Surfing the Bleed

Thirty In Thirty - Days Four and Five

2010-09-18T16:45:00.003-05:00

Sorry I haven't updated the blog in the last couple of days. I'm transitioning from one job to another and bills are piling up fast, so until I can get back on my feet financially, internet is one of those things that I have to skimp on. Right now, skimping means "borrowing" a neighbor's connection. That connection isn't always reliable and for the last couple of days it hasn't worked well at all. Given that I've been busy with training at the new job the last couple of days, I haven't had a lot of time to get to a library or coffee shop to update. Have no fear though, faithful readers, for I have not abandoned the project.

As I mentioned before, I didn't have a lot of time over the last couple of days, so I dialed back the effort to script my own characters and put together a couple of quick established superhero things again. The first is a humorous Green Lantern/Green Arrow story that features an fun cameo at the end of the story. The GL/GA piece is six pages long, for those of you keeping count.

The second story is a one page piece about Robin and his pal, Ace the Bat-Hound. I recently rescued a black lab (with some hound dog in there somewhere too I think) and, given my love of all things Batman, decided to name him Ace. Inspired by his playful mischief (he, much like Batman, cannot be contained by cage or trap), I wrote an eight-panel spread featuring him and the Boy Wonder. The story features Robin (young Tim Drake) searching for his boots which Ace is playfully running around the Batcave with. Like I said, it's just one page, but it's fun and kid-friendly, which I love. Maybe I'll post the script soon.

I'll be back later tonight with some work from today, though technically, with the six-page GA/GL, I'm way ahead of schedule. How is everyone else doing?

Thirty In Thirty - Day Three

2010-09-15T21:08:00.004-05:00

Well, it only took me two days to decide to do something differently. I did some superhero stuff tonight, but it's my own character, not an established one. The character is called The Poet. I believe I mentioned him here once before, but I'm not certain. The Poet is a hero in the vein of some of the old Charlton characters and is most similar to last night's subject, The Question.

The Poet takes place in post-WWII New York City and is set in and around the emerging "beat" movement. The book mixes elements of magic and two-fisted justice with the historical, artistic and political developments of America in the 1950s. The book also serves as sort of the starting point (with one notable exception that I'll get to later) of the superhero universe that I created recently. You remember, the one populated with all the analogs that I mentioned in my "analog dilemma" post? Anyway, the Poet stories serve as the spine of that universe.

I only got the first page done tonight because, well, I'm exhausted. I start a new job in the morning and it will be the first time in nearly two years that I've had to drag myself up at the crack of dawn in order to get to work on time. For this insomniac, that doesn't sound pleasant. But the job is a good one with the potential to be great and it's a company I've wanted to work for for quite some time. Once I adjust to the schedule, I should have a lot more free time and energy to work on various projects. But tonight...tired.

So one page complete with more to come.

Anybody else have progress to report?

Thirty in Thirty - Day Two

2010-09-14T21:51:00.005-05:00

Tonight's work is a silent Question story. Anybody who knows me knows that The Question is one of my favorite comic characters of all time. From the earliest Charlton comics, through Denny O'Neil's iconic run, even onto Rick Veitch and 52. So when I decided to do some short superhero scripts for the Thirty In Thirty project, I thought it appropriate that The Question get some attention.

I did things a bit differently tonight than I have done them in the past. The story is three pages (two standard pages and a full page shot) and I thumbnailed it all out before I wrote the script. The thumbnailing process worked pretty well, though it was fairly simple for this comic since it's meant to be silent. I'm interested to try it for a story that actually has dialogue.

I like how this turned out. It's basic, but it's definitely got the right feel for a classic Question story. I love that there are characters out there that are so iconic, that have such natural force, you can tell a story with them in just a few panels and have it resonate immediately with fans. In my world, the Question is definitely one of those characters and I think this story does him justice.

How was everyone's Day Two?

Thirty In Thirty - Day One

2010-09-13T21:22:00.003-05:00

My first page is done, but it's not great. I think what I'm going to do with my end of the project is try and write a quick, 1-2 page story with established characters. I was extremely inspired by Mark Chiarello's Wednesday Comics project and I'm curious to see if I can do something similar with established characters. I may change my mind about this starting tomorrow, but right now, this is my goal.

Tonight's page (actually, its two pages, four panels and a full page shot) is a Wolverine story. It's the kind of fun, all-ages comic that I'm a big fan of. Not that I can't enjoy the pages of Milligan's Hellblazer or Aaron's Scalped, but anyone who knows me knows that I think superhero comics appropriate for all ages are extremely important to the industry. Sure, some of you are probably thinking, "Wolverine? Safe for kids?" Fanboys know that Wolverine is a cold-blooded killer, but that doesn't stop him being one of the most recognizable characters in comics, complete with his own film franchise. So when it comes to characters that comics writers can utilize to get kids interested in the medium, Wolverine is near the top.

I'm not sure if I'm going to post the script because I'm prouder of the concept than I am the execution. Of course, getting better at the execution is part of the point. I'm going to finish watching Monday Night Football and then I'll probably tweak it a bit and post it in the morning.

What's everybody else working on?

Thirty Pages In Thirty Days

2010-09-10T23:14:00.005-05:00

I turn thirty in just over a month (October 21st) and to be honest, it's got me a little rattled. I'm not having an early mid-life crisis. You won't see me driving a new sports car or going on a "bro's only" ten day trip to Las Vegas, not that I could afford those things anyway. But to say it's not having a similar effect on me would be a lie.

When I was younger, thirty seemed far enough away that I just assumed I'd have my entire life worked out by then. At twenty-nine, I can safely say I'm nowhere near having everything figured out. Hell, there are days when I don't feel like I have anything worked out at all. Almost a month away from this milestone year and I'm unemployed, broke and at times completely directionless.

When I left high school, I thought I'd be in college for four years and after that I'd just, well, BE a writer. Sure, there'd be hardships, pitfalls along the way, but it was nothing a genius kid from the sticks couldn't handle. It turned out to be a hell of a lot more than I could handle. Or maybe it was just more than I was willing to handle. Let's face it, to know me is to know a picture of ennui. I can be one of the most pessimistic, cynical and, well, lazy people on the planet at times. I get frustrated, I get discouraged, I let myself believe in the worst possible outcome in all situations.

Okay, so, I'm being hard on myself. I'm not always like that, though I am capable of falling into some pretty long stretches of self-doubt and inactivity. Like, say...21-25. That's a pretty long stretch, right? Over the years, I've probably spent as much time talking about being a writer as I have actually writing. That has changed in the last couple of years, as I've taken a more active stance on making this writing for a living thing actually happen, but for years it just seemed like a pipe dream, or, maybe just something I'd get around to eventually. I always wrote, but it was mostly for myself.

A couple of things shook me up lately though. First, a friend told me that the stories in my head weren't for me, that they were for everyone and that I'd be cheating everyone by not allowing them to see these stories. That hit me pretty hard, because its correct. All these notebooks full of worlds that I've built, all these google docs full of half-written pitches and unfinished scripts, what is their purpose? What's a story that never gets told? Worthless, that's what. It's not helping anybody or inspiring anybody just sitting there collecting cobwebs, virtual or not.

The second bit of posterior fire-lighting came from another friend, who essentially told me, while drunk, that I had to shit or get off the pot. He told me, in no uncertain terms, that my pitches are great but that my scripts were not. Not that he was being mean, he was just being honest (maybe a bit more honest because of the inebriation). I have a knack for world-building, but I am still so green that I need to hone my chops. I need to be able to tell a story in this language of comics, and that means scripts that just knock the shit out of an editor and make he or she say, "Yes, grab this guy an artist, pay this man a small sum to do something awesome." Right now, I can speak this language, but I'm not a master of it. Anything less than a mastery means I'm just a fan for the rest of my life.

I'm not okay with that.

So here I am, staring down the barrel of THIRTY YEARS OLD like it's a nickel-plated harbinger of doom. Maybe it's not though. Maybe it's like the Death card in a tarot deck, ominous to be sure, but not necessarily a signifier of bad things to come. So in the interest of appeasing my constructively critical friends and making serious strides toward being the creator I want to be, I've decided to challenge myself.

I've got just slightly more than thirty days before I hit the big 3-0. In that time, I'm going to write thirty pages. Sound easy? Maybe it will be. Maybe it will be frustrating, terrifying and hard. Maybe it will be fun. I'm certain, no matter what, that it will be constructive. The thing about this is, I don't want to do it alone. So I'm not issuing this challenge just to myself, but also to any creator out there, professional or otherwise, that wants to give this a shot.

Here it is: Thirty Pages In Thirty Days

Starting Monday September 13th (I'm aware this is NFL opening weekend and many of you won't pay attention to this at all if I start it tomorrow) I want to see a page a day for thirty straight days. I'm going to be doing this myself and posting my progress here at Surfing the Bleed. If you want to engage in this exercise as well, then you can e-mail me your progress and/or get in touch with me on Facebook or Twitter. Now there are no hard rules here. If you want, you can write thirty one page stories, a la Wednesday Comics. If you feel so inclined, you can right a 22-page one shot and an 8-page back-up. Maybe you're feeling ambitious and you want to write the first thirty pages of your epic graphic novel. Whatever you decide, I want thirty scripted pages before my thirtieth birthday. Consider it a present to me. You all love me, right?

Right.

So there's the challenge. Are you up to it? Am I?

Jason Latour - Recording the Bleed

2010-09-08T14:25:00.003-05:00

I interviewed Daredevil: Black & White contributor Jason Latour at this year's Baltimore Comic-Con. Below are parts one and two. I had to cut the second part a bit abruptly, due to YouTube's upload requirements. It's okay though, all you're missing is us going on about the Big Lebowski and professional wrestling.

Actually, that might have been the best part.

In all seriousness though, Jason was a great guy and he had some fantastic advice for young creators. It's a bit of a haul (twenty minutes?! what?!) but it's well worth it.

Now, without further ado, Jason Latour.

and part two

Baltimore 2010

2010-09-05T08:35:00.003-05:00

My terribly vague recap of the Baltimore Comic-Con, complete with firefighting midget leg retrievers, is up at Broken Frontier.

Baltimore Comic-Con 2010 - The Year We Make Contact...with Desperadoes!

The Digital Comics Debate Heats Up!

2010-09-01T18:07:00.004-05:00

Video uploading is taking longer than I expected (which is what happens when you are borrowing a crappy Clear Wire connection from a neighbor and are legitimately so broke you can't even afford to go to the coffee shop), but that doesn't mean we don't still have content. Okay, the content is technically borrowed, but hey, you get what you pay for.

A couple of very good editorials advocating the advancement of comics as a digital medium came out today, one from Comics Alliance and the other from Mark Waid via Comic Book Resources. Below are links to each.

Digital distribution and how it evolves is something the entire industry is watching. Expect to see more content about it here, as well as in my column at Broken Frontier, in the coming months.

Comics Alliance

Mark Waid

Videos Galore!

2010-08-31T13:24:00.004-05:00

I'm currently editing the Jason Latour and Jonathan Hickman videos I took at this past weekend's Baltimore Comic-Con. The Latour video should be up first thing in the morning and the Hickman video will follow shortly after that. Until then, tide yourselves over with the new trailer for Stan Lee's Soldier Zero, due out in October from BOOM! Studios.

A Slightly Out of Date Yet Still Awesome Interview With: JEFF PARKER

2010-08-28T08:31:00.008-05:00

Jeff Parker is the writer of Marvel's Atlas and Thunderbolts and is about to take over writing duties on Hulk as well. His style hearkens back to an earlier age of comics storytelling, when action and adventure were the order of the day and heroes weren't always the primary colored tight-dwellers we know today. He took a minute to sit down with Surfing the Bleed before this weekend's Baltimore Comic-Con and talked about his books, his process and his experience breaking into the industry.

Surfing the Bleed: Hello Jeff. Welcome to Surfing the Bleed. Thanks for taking the time to hang out with us today.

You seem to have a significant knowledge of the medium and its history. Does that stem from a love of comics as a child and was it always your goal to become part of the industry?

Jeff Parker: Before the internet made finding out about comics crazily easy, it was pretty difficult to learn how the books were made and about the personalities behind them. When Stan Lee would write his Bullpen Bulletins or Bob Rozakis would do his Ask the Answer Man for DC's books, they'd mention the creators and it would be a rare glimpse into these names as actual people instead of representing a particular art style. Then I found Comics Scene magazine, and eventually The Comics Journal, and I sucked up that info like a sponge. I devoured any history of Hal Foster or Milton Caniff I came across.

Do you remember the first comic you truly loved and how it affected your perception of the industry and your own personal goals?

Jeff Parker: Probably the Fawcett Dennis the Menace books. I didn't connect it to any goals at the time- I was 5, but I could tell I liked some artist better than all the others (it was Al Wiseman). I think at some point you look at comics purely by character; these are Superman books- and then you hit the level where certain ones matter more: these are CURT SWAN Superman books. And you know a creator is making the difference. Then hopefully you're on the path to following the creators instead, because that will yield more satisfaction for you as a reader.

You majored in English Lit, changing from your original goals to receive a degree in illustration. You cite the realization that you wouldn't be able to do the sort of illustration you wanted to do in the program you were enrolled in. Were you hoping for an education geared more toward a career in comics and how was that program holding you back?

Jeff Parker: Yes. I hid out in college for a good long time. I went to East Carolina University, first as an art major and then realized that like most modern art programs it was gallery focused, not as much illustration as I had hoped for. There were good teachers in the program. But I really got into my English classes thanks to some excellent professors. And since that was constant reading of story, it ended up helping me enormously- of course, I didn't know that later I would do so much writing. Many of my English teachers enjoyed comics and didn't feel the need to deride them like many art teachers did. Or at least, I lucked out and didn't get the teachers who would have scoffed at them.

What was your first work in the industry and how was the experience of breaking in during those early days of your career?

Jeff Parker: I did some stuff for free, like everyone usually has to at the beginning. I drew a story that artist Nathan Masengill wrote adapting Oscar Wilde's The Happy Prince, that was in a Caliber Comics book. Soon I got a job drawing a fill-in issue of Vampirella that never got printed because they went to a different format, but I got paid and that was exciting. A little later I got a couple issues of Wonder Woman to draw- a lot of people got to essentially audition at DC by drawing an issue of that. I finally got regular assignments from Malibu Comics when Hank Kanalz opened some samples of mine where I'd drawn the Fantastic Four. That put me on the book Solitaire with Gerry Jones writing.

Often times, it seems it is easier for an illustrator to break into the industry than someone who is only trying to make their way as a writer. Do you feel that your skills as an illustrator made it easier for you to break in?

Jeff Parker: That's true, but a loaded statement. "It's easier to break in as an artist, so go spend a decade or two learning how to draw, compose and do graphic storytelling. Then it's easy!" So it's a little silly for young writers to complain about how it's easier for editors to evaluate and hire an artist- it's a hell of a lot of work to even draw a story badly. But it is true that almost no one will read your script. No one has time to read your script, you have to find a way on your own to get it drawn. And that usually means Pay An Artist. If you think that's unfair, consider how much time you just shortcut by not having to learn to draw, and you'll feel better. Or look at all the much deeper investment almost anyone else has to make establishing themselves in another career. It's not like you had to pay your way through medical school.

Most of what you've written has been in the Action/Adventure vein. Your book Interman was a marriage of superhero tropes and Ludlum-style suspense, Agents of Atlas (now simply Atlas) feels a lot like an old pulp novel, similar in theme and style to the Doc Savage tales of old. Are you very familiar with those old pulp books and how big an influence were those early action/adventure stories on you as a writer?

Jeff Parker: Yes, back to college, when I started finding reprints of comic strips like Terry and the Pirates and Captain Easy, I was very happy. I essentially write everything more or less in the vein of those genres. Even when I'm writing an X-Men story, I'm thinking of them as adventurers, not mutants or superheroes. Probably the most clear homage recently I've done to that stuff is the new Gorilla-Man miniseries with artist Giancarlo Caracuzzo.

When you made your path into the industry, was it always your intention to sort of revisit that style of adventure storytelling and update it for a modern comics audience?

Jeff Parker: I don't know that I did it consciously, I think I just write to entertain myself first and everything else just follows. But I do generally try to poke away that idea that high adventure can only take place in the 1930s, there's no reason in 2010 you can't embrace that kind of traveling story of discovery.

