April 26, 2010
Website
Messages From Home
Speaking as somebody who still stops to pick up random pieces of paper laying on the ground, I have to say that this is the best concept for a 24 hour comic that I’ve seen yet. Tod took litlte scraps of paper that he found and jammed them together into a rambling yet still cohesive story. There’s a man named Russ who starts off at work and has to deal with annoying parking people, crazed letters from his mother, angry notes from an ex-girlfriend and other random tidbits. More good stuff from Tod, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to anybody at this point. Contact info is up there, this is $2.
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – Messages From Home | 
Reviews | Tagged: Messages From Home, Tod Parkhill | 
Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
I’m Just Here For The Pornstars
Here’s another one of those tiny Jack Chick-like comics, another cheapie at only $.25. This one is all about setting up the Young American Comics table, being full of hope at the prospects of having many people discover their comics… only to find that almost everybody who’s at the convention is there either for the pornstars, anime, or to buy action figures. It’s a cautionary tale, I guess, and, after all, WHAT WOULD YOU DO? If you were confronted with spending your last $5 on pornstars and action figures or some independent comics you’d never heard of. Contact info is up there, they have more great comics than I can count on both hands there, which is always a good sign…
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – I’m Just Here For the Pornstars | Reviews | Tagged: I'm Just Here For The Pornstars, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Something Happened on the Way to the Market
Here’s another one of the 15 minute shorties, this one about a monkey on his way to the market, as you may have guessed from that title. Well, except for the monkey, as he’s not mentioned until you open it up. From there things get odd, as the monkey is trying to remember what it needs from the store, but then it gets kidnapped. Or it doesn’t, as why would a monkey be going to the store in the first place? Unless, of course, he was going to the store all along! Tod tackles all the deep questions about existence and being in this confusing universe of ours in a short 8 page comic. Or possibly he just wanted a comic with a monkey in it and it went off the rails a bit due to the 15 minute deadline. You make the call!
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – Something Happened on the Way to the Market | Reviews | Tagged: Something Happened on the Way to the Market, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
That Guy
Do you know that guy? Everybody knows at least one of “that guy”. Constant asshole, ruining everything, always thinking that he’s the best thing in the universe? This is a 15 minute comic (it didn’t say so, but it’s the same size and it’s sloppy, so I’m just guessing) about that guy. He runs into a couple of women at a restaurant and regales them with his tales of success. It’s a funny book, and I think most people will be able to relate to it. Contact info is up there, it’s tiny so I’m sure it’s cheap.
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – That Guy | Reviews | Tagged: That Guy, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Idiot Box
This is a tiny one. It’s all about a guy with a box with a head who sees the “this is your brain on drugs” commercial and is immediately hungry for eggs. The twist is that he also throws in some self-deprecating comments when the situation warrants, like when he can’t draw hands cracking eggs or is obviously having trouble coming up with an ending. It’s only 8 pages so it’s hard to say too much about it, but it’s a fun little book. $.50 maybe? Either that or a dollar, check the contact info on the page and find out, although I’d pick some of his other books first…
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – Idiot Box | Reviews | Tagged: Idiot Box, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
The Young Americans #1
Ever wonder what would happen if eight people with super powers were forced to live together in the same house for six months? Yeah, me neither, but it’s not a bad concept. All eight people were just regular young people, but after winning a contest they’re all given super powers, some of which are yet to be determined. This is the first issue of six, meaning that this one is mostly here to set up the characters. There’s still a bit of hijinx, don’t get me wrong. I’m not completely positive what tone this is going to take, which I guess is why there are five more issues of this. It’s a lot of fun though, and the interaction between radically different types of people is fascinating. There’s also a lot of mystery yet here, as the eighth member of their group came in at the very end and there are plenty of powers yet to be uncovered. It’s $2 and well worth a look, contact info is up there. Seriously!
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – The Young Americans #1 | Reviews | Tagged: The Young Americans, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Support Indie Comics, You Dope!
