Comments Off | Posted: November 14th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
Cheers To: W.W. Norton and designer Paul Buckley, for the gorgeous new paperback editions of Eisner’s novels. It’s nice to see an up-to-date design that doesn’t attempt to emulate Chip Kidd (whose work I very much like.)
Jeers To: The new Dick Tracy reprints. I’d go off on the subject, but you should just read Butcher’s take on the matter. While I’m exceedingly happy that Dick Tracy is getting a high-quality reprint series (it’s one of my all-time favorite strips) I just wish that there’d been a little more effort made on the part of everyone involved.
Still enjoyable, and I like how they’ve managed to make the real-world menace of lawyers more terrifying than anything else The Escapist fights. Probably my favorite Brian K. Vaughan work, mostly for its neatness: it’s done in six, that’s it.
DC Comics
JUL060153 ABSOLUTE DC THE NEW FRONTIER HC $75.00
I recently got this and it’s the closest DC has come to my Platonic ideal of what an Absolute edition should be. There’s a plethora of annotations and sketches in the back end and the additional story pages seamlessly expand the entire affair and clarify a few smaller point. Brilliant, breathtaking superhero comics that remind me why I love the Silver Age.
Screw this late-to-the-bandwagon manga crap! Watch awesome new anime instead!
AUG060185 SUPERMAN THE MAN OF STEEL VOL 5 TP $19.99
I think this is the end of the Byrne Superman material. I kind of have an affection for these comics, even if they aren’t actually that exciting. They’re just competent, readable superhero material. Plus, there’s a lot of Jerry Ordway art, and I love his Superman, even with that weird chin.
Image
APR061789 JACK STAFF #12 $3.50
Two in the same year? It’s official: Paul Grist has beat Frank Miller and Jim Lee’s combined comics productivity in 2006.
JUL061688 JOSS WHEDON IS MY MASTER NOW T/S LG $16.99 JUL061687 JOSS WHEDON IS MY MASTER NOW T/S MED $16.99 JUL061686 JOSS WHEDON IS MY MASTER NOW T/S SM $16.99 JUL061689 JOSS WHEDON IS MY MASTER NOW T/S XL $16.99 JUL061690 JOSS WHEDON IS MY MASTER NOW T/S XXL $17.99
If you are the sort of person that would buy this shirt, please do so. It will enable my stormtroopers to find you and execute you for declaring that a fair-to-middling TV writer is your master.
AUG061747 WATERLOO SUNSET TP $17.99
The solicitation says:
WATERLOO SUNSET is a maze of mysteries… Beware of too easy assumptions. They will perish, as truths are laid bare.
Thirty years ago London’s heart was stripped of what a modern city needs — food, water, power, medicine, transport, communications, security… The wreck survived.
Now a stranger arrives, bearing an urgent message. In days the destinies of London and of Earth will change.
Did anyone read this and/or like it? It sounds vaguely intruiging.
Marvel Comics
OCT051954 DAREDEVIL FATHER #6 (OF 6) $2.99
Ha. Ha-ha. Ha.
No wonder Marvel’s Civil War was allowed to slip so far: the EiC can barely finish a six-issue mini in two and a half years.
SEP062181 FURY PEACEMAKER TP $17.99
I think I ordered this, even though I bought the issues. I’m a bit of an Ennis fan, even if this Nick Fury story read almost exactly like an extended version of one of his War Stories comics. Very little makes the thing read like it’s about Nick Fury: Future Super Badass. I’d have also liked a few Howling Commandos thrown in, too. Still, it’s very enjoyable, taut, and full of Nazi-killing.
Other Companies
JUN063111 LUBA THREE DAUGHTERS TP $16.95
My copy arrived the other day, absolutely destroyed by a UPS person who must have been savagely retarded and enamored with the idea of carrying around wet paper. I should have another soon enough, but I figure this is evidence enough that UPS, when they’re not charging far too much to ship things, is coming up with new ways to mess with me.
Comments Off | Posted: November 13th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
Congratulations! You’ve gotten a comic book published! Now, before you go out into the world and look at reviews from various websites, there are a few things you should know about the comics blogosphere and the various review sites that are out there on the internet. It’s not all going to be tea and cupcakes: you will get at least a few negative reviews about your first work. Here’s a basic list of things to keep in mind when you encounter a negative review.
Your LiveJournal “friends list” does not necessarily reflect the taste of the general reading public.
Many creators like yourself find that water seeks its own level and they generally congregate around people with similar ideas and tastes. Sadly, this oftentimes warps the perceptions of the writer or artist and they find themselves wondering why somebody disliked or criticized their work when all their friends said it was brilliant. Realizing that people outside of your immediate circle can have valid opinions is an important first step that is absolutely necessary for any creator hoping to become a comics professional.