Between X-Men First Class, Atlas and all the Atlas tie-ins, Marvel has given you the go ahead to write what feels at times like a living history of the Marvel Universe. You're really telling the stories that exist between the panels of some classic Marvel moments. How does it feel being the architect of that secret history?

Jeff Parker: I did get to do a fair amount of that too with World War Hulks when they let me write the villain collective The Intelligencia (and yes, I know how it's supposed to be spelled. I don't remember why we decided to alter it). That stuff is fun to pull off, but can be pretty difficult, trying not to change continuity. I prefer writing something I don't have to check with others on, like ATLAS.

You're part of the new guard at Marvel that includes creators such as Matt Fraction, Jason Aaron and Rick Remender. How does it feel being on the crest of such a powerful creative wave? Is there a big sense of community amongst the Marvel creative teams and do you guys draw a lot of inspiration from one another?

Jeff Parker: I certainly like those guys and read their books. We don't sit around a huge table and push action figures around like generals, though we probably should. And I don't know how much everyone is on some level competing, but I know I feel I can never just phone a story in when others are doing such excellent work. I wouldn't anyway, really. It helps that so many of us live in Portland and often see each other at parties. To get more involved I should probably play X-Box games.

You did some time on Marvel's kids-oriented line, Marvel Adventures. How important do you think it is that the big publishers make an effort to reach that younger audience with quality material? And, in your opinion, do you think that the industry is doing enough to try and hook new readers and create a next generation of fans for our work?

Jeff Parker: I think it's ALL-important. Anytime this subject comes up, you get the same answers "Hey, there's Bone..." Really we should have a hard time listing all the kid-friendly books, there should be so many. No other industry lets the young market get away as much as we do, most entertainment tries furiously to cater to them. Just because some approaches haven't worked in the past isn't an excuse to not keep trying.

Considering you are both a writer and an illustrator, you likely have a unique perspective on the collaborative process necessary to create comics. What advice can you give creators from both sides of the equation on how to best work together to create a successful finished product?

Jeff Parker: Writers, even if you can't draw, try laying out your pages with stick figures and make sure you're asking for things that work. Remember that it takes about ten times as long to draw the thing as it does to write it.

Artists, do whatever is in the interest of telling the kind of story this is, don't force it into what you'd rather draw. Pay close attention to acting, bringing a character alive is everything.

Both of you- write back and forth a lot and do some give and take. You can make this a collaboration that breathes instead of a mere assignment.

Can you speak a bit about your own scripting process? Do you like to maintain a particular amount of control over the process or do you tend to leave things more open-ended for your collaborator?

Jeff Parker: I mainly have certain things I need to happen to keep the tone and direction of the story, and I leave a lot of room for the artists to be themselves- I hope. I have a fairly sparse descriptive style in explaining the scene. I like to chime in at layout stage, not to be a control freak, but to help keep things on message before it becomes too labor intensive for an artist to make changes. As an artist I prefer that too- ask me to make changes while we're in rough pencil, not later!

Does your process ever shift depending on the artist you work with? For instance, you’ve worked with a lot of different artists at various points in your career, but it seems of late that your most frequent collaborator is Gabriel Hardman. Given your level of comfort with Gabriel, do you give him more breathing room than you might with another artist?

Jeff Parker: Oh yes. I for instance won't write a tech-heavy script if working with an artist who doesn't draw that stuff easily. If I suspect an artist likes drawing animals, it will suddenly become a zoo of a story. Gabe can draw anything, anywhere, any way it needs to be done. All he cares about is that the story is intriguing. So yes, he gets maybe more breathing room than most, largely because the editors also trust him explicitly. We turn into a bunch of fans when his pages come in.

Lastly, what advice can you give new creators on their own path into the industry?

Jeff Parker: Don't try to second guess readers, what you think will sell or what the next big thing is. That's a cynical approach, and one thing readers can sense above all is sincerity. They can tell when you believe in what you're doing, and they'll respond to that by joining in with you. So please yourself first. Don't ever think "well my work is at least as good as Creator X and they hire him..." that won't get you anywhere. Set sights very high, too high. You'd rather fall short of something amazing than some average work you see a million of.

Here's a big one- don't try to start off with an epic. I don't know how many grand trilogies I've known that were to be coming out from talented people with lots of potential, and of course we've never seen any of these. Keep your first works short and achievable. Don't put the light at the end of the tunnel years away, put it weeks away. That's the way these kind of goals are met. I assure you, I am right on that!

Thanks Jeff! Best of luck with all your projects in the coming year!

Jeff Parker: Thanks Brett. Hey, what took you so long with this interview?

Baltimore Comic-Con Creator Profiles, Cont.

2010-08-22T17:36:00.005-05:00

Below are more profiles for creators I'm looking for to meeting at next weekend's Baltimore Comic-Con

Francesco Francavilla - I first found out about Francesco Francavilla from my friend Evan Shaner, who is a member of the awesome Comic Twart blog with Francesco. I was immediately floored by the man's talent. His ability to perfectly capture the feel of old pulp pin-ups while still remaining wholly original is wildly impressive. While all the Twarters are unparalleled talents, its Francesco's additions each week that I look most forward to. Now it's come to our attention that he'll be pencilling the Commissioner Gordon co-feature in Detective Comics, which excites me to no end. I am looking forward to meeting the man and hopefully getting a sketch. What will I ask him to draw? Any damn thing he wants to.

Tony Harris - Tony Harris is one of the most popular and respected artists in the medium of comics. The regular artist on Brian K. Vaughan's Ex Machina and James Robinson's (maybe the best superhero series ever), Harris has cemented his place in history as one of the best. I'm hoping he'll have a little time to step away from the table and discuss the ending of Ex Machina, his time working with Robinson on Starman and where he sees his career going from here.

The day is almost upon us! Keep checking back with Surfing the Bleed for updates from the convention floor, the barroom floor and hopefully, NOT the bathroom floor.

Baltimore Comic-Con: Panel Preview!

2010-08-20T14:35:00.004-05:00

I'm going to make this one pretty simple. Below are descriptions of the panels I'm most looking forward to seeing at next weekend's Baltimore Comic-Con.

SATURDAY

ROOM 307

1:00 - 2:00 PM - Spotlight on Thor

Marvel is giving the con-goers a Thor spotlight in anticipation of the blockbuster film set to drop next year. The panel features the creative talent behind the Thunder God's exploits both past and present, including, but not limited to, the great Walter Simonson. Simonson's Thor stories are some of my favorite comics ever. Last year at Baltimore I had the chance to meet Mr. Simonson and he was one of the nicest people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. Having the chance to hear him discuss his addition to the Thor legacy will be a real treat for this longtime fan.

ROOM 308

11:00 - 12:00 PM - comiXology and the Future of Digital Comics

comiXology has positioned themselves as the industry's leading force in the growing world of digital comic distribution and collecting. In this panel, comiXology's CEO, David Steinberger, will be discussing the company's rise to success, their plans for future digital comics initiatives and his opinions on what the future of the industry might look like with the advances in digitial delivery. Digital distribution is here and it's here to stay, so it's important that those of us working in the industry and those of us covering the industry are as educated as we can be about where comics is headed in this new digital age. I, for one, am looking very forward to this discussion.

3:00 - 4:00 PM - Mondo Marvel

Marvel Comics' executive editor Tom Breevort joins Jonathan Hickman (yes) and Jeff Parker (oh hell yes) to discuss the current creative direction of Marvel Comics and to tease some things we can look forward to in the near future. I've really been digging Marvel lately and they've overtaken DC in number of pulls each week in my hold box, so I'm definitely looking forward to it. Add to it the fact that Hickman is rocking it these days and the chance we'll get some more Hulk info out of Jeff Parker and you've got a panel well worth spending an hour on.

SUNDAY

ROOM 307

1:00 - 2:00 PM - Comics Rewind: The 1980s

Last year this panel was a spotlight on the 1970s and it was the best time that my friends and I had the entire show. This year the panel shifts to the 1980s, but with a similar focus. Mark Waid moderates as Louise and Walter Simonson, Marv Wolfman, Timothy Truman, Matt Wagner and John Workman relate stories about working in the comics industry during the 1980s. This is one of the most entertaining, free-form panels of the weekend and if it's anything like last year's 70s version, the stories should be VERY entertaining.

3:00 - 4:00 PM - Paul Pope vs. Bob Schreck

Paul Pope sits down with his longtime editor, Bob Schreck, and talks about, well, about just how awesome he is. What more do you need?

ROOM 308

1:00 PM - Costume Contest

The panels close down for the con and the costume contest winners are announced. It should be a great time to watch all the various contestants in their geek finery competing for a bevy of prizes. I imagine we'll see more than a few Scott Pilgrims this year, probably some Kick Ass characters (oy vey) and more than a fair share of Predators. Whatever the turnout it should be a really great time and a good way to close out the show before we all grab up a bunch of 75% off back issues and make our way to the bars.

Baltimore Comic-Con Preview: Round Two

2010-08-16T18:59:00.005-05:00

One of the best aspects of the Baltimore Comic-Con is the amount of facetime it offers attendees with the various guests. Unlike shows such as San Diego and New York, Baltimore has a more laid back, comics-centric vibe. Creators aren't dropped into a panel then sped away to the next major mutlimedia event faster than you can say BAMF! At Baltimore Comic-Con, the opportunity to engage your favorite creators in meaningful conversation or to get feedback about your portfolio is better than just about any other show in the business. With that in mind, I'm going to run down some of the guests I'm most excited about meeting this year.

Howard Chaykin - A 30+ year veteran of the industry, Chaykin is one of the most respected (and controversial) creators in the business. To this day, his art remains some of the most striking and visually interesting artwork in the industry. Chaykin's name alone is enough to get me to shell out my hard earned coin and his runs on G.I. Joe and his own American Flagg set the industry high watermark for bad ass storytelling.

Mark Chiarello - Painter, illustrator and editor extraordinaire Mark Chiarello has been the brain behind some of the most interesting projects in DC history. He created the incredible Batman: Black & White series, was the editor of the acclaimed series Solo and most recently he was the man behind the excellent Wednesday Comics. I know that writers and editors are, at times, the worst of enemies, but personally, I can't wait to meet Mark Chiarello. The first thing he'd probably say is, "Less commas!"

Amanda Conner - To dismiss Amanda Conner as just, "Jimmy Palmiotti's Wife," would be a serious mistake. Sure, being married to one of the industry's most respected creators doesn't hurt her profile, but Conner's success is all her own. Conner's artwork is some of my favorite in the business. Her style, full of fun, bright renditions of iconic heroes, is immediately resonant with a large audience. Amanda Conner's Power Girl is the kind of comic you could drop into a casual reader's hands if you were trying to get them interested in comics and her Supergirl strip in Wednesday Comics was perhaps the biggest surprise of the entire project. Maybe I'll try and steal an interview (or just geek out and get some books signed).

I'll be back tomorrow with more profiles of creators I'm looking forward to meeting this year. Thanks for reading!

What I'm Looking Forward To: Baltimore Comic-Con Edition

2010-08-14T19:11:00.003-05:00

Over the next few days I'll be posting a collection of the panels, guests and exclusives I'm most excited about experiencing at this year's Baltimore Comic-Con. Baltimore was one of two cons I attended last year, the other being NYCC, and I had a blast. Not only did I meet a number of creators I've had a great deal of respect for over my years of comic fandom, I also made a handful of contacts that have turned out to be fruitful over the last ten months. I'm very excited about going into this year's BCC with a slightly higher profile in the industry and seeing just what I can accomplish this time around.

My first look at this year's Baltimore Comic-Con will start with a rundown of some of the exclusive events they've put together for fans this year. Exclusive workshops, contests and giveaways are a great way to drum up interest for a convention and the guys behind Baltimore have come up with some great ones this year.

Klaus Janson & Howard Chaykin's Artist Workshop - Industry mainstays Klaus Janson and Howard Chaykin have been giving an artist's seminar for Marvel Comics for years now. The workshop gives artists on the verge of breaking in a chance to pick the brains of two of the greats while learning valuable tools for surviving in the comics industry. Recently, Janson and Chaykin took their show on the road and were met with success at the prestigious Savannah College of Art and Design. This year, the two legends of the field will offer their seminar at the Baltimore Comic-Con. Entry into the event is $75 and will take place on Saturday 28th between the hours of 1 and 4 PM with a peer review session afterward. To apply for the seminar, call host store Cards, Comics & Collectibles at 410-526-7410.

Second Annual Costume Contest - The Baltimore Comic-Con will also be hosting their second annual costume contest this year. A follow-up to last year's inaugural contest, which saw a much larger turn out than promoters expected, this year's contest has some incredible prizes, including a $1000 grand prize for best overall costume. Are you intimidated by the skill and devotion of hardened cosplayers? Well, have no fear, because Baltimore Comic-Con is offering contests in both the Pro and Amateur categories. So throw on those trenchcoats and muss up that hair all you wannabe Constantines, pull on those fishnets and singlets all you saucy Black Canaries, it's time to party!

That's just a couple of the things I'm looking forward to at this year's Baltimore Comic-Con, but there's plenty more to come. Check back to Surfing the Bleed over the next few days for more about which guests I'm looking forward to seeing, which panels I'll be attending and which bars I'll be thrown out of!

How I Became the Bomb's Jon Burr Reviews Last Week's Comics! (A title for this segment, my kingdom for a title!)

2010-08-13T15:56:00.000-05:00

Ahoy, there, reader! In a bit of a switch from last week’s post, wherein I reviewed only a handful of titles, I’ve decided to give shorter reviews of a larger number of comics. If this is not your preferred method, feel free to comment. Perhaps I’ll return to my previous, more specialised style.

Sally forth, shall we?

Things I read that weren’t bad:

Time Bomb #1
Who am I to resist a cover featuring a Steranko-esque Black Ops team set against a backdrop featuring Jet Propulsion Lab-era rocketry and a Nazi skeleton? Well done, Radical Publishing. Not only did you suck me in with the cover, but you gave me the nostalgia-evoking team of Justin Gray, Jimmy Palmiotti and Paul Gulacy.

Action Comics #891
Mr. Mind serves as our guide through Lex Luthor’s power fantasies. Read that sentence again. Now remind yourself that Mr. Mind is a giant anthropomorphic worm with the power to invade and control minds. Now go buy this fucking comic.

Secret Warriors #18
Just when I think Jonathan Hickman can’t make me enjoy this series any more, he inserts Macross-esque air battles into this bittersweet arc, entitled “The Last Ride of the Howling Commandos.” Now hear this, Hickman: If Dum Dum dies, you’ll soon follow. The Cheung covers always blow me away, as well.

Tom Strong and the Robots of Doom #3
Perhaps a step down from the first two issues, but I’m not about to tell you that anything featuring the Tom Strong-verse and Chris Sprouse is not good. Plus, NAZIS!

Avengers Prime #2
Bendis doing his best Simonson and Alan Davis being Alan Davis. I’ll take it. I still think Mister Mind was my favorite surprise comic appearance this week, but this book featured a close second. Your only hint: This guy didn’t NEED pants. Yet he most certainly wore pants.

Sweet Tooth #12
Visually splendid, as always, but the more Jeff Lemire reveals in his slow-moving tale, the less I care. The mystique of this title is disappearing for me, but I still revel in Lemire’s layout and line.

SHIELD #3
I have heard tell ‘round internet ways that many are finding this book incomprehensible. They point to this book, along with 1602 and the Earth X titles - failed experiments, to be sure - as examples that any attempt to place Marvel into a bigger, all-encompassing mythology will fail. To those naysayers I say this: BAH! JUST BUY IT FOR DUSTIN WEAVER’S ART. I am enjoying this book and its last page reveals very much, thus far. We’ll see if it reaches its goals.

Doom Patrol #13
The best comics are the ones that send you scampering to your longbox or, these days, Wikipedia. Keith Giffen has given Rita “Elasti-Woman” Farr a bit of the ol’ Alan Moore Swamp Thing treatment, completely re-imagining her and upsetting the status quo in the span of just one issue. With just 22 pages, Giffen had me scampering for my back issues and looking up bits of DP history. The man loves these characters and refuses to let any of them remain stagnant. Even Rita Farr.

