April 23, 2010
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An Inside Job #2
Sometimes, in my paranoid moments before I fall asleep at night, I think that Eli only sends me his comics to prove how crappy my scanner is. I can fiddle with that thing as much as I want and I still can’t do his comics justice. Anyway, it’s another interesting dream comic. Feel free to buy it and psychoanalyze to your heart’s content, I know how bizarre my dreams are and prefer not to start that sort of thing for fear that people will ask me what I dream about. Things in the dreams include broken legs, pot, sex, snowballs, Senators, and urination. Go to his website and send him a couple of bucks, OK?
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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An Inside Job #1
Eli wonders on his website whether or not the world needs another comic about dreams, and for good reason. I thought they were kind of rare until I started seeing minis all over the place that were all about dreams. Luckily it doesn’t matter because the world can always use another good comic, and he’s managed to pull that off. There are a half dozen dreams in this little book and he manages to make it feel surreal, which is pretty necessary for this type of thing. Is it odd that we’ve both dreamt of “fly-seats” though (flying seat cushions)? Maybe it’s more normal than I thought. Anyway, this one is a couple of bucks and it’s well worth checking out. Look at his website for samples and a fantastic links page, among other things. By the way, his comic doesn’t really have a rainbow colored border, it’s just plain grey. But for some reason my scanner thought it looked like a rainbow and I thought it was pretty cool, so here you go.
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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One of the Johns Preview
You know when preview editions are great? When they have at least a few new things that, even once the actual issue comes out that you’re previewing, will still be unique. Or maybe they’re just crap that’s left over from unfinished comics, but if I’ve never seen them they’re new to me! In here you have a story about another Pixies song (Gigantic), the aforementioned preview of One of the Johns and a story about the two title characters beating the crap out of everybody at an emo show. In the title story a couple of punk rock kids pick their nose, beat up an old lady and talk to the town drunk. If that sounds boring I’m just telling it wrong. It was pretty great stuff all the way through, as it’s hard for me to choose between a story about a Pixies song and a crowd of motionless emo kids getting the crap kicked out of them. Not that I have anything against emo in theory, I guess. Anyway, it’s $3, contact info is up there and you should be reading whatever you can find from this guy on a regular basis. Oh, and here’s a website.
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Headache
What a great comic. It seems like the “collection of short stories” style of comic is getting harder to find these days, or maybe I’m just getting a bunch of single theme comics these days. Whatever the case, this is a bunch of short, mostly autobiographical pieces from a guy who’s currently in school studying sequential art, so any hint of the amateurism (misspellings, bad grammar, sloppy art) that creeps into so many minis is missing here. The comic starts with an incredibly disturbing story about a walk in the woods, and my only piece of advice about that is maybe it should have been at the back of the book, but apparently that’s the mood Jonathon wanted to start the comic off with. Then you have a story about making a mix tape, which might seem like the kind of thing that’s been in almost every mini, and it’s sure been in a lot of them, but the ending makes it all worthwhile. Then there’s a story about a one night stand and all of the fallout, which is interesting if a bit self-indulgent, but hey, it autobio, right? Kind of silly to dock points for being a bit self-indulgent. Next up are a couple of shorts about a ring and a headache, respectively, with one telling the story mostlty in text and the other being a silent piece about an exploding head. Sort of. Last is a story about a man in jail and his lover on the outside, inspired by a Pixies song, and the fact that I can’t think of which song it’s been inspired by (even though I remember some of the lines) is driving me nuts. Good stuff all around, I don’t know what Jonathon is going to do with that degree in sequential art, when he gets it, but the classes are doing tons to solidify his grasp of the basics (unless he was a genius when he started or something), so here’s hoping he stays in school! Here’s an e-mail address and a website, this is $3.
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Coyote Buckley’s Wild West
Clint Eastwood’s Unforgiven forever changed my opinion of all things Western, but I still get a bit leery when I see a comic with a Western theme. I’m always afraid that it’ll be a silly, cowboys and Indians kind of thing. It’s great to see something like this that proves me wrong. The story here is simple. A cowboy nicknamed Coyote Buckley, angry at what he sees as the relentless forcing of “progress” down his throat, decides that he’s going to convince the country that the values of the Wild West are what’s important. He holds a contest to see who is the most skilled at various cowboy-related things for the sake of touring the country, and that’s the bulk of the issue. The art’s simple and clean, the writing is suited for all ages without being noticeably dumbed-down for adult readers, and it’s a fast-paced, interesting story. Good work all around. My only minor complaint is that some of it seems a bit too simple at times, but it’s only minor bits of dialogue here and there. The whole picture is interesting though, and I’m curious to see where it goes from here, which is all you can ask of from something like this. Contact the writer or the artist, or check out the website for ordering information (it’s $3).
