New review for The Natural World #4 by Damien Jay, and I mentioned that all comics ordered before December 20th would get to you at no extra cost by Christmas, right? OK, just checking…
Update for 12/1/10
December 1, 2010
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Posted by Kevin
Jay, Damien – The Natural World #4
December 1, 2010
The Natural World 4
Why aren’t there more serialized stories in the small press comics world? Oh, I don’t mean the people who write for one of the “big” publishers, but among the mini comics folks it seems to be exceedingly rare, and that’s a shame. Damien says at the end of this issue that he thought he would be about ready to wrap up the story at this point, but that it “has already strayed a few times from its anticipated course.” Good! Let it stray, let it expand, and let it be whatever story it’s supposed to end up being. If I had a large chunk of disposable income I’d ask my favorite dozen comic creators to come up with ongoing series and give them money to put them out instead of focusing on single, unconnected issues. What set me off on this subject? Um, it’s Wednesday? Who knows. So how about this issue? Well, if it really was only a three or four issue series, it would have arguably been a waste of time, as what we get is Shannon (the crazy guy living in the woods) and Walter (the only slightly less crazy guy with the dog) chatting in the forest. In a shorter series, this might have been a bad idea. In a series that is probably going to go 10 issues, it’s perfect. We’ve seen both of these guys plenty but haven’t had much of a chance to get into their motivations or what they’re all about for any length of time. Here that’s ALL we get, and it’ll almost certainly pay off big in the long run. So what did they talk about for an entire issue? Screw that, buy it and see for yourself. If you’re not already reading this series you certainly should be, so why should I give anything away? OK, a taste: that carved bird pops up again, we learn that the dog doesn’t like Shannon very much, and much fun is had with Walter’s way of talking. $4
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/30/10
November 30, 2010Yeah, I took a few extra days off, so sue me. The Top Shelf Tuesday review is for The Playwright by Daren White and Eddie Campbell.
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Posted by Kevin
White, Daren & Campbell, Eddie – The Playwright
November 30, 2010
Is it better for a writer to have a wealth of sadness and loneliness to draw from for his work, or is a fulfilled life without art the preferred outcome? It’s only due to the mastery of Daren and Eddie that it took me so long to figure out that that was the central question of this book. Things start off with a sad and lonely playwright who ostracized his family years ago by writing a play which was based heavily on the life of his retarded older brother. This playwright meanders through life, looking for excuses to look at women but without having the courage to actually talk to them, and never seems to dwell much on the essential emptiness of things, as he decided long ago to go for financial success over everything else. We learn about his formative years, his first exposure to the wonders of internet pornography, and his stunted attempts to at least keep current with the rest of the world. Daren White, for you whippersnappers out there, edited the DeeVee anthology in the 90’s, and it’s entirely possible that it’s still going and I’ve just missed it. Eddie Campbell needs no introduction, assuming you have any sense at all of great comics. Both of them weave this tale together masterfully, as Eddie has the visuals of the life of this sad little man down perfectly and Daren manages to guide things over to a chance for redemption naturally. It should go without saying that a book with Eddie Campbell as a contributor is required reading, but just in case maybe you thought you could skip this one for some reason, you’re wrong. This is a beautiful meditation on making art to the exclusion of all else and how it’s impossible to lay a thoroughly black or white judgment on that choice. If you’ve somehow missed Eddie’s work up until now, this is an excellent place to start. Everybody with even a mildly artistic mindset should read this book. $14.95
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/24/10
November 24, 2010New review for Bantam #1 by Lupi Miguinti, and that’s probably it for me for a couple of holiday days, although I still have some minor tinkering to do around the edges that you probably won’t even notice, so forget I mentioned it…
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Posted by Kevin
Miguinti, Lupi – Bantam #1
November 24, 2010
Bantam #1
I’m assuming that Lupi has put out more than two books, but I’ve only seen two, and the difference between this and her last book on forced female genital mutilation is stark. “Duh” would be an appropriate response to that statement, and good for her that she has fun with comics as well as trying to inform the reader. This one is all about the bad puns, so be warned. Yes, it’s a Batman and Robin parody and no, the world probably doesn’t need too many more of those. Things start off with Bantam on the trail of the Jerker, who is trying to shake and bake innocent civilians. Bantam gets captured (and seems pretty ineffective throughout), Little Pecker (that’s his name, he’s the Robin character) gets smothered by Mother Hen, and we eventually get to the real villain. I’ve spared you the puns; if that’s your thing you should pick this up and you’ll get your fill. It does end up being funny at times, despite the best efforts of the puns to batter me into submission. That “#1” on the cover indicates more to come, but it sure seems like the story wraps itself up pretty neatly. It’s cute and occasionally funny, but your mileage may vary and the very concept will give you a solid idea if this is something you’d enjoy. Oh, and I JUST now noticed that my last review before Thanksgiving involved a comic with a turkey for the main villain. Huzzah for unintentionally picking a theme book! No idea how much this costs, so I’ll go with the random guess of $2.
