April 24, 2010
Website
Thunderhead Underground Falls
What a thoroughly beautiful book. This is the story of a young man on his last weekend before going off to join the Army, and his time with his very new girlfriend. It’s told in a haunting, dreamlike way, with flashbacks and bits of dream interspersed with the quiet acceptance of his last weekend. Deserting is discussed briefly, but isn’t something that’s ever seriously considered. Instead we see a mostly deserted town and campus, where the pair wander around, taking every little thing in and trying to enjoy this last weekend together. Everything is lingered on, from the falling snow to every quiet moment that usually flies right by. The are is deceptively simple for large stretches of the book, as complexity is not necessarily the name of the game here (but in a good way), but some of the bits at the end show Joel’s chops as an artist in a big way. You could do a whole lot worse than this book if you think everything is flying by and you need to take the time to enjoy everything. $14.95
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
The Rouge Knuckle Gang
Every time I review one of these sketchbook-type books, I mention that there’s not much to be said about them. Well, it’s still true, but bear with me for a minute, as this isn’t exactly a sketchbook. It’s a gang of absolutely ridiculous characters in poses. I sampled my personal favorite, but there’s plenty of great characters in here. It’s either $1 or $2, which isn’t much for a comic with no story, but maybe you’re more of a visual person, in which case this comic is just about perfect. Contact info is up there!
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Arrows Bring Comfort (with John Hankiewicz) Now Available in blue or green cover! $2
I can’t seem to get John Hankiewicz to link up there, so here you go. Jeremi and John both did half of this book, which is an alphabet book, meaning that it goes through the letters and has a picture for each one. Simple enough, right? I had fun trying to figure out who drew what, until I figured out the very, very simple way that they split up their duties. Did I mention that I’m a doofus? Good. Anyway, good stuff. This gives them both a chance to show off a bit with things that they don’t usually get to draw, which is always good. It’s $2, you can order a copy from the website above, and it also has a fancy blue cover, if you’re in that kind of a mood.
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Gag-Hag Now Available! $4
This reviewing thing is, at times, the easiest thing in the world. Dan Zettwoch, Ivan Brunetti, John Hankiewicz, Jeremi Onsmith, Chris Cilla, Ted May, David King, Bryce Somerville and Johnny Ryan contributed to this collection of one-panel gag strips. So what you have here is some of the funniest people around and probably the best title for a collection of this type imaginable. What, you’re still reading this? OK, I’ll also mention that I had a really hard time just picking one sample, but I’m trying not to give too much away for free here. It’s $4, as you can see, and it’s available here, as you can see. What’s stopping you? Don’t you like to laugh?
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Baka Geta (with Ryoko Oguchi) Now Available! $1
In case you were wondering, that cover is almost exactly the real size of the comic. Oh, and the title means either “Nonsense” or “Stupid Sandals”. Useful information all over the place today! This is a comic about Jeremi’s first trip to Japan with his girlfriend. It’s basically a collection of images and impressions that he got from the trip, with pages dedicated to the many insane cartoon characters and advertising mascots that are all over the place. I should also mention that Ryoko’s drawings are adorable. Adorable, I tell you! No strictly linear story here, but a nice assemblage of impressions from a fascinating place. Contact info is up there, I’m sure he has more samples if you need convincing…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Claptrap #1
Three cheers for Jeremi getting his own book! Yes, I’m biased, so move along if you’re looking for me to bash this. OK, I will say one thing: put out a comic with a continuing story, not a sketchbook! Still, as far as sketchbooks go, this one is pretty good. Lots of one page gag strips, mostly funny, and I’m always happy just to see the range of characters he can throw together. I should also put up the link to Mike Stiehl’s page here, as most of Jeremi’s other work can be seen in Bomb Time For Bonzo. It sounds like he’s getting to work on another mini, so here’s hoping it’s done in time for the next big convention. Still, this book looks great for a buck. I love the detail he puts into faces. Check out the website or send him an e-mail, why don’t you.
