Wednesday, March 26, 2003
< comics/x >
COMIC ART #2
($9.00 ppd from Comic Art / 5715 Nottingham Ave. / St. Louis, MO / 63109 USA. Web: www.comicartmagazine.com)
For many comic art enthusiasts, this magazine is like a dream come true. It's full-color, on glossy paper and particular attention is given to design, but the best part is the art reproduced. Each issue features good-sized articles profiling some of the most interesting artists in the history of the medium and each of those articles is accompanied by a mouth-watering selection of original art, much of it rarely seen and some that was previously unpublished. This latest issue features Jack Cole (his girlie cartoons from the '50s), Hergé (Paul Gravett discusses the artist's "Clear Line" approach), Savage Pencil on the late Rory Hayes, the photorealistic comic strip trend of the '50s & '60s (lots of Alex Raymond originals), a career profile of Richard Sala, and an informative article about the Grand Comic Book Database. The issue also comes with a new 2-color comic insert by David Collier, a nice touch for a magazine focused mostly on the past.
Lest you think this issue is some kind of fluke, you should know that the premiere issue featured Frank King, Noel Sickles, Dan Clowes, Gary Panter, Tarpe Mills and an interview with Chris Oliveros of Drawn & Quarterly (and the comic insert is by Jaime Hernandez). These folks are not messing around.
Nine dollars may seem a bit pricey for a magazine, but no other magazine does what Comic Art does. I recommend it highly and hope they can keep doing it for a long, long time.
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< comics/x >
SHOULDN'T YOU BE WORKING?
(published by Fantagraphics Books, www.fantagraphics.com; Johnny Ryan's site: www.johnnyr.com)
This is an 80-page collection of drawings Johnny Ryan ( Angry Youth Comics) did while on the clock at a urological clinic (no, really). I really enjoy looking at other artists' rough sketches and doodles, so naturally, I dig this book. If you've read Johnny's comix, then you know what to expect: grotesque characters engaging in juvenile gags about bodily functions. Et cetera. Lots of classic lowbrow influences show up in his work just as he's become one himself. Not for the easily offended, but recommended just the same.
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SNAKEPIT #29 vs. AMAZING ADULT FANTASY #18
(send a stamp to Ben Snakepit / PO Box 49447 / Austin, TX / 78765 USA or Tim Doyle / 924 E. 40th, #106 / Austin, TX / 78751 USA. Snakepit online: www.youngamericancomics.com/snakepit)
When I first became aware of Tim Doyle and Ben Snakepit they worked across the street from each other and both were publishing monthly diary comics (still are) that you could pick up around town. As you might imagine, the local market for free diary comics is a cruel one. Well, it seems now that all of the tension and fierce competition has finally come to a head and this combo/split issue will decide who shall be forever victorious. Yep, the readers are asked to vote for their favorite of the two (at the URL above) and the loser "has to stop drawing comics forever!". They both swell guys who draw fun comics, so it's a tough call and puts me in quite a moral dilemma, as I'm sure you can imagine. Both of their strips are presented here in chronological order, alternating with one another, and it's interesting to see how similar or different any given day's content can be. This issue also features intimidating centerspread photos of the two cartoon combatants. Frightening!
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Thursday, March 20, 2003
< comics/x >
PLASTIC FARM #1
"Prologue" by Rafer Roberts with a backup feature, "The Hope," written by Sean C. Duffy, drawn by Jake Warrenfeltz
( www.plasticfarm.com)
Review by Carol Pond
Rafer Roberts restarts Plastic Farm as a full-size, professionally printed comic book. "Prologue" introduces a couple of guys, one who's had a bad blackout and can't remember much of anything, but seems to think he's been possessed by a fictional character known as the Kamikaze Kid. The story segues into a story about the Kamikaze Kid before shifting back to the other two guys. It all seems to revolve around a woman named Sean. The art in the main story is rough and scribbly, while the Kamikaze Kid story is a bit smoother with more of a grey wash feel to it. The very first page of the comic is a rather poetic dream sequence: "i go to the marshmallow car" is my favorite line from the whole book. "The Hope" is a science fiction story with clean artwork mostly contrasting light and dark. Some astronauts discover the inhabitants on a planet that is inhospitable to humans. It promises to continue in future issues.
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< zine:personal >
SATAN'S PANTIES #6
($2.00 + 2 stamps from Alli / PO Box 761 / Mountain View, CA / 94042 USA. Web: http://www.shadowside.com/panties.html)
Review by Matt Holdaway
I really, really love Alli's style. Her zine is one of the most honest and soul-baring works I have seen. It reads like a letter to a long lost best friend and you leave with a feeling of understanding not common with most writing. It makes me feel sad for Alli for the hardships that she has to face, but her courage and fire can not be extinguished. Her layout is a bit rough, and she uses so many different fonts, which can be slightly distracting, but only to the highly anal, like myself. It really doesn't take away from the heart and grit that is presented and I believe that the fonts are not chosen at random, but more selected to compliment the feel of the works. For sure, send 2 bucks and 2 stamps to Alli. To get a feel for what to expect, go check out www.shadowside.com for her distro which also has a number of her writings on it.