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/23/10
November 23, 2010New review on this Top Shelf Tuesday for Superfuckers by James Kochalka.  Avert your eyes children!
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Posted by Kevin
Kochalka, James – Superfuckers
November 23, 2010
I can’t even express how happy I am to finally have another James Kochalka book around that I love completely. I’ll admit it, all the all-ages stuff got me down. Not that it was awful, or at least not the parts that I read, it was just that there was so damned much of it, and so little of it was actively awesome. This comic right here, as if you couldn’t tell from that explosive cover and the title, is actively awesome. Oh, and I get to say “Superfuckers” without the asterisk because I’m an adult and I’ve earned it. Kids, please insert that asterisk in there in your brains so you don’t think adult thoughts accidentally. It’s a bit silly that I’m complaining about the childish nature of his recent books when this could be accurately described as a series of jokes featuring the words “gay”, “retarded”, “fart” or “homo”, but there’s a way that it all makes perfect sense. You see, the juxtaposition of wordplay with the intricate… hey, look over there, that house is on fire! As I was saying, this book is fantastic. All of the issues of the series are included, even the hysterically priced first issue ($7!), along with a bonus issue to reward you for buying the collected edition. It’s only #1, right? There’s more to come? One can only hope. The cast of characters features Superhero Dan, Plant Lad, Jack Krak, Princess Sunshine, Grotessa, Vortex, Orange Lightning, and Donkey Anus. OK, I made one of those up. Their powers are irrelevant, as it’s not like they spend any time fighting crime or anything. They mostly get high off the slime trail of Grotus, remain blissfully unaware of their nemesis (a lump of goo who hangs around outside their house, hoping to catch a glimpse of Princess Sunshine), and insult/try to kill each other. The highlights (among many) include Jack Krak becoming a Christian, superhero tryouts (in which the last one standing gets to be on the team), Tumor and Grotus gettin’ it on, the pocket universe, the murder of Orange Lightning (um, spoiler alert, but only kind of), and the choices Vortex makes when setting up the new universe. This is exactly the reason I was such a fan of the works of James Kochalka back in the day, and the reason why I’ve been “meh” on it for ages, not that I can begrudge the guy some cash for books for kids. James’ super power is making books like this one, which is why I wish he would focus his energies in this direction more often. Buy this to restore your love in comics and superheroes, or buy this to reaffirm your belief that superheroes are really, really stupid. It works for everything! $14.95
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/22/10
November 22, 2010New review for Borderland by Dan Archer & Olga Trusova. I should point out that while the store still seems to be broken, I’ll guarantee all orders placed before December 20th get to you before Christmas. How can I do that if the store is broken? Simple: I can still see the orders you TRIED to make. So if you go through the regular ordering process and get an error message, I’ll see exactly what you tried to order and send you an e-mail asking you if you’d still like to place the order. If so you send me the money through Paypal, I send you the comics, everybody wins. Yes, it’s an extra step or two in an age when everything has to be immediate, but getting quality comics is worth a little extra effort, right? This may all be moot if the store gets fixed, but I’ve learned better than to promise a damned thing on that front…
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Posted by Kevin
Archer, Dan & Trusova, Olga – Borderland
November 22, 2010
Borderland
