News, Views and Oddities, where we link to various bits and bobs which have grabbed our attention, encompassing comics, books, illustration, design and film. Clicking fingers at the ready.
Retrofit have currently got a mini-comic 5-pack offer, which includes L. Nichols’ Flocks, Brendan Leach’s New Sludge City, Gold Star by John Martz, Daddy Lightning by Tom Hart and Nathan Schreiber’s 4090 for a mere $20, so about £2.50 each . The first two of these comics are simply superb, so much so that each has a spot on my best of year list and John Martz’s Gold Star I can vouch for too. Honestly, it’s a great, great deal on some fantastic comics- if I didn’t have 3 of them already I would buy the hell out of that deal. Also, those are not the actual covers of the comics, but artful renderings. Just in case.
Tom Spurgeon’s compiled a list of the 10 least powerful people in comics. I expect this to become a regular thing. I’ll forgive him for not putting me on there this year, considering I’m barely in comics but I think I’ve found myself a New Year’s resolution.
This is interesting. . .
This week’s link that has been doing the rounds (I thought of a lovely simile as to what it had been doing the rounds like, but this is a respectable(ish) establishment, so use your imagination): the Bibliomat- a book dispensing machine that for $2 will bestow you with a random used book. Such a simple idea- anyone know of this or similar being done before?
Cartoonists respond to Gaza.
The Mysterious Case by Rich Tommaso
Rich Tommaso has 3 -count ‘em- new crime comics being serialised online: Killer in my Sleep and The Mysterious Case: Sam Hill 1939, which sees a continuation of the adventures of Sam Hill, first introduced in Tommaso’s book The Cavalier Mr Thompson (review of which very soon, I promise), and both of which are available on his site. The third and final one, Dry County, is updating on Study Group Comics.
One of these days Joseph Lambert will tweet that he has his ridiculously high quality yet ridiculously cheap art for sale in his store and I will make it in time to buy something. Anyway he’s gone and designed a humongous poster for the Center of Cartoon Studies which is a bit good and written up a blog post on process and design which you may like to read.
Hannah Berry on whether comics are better than prose.
The legendary Roger Ebert has a nice lengthy interview with director Ang Lee, in the lead up to his new film The Life of Pi.
Kelly Sue DeConnick on the challenges of establishing a stand alone female character in comics.
Steven Heller, former art director of the New York Times and author of Comics Sketchbooks, has a superb and varied column called The Daily Heller where he covers everything from typography, graphic design, print, comics and which you should definitely follow if any of those interest you.
By Will Morris
And finally, congratulations to Mr Will Morris who won the 2000AD portfolio competition at ThoughtBubble last weekend. Editor Matt Smith shortlisted the 8 entries forwarded for submission to the panel, which consisted of Frazer Irving, Simon Fraser, Rob Williams and Peter Doherty. All entrants were given the same Future Shocks script to work with and Will’s vision won, and will be seen in a future prog edition.
Thu, Nov 22, 2012
Comics and cartoons