[ Matt Holdaway writes for A Multitude of Voices and his writings have appeared in a number of other publications. You can read more of his work at www.altgeek.net. ]
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Wednesday, March 19, 2003
< comics/x >
DREAM
($7.50 ppd from George Parsons / PO Box 2027 / Nevada City, CA / 95959-1941 USA. Web: www.dreamgeo.com)
Two things: First, although the publisher is the same, this is a different beast from Dream Magazine, which was reviewed earlier on this site. Second, this is not a new book. It was originally published in 1995, but it's still available from the publisher. I don't want to get into the habit of reviewing old books, but in this case I couldn't resist.
Dream is a comix anthology with a line-up that reminds me of what I loved about alternative comix in the '90s. Many of these cartoonists, sadly, have moved on to more commercial (read: $) work. The general theme of this collection is dreaming, but there's much more going on than just adaptations of nocturnal fantasies. As with editor George Parsons' Dream Magazine, the concept of dreaming is not limited to sleep activity.
My absolute favorite piece happens to be Parsons' six-page story about the death of his father and the dream that helped him regain peace of mind. It's beautiful and feels real. My second favorite would have to be Mack White's "The Chuck Carson and Boy Howdy Show". It's the tragic story of a has-been kids' entertainer who's had one too many and, like Parsons' "Dad", features a dream that figures into the ending. It's quirky and unsettling and, in my opinion, the kind of work White does best. There are a number of other stories that also affected me strongly, but I'll not go piece by piece. I will say, however, that this is a well-rounded, worthwhile project and I'm happy to have it in my library. A partial list of the remaining creators includes Eddie Campbell, Wayno (boy, I wish he'd do more comix), JR Williams (ditto), Dennis Worden, P. Shaw, Danny Hellman, Jim Woodring, Mary Fleener, Roy Tompkins, Joe Coleman, the Pizz, Dan Clowes (great sketchbook stuff), Steven Cerio and lots more. Recommended.
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< comix/travel >
SHOT BY A RAYGUN Jan. 2002
($1.00 or trade from Billy McKay / PO Box 542 / N. Olmsted, OH / 44070 USA)
Shot By a Raygun is Billy McKay's new catch-all title. This issue is sort of a travel journal of his trip to Florida that mixes text, comix and photos in a fun way. Alligators, old people, bluegrass, hippies, hoodoo, bingo – it's all here! Billy's drawings are like noone else's I can think of save, perhaps, some of Carrie McNinch's work. It's a fun read and extra points go for packaging, too, as it's got color covers and is spiral-bound. Nifty!
Billy's got lots of other comics available, too, such as The Secret Nightmare Factory (a fun illustrated poem) and Invisible Robot Fish (an older catch-all title that featured a few 1-hour comics). Send him a few bucks or a trade; I think you'll be pleased with what comes back.
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< zine:personal:travel >
ROAD SCHOLAR #1: Morning Pages
($3.00 from Alan Rankin / PO Box 200846 / Arlington, TX / 76006 USA)
This is writer (and sometimes- Poopsheet contributor) Alan Rankin's new journal/perzine that – unless the project is expanded – will cover his travels during 2002. You see, Alan is what's known as a Rennie, which is to say he drives all over the country for most of the year to work at one Renaissance Faire after another. It's a lifestyle that allows him to fully indulge his creative aspirations in the form of writing and photography. In this debut issue Alan discusses his love of Austin, Texas, how a job in Arizona saved his bacon, a mind-blowing set of exhibits at the University of Texas, the SXSW Film Festival and rants about technology. Lots of other stuff, too, between the color covers. I'm biased, of course, but I liked this a lot. If you dig stuff either personal or travel-related, I'd say check it out.
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< comics/x >
COMIC EFFECT #33
($3.50 from Jim Kingman / PO Box 2188 / Pasadena, CA / 91102-2188 USA)
Editor Jim Kingman's slogan for Comic Effect is Emphasizing the Fun in Reading Comics" and that's exactly what he does. You won't find much in the way of hard criticism, but there is a bit of analysis. What's mostly here is a love of comics. This zine is aimed at people who read comics for the sheer joy of it. Most of the titles discussed are mainstream, but alternatives certainly aren't excluded and Jim relies on submissions to fill out each issue. My favorite piece this go 'round is the editor's overview of Jim Starlin's "The Magus Saga" that ran in Strange Tales and Warlock in the mid-'70s. I haven't read any of those in years and enjoyed his attempt to make sense of the convoluted storyline. Other stuff: Mike Hall on American Flagg, Tony Seybert on the Golden Age Human Torch, Michal Jacot on an oddball item called Giant Grab Bag Comics, Dan Beck on Venus #11 from 1950 and the first part of Kingman's examination of Archie Goodwin-edited DC war comics of the '70s. There's lots more to be enjoyed, too.