Raise your hand if you think all slavery in the world went away in 1865. Now take a minute to feel just a little stupid, both for raising your hand and for actually believing that. Human trafficking is alive and well, and the people doing it are finding new ways around the law at every turn. One particularly assholish way of doing it is to kidnap people to work for months or even years, then give them a payment for their services of something like $20 so that the worker can’t say that they were never paid. Yes, apparently that is enough to trip up some courts. This comic tells the story of seven people who were involved in various forms of human trafficking, but at least they all eventually made it out alive. I believe the setup is that Dan draws the stories while Olga writes them, but most of these are based on testimonials told to other people, so it wouldn’t shock me a bit if Dan occasionally worked on the writing end of things as well. Anyway, the horror stories in here involve a woman who was cut and left for dead as a baby (and things didn’t get much better for a long, long time), a man who found himself trapped in a work camp with armed guards, a woman who was chained to a pole and forced to live with the animals (and allowed to “escape” when her foot become infected to avoid them having to pay her), a woman forced to work in a public bakery, a big tough guy trapped in a labor camp, toxic exposure to some nasty chemicals while being forced to work, and a woman forced into sex work. It’s a powerful and haunting group of stories, and it draws attention to something that is often either ignored or considered not to exist. My only quibble is on a purely thematic level, as some of the stories just trail off without any resolution. Granted, they all lived to tell their stories so some semblance of a happy ending is implied, but the story of the big tough guy in the camp in particular baffled me, as the intro seemed to be pointing out that ANYONE could find themselves in this situation, but left how he got out of it a mystery. Minor quibbles, like I said, but the content is heartbreaking, and it’s all too easy to see how desperate people (or even some that weren’t desperate) could find themselves stuck in this situation. $8
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/21/10
November 21, 2010New review for Team Girl Comic #2, and sorry about the absence, but real life does occasionally get in the way of my rambling about comics. I know, I think it’s annoying too.
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Posted by Kevin
Various Anthologies – Team Girl Comic #2
November 21, 2010
Team Girl Comic #2
Go Team Girl go! Sorry to give away the ending of the review so quickly, but I’m all for increasing the role of women in comics, as there isn’t a thing wrong with getting some new perspectives on the genre. Not like there haven’t already been women in comics for ages, but you know what I mean. Or you don’t, and I don’t have the energy to explain it to you. Anyway, this issue has even more stories this time around, with a fairly persistent theme of zombie and how to identify them/protect yourself . The only problem is that while all pieces seem to have some indication of their creator, it’s often in the form of a signature, making it a pure guessing game as to who is responsible for what. Ah well, I’m starting to get convinced that chaos is a badge of honor in anthologies. Stories include Gill Hatcher getting distracted while on the verge of curing cancer, Emma McLuckie’s piece on a ghost who is easily frightened, somebody (see what I mean?) getting serious inspiration from the life of Harvey Pekar, Mhairi Hislep with the identifying characteristics of zombies, somebody else (aargh) with a brilliant piece about Jesus as a zombie, Mhairi again on how to dress fora zombie attack, and the differences of driving perspective right after getting a license and one year later. Seriously, why nobody else (that I know of) has connected the obvious fact that Jesus was probably a zombie after rising from the dead is beyond me. Plenty of other stories are in here too, as it’s really crammed with pieces, but half the fun of anthologies is going through all the little bits and pieces. And it’s only a measly $5, if I have the conversion rate even close to right…
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/17/10
November 17, 2010New review for Francis Sharp in the Grip of the Uncanny! Chapter 1 by Brittney Sabo and Anna Braxton.