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Mistakes and Regrets
It’s a flip book, you see, so instead of picking a cover I just went with both of them. One half is the story of a boy, the other half is the story of a girl, and they’re dating. The problem is that the girl is moving away, the boy has made some mistakes in the relationship and he’s not sure if saying “sorry” is still going to cut it. It’s tiny, as they both get around six pages to tell their side of things, and it’s not complete until you read both halves. That’s obvious, I know, but it’s told in a way that’s almost completely one-sided for each person, so reading the first half of the story (which is whichever one you want it to be, I guess) only makes a little bit of sense. It’s a neat concept once you read the whole thing, but kind of annoying at the moment that you’re only halfway through. Contact info is up there, again with the pence, let’s call it $1.50 because of the smallness…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Monstrum Horrendum #2
Who doesn’t like mermaids? In theory, anyway. This is a comic about a crew of people who are on the lookout for mermaids. There’s a captain, scientist, big game hunter, legendary fisherman and a “fish-boy”. They do a bit of research about the phenomenon of mermaids and then set off to look for them. I can’t exaplin why, but this comic resembles nothing to me as much as an old episode of Johnny Quest, and I barely even watched that show. The story is the same basic thing as that of The Sirens from ye olde Greek mythology, at least in parts. Good stuff most of the time, although how you get that huge underwater gear on in time to save somebody from drowning is beyond me. It’s, oh, let’s say $3 (I don’t know from pence), here’s a website for the author.
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Zoonbats #2
Wow, this page hasn’t been touched in years. In that review for the first issue of this series I talk about all the “months” that I’ve been doing this. Considering that I started this in August of 2001 and that I’m going on 9 years rambling now, that was a VERY long time ago. This was also apparently back when I would occasionally scan all books that were sent to me and post them without reviews, in the hope that I would get back to them eventually, and I clearly failed on this one. Still, one scanner without the proper software + a prescanned comic = a new review! Refer back to the review for the first issue if you get too confused, as I tried to sum up the whole thing. This issue takes place entirely in the truck of Murray, as he gives Wayne (an alligator) a ride. The first chunk is spent with Murray explaining the many wonderful things about his truck, followed quickly by his description of the drugs he takes to make his deliveries on time and his constant need for coffee. This would make for a pretty dull issue, but then Murray tells the story of the time when a bunch of road pirates (for lack of a better term) attempted to hijack his truck. He manages to zap one with his cattle prod, but that still leaves five on the truck, trying to get the trailer loose and bash him in the skull to prevent any other zappings. It ends on a cliffhanger (although you know that he survived, what with him telling this story to Wayne and all), and it’s been way too long since I read these to have any idea what happens next. Not sure if this is still in print, as I couldn’t find a hint of it at his website, but the fact that it’s still named Zoonbats gives me some hope. If you can find it, it’s worth checking out…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Zoonbats #1
If I ever bitch about having this website and working on reviewing comics, somebody find out where I live and punch me in the nose. I’ve found out about so much great stuff in the months that I’ve been working on this that I probably wouldn’t have seen for years, if ever, if I was just out trying to find good stuff. This series is great. Giles calls it a “urban fantasy road trip sci-fi adventure novel” and it’s eventually going to be 450 pages long. He’s putting it out in 12 page installments, so it might take a few years to get done, but it’s worth sticking around. This is one of the rare books where you know it’s going to be best all collected (as almost everything is) but there’s still a great flow from issue to issue so you don’t feel like you’re wasting your time getting the little books. I was afraid that anything with a talking alligator and a robot giraffe who could also turn into a dragon would be ridiculous, but he actually pulls it off really well. Fun dialogue, interesting adventures, good art… it’s hard to find much to complain about here. I’m not sure where it’s going yet, but I plan on getting in on the action now. I do have a couple of minor complaints with it, but they’re mostly tiny technical things. Still, maybe he doesn’t know about them, so here goes. The synopsis at the start of every issue is a great idea, especially with a story like this, but you have to leave a little bit to the imagination. They should make you know what’s going on but still be curious to get the actual issues that the artist is talking about. He explains things to death in #6. If he keeps it up, he won’t have any room for the actual comic in a few more issues. I didn’t like all the covers being blue, but that’s mostly because people who see this in a comic store might not take the time to look and see that they’re all separate issues and jut grab one of them. Minor things, like I said. This book is a lot of fun and I’d recommend it to anybody who likes intelligent, thoughtful adventure stories. Check out his website and go ahead and scroll down here for some samples.
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Cecil the Nice Wasp
Why do so many of Gary’s books look rushed? Maybe he draws them on planes on the way to conventions or something. Either way, the rushed, sloppy art does help add to the frantic pace of a book like Cecil. This is a short book about Cecil, a wasp who just wants to be loved! But he’s a bully and doesn’t see how this would put people off, so he decides to take his revenge! It’s much too short for me to tell you anything past that. Look, sloppy art or not, I liked this one. I love the sheer randomness of his comics. I’d guess this one is $2-3, it’s gorgeous anyway and can’t imagine it’d be less. Send the man an e-mail (this one is different from the one posted above and this comic is more recent, so I’d say this is where to go) or check out a version of this comic online.
