April 24, 2010
Website
Blink #2: Experiencing Creative Difficulties Now Available! $3
More from the world of Max Ink, and this time he tells us right off the bat what to expect in this issue: writer’s block. Or whatever it’s called when it’s more of a comic’s block in general than writer’s block. Anybody who’s gone through it knows how horrible it is, to have any spark of creativity that you had always assumed would be around just leave you completely, never knowing when or if it would be coming back. The first half of the book is dedicated to this, as Blink gets a chance to do a strip for a theater zine, but she finds that all her ideas are stupid and worthless. Sam tries to talk sense to her, pointing out previous successes and some good things she finds in Blink’s sketchbook, but it’s a hard sell to Blink. The other big story in here has the same theme, this time with Blink giving up on her productive afternoon and taking time off to play around in the snow.There are also some fairly illuminating sketchbook pages in the back, detailing where the first story came from and some other ideas that are floating around his head. More good stuff from Max, even if these so far leave me with the impression that while Blink is a decent series, he has something really special in him still to come, either through Blink or something completely different down the road. $3
Comments Off on Ink, Max – Blink #2: Experiencing Creative Difficulties | 
Reviews | Tagged: Blink, Experiencing Creative Differences, Max Ink | 
Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Blink #1: Up Leaves Fall Down Now Available! $3
The trouble with reviewing these things sequentially, the way I see it, is that it often short-changes the artist. Take this first issue of Blink, for example. By now (4/25/07), Max has this as (if I remember correctly, as his website is down and I can’t find the info online) a weekly online strip, so he’s spent some serious time on it. Even if it’s not a weekly strip, he’s done at least three more issues with these characters by now. However, in this issue, things are just getting started, with us getting to know the two main characters, Blink and Sam. They walk and talk or they sit and talk, about lost innocence and crosswords puzzles, with a few pages of sketchbook material and the most wonderfully honest advertisement I’ve seen in quite a while. It’s here as an introduction, and it does a fine job at that. Seems like I was going somewhere profound with this, but I had to take a break and away it went. I’ll leave this up as an illustration to anybody who thinks that I know what I’m doing, and if it comes back to me I’ll put it up in the review for the next issue, which should be in a couple of weeks if all goes as planned. Either way, a solid issue on its own…
Comments Off on Ink, Max – Blink #1: Up Leaves Fall Down | Reviews | Tagged: Blink, Max Ink, Up Leaves Fall Down | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Blink: FYI, IDK
Max manages to reach in and tug directly at my heartstrings with this anti-technological issue. Well, maybe it’s not anti-technological, just more of a cautionary, “don’t forget that it’s OK to speak and type in complete sentences” kind of tale. In this issue (which is free, by the way, so if you ever see Max or order other comics from him, mention this one) Blink realizes that she’s run out of time to get her Aunt a handmade card, like she does every year, and decides to cheat a little bit by still drawing a card but sending a picture to her of it through her phone. Sam uses the occasion to go off on a wonderful rant about people putting every detail of their lives on their blogs and being a slave to Facebook and Myspace (or whichever thing you damned kids are obsessed with today). Just a very lovely, cathartic issue. If anything I thought the rant was reined in a bit, but it strikes pretty close to home, as somebody who has a (theoretically) daily “blog”. There’s a reason I don’t put many details of my personal life down here and there’s a reason why I don’t mess with most of the social networking sites that help you never actually talk to anybody in person. Sadly, though, I am familiar enough with the internets to know what that title stands for. How about you?
