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Archives for February 2013

Big Arse 3 Comic Book Launch

February 28, 2013 by

big-arseAnother comics treat for Melbournites or anyone keen enough to travel. The Big Arse 3 Comic Book Launch is on this Saturday at 2.00pm. The full details via Facebook:

 

It’s that time of the year when the giant arse from space hovers over Melbourne and delivers us a great golden shower of comics. Raise your fresh faces to the delicate rain of intelligent writings and brilliant drawings of dozens of writers and artists from around the world.

Contains adult themes, rock’n’roll, drugs, dirty talk, scuds of nudity, weird sex, tons of violence and other fun things that shouldn’t be taken seriously.

Hosted once again by the notorious kingpin of the Melbourne comic scene, Mr Bernard Caleo.

Venue website – http://sentidofunf.com.au/

THE BOOKS AND COMICS!

A BRUSH WITH DARKNESS
By Dillon Naylor

ADVERSARIES
By M. Emery

LADY McBLACK #1
By Jason Franks

BALLANTYNE: THE FLAW IN THE JEWEL
By Peter Foster

BUDD & LUU – PART 1
By Frank Candiloro

VELOCITY Vol. 3
By Various

AWAKENINGS #2
By Jesca Marisa

YUCK! #7
By various and nefarious

MR UNPRONOUNCEABLE ADVENTURES
By Tim Molloy

STRANGE BEHAVIOUR
By Marijka Gooding

DIGESTED #6
By Bobby N

GRAPHIC/NARRATIVE #1
By Brendan Halyday

KRANBURN #6
By Ben Michael Byrne

SEVEN #2
By Alisha Jade

UNGENRED
By Jason Franks and various artists

Damn I wish I lived in Melbourne…

Filed Under: Industry News Tagged With:

Webcomic Wednesday – His Face All Red

February 27, 2013 by

Hello and welcome to Webcomic Wednesday! Each week I take a look at a webcomic and let you know what I think about it. This week I’ve been on a bit of a horror-story kick, so I’m looking at Emily Carroll’s short comic from 2010 His Face All Red.

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I’m a huge fan of horror in any form, and while much of the genre finds itself occupied with gore and violence, the horrors that stick out the most to me play with fear as opposed to shock. Emily Carroll’s His Face All Red not only manages to create feelings of fear and mystery but also rewards the reader’s intelligence in a way that creates a satisfying tale in the short time it occupies.

It’s hard to talk about His Face All Red without spoiling any key plot points and any of the twists, but it follows an unnamed protagonist who is tasked, with the help of his brother, to kill a beast living in the forest beside his town. The story takes twists and turns that are fantastic, and Carroll’s handling of the tale is masterful thanks to her ability to show rather than tell.

Through her art and implied dialogue we learn important character beats without it being outright stated to us, and in the incredibly short form it works to the story’s benefit. The eschewing of any actual violence also lets the imagination do the work, which creates an uncomfortably gothic tale. The art, which at first feels like it won’t service the tale, allows the more horrifying parts to stand out due to its “nice” style, and in the end complements the story well.

His Face All Red is a short one, but it’s a fantastic story. So few stories are able to portray character beats and horror in such little space. You can find it here, and more of Carroll’s work on her site.

Have any webcomics you want me to check out? Let me know on my twitter @Pipes815, or send me a message via our contact form.

Filed Under: Webcomics Tagged With:

Mini Reviews: Daredevil, Todd The Ugliest Kid, Judge Dredd

February 26, 2013 by

todd-number2My monthly stash of comics has arrived from my ‘neighbourhood’ comics store, so I thought I’d post a 10-20 word mini-review for each of them. So here goes:

Todd, The Ugliest Kid On Earth #2: As per my original review, I love this book and the second issue continues the quality story. Will be very sorry to see this finish with issue #4.

Judge Dredd #4: I’m starting to get my doubts about this one – can’t put my finger on it exactly yet but the shortened second story in the book doesn’t link that well to the main story for me.

Daredevil #23: Still quality, the story arc is getting ever closer to showing who’s causing Daredevil all his problems.