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Great! #1
Well, this book is fairly stupid. I was warned ahead of time, and I think Gary has improved tremendously since this book came out (it’s early work, and that’s usually not the greatest), but this is easily skipped. The first part is a superhero parody about Mr. Great and his quest to get his own action figure randomly from inside of a cereal box. Hilarity (in theory) ensues. Then there’s a bizarre, and more than a little bit twisted, story about two drunks running over a guy and then playing video games. Maybe I gave too much away there, but it doesn’t take away from any of the dialogue of the piece, which is the highlight. Some funny stuff in here, I have to say. The last piece is an oddly sad tale about an abused drunk and the paranoid thoughts in his head that eventually bubble to the surface. Actually, this isn’t that bad, but it’s not that great either. Geez, what a crappy pun. Contact info is the same as above, this is either 2 or 3 bucks, although there probably aren’t too many copies left…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Stupidmonster #4
Ah, the random comics that I get. This one is from London and it’s great. Cute, smart and downright depressing at the end. The other comics I got from this guy were funny and looked like they were done in about ten minutes flat, this one is color and looks great. Don’t get me wrong, the ones that looked kind of rushed were still funny and full of charm. It doesn’t have to look like you spent all day on a page for it to be good, you know. Anyway, this one is about a monster who goes to sleep and enjoys his dreams, like the title suggests. Whimsical, that’s what you’d call these books. This one is $4.50 and is done before you know it, which is about the only negative thing that I can say about it. The other ones are: #1, 2 $2.25; #3 $1.50 and a cute little box of comics with three totally different things in it is $2.25. Get the box as a sampler or go ahead and get #1, as it’s probably my favorite of the bunch. E-mail the guy or send him money at: 6 Foxberry Court Foxberry Road Brockley London SE4 2SQ England. By the way, the black and white sample doesn’t look as bad as my scanner makes it appear… Hey, he has a website now too!
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Shpilkes Volume 3 #1
The great thing about reading more than one issue by any given creator is that it gives me the chance to base my opinion on more than one thing. Should go without saying, sure, but I sometimes give bad reviews that are purely based on what I think the person is likely to do in their comics career, and it’s silly to base that on one issue, but I’m rambling here. My point is that I liked this issue. The contents here are pretty diverse, but it all works. There’s an asshole at a coffee shop, a stupid man trying to describe a long-term relationship, and some really tasteless (so, naturally, pretty funny) jokes here and there. But the bulk of this book, and the best thing about it, is the convoluted epic about Otto VonHoule, a possibly retarded descendent of royalty. It’s set in the hickest of hick towns and involves licking feet, intolerance, a skank and an angry mob. I never had a problem with Fredo’s art and it’s never looked better than is does here. He gets a bit lazy with the backgrounds here and there (as in there are is no background here and there), but that’s a very minor complaint in what was a pretty damned good comic. Check out his website or send him an e-mail. Maybe he can tell you why this is another #1 instead of a #2…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Big Questions #7
Holy crap, now this is published by Drawn & Quarterly! I don’t know if that makes a difference these days in terms of visibility for a book, but I’m sure it can’t hurt. Kudos to them for once again realizing one of the best series out there when they see it. This issue reads sort of like a break from some of the more intense goings-on, which you might have been able to guess from that title. The retarded man eats some bark and takes a nap; meanwhile Algernon has a talk with a snake and a big cat is wandering around the general area. All of which is a surface description only, as the closest thing I can compare reading this issue to is the calmest, most serene Spring day you can think of. Seriously. I’d like a time machine just so I can go ahead a few years and see how amazing this story is when it’s all put out in graphic novel format. $5 and it’s money very well spent…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Big Questions #6
Man, what was I thinking with that last review? Seriously, that’s just silly. This is another fantastic edition of a fantastically wonderful series, even though there’s less to it than the size might indicate, in terms of the actual story. You have a plane crash, a retarded guy eating grass, birds clustered around the new human, and one of the better uses of a three page spread that I’ve seen. And this is all going to be put in one big book… when exactly? The man is simply depriving the percentage of the already tiny comic reading population who doesn’t read stuff unless it’s a “graphic novel”. Nuts to them in general, granted, but I’d love to see this all in one place with whatever “historical revisions” are necessary to make the thing flow as a whole. No idea what you’re waiting for if you know this exists and don’t already own it, this is mostly just a reminder that it’s out there. $5