Comments Off on Ink, Max – Blink: FYI, IDK | Reviews | Tagged: Blink, FYI, IDK, Max Ink | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
A Strange Day (with Tatiana Gill)
Well, my scanner died right after I scanned the cover, so sorry about the lack of samples. Who out there was a Cure fan back in the day? If so, you’re going to get an awful lot out of this book. If not, well, you’re probably still going to get a lot out of this book, at least if you were ever a teenager you will. I’m not sure if I was ever that young, but there seems to be photographic evidence of some kind, so maybe it is true. The quote at the start of this shows the mood you need to be in to read it: “Open this book as the sixteen year old that fell in love at first sight and took themselves all too seriously”. This is the story of a young boy and a young girl who both, without having ever met each other before, skip school to get the new Cure album when it comes out and end up spending the day together. I have no idea how Damon pulled off dialogue this realistic, as I assume he isn’t 16 any more and this seems as natural as can be. Not that it’s impossible, but it seems like when some people try to write as teenagers would talk that it comes off, well, a bit silly. No problem with that here. Tatiana also does an incredible job showing the complete range of emotions that most teenagers go through in a couple of hours. Good stuff all around, it’s only $3.95 too so it’s well worth checking out.
Comments Off on Hurd, Damon & Gill, Tatiana – A Strange Day | Reviews | Tagged: A Strange Day, Damon Hurd, Tatiana Gill | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Temporary #1 (Damon with Rick Smith)
How appropriate that on the last day I use Microsoft Frontpage to update the site (if all goes well with the site update, that is) the damned thing crashes and eats my review for this comic. It was great too, the best review I’ve ever written, and now nobody gets to see it! Or it sucked and now I get the chance to make it up. Anyway, this is a comic by two people that I like a whole lot, and it’s about a subject (temping) that I’m very familiar with, having basically done that for many years now, although I have been hired at a place or two in that time. The story here is that a temp gets hired for some data entry and ends up at a place that has people with hollow computers, suicidal workers and people hanging out inside the fax machine. What’s going on? Who are those people? Does it matter as long she gets paid on time? It’s great to start a series with a whole bunch of mysteries, and this one is chock full of them. If you’ve enjoyed Rick’s Shuck series or any of Damon’s work, I can’t see how you wouldn’t like this book. Here’s the website and here’s hoping Frontpage doesn’t eat my review again…
Comments Off on Hurd, Damon & Smith, Rick – Temporary #1 | Reviews | Tagged: Damon Hurd, Rick Smith, Temporary | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
A Sort of Homecoming #2
In case anybody read the first issue of this series and had any doubts about it, this should put them all to rest. This issue is basically a collection of flashbacks to earlier times with David and Owen. It starts to show why they lost touch in the first place (although it leaves the future, potentially explosive confrontations for the next issue) and some of the great times they had when they were younger. I don’t think Owen actually talks to a single living human being in this issue. Look, the reason this book, and everything I’ve seen by these two, is so great is that everybody can relate to what they’re trying to say. Who out there doesn’t have a friend (or two, or ten) that they always thought they were going to hang out with but here they are, years later, and they haven’t seen that person in years? Still, at the back of your mind, there’s usually some piece of that friendship sitting there, coming back to the front of your brain when you see a reminder of times that you once had. It’s a great, true series so far and I can’t wait to see how it ends. $3.50, contact info is up there.
Comments Off on Hurd, Damon & Camello, Pedro – A Sort of Homecoming #2 | Reviews | Tagged: A Sort of Homecoming, Damon Hurd, Pedro Camello | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
A Sort of Homecoming (advance preview)
One pet peeve right off the bat: if you’re going to have a special preview edition, it helps me a whole bunch if you let me know when the actual book is coming out. I’ve scanned this book a few times and I just don’t see it. If I had to guess I’d say that it would be in the first few months of 2004, but that’s just because it’s apparently going to be a three-part graphic novel and he already has a lot of pages done here. Enough already, you might be thinking, what about the story? Well, it begins with a young man, Owen, learning that someone close to him, David, has died. We learn instantly that he has a complicated relationship with David, as he talks a bit of shit about the guy before he learns that he’s dead. The rest of the book is Owen’s reaction to the news intercut with flashbacks that show how they met when they were little kids and various things that have happened to them over the years. This serves perfectly as a preview, as all it really does it get you wondering just what the heck is going on. It’s $2, so you can probably get a copy of it off the Alternative Comics website. I’d recommend just getting the first book, frankly, as these two have completely won me over. His stuff might break through to the mainstream if he keeps this up, if that’s what he’s looking for. Other contact info is up there…