Hoax Hunters #7: I think I’m about to give up on this one – the story is just too jarring – some bits meander, other parts just plain don’t flow for me. Love the concept but the story is killing it for me.

Daredevil End Of Days #5: As I’ve said already, you should be buying this book – it’s going to be considered a classic.

Filed Under: Marvel, Review Tagged With:

Ten Comic Movie Oscars I’d Like To See Awarded

February 25, 2013 by

oscarGiven the Academy Awards are on as I write this, I thought I’d engage in a little fantasising of comics-related movies I’d like to see popping up at future Oscars ceremonies. Would love to have your suggestions in comments below as well!

Here we go – my Top Ten Fantasy Oscar Awards:

Best Director: Ridley Scott for Rogue Trooper

Best Actor: Ricky Gervais as Deadpool in Deadpool: The Older Years

Best Actress: Sophie Lowe as Raina in Blankets

Best Supporting Actor: Andre Braugher as Tyrone Johnson in Cloak and Dagger

Best Animated Feature: Maus

Best Writing – Original Screenplay: Alan Moore for Sgt Rock

Best Documentary – Feature: John Byrne and Frank Miller: Angry Men in a Hot Tub

Best Cinematography: Munn Powell for Dan Pussey

Best Original Score: Bruno Mars for Dazzler Returns

Best Visual Effects: Spawn

Ok, your turn. Comment on how sane or stupid my suggestions are and/or suggest your own awards!

Filed Under: Humour, Industry News, Opinion

Seduction of the Innocent: Officially Bullshit

February 25, 2013 by

wertham seductionWho’d a thunk? The notorious work from Dr Frederic Wertham, Seduction of the Innocent, which made the case for comics being moral-destroying works, has been found to be crap:

A University of Illinois academic, Carol Tilley, has accessed Wertham’s papers, which were made public in 2010 (Wertham died in the early 1980’s). The summary:

Behavioral problems among teenagers and preteens can be blamed on the violence, sex and gore portrayed in the media marketed to them – that was the topic of televised public hearings held by the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency in 1954 to address the scourge of comic books. The hearings, which resulted in the decimation of what was an enormous comic book industry, had been inspired in large part by the book “Seduction of the Innocent,” by psychiatrist Fredric Wertham, based on his own case studies.

Wertham’s personal archives, however, show that the doctor revised children’s ages, distorted their quotes, omitted other causal factors and in general “played fast and loose with the data he gathered on comics,” according to an article by Carol Tilley, published in a recent issue of Information and Culture: A Journal of History.

For those who like/love comics, it always reeked of being a witch hunt and Tilley’s work has pretty much confirmed that lock, stock and barrel. Read all the details here.

Filed Under: Industry News, Opinion Tagged With:

Sunday Snippets Issue 1

February 24, 2013 by

sunday-snippets

A regular roundup of interesting bits and pieces from the comic industry worldwide. If you’ve got an event or other piece of news to share, please drop us a line!

John Romita Sr’s artwork for The Death of Gwen Stacy issue of Amazing Spiderman has hit close to 300K in bids – there’s an interesting paragraph on Stan Lee’s blindspot with blondes and comic plotting.

Sad news of Scott Clark suddenly passing away at the age of 43

Issue #3 of the UK street press comics magazine Off Life is available for free right here. Some very nice work in it that’s worth checking out.

The London Super Comic Convention is on this weekend – it’ll be interesting to see what announcements come out of it.

If you like old Marvel comic art, it’s hard to go past this little blog.

Filed Under: Industry News Tagged With:

Review: Yi Soon Shin, Warrior and Defender

February 21, 2013 by

Yi Soon Shin ReviewIt’s easy to get jaded in comics, as like any medium there’s only so many variants on a theme, particularly in action-based comics. So when I received a review copy of Yi Soon Shin, Warrior and Defender, I was expecting more of the same. I’m pleased to say I was very much proven wrong, with this trade of the first four issues of the series a solid and engaging read.

The scope of the story is nothing short of an outright war between Korea and Japan in the late 16th Century, and it starts out with one of the great naval battles that occurred. It sets the scene nicely for the political and military intrigues that follow. You’ll want to spend some time reading through the beautifully illustrated and notated background information, to fully appreciate the scope of the events being illustrated.

