YES PLEASE!!!!

Coming soon from Fantagraphics:

NEWAVE! THE UNDERGROUND MINI COMIX OF THE 1980'S

by various artists; edited by Michael Dowers
5 x 7, HC, 892 pages, Color/B&W, $22.99
ISBN 978-1-60699-313-2

A GIGANTIC collection of the best SMALL press cartoonists to emerge in the 1970s after the first generation of underground cartoonists (such as R. Crumb, Gilbert Shelton and Art Spiegelman) paved the way. These cartoonists, inspired by the freewheeling creative energy of the underground comix movement, began drawing and printing their own comix. The most popular format was an 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper, folded twice, and printed at a local, pre-Kinkos print shop; because of the small size, they were dubbed “mini comix.” Just a few of the BIG talents included herein: Dan Clowes! Fred Hembeck! Gary Panter! Rick Geary! Mary Fleener! XNO! Jim Blanchard! Sam Henderson! J.R. Williams! Steve Willis! Doug Allen! Gary Leib! Mack White! and many! many! many! MORE! Inspired by the creative freedom of their underground predecessors and unrestrained by commercial boundaries or editorial edicts, their work was particulary innovative and experimental. Here you will find a group of artists who could not get any attention from the mainstream, who were driven by the inner need to express themselves. This group was a pioneering force that still leaves a wake and an imprint on the alternative comix scene today.

Hyuk hyuk

New Somersaults

By Dan Locke and my own good self.

The Super Globetrotters!!!

Ethel Sparrowhawk part 2

I'm very happy to hear there's going to be a second issue of one of my favouritest UK comics ever, Ethel Sparrowhawk, by Steven Tillotson and Jemima von Schindelberg. Issue 1 was so good, that I very nearly reviewed it... but reviews take time and energy, so take a look at this summary instead, which will appear on the inside cover of issue 2 :

Nostalgia and Comics calls out to cartoonists across the land :

The newly refurbished Nostalgia and Comics shop in Birmingham is encouraging small press comics creators to send in their zines and comics. This is great news, as decent shops that are welcoming to, and actually engaging with small press and indy creators are not only rare, but can have a hugely beneficial effect on the scene and artform. One word of encouragement, one extra comic sold, can make all the difference to someone who is just testing the waters... or to seasoned self-publishers for that matter.
Maybe one day, all comic shops will be judged by the size and range of their self-published section!

More about this on the Forbidden Planet Blog and Down The Tubes.

Citizen Rex : A new comic series by Gilbert and Mario Hernandez

I didn't know about this... and it's on issue 2 already! Luckily they had both issues in Dave's Comics in Brighton, and thank heavens... as it's holy fucking freaking awesome!
Picking up the first issue and turning it's pages also reminded me just how beautiful an object the floppy, stapled comic book is... at least when it contains good work. It's just the right weight and size, both high and low art, disposable yet collectible, and I was able to read the first issue in 15 minutes while sitting in the park. How can this format have almost disappeared??

There's an interview with Mario and a preview of issue 1 at Comic Book Resources.

The Sign Painter

Sign O' The Times (UPDATED)

The de-menacing of Dennis continues. Read about it on Down The Tubes.
















However, it seems reports of Dennis going soft have been somewhat exaggerated, as reported by Lew Stringer.
It's obvious to me though that Dennis has been cleaned up over the last 20 years. Personally, I miss the nastiness of some of the older Beano strips and other British kids' comics. But I wonder: would anyone let their children read that stuff these days?
See below for a vintage Davey Law Dennis strip.

Stranger Comics

I've always loved this cartoon by R.Sikoryak, and always wanted to scan and show it here. I did not however want to ruin my copy of Snake Eyes (the comics anthology it originally appeared in, in black & white). Anyway, The Comics Bureau have kindly posted it on their blog, allowing for a quick swipe, and no spine-mangling of a classic 90's anthology (yeah, I know I'm uptight...).

Steve Ditko - Tales of the Mysterious Traveler

Tales of the Mysterious Traveler #10 ~ Nov/1958.
Read the whole comic on goldenagecomicbookstories.blogspot.com

Carl Barks. From the Calgary Eye Opener.

Torchy the Battery Boy (Episode 1)

Something a bit odd about this one.

Bod

The 70's kids cartoon.

More Somersaults

By me and Dan Locke. See them on the Forbidden Planet blog every week.

APF2 Reports and Coverage

A podcast by creative choices featuring an interview recorded at the Publish You Book Launch (you'll need something like iTunes to open this... then you download the podcast. It's podcast no.3, and it's free).

The down the tubes report written by gareth brookes.

A nice write up of the "Are You Zine Friendly?" event on dazed digital.com (Dazed & Confused).

(via Steve Tillotson on Bugpowder).

The history of Irish comics

Patrick Brown has posted the first part of a series which will detail the history of Irish comics.

This chapter includes : "18th and 19th century Irish cartoonists, from Henry Brocas drawing British atrocities in the wake of the 1798 Rebellion, to William O’Keefe and John Doyle in London, to the anti-O’Connell cartoons of ‘the Presbyterian laureate’ William McComb in Belfast in 1841, to John Fergus O’Hea, J. D. Reigh and Thomas Fitzpatrick (grandfather of fantasy artist Jim Fitzpatrick) in nationalist papers in the 1880s, to Jack Yeats’ early career in British comics."

(Via Forbidden Planet and Drawn).

Kirby Story Of The Month

From Alarming Tales #1, September 1957.
(From Cartoon Snap).

The Dark Side of Carl Barks

“We’re like a weed – you see it and trample it to the ground and don’t think anything about it. We’re like that weed – we have our little life and when we’re gone, we’re gone.” – Carl Barks.

Read about it on Comics Comics.

I'm Back!

And my advice to everyone is : go on holiday... and remember what it feels like to relax. However, I was sorry to have missed all the fun at the Alternative Press Festival, especially seeing these pictures, put online by Saban Kazim (see the full set here):