When a reviewer does not like your work and criticizes it for faults, do not immediately assume they are a moron.
The internet is, indeed, full of ill-informed people who spout complete claptrap at the drop of the proverbial hat, but take a few moments to read the review in full. Do they, in fact, make critical points that are worth consideration? If so, there are a number of reasons they may consider your work to be flawed and it is often worth your time to at least make note of them. You may wish to look at other reviews the person has put online as reference.
A reviewer may not necessarily like your work, but most likely still “gets it.”
Many times, a creator immediately assumes that their work was not properly received because the reviewer did not have the require brainpower to understand what was presented. In fact, if the creator has been sent a copy of your work by your publisher, it is likely that your publisher realizes that they may well be able to give it the thought needed. They may not blatantly state they understand the subtle nuance in your use of the rose, but it’s probably they noticed it and didn’t feel it worthy of comment.
The fact that a reviewer doesn’t make comics themselves does not automatically negate their comments about your work.
In much the same way that mechanics don’t need to understand the physics behind how a car works but can see if the fan belt has slipped off, reviewers can look at a completed work and dissect it in a way that provides the perspective needed by a creator and audience: the reader’s. Consider that some film critics like Pauline Kael were revered by filmmakers because of their insightful commentary.
Do not respond to a review or comment about your work in anything but a positive manner.
When you add a comment to a blog that has reviewed your work, you have to remember that it’s not only the reviewer that sees your words, but the site’s audience. They may only have 20 visitors a day, but some comics blogs see thousands of readers. Be polite, thank them for their time, and if they liked your work, thank them for their kind words. This should be the end of your commentary about the review. Engaging reviewers in a war of worlds never reflects well on the creator and remember the old marketing adage: people are three to ten times more likely to spread a negative impression than a positive one. Each time you make a statement in public concerning your work, you are engaging in marketing for yourself and your work. Do not endanger your fledgling career because of hubris.
Marketing yourself and your work includes your personal blog and website.
Avoid making negative comments about reviewers; they will find out about them and use them as fuel for a potential conflagration your fledgling career may not be able to escape from. You will also want to note that attacking your critics only gives them the opportunity to dismiss further work from you and makes for a contentious relationship with your publisher. Everything you do and say reflects not only on you, but the company that publishes your work. Nobody wants to work with a Negative Nancy, and you probably don’t want to be considered one.
You are not your comic.
Even if they said that your work was subpar, that shouldn’t be considered a reflection on you unless they blatantly insult you as a person. Take all commentary, good and bad, in stride and keep it separate from your ego if possible. It may be a good idea to speak to your friends about this if they end up commenting on your behalf. An overzealous friend can turn into your worst enemy if they insult the wrong person.
By following these basic tenets, you can find yourself growing as a comics creator. Besides, if you’ve had some negative reviews, you may learn something from them and be able to turn those critics’ frowns upside down!
Comments Off | Posted: November 13th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
Shaun Manning from Newsarama and I talk about comics and, in particular, BOOM! Studios.
NRAMA: You also mentioned having a story in Cthulhu Tales: The Rising. Now, Cthulhu doesn’t seem like one given to comedy. What can you tell us about your story in that book?
KC: My Cthulhu Tales story isn’t comedic, actually. I wanted to branch out a bit and ended up contributing a straight horror monologue to the book. My pal Josh Krach helped me out a bit when I was first trying to put it together by equating comedy and horror. They both involve a punchline, just one involves laughter and the other involves screams and agony.
My story’s called “The Art of Noises” and it’s about the secret history of 20th century music and how everyone’s favorite Lovecraft creation fits into the whole thing. I got the title from a famous essay by Luigi Russolo, who designed these beautiful noise generators in the first part of the last century, and the germ of the story came from Mahler’s Third Symphony, which has a key structure that was radically different from anyone else’s work at the time.
Wow, could that sound more pretentious?
Go read it here. There’s also some art by Abraham that, indeed, shows he drew the hell out of it.
Comments Off | Posted: November 13th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
…we’re back.
I stayed intentionally off-the-grid and tried to do some thinking and writing while in New York. Several projects are going on that I can’t quite talk about yet, but they’re way-neat and keen. Possibly spiffy.
Comments Off | Posted: November 9th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
I’ll probably do one of these with eMusic links and stuff next week, but here’s what hitting “Shuffle” on Mother Box coughed up.
“Tragedy (For You)” by Front 242 Brilliant, thrashing, stomping industrial from Belgium’s most fearsome-sounding band. I can go for a year or two without hearing it and the second I do, I go into full on “kicking stuff over” mode and want to have it on repeat for hours.