Another tiny one in the Jack Chick style, and I had to check this page to make sure I wasn’t reviewing something I had already done, but sure enough, they’re two separate things. This one is more of a “what if” story, as Tod wishes in a moment of rage about his lot in life that he had never started drawing comics. He wakes up as a married full time employee working in a corporation, when eventually he runs across another employee making illegal copies at work, and I can’t describe any more or I’ll run out of comic. It’s funny, $.25, and worth a look. Contact info is scattered around, I’m sure you can find it.
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – Support Indie Comics, You Dope! | Reviews | Tagged: Support Indie Comics You Dope, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
The Secret Lure of Independent Comics
Everybody out that run into one of those Jack Chick religious comics by now, right? If not, you might want to skip this comic. If you have, this book is a great parody. It’s basically just Tod wandering around, trying to figure out why nobody buys independent comics. He’s eventually offered fame and fortune if he sells his soul, and hilarity ensues. Honestly, this book is too tiny to say much about. It was entertaining, and if that cover makes you nostalgic for those crappy Jack Chick comics, then it’s probably only $1. Contact info is up there…
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – The Secret Lure of Independent Comics | Reviews | Tagged: The Secret Lure of Independent Comics, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Curses The Jewel of Denial
The cover’s a bit less creepy with that rainbow effect, isn’t it? It’s books like this that makes me glad the 24 hour comic was invented. I don’t think it could have been done better any other way, although I’ll be the first to admit that the art could have improved. Still, the harried pace of the story fits the rushed look of the artwork just perfectly. There’s a jewel that causes whoever touches it to basically turn into an out-of-control, homicidal monster. The comic follows the progression of the jewel, from the man who finds it, to the man who recovers it from what’s left of #1’s body, to the rat who picks it up from #2’s body, to the cop who picks it up from the body of the giant rat he was forced to kill, etc. Look, as long as 24 hour comics are fun, I don’t have much to bitch about, and this one was a blast. Go to the website and buy this book if you like mayhem. If you like a quiet, thoughtful story, well, you could probably skip it. $2!
Comments Off on Parkhill, Tod – Curses The Jewel of Denial | Reviews | Tagged: Curses the Jewel of Denial, Tod Parkhill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Website for Broken Lines
Website for Famous Fighters
Broken Lines Book One Now Available! $12
Well, this isn’t a comic exactly, and it’s not a short story exactly either. It’s mostly a short story with comical interludes thrown in, but what a story it is. I can’t remember the last time I was this impressed by a story where I had no real idea what’s going on. It starts innocently enough in an all-night diner with a cowboy and a man in a spacesuit eating dinner. Their waitress can’t work up the enthusiasm to be too curious about them, and things proceed slowly for a bit until Maggie ends up having to get a ride home from these two. After they part ways, Maggie meets a group of demons from hell dressed as firemen (firemen make fires and kill people, firefighters are the ones who put them out, you see) before eventually ending up back with Cowboy and Spaceman and their silent friend, Vampire. She joins them on their journey across the country, trying to make enough money to survive along the way, while being chased by… well, we’re not sure what. Nor do we know where they’re going or why they’re going there. None of that matters even a little bit, as an engaging cast of characters (I haven’t even mentioned Myron or the Vampire Hunters because why not leave a few surprises for you?) and a constantly funny dialogue keep things moving even when they’re stuck doing inventory in a grocery store to make a few bucks. Spaceman is possibly a small retarded child judging by his actions, Cowboy is the stereotypical cowboy except with a clumsy streak, and I don’t have the slightest idea what Vampire is yet, except that he seems to have given up drinking blood. What can I say, I was mesmerized and damned sad to see the last page of this book. It’s projected to be the first of four issues, so at least there’s plenty more to go. I can’t recommend this enough for those of you who don’t mind a lot of really wonderful text thrown in with the pretty pictures. Oh, and Thomas did most of the drawing himself, except for a page each by Mister Reusch, Jason Goad and Matt Smith.