Onrie Kompan’s writing shows the research he’s put into the topic and really does showcase what a rich part of history he’s drawing from. The dialogue is far from dry and although there are some infrequent parts where the dialogue is a little jarring given the setting, (“Because you fucks are gonna help me murder that son of a bitch” is one example), it doesn’t happen enough to undermine what is a well-written story.

Art-wise, Giovanni Timpano’s work is exemplary – from the more detailed discussions that occur through to the splash pages, it’s quality form start to finish – Adriana De Los Santos’ colours definitely help out in a big way here, with some great work across the board. I struggle to comment much on letterers a great deal of the time, but even Joel Saavedra’s work here helps the book along.

Overall, this is a very high quality, independently produced piece of work that deserves some attention. Stan Lee provides a foreword (I’d love to know the story of how Onrie Kompan pulled that off) and although Stan can tend toward hyperbole (there’s an understatement), the praise he provides for this book is well deserved.

Whether you’re a student of history, a jaded comics reader looking for something meaty or just someone who likes a good story, Yi Soon Shin: Warrior and Defender is definitely worth a look. You can find out more at the book’s website. If you want a more in-depth review, it’s hard to go past Jeff Ritter’s one here as well.

Score: 9/10

 

Filed Under: Graphic Novels, Independents Tagged With: ,

Webcomic Wednesday – Moth City

February 20, 2013 by

Hello and welcome to Webcomic Wednesday! Each week I take a look at a webcomic and let you know what I think about it. This week I’m taking a more local route and checking out Moth City, a digital comic from Wellington based creator Tim Gibson.

Moth City Webcomic Review

I’m guessing that probably ninety percent of my comics are purchased digitally through the Comixology app. In much the same way that my gaming library is mainly composed of Steam-bought titles, my comics library is very much relegated to my iPad. Despite the popularity of the app – Comixology regularly boasts as being the top grossing for in-app purchases- very few companies make interesting use of the format itself outside of a few examples (last year’s  AvX: Infinite series is one example).

Tim Gibson’s webcomic Moth City not only embraces the digital realm as a means of distribution, but capitalises on the possibilities that print comics cannot. In short, Moth City is an evolution of the comic form.

Moth City very rarely remains static. Panels often shift and change; eyes will move, lights will flicker. It even allows the reader to focus on the image at times before the speech bubbles appear. It’s not only an economy of space – each panel allows for more than one action to take place – but it looks stylish as well. It feels more akin to a motion comic, except it lets the reader move at their own pace.

Alongside the motion, the building of the page panel-by-panel as you click lets the story feel like you are watching a film. Gibson appears to direct the action – at certain points only a small part of the panel will be shown before it expands out to show the bigger picture. It gives more freedom for storytelling, rather than filling the page with clutter with panels showing a step-by-step, it allows for more information in one panel to be taken in. It lets the reader focus on what’s important before pulling back to show the big picture.

Use of digital format aside, Moth City is a great read. A noir crime drama set on a Chinese island in the 1930’s, it moves at a brisk pace, full of suspense and action. Almost at the end of it’s first “season”, Moth City is building towards an exciting finale, injecting equal parts mystery and horror into the latter half.

The art is strong, with a dark colour palette that compliments the tone of the story. Despite the changing nature of panels, Gibson takes into careful consideration how the action should show, like the lights dimming over a character, and this attention to detail is a treat to see. Moth City knows its unique format, and moves to work with it.

Like I mentioned before, Moth City is nearing the end of its first season next Monday, and you should definitely check it out before then. It’s the evolution of an art form, showing the potential of digital comics has, and it’s an exciting future.

It’s updated every Tuesday and Thursday NZ time, and you can check it out here.

Have any webcomics you want me to check out? Let me know on my twitter @Pipes815, or send me a message via our contact form.

