of Pat Aulisio comics after all. A more thorough answer to that question will be coming if and when I finally dig all the way through this pile o’ comics. Sorry about the recent absence, my internet has been spotty as can be lately and I was fighting off a cold. I can only fight the computer or a cold at the same time, not both. I’ll try for some double update days this week to make up for it, how about that?
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Posted by Kevin
McDonnell, Lisa – Winter Break 2010
October 19, 2010
Winter Break 2010
I’m starting to detect a pattern with Lisa’s comics, something to do with school terms. Ah, it must be a coincidence. This one deals with a trip to Mexico to observe odd bugs and their migrations involving the pair of Leo and Vega. This is probably based on a real trip, unless that picture on the back is just a stock photo from somewhere, but I don’t know if Leo and Vega are based on real people or completely made up. What difference does it make? Not much, I’ll grant you that. Anyway, butterflies are discussed (as well as the disappointment over the “Butterfly Theory” movie), a traumatic incident involving butterfly pinning is recalled from childhood, fun is attempted and squelched at the full body scanner at the airport, and much fun is had wandering around the city eating the food and seeing the sites. Except for Leo, who spent much of the comic in bed. It’s an interesting travelogue, unless it’s all fiction, in which case it was expertly done lies. Lisa is always good for packing her panels full of information and this comic is no exception. “Bang for your buck,” I think that’s what they call it. Check it out and no, you are not required to get the first issue in this series to understand this one. It’s a good comic too though, so you really might as well. $2 (?)
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 12/15/10
October 15, 2010New review for Three, edited by Robert Kirby and containing him, Eric Orner and Joey Alison Sayers. I should be able to get a review or two up over the weekend to make up for my slacking yesterday…
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Posted by Kevin
Kirby, Robert (editor) – Three #1
October 15, 2010
Three #1
Ah, the collection of three different comic artists, it just doesn’t happen enough. Sometimes bigger anthologies can get unwieldy, but one with one three people gives them all room to tell a story, and this one even manages to be full color! Well, Joey’s story is full color, the other two are yellow and blue respectively. Eric Orner is up first with the bulk of the comic, dealing with his time in Israel, his reluctance to learn the language (he was sure that he was going to be transferred out at any time), his time in gay bars and meeting guys for sex online, and a charming piece of English graffiti that he kept seeing around town. Joey Alison Sayers is up next, and while my ego is not big enough to think that she started using “Alison” because I mistakenly called her “he” on an old review, I do think that her inclusion of a middle name is a new development. For those of you keeping track of such things, and shame on you for being so obsessive, you imaginary obsessive you. Her story deals with a landscaping job and the awkward question asked by the owner of the house. My sample will give that question away, but the ending to that page was too good to pass up, and the strip gets better from there anyway. Finally there’s the piece from Robert Kirby that deals with his constant desire as a child to be hidden and/or invisible, his chance meeting of a three-legged dog and his anti-climactic “running away” from his boyfriend at the time with only a Visa card and $67. Each piece had plenty to offer, and that story from Eric could be a comic all by itself. If you enjoy a great anthology but sometimes get overwhelmed by the sheer number of names attached, I’d say that this comic was made for you. Sure, it’s a little pricey at $6.25, but I did mention all that gorgeous color, right?
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/13/10
October 13, 2010New review for Life is Good #2 on Steve Seck Wednesday, which does take some of the surprise out of things I guess but it’s nice to occasionally not just make a blind grab into a stack of comics.
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Posted by Kevin
Seck, Steve – Life is Good #2
October 13, 2010
Life is Good #2
Hippies! You see a couple of them on the cover, looming over the city like some bespectacled Godzillas. Godzilli? I don’t think there was ever a need for a plural of “Godzilla,” so who knows? Anyway, hippies are a good chunk of the theme this issue, as Charles wakes up from another drunken bender to hear two hippies bemoaning the sad state of his pond before it devolves into an argument about bumper stickers. Naturally, they decide to team up on some sort of crusade that isn’t clearly defined yet, but there are still two more issues to come in this pile, so I’m sure all will be made clear later. Meanwhile Brownie wakes up after that same bender, needing to get down to the unemployment office, with very little time to spare and no money. After not doing much but getting drunk for a few days he doesn’t look all that presentable, and that’s not necessarily the best shape to enter an unemployment office in. Good news follows, unexpectedly so, but you have to realize that this would be a pretty boring comic if it really stayed good news, right? It’s another solid issue, and damned relatable to me in my current unemployed state (except for the whole “getting unemployment checks” angle; no, nobody pays me to write on my own website about comics.) The character development is still a bit on the thin side, but this is a funny book, not something that is designed to delve into the past of these two and find out why Charles is so lazy. A couple of clues would be nice, but it’s early in the series yet and Steve still does an excellent job of nailing the funny bits. Check it out already, chances are it will make you smile, and there’s not a thing wrong with that. $4
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/12/10
October 12, 2010New review for Abstracted Comics on this Pat Aulisio Tuesday. I think I still have another comic or two of his to keep this going, then it’s back to purely random reviews on Tuesdays unless somebody else wants to accept my challenge and send me at least 4 comics of theirs that haven’t already been reviewed on this site.