Comments Off on Pappalardo, Tom – Broken Lines Book One | Reviews | Tagged: Broken Lines, Tom Pappalardo | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Website for Broken Lines
Website for Famous Fighters
Failure, Incompetence
Want to make your book critic-proof? Or at least for wishy-washy critics like me? Here’s a quote from the brief (but hilarious and insightful) intro: “I hope that you find the jokes-to-dollars-spent ratio to be within acceptable parameters.” That’s it, I’m shut down completely. $5 is a bit much for a comic, granted, or at least it is in my fantasy 1997 world where that sort of thing was still rare. But all you have to do is pick this thing up and you can tell by sheer weight that you’re getting a lot of pages. And he’s right, there are jokes packed all over the pages, so even if you don’t like two or three of them, well, there’s still 5 more right there either on that page or the page next to it to make you laugh. The only complaint that I have about this is that, as this is my first impression of the guy, I could have done with a slightly smaller book that didn’t have some of the dumber strips in here. But then, as humor is mostly subjective, who’s to say what that is? At least this way you get to see the bad with the good. So what’s actually in here, as I seem to be skirting around that? Well, it’s mostly because there’s no chance for me to tell you everything in here without this being the longest review ever, so I’ll just stick to a (relative) few of them. Australians, outer space adventures, voodoo, fat rats, superhero school, and when he was a headbanger. That’s probably about 1/100 of the book right there. He also has a few text pieces that I really loved, including the best blanket apology that I’ve ever seen. Oh, and out of all the things I could have sampled, of course I went right for the potty mouth…
Comments Off on Pappalardo, Tom – Failure, Incompetence | Reviews | Tagged: Failure, Incompetence, Tom Pappalardo | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
My Life in Family Vacations
I’m regretting it more and more all the time that I didn’t get more of these when I had the chance. This looks like a perfect series to just sit back and read on some lazy afternoon, and at the end of that afternoon I get the feeling that you’d know an awful lot about Kimberly, which is what good autobio comics are all about, right? This one, obviously, is about various vacations she has taken with her family when she was a child. Washington DC, Niagra Falls, wax museums, camping, a ferris wheel, and trying without success to get to Hershey, PA. You can probably tell by the samples that this isn’t the most gorgeous artwork in the world or anything, but man are these fun to read. Contact info is up there, again only $.75!
Comments Off on Paglia, Kimberly – My Life in Family Vacations | Reviews | Tagged: Kimberly Paglia, My Life in Family Vacations | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
My Life in Scars
That’s only a tiny bit smaller than the actual size of the comic, just so you can get a comparison. Kimberly has done a series of “My Life In” comics, telling all kinds of stories about various parts of her life. You can get a better idea of her comics at her website, and if you look around there you’ll see that she’s done a whole lot of comics in a short time, and after reading this one I’m really wishing that I had gotten more at FLUKE. This one, obviously, is about scars that she has gotten over the course of her life. There’s her brother stabbing her with a pencil, spilling a pan full of boiling water down her legs, getting a piece of slate stuck in her forehead… This girl has a lot of scars and she tells you all about them. Me, I’m a sucker for a good autobio comic, and this certainly is that. It’s tiny, but there’s a lot of content here and she has a vast body of work. This is only $.75, here’s that website I was talking about…
Comments Off on Paglia, Kimberly – My Life in Scars | Reviews | Tagged: Kimberly Paglia, My Life in Scars | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Kick in the Butt #11
Dammit, I really wanted to like this one, especially after loving the “My Life in __” comics. Then there’s the fact that even getting to #11 in a series impressive in comics (it looks from the website like this made it to #13, put out on a mostly monthly basis, before vanishing). But when large chunks of a tiny book look rushed and sloppy and when only a few of the strips were genuinely funny, well, I’d have to say you’re better off getting one of the “My Life in ___” books to see what Kimberly’s really capable of. Unless, of course, this was just an off-issue, as she was moving and GW Bush had just been reelected (which removed all hope in the world from a lot of people). Comics in here deal with said election and her response, her dog, moving, trapeze artistry, turkey, Erkle, cold weather, and barfing. I did like the slowly accumulating mound of dishes, that was done very well over the course of a daily strip. Other little bits also made me chuckle, like her boyfriend (husband?) dreaming about puppets and her take on a Marilyn Monroe movie. All in all she’s done better work, and I’m hoping that the sudden stop of these has more to do with her not updating her website than giving up on comics altogether. $1.50
Comments Off on Paglia, Kimberly – Kick in the Butt #11 | Reviews | Tagged: Kick in the Butt, Kimberly Paglia | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Mini Vittles #1
What’s a safe level of expectation for a mini comic with a bunch of unconnected odds and ends when it’s from a guy who put together one of your favorite graphic novels of the last couple of years? If you answered “guarded optimism but also ready for the worst”, you’re right! I thought the first Stylish Vittles book (of which I ramble about for quite a while up there) was tremendous. I didn’t get to his table at SPACE until the end of the day, meaning that most of my money was gone, so I couldn’t afford the second installment. Still, I didn’t want to leave empty-handed, so I picked up the mini. And, well, it’s kind of a mess, but at least he’s honest about it.In here is the inspiration for the first graphic novel, an untitled page (that goes nowhere), Grocery Boy, a sloppy ramble on self-doubt, Dryer Girl, babysitting, and a cat. The best part of the book was too little kids sitting on a doorstep and talking about marriage, but overall this is only something to get once you’ve exhausted your other Tyler Page options and are still curious about his work. Check out the graphic novel, this is $2 if you’re interested and contact info is up there.