Daredevil: Black & White #1
Briefly, I’ll get my opinions on the issue as a whole out of the way: two neatly scripted tales with some fantastic art, followed by a prose piece with more wonderful illustration. This is a good comic, certainly, but eclipsing that was the discovery of Jason Latour, the artist of the first story. His dynamic style found a way to be tight and loose at the same time, omitting lines here, placing a truly bold stroke there. Latour is a very exciting find, as his work - intentionally, I’m guessing - was evocative of, simultaneously, the great DD artists of days gone by. Mazzucchelli, Miller, Sienkiewicz, Romita the younger; they were all in there, but within his own unique work.

Things I read that weren’t so good:

The Rage of Thor
This comic wasn’t poorly written, nor was the art horrendous. However, this read like a bad pastiche of Conan and Northlanders. If I need to envision lamentations of the womenfolk or to ponder the whims of Crom, I’ll crack open a Cimmerian tale or pick up Brian Wood’s latest Viking yarn.

The Invincible Iron Man #28
Well, we’re back to regular covers for good, it seems. ‘Twas a noble experiment, Mssrs. Fraction and Larocca. Now stop aping Warren Ellis and do your own thing. If I wanted Iron Man as The Authority, I’d pick up something from the Ultimate line.

Supergod #4
As much as I have enjoyed Warren Ellis’ previous takes on the folly of creating ubermensch - No Hero and Black Summer - this book has been a rambling mess and is rather dull. Ellis made his points with the aforementioned series, and I’m not really sure what he has left to say on the matter.

Amazing Spider-Man #639
Bollocks to this. ASM was doing quite nicely for itself for quite sometime there. In strolls Quesada with his “One Moment In Time” non-event and, lo and behold, the streak hath ended. Ah, well. I guess I’ll step over this, not unlike if I were to encounter shit on the sidewalk.

Jonah Hex #58
Know Jordi Bernet, know peace. No Jordi Bernet, no peace. The artist on this book, Giancarlo Caracuzzo is not series regular Bernet, but he’s not the reason this book falters. Gray and Palmiotti, the writers and, usually, masters of the single issue story, just simply lose control of their twisting tale. The narrative device is a neat one, letting the actual bullets fired serve as storytellers, but the writers get too caught up in their double crosses and coincidences to write a cogent and compelling issue. Don’t give up on this book, for it’s usually a paragon of the medium.

Superman on the Subway

2010-08-09T14:44:00.003-05:00

This has nothing to do with breaking into comics and little to do with comics at all. Still, it's too cool and strange to keep hidden away from you guys. Check out the link below (the images are legion and would take far too long to load if I posted them all here).

Vintage Japanese Subway Posters

Mutants & Masterminds

2010-07-27T17:25:00.003-05:00

When I was in high school, some friends of mine and I played a role-playing game called 3001. They had come up with the setting themselves a couple years before I met them. 3001 was a sort of post-apocalyptic, almost William Gibson-esque superhero world populated with resistance fighters and draconic super-powered overlords. My buddies had populated the world with many different characters but not a lot of thought went into the background of the world itself. Well, high school ended and slowly we went our separate ways, but 3001 stuck around my head for a while. I always tried to figure out why the world became what it was, how it got there, what events led them to that place and time. Over the years I constructed a solid timeline for the setting and even toyed with the idea of pitching it as a comic someday. Over the years my interest in it waned, but I never forgot about that world.

I'm older now, with an all new group of nerd buddies. Of late they've all been clamoring to do some table top roleplaying and, given that I occasionally masquerade as a writer, they've pushed me to come up with something for them to play. On a recent trip to a local used bookstore I found a copy of the original sourcebook for Green Ronin's Mutants & Masterminds. Remembering that I had owned the book once before during my heavy RPG days, I decided to pick it up and re-familiarize myself with the system. To my surprise, M & M is the best-selling superhero RPG ever and they're still publishing material for it today. So I picked up some of the supplemental stuff for a good price and have decided to run a game.

The campaign setting? Well, that's obvious, right?

Do any of my readers still RP? If so, do you have any Mutants & Masterminds tips and pointers? Anybody out there playing a game right now?

2010-07-26T18:02:00.002-05:00

Welcome back How I Became the Bomb frontman and weekly Surfing the Bleed contributor Jon Burr as he reviews some of last week's comics.

Amazing Spider-Man #637
I pity the creative team for this now-concluded Spidey arc. It’s not that it was bad. It’s not that it was mediocre. It just wasn’t the mind-bending, savage, and haunting arc that was Zeb Wells’ and Chris Bachalo’s “Shed.” Stop reading this review. Go get those issues. I’ll wait. Don’t dawdle. There. I’ll carry on now. This arc, The Grim Hunt, by Joe Casey and mostly Michael Lark, was good comics, though, pulling together, not unlike its eponymous arachnid, different strands from eras recent and bygone to tell a compelling tale. I know most people will bemoan the usage of characters and themes from Joe Straczynski’s subtotemic storyline, but I found it rather ballsy. I also loved that they gave J.M. DeMatteis the back-up, seeing as they played on his and Mike Zeck’s iconic Kraven’s Last Hunt so well. The only blight on the run has been Stan Lee’s bewildering two-pager backup tales but, hey, it’s Swingin’ Stan. So, all in all, ASM continues bringing the quality, thrice monthly, which you can’t really beat.

Astonishing Spider-Man & Wolverine #2
Boy howdy, can Jason Aaron write the Marvel Universe?! As loathe as I am to use the term “world-building,” Aaron has done just that in just two issues. Now many will point to Aaron hijacking plots from other works, mostly genre films, and just inserting Marvel characters into them but, hey, it makes for good comics. We’ve seen elements of First Blood and Terminator in his Weapon X series, but now we’ve got some full-on Charlton Heston end o’ the world sci-fi on our hands. And I couldn’t enjoy it more. I’d love to divulge more detail, but he packs so many easter eggs and surprises on each even-numbered page, that I wouldn’t dare risk spoiling it for you, dear reader. Oh, and Adam Kubert’s no slouch either.

Superman #701
J. Michael Strazcynski has the skills. The man can tell a story. I know this. I’ve read his work. He’s also not afraid to be daring. He’ll tell the story he wants to tell, and keep telling, regardless of reception. I know these things about JMS. Now what I want to know is if he is half the sanctimonious ass he makes Supes out to be. This is rough reading, folks. Superman basically walks around, staring down would-be jaywalkers, street toughs, and the like, pontificating like some sort of awful amalgamation of Tony Robbins and Thoreau, the latter of whom is quoted extensively unfortunately, as opposed to an alien in long-johns. The art doesn’t help as, skilled as Eddy Barrows might be, the poses and facial expressions given to Supes don’t help reduce the burning desire to stop, put down the comic, and pick up my copy of Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? I swear, if Superman had thoughtfully clutched his chin once more, as he sat in judgment over some poor normal human sap, I would have done just that.

The Bulletproof Coffin #2
There aren’t many comics out there that can make a lowly reviewer traipse through his mind searching for the apt adjectives quite like this one. Shaky Kane’s art is creepy, yet undeniably beautiful; static, yet alive; homage, yet wonderfully new. These seemingly contradictory descriptions are not limited to just the art. Coffin is a book of comics within comics. Kane, along with co-writer and scripter David Hine, have created a series that looks at Silver Age comics with nostalgia, but does not turn a blind eye to the strangeness and somewhat emotionally stunted nature of the era. The story is able to harken back to a bygone era, while existing in its own unique not-so-distant future or perhaps even a twisted, satirical present. Despite the book-within-book nature of the work, it’s not too metatextual that it can’t be enjoyed by someone just looking for kicks and vibrant art. This comic is able to interpret and possess so many aspects of the genre, serving as a book that can really serve the reader however he chooses. For fans of Alan Moore, Steve Ditko, and Jack Kirby. Yea, it’s that good.

CCI: Oh, how I wish I were there.

2010-07-25T14:40:00.008-05:00

I'm going to try and recap the news that jumps out at me from this weekend's mildly interesting Comic-Con International. You may have heard of it? Anyway, here's a list of newsworthy items that I deemed, well, newsworthy. This will be a linkfest, so apologies there for the lack of originality. When it comes to SDCC/CCI, you just let CBR and Bleeding Cool do the work for you.

Paul Tobin discusses Dark Horse's new Savage Sword anthology, a sort of homage to famous pulp writer (and DH cash cow) Robert E. Howard.

Marvel to publish CrossGen. I wasn't much of a CrossGen reader but this has to be exciting to those of you who were. I wonder if they'll bring back original books and creative teams (Way of the Rat, anyone?) or if they'll use the CrossGen brand as a place to launch newer talent?

Marvel Movie Panel. I'm a huge fan of Joss Whedon and I love that Marvel is ambitious enough to attempt this merging of all their films into one big Avengers franchise, but I have misgivings. Much as I love Joss, the guy has pretty much worked with the same actors (and second-tier actors at that) his whole career. I hope he can handle the egos of people like Jackson and Downey, Jr. well enough to get a good, coherent picture and not just an ensemble mess.

"He'll be charged with assault with a deadly weapon, due to the stabbing in the eye..." Of all the things to stab somebody over, the Resident Evil panel? Seriously dude? Where the hell is Shade when we need him? It seems like the American Scream was in the house at Comic-Con this year.

The collapse of all nerd marriages and the abject neglect of all children produced by these relationships has caused a massive disruption in the nation's economy.

IDW announces a new Rocketeer anthology to include talent such as Darwyn Cooke, John Cassaday and Mike Allred. As a bonus, partial proceeds from the book go to benefit the Hairy Cell Leukemia foundation.

A fan at the DCU panel reminds us all that stories can help save lives, even if we're not all fans of those stories . "The first fan said that he began reading comics with 'Blackest Night,' around the time he was diagnosed with HIV. He thanked DC for publishing a story about literally fighting death, which inspired him. In the midst of applause, Sattler walked down to hug the fan."

DC's Vertigo-bound chickens finally coming home to roost.

Morrison and Stewart on Thunderworld, Grant's take on the Marvel Family. Also, Absolute WE3 in the works.

It just gets wackier in Gotham City and I, for one, couldn't be happier. Eventually Grant Morrison is just going to write Batman for me and only me. It's almost happening already. I think at some point I'm just going to get a copy of Morrison's Batman on my doorstep each
month and it will be my job to just explain it to everyone else in the world. Ah, dreams.

DnA to do a Rocket Raccoon/Groot mini-series!

Stan's Back! The Boom Studios Stan Lee Panel.

There was more news than you can shake Big Barda's cosmic rod at coming out of Comic-Con this weekend, but those were the bits I found most interesting. What did you see at CCI this weekend that you are excited about? Did you go to the show or were you just watching from the sidelines like myself? What other cons do you plan to hit up this year?

How I Became the Bomb's Jon Burr Reviews Last Week's Hits (and MIsses) [we really need a title for this segment]

2010-07-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

Jon Burr is the lead singer of geek rock champions How I Became the Bomb. He is also my friend and a rather obsessive comic book nerd. When he approached me about doing a series of reviews each week for Surfing the Bleed I gladly said yes. Partially because the man really knows his stuff, partially because, well, I hate writing reviews. Before we go on, I want to state that in an editorial capacity I stand behind Jon and his right to express his opinions one hundred percent. That isn't to say that he and I will always agree, but the man is informed, intelligent and honest and I want that kind of material here on the site. So if anybody has a problem with his opinions I want to remind you that there is an open comment forum just underneath the post. Let's be constructive and stay on point, shall we? Without further ado, I give you...

The Segment Which Has No Name!

Greek Street #13

Well, I’ve given it a year. I don’t think that’s too much to ask. Peter Milligan is amongst my favorite comics writers. I’ve followed him for over a decade. My favorite comics artist - Darwyn Cooke - described him as the only collaborator whose words he wouldn’t touch or change. Human Target is one of the four or five long runs I’d pass along to a non-comics reader as proof that the medium isn’t simply fun genre trash. Skreemer and Rogan Gosh are titanic works in comics, unlike any others I’ve read. Hell, I sought out and purchased the B-movie he penned (It’s not bad, actually. Ray Liotta is in the lead, which insures victory). And, yet, here I am, giving up on his latest Vertigo piece. I’d like to think I don’t understand The Classics upon which this series is based or that maybe Greek Street is “written for the trade” as so many are prone to say these days. Perhaps it’s just too British; too Soho. Alas, I’m afraid I’m dropping this book because it’s just not good. I’m not even going to blame the artist. David Gianfelice and this week’s fill-in, Werther Dell’Edera, have been more than adequate. My old standby has finally let me down. I don’t condemn him. After such fine form for so many years, he’s earned a free pass. At least, as long as his Hellblazer stays up to par.

Scalped #39

I’ll admit it. Scalped isn’t always the best read. I know it gets almost universal praise. I know it is THE latest critical darling in comics, next to Scott Pilgrim. But it really hasn’t been the spiritual successor to 100 Bullets everyone claims it is. Sure, it has a Pulido-esque talent in R.M. Guera and it has the grit and the slow burning storyline of its Vertigo forebearer, but it has lacked the consistency. Lately, though, it has given me some hope. This is a book that just won’t quit. For every rough edge or clunky device, there’s a character like Shunka, the conflicted right-hand man. For every reveal that doesn’t quite work, there’s a hook at the end of an issue that keeps you on the reel. This issue keeps the fire stoked. The main thread of the story, which is Claudine’s rocky upbringing, didn’t really reveal anything to me, but the further unraveling of Bad Horse’s cover and life has me clamoring for more. And isn’t that Jason Aaron’s job? Simply put, he just needs us to keep coming back. Simple economics, really.

Vengeance of the Moon Knight #10

This little surprise came to me thanks to Surfing the Bleed’s own Brett Williams hoodwinking me into thinking that this was a Secret Avengers crossover. Now, mind you, The Secret Avengers were, indeed, in this issue, but that was inconsequential. Writer Gregg Hurwitz, on holiday, I imagine, from his farcical V television series remake, is either simply not up to snuff or is rebuking some sort of editorial mandate. Ah, I can see it now! Sweaty, cigar-chomping editor Axel Alonso cajoling Hurwitz: “Sales are in the tank, kid. I pushed for Deadpool, but we’ll have to make due with the Secret Avengers. Now they’re gonna be on the cover, so we’re gonna need a story here, kid.” Cut to Hurwitz hastily pecking away this hackneyed script, which of course employs a laconic monologue not unlike the purposefully putrid voiceover turned in by Harrison Ford when the studio started interfering with Blade Runner. I choose to believe this outlandish scenario and will give this book another chance as I am strangely in love with Juan Jose Ryp’s art, which is, to your humble narrator only, surely, reminiscent of Crumb and Richard Corben. Only he draws men in their underpants fighting sea monsters.

Demo #6

Hauntingly rendered tortured figures somehow finding serenity. And so ends the second run of Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan’s Demo. It’s fitting, really, as the series was comprised of fantastic imagery that was sometimes hamstrung by some plodding metaphors, yet always seemed to find a way to be compelling and heartfelt by story’s end. Cloonan’s work was daring and excellent throughout the series, from her wildly effective experimentation to her always resonant use of body language. The story struggled here and there, particularly on this issue and the first, with some truly transparent concepts, but they always managed to bring some truth to the comic by the last page. And this week, it was literally a last page save. The entire issue struggled with the clunky metaphor of a superpower that kept a couple ever together yet slightly apart. Oh, like a long-term relationship? Ugh. Obvious choices were mounting and this one was really growing tiresome until that last image, wonderfully conceived and drawn: The weary couple, reading together. They aren’t touching, of course, but they finally seemed at ease with each other. A masterful panel.

As an addendum, I can’t stress enough how much the extras at the end of the books - which I think the kids are calling “backmatter” - add to the series. I know it’s mostly an indie thing, but Vertigo should take note. Hell, I’d take some of this newfangled “backmatter” in my capes n’ underpants comics! It really makes for an immersive, insightful experience.

Thor The Mighty Avenger #1

I am finished with origin stories retold. A relentless horde, a insurmountable tide. These are the things I told myself, as I dropped books by good creators (Joe Casey’s Avengers: The Origin, anyone?) for the sole reason that I just didn’t think I could handle the same tales any longer. I was out. Or so I thought. Roger Landridge and Chris Samnee’s simple, evocative take was compelling and thrilling. It provided the quick, vibrant rush that is unique to the comics medium. I put the book down, stunned smile on my face, and wondered, “What’s next?”