Filed Under: Webcomics Tagged With:

Review: Batman “Death of the Family” – Scott Snyder & Greg Capullo

February 18, 2013 by

Batman Death of Family Review(Note: the Death of the Family arc compiles issues 13-17 of Batman)

When I reviewed Batman #13, the first issue of “Death of the Family”, back in December, I posed the question of this arc’s place within the Dark Knight’s story hall of fame. Would it be able to stand up to the likes of The Killing Joke or Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, some of the greatest works in comic history, or would it pass by leaving the Batman mythos largely unchanged? Following the conclusion of the arc in Batman #17 less than a week ago, it’s safe to say that not only is this a fantastic look at the Batman- Joker relationship, but leaves the entire Bat-family in an interesting predicament.

The Joker takes centre stage for the arc, and the creative team make sure you know it. Capullo pulls no punches in creating a truly terrifying rendition of the character – his face rots before the reader’s eyes in horrifying beauty. This is some of Greg Capullo’s best work on Batman – the Joker’s face pulls and twists as events play out, and Capullo manages to portray emotions of a man who lacks many of the features that people actually need to do so. It’s twisted, disgusting and beautiful all at once.

Art elsewhere is also a treat. Aside from the Joker, there are many other gruesome scenes that colourist FCO Plascencia and Capullo craft excellently. Alongside the story beats, Bruce Wayne’s emotions run wild in this arc – Capulo shows anger, desperation, and sadness, seemingly with ease. I’m a huge fan of his take on an enraged Batman, and this is delivered in large doses.

In the end, art wouldn’t matter if the story wasn’t up to the same standard. Thankfully Scott Snyder delivers in producing one of the most interesting takes on the Joker/Batman dynamic. Snyder places Batman on a pedestal for the Joker, showing an almost fanatical love for his nemesis, much in the same way a patriot would love their king. The Joker feels that the Bat-family drags Batman down, that his family isn’t what makes Batman – it’s the Joker that does. The Joker honestly believes he understands Batman better than anyone, and that his plan will restore his “king” to his former glory. It’s a sick and twisted love story – and just in time for Valentines Day.

Snyder also creates tension with Bruce’s understanding of his nemesis as well. He holds his family at arms length, feeling that his understanding of the Joker is what can save them, and that this is something only he can handle. The way Bruce deals with his family is patriarchal, and leads to some great moments of tension.

These events all come to a head in an explosive final showdown, providing one of the most memorable exchanges between these two characters. Not only does it highlight their relationship in a succinct manner, but it also provides character development that I honestly did not expect to see. Without spoiling anything, this is best exchange between the two since The Killing Joke. Hands down.

When The Death of the Family finally reaches its phenomenal finale, it wont be what you expect. Snyder successfully manages to defy the expectations of what a status quo changing event can be, setting up a new world for Bruce Wayne to deal with. Snyder and Capullo’s take on the Joker  is not only one of this creative team’s best stories, but one of the best Batman stories ever. This is what events in superhero comics should aspire to be.

Score: 10/10

Filed Under: DC, Review Tagged With: , ,

Non-Canonical’s 150 Milestone Event

February 16, 2013 by

noncanoncial150It’s a regular wish of mine to live in Melbourne – for a whole range of reasons, one of which is it has one hell of an active comics community.

One very prominent example are the guys who run the Non-Canonical Comics Podcast (here’s a piece I wrote over at Bleeding Cool on them).

They’re about to hit their 150th episode and to coincide there’s a live event planned. The podcast will be recorded live of course, but there’s also a bunch of other stuff going on:

To celebrate our 150th episode, NonCanonical will be recorded LIVE at the John Curtin Hotel on Sunday 24th February.

2:30 pm. $5 entry.

For details about the show or our previously recorded episodes, visit noncanonical.com or facebook.com/noncanonical.

GIVEAWAYS. SPECIAL GUESTS. GAME SHOWS. SINGING.

LIVE.

They’ve announced that there’ll be a live Skype interview with Becky Cloonan, as well as prominent local creators on hand.

So if you live in the Melbourne area – this could be a damn good way to spend five bucks. And congrats to the guys on 150 episodes. I’ve only been listening since around episode 75 but it remains a great weekly listen.

Filed Under: Industry News Tagged With:
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