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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The Fifty Flip Experiment #9
Damn, and this one got off to such a good start. This comic starts off with a funny strip (sampled, you can make up your own minds), then a mildly funny strip about the nature of art and pretension, then things went off the rails. See, if you’re going to have one long story in a comic that’s usually about short funny pieces, it really has to be able to hold your attention, and this one just went on and on and on… and even promises that it’ll be continued in the next issue! Blech. What’s so awful? It’s really not that bad of an idea for a strip, and you can tell the theme for the cover. Things start with it being a parody of an infomercial, with everybody over-excited to be drinking tears and wondering where they come from.  Then it goes on to give rejected criers, uses for the tears and a reaction from an art snob. Unless he’s planning on making this into a continuing story and somehow manages to make it funny and interesting again after running it into the ground, it’s safe to say I’m skipping #10. Not that the whole issue is a wash, there are still four single page strips after the long piece, but it’s not enough to save the comic. Check out some of the other issues for some genuine funny, but unless your sense of humor is entirely different from mine (that’s entirely possible), skip this one. $2
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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The Fifty Flip Experiment #6
Here’s a note for aspiring cartoonists everywhere: if the character on your cover can touch the inside of his wrist with his index finger, you might still need a little work drawing hands. I’m crapping on this to start the review because there’s plenty here to like, so why not get the bad stuff out of the way first? Dan is doing a bimonthly comic (he’s up to #9), is engaging the local comics community of Champaign-Urbana Illinois to help out with various panels and gags, and has an excellent sense of humor. The trouble is that it’s absurdist humor, and that sort of thing takes some work before a person is going to get it down. He lists Tim & Eric as an influence and they’re damned near brilliant, so that’s a good place to start, but this issue is uneven at best. Future issues look more coherent (he samples 2/3 of every issue on his website), which may or may not be a good thing, depending on your perspective. I tend to subscribe to the Picasso theory of comics: learn everything there is to learn, then feel free to fuck around with the concepts. So, by that theory, if later issues are more coherent, once he gets the hang of that he’ll have a better grasp of the absurd. So what’s in the actual comic? There’s the man on the cover getting into a philosophical discussion with a hobo, an anime joke (I think) that is lost on me, a hilarious bit with snakes getting their own parachutes, how to interpret a sneeze, the inspired mundaneness of Yelena, a philosophical discussion in an asylum, dead Zorro, the memory of elephants, clown sex, air guitar and a hill of beans. Some of the pages are sideways (these are the ones that always seem to be “too busy” and look fainter than the others for some reason) and some of the jokes go nowhere at all, but the funny bits still make this worthwhile for a buck, and for the sake of supporting someone who seems committed to sticking to a schedule. Good behavior like that should be rewarded. Oh, and an early contender for the non-existent “title of the year” category would have to go to “Slice of Life Strips are Very Lazy”. $1
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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That Poison Bunnie
Who likes funny? And all sorts of mayhem and gore, of course? If it’s you, chances are you’ll like this issue. If you like your humor a little more highbrow, move along please. This is a series of mostly single panel comics about Bunnie (either a poison or a zombie bunny), Smokey (a lit cigarette) and Bear. Bear is the center of most of the stories, as well as the one who causes most of the mayhem. In here you have stories about zombies, a day in the life of Bear, and more three panel comics than you can shake that proverbial stick at. Also a whole bunch of random violence, usually placed for maximum comedic effect. And, as you probably know, random violence is almost always funny unless it’s happening to you. It’s a hodge podge of shorties, so there’s no sense in getting every little nook and cranny, but it’s worth a look if you like this sort of thing, and you should get a good idea from the sample down there. Oh, and there are the usual stupid errors (“their” instead of “they’re”), but only a few and they didn’t bother me this time around. Could it be that I’ve finally mellowed out over that particular bit of stupidity? I hope not. Anyway, this is a buck or two, and you can find out a whole lot more at that website.
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled 3D #1
I have to confess something right off the bat: I couldn’t find my 3D glasses to read this, so I’m sure I didn’t get the whole experience. Still, it looked from here like there weren’t too many things to jump out at you, which I thought was the whole point of putting things into 3D. Regardless, this book has a wacky scenario: what if all the Al Qaeda terrorist accidentally ended up on the same hijacked plane at the same time? It’s still pretty easy to read without the glasses, which is a switch from some of the other 3D comics that I’ve seen, and it’s a pretty funny scenario, even if it is basically only one joke for the whole comic. You know, it seems like this was being given away at SPACE, but I might be making that up, so check it out with Matt and Nick. Contact info is all around you!