Jonah Hex #57

I’ve snagged a few Jonah Hex issues this year. The odd Darwyn Cooke contribution here and there have certainly helped, but I had never read an issue of Jonah Hex with series regular artist Jordi Benet. I assumed he was another member of the Brazilian talent agency that has slowly developed the DC House Style I’ve come to loathe in the last couple of years. I was sorely mistaken. Not only will I pick up anything else with Bernet’s name on the credits, but I am now on a mission from god to familiarize myself with the rest of the man’s oeuvre. This includes any previous Hex issues, as Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti’s script had me pining for days of comics past. Between Bernet’s Caniff-meets-Kubert draughtsmanship and the pure-comics-ness of the writing, this issue left me devastatedly nostalgic. This is what comics should be. This is what comics can be. This is what comics were.

Brightest Day: The Atom Special #1

Sweet Tooth has been a good ride, thus far, with this week’s issue being another quality effort. Essex County was solid and I’ve heard nothing but good about The Nobody. Jeff Lemire is becoming a creator one must follow. Be that as it may, it was still difficult to pick any book bearing the Brightest Day banner. As it turns out, I probably could have skipped it, because this book, at least in the beginning, had all that I feared. Needless origin retelling? Check. Tenuous link to crossover? Check. In the latter half of the book, Lemire finally breaks free and plants the seed for what I’m hoping will be a fun tale, but it remains to be seen if his capes n’ tights debut will bear fruit, as we readers weren’t given much to work with here. Quick aside: Ray Palmer’s life is hysterically terrible! Is the domain name “www.RayPalmer’sLifeInARefridgerator.com” taken? Someone get Gail Simone on the horn.

Doom Patrol #12

If you don’t like the notion of Keith Giffen somehow finding a way to meld the tone of his Legion: 5 Years Later story with the humor of his JLI and THEN finding a way to incorporate the characters and spirit of Grant Morrison’s exceedingly brilliant DP run, then you should do one thing and one thing only: Stop reading comics. Now. Thank you.

Casanova #1

I can’t get a read on Matt Fraction. His X-Men books have entertained me. I absolutely loved the Iron Man covers he spearheaded, as I really think comics and modern design need to become friends again. However, I read last week’s Iron Man Annual and it was one of the most putrid, long-winded, and dull stories I’ve read in recent months. Thus, I’ve waited for Casanova for some time, as I had hoped that it would be my Matt Fraction Rosetta Stone. I’ll have to wait a little longer, seemingly. Don’t get me wrong. There’s a lot to love here. Ba and his brother are always fun, and watching how they’ve developed was certainly interesting, but there was so much Morrison and Ellis influence that it was hard for me to fully enjoy. I’m certainly not writing this title off, but I’m going to need a little more before I give Fraction credit for his talents as a comics writer and not just a guy with some great ideas about design and a genuine love for good comics.

Things I also read that weren’t bad:

Tom Strong and the Robots of Doom #2 (Pulp-y goodness!)

Avengers: The Children’s Crusade #1 (Bold prediction: Penciler Jim Cheung will rule the comics roost someday. Or quit comics and make a real living as a storyboard artist or in advertising.)

Steve Rogers: Super Soldier #1 (Brubaker’s Bucky-Cap’n has been pretty aimless. This had purpose. That SuperPro costume is still hard to look at, though.)

X-Force #28 (Don’t listen to them. Second Coming was great. Sure, Nightcrawler died, but look on the bright side: they finally killed Cable.)

King City #10 (Imagine your wittiest, most stoned friend could draw like the bastard child of Moebius, Otomo, and Toriyama. I ran out of room, but you can bet that I’ll review this soon.)

Sweet Tooth #11 (I want Lemire to pick up the pace, but it’s still a quality issue.)

Batman and Robin #13 (A line from my shop owner, Mark Angell: “There are two Grant Morrisons. Good Trip Grant and Bad Trip Grant.” I THINK Grant’s on the good stuff here.)

X-Men #1 (Everyone is so sick and tired of vampires, thanks to True Blood, Twilight, etc. Here’s the thing: I don’t watch or read that stuff. So get fucked, all of you, and let me read my X-Men.)

Things I also read that weren’t good:

Fantastic Four Annual #32 (Ah, Bryan Hitch. There you are. Sorry, chum.)

Scarlet #1 (Cute, Bendis, but a little late to the party on so many levels. I commend him for his return to creator-owned stuff and will definitely give this a few more issues, though.)

Shadowland #1 (Look, I read most of the books associated with this. I should be the guy who gets this. I don’t get this. Daredevil did what now? Punisher is human again? Beg pardon?)

R.I.P. Harvey

2010-07-12T16:34:00.002-05:00

Rest in peace, Harv. You had a lot to do with me believing that this comic book thing wasn't just a pipe dream and I'll always thank you for that. I hope the afterlife's nicer than Cleveland.

Being Constructive

2010-07-06T14:56:00.002-05:00

I've recently entered into a collaborative relationship with a young artist from SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design). We haven't begun working on anything together yet, but we've bounced some of our various pitches and scripting samples off of one another. Yesterday, I sent him some feedback on a scripting sample he'd sent me. I was constructive, highlighting things I thought were structurally very sound about his scripting process while pointing out some issues I had with the overall originality of the subject matter. He responded very well to the criticism and went so far as to flesh out some of his ideas so that I had a deeper understanding of the story he was trying to tell. All in all, a very constructive and positive e-mail exchange.

I'd like to hear how all of you cope with the business of bouncing ideas off of possible collaborators and dealing out criticism or suggestion when necessary. When does constructive criticism or just polite suggestion become too harsh? For those of you who have collaborative experience already, how have you approached the problem of communicating clearly the pros and cons you see in your partner's work?

Life Imitating Art?

2010-06-29T14:38:00.001-05:00

The Catwoman Strikes!

Pitching

2010-06-28T16:44:00.004-05:00

When I was a kid, all I wanted to do with my life was play baseball. I was a big sports fan (still am, if you can believe it) but baseball ruled the roost. I lived and breathed the game. At a young age I could tell you more about baseball history, rules and statistics than a lot of MLB analysts. Unfortunately for me, my skill for the game lay in strategy and not physical prowess. I couldn't hit a damn ball to save my life. I wasn't a terribly good fielder either. Typically, I spent my days riding the pine. The one thing I was always good at though was throwing. I was most often relegated to right field, which is where they typically confine the least talented of all the ball players at that age. What did I discover about myself in right field? Well, I had a lot of hustle even if I wasn't very quick to the ball, I was prone to trying to make spectacular catches (usually a failure) in an effort to somehow distinguish myself as a ballplayer, and, most importantly, I had a cannon for an arm. A big, nasty, mean, accurate ten year old fireball thrower. I could hit the cut-off man with pinpoint accuracy, I could one-hop a laser guided shot to home plate whenever some over zealous kid tried to sneak his ass home.

Let's review. I couldn't really field, I was a terrible batter, I could throw hard accurately. Why the hell wasn't I a pitcher? Unfortunately, in little league you often run into the problem of "coach's kid gets the best positions." What that meant more often than not was the coach's kid got to be the pitcher. Even though I had that aforementioned cannon, even though my own father had been a good fastball pitcher in his youth and could have taught me a ton about mechanics (all you need at ten is a good heater), they never put me on the mound. I'm not ashamed to admit that it still bothers me a bit to this day.

How fitting it is then, after all these years and all this geektastic self-discovery, that I would enter a field that required I be a "pitcher" to get work. Sure, its an editor instead of a batter and a synopsis instead of a hard white ball, but I'm finally a pitcher.

So my question for all of you guys this week is this; how do you pitch? Some of you have pitches out there right now awaiting critique, some of you have sold pitches and are currently working and some of you are like me, just starting out and trying to determine the best manner in which to sell your work. So what do you do? What advice do you have for myself (and my readers) about putting together the best possible pitch and reeling in those editors?

Batter up!

A Question...

2010-06-25T14:43:00.002-05:00

For those of you who don't know, my current job is at a local bar, where I barback and work the door. I work five nights a week (Fri - Tue) and the shifts last from 8 PM till around 5 AM. Five days a week in an industry like this is different than five days a week in a normal industry with a normal schedule. The reason I say "normal" industry is because the bar industry is, for the most part, a lifestyle and not just a job. People who work in bars get hung up on how much money they can make and then often begin to lose sight of other goals that they had in life. This isn't always the case, but often you find bartenders, barbacks, servers who work in bars, hang out in bars and only have friends who work and hang out in bars. It transcends work and becomes how you live your life. This is an easy trap to fall into, as the bar industry is one of the few places that people like myself (intelligent and hard working but otherwise under-educated workers) can find work that offers a decent amount of money.

Despite the amount of money I make (it's good), I'm burning out pretty badly at work. The three shifts a week where I barback don't cause too much stress, but my two shifts working the door (Friday and Saturday) are so stressful that I spend all week dreading them. Adding to this stress is the fact that I feel I have to cram all my creative work, my friend time and my time with my wife into the two days off (Wednesday and Thursday) that I currently have. There just doesn't seem to be enough time.

You might be asking yourself, "Why not just get up and do a lot of creative work before going into your job for the night?" Well, I just don't sleep. Sleeping during the day, being wired at the end of work, etc, etc. There are plenty of factors that lead to insomnia, so I'm constantly trying to catch sleep where I can. And, when I am awake, I don't feel I have a great deal of energy or creative fire.

You're probably thinking to yourselves that I should just find a new job, and I'm trying, but the job market in Nashville is still pretty terrible so opportunities are few and far between. I'm hoping to scale back the amount of days I work at the bar and that would certainly help, but the level of stress right now is flirting dangerously with breakdown levels.

So my question to you friends and readers is this; how do you do it? I know that many of you have wives, full time jobs, kids, and other obligations which no doubt cut into your creative time. How do you balance it? How do you find time to do your jobs, work on projects and still maintain the obligations to family and fellowship that you feel are important? Do you exercise, meditate, drink heavily, do copious amounts of recreational drugs? Inquiring minds want to know.

The Analog Dilemma

2010-06-22T06:06:00.000-05:00

I think every burgeoning creator who cut their teeth on superhero comics faces the analog dilemma. Simply put, we all want to add our own spin to the classic themes that prevail over superhero storytelling. While certain creators have managed to work their way into the pantheons of the big two and tell the kind of groundbreaking stories they wanted with established characters (Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns, Mark Waid's Kingdom Come), most creators had to branch out and form their own worlds and their own characters to really come at superheroes the way they wanted (The Authority, Watchmen, etc.).

It's beyond argument that many of those superhero analog books rank amongst the most important work in the realm of comics. Watchmen, perhaps the best example of an analog story, is widely considered the greatest comic ever created. So there's definitely a precedence there. The issue, at this point, isn't whether analog stories are a worthy use of panel space, but whether there are still enough original stories to be told in that particular vein.

This is what I'm struggling with right now. I have different projects which I try to divide my time evenly between. There's the horror/Western with elements of classic mythology, the homage/critique of the pulp/adventure genre, the space opera. Lately though, I find myself devoting more and more time to my own superhero analog. The question I pose to you, readers, is this; is it worth it? Should I continue to pump so much of my time and effort into something that many people will likely disregard with a simple, "Eh, it's been done before,"?

I think I have original things to say with these stories and I believe that I've come up with a very interesting and original way to tell the stories while still fleshing out the history of the universe that surrounds them. Aside from that, I've put a lot of myself into these characters, both good and bad, and I find that I like them and the story that surrounds them better than anything I've done yet.

So what do you think, friends and fans? Has this horse been beaten, dumped in a Lazarus pit and beaten again so many times that it's hardly worth it? Or should I soldier ahead, steely in my resolve, determined to put my own personal stamp on the genre that has meant so much to me and to the industry as a whole?

Up, up and away?

Rounding Up

2010-06-13T13:44:00.004-05:00

On days like this when I don't have too much to write about, I'm going to try and round up a few interesting comics stories from around the net. At least this way I'm putting something up and those five or six of you that read this (not counting everyone at BOOM! Studios. You my boys, yo.) have something to entertain you for a few minutes. Enjoy!

Summer Glau joins the cast of Knights of Badassdom. - courtesy of Bleeding Cool.

Brian Bolland (The Killing Joke) responds to Icelandic artist Erro appropriating his Tank Girl work for his own personal gain. - courtesy of Bleeding Cool.

Concept art for the Thor and Captain America movie costumes leaked. - courtesy of Broken Frontier.

Tom Bondurant spends a little time dissecting the Man of Steel. - courtesy of Robot 6/CBR.

And now, for your viewing enjoyment, the first trailer for Marvel vs. Capcom 3. - courtesy of Game Trailers.

Video Games | Marvel vs Capcom 3: FTW | E3 2010: Exclusive New Character Teaser HD

XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

What I'm Reading

2010-06-07T12:33:00.006-05:00

Here's a quick look at the books that have consumed my free time of late. I highly suggest that you put your hands on all of these books if you haven't already.

Marvel's Cosmic Line: Annihilation through The Thanos Imperative - Launched by Keith Giffen and featuring the talents of such writers and artists as Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Cristos Gage, Brad Walker, etc., Marvel's cosmic universe has been stellar (pun intended) for years. I'm ashamed to admit that I only recently got into the line, but better late than never, right? With an eye to continuity and a penchant for operatic space storytelling, Giffen & DNA have created one of the richest and most appealing comic storylines I've ever read. Everything you've loved about the stories of such authors as Robert Heinlein and shows such as Joss Whedon's Firefly and SyFy's Battlestar Galactica can be found in these books, all of which have led up to the Thanos Imperative which kicked off over the last couple of weeks. If you've got some folding money just burning a hole down your Levi's, there are far worse ways to spend it than this.

Secret Warriors - Jonathan Hickman (and a little bit of Bendis) tells the tale of super-spy Nick Fury still trying to save a world that has abandoned him after the events of Civil War and Secret Invasion. Equal parts adventure story and nasty black ops spy book, Secret Warriors mines the secret history of the Marvel Universe as only a Hickman book can. A book powered by b-list superheroes and Nick Fury's unstoppable grit, Secret Warriors brings the age-old conflict between S.H.I.E.L.D. and HYDRA to its logical and explosive conclusion. A fantastic book from top to bottom, with great storytelling and breathtaking art. If you're not on it, get there, because this book just keeps getting better.

Fantastic Four - I honestly can't believe I'm writing this. If you'd asked me, even a month ago, what I thought about the Fantastic Four, you would have been met with a detailed rant expressing my general distaste for the group. As a kid, I was an awkward and fatalistic little outcast with little self-esteem and no delusions of grandeur. In the Marvel Universe, I would have had an X sewn firmly into the fabric of my skintight jumpsuit. To that awkward nerd, the X-Men and their ilk always resonated a lot harder than the FF, who seemed to be just too damned perfect for their own good. Despite my interest in all things Kirby, cosmic and crazy, I never could get into the FF. Then Jonathan Hickman threw a monkey wrench right at this ol' head of mine and really shook things up. Hickman's FF aren't a bunch of never-fail do-gooders, they're a real family with real family problems. They seem so much more human, so much more resonant than they ever did to me before. His Reed Richards isn't a perfect, dominant super-genius, but a loving father and conflicted hero, a man who has the power to do anything and is limited only by his desire to remain human. If I didn't like that, then I'd have to stop being a Superman fan as well. Taking what I love about superheroics, Hickman has crafted a Fantastic Four book that recalls friendship, family and the obligation of good people to make hard decisions. In a word, the book is fantastic.

That's what I'm going nuts over lately. How about y'all?

The Surfing the Bleed Interview - The Rejects Creator, Anthony Ferrante

2010-05-31T12:59:00.007-05:00

Surfing The Bleed: Hey Anthony. Welcome to Surfing the Bleed. Let's get started. For those readers who aren't familiar with your fairly prolific internet presence, give us a little backstory. Who is Anthony Ferrante? What does Anthony Ferrante do?

Anthony Ferrante: Anthony Ferrante is a guy with delusions of grandeur. A mover, a shaker, a candlestick maker. I'm a man who has a lot of irons on the fire all the time, and just enough ADD to exponentially add more and never enough sense to take some off. I always wanted to be a writer in some capacity, but also fearful of the financial uncertainty. So I became a writer... of code. Totally not the same thing, I regret to inform you and your readers. I do that by day. By night I tend to the irons.

STB: Let's start with a little bit about how you came to love comics. Do you recall the first comic you owned and what was it about comics, as a child, that resonated so powerfully with you?

