Blog Archives
Miller, David – Larva Pimp
Larva Pimp
OK, I’ll confess, I officially have no idea whether or not these “monthly” Poopsheet books have actually been coming out monthly, and trying to narrow it down to just the subscription comics on the Poopsheet website is a bit baffling. But really, what difference does it make? If Rick can manage to put 8 “monthly” books out a year, that’s still a pretty impressive achievement in the small press comics world. Meanwhile, I’m supposed to be talking about the comic itself and not the subscription service. It’s a simple but cute little story this time around. A pimp (a larva pimp, to be exact) decides to be lenient with a guy who owes him money. Word of his lenience gets back to his boss, and the reason for his change of heart soon becomes apparent. Which is, once again, just about all I can say without getting into spoilers, although with a mini this short there’s really only one big spoiler to avoid. Anyway, it’s a funny little comic, and you should be supporting the whole monthly mini comic idea regardless. If this makes Rick Bradford rich, maybe he’ll start hiring a bunch of small press comic artists to take over the world! Hey, you never know…
Bolman, Edward Parker – Noble Head Funnies #6
Boy howdy, this comics takes you on quite a journey. This is the first comic I’ve seen from Edward Bolman (and Poopsheet has quite a knack for publishing artists with little to no web presence, so no help there) so I had no idea what to expect. As usual, I’ll try to sum it up in my own vague, trying-not-to-give-anything-away way and, as usual, it’ll be up in the air as to whether or not I did more to help than harm. There are a number of distinct story nuggets in here, but most of them end up circling back around to the main story. Or maybe they all do and I missed it? Anyway, the main story deals with a dinner party in which the only 400 people in the city were scheduled to attend. But when one guest arrives she notices that the place is empty. She makes a call to complain, she is herself taken away, and the mystery is afoot! But the focus of the comic wanders to a few different areas after (and before) that, including a trampoline jump contest, chlurm, spiders and gorilla men, the moon kicking sand in the devil’s face, time travel with past issues, and a lovely dance. Oh, and let’s not forget the sassy nibbler. Edward also has quite the lyrical turn of phrase; if you know him I’d highly recommend that you get Patrick Stewart to narrate the comic as you read it. It kept me guessing and was hilarious at times, so I’d say that’s more then enough to recommend it to you discerning readers. $3, or check with Poopsheet about the monthly comics subscription program.
Poopsheet Foundation – Wag Rag #2
Poopsheet, a gentle piece of advice for your monthly mini comic service: put a clearly visible link to it on your main page somewhere! I eventually had to back out of your site and try again through Google to get the link, and that’s only because I knew it existed, which most people don’t yet because it’s a new (and great) idea. Unless there is a link that I just missed because I’m a dummy, but if that’s the case other dummies might want to read comics too, so make it idiot proof! That’s enough time on my teeny tiny soapbox today, how’s the monthly comic this time around? It’s a collection of strips from various artists, with stories dealing with Caesar Meadows showing various ways to start a strip, Roger Langridge showing four types of panels that always work, Billy McKay discovering what lives inside of his electric razor, and Hal Mundane getting into an argument with himself and losing. This was the monthly comic for October (it’s the start of December as I write this, meaning I’m a bit behind), but there is a new comic out for October, so here’s hoping that this is all still going well for Poopsheet. If you do appreciate the idea of a monthly mini comic service, I’m thinking that subscribing yourself would be a damned fine way to show that support… $5 (monthly)
Bradford, Rick (Poopsheet Foundation, editor, with various artists) – Wag Rag #1
For you comics whippersnappers out there, Poopsheet has been an ongoing online comics library for over a decade now, and if you ever want to buy a pile of mini comics, that should be the first place you stop. Rick Bradford (the head honcho over there) has started up a monthly comics service, meaning every month he publishes another comic (or two, like this month) and they’re delivered to your door. There’s a $5 monthly fee, and he’s using the proceeds to continue working on a mammoth online mini comic and fanzine database, which is a damned worthy cause. So now that all the specifics are out of the way, how about the comic itself? It’s a short anthology and the stories deal with misunderstanding Shakespeare (Roger Langridge), taking us all on a psychodelic journey (Caesar Meadows), and a brief saga about assault and card playing. Sort of, anyway. It’s an eclectic mix, and a solid start for this project. For what it’s worth, I’m all for this idea. Paying a monthly fee to help support a giant comics database like that is itself a ridiculously worthy cause, and you get monthly comics out of it to boot! What’s not to like? $5 (monthly, I assume you can buy these individually as well)