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #9
I’ve been very nice to this series overall, mostly because I like the sheer sense of fun that comes with these books, but I do have one technical complaint that’s been bugging me: line up your copies! Seriously half the pages have their tops chopped off, which doesn’t always matter but sometimes cuts off words and mostly just looks bad. It’s #9 (which is impressive by itself), that’s a problem that should be worked out by now. I do this out of love! This issue is a stand-alone story about Pope-land, a theme park made from the Vatican. A guy in a panda suit and a man named Raplh go there for the fabulous rides and Ralph ends up on the “Confession Booth Confession” show, which makes him instantly famous, causing him to lose interest in his old friends. But in all the confusion with the new fame, Raplh forgets to confess his sins and ends up in hell! More thrills after that, of course, including the panda guy following his friend into hell, but I don’t want to give it all away. Another fun issue, especially if you enjoy poking fun at the pope. Contact info is up there, it’s probably still $1…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #8 Now Available! $2
Here’s the end of the horror series, and it’s the end of my pile o’ Flame-Broiled comics, expect for the 3-D issue, so get to work on a new story! Matt watches the ultimate horror movie in this one and gets taken away for his “perversions”. Another good issue, although I’m pretty sure now that this movie he’s talking about isn’t real, which is a damned shame, at least judging by his description. I’ve said so many nice things about this series, here’s something critical: that back page is almost illegible. Seriously, if I didn’t already know their website and e-mail address, I’d have no idea what the back said. This whole three issue story is great if you ever liked horror movies, as it really goes through the societal stereotypes along with why exactly people like gory movies so much. Contact info is way up there, and there’s a website listed on the back page, but I can’t get it to come up. If I get a working link, you’ll be the first to know!
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #7 Now Available! $2
The story of Matt’s infatuation with horror films continues, although I only learned of one new movie that I’d like to see and apparently it’s impossible to find, in a completely selfish little aside. Also, we finally get to see Nick, and there’s a mini revolt about the writer vs. the artist. Not much of one, though, and here’s hoping that they stay together for awhile, as these are consistently at least good and sometimes great. Not sure how old he was in this (it says it’s the second year of elementary school, but I don’t see how he could have gotten all these movies if he was in second grade), but it looks like he always looked exactly the same. Good stuff again, and there’s more to come next issue, as he finally watches the movie that was almost impossible to find. Contact info is up there, send him some money and get the whole lot of these, if you want my opinion…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #4 Now Available! $2
The saga of meeting Harvey Pekar continues, as Nick and Matt work up the nerve to call Harvey in this issue. There’s a bit more to it than that, but that’s the gist of it. Will they ever actually see him? Who knows? I’m still liking the issues, although it’s hard to say what anyone would think of this comic if they only saw this issue. Worth checking out, although it might be best to get the whole saga here so you can have a sense of closure…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #6 Now Available! $2
You know, I’m really enjoying digging through all the books from one creative team. It’s great for showing the progression of their skills, that’s for sure. This one, as the cover may suggest, is all about Matt and his life-long obsession with horror movies. As someone who shares that obsession more than a little bit, it was great to see his reaction to some of the classics (and suggestions for a few new horror movies). The lettering is fine this time around, the art is getting better all the time (a lot more backgrounds in this one), and I’m starting to feel like I know Matt a little bit, which is a sign of a great auto-bio comic in my book. Good stuff all around, and there’s even a reference to Harvey Pekar, as the saga will not die! $1, check it out, as I know there are at least a few of you out there who appreciate a good horror flick…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #5 Now Available! $2
Finally, the last issue of the Harvey Pekar saga! Don’t get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed it, but I’m looking forward to seeing what else these two can do. In this one they finally meet Harvey, but spend most of the time feeling guilty for bothering the poor guy. He was sick and miserable and all they were doing was pestering Harvey about comics. There was a lot of great stuff in here with Matt documenting all of this self-doubts and trying to figure out just what he was doing there. The best issue of the “trilogy”, and it even helps explore Matt’s personality so you have more of a clue for future issues. I think you should get all three of these and see what these two are capable of. Contact info is up there, $1! By the way, I’ll throw in one tiny complaint, just so this isn’t all praise: work on the lettering. It’s neat enough, sure, but sometimes it’s dark enough to read and sometimes it’s tough. A minor, minor thing, like I said, but why screw up the easy stuff?