Anthony Ferrante: I would go to the local card/smoke shop and read the comics, not buy them. I'd read mostly Hulk, Iron Man and Green Lantern. I'd read until I'd get kicked out. This was a weekly occurrence, until I had noticed an issue of X-Men with Jim Lee's art. I bought that one, I think it was issue 19, with Colossus raging on the cover. I had to have it so I could look at the amazing pictures for more than the 15 minutes the card shop owner would give me. I bought that book every month, and branched out from there. Jim Lee singlehandedly dragged me into this world of fantastical nonsense, and I would like to shake his hand for doing so.

STB: Your career is software design but your passion is making comics. Did you always know that comics was the goal or was there a specific moment where you realized that making a career in that industry was possible and decided to pursue it?

Anthony Ferrante: It was always in the back of my mind that I wanted to make comics. It was pushing down on my brain throughout college, but as you probably know, making comics without a publisher takes a fair amount of financial backing. I just didn't have the funds to pay the people necessary to make a comic book, and make it right. Once I graduated and found employment, the funds appeared. It was honestly one of the first things I did with my first bit of saved money. Most people want to buy a car or get an apartment, the first thing I did was find an artist to collaborate with.

It's hard to "break into" comics, it really is. There's a lot of rejection, I've found. Some disappointment, too. But if you really love the medium as much as you say you do, you keep going. You keep creating and you do it for yourself, and you have enough confidence in your work that someone out there will like it who isn't related to you or sleeping with you.

STB: Your contribution to the collaborative process is story. Can you speak for a bit about being the writing half of a creative team? What is your scripting process?

Anthony Ferrante: It usually starts with a small idea with grasping tendrils, a short blurb just jotted down one day. Then, on the drive to work, or on a lunch break, or while trying to sleep more ideas materialize from the ether and are gripped by the tendrils until a story takes form. Then I plot, writing in some garbled prose asking questions to myself about the story and answering them on the next line until an infrastructure is built. Then I outline the entire story, from beginning to end. Only then can you really start scripting, knowing where you need to be with the ending and several other major plot points in mind. When I actually script, I go for the screenplay style, heavy on visual direction. I tell the artists that I work with that I have an idea of how I'd like the book to look, but for them to suggest changes whenever they think they're needed. They are, after all, the ones who know best how visual elements would work together and how transitions can flow better aesthetically.

STB: You know as well as I do that finding quality artists to work with, who aren't already employed in the business, is very difficult. How did you find your current collaborators and how has that collaboration helped you learn more about the medium and your approach to it?

Anthony Ferrante: Finding a good collaborator is one of the hardest parts about making a comic book. Not only does the person need to be talented and able to tell a story visually, but they need to be receptive, open to communication, trustworthy and reliable. It's not easy finding someone with all of those traits without actually knowing them in person beforehand.
I've gone the Digital Webbing route multiple times, and I've gotten great collaborations out of it a few times, and struck out more than a few times. The artist for The Rejects, Noah Barrett, was found through Digital Webbing's forums. The same can be said for both of the artists being used for a couple of other projects I have going on right now.

Through mistakes, you learn. So learn from my mistakes and ALWAYS have a contract in place with anyone you collaborate before the collaboration begins. ALWAYS discuss payment up front, and ALWAYS clearly and concisely layout your expectations of your partner's work. It seems cold and so very business for such a creative organism but they are essential if you want anything more than frustration from the comic book making process.

STB: Your first published work is a project called The Rejects. Can you give us some information on the title?

Anthony Ferrante: The Rejects is a book trying to emulate my favorite period of the traditional superhero comic book niche, and that would be the late-90's, early-00's Wildstorm line... Stormwatch, The Authority, etc. wherein there would be elements of classic superhero stories amalgamated with gritty, near-future, dystopian back-drop. It's a book about abduction, experimentation, betrayal, murder, suspicion and ultimately vengeance. Only the first book is finished, with the second book very near completion, but the entire thing is six books. It's something that will probably end up working really well as a collected piece, but that's down the line.

STB: You've decided to self-publish The Rejects through your website. Did you pitch it to any publishers or was it always your intent to release it on your own?

Anthony Ferrante: I did pitch to a few publishers. It was my original intention to create a comic book, from soup to nuts, and in the end hold a tangible comic book in my hands that I can say I created. Ultimately I would like to create for a living, and have it be my bread-winner as well as my passion, so I pitched it to a handful of publishers. They had their reasons for not wanting to pick up The Rejects, and that's fine. I still believe in this story and believe it's a good one to tell, so I will. I think there will be regrets from some publishers who decided to pass, when it's all said and done.

STB: Can you talk for a bit about the benefits and the difficulties of self-publishing your comic?

Anthony Ferrante: When you self-publish and the original idea is yours, you become more than just the writer. You're also the editor, publisher, and sometimes spot-letterer or colorist or inker. It would be nice to just dream up an idea, plot it out and then script it... send it off to the editor and wipe my hands of it, but in self-publishing you are babying this project from day one to day 150. This is not a complaint, mind you, but rather an idea of the process and what can be seen as difficulties for those interested in going down this path.

On the other hand, you have complete and utter creative control. You have final say in any and every thing and it should be exercised as such. You have permission to go batshit crazy if you want, and in the end you will still have a 22-page comic book, just as much as the guy who has to write about a shape-shifting race invading Earth, no matter how out of place it might be and how divergent from an original story idea he might have had. Sure, the second guy gets money while you lose it, but creatively you're miles ahead of him.

STB: Tell us, if you would, a bit about your next project, Seven Sunsets.

Anthony Ferrante: Seven Sunsets is another book I'm working on, but right now as a comic book, it's in its infancy. We are working on putting it together as a pitch only, initially. The story itself is fleshed out immensely, I have a friend that is helping me with this one and we have a lot of even minute details present. We have a wiki set up to put all of the information together, and to keep relationships obvious. I am very excited about telling this story, as it was something that I had in the back of my mind for a long time now, and it burst out pretty nicely.

STB: You work and live in NYC. How has living in the capital of the world influenced you as a creator? Does it give you a richer tapestry to play with?

Anthony Ferrante: It's something that certainly inspires me, knowing Marvel and DC have headquarters right over there is a neat motivation. Technically I live right outside of NYC... I say that because I do own a car and I do have to drive everywhere. Ideas usually come to me while I'm driving. Also in the shower, I get a lot of thinking done in the shower... where was I going with this? Anyway it's good to know so much creative energy is next door and that maybe I can siphon some of it for my own selfish use.

STB: Admittedly, you are a big video game fan. What are some of the games you're playing right now?

Anthony Ferrante: Right now I just finished the co-op multiplayer for Splinter Cell: Conviction. The ride to the ending was great but boy did I hate that ending. I played the multiplayer beta for Blur last night, that was fantastic. A combination of Burnout and Mario Kart... play it if you can. Other than that I'm patiently waiting for both the Halo: Reach beta and Red Dead Redemption. Comics and video games in one interview, man I'm a dork.

STB: What do you think about the growing number of comics professionals working in the field of game design? Is that something you've considered pursuing?

Anthony Ferrante: I think it's great. They are similar fields, when you break them down to their basic components, so a transition only makes sense. Being a programmer, I think when maybe 80% of us start out in school, we have aspirations of working in video games. It's about as easy as breaking into comics to get into that field, and as an entry level coder you're just a grunt... no creativity, you just do what you're told. If I were to get the opportunity to design a game based on my comic book work, there would be no way I would ever turn that down.

STB: You and I met and bonded through the social networking service Twitter. As I'm sure you've noticed, many comic book professionals use the service to communicate with one another. How important do you feel that social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook are to young creators trying to make connections in the industry?

Anthony Ferrante: We are a very, very lucky generation. I can open a tab right now and ask Tom Brevoort or Jim Lee a question, and GET AN ANSWER. Usually within hours. Could you imagine that 15 years ago? Everyone was going into the comic book industry blind, vague ideas on how to get into it. Now, if you just follow the right guy, you get freakin' instruction manuals for both writers and artists. It's an invaluable source for young creators like you and I.

On the other hand, in self-publishing it's an amazing way to push your book. Your fan page on Facebook or your Twitter account is just as good as Marvel's or DC's. It has just as much of a voice as long as you can get the fans/followers. Another dynamic tool that if implemented properly puts today's young creators on the outside looking in lightyears ahead of their counterparts as little as five years ago.

STB: In closing, how are your Mets going to be this year?

Anthony Ferrante: As of this writing, they are alone in first place about to start a series with the second place Phillies. Listen, I love the Mets more than I should, but they need another pitcher badly. With that, I can see a definite wild card berth with 87 wins. Once you're in the playoffs, anything goes baby.

STB: Thanks a lot Anthony and best of luck. Surfing the Bleed will be keeping an eye on you.

The Return

2010-05-26T22:02:00.005-05:00

I have been gone for a while. I hope that this hiatus hasn't quelled your interest in my blog. I've been adjusting to a new schedule at work (I now work five nights a week, and in my business that's a lot of exhausting work), and a flooded city. Luckily, the Nashville Floods didn't touch me directly, but they did affect quite a few of my friends. We still need help, money and donations of every sort, so if you live in the Middle Tennessee area, give time, food, etc. If you're out of the area and want to help out, you can donate to Hands On Nashville or the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. I ask that you do not donate to the Red Cross simply because the Red Cross puts all that money into a pool and there is no guarantee that it will get to flood victims here in Tennessee. Not that I am opposed to helping people everywhere people need help (I wouldn't be much of a superhero fan if I was), but if you want to specifically help the greater Nashville area, then use one of the links above.

There has been a lot of self-reflection and a lot of time wasted on trying to catch up on sleep lately, so my mind has been pretty far out of the game. But I'm redoubling my efforts and getting back to work. I've also got a couple of projects on the horizon that I'm very excited about, one of which is destined for publication if I can just stay diligent and do the work. But it's a life-consuming sort of thing, so I have to be willing to commit a lot of time and effort to it.

But that's what this is going to be about from here on out. Commitment. That's the word going forward. Commitment to this medium, to this blog, to this career. I'm driven, but moving forward you'll see me add a great deal more focus to that drive.

Promise.

So get ready fans. This year, we are going to seriously surf the bleed.

Boston Days 3 & 4

2010-04-29T08:02:00.005-05:00

I was doing really well on this trip, huh? I mean, live a day, write about it the next morning. Then the Red Sox happened and I got kind of distracted. I could go into depth about how we spent our last bit of time in Boston, but most of it would involve me gushing endlessly about Fenway Park.

My dad and I went to the game Saturday night, which the Red Sox won thankfully. Before the game we spent most of our day just walking around the area where the park is and drinking. We started with a walking tour of Fenway, which included field access, so I actually got to stand on the same warning track that Ted Williams used to field fly balls on. After the tour we had lunch and beers, then there was more beer, then some walking around, then some waiting, then the game. It was amazing, it was religious, it was one of the greatest days of my life.

The following day, Agnes and I got up and decided to go back down to Fenway (the game was at 1:15) and try to find tickets. She'd never been to a professional sporting event (except the Nashville Sounds minor league games) and she expressed a genuine interest in seeing Fenway Park. I think a lot of this has to do with the fact that she knew we could afford it and that I wouldn't have a lot of chances to do this, so kudos to her. That's major brownie points right there. We got down there, found a guy selling tickets for the first row bleachers, dead center field. He wanted $150 for two, which was about $30 more than I wanted to pay. So I put on a fake Boston accent (it's impressive, you should hear it) and convinced him I was too local to try and pull one over on. We got the tickets for $120 and it was money very well spent. The Sox lost that game (damn you Okajima!) but it was still amazing and religious. Agnes even bought a hat. Okay, she was mostly trying to keep the sun out of her eyes, but by the end of the game she was totally invested.

That night we had a very poor Italian meal at a Zagat rated establishment (I no longer trust the Zagat rating) that isn't worth discussing. Then the funk set in, I woke up with a chest cold, and we came home.

I could go further into depth about all of this stuff, but I'll let the pictures tell the stories.

Thanks for coming along with us on this Surfing the Bleed vacation. I promise I'll get back to talking about comics this week.

GB Williams out.

Surfing the Bleed On Vacation - Boston - Day 2

2010-04-24T08:06:00.007-05:00

DAY 2

Day two began with a wonderful room service breakfast. Now, don't get me wrong, we're certainly not the kind of people to indulge in room service but my mom had us sign up for some special Kimpton package which gives us a daily $30 room service credit. If you've got it, flaunt it. Right? Once energized by a great breakfast in bed, we went on the search for comics and various other forms of entertainment.

After a quick train ride, Agnes and I found ourselves on the search for Comicopia, the comic shop recommended to us by Ming and her sometimes collaborator, Kevin Church. Kevin and I don't really know each other (outside the occasional Twitter conversation) but when it comes to comics in Boston, I trust his opinion implicitly. Unfortunately for us both, Agnes and I are both early risers. Boston, dear readers, is not an early riser city. We made it to the comic shop at around 10 in the A.M. only to find it still closed. No worries though, as it was just down the street and around the corner from the awe-inspiring site that is Fenway Park.

At this point I have to mention that my wife was a real trooper yesterday. As you'll soon realize, Day 2 of our trip was a very Brett-centric day. She handled it gracefully.

So yeah, Fenway was amazing. We walked around the exterior, Agnes taking pictures and me alternating between the tactile experience of dragging my fingers along the bricks and prancing around like a giddy schoolboy. Which, to be fair, is what I'd been reduced to. Just seeing Fenway, much less being inside it, is a lifelong dream. Those moments when dreams are realized are always very, very special. Understatement of the year, right? More on Fenway tomorrow though, as my father and I will actually be inside baseball's most famous ballpark tonight.

We killed enough time around the stadium for the comic shop to open up. While Comicopia is in a bit of a cramped space, the owner has done his best to get as much out of that space as he can, with cleverly arranged racks leading from the kids titles in the front (where they should ALWAYS be) to the weekly new releases and adult comics in the back. Comicopia looks, smells and feels like a local comic shop should, complete with a wide selection from each genre of comics and a very friendly staff. Now, I can't walk into a good comic shop without shelling out some of my money. I had to restrain myself as we're on a pretty tight budget this trip, but I did make a couple of purchases. Based on good reviews I've read and the staff recommendation, I purchased volume one of The Stuff of Legend by Mike Raicht, Brian Smith and Charles Paul Willson, III. I also picked up Kevin Church and Benjamin Birdie's The Rack, a collection of the first year of Kevin and Benjamin's hilarious webcomic about the lives of a group of comic shop employees. I've only read bits and pieces of The Rack online so I'm really looking forward to diving into this headfirst on the plane ride back to Nashville.

After the comic shop we stopped in the John Fluevog shop so I could purchase a new pair of nice, awesome, protect-against-Satan shoes. Typically, when I go on a trip, I pack a good pair of boots and a ratty pair of sneakers. This time I forgot the boots and, surprisingly vain as I am, felt the need to purchase a nice pair of shoes for wearing to any potential nice dining experiences. But let's be honest, it was really just an excuse to get some new Fluevogs. I love those shoes!

More interesting than the shoes I purchased was the person I met at the Fluevog store. One of the employees was a charming and energetic young girl who makes her own webcomic over here. We talked comics, exchanged information and tentatively set up an interview for sometime in the future. And isn't that awesome? Comics is such a universal language. I can't go anywhere in this country without meeting someone that loves comics and/or makes comics.

After the shopping trip we came back to the hotel, grabbed my folks, had a couple beers (so it begins) and headed down to the harbor for a seafood lunch at The Barking Crab. The meal had its highs and lows, but overall the experience was good and the service was excellent, an aspect of Boston I've been pleasantly surprised with. We've had fantastic service everywhere we've been so far. Two things of note happened at The Barking Crab. One, I consumed lobster for the first time ever. I enjoyed the lobster and was genuinely surprised and delighted that there was a different texture and flavor to every area of the beast, but ultimately I wasn't blown away by it. I understand why people like it, but after reflecting upon the meal, I'm not quite sure why it's considered such a delicacy. Good, but not great. The second thing worth noting about this meal was the beer brewed by the Harpoon Brewery exclusively for this restaurant. The Barking Crab White Ale is an unfiltered wheat beer that starts smooth and finishes crisp and fruity. It was one of the most refreshing and enjoyable beers this snob has ever had and was the perfect compliment to the seafood we were all consuming. Seriously, I thought it was so good that I made everyone at the table try it and then subjected them to fifteen extra minutes of table time after the meal just so I could consume a second. Like I said, a very Brett-centric day.

