…get ready! The 19th issue of our beloved anthology will launch in just 8 days at SPACE on April 21-22! And for those of you who won’t be at the Small Press & Alternative Comics Expo, our own Andy Bennett will have copies available at the Pittsburgh Comicon that same weekend.
Here’s a tiny glimpse of what’s in store for you, from Dara Naraghi & Matt Kish’s Rube Goldberg-ian masterpiece, “From Green to Green.” And this is just the beginning!
PANEL 19: Green will continue our legacy of lovingly-crafted, hand-built comics, just as you’ve come to expect. Keep an eye on this spot for more leaks and peeks over the next 8 days.
Spotted this NYT article today:
Iranian Comic-Book Artists Seek a Unique, Local Identity
“Many young Iranian artists admit to a passion for comic books from the United States and Europe. They can be purchased in Tehran, though they are expensive and often covered with the censors’ black ink. But local artists say they are trying to stamp their work with an Iranian identity.
Life for them, though, is not easy because their creative aspirations are kept firmly in check by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, responsible for approving all publications in the country.”
I don’t really know what the comics scene is like in Iran these days. I’d imagine most of the fans are younger and tech savvy, so they probably get their hands on pirated scans. When I was a kid growing up there, comics meants Herge’s Tin Tin, and to a lesser extent, Asterix and Obelix. There were some Farsi translations of the more well-known American superhero comics as well – Superman, Batman, Spider-Man – but they weren’t nearly as popular.
On the last couple of trips that my parents took back to Iran, I asked them to look for locally produced comic books and graphic novels, but they didn’t have any luck finding them.
I’m not a gamer by any means, and certainly don’t have strong nostalgic feelings about old consoles, but even I found this to be pretty damn cool: Charles Lushear made a functional Nintendo Controller table from maple, mahogany and walnut. It’s for sale on Etsy for $3500.
Did I mention it’s functional?
Check out the other pics at the link, including the cool tag-team play option afforded by the controller ginormous size.
Since Matt and Tony were discussing James Robinson’s Starman in the comments section, I thought it appropriate to feature this page by artist Tony Harris:
From Starman #1 DC Comics, 1994.
(via The Daily Splash Page)
The floor plan’s been rolled out. Here’s where ‘Panel Row’ is seated…
looks like more of the Michigan contingent will make it out this year. Nate Powell, Tom Scioli, and John Porcellino are back as well as some regulars and new faces. Should be a good show. S.P.A.C.E. is on April 21st thru the 22nd. Same place. Same price to get in the door. See you there.
I missed out on this series by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray when it first came out, but if I remember right, Craig was a fan. It was one of those odd DC books that was mostly creator owned, and didn’t interact much with the rest of the DC universe. So, of course, it only made it a year. But apparently the rights have reverted back to Palmiotti and Gray, and they’re reprinting the series (minus the 3-issue Batman crossover) through Image.
And here’s the cool part: the books will be done in “oversized European hardcover album” format, to better showcase Phil Winslade’s art.
Winslade’s one of those under appreciated artists, so it’s cool to see his work get this treatment. I’ll probably check this out once it’s out.
Holy hannah, it’s a done-in-one!
I’m about a month late mentioning this, but Mr. Terrific No. 6 was a one-issue shot. In it, Mr. T fights an immaterial Frenchman, reminisces with an ex-girlfriend, and saves the day … all in 22 (or was it just 20?) pages.
It’s pretty standard superheroics, but we get some good characterization and some clever action. I’m continuing to enjoy Michael Holt’s point of view.
Meanwhile, around the NuDC, Batman’s feud with the Court of Owls spun its wheels, with a “Luke I Am Your Father”-caliber reveal. Shoehorning a new villain into the hero’s past is one of my least favorite tropes. It’s a way to build cheap heat around a new villain. And in Wonder Woman, the Amazons have been pretty heavily damaged, and there’s no hint of a plot yet.
Mr. Terrific has one more issue to go, and I’m going to miss it when it’s gone.
via ComicsAlliance, here are some previews of Ferret-fave Farel Dalrymple’s art from Rob Liefeld‘s Prophet.
The series is being written by Brandon Graham, a personal fave of mine.
Check it out, via ComicsAlliance:
Introducing a new and exciting look at Godzilla’s reign of destruction, courtesy of Orc Stain creator James Stokoe! The year is 1954 and Lieutnant Ota Murakami is on hand when Godzilla makes first landfall in Japan. Along with his pal Kentaro, Ota makes a desperate gamble to save lives… and in the process begins an obsession with the King of the Monsters that lasts fifty years! Don’t miss the first decade in a tale of a lifetime!
Although I’d much rather have him spend every waking second making more issues of Orc Stain, and have no interest in Godzilla, I’ll still be checking out this bad boy.
Because, you know, James Effin’ Stokoe!
I’m featuring one of the Vertigo series from yesteryear that I enjoyed a lot, The Crusades, by Steven T. Seagle and Kelley Jones:
This series about an armored knight running around the streets of modern day San Fransisco featured covers by a multitude of great artists. Featured above are 7 of my favorites, by: Christopher Moeller, Kent Williams, Duncan Fegredo, Mark Chiarello, and the last 3 by Aron Wiesenfeld.
This isn’t technically a splash page, but rather the inside front cover illustration for the hardcover graphic novel, Spider-man: Spirits of the Earth:
The book was written and illustrated by Charles Vess, and published by Marvel in 1990. The story takes Spider-man to Scotland, on a second honeymoon with his wife Mary Jane, wherein he runs afoul of a haunted castle.
It’s in full color, as you would expect, but this illustration in simple black and white is absolutely beautiful.