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< comics/x >
MAD WORLD #1
(Nika Nelson / Austin, TX? Contact c/o Poopsheet)
I picked this up for free at a bookstore in Austin and know nothing about creator Nika Nelson, but I like this a lot. It's a comic by someone who, I gather, doesn't consider herself an artist. Granted, her inexperience with drawing shows, but comics aren't about knowing how to draw; comics are about knowing how to present the elements necessary to tell the story in such a way that they're easily understood. And that she does well. This seven-page comic seems to draw partly from her life and partly from elsewhere. Her pal Dizzy Spells, a dream (it would seem) and relationships are all written about in a compelling style that leads me to believe this woman who says she can't draw should make more comics.
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Monday, March 10, 2003
< music >
DREAM MAGAZINE #2
($10.00 ppd from George Parsons / PO Box 2027 / Nevada City, CA / 95959-1941. Web: www.dreamgeo.com)
Magazines like Dream remind me (as if I could forget) that there is clearly an unfathomable amount of music out there that I have yet to sample. This 96-page squarebound magazine is crammed with all sorts of interesting stuff with many connections between music, dreams and comics. The interviews in this issue are with Jim Woodring (by Sasa Rakezic), Abunai!, Magical Power Mako, Timothy Renner, Jim White, Magic Carpathians, Greg Weeks and lots more. With lots of talk about psychedelic music and references to Terrastock, this mag also deals with folk, experimental, jazz and other underappreciated forms. On top of all that, there's an interesting letters section, live music reviews, a couple pages of video and publication reviews, over 350 knowledgeable record reviews and an 18-track CD featuring previously-unreleased music by the musicians covered in this issue such as Glen Johnson, Greg Weeks, Tanakh, Kiila, Dipsomaniacs, The Spectral Light & Moonshine Firefly Snakeoil Jamboree and others. By the names I've listed, you know if this interests you, but even for those who just want to learn something new, ten bucks postpaid seems like a hell of a bargain for what you get. The first issue is still available, too, with Peter Blegvad, Tim Buckley, Terry Jones, Kate Kane, Yo La Tengo, Jonathan Richman and loads more and George says #3 will be out soon. If you're even mildly interested, you should try it; you'll be overwhelmed.
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< comics/x >
THE COMICS JOURNAL #250
( www.tcj.com)
I just received this in the mail a couple of days ago and haven't even had a chance to read it, but I wanted to mention it while you can still find it on the stands. This giant 250th issue is packed with good stuff such as: a Tom Spurgeon essay on Team Comics, coverage of the Neil Gaiman/Todd McFarlane legal battle, several Best of 2002 features (including a look at the work of Ted May), R. Fiore on racial caricature, a look at Hi-Horse, Bob Levin on Rory Hayes, a 22-page comic by Yoshiharu Tsuge, a 1976 panel discussion between Carl Barks and John Stanley, Dan Clowes on process and so much more. Oh, did I mention the interviews? This time they're with Hergé, Gary Panter and Raymond Briggs. This is an amazing issue; get it while you can!
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Friday, March 07, 2003
< comics/x >
QUAGGA #4
($2.00 from Trevor Alixopulos / PO Box 524 / Fulton, CA / 95439 or from www.alixopulos.com)
One thing (among many) I can say about Trevor Alixopulos' comics is that nobody else's work is quite like his. His drawings are very loose and cartoony, but at the same time reminiscent of classic illustrators. There's a great, creepy analogy-of-a-story in this one about a woman who witnesses a US president engaging in a mysterious, symbolic ceremony and apparently waging war. It doesn't take place in our reality, but it may as well. Brrr... There's also another "Posieville Posse" chapter and lots more good stuff, most of it in a wacky humor vein. Yeah!
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< comics:classic >
THE HOLLYWOOD ECLECTERN #35
(Ed Buchman / PO Box 4215 / Fullerton, CA / 92834 USA)
The latest issue of this zine devoted to Little Lulu and related topics sports an original cover illustration by Irv Tripp, interior artwork by Larry Blake, a peek at a children's book written by John Stanley in the '60s and more. Subscriptions are free, but sending stamps or cash is encouraged (by me).
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< comics/x >
WHITE BUFFALO GAZETTE Jan. 2003
(Buzz Buzzizyk / PO Box 2452 / Butler, PA / 16003 USA)
Along with the usual listings of new obscuro comix, Buzz also gives us the usual amazing array of cartoons, drawings and sketches by the likes of Androo Robinson, David Lasky, Sean Bieri, Andy Nukes, Jim Siergey, Joel Orff, Mark Campos and lots more. Lots of Unclassified Ads this time, too. Long live WBG!
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< misc >
RIOT! #3
(Liz Worth / 157 Delta St. / Toronto, ON / M8W 4E4 / CANADA)
Riot! is essentially a music zine with a few other things thrown in for good measure. The interviews this time are with Resident Genius, bengeorge7 and Mz. Pakman (with Jenny Gonzalez representin'). The interviews aren't too long but all of the bands seem interesting, far from the mainstream and worth checking out. There are also short, amusing pieces on Fishnet Day (a sanctioned high school event), a lame ex-boyfriend (who makes for a very funny story) and the usual record and show reviews. My only real complaint is that there aren't any corresponding pictures to accompany any of the features, but overall, this is a fun zine. The cover says it's free, but be kind and send some $$ or stamps.
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