After the late lunch, Agnes and I made our way out to our friend Jeff Artiaco's old stomping grounds in the Allston area. Agnes grabbed some ice cream at a cafe Jeff used to frequent that was right across the street from the liquor store where he used to work.

The staff, much to my delight, had Double Nickels On the Dime by the Minutemen playing on the stereo.

After ice cream we landed at Jeff's favorite dive bar, the Silhouette Lounge.

Bud Lights were consumed (only by me), jukebox tunes were enjoyed and two heated games of Cricket (the dart kind, not the kind with knickers and weird bats) were completed. I won both, but I'm proud to say that Agnes more than held her own with me (I'm pretty good) and brought it down to the bullseye both games.

At that point I was pretty lit and decided that I needed food, so we went to the burger joint Jeff had suggested, a place called Our House West. Our House has a bit of an identity crisis. One part divey diner, one part upscale lounge, one part coffee house and one part sports bar, I would have felt a lot more comfortable with it had they just picked a theme and ran with it. But we weren't there for the ambiance, we were there for the food. And to a lesser extent, the beer. I was pretty much done at that point, but I wanted a beer to go with my burger. So I ordered a Naragansett Beer, the local cheap beer of choice. Considering myself something of a cheap beer connoisseur I decided I couldn't leave Boston without trying one of these beers. Well, I can say that I tried it and that, with the exception of the awful Genesee Cream Ale, it is the worst beer I've ever had in my life.

Luckily the burger was exceptional. I ordered what they called the Canadian, a thick, juicy burger, cooked to order and topped with a thick slice of cheese and a few slices of Canadian bacon. They even served it with romaine lettuce (not the typical iceberg that you get with most burgers) so I did something I've never done in my whole life; I ate something other than just mustard and cheese on that burger. That's right mom and dad, I put that romaine lettuce on that burger.

And it was awesome! I know that this sounds ridiculous, but if you knew how picky an eater I'd been growing up, and what great strides I've made as an adult, you'd understand. Putting anything other than mustard on a burger is a big step forward for me. The lettuce, man, it added this really rustic, earthy texture and flavor to the burger that accentuated the already stellar taste. Maybe I was just drunk, but I think it was one of the best burgers I've ever had.

After the burger and a long train ride back, Agnes and I collapsed into bed and fell into a deep and satisfying sleep.

Tomorrow: RED SOX NATION!

Surfing the Bleed On Vacation - Boston

2010-04-23T06:53:00.007-05:00

DAY 1

This past Christmas, I purchased my father and I two tickets to see the Boston Red Sox play the Baltimore Orioles in historic Fenway Park. The purchase was made on a whim, but what a glorious whim. I'd just started working at my current job (after nearly a year of unemployment) and I had money in my bank account for the first time in a long time. I was tired of the typical "here's a CD you'll like, here's some awesome movie" gifts I usually get my dad, so I decided to go bigger.

My pops and I have been talking for years about taking a trip to the great East Coast ball clubs. Unfortunately we didn't get a chance to do it before the original Yankee Stadium closed down. The trip would have consisted of Baltimore's Camden Yards, New York's Yankee Stadium and (this Sawks fan's personal favorite) Boston's Fenway Park. We may still do it someday (though I don't care much about the new Yankee Stadium), but I got tired of waiting on Fenway.

I've been a Red Sox fan since I was a kid, which wasn't easy growing up in Tennessee because I never got to see any of the games. My pops taught me a lot about old baseball when I was a kid and I just decided that I liked the Red Sox best of all, probably, honestly, because they had a superstar with the same last name as me. I decided this was the year we would do it, the year I'd finally get to see Fenway, so I pulled the trigger and got it done. Now, pops, mom, the wife and I are all in Beantown. The game's on Saturday, but that doesn't mean we're sitting around on our hands until then.

Yesterday we had a couple of great pizzas from Regina Pizzeria, did some hoofing around the Italian area of town, had some Boston Cream from Mike's Pastry, then headed back to the hotel for some much needed rest. Well, dad and I did at least. Mom and the wife got stuck in a genuine all-of-a-sudden-man-this-must-happen-all-the-time Boston thunderstorm. After resting and drying were achieved, we went our separate ways. Mom and Dad to do whatever and Agnes and I to hop a train and go see my friend Ming Doyle, who you may remember from such work as Jennifer's Body, Girl Comics, and of course, The Surfing the Bleed Interview.

Ming and her lovely assistant (read boyfriend) Neil Cicierega met us down in the Newbury St. area of town and took us to a great light dinner at Trident Booksellers & Cafe, a simple bistro located inside an independent bookseller. At dinner we talked about comics (of course), being a You Tube superstar, spider bites and various other topics of interest. Afterward we took a leisurely stroll around the neighborhood and stopped to pose for one Facebook-pose photo which unfortunately has yet to be uploaded to the computer. But there are pictures coming, I assure you!

It was during this leisurely stroll that I got my first glimpse of Fenway Park. I have to admit to you that I had to pause and collect myself for fear that I would shed a tear for the legacy of Red Sox Nation right there in front of my friends. And as Tom Hanks so famously iterated, "There's no crying in baseball."

After we split up with Ming and Neil, we came back to the hotel for a much needed night of good sleep. Well, Agnes slept, I watched ESPN for two hours then did the same. Sorry this post wasn't much about comic books, but I've decided of late that this blog is about my life, not just comic books. Comics is a huge part of my life and will remain the focus, but I'm more than just a collection of glossy covers and paneled pages. After all, in the immortal words of Mike Gundy, "I'm a man! I'm 40!"

Well, 29.

GB Williams out.

Comic Twart

2010-04-12T18:52:00.005-05:00

Sure, the name sounds dirty, but Comic Twart may be the coolest thing happening in comics social networking right now. Originally started as a way for a few comics artists following one another on Twitter to share their artwork, it has become a weekly must-visit for anyone who enjoys comics and cartooning.

G.I. Robot by Evan Shaner

Featuring the artwork of veterans and talented newcomers alike, the Comic Twart blog is a sight to behold. Each week, a member of the collective picks a character from the long history of comics and each member puts their own spin on that character. The posts are collected in one easy to locate blog (seriously, what else are you going to find on Google when you search for "twart?" Actually, don't answer that.) that is chocked full of awesome.

Clara de Noche by Chris Samnee

Some of the characters the Twarters have already tackled include Zorro, Hawkman, Dan Dare, & Clara de Noche.

The Rocketeer by Mitch Breitweiser

Most of the contributors already have fairly steady jobs in the field, but a few diamonds in the rough (like newcomer and friend of this blog Evan Shaner) are waiting to be plucked. Equal parts drawing group, portfolio review and professional audition, Comic Twart is a must for the blogroll of every serious comic fan on the net.

Rebutting Myself?

2010-04-10T18:06:00.004-05:00

In the time honored tradition of media outlets issuing apologies for less than professional work, I give you all the first ever Surfing the Bleed Official Apology.

As those few of you who read my blog regularly (which is apparently everyone in the offices at BOOM! Studios) already know, I posted a rather heated response earlier to this years Eisner nominations. While the post remains, it has been edited from its original form. I'll tell you why.

While I stand by my opinions, I don't necessarily stand by the way I delivered all of them. In the original post, I allowed my ire to interfere with my professionalism. I put forth a misinformed opinion about BOOM!'s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep and have omitted the entire section that dealt with that book. While I do think it odd that an adaptation made it into the Best New Series category, my knowledge of the book is admittedly cursory and I had no right to dismiss it out of hand. I intend to review Do Androids...in its entirety over the coming week in an attempt to assuage any guilt I feel about jumping to any conclusions.

The original post also made it sound as though I'm not a fan of Mark Waid and Peter Krause's Irredeemable. I personally feel like the last few issues of the book have left something to be desired and don't resonate with the same oomph! that earlier issues did, but it was brought to my attention that those issues in question didn't even occur in 2009 and therefore aren't part of this Eisner nominating process. Irredeemable was one of my favorite titles of the year in 2009 and despite my misgivings about the current story arc, I do still purchase the book each month. I've also kept a few friends who were less sanguine about the future of the series than I from dropping it from their pull boxes. Why? Because Mark Waid has so seldom let me down.

While I don't believe I expressed any opinions in my original post that I wouldn't gladly stand behind, I was, upon reflection, disappointed at how I expressed them. I endeavor, as a blogger and a hopeful creator, to bring a level of professionalism to this blog absent from many corners of the comics internet. I'd like to think of myself as a true celebrator of comics, not just a fanboy with as much vitriol as sense.

While many of this years Eisner nominees troubled me, I can't reiterate more that this is just one man's opinion. If you disagree with it, fine. Great, even! I want to invite intelligent discourse. I realize that my last post, in places, sounded less intelligent than incendiary. I fear that in an effort to be honest or humorous I may have come off as simply mean. That was never my intention.

I love this industry and want very much to be a part of it. That certainly doesn't mean that I'm going to give it a pass or that I won't call something out if I feel like it isn't up to par. But I will try to be less vitriolic in the future (unless the situation really calls for vitriol).

Eisner Noms - A Rebuttal

2010-04-10T11:42:00.012-05:00

The 2010 Eisner Award Nominees were announced this week and the internet has been understandably abuzz with speculation about who will win and who will go home disappointed. Before we even speculate about who will be leaving empty handed, let's first address all the deserving creators who didn't get invited to the dance at all.

Certainly every year the Eisners leave out creators or titles that a large section of comicdom believe to be deserving of nomination. But this year seems particularly baffling. No nominations for Jason Aaron in any category? No love shown for Batman & Robin or B.P.R.D., two of the most successful and rewarding ongoing series? A nomination for James Robinson for Cry for Justice, a book widely considered to be one of the worst comics ever? And that's just a few examples.

In response to my own confusion over this list of nominees, I've decided to highlight a few categories and give you my opinion on who should have been nominated and who should have been omitted.

BEST ONGOING SERIES

Fables, by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Andrew Pepoy et al. (Vertigo/DC)
Irredeemable, by Mark Waid and Peter Krause (BOOM!)
Naoki Urasawa's 20th Century Boys, by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Media)
The Unwritten, by Mike Carey and Peter Gross (Vertigo/DC)
The Walking Dead, by Robert Kirkman and Charles Adlard (Image)

Where is Scalped? How about Northlanders? Maybe Batman & Robin even? Everyone knows that I'm a big fan of Mark Waid's and a big supporter of BOOM! Studios. I've even evangelized the series Irredeemable on this very blog on more than one occasion, so it would be hard for me to argue against its inclusion in this category. It's my understanding that the Eisners try to focus on the portions of a series that came out in the year in question, not simply the series as a whole. If that's the case, then Irredeemable was one of the best titles of 2009. I've had issue with the last few issues, feeling the series getting bogged down a bit in various side plots, but it's hard to argue with its success out of the gate.

Even with my misgivings about the series currently, I've certainly enjoyed what little there has been of Irredeemable more than I ever have The Walking Dead or Fables. While I'm aware both have a very large, dedicated following, neither title has ever really moved me. The Walking Dead has always had trouble holding my interest, as I don't see anything in it that I feel goes beyond the things I've already seen in the oeuvre of George A. Romero. As for Fables, my issues with the title run deep and would require more than a few sentences to address. Needless to say, I don't think it's more deserving of this nomination than either of the two Vertigo titles I mentioned above.

BEST PUBLICATION FOR KIDS

Lunch Lady and the Cyborg Substitute, by Jarrett J. Krosoczeka (Knopf)
The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook, by Eleanor Davis (Bloomsbury)
Tiny Tyrant vol. 1: The Ethelbertosaurus, by Lewis Trondheim and Fabrice Parme (First Second)
The TOON Treasury of Classic Children's Comics, edited by Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly (Abrams ComicArts/Toon)
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz hc, by L. Frank Baum, Eric Shanower, and Skottie Young (Marvel)

The omission of BOOM! Studios from this category is shocking. BOOM! has gone to great lengths since acquiring the Disney brand to produce quality comics for a younger audience. While it would be simple to slap Mickey or Donald's face on a cover and let the iconography do all the work, BOOM! have been excellent stewards of their licensed publications. Not content to simply slap together a few brightly colored kids books void of much substance, they have taken the best of Disney's brands (most notably the Pixar stable of characters) and created engaging titles that bring kids (and adults) back for more each month. The Incredibles is chief amongst these titles, but you could easily have their Muppet Show titles, Monsters, Inc. or Finding Nemo here as well. Not to discount the work of other creators and publishers in this category, but the lack of any BOOM! Studios titles in this category is a major oversight.

BEST WRITER

Ed Brubaker, Captain America, Daredevil, Marvels Project (Marvel) Criminal, Incognito (Marvel Icon)
Geoff Johns, Adventure Comics, Blackest Night, The Flash: Rebirth, Superman: Secret Origin (DC)
James Robinson, Justice League: Cry for Justice (DC)
Mark Waid, Irredeemable, The Incredibles (BOOM!)
Bill Willingham, Fables (Vertigo/DC)

Brubaker can stay. Waid too. Though I've not been overly moved by the last few issues of Irredeemable, the fact remains that I am still interested in the title and that his work on The Incredibles ongoing is some of the best comics of the year. Even Willingham (though I'm not a fan) can stick around, as the man continues to have wild creative success with Fables. But Robinson and Johns, the two men largely responsible for my almost complete lack of interest in major DC superhero titles currently, have no business on this list. While I won't argue that Johns has had successes in the past, I don't consider any of the books he's nominated for to be successful. Flash: Rebirth was particularly bad and my opinion on Blackest Night has been well documented. If we're nominating writers based solely on proliferation, then give Johns the award now and let's go home. But shouldn't this be about quality? One could certainly argue that the number of titles Johns is currently writing have greatly affected the quality of his storytelling.

As egregious as I may find that nomination, nothing is more baffling than Robinson's. The once great storyteller behind Starman and The Golden Age has, of late, seemed unfocused at best and unreadable at worst. His contribution to the Superman mythos over the last year had it's high points, but for the most part fell short of my (less than considerable) expectations. But Cry for Justice, a book that DC has stood so bafflingly solid behind, was one of the worst stories ever committed to the pages of our fair medium. While I may sound hyperbolic, I defy you to find evidence to the contrary. The series was panned by most major comics media outlets and the final issue even managed to net the dubious honor of a 1 Star Review at IGN . It is this title, and this title alone, that Robinson receives a Best Writer nomination for.

Certainly Jason Aaron, who has made Ghost Rider a must-read, who understands Wolverine as well (if not better) than any writer to come before him and who continues to weave a compelling story on his own title, Scalped, deserved some recognition here. But Aaron isn't the only omission. What about Rick Remender, whose ballsy turn on The Punisher has been one of the most enjoyable books on the shelf throughout and beyond Dark Reign? What about Brian Wood, who has returned recently to Demo and who puts out two consistently good titles in DMZ and Northlanders? Or how about Jeff Parker, who turns every Marvel character he touches into a must read? Is this category about guys who sell the most books, or guys who tell the best stories?

The above are the categories that bugged me most, though there are a few other issues I had with the nominations this year (no nods for Batman & Robin). One of the biggest is the complete omission of Wednesday Comics. Did the committee simply not know how to categorize it? Perhaps, though it seems to me it would have worked just fine in the Best Anthology category.

I believe I've said my piece (doubtful, actually), so I'll open this up to discussion now. I hope you've enjoyed my career suicide.

GB Williams out.

Wrapping It Up and Looking Ahead...

2010-04-07T12:40:00.004-05:00

So yeah, the girl. She came along just as I was making the decision to seriously get my life in order and boy was she a big help in that. She helped me walk the line, fly right, etc, etc. She was an artist pursuing a dream and she really helped me realize that it wasn't unrealistic (especially not at the ripe young age of 25) to be doing such a thing. I'd (mis)spent all those years telling myself that it was just a pipe dream, not even knowing where to begin. She wouldn't give me the door into the industry that I'd need, but she did give me will to get off my ass and make something happen.

It was slow going of course. Life had its ups and downs, as did we, but storms were weathered and lessons were learned. Through it all, comics remained a constant. Unfortunately I was broke (and into record collecting in a bad way), so most of what I read was stuff I already owned or stuff I got from the library, but I was always reading. The thing about making comics is, reading them is half the work. You can have the most unproductive day ever, and if you read at least two graphic novels that day, it wasn't a total loss.