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Big Questions #5
Ever read one of those series where the payoff was nothing compared to the buildup? For the three issues of this series that I’ve read (barring the crazy trippy parts of #2 that still might make sense eventually, I guess), I would tell anybody who asked me that Anders was one of the better small press cartoonists around. I’d still say that, but for whatever reason, this issue left me kind of cold. It was just a lot more interesting somehow before I knew exactly what everything was and what everything stood for. I almost felt that he explained too much here, that not enough was left to the imagination. Haven’t read any other reviews of this, but I wouldn’t be a bit surprised to find that I’m the only one with this opinion. The art keeps improving (it was great to begin with), his storytelling skills are obviously getting exponentially better with each passing issue, and I’m sure that there are plenty of people out there who will love this. It’s not like I hate it. I like it just fine. It’s just that every other issue was such a dramatic step above the one before it, and this one feels like more of a straightforward story than anything else. I might read this all together one day and completely change my mind about this, but for now I’d have to say that while it’s still better than almost everything else out there, it didn’t improve as much as I thought it could. And yes, I’m well aware that that’s way too much pressure to put on anybody. This is $3.95 and it looks beautiful, there’s a new website too, check it out!
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Big Questions #4: Asomatognosia
If you’re looking around a comics store three or four years from now and are wondering what this incredible new book is and where this guy came from, well, it’s right here. I don’t know if he’s planning on collecting this story, or if he really even intended for it to be an ongoing story, but here it is. I honestly think he’ll be mentioned in the same breath as Dan Clowes and Chris Ware in a few years if he keeps this up. Not to put any pressure on him or anything… Anyway, this book, and #3, takes all the good parts of #2, amplifies them, and adds even more good parts. The birds are still there, but it’s starting to look more like a society and less like random birds getting philosophical. Throw in a mysterious story about a (retarded?) man and an elderly woman, some irate squirrels and a bomb, and you have Big Questions. There’s a ton of stuff on this page. I think I’m up to 275 creators or so as of this writing. Out of all of them, I think you should check this out first. Maybe it’s neck and neck with the last two issues (13 & 14) of Supermonster from Kevin Huizenga, but this is honestly something that would enrich your life if you took the time to check it out. And no, he’s not paying me anything. This one is $4, get #3 too and send him money at: P.O. Box 1627 Chicago, IL 60690. E-mail him to see if he has anything new but only if you’re willing to tell me the second that he does…
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Big Questions #2
I love reading all the currently available stuff from an author and then going back to read the early stuff. The birds in this one (I’m going to assume that you already know the basic gist of this book, or why would you be reading a review for #2?) are actually reading the comic along with us, commenting on the stories. It’s cute as hell and funny, especially when it’s one of a number of stories that are completely open to interpretation, much like everything in here. Looks like I have to get #3 and complete my collection, huh? Contact info is down there, but it doesn’t tell you to go to the best site in the world to order this stuff.
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Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Big Questions #1
What do you say about a mini if 3/4 of it is laugh out loud funny and the other quarter is so bland that it leaves no impression at all? That pretty much sums up my experience with Big Questions. About half of it is spent with birds talking, which is the part that had me chuckling while I was sitting here. The book is basically three parts, spread out over the comic. The first part has birds talking about various things and that’s the part that works the best. Like the Hollywood print ads say, it was “laugh out loud funny”. Then there’s a large story in the middle of the comic called Looking for Something which is about, appropriately enough, a man who’s looking for something. It works on a different level than the birds stuff, but it certainly works. Then there’s the part of the book in between some of the stories that is just a giant cube disintegrating into smaller cubes and a giant cube, apparently filled with something, that has all the liquid drained from it. If you think that sounds dull, you’re right. I don’t know if it was just filler or what, but it registered no impression on me at all, and why bother to put something in a mini if it isn’t going to make some kind of impression on the reader? Still, this book was either $1 or $2 and it’s well worth your money. Some cultural things can pervade my brain to the point where every time I hear a certain word or phrase, I’m reminded of that movie or TV scene. It’s kind of the way sometimes when I hear “fuck”, but you’ll have to read the mini to find out why.
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Posted by Kevin