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Posted by Kevin
Aulisio, Pat – Abstracted Comics
October 12, 2010
Abstracted Comics
If there’s one thing I hate about Pat’s comics, it’s that they’re so linear and easy to understand. Wait, where’s my “snark” button? Yes, that may have been sarcasm, but Pat gives up the ghost entirely here with this comic. The title is absolutely accurate, as this mini appears to have once been an actual comic, then it was printed over with another comic, then possibly another comic. The result is occasionally fascinating (I’m not sure if my scan did the sampled page justice), but in no way resembles a coherent story. If that’s all you’re asking for in a comic, run for the hills! If you’re willing to read something that won’t make any kind of literal sense but that will still leave you with a visceral impression, or if you’re already a fan of Pat’s, then you might want to give this a shot. This also comes with a minier mini, a little black and white things that’s shoved into this color comic, which features abstract art as well, but only one layer of it for panel so at least you have some idea what you’re looking at. Not much more to say about it than that, and I’ll forgo my usual urge to just keep rambling until something stops me. As this can’t be judged against other comics, I can’t say whether it’s good or bad, if those concepts even mean all that much to you. I don’t see this listed for sale on his site (update that list dude, you have all kinds of new comics to put up there!), but I’d say it’s in the $2-4 range.
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/11/10
October 11, 2010No review yesterday obviously, and I somehow managed to pass the whole day without getting that it was 10/10/10. Why? Because I didn’t do an update, obviously. Now I have to wait until 11/11/11 to… what good are those special dates again? New review today for Window #5 by Dave Lapp.
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Posted by Kevin
Lapp, Dave – Window #5
October 11, 2010
Window #5
This mound o’ comics on my desk completely buried my pile of Window comics, so if you were keeping up with my sort of regular updates to that old series, my apologies for the delay. #5 was another solid entry in the series (I’m starting to detect a pattern here) and yes, you should probably get it if you can find a copy or if this stupid, stupid rental idea of mine ever gets off the ground. Stories include trying to avoid a wide range of beggars at a bus terminal, another odd tale about Dave’s time teaching children, a big fish in a little aquarium, and a typical night in that turns ugly. That last one is what really stuck out from me in this issue, as Dave lived high up in an apartment building and had a friend come in saying that he saw fire trucks and cop cars coming in. They hear loud noises, check over the balcony and see a body covered up far below under a pink sheet. They watch awhile, change their mind and go watch a movie, and spend a good chunk of time going back and forth before realizing that they won’t be able to concentrate until this is resolved. The really strange part of it was hit other neighbors pointing a laser pointer at the scene or a flashlight. It was just a spectacle to those people, but really there’s not a whole lot else to be done at that point. Just a haunting and mildly depressing story about human nature. As always buy a copy and enjoy it if you can find one, and if not maybe try bribing somebody at one of the bigger small press companies to put all these back in print. $2ish
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/09/10
October 9, 2010New review for Space Trucking by Macedonio, maybe another update tomorrow before regular programming resumes during the week…?
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Posted by Kevin
Macedonio – Space Trucking
October 9, 2010
Space Trucking
We don’t get to hear enough origin stories about comics. Oh, I don’t mean the crap about how Superman came to Earth or Peter Parker got bitten by a spider, that kind of thing is part of American mythology at this point. I’m talking about where small press stories come from, as much as that question can ever hope to be answered. For example, Macedonio answered a Craigslist ad for somebody who was looking for an illustrator to make a “space panda”, she liked his drawing but didn’t think it was right for the project, he got inspired and drew 80 pages with his own space panda and a friend, she threatened a lawsuit because that’s just what people do these days even if they never pay for an original idea to begin with, and Macedonio ends up with a comic series. This is the first 26 pages of that story, and it follows a pretty clear path, although it gets a little whacked out on occasion. I mean that in a good way, of course. Panda & Monium (no, I can’t tell what Monium is supposed to be either, if anything real at all) come from “an obliterated planet of miscreants and social refure”. Instantly intriguing, and it’s clear that they’re basically wandering around space aimlessly. They are discovered in hostile territory, make their way to the planet more or less as prisoners, leave some, uh, droppings behind, and manage to escape. Still, droppings to you are treasure for certain aliens, so they’re asked back and start a minor revolution of the culture. It’s funny and wildly inventive and Macedonio, if you read the last review of his I posted, is a guy who has more than paid his dues over the years and deserves all kinds of riches. I won’t spoil the ending more than I already may have, but this definitely worth a look, and I will say one thing: three boobs. $2 (or so)
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/7/10
October 7, 2010New review for Who is Amy Amoeba? by Jason Viola, and who else is excited about the hockey season starting today? Anybody? Hello?
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Posted by Kevin
Viola, Jason – Who is Amy Amoeba?
October 7, 2010
Who is Amy Amoeba?
To anybody out there reading this who would like to make comics but who doesn’t think it’s possible because you can’t draw your way out of the proverbial paper bag, I give you “Who is Amy Amoeba?” This isn’t to say that Jason can’t draw; I checked out his website and plenty of stuff looks pretty as can be. It’s just that for this story about amoebas (amoebi?), Jason didn’t need to show all that much. The story begins with Amy Amoeba addressing the audience, telling them that they’re “about to discover the exciting world of unicellular biology” and then, with a mighty f-bomb, splits in two, ensuring that children will never be able to read this book for educational purposes. The two amoebas debate which one is the real Amy Amoeba, one of them splits again, things get even more confusing, another one splits, and soon one of them is made fun of until she leaves the group. Things only get more complicated from there, as there are now two distinct and rapidly expanding groups occupying a small area with a limited amount of food. This could have stayed at the level of an extended “Who’s on first” joke (kids, ask your great grandparents on that one), but Jason expands it to deal with societal acceptance, a struggle between civilizations, slavery and adherence to silly religions. It’s a lot to make out of a comic consisting almost entirely of little blobs (not entirely, but I’m not ruining the surprises on that one), but Jason pulls it off admirably. Again, to anybody out there who thinks they have a story to tell in comics, one look at this will show you that it is possible. Sure, it helps to know how to accurately depict a crowd scene, a range of facial emotions or just have the ability to draw a human hand, but all of these things can be avoided by simply not drawing humans. Oh, and this one also has the benefit of being an educational experience, for those of you who like to learn a thing or two in your comics. $3
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 10/6/10
October 6, 2010New review for Life is Good #1 by Steve Seck, as it is Steve Seck Wednesday and all.
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Posted by Kevin
Seck, Steve – Life is Good #1
October 6, 2010
Life is Good #1
Ah, the idea of all creatures living together in harmony. I don’t think that was on Steve’s mind as he wrote and drew this, but I generally can’t read minds, so what do I know? I was mostly commenting on the fact that there are so many different anthropomorphized beings in this comic that it has to represent some sort of perfect world. There’s the bottle on the cover (the main character, and that makes it extra funny when he eventually descends into drunkenness), an alligator, a carrot, a cat, snakes, a chicken, an octopus, a dog, an ice cream cone, a turtle, a mustard bottle, a pig, and something that appears to the letter “T” with eyes. If nothing else, the man gets points for creativity. Anyway, things start off with Brown (the main character, also know as “Brownie”) in a meeting with his boss. He obviously isn’t thought of all that highly, as his boss takes a lengthy call with the, um, “guy” still sitting there, and the boss eventually gets down to the business of firing him. Sure, it’s a lousy job, but Brown had always hoped to quit in a blaze of glory, and getting fired has robbed him of that plan. Brown’s friend Charles the alligator (or is it a crocodile? What’s the difference again?) insists that Brown get drunk for at least a week, as getting fired for the first time is a perfect excuse to do so, and Brownie eventually succumbs, but only after a seriously bizarre dream. Hijinx, naturally, ensue. Steve has a great ear for dialogue, as several simple lines left me chuckling that could have been banal as hell in the wrong hands. This is early days of the series (he sent along the next three issues as well), and the backgrounds are occasionally a little scratchy or vague, but the variety of the characters helps a lot, as does the engaging nature of the story. It’s possible you’ve read your last mini comic story about getting fired and moving on with your life afterwards, but if you aren’t predisposed against the genre so far I’d say this is worth a look. It’s hard to hate something that is this consistently funny and engaging unless you’re just trapped in a cycle of cynicism… $4
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Posted by Kevin