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Posted by Kevin
Sabo, Brittney & Bratton, Anna – Francis Sharp in the Grip of the Uncanny! Chapter 1
November 17, 2010
Francis Sharp in the Grip of the Uncanny! Chapter 1
Just to make it clear, Brittney drew and co-wrote the book, with Anna being the other co-writer. As I usually put the writer first in the title, just wanted to make sure everybody understood that. So hey, Brittney is branching out into the world of graphic novels! I swear, if it wasn’t for the fine people at the Xeric Foundation, I shudder to think of the state of the small press comics world. Good thing that those TMNT guys have a genuine interest in promoting the medium. Anyway, this is the story of Francis Sharp, back in the days when a kid had to listen to the radio for his tales of mystery and intrigue. Francis is so caught up in the grips of these stories that he’s worrying his parents, and when he fails at watching the cattle it turns out to be the last straw and they have to sell the radio. A friend comes over to listen to the show, they end up playing outside because of the lack of a radio, and then chase a mysterious, half-seen creature through the forest. His friend gets caught on something, Francis forges ahead, and the next thing you know… well, look at the sample image. I love how this child who lives mostly in his own head, with a clear love for fantasy and odd creatures, turns into a shrieking machine when confronted with something that is actually fantastic. He spends the night hiding under a stoop until he is discovered in the morning by one of the inhabitants of this odd town, and it quickly becomes apparent that he’s not from around those parts. This first volume seems to be setting things up for future adventures, as we’re mostly dealing with Jack, the split between his rich fantasy life and his dreary home life, and the first early hints of what exactly the new town is all about. Oh, and the slight problem that there doesn’t seem to be a way for Francis to get home. I love the idea of setting it in a time where wonder was still an option, before technology could be used as the answer to a number of mysteries. I hope the two of them have big plans for this, and I hope that they can scrounge up the money to keep putting the chapters out in such gorgeous packages, as I was thoroughly taken in by this story. Francis freaking out at all the “monsters” was a perfect touch, as he may have a vivid imagination, but a child being exposed to that sort of thing probably would freak out a bit. I think this qualifies as “all ages” too, if you happen to have a small child who appreciates good adventure stories, but there’s also plenty here to keep an adult interested. $10
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/16/10
November 16, 2010Top Shelf Tuesday! New review today for The Troll King by Kolbeinn Karlsson.
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Posted by Kevin
Karlsson, Kolbeinn – The Troll King
November 16, 2010
The linked website is in Swedish, so you may want to use the Google translator feature, some other translator or perhaps just learn Swedish. This book is ridiculously gorgeous while being occasionally grotesque. No, I have no idea how he pulls it off either. If ever a comic screamed out for the full color treatment it’s this one, and Top Shelf was kind enough to make that happen. This is a collection of stories, occasionally barely hanging together by a thread only to be yanked back into a coherent narrative, dealing with various mystical beings of the forest. Things start off with the two Kings of the Forest working out, then disguising themselves to be able to head to town and stock up on carbs. They don’t disguise themselves to protect us, they do it because humans aren’t worthy of their presence. The two Kings continue on in their loving relationship until another character performs a ceremony that results in the birth of their two children. How do two guys give birth? About how you would expect, but if you honestly have no idea I wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise. From here we transition to the story of a dwarf who has fallen into a river and ended up as the happy steed for another group of beings, then onto a sentient carrot being that got wet, the rejuvenation of a killed troll, the wild west, and finally the growing pains of those two children. Yes, I am being vague, and yes, I am doing it on purpose. It’s hyperbolic to say that every page was a revelation, so I’ll tone it down a bit and say that every other page was a revelation. While those two hairy guys in the beginning may be Troll Kings, the hierarchy of the forest is never explained and they seem to rule by everyone knowing exactly what they want in life and thus avoiding any problems. The dwarf getting turned into a steed had all the potential to be a creepy mess, especially with the method of his transformation, but the guy was so happy with the result that the story managed to succeed on every level. If the fact that you still read comics has anything to do with a love of great visuals, this book deserves a place on your shelf. If you stick around for the stories, yes, it also passes that test with flying colors. If you still read comics to see what happens with your favorite characters from month to month, OK, you’re allowed to skip this, but you should really work on broadening those horizons. This guy is relatively new in the comics world, so put me down for somebody who cant’ wait to see what he comes up with next. $14.95
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/15/10
November 15, 2010New review for Retail Duncan by Edgar Castro, which I should have reviewed ages ago but kept getting distracted. It should also be available in my store, but as the store seems to be broken at the moment I haven’t bothered to add it just yet, at least until I can get it fixed. If you would like a copy let me know and we can do this the old fashioned way: through an exchange of e-mails.