Comments Off on Page, Tyler – Mini Vittles #1 | Reviews | Tagged: Mini Vittles, Tyler Page | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 26, 2010
Website
Stylish Vittles: I Met a Girl
One thing I’ve learned while reviewing books is to NEVER read other reviews of the book before I’ve written anything down. Then I’m never sure if I’m just rehashing old positions that I just read about, not that anybody but me would ever notice anyway. I’m mentioning this because I just read some reviews, and I’d like to refute some of the problems these people had with this book, because it’s a damn fine piece of work that everyone should seek out and take a look at. It’s an autobiographical tale about Tyler and the start of his senior year when he meets a girl, like the title says. It’s a graphic novel, in case I haven’t made that clear, not just a regular sized comic. I was trying to figure out if it was a comic first and just collected here, but I’d have to guess that this story would be really hard to read in any other format. I’m not going to spend too much time talking about this, because if you like autobio stuff you should really check it out because it’s an incredibly genuine and moving tale about falling in love, and he didn’t leave out any of the little dorky things that you’re usually embarrassed by afterwards. If you don’t like autobio, you’re not going to buy it because you’re hopelessly biased against good things. The quibbles that people had in other reviews is something that I’d like to address. The book opens with probably 30 or 40 pages of zooming in on the planet slowly from far outside our galaxy and is then silent for the next 20 pages or so. That sounds dull and I think some people felt that it slowed the story down considerably. I thought it was brilliant. I mean, really, who takes the time to set stuff like that up? One of the main things Tyler talks about throughout the book is his place in the universe, and what better way to really show that then to take his time to show just how much else there is out there? As for the problem with the lettering, well, I kind of agreed there. Kind of sloppy, but it didn’t take away from anything that much for me. I also didn’t like how the narrative shifted to his girlfriend’s point of view a couple of times. Didn’t really do anything for the story and it disrupted the narrative flow. Again, a minor thing that only happened a few times anyway. Well, if the fact that I just wrote the longest review for this thing ever show you how much I liked it, I don’t know what will. Go to his website, check out some more stuff from the guy and buy the book!
