New review today for Crime and Punishment by M.S. Harkness! No, she wasn’t at SPACE, but I managed to get her latest comics while in Columbus anyway.
Harkness, M.S. – Crime and Punishment
May 27, 2025
Here I was thinking that M.S. was probably working on another graphic novel after the revelation that was Time and Tension, but my visit to Columbus for SPACE proved me wrong, because The Laughing Ogre had both a collection of six new mini comics of hers along with this single mini. She’s a comics making machine, and the comics world is better for it. This one is basically a travel comic, as M.S. was invited to the Angouleme comic show in France and took Emi Gennis along with her. So half travelogue comic and half buddy comic? Roughly, yes. If you’ve read this website for any length of time you already know my thought about Emi’s work, and if you’re new here I’ll make it simple and just say to buy some of her comics immediately. Anyway, this one starts off with M.S. in a good place; she’s recently engaged and is enjoying life in Columbus. They get to France and immediately check out the work of Julie Doucet, which is pretty much exactly what I would have done if given the opportunity. From there the two of them see the sights, M.S. tries to get one of her minis into a french shop (a saga in and of itself that I don’t want to say much about, but man what a satisfying conclusion to it), debated going to the Louvre, hit up a day spa, and of course went to the catacombs of France. You know, the ones that are full of stacked bones and I have to keep reminding myself that they’re real whenever I read about them or see them. I’d recommend this comic for the conversation between Emi and M.S. alone, but I also learned a few things about France and its architecture, so if you could even put this into an educational comics pile if you were so inclined. Anyway, read this and all of her other comics why don’t you? $6
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/26/25
May 26, 2025Somehow last week got away from me, so I’ll end SPACE week how it began: with a review every day of the week, just like old times when I was still young and full of enough energy to do such a thing. New review today for Not What I Ordered by Matthew Northrup!
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Posted by Kevin
Northrup, Matthew – Not What I Ordered
May 26, 2025
Programming note: I couldn’t find a link to purchase this comic, so instead I’m linking to Matthew’s Kickstarter for a graphic novel he’s putting together, even though he seems to have hit his goal and then some. But hey, maybe it’s a good way to contact him about this comic too! Either that or through his Instagram page (also linked above), because this is a heck of a comic, especially if you’re either in Columbus or familiar with the area. It starts off with a dude name Robbie talking about his job of delivering food during the night shift, basically between midnight and 5am. As somebody who previously worked nights I’m a little jealous; it was fascinating enough to see who came into a hotel over the night shift, being able to see all of Columbus over those hours every night would be amazing. From there we have several full page images accompanied by text walls, and this is where the Columbus angle of things will hit you. The Short North, Cosi, even buckeyes get new context and a creepy backstory. Finally the back end of the mini shifts back to full comics, as we see somebody working the night shift at a bakery and finally a couple making it into their hotel room after a long day. There’s even a spectacularly creepy and completely unexplained ending, not that I’m going to touch it here. There’s a whole lot happening here and yes, I’d recommend checking it out. No price, so I’ll go with my default for unknown minis: $5.
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/15/25
May 15, 2025New review today for The Light Outside the Window by Ben Wright-Neuman. Also sure, I may review the same names a lot (because they make so many comics), but both reviews this week were for brand new artists to the website, and three out of the five reviews last week were also for brand new people. So hey, I’m still trying to keep things interesting!