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Posted by Kevin
Castro, Edgar – Retail Duncan #1
November 15, 2010
Retail Duncan #1
Here’s a simple way to keep “your” and “you’re” straight: if you are saying “you’re”, would it work if you switched it out with “you are”? Same thing with “your”: if “you are” fits in that spot, don’t use “your”. Sorry to start off with a rant, but if there’s one thing that’s fingernails-on-a-chalkboard annoying to me, that’s it. Well, that and the difference between “their, they’re and there”, but only rant per review is the legal limit around these parts. I mention it mostly because it’s the only thing that bugged me in an otherwise funny and occasionally insightful comic. Our hero, Duncan, needs to find a bathroom in the mall. OK, not the most promising of starts. He finds one, happens to sit next to an old friend, and ends up applying for a job. From there he’s given a series of tasks, including 18 hours of filling out a form, killing the Rancor monster, cleaning up after Lone Wolf & Cub and fighting off Chunk. If you don’t know who that is, kids, ask your parents. It’s a pretty funny comic, with a larger point or two thrown in about the whole retail experience. Maybe you should buy a copy and see for yourself? $2
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Posted by Kevin
Update for 11/14/10
November 14, 2010New review for Crass Sophisticate #25 by Josh Reinwald & Justin Rosenberg, or possibly it’s #24 or #26, they’ve done so many that they seem to have lost count.
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Posted by Kevin
Reinwald, Josh & Rosenberg, Justin – Crass Sophisticate #25
November 14, 2010
Crass Sophisticate #25
In this issue of Crass Sophisticate we learn the meaning of life, the love of family and how true love always wins out. Did I have any of you going for a second there? All those things may have been touched on, and some of them were, but this is supposed to be a fun comic, and it has managed to succeed in that task every time I’ve read an issue. This gets off to a great start with a Tom Waits quote (and ladies, if any of you like Tom Waits you’ll be the first woman I’ve heard of who does, also I would like to propose to you sight unseen), then heads off to the coffee shop where Justin strikes up a conversation with the attractive female worker. Ah, we’ve all been there. Things go passably well, then later Justin has the terrible idea to mention this coffee shop lady to his cousin Josh, who decides to see her and mention that his cousin “wishes to court her.” Oh, and he also offers her a gift of rat jerky that looks suspiciously like a turd. Justin mourns the loss of any shot with this girl and his upcoming birthday, Josh goes back and invites her to join them for the celebration, and somewhere in the middle of all this is that goofy looking lady on the cover. It’s funny, mildly creepy and informative all at once, in other words it’s a success! OK fine, a few unerased pencil lines slip through here and there, but with this much dialogue and this many pages that’s bound to happen, right? Especially with the two of them being so prolific. Buy it and enjoy if you’re not easily offended and like things that are funny, if you are easily offended maybe you should buy it anyway just to loosen yourself up a bit, you could probably use it… $2
P.S. I just noticed that I already have a review up for issue #25 of this series, even though there are two distinct cover, each with “#25” prominently featured on them. This one definitely comes after the other #25, making this #26? Or this #25 and the other one #24? Damned if I know.
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Posted by Kevin