“King of Snake” (Ashley Beedle’s Save Our Discos Mix) by Underworld A dancefloor-friendlier version of the thrashing tune that formed the core of Beaucoup Fish. It’s actually pretty close to the original for long stretches, but does a few very memorable drop-outs are used for explosive effect and the pianos are a bit more forward in the mix. Hearing this on a loud sound system is pure pleasure. Underworld is my favorite band, even if I don’t blab about them very much.
“Dirty Harry” by Gorillaz. A funky number from Demon Days that builds perfectly. Starts off reminding me of a technofied version of many of the tunes from the Blue Note Breaks series before introducing the choir – all songs are improved by 20% with addition of a choir, by the way – and then the beats and rapping. Pimprolling music.
“Downtown” by the JAMMs. Take “Downtown” by Petula Clark. Add scouse rapping that’s awesome in its horribleness. Bring in a gospel choir (again with the choirs) to tell us that Jesus Christ was born today. Shake until you get one of the best pop songs ever. Denying its brilliance will get you marched off to reeducation facilities.
“Missing You” by Pete Namlook and Hubertus Held. This is from The Ambient Cookbook Volume 2 from FAX records, Namlook’s own label. Atmospheric, spacy-synth ambient music. It’s also known as “Sequential” by Sequenchill, but that name’s way, way too punny to get by with existing in my book. I tend to like almost everything put out by FAX, mostly because Namlook’s involved in almost every project and he’s damn near genius. There is some wanky guitar noodling in this, but it’s actually fairly decent for that sort of thing.
“Since I Lost My Baby” by Derrick Harriot and Chosen Few. I really love the Trojan Soulful Reggae box set, even if it’s basically just a giant Motown tribute album. This song, originally done by The Temptations, is perfect for this sort of a thing – jaunty bassline and a vocal melody that’s infectious. Almost good enough to make me drink a Red Stripe. I said almost.
“Can You Feel It” by Original Concept. I got this from one of those 80s underground hip-hop collections that was all the rage in the mid-90s. Sample-tastic , scratch filled, and full of massive 808 kicks. I like it because it reminds me of what I enjoy about most of Coldcut’s music without their more-than-occasional misfires. They’re better tastemakers and innovators than actual musicians, I think.
“Matamanda” by Spacer. I always forget I have this album on Mother Box. Better-than-middling electronic that snatches from house, ambient, and trance equally. The drums on this are really excellent – there’s a loop of snares over a beefed-up kick and a real jazzy feel surrounds the whole thing. It’d be good for a slow-motion chase scene. Not that there is such a thing.
“Shuffle Boil” (Retake) by Thelonious Monk. There’s some quite-good playing on this by everyone involved, especially Charlie Rouse on the sax. It’s from It’s Monk’s Time, one of the records he put on Columbia. That’s all I have to say about this song besides the fact that Monk always knew when to stop playing and let the song do its thing for a bit.
“Diane” by Charles Mingus. Oh, I do love Mingus Dynasty so very much. It’s a little batshit crazy, a lot funky, and there’s some arrangements that make my jaw drop – literally. At 2:30, the song makes this shift that’s dizzying. Mingus is still going to be ahead of everyone else in the 25th century, when cochlear implants generate fractal music to match our personal taste.
“Interzone” by Joy Division. This version’s actually when they were called Warsaw and I think it was Andrew at Armagideon Time that got me this. It’s very punk and spiky. It’s interesting to hear the band before Martin Hannett got his hands on them.
“Rain” by The Seatbelts. God, this is awful. I should delete it. In fact, I just did. Yeesh.
Comments Off | Posted: November 9th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
She was a sloppy bass player in crap punk bands. She’s got a hair-trigger temper and is sexually aggressive, frequently to the point of seeming-insanity. She was Latina with an different-from-the-norm sexuality long before Renee Montoya was outed and her relationship with best friend and lover Maggie Chascarrillo is tempestuous and fascinating. Her stories are told by one of the medium’s best artists and readers can track her growth as a person over multiple decades instead of the stasis so many characters are held in.
Comic Book Girlfriend #3 is Esperanza Leticia Glass, aka Hopey from Love and Rockets.
Comments Off | Posted: November 8th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
From the official site:
Wednesday evening (November 8th) Pet Shop Boys can be seen performing “West End girls” on “Dancing With The Stars – The Results Show” on ABC TV between 8 and 9 pm (Eastern Time). This show is one of the most popular on American TV, attracting some 20 million viewers.