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Wright-Heuman, Ben – The Light Outside the Window
May 15, 2025
SPACE is a weird time to try to evaluate comic artists, because I might be getting their first comic, I might be getting something they’ve spent years working on, or a 24 hour comic, or anything in between all of that. Well, this particular comic is from 2015, and if I have Ben’s timeline right, he was still in school at the Center for Cartoon Studies at the time. So what, did I end up with somebody’s only comic again? Dear reader, I did not. He’s been putting out comics regularly since, to the extent that “minicomics” are just one category on his website. There’s a (pretty funny, from what I read) online strip dealing mostly with cons, a graphic novel, anthologies… the man is clearly putting in the work. But hey, we’re here to talk about this one! So since this is an early comic, is it a little rough around the edges? You know, not really. Maybe the line on his artwork has tightened up a bit since, but it’s not exactly terrible here. This is the story of a young woman who’s moving into her college dorm. She’s nervous, things are a little awkward, and eventually her first day ends and she goes to bed. It’s then that she’s woken up by a noise outside of her window, which turns out to be a restless ghost. She runs out of her room to get some answers and learns the whole story of how the previous building burned down and how her room was the only one that coincided with one of the rooms from the previous building. Well, her window, specifically. After getting the whole story (including what happened to a previous resident who tried to help the ghost) she’s left with the choice of what to do about it. Which is the conflict for the rest of the comic, so I won’t spoil any of it, but that last page is too perfect for somebody who was still in school at the time. It’s a really solid mini, so check it out why don’t you? Or if ghost stories aren’t your thing, the man clearly has a lot of comics to choose from. $5
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/13/25
May 13, 2025New review today for Dirt #2 by Ethan Best, as it’s still all SPACE all the time at this here website.
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Posted by Kevin
Best, Ethan – Dirt #2
May 13, 2025
So I’m going on my memory of SPACE (2025, future readers) and I think that I mostly bought this book because Ethan had the worst table in the house and I almost missed seeing it on my way out of the con. I think! As has been established here several times, my memory is crap, so I could be getting him mixed up with somebody else. But if I’m not (and this was my original point, almost completely lost by now), I’m glad I ran into the guy, because this was a really great comic. An old timey mini, with several unrelated short stories in one comic package. With a fancy color cover; bonus points for using that color for an additional color comic on the inside back cover. You can see the story subjects on the cover, but the one with the werewolf women veered off in a wonderfully unexpected direction, the one where a dude woke up one day as Richard Nixon was full of surprises (and had a terrifying ending), and what could have been a grim tale of a young woman finally moving out from under the thumb of her controlling father still had a few laughs in it. Why yes, I do put a lot of stock in being surprised by a story after all of these years, why do you ask? Other stories not mentioned on the cover deal with a woman getting flowers for her husband and coming home at what was clearly an unexpected time, and the secret of one particularly successful major league pitcher. No more details for either, as I’m leaving that to the reader. As far as criticism goes, and this always come from a place of love and hoping for a better comic, but some of the spelling was rough. It happens, sure, but misspelling a story title in particular just looks amateurish. But hey, it seems like he’s really just getting started, so check out his stuff why don’t you? He also has an issue after this one, so he’s moving right along. $8
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/9/25
May 9, 2025New review today for Blood Bowl by Lief Bennett! Would you believe that I had another comic all set to review (Save It For Later by Nate Powell), only to rediscover that I already wrote a lengthy review of it back in 2021. At least it was a library copy, so when I bought a copy from Nate at SPACE this year I didn’t end up with two copies on my shelves. Still, the ongoing replacement of my brain by this website continues. Happy weekend everybody!
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Posted by Kevin
Bennett, Lief – Blood Bowl
May 9, 2025
Blood Bowl
Was this comic what I thought it would be based on that cover? Reader, it was not. I chatted with Lief a bit at SPACE, but as my memory continues to turn into pudding, the specifics of what Lief said to talk me into this specific comic are sadly lost to history. There were other comics at the table for sure, but here we are. This is actually based on a true story, sort of, as are most other “based on a true story” stories. There is a real storm sewer entrance in Columbus Ohio, but it’s called Gates of Hell on Google maps. A cooler name than “Blood Bowl”? Don’t make me choose, but Lief is nice enough to explain the reasoning behind the title in the afterward. Anyway, in theory a skaker died there in the 70’s (Lief could not find actual documentation of this), but this comic is more of a fictional cautionary tale. A group of kids decide to go exploring, then they’re given a choice as to which tunnel to explore, and I can’t say much more without spoilers. Except the whole “cautionary tale” part, I guess. It’s a fun story; my only minor complaint is that it ended kind of abruptly. Which, it could be easily argued, it kind of had to based on the premise. This is not specifically available through Lief’s website (which continues a rough reviewing trend for me this week), but I’ll bet if you asked for a copy that they’d do what they could to make that happen. I also think maybe I paid $5 for this but, again, brain bad. Give it a shot, learn a little about Columbus!