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #3 Now Available! $2
Imagine my surprise, upon finding Matt at SPACE, to see that he had 6 new comics out. 6! Sure, you could argue that a lot of the art is simplistic so it shouldn’t take that long to put an issue together, but I’m still impressed. He also said that he thinks things get a lot better by #8, so I’ll review one a week until I find out. Anyway, this one is about Matt eventually meeting Harvey Pekar. I say “eventually” because Harvey isn’t in this issue even a little bit. Instead, Matt discovers American Splendor, talks to Joyce Brabner (Harvey’s wife) on the phone, and talks about his phone phobia, which is strange, because I have the exact same thing. Not a paralyzing fear or anything… ah, read it to see what I mean. I’m still not blown away by the art, but the writing is fantastic and the art is more than good enough to serve the simple stories that are happening so far. If he decides to write about, say, all the different types of sea life in exact detail, he might be in trouble. Until then, these two are doing just fine. Contact info is up there, let’s say it’s $2, but I’m just guessing…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #2 Now Available! $2
See, this is why it’s always better to read more than one issue of a series. This one is a whole bunch better than the first one. The first story is about a typical day for Matt (I’m guessing because he’s the writer). Kind of dull at first, but he eventually gets locked out of his parents house and his reactions are just so honest and heartfelt that it’s impossible to do anything but like it. The next story is about a conversation with someone at a garage sale about adult trading cards. Where they might have come from, what they might have been used for (they were pretty tame), that sort of thing. Interesting stuff. The last story is about how Matt and Nick met, which is kind of self-indulgent but still kind of funny. I got the impression that they knew how silly it was to put the story of them meeting in their comic. All in all I’d say that this was a definite improvement over the first one, a good sign indeed. Contact info is above, check it out if you don’t believe me…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Flame-Broiled #1 Now Available! $1.50
I’ve mentioned before that some autobiographical stories are better left untold. The first half of this book, about the author buying comics as a kid and his problem when he forgot to use a coupon that would have given him $5 back on his purchase, is a prime example. It’s slightly entertaining, that’s about it. The drawing is kind of messy too, with some things not shaded and the guy with a beard barely looking human at all. Not a bad story, just nothing that anybody really needed to see. Obviously this is a judgment call on my part, so feel free to ignore me. The second part, about a boy with no head, was better. Still kind of dopey, but the art was crisper and it was an interesting story. If you see it around, eh, I could take it or leave it, but it’s far from terrible. E-mail the writer or the artist, they do have another book available as well…
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Magic Whistle #9
What’s the better way to go about making comics? Putting a book out every few months (this discussion is for the people who at least manage to put a book out every few months, by the way), or just putting one big book out a year? Sam is going with the second option. I think it’s a shame, because his book is exactly the type of thing that I like to see on a regular basis. Graphic novels in waiting (everything by Seth or Chester Brown, for example), those can come out in bigger books and I’m fine with that. The world has to be made funny to me at least a few times a year! Still, that being said, this issue is tremendous. The larger size means there can be a few huge stories in here, including a couple of them in color, which is an experience by itself. Other than that, it’s almost 100 pages of Sam Henderson. Isn’t that specific enough? OK, included in here in an exploding dog, Bill Cosby, Dirty Danny, newlyweds, Gunther Bumpus, Hamburger Joe, and hippies vs. beatniks. That’s just in case you wanted me to sum up a complex and huge issue in one sentence, anyway. $11.95 might seem a little steep, I know, but keep in mind that this is the only issue for the year, and it’s all new material from Sam Henderson! What are you, stupid or something? Click on the title if you want to buy the book, or just go to your comic store, as long as it doesn’t suck.
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Posted by Kevin
April 23, 2010
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Magic Whistle #8
What possible reason could I have for letting this page stagnate for so long? Got me. I guess I just figured that everybody out there already knew that Sam Henderson is at the top of a short list of the funniest people in comic books. Well, don’t you already know that? This one is mostly about Chugbot, a drinking, dancing, cock-blocking robot made by a nerd with a dream of fitting in. And no, that doesn’t mean that there’s a moral to the story. The “Eyes Are Up Here” page didn’t do much for me, everything else was hilarious. Are there various degrees of hilarity? If so, some page were of a higher degree than others, but it’s all funny. If you don’t know who he is buy this immediately, if you do know who he is maybe you’re not keeping up on his new stuff, and that means you’re stupid. Unless you have a legitimate reason not to, but what reason could you possibly have not to laugh?
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Posted by Kevin