Comments Off on Hurd, Damon & Camello, Pedro – A Sort of Homecoming (advance preview) | Reviews | Tagged: A Sort of Homecoming, Advance Preview, Damon Hurd, Pedro Camello | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
My Uncle Jeff
Wow, my scanner finally made a cover look better than it actually did. Not that it’s a bad cover, it’s just a plain grey background instead of the patchwork-like cover up there. You guys are used to me rambling aimlessly in these reviews by now, right? Good. This book has apparently gotten a mountain of good press, although I haven’t been around comic stores enough in the last year to have heard any of it. Not to ruin the surprise or anything, but let me go ahead and add my voice to that list. If you have any questions at all about this book after you read it (and I had a few), they are going to be answered in the lengthy afterward from Damon. This, despite its short size, really is a “novella”, as the cover suggests. It’s the story of Damon’s family, primarily dealing with his father’s side. He still gives a wonderfully descriptive family tree of the other side of the family and his reasoning for not dealing with them in so long. It doesn’t seem necessary at first glance, but it really does help in the big picture. It’s mostly, as he says in the afterward, a love letter to his favorite uncle, and the opportunity to tell the highlights of Jeff’s life through Damon’s eyes. The minutiae of family life are all on display here, good and bad, with no apologies given and none necessary. Jeff is Damon’s favorite uncle because he’s always managed to stay free. He may be broke, but Jeff understood at an early age that freedom was much more important than material goods, and it’s a lesson that Damon has taken to heart. This is a moving, honest story about a man who has to reconcile his freedom with the need to care for his ailing father, even though that’s only a tiny part of the story, if that makes any sense. It was also nominated for an Eisner, although I don’t know if it won. $3.95, check out the website or just send Damon an e-mail.
Comments Off on Hurd, Damon & Camello, Pedro – My Uncle Jeff | Reviews | Tagged: Damon Hurd, My Uncle Jeff, Pedro Camello | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Sermons #1
Generally speaking, sketchbooks don’t do much for me unless i am really into the work of the guy doing them. Too many people seem to do them instead of putting out a “real” new book. Well, Kevin could do pretty much anything and I would enjoy it, based on what I’ve seen so far, and this has the added bonus of being done in church, so it’s pretty introspective. Sloppy as can be, and some of that handwriting is downright indecipherable, but if you’re a fan of his work, this is a great peek into his brain. And, in case religious subject matter just bores the crap out of you, this doesn’t have a bit of preaching in it, it’s just him sitting in church thinking and/or sketching people. Good stuff as always. $1
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Sermons #1 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Sermons | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Or Else #3�
| The comic’s world is a better place when Kevin Huizenga is making comics. This is something that can be said for a few people, such as (and please don’t think this is anywhere near a complete list) John Porcellino, Jim Woodring, Dan Clowes, Renee French, and Chester Brown. Some of those people are still producing on a regular basis, and some have more or less moved on, but their defining characteristic to me is that my day is vastly improved when I happen across a new book from any of them. That being said, I thought it was great news when I heard that Kevin had a regular comic with Drawn & Quarterly. To those of you who knew about him all along, this is something of a mixed blessing, as this issue of Or Else is filled mostly with material that was already released in old issues of his (is it too soon to call it “classic”?) mini comic Supermonster. He punches up the art for these stories, although it’s hard to notice without the original material close by. For everybody in the world who didn’t see Supermonster or just couldn’t get any copies of the minis before they sold out, this is a wonderful way to get some of these stories in one place. Stories in here include I Stand Up For Zen (one of my favorites, as Kevin struggles with the moral dilemma of putting in the ad copy “Fashionably Zen” to some crappy spirit beads), and Al & Gertrude (about his older neighbors slowly losing their independence). There are also plenty of shorter stories dealing with subjects from a snippet from Kafka’s diary to dealing with sales tax over the phone. Great stuff as always from Kevin, and this reminded me that it’s been far too long since I’ve read most of his stuff, a situation I plan on remedying soon… $3.50
|
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Or Else #3 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Or Else | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Or Else #1