Comments Off on Page, Tyler – Stylish Vittles: I Met a Girl | Reviews | Tagged: I Met A Girl, Stylish Vittles, Tyler Page | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 25, 2010
Website
Misery A Go Go #1 (preview)
Here’s the preview edition of another book from Douglas, Mark Crnolatas and Randy Crider. Randy did the art, Douglas and Mark did the writing, in case you were wondering. There are a couple of short pieces in here about a pedophile merman, a hilarious POW escape attempt and free trade (hard to believe, but it’s funny too). And then there’s the bulk of the book, which is dedicated to a story called Human Interest, about a man with no arms and his inspirational story. The problem is that he’s a bitter, miserable human being, and there’s nothing remotely heartwarming about they guy. Look, there’s nothing cute or fluffy about the humor here, it’s actually fairly brutal, but that’s the point. The important thing is that it’s funny all the way through. Granted, it’s only a preview and there might be some dull spaces in the actual book, but the preview edition is packed with funnies. Contact info is up there, the preview edition was free but I’m guessing the actual comic was $2.50 or so, judging from his other books…
Comments Off on Paszkiewicz, Douglas – Misery A Go Go #1 (preview) | Reviews | Tagged: Douglas Paszkiewicz, Misery a Go Go | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 25, 2010
Akira 6
A classic series. Not the best series ever (I still think Lone Wolf & Cub is going to win that prize), but something that every student of comics should read. Don’t let that fool you into thinking that this isn’t a fun series. I think there was more carnage in that last book alone then I’ve ever seen in any series, and boy it that saying a lot. Everything comes to a head here and almost all of your questions are answered. A fairly happy conclusion, all things considered (hey, if you’re reading the review for #6 in a series you must have already read the other books), but the journey is the important part. I mentioned that I think all students of comics should read this series because there are plenty of things done here that just aren’t done in American comics, from the nonstop action to… well, the nonstop action, mostly. A whole bunch of people could learn a thing or two from this. it would cost a chunk of change to own the whole thing, granted, but trust me, it’s worth it. I just spent my whole Monday working at the comic store going through this series and my day just flew by. My ears are somehow ringing from all the written screaming that was going on, but that’s just about my only complaint. Yes, the thing with the pills was brought back again, and it turned out to be one of the most important things in the series. The only subplot I can remember that they didn’t go back to or that didn’t turn out to be vitally important was the school nurse that Kameda talked to in the first book, and that’s so tiny that you can just go ahead and pretend that I never mentioned it. I still can’t figure out why they called this series Akira instead of Tetsuo, unless maybe they thought that would kill the suspense. OK, you know my opinion, time to decide for yourselves!
Comments Off on Otomo, Katsuhiro – Akira 6 | Reviews | Tagged: Akira, Katsuhiro Otomo | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 25, 2010
Akira 5
I don’t think there’s ever been a time when I was so happy that I didn’t buy a whole series when it first came out, because there’s no way in hell that I would have been able to stay sane if I had seen the last few pages of this book and known that I couldn’t know how it ended for another few months. I’m trying to review just this book, really I am, but it’s hard. Basically, everything that has happened before is starting to make all kinds of sense, and everybody is getting ready for a huge final battle. Regardless of what I’ve said before, don’t you dare buy this one first. You’d be cheating yourself out of the buildup for this great book. In this one Tetsuo is evolving past himself, Kei is the only real chance to save the world, Kaneda is determined to kill Tetsuo before Kei tries and the governments of the world are finally trying to put a stop to everything. Now quit bothering me, I have to see how this ends…
Comments Off on Otomo, Katsuhiro – Akira 5 | Reviews | Tagged: Akira, Katsuhiro Otomo | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 25, 2010
Akira 4
It took exactly one book in this series to turn it into a masterpiece, and this is it. Granted, it was somewhere between very good and great before, but this took it to the next level. Book 3 ended with Neo-Tokyo being destroyed by Akira, and it looked to me like there weren’t very many places to go from there. Instead, Katsuhiro has opened everything up completely, making the first part of the story a mere introduction to what’s to come. This book opens with Akira in charge of everything and Tetsuo playing the role of servant. The few characters who survived the last blast have had their roles completely thrown away, as there is no longer a government to fight or control. The role of the Colonel is still unclear but he has the potential, and this is something that I didn’t see coming at all in the beginning, to be one of the big heroes of the series. #19 has taken over half of the city, Kei is still fighting, and Kaneda is missing, to name a few. If you’re leery about buying 6 of these books at almost $30 each, this might be a good place to start. You won’t be able to resist getting the other books once you read this, but maybe you can at least stagger your purchases if you start with this one. As always, the recap in the beginning is fantastic. I’m not going to call this the best series ever until I’m done, but it certainly has a chance.
Comments Off on Otomo, Katsuhiro – Akira 4 | Reviews | Tagged: Akira, Katsuhiro Otomo | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