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/8/25
May 8, 2025New review today for Mr. Rock and his Light Bulb Oven by Pam Bliss. Has she been making comics longer than anybody else at SPACE? She started in 1989, so you tell me, comics historians reading this that I just made up in my head!
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Posted by Kevin
Bliss, Pam – Mr. Rock and his Light Bulb Oven
May 8, 2025
Mr. Rock and his Light Bulb Oven
What would a trip to SPACE be like without grabbing some of Pam’s new comics? As strange as not seeing Suzanne Baumann at one of these shows, but that’s another story and I’m guessing she’ll be back next year. This review is yet another chance for me to remind comics folks to make their comics as easy to purchase as humanly possible, but at least Pam does lay out on her website how to get her comics, general pricing guides, etc. I got two of her minis for $4 (well, $3, because I was down to three bucks at that point in the con, but I’ll pay her that dollar back next year), so I’m guessing you could probably get this one for $2. And if you’re at all a fan of the Food Network, there is probably a lot in here that you’ll find familiar. Not me though! I would basically only see that channel in waiting rooms. But a lot of personalities were named, so I’m guessing they’re real people, or slightly disguised versions of real people. This one starts out with the dialogue of a conversation between Pam and her husband (I’m assuming here, beware!) at a yard sale where he casually mentions that Mr. Rock definitely has an easy bake oven. And lo, a story is born! I’d completely forgotten that Mr. Rock was so tiny, so that was briefly shocking. The little man posts videos of him cooking things with this oven, eventually gets an offer from the Food Network, which leads to a whirlwind trip through some of the more embarrassing aspects of fame, all culminating in a food show fight. This mini is meaty, if that makes sense. Sometimes Pam’s books are quick stories, but there’s a whole lot going on here and, like I said, some familiar faces if you kept up with this sort of thing in real life. Check it out, send her some money! She’s only been making comics since 1989, so show some support already. $2(?)
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/7/25
May 7, 2025New review today for Tongue-Tied by Chandu Tennety, as SPACE month (and also SPACE week specifically) continues!
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Posted by Kevin
Tennety, Chandu – Tongue-Tied
May 7, 2025
Tongue-Tied
Finding physical copies online of the comics I got at SPACE this year seems to be a bit of an issue, but maybe this one is just too new to show up on his website? I’ll go with that. As always, you can contact the artist and ask them directly for a physical copy, but you all already know that. This one is a mostly silent comic, leaving me lots of room for interpretation, which can often end up with me hilariously misinterpreting something. Will I do it again? Let’s find out! This one starts off with our hero (the guy with the polaroid camera head) being asked by an unseen figure to tell them a story. Most of the rest of the comic is a series of silent movements, which may or may not verge into wacky territory at times, of our hero trying to accommodate this request. After the result of this search we see what the comic was actually about, which I can’t spoil here, but I can say that it was quietly devastating. It’s basically a book for people who feel like they’ve missed their moment, and possibly people who feel like they consistently miss their moment. Give it a shot if this describes you in any way, but first you have to find a copy of the comic. You can do it, says I!
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/6/25
May 6, 2025New review today for Anxiety is the Pits! by Olivia Shamell. I think she was in the CCAD section of SPACE, which I only realized well after the fact, meaning that I should have stopped at more of their areas to get more of their comics. Well, if anybody from there is reading this and wondering if I would also ramble on for a bit about their comics, I absolutely would! Just send them to the address on the sidebar there. The bar for entry here is basically me saying “oh look, a new comic!” when I get the mail.
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Posted by Kevin
Shamell, Olivia – Anxiety is the Pits!
May 6, 2025Website
A brief note here: the link in the title goes to the complete comic posted on Olivia’s website for free. I prefer to link to a place where somebody could purchase the physical copy (or a digital version), but I don’t see that anywhere at her website, so if you wanted to financially support her art, maybe send her an email through her website and offer to buy a book or two? Anyway, explanation over. This is a short comic about a band making their way to a gig. One of them (Cherry) asks if they’ve remembered everything, leading to another band member to accuse her of thinking that they’re all stupid, which leads to Cherry explaining the real reason why she can no longer let little things like that go. I’ve been in a few awkward car rides with conversations like that, and either one of the other people in that car could have made things easier, but I think Olivia just wanted to let that awkwardness sit around for a bit. They eventually have a real conversation about it, and it’s all wrapped up with a really solid punchline. People on any side of this conversation could find something to relate to here, and it’s admirable that Cherry (I realize that this is fictional) was able to express herself as clearly as she did. It’s common in anxious moments to shut down socially, at least for me, so I think a lot of people who deal with anxiety could come away with this with at least a helpful hint or two. No idea on the price, but you could either read it for free or offer to give her money if you’re curious. Follow your conscience!