i really need to get to the comic store more often. That’s the only reason I can think of for not knowing that Kevin has a new series out, when his last series became one of my favorite things in the world in no time at all. In this one you have a Glenn Ganges story (which, really, is more of a tease than anything else), a slightly re-jiggered version of a story from Supermonster #9 called NST ’04 that’s impossible to describe accurately in less than a day, Fight or Run (which is also indescribable but for completely different reasons), Chan Woo Kim (an idyllic collection of drawings with text from actual adoption papers), And Jeezoh, which is about the spirit that protects children from the demons in hell. I think I liked his original version of NST ’04 better, but this is done right after reading a bunch of comics from Dave Kiersh, which automatically makes this one fascinating. Every time I see one of his comics it’s guaranteed to improve my day, so my review is not at all unbiased. Still, if you still haven’t seen any of his comics, go through the Supermonsters and come back for this one. $3.50
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Or Else #1 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Or Else | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Drawn & Quarterly Showcase Book One
I want to make one thing very clear, as this review isn’t going to be all positive: I think Kevin Huizenga is one of the most important people doing comics today. His Supermonster series is one of the best things to come out in recent years. It’s something that gets significantly better with each issue (kind of like Eightball), and if there’s any justice in the world he’ll be rich and famous soon and maybe we can see reprints of the older, out-of-print issues. That being said, of course I had nothing but the highest expectations going into this, and those expectations are almost impossible to live up to. It didn’t happen this time around. Kevin has half of a new Drawn & Quarterly Showcase, and he has a few stories in here, all centered around “Glenn Ganges”. If you’re not following, check the rest of the reviews on this page. The first story is an odd, rambling tale about missing children and refugees from Sudan. Boiled down to the simplest possible terms, of course, which is hard to do with his work. The ending is just odd and this should probably have been broken up into two stories, if the universe was under my command. Then there’s the best piece in the book, an adaptation of the fairy tale “The Feathered Ogre”. It’s a long piece and an absolutely bizarre story, about a couple trying everything they can to conceive a child. Great stuff and worth getting the book just for that, although I should mention somewhere that this book is $14.95, so I guess you have to decide that “worth it” thing for yourself. Finally there’s a story about bird migration, still slightly connected to the previous adaptation. I actually learned a lot with this one, so there’s not too much bad to say there. Overall, he’s done better work, but this is still a pretty solid bunch of stories. I’d say get his Supermonster stuff first, if you haven’t already, and then check out this book. Although you might want to know about the other half of the book too, so you can make an informed purchase and all that, so check out my Nicolas Robel review, why don’t you…
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Drawn & Quarterly Showcase Book One | Reviews | Tagged: Drawn and Quarterly Showcase, Kevin Huizenga | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Supermonster #14
How do you top an issue that has the best story of the year in it? Well, you start by putting out a much bigger issue than the last, and then you throw in an utterly unique fold-out centerfold that has to be seen to be believed. I was going to scan it for you guys but screw that, buy the book. No, I’m not going to describe this one either. OK, Glenn Ganges goes to the grocery story. Happy? Listen, in my humble opinion, you can’t go wrong with this guy. If I see anything to change my mind about that, you’ll be the first to know, OK? For now, if you can only afford one of these books, get #13. And #14. And probably #12 too, and #11, and #10, and #9…
Send him money the old fashioned way at: P.O. Box 12999 St. Louis, MO 63157. Or e-mail him. Or go to his page, the one I already told you about…
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #14 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Supermonster #12
A story about some old neighbors who quietly fade away and a mostly wordless tale about Glenn Ganges in the Wild Kingdom. I ran out of words to say how good all this was a while ago, folks.
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #12 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Supermonster #11
If I had any vague, ill-formed complaint about the other two issues, it would be that they were too short. He answers this “problem” admirably in this issue. A great story about him dealing with his bank and some new fees, a philosopher wondering about the meaning of everything, and a story about a diner where people hang out through the wee hours of the night. This is the one that I’d start recommending to absolutely everybody instead of just mostly everybody.