On Friday, November 10th, Pet Shop Boys will be performing a song from Fundamental on “The Late, Late Show” which is broadcast nationally at 12.35 am (Eastern Time) on CBS TV.
I think it’s fantastic they’re getting to do the one song that American radio stations act like is their entire catalog on the Dancing With The Stars. I’d certainly hate to see them do a new-ish song, or even a song that’s not beaten to death.
(Hell, get Kelly Clarkson to do the Dusty bit on “What have I done to deserve this?” and that’s all the corporate synergy the suits need.)
Comments Off | Posted: November 8th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
I wonder how many of you immediately skip all this text when you see “Promotional” in the title or the giant graphic? Maybe I’m talking smack about your mothers here. Man. Anyway, the latest Nitroglycerin, which made me cackle a bit as I penned it, is available at the usual sites:
I should say the book we’re promoting this week, Pirate Tales, is dead good. Johanna Stokes and Julia Bax provided what was my favorite story (and one that Ragnell and Kalinara should read), but Rogers also handled himself quite well in a story that builds to one of the best “F$&K YEAH!” moments I’ve come across in a while. Hell, even the not-best of this particular book stands proudly. Good work from the mothership.
Comments Off | Posted: November 7th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
After that Harry Knowles entry, I should be nice to you people.
Star Wars: Rogue Squadron novels and comics. I just picked up the second omnibus for the Dark Horse comics and there’s so much nerditry dripping from the pages that I can wallow for quite a while.
Coltrane’s version of “My Favorite Things” from Live At The Village Vanguard – Again!. It seems like he loses it completely for a good ten minute stretch, moving in and out of the melody with these tiny snatches before bringing it home. It’s the jazz equivalent of the chariot race in Ben Hur, but with better drumming.
Speaking of the man, Ashley Kahn’s The House That Trane Built is a fascinating look at the rise of Impulse Records, one of my all-time favorite labels. Great anecdotes and lots of mid-century advertising that makes me weak in the knees from a design perspective.
Jazz in the autumn. Hard bop is the perfect music for walking around with leaves whipping around you.
Maakies. I’ve always sort of admired the strip, but getting a chance to wallow in it with a copy of Premillennial Maakies has put me into a fugue state where I am in constant need of more. I’m rather happy that a recent shipment of books to Chez Beaucoup included just that very thing.
Nude magazine. It declares itself “The UK’s best guide to the counter culture and beyond,” but I just really like the writing an awful lot. My favorite portion is the ongoing feature “Adventures In Stereo,” which you can read online as well as in print.
Comment below if you agree that he’s a shitstain in the underpants of humanity and purging our planet of his moronic dribblings would put us a long way towards making things right in the world. Not commenting is equivalent to siding with him and you’ll be among the first batch against the wall when the revolution comes.
Comments Off | Posted: November 6th, 2006 | Filed under:Uncategorized
Boy this week’s Diamond shipping list is paltry for me. Whatever shall I do?
Oh, right. Save money for my trip to New York this weekend. That’s it!
DC Comics
SEP060309 DMZ #13 (MR) $2.99
The beginning of the “Public Works” storyline, where Wood gets away from establishing Matty’s character and moving him to a certain place and starts using and the post-war New York as a springboard for deeper storylines. I’m actually fairly excited about this.
Image
AUG061774 PHONOGRAM #3 (MR) $3.50
I love it, and you should too. Fantastic comic that tickles the music nerd side of my brain quite nicely while managing to put across fairly complex ideas about magic. There’s a preview up at phonogramcomic.com.
AUG063286 ACTION PHILOSOPHERS ITS ALL GREEK TO YOU $2.95
If you’re not reading this, you’re not as smart as you could be! Hell, even Chris Sims likes this educational comic, and he’s what the comics industry calls “low-hanging fruit” when it comes to easy sales involving, say, punching and/or kicking.
SEP063017 EMO BOY VOL 1 NOBODY CARES TP (JUN068284) $13.95
It’s a comic about a librarian who travels through space and time to retrieve books. It’s funny, dense, and frequently features unlikely abuses of physics. It’s pretty much required reading, as far as I’m concerned.
AUG062949 URSA MINORS #3 $2.95
I’ve actually not read issue 2 yet, which Neil Kleid assures me is an improvement over the first, which I was left rather cool towards. As I like Neil an awful lot as a person (and creator,) I will probably re-evaluate when I get the second and third issues together.
JUL062943 WARREN ELLIS BLACK GAS 2 #1 $3.99
Honestly, I loved the horror movie ending the first series had and would have been happy if it’d just left us hanging, but enough interesting ideas were put forth about the zombism that I’ll pick this up, too.