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 5/5/25
May 5, 2025I made it to SPACE and ended up with quite a pile of mini comics, so since I noticed that I had a SPACE month last year, why not do it again this year? This may include a few books from my visit to the Laughing Ogre comic shop, but since I make the rules around here I’ve decided that this also counts. And what the heck, I’m also doing an old school reviewing week, where I review a comic a day. Believe it or not, this was the norm for the first decade of this website. Yes, it seems crazy to me now too. New review today for Metroid Gear by David G. Caldwell!
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Posted by Kevin
Caldwell, David G. – Metroid Gear
May 5, 2025
This right here is a silent comic that’s going to appeal to a very specific group of people, and that’s mostly people who have memories of the original Nintendo games of Metroid and Metal Gear. If you’re in that category (and I sure am, as evidenced by the fact that I could have picked several mini comics from David’s table this year and couldn’t keep my hands off of this one), prepare to be blasted with nostalgia! First off, don’t make the rookie mistake that I did: this is a flip comic, so after getting to that glorious double page center image, stop what you’re doing, go to the back cover and start again from there. It’s just about impossible to review this one without any kind of spoiler, so I’ll just lay it out: the first half shows how Samus (what us nerds know as the real name for the Metroid main character) infiltrates a mysterious facility, and the second half shows Solid Snake (ditto for the Metal Gear main character) doing the same thing from another angle. For those of us who remember the games, the fun of the comic is in showing the little things from each series, so I’ll leave those bits for you to discover. If you’re not familiar with either of these games, would you still get something out of the book? Less, for sure, but it’s still a fun wordless adventure comic either way. So middle-aged nerds, this one is required reading, and younger folks (or older folks who don’t know their video game history), follow your hearts! $5
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 4/23/25
April 23, 2025New review today for Glimpses of Life #9 by Brian Canini, and speaking of Ohio artists, it’s SPACE time again this weekend! I think I’ll be able to make it, although it’s a little trickier now that I’m living in Illinois again. If you’re local, check it out!
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Posted by Kevin
Canini, Brian – Glimpses of Life #9
April 23, 2025
Brian has a fascinating introduction in this issue, going over his year in comics (he lays out just how many comics he put out last year and, once again, the sheer level of productivity should make other comic artists evaporate in shame), and it was a heck of a thing to have it all laid out like that. A general policy of this website, that readers may or may not have picked up on by now, is that I don’t like to have the same artist listed more than once on the main page at the same time. They cycle through as I add more reviews, so it’s rarely an issue, but Brian makes it tricky all by himself. I actually keep his “to review” comics in their own pile! Ah, another unwanted and possibly unwelcome peek behind the curtain here. This is a collection of short autobio comics, mostly things that Brian wanted to clear out of the way before getting to his more recent stuff in a future issue (according to the man himself), but there are still plenty of solid stories in here. Mostly single page stories, with the exception of the last time young Brian made a sandcastle; given a hundred chances I would still never have guessed how it ended. Other stories deal with the shame of buying pre-made pasta sauce as an Italian man, making his peace with being a runner, the sad inability to sleep in on the weekends, learning at a young age about a lack of Jedi powers, Jason Vorhees getting outsmarted by a lack of pants, “tips” for grilling a perfect burger, being generally OK with spiders, existential dread while stopped at a red light, and webworms. Which I did look up after being prompted in the comic, and I could have gone my whole life without knowing those things existed. And lots more stories, obviously. One of these days maybe Brian will put out a terrible comic so I can tell you to stay away, but today is not that day. Check it out, especially if you’re a parent too, as there’s plenty in here for you to relate to. $6
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Posted by Kevin