Comics is a language and, regardless of what more "serious artists" might believe, it's not a language easily learned. It requires you to be artist, writer, art director and editor all at once, even if you only know how to do one or two of those things well. It requires collaboration (something very few people excel at, according to the sorry state of the world), imagination, dedication and other words that end in -ation. But most of all, beyond anything else, it requires support. You don't choose comics because you want to be famous or rich. It offers very little in the way of fame or riches. You choose comics (at times over being a designer, a novelist, a journalist) because you can't do anything else, because you love the medium so damn much that the thought of telling your stories anywhere else rings a little hollow. Or maybe you're just a failed novelist. Regardless, it takes support. Support from family, friends, lovers, and strangers alike. Luckily I have support in spades.

There was another cat that came along a little later, some of you know him some of you don't. Most of you will know him soon though, as his is a star that's rising fast. We don't speak as often now as I'd like, but he was the ignitor. She got me on the road and he got me focused. This friend, who I met quite by chance, showed me that comics wasn't this big, scary world way off in the distant lands of NY and LA. He showed me that comics was everywhere, an organic and supportive community that was so concerned about the omnipresent fear of industry death that they welcomed new creators with (relatively *cough, Marvel, cough*) open arms. He showed me how to get started, gave me feedback and introduced me to just enough people to prove to me that, while I assumed I was about fifty steps away from breaking in, it was actually more like fifteen. Regardless of how our friendship waxes and wanes from here on out, I will always be grateful to him for that.

So that catches you up, relatively, and gives you an idea of who I am and what I'm trying to do. I promise more "breaking in" content in the future.

GB Williams out.

Brett Williams, This Is Your Life!

2010-03-30T15:19:00.006-05:00

So there was college. That didn't work out. So I tried it again and it worked out a little better, but ultimately it wasn't for me. I would, eventually, try it one more time. It lasted less than a month that third time, so maybe what they say about third times and charms isn't always true.

Or maybe it is. If I'd stayed in school that third time I might never have devoted myself to comics the way I have now. I probably would have devoted myself to being a librarian or a high school teacher. Admirable, but not comics.

I moved to Chattanooga, TN after high school. I moved there to go to college but as I mentioned above, college didn't take. Chattanooga didn't take either, even though I stayed well into my twenties. Chattanooga is a strange place. Everyone who has never lived there thinks its beautiful and everyone who ever lived there thinks its a giant waste of space in the otherwise lush and gorgeous wilderness that is East Tennessee. That's hyperbolic. I'm sure there are people who live in Chattanooga who love it, but I wasn't one of them.

My time in Chattanooga was strange. I dropped out of college my first semester and moved in with my girlfriend of two years. I had a live-in girlfriend and a full time job by the time I was 19, which was fine with me. School had always bored me, had never really challenged me, and having money in my pocket and a girl at home at the end of every day was just fine with me. That job was in a major chain entertainment store, the kind that sold books, movies, software, music, video games, etc. I worked in the book department, which afforded me a ludicrous discount off cover prices and access to the entire Baker & Taylor ordering system. I bought a LOT of graphic novels.

During that time I really discovered Alan Moore, Frank Miller and Mark Waid. It was Kingdom Come that eventually got me back into comic books, followed shortly after by Watchmen, The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One. The dystopian view of the superhero comic presented by Moore in Watchmen and Miller in DKR had a profound effect on my rebellious young mind. I was discovering punk rock at the same time I discovered those titles and I longed for more "adult" comics, more "adult" themes. So I rebelled long and hard against superheroes, choosing instead to turn my eye toward Vertigo. That's when I really got into the comics that would shape my tastes as a young adult. Hellblazer, Swamp Thing, Preacher, Sandman, these were the books I clamored for, the stories I devoured.

It was at this time in my life that I really got back into comic books and for the first time realized that this wasn't just a medium for children and that comics could be a genuine career. I wish I could say that I diligently began pursuing that career but I can't lay claim to that until much later. Like many people in their early twenties, I spent a lot of time, well...wasting time. I drank, chased girls, got caught up in a bad relationship, got the shit kicked out of me mentally and took more than a little time to recover. I suppose that happens to the best of us, but there are moments, in the shadow of younger creators who have accomplished so much more than me, where I want to flog myself for my misspent youth.

I know that hard work gets rewarded and that ultimately it's nobody's fault but my own that it took me this long to make even the tiniest of ripples in this industry, but it doesn't make reminiscing about days that could have been better spent any easier.

What was it that sapped such a will as mine and made me lose sight of my dream for a time? Well, that would be telling. I know I promised to be candid but there are some things that not even you, fearless reader, get to know. Needless to say things got dark for a while and then, as they tend to do, things got a hell of a lot better.

How did they get better? Well, I met a girl. Not just a girl, but the girl. And not long after that I made a friend. The collective fire they lit under my ass led to the man you (figuratively) see before you today.

More on that next time.

Do you guys know anything about me?

2010-03-27T12:04:00.002-05:00

I realize that you can glean a few things about my various tastes by what I write about. I realize you even know a little bit about my personal life, as I've occasionally talked about my wife, posted pics from my wedding or given you con updates that include some info about my friends. But do you guys really know anything about me? I realized today that, while I've promised to be as candid as possible here, I've not been exactly true to that.

Some people would probably say, "So?" I mean, the thought of airing all your personal stuff on the internet is a pretty mortifying one for many people. But I grew up online (for better or worse) and the idea of people out there in the ether knowing more about me doesn't frighten me at all.

I have a Facebook page and a Twitter feed, and you can learn things about me there if you're willing to seek them out, but this blog is supposed to be about my life, not just about what comics I'm reading. So, in the interest of getting to know you guys, I'm going to help you get to know more about me.

I live in Nashville, TN. I haven't lived here my entire life, but it still feels like home. I grew up about an hour and a half from here, small town called Lawrenceburg near the Alabama border. Our claim to fame is being the (supposed) birthplace of American folk hero (or cowering coward) Davy Crockett. It's the kind of small town you hear about in Bruce Springsteen or John Mellencamp songs. Growing up there wasn't easy. I was a very smart kid with very little access to decent education, so I wasn't always the best student because I had very few challenges to hold my interest. I went to a local Catholic school (almost everyone in the school was a relative. My family is pretty much 90% of Lawrenceburg's Catholic population) and that's where I first discovered comics.

My best friend at the time, a kid named Jeff Brink (if any of my friends from the past who read this know how two get in touch with Jeff, please let me know) introduced me to comics on a class trip to the circus. That story has been told elsewhere in the blog, so I won't bore you with a repeat performance. Jeff was big into comics, specifically X-Men, and he got me involved in it as well. My favorite comic growing up was the Infinity Gauntlet and I can remember Jeff and I collecting it together, each of us spending allowance on alternating issues and sharing them back and forth. I still engage in the activity of sharing comics with my friends today.

High school in Lawerenceburg wasn't great but it wasn't as horrifying as high school was for a lot of geeks. I had close friends who were interested in much of the same stuff as I, a steady girlfriend who loved comics (and her older sister who taught us a bunch about guys like Moore and Gaiman) and a steady diet of theatre to keep me safe from the rigors of small town geek life. Theatre was my big passion at the time and I thought for a while that I wanted to be an actor. The biggest obstacle was the fact that I hated most of the college drama kids I knew and didn't really want to be a part of their world that seemed rife with backstabbing and ladder climbing. In the back of my mind writing was always the thing that drove me and comic writing always the thing that excited me.

Of course I would go a long way toward screwing that up and tearing it down before I finally came out the other side ready to work. I'll expound on that in the next segment of this trip down memory lane.

I mentioned earlier that Nashville felt like home. It was the largest city in close proximity to my hometown so we spent a lot of time here when I was a kid. When I got to high school, my friends and I would escape to Nashville and the surrounding areas a lot to mallrat around and basically do dumb, fun kid shit. Laser tag, coffee houses, all ages punk shows (though not as often as I'd have liked), etc. I had a lot of baggage as a teenager (some of it I'm still dealing with, in various forms, as an adult) but for all rights and purposes, I had a pretty good teenage life. And through it all, comic books were always present. I didn't always focus on them as much as I should have, never got the collector bug that so many of my other friends had, but I never forgot them, never stopped wondering what it would be like to create them.

It would be a long time before I took the steps toward making that a reality, but I was surprised to find that the steps were a lot easier to take than I'd always feared...

A Brief Apology

2010-03-22T17:20:00.002-05:00

Sorry that I haven't been around all week. I work in a bar in the really real world and St. Patrick's Day sort of kicked the crap out of all of us this week. I spent most of my week just trying to relax before the big event and celebrating afterward. I know that isn't the most professional of approaches to my blog, but hey, at least I'm honest. Expect increased output from me this week as a way of apologizing to my many (six or seven) fans.

The Comic Script Archive

2010-03-12T17:19:00.004-06:00

I've recently discovered a site that, as a creator, I value as a very important research tool. It's called the Comic Book Script Archive and it is as simple as its straightforward name. Culling contributions from various creators, the site provides a very accessible database of comic book scripts. There aren't a lot of resources for people trying to break into this industry, especially people breaking in as writers, so I can't recommend this one highly enough. It's simple to navigate and very, very helpful. Check it out.

Batman XXX - Suprisingly SFW

2010-03-08T11:36:00.003-06:00

Bleeding Cool reported on this recently and I was so amused at the prospect of it that I went out and did a little more research. There's not much I can say, it sort of speaks for itself. Here is a link to the Examiner's article about the film. Look below for a very Safe For Work trailer for the film.

J. Michael Straczynski to write Wonder Woman and Superman.

2010-03-08T10:24:00.006-06:00

Comic Book Resources (and every other comics news site) released a report earlier today relaying the information that Eisner-winning writer J. Michael Straczynski will be taking over both Superman and Wonder Woman in July. Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5 and man responsible for fan favorite runs of Amazing Spider-Man and Thor will be joining both titles after the release of milestone issues: #600 for Diana and #700 for Kal-El.

There hasn't been much time to react to the announcement, but I assume most fan reaction will be positive. I'm not certain how I feel yet. Straczynski has always been hit or miss with me. I was a fan of his Image series, Rising Stars, but it frustrated me that he just let it peter out. I've often thought of him as a strong creator with lack of focus, a guy who has great ideas but rarely has the interest or the will to see them through to their end. As I've learned more about the various situations he's found himself involved in over the years, I learn that I was perhaps wrong about him. While I thought he abandoned Amazing Spider-Man and Thor, it appears that he made the decision to leave those books due to editorial shifting in a direction that he didn't completely agree with. Rather than stay on a book that he felt he couldn't give his all, he moved on, and that's commendable.

That said, his Thor run, while feeling again that it died before its time, was one of the best runs on a character I've ever read. And as I see it, if you can write a character like Thor well, then Superman and Wonder Woman really shouldn't be that difficult. They all share a great deal of similarity that I believe will make writing Kal and Diana feel a lot like coming home for JMS.

I hope I'm right, because the more I think about this the more excited I become. Superman deserves the best possible creators DC can give him, and considering he's been written most recently by James Robinson and Greg Rucka, you'd think that was the case. But Robinson has come a long way from his glory days as the steward of Jack Knight and Opal City and Rucka, while a great storyteller, always seems a lot more at home in Gotham than in Metropolis. JMS has proven time and again that he gets superheroes and that he enjoys them. Add to that the fact that Superman is his dream project and you create the possibility for something truly great.

DC has yet to announce who his collaborators will be on the projects (may I suggest his Brave and the Bold collaborator Jesus Saiz for at least one of the books) but I'm hopeful its someone truly worthy of these larger than life characters and the stories JMS will no doubt bring to their world. Does JMS's Thor collaborator, Olivier Coipel, have an exclusive contract with Marvel? Can we steal him and put him on Superman please?

If DC is serious about Brightest Day restoring the kind of hope and heroism we've come to expect from their characters, then I could think of far worse creators to shepherd us in that new direction than J. Michael Straczynski. So here's to hope.

Up, Up and Away!

I gotta say it was a good day.

2010-03-04T17:50:00.003-06:00

Two days ago I e-mailed to my editor the initial proposal for a series of young adult novels I'm pitching to the licensed publishing division of DC Comics. I'm not going to discuss the project for fear that I'll jinx it, nor do I want what I'm about to tell you to let your hopes soar to high, but the initial reaction to the pitch was very positive.

The editor's response was one of genuine excitement and he made me a promise he'd try as hard as he could to find a home for the series. The next step (and this is what excites me beyond belief) is showing the pitch around the offices there at DC to get some feedback and ultimately determine the best possible home for the story. Then, from there, we tweak tweak tweak and persist persist persist in the hopes of convincing a publisher to carry it.

This is by no means a promise of work, but it is a very good first step down that path. So keep your fingers crossed, say your prayers, ask Superman for help, whatever it is you do. And thanks for all the support up to this point. You guys are great.

The Surfing the Bleed Review - The Great Ten by special contributor Bill Melville

2010-03-04T17:02:00.006-06:00

On Wednesday, I anxiously scanned the racks for the team book I couldn't bear to miss.

I'm not talking about the finale to Cry for Justice, which I dropped at issue two. I long ago accepted James Robinson's collapse as a writer, as well as DC's successful efforts to turn its flagship team into a punchline.

Since tearing through the first three issues in a sitting, I found myself unable to skip the Great Ten, not surprising given the years DC made fans wait for this series.

Working off a Grant Morrison concept first fleshed out in 52 and recurring in Greg Rucka's late, underrated Checkmate series, the Ten finally get their due. At first glance, the Great Ten felt like Watchmen-lite, with the story chopped up by origins and these heroes who don't especially like each other gathered together. Despite the basic format, it works.

Past misgivings about Tony Bedard's work aside, it's quickly obvious this writer doesn't just view China as 2 billion people with slanted eyes and jet-black hair. Reviewers too often take issues in a vacuum, but often a series needs a little time to open up like a fine Bordeaux.

My fear over first issues proved correct; at first glance, Great Ten felt formulaic on the front end, full of condemnations of China's dictatorship with a scene from the Tibetan riots and subsequent military reprisal.

But amid that insurrection, a flicker of clever plotting emerged. The soldier who becomes Accomplished Perfect Physician fled his unit, accidentally becomes the 17th bearer of that title by killing the heir apparent. His new powers do not let his cowardice go forgotten. Team leader August General in Iron won't ignore a deserter. He wants to know root of the physician's powers so he can turn them off, then administer a beating.

The storyline has the Great Ten facing off against gods from Chinese folklore, with their origins sliced between the action. Bedard has obviously read the opening arc of Grant Morrison's JLA, with some similar story threads emerging.

Thanks to his origin, and witnessing heavenly lands, Celestial Archer sides with the invading gods. Thankfully, Bedard imparts a cultural literacy that avoids creation of a Hawkeye or Green Arrow knockoff. Thundermind is China's Superman analogue, a teacher whose object of affection pines for the superhero in the same fashion as a certain Metropolis reporter. Throw in a dash of Rick Jones due to his origin - he read an ancient scroll at a museum, unlocking powers buried in his DNA - and this Bodhisattva treads some new ground.

But it isn't all archetypes. Both August General in Iron and Immortal Man have origins steeped in alien technology, and Immortal Man in Darkness has an origin much darker than his name. I won't repeat it here, but as a small taste, he definitely isn't immortal. Nothing from the sometimes light-hearted Thundermind tale can escape the gravitational pull of how Immortal Man in Darkness came to fight for the Chinese.

The fifth issue finally arrived at the member most visible to DC readers: their leader. August General in Iron comes off as an egotistical, Sun Tzu-studying Ben Grimm, his mind still sharp in a body turned to rusting metal. At first, the alien origin concept felt tired, but Bedard really nails it on the final five pages with a key plot advancement and a moment for August General in Iron to establish a connection with teammate Ghost Fox Killer.

Having repudiated event comics, Great Ten was just the tonic I needed. If members of the team got Lantern rings in Blackest Night, I could care less. Well-plotted with decent art by Scott McDaniel, it has fallen under the radar, but this original tale should given the Great Ten staying power in the DCU.

I'll stick through the end, so long as the Chinese gods don't rape the Mother of Champions and leave Accomplished Perfect Physician to mind-wipe them. DC cannot be trusted with its team books; if the Justice League can fall into editorial ruin, any team can.

A Response

2010-03-02T14:59:00.003-06:00

In response to fellow comics blogger and geek ingenue Jill Pantozzi's latest article, a Geek Girl's Guide to Getting Girls, I give you this.