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #11 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Supermonster #10
This one is an illustrated letter from his Grandma. Again, simple, innocent and wonderful. Writing about these things seems silly, everybody should just go out and buy them. But I guess that’s why I’m writing anything here at all, right? To convince you to listen to some guy you’ve never met? How about this: If you like John Porcellino (and if you don’t, get the hell off my page), you’re going to love Kevin Huizenga.
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #10 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
WebsiteÂÂ
Supermonster #9
I want to say right away that this guy is incredible, amazing, tremendous, and every synonym you can think of for those words. I had heard about him for a while and he blew his hype away, which is more than I can say for most folk. You can’t go wrong with any of these books, really. I’m on the hunt for all the back issues that I missed, and you can find at least one issue on his website (which is also incredible, www.usscatastrophe.com) . This one is the story of an adoption told alongside some beautiful drawings of trees. If that sounds corny, you’re thinking about it too much. It’s wonderfully done and I was already thinking at this point (I ordered #9-14 all at once) that I was in for a real treat.
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #9 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Supermonster #7
Here’s another review of an old comic, as this one is from 1998 (or at least I think it is, it’s not like most minis bother to mention the publication date) and I’m writing this review in early 2010. Once again, I don’t think this is available anywhere outside of an old bargain bin at one of the few good comic stores, assuming you’d even be lucky enough to find something like this is one of them. It’s also hard not to notice that my reviews on this page were the length of haiku’s, as I apparently hadn’t yet mastered the art of rambling about nothing and filling space. As you can see from the fact that I haven’t even mentioned the comic yet, I’d say that I have developed some serious “skills” in that regard. This is the story of a walk. Sounds simple enough, and would be dull as hell in less skilled hands, but Kevin manages to make it engrossing. Kevin has recently moved to a new neighborhood, so he wanders out early one morning to get the lay of the land. Along the way he stops and notices the little things: voices through screen doors, wind whistling through the grass, kids on playgrounds, birds tweeting from wires, a hint of shampoo on the breeze. You really have to fight against the sense of calm you get from reading one of his books, assuming that you have something against calm. I still think that he reached a ridiculously high level with later issues of this series that he hasn’t quite reached by #7, but it’s still better than an awful lot of the other minis out there. If you can find this anywhere, you could probably get it for a couple of bucks.
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #7 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Supermonster #6
Hah! Look, he had some awkward moments too at the start! Sorry, but the guy was just too amazing for words up until I got a couple of older issues. Don’t get me wrong, this one is still amazing and well worth picking up for anybody who can find it, but it’s not the life-changing read that everything after, say, #12 was. This one has the story of him playing a video game walking around, telling a phone story, and retelling a college tale (or making one up), along with a couple of shorter pieces. A couple of things verge on awkward, true, but this is worth picking up for the end of the video game part alone. I still think that I would have thought he was amazing if I had seen this issue first, now I’m all spoiled from the incredible work he has done lately.
Comments Off on Huizenga, Kevin – Supermonster #6 | Reviews | Tagged: Kevin Huizenga, Supermonster | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
April 24, 2010
Website
Bumperboy #3 Now Available! $3.25
What a fantastic cast of characters. Nuts the Squirrel, the Banana Posse, Stompy the Elephant, Peevo, Starbo, Big Baby, Gotar the Robot, and (my personal favorite even though we only see him for a brief moment) Cheepoo. If I had any pull in the entertainment world I’d say this universe is ready and waiting to be made into a cartoon. This issue is the marbles tournament that has been coming for the previous two issues, and she even managed to surprise me on the ending, which is always a good thing. This series is gorgeous and it’s fun. It’s a bit simplistic at times, granted, but that doesn’t take a thing away from the positives in here. More comics soon please! Let’s just say this one is $3 too, even though it’s a bit bigger than the other ones…
Comments Off on Huey, Debbie – Bumperboy #3 | Reviews | Tagged: Bumperboy, Debbie Huey | Permalink
Posted by Kevin