A Guy's Guide to Getting Girls

1. Be a man.

Regardless of what this article may lead you to believe, girls don't require that you like everything that they like and act exactly how they act. My wife, a beautiful, talented "geek girl" doesn't give a damn if I go shopping with her, doesn't make me watch "chick flicks" and would probably lose her mind if I lit a bunch of scented candles around the house. She just wants me to be myself, to be strong, to remind her how incredible I think she is and to occasionally geek out with her about things we find mutually appealing.

You don't have to be exactly like your girlfriend, you don't have to spend every minute with her or like ALL the things she likes. If she's attracted to men, then I'm guessing she wants you to act like one. Does that mean you can't enjoy the occasional rom com or show genuine interest in the things she's interested in? Quite the contrary. But by all means, don't follow some list of guidelines intended, I suppose, to make you more palpable by making you more like she is.

Be respectful, be yourself, be a man...and, if you can, learn to dance. That generally impresses most ladies.

All this said, I tend to agree with Jill about most things and I recognize that this is an article meant to be taken with a general lack of sincerity, but it got my ire up nonetheless.

Pull List - 3/3/2010

2010-03-01T14:42:00.005-06:00

BOOM! Studios

Incredibles #6 - Mark Waid, Landry Walker & Marcio Takara

Dark Horse

Buffy Season 8 #33 - Brad Meltzer & Georges Jeanty

DC Comics

Detective Comics #862 - Greg Rucka, J.H. Williams, III, Jock & Cully Hammer
First Wave #1 - Brian Azzarello & Rags Morales
Jonah Hex #53 - Justin Gray, Jimmy Palmiotti & Billy Tucci
Sweet Tooth #7 - Jeff Lemire

Marvel Comics

Girl Comics #1 - Devin Grayson, Laura Martin, Ming Doyle, Molly Crabapple, et al.

Who Will Wield The Shield?

2010-02-27T11:59:00.011-06:00

Comic Book Resources posted this article earlier this week exploring the most valid of the rumored casting choices for the new Cap film, The First Avenger: Captain America. To be perfectly honest with you, I'm not happy with any of these choices. The only one that appeals to me in the least is Scott Porter, the Friday Night Lights actor who claims to be a big comic book fan. It would appear that he actually is a fan, too, in the sense that he reads comics and actually attends cons. Most actors up for a major superhero role will go on the late night circuit and talk about how much they loved Superman as a kid or how many dog eared copies of Captain America they have in their attic, but we all know it's BS. This Porter guy does seem to genuinely enjoy the medium though, so if it must be one of these people, I hope its him.

Anyway, this article got me thinking that I should put together my own list of possible Caps (and a few supporting cast members). Caps that would make me (and I hope a large portion of my readership) happy. I know the argument a lot of people will have with most of these choices is that they're too old, but that's ridiculous. No actor looks old and besides, once you allow someone of true talent to inhabit the role of Steve Rogers, the audience will come along for the ride, regardless whether the actor playing the role is 22 or 35. Hell, if its that big a deal, cast a kid (Justin Timberlake? haha) to play pre-serum Steve Rogers and one of these MEN to play Captain America. I'll stop soapboxing now and get to the good stuff.

Captain America

Jeremy Renner - The star of this year's surprise Oscar darling, The Hurt Locker, Jeremy Renner has been creeping around Hollywood for years. Sure, he's almost 40, but he has a look about him that says grizzled veteran while retaining a youthfulness absent in, well, actual grizzled veterans. Steve Rogers looks like that, especially when illustrated by Tim Sale or Bryan Hitch. Renner has spent most of his years bouncing around television shows and occasionally getting a bit part in some feature film. His turn in The Hurt Locker proves that he can play the inspiring, if not always by the book, style of military leader that many fans think of when they think of Captain America.

Nathan Fillion - The star of Joss Whedon's Firefly, Serenity, and Dr. Horrible's Sing-a-Long Blog is no stranger to genre filmmaking. For many, he's become the smiling face of unlikely career resurgence. Fillion's square-jawed handsomeness and tongue-in-cheek approach to most of his roles makes him the perfect choice to play a whole host of superheroes. He's also no stranger to playing damaged yet heroic military characters, something he remade his career doing in Firefly/Serenity and continued in the critically acclaimed indie drama, Trucker. Sure, he's not the youngster that they prefer for most of these roles, but let's get past that, yeah? The best superhero movie of all time is Iron Man and its hero is a 44 year old ex-drug addict. Nathan Fillion was born to play superheroes, so maybe its time we let him?

Matt Damon - Since director Joe Johnston wants to cast a relative unknown in the role, asking for someone like Matt Damon is pretty much a pipe dream. While the image of Damon for many fans is probably mired to this day in the skinny, whiney and often times creepy characters he played early in his career (Good Will Hunting, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Dogma), Damon has done an excellent job of recreating himself as a thinking man's action star as his career continues to grow. Damon is very familiar with the pressure involved in taking center stage in a major blockbuster film and he's got more than enough experience playing a badass, take-down-every-sonofabitch-in-the-room-with-nothing-but-a-book solider type, so it's hard to think of someone more perfect for Cap. And you can't argue with the look. Matt Damon has retained his boyish smile and his youthful good looks while aging into a tough, masculine icon more reminiscent of Hollywood stars of old such as Michael Caine or Steve McQueen. In a perfect world, he's the perfect Cap.

Falcon

Anthony Mackie - Why split up a good team? Anthony Mackie plays the man responsible for keeping Jeremy Renner's bomb specialist from dying horribly in The Hurt Locker. The two share an onscreen chemistry that is hard to ignore, settling perfectly into the subtleties of a friendship born from violence and intense stress. Mackie's performance is incredible and he shows he can more than hold his own playing the role of a combat veteran who would love to forget most of the things he's seen and who respects his duty to his country and his teammates above all else. Sounds a lot like Falcon, right?

Jeffrey Wright - Okay, so he's another guy on this list above the age of 40. So what? Jeffrey Wright looks like Falcon. And here's the thing man. Superheroes, they don't really age. Sound like anybody in our society? Actors. I'm almost 3o and I don't look any younger than Jeffrey Wright. Could he get himself into shape? If he could then he would make the perfect companion to Captain America. And we know he's got the chops. This is James Bond's right hand man after all.

The Red Skull

Christoph Waltz - He's done it once already. Christoph Waltz played the cold, ruthless and calculating Nazi headhunter Col. Hans Landa in Quentin Tarantino's WWII actioner, Inglorious Basterds. Say what you will about the film, Waltz's turn as the sophisticated yet brutal Landa is immediately reminiscent of Captain America's greatest foe, the Red Skull. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to see him in this role.

Ralph Fiennes - What was it I said about having done it before? He played an unconcerned concentration camp operator way back in Schindler's List and most recently he's played the role of Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter series. Say what you will about Harry Potter (I could say volumes), but Lord Voldemort is one of the most recognizable villains in the universe these days and Fiennes does an excellent job of bringing him to life on screen. He would bring that same devotion to the Red Skull, perhaps the most frightening and recognizable of all Marvel's villains. And hey, he's no stranger to acting under a ton of prosthetic, right?

I've given you plenty to think about regarding the three main roles. Who else would you like to see here? Do you have any casting choices you'd like to discuss? What about Bucky? Do you guys have any ideas for who should play Cap's sidekick? I love doing stuff like this so I hope you guys get involved. This stuff makes for good discussion.

The Motherbox

2010-02-21T15:40:00.003-06:00

Just a quick update for you faithful readers. My friends Ian, Jon and myself will be recording the first episode of The Motherbox, our ongoing comics podcast which we hope will result in some awesomeness for you (and some free comics for us). We've got the format all laid out and we think you're really going to enjoy the witty banter and clever commentary of our nerdy triumvirate. I'll post links here as soon as the first episode goes live and I'll also be producing a Twitter feed for the podcast itself. Wish us luck, true believers!

Horror by Gaslight: The Surfing the Bleed Review of Omnitarium #1

2010-02-16T05:30:00.000-06:00

Omnitarium #1

Writer - Jamie Gambell
Illustrator - J.C. Grande
Letterer - Bernie Lee

Issue number one of the new indy horror series, Omnitarium, offers an interesting start to what promises to be a haunting Victorian tale. Set in and around a 19th century prison, Omnitarium feels like equal parts Doyle and Lovecraft. Series creator Jamie Gambell, a film industry vet with a love for comics, has created a world inhabited by mysterious writers, overly-idealistic jailers, shadowy doctors and the omni-present threat of the supernatural. Equal parts mystery and tale of terror, the first issue offers a perfect balance of action and exposition; just enough to whet our appetite and leave us clamoring for more.

All of this is illustrated by J.C. Grande, whose heavy lines leave the reader nostalgic for early Frank Miller when the swords are flying and Bernie Wrightson when the shadows creep in. That's not to say that the art isn't without flaw, but Grande shows a true talent for the kind of penciling required to evoke the mood of a good horror story and his layouts are top notch.

There is a lot of talent to be found on the pages of this first issue. I'll be anxiously awaiting the subsequent chapters in this story, happy to watch the evolution of two burgeoning creators and the characters they've so deftly brought to life.

The Surfing the Bleed Review - Robot 13 Issue #3

2010-02-13T15:10:00.007-06:00

Whenever creators pour a healthy amount of their time into self-publishing a book, they deserve credit from their peers. Whether the finished product is worthy of sitting on the shelf next to some of the biggest and best names in comics isn't always the point. As an industry, we should always strive to support the efforts of creators who believe in a story so strongly that they're willing to sacrifice their own time and their own money and often, their own sanity, to deliver it to us.

So before I write this review of Robot 13 issue three by Thomas Hall and Daniel Bradford, I would just like to congratulate them both on finishing their first arc. I count both men as friends and I can attest to the difficulties they've encountered on their journey to this point, but I can also tell them both that its been well worth it. Robot 13 is a great comic and issue three is the best issue yet.

I'm a fan of living fiction, of life imitating art and vice versa, of moments where the line between a creator and his creation begins to blur. Perhaps that wasn't the intention of writer Thomas Hall when he set out to write this issue of his mythological epic, but sometimes stories have a way of taking over and drawing from some place deep inside of us that we're never entirely aware of. Let's detour for a moment and I'll attempt to explain what I mean.

Issue Three of R13 is a big step forward for both the writer and the artist. While the first two issues have certainly been good, issue three sets the bar much higher. When looking back on what will hopefully be two very successful careers, Hall and Bradford may well mark this point as the moment when they went from being struggling self-publishers to bonafide creators.

The same Campbell-esque hero's journey, the same myth-building, the same frightening monsters and sweeping cinematic action are here, but they're just bigger, better...more. This is where Robot 13 levels up. In this issue we find out more about the main character's backstory, discover that at least some believe him to be the newest incarnation of the deadly monster-fighting Man of Bronze (a subtle homage to Doc Savage, the character who started it all?) and are introduced to Lucky, our robot champion's newest companion. As per usual, all of these scenes are illustrated with aplomb by the immensely talented Daniel Bradford, who distances himself from the Mignola comparisons with each issue, creating a wide angle style reminiscent of Frank Quitely and John Cassaday cut through with the sort of inhuman grotesquery that is the trademark of the great horror comic illustrators of yore.

All of these things come together to create the last chapter of the first volume of Robot 13, a story that ends on a beginning. In the last panel, we see our hero walking toward the camera, his new companion in tow, heading certainly into the unknown future that awaits him. This image is reflective of the creators' path itself, as Hall and Bradford continue down the unknown road on their quest to deliver this story to as many people as are willing to read it.

I'm aware that this blog has a very limited readership, but I'm also aware that it is occasionally visited by people in the industry with more than a little clout. If you are one of those people then I implore you to give Robot 13 a serious look. The hard work of creators like Thomas Hall and Daniel Bradford, the willingness to sacrifice for this medium that they love, deserves to be rewarded and Robot 13 is the kind of story that deserves to be told for a long, long time.

GAMER

2010-02-13T14:30:00.003-06:00

I know that this blog is supposed to be devoted to comics, but I'm guessing if you're reading the thoughts of a fringe comics professional you're probably a pretty big geek, so I thought I'd branch out a bit.

I watched Gamer, which stars Gerard Butler, Kyra Sedgewick, and that scenery chewer from Dexter in something of a modernized The Running Man. From that description I'm sure you're not expecting much, and neither was I. I must admit to being pleasantly surprised though.

The movie's premise is this: Michael C. Hall is a reclusive software designer that has created a means of controlling human beings remotely. He's applied this technology to gaming, creating a Second Life-esque simulation called Society that allows users to control real human beings in a live, interactive environment. The same technology was then lent out to the American prison system for a game called Slayers, a Call of Duty/Gears of War style shooter that allows death row inmates an attempt to avoid their sentence by winning 30 battles in an intense combat environment. Gerard Butler's character, Kastle, and his operator are three battles away from that 30-mark when the movie begins.

While Gamer is certainly not free of the sort of hamfisted storytelling most action films are guilty of, it does offer a slightly more subversive, socially conscious script than other movies of its ilk. Dealing with problems of the near future like the complete loss of privacy and the crisis of identity that will no doubt plague a generation of humans increasingly devoted to life "in the cloud," Gamer plays in a familiar science fiction sandbox that will appeal to fans of comics authors such as Warren Ellis and Grant Morrison and science fiction luminaries like Harlan Ellison and William Gibson.

If that sounds up your alley then I highly suggest you fork over a dollar at the Red Box (no, Red Box does not support this blog in any way...more's the pity) and enjoy this sci-fi actioner.

What I'm Reading

2010-01-26T16:24:00.004-06:00

Hey gang. Just wanted to do a quick rundown of what I've been reading lately. While I'm still doing monthly titles, I've scaled back the amount I'm reading considerably. Going for quality over quantity, I guess you'd say. I suppose I'm suffering from event fatigue, but I just can't be bothered to keep up with Blackest Night or Siege right now. I've even scaled back the amount of Bat-books I'm reading to two; Batman & Robin and Detective Comics.

I've been reading a lot of collections lately. Mainly stuff that I hadn't got around to yet but had been curious about for a while. Chief amongst those titles is James Robinson's Starman. I'm shocked it's taken me this long to read this series. I'm about halfway through his run on the book and it's absolutely blowing me away. I'm so impressed with it that I'm having a hard time reconciling the James Robinson I know now (Cry For Justice is one of the worst things I've ever read) with the James Robinson who created Jack Knight. It hardly seems like its the same man. His grasp of Golden Age and Silver Age tropes and his decidedly human take on the world of superheroes is refreshing and inspiring even now. He fully inhabits each and every character with original voice and in Jack Knight and The Shade, creates two of the most enigmatic and engaging characters I've ever read. If you can write a character so well that I, as a writer, salivate over the idea of writing that same character, then you've done well. (If you're wondering, the character I'm talking about is The Shade. Egads, what a badass he is.)

I just finished the first two volumes of Brian Wood's Northlanders. It's hard to say, "This is the best book at Vertigo," because there are some really great books coming out of that imprint right now. Still, Northlanders has to be considered in that conversation. It takes the gritty, visceral crime drama of something like Scalped and marries it to the playful historical interpretation of a series like Deadwood to create a series wholly unique in the world of comics. Wood's exploration of one of, if not the most pivotal moments in history is an absolute must read. (CLICHE ALERT!)

I also just finished The Escapists by Brian K. Vaughan, a man who is quickly rising to the top of my creative influences list. The Escapists, if you're unfamiliar, is something of a sequel to Michael Chabon's excellent The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Klay. The book deals with a group of young creators purchasing the rights to the Joe Kavalier and Sammy Klay character, The Escapist. These young creators then embark on a story of sacrifice, creation, love and loss that both twists and uplifts the heart at the same time. The Escapists reads like a guide on what to expect when trying to break into the comic book industry and is essential reading for any creator trying to do just that.

Last but certainly not least, I'm brushing up on my Jeff Parker in anticipation of the interview I have coming up with him sometime in the near future. I'm finishing up Agents of Atlas (phenomenal) then moving on to Mysterius and Interman. Parker is truly one of the nicest and most talented guys in comics and his continued success will be nothing but a boon for the industry. His playful utilization of old pulp tropes turns the medium on its ear while still being as reverent as possible. Agents of Atlas is truly great stuff and is the Marvel equivalent of great DC titles like Darwyn Cooke's New Frontier and James Robinson's The Golden Age. If you haven't checked out Jeff Parker then you're seriously missing out.

That's what's on the pile for now. What are my fellow nerds consuming right now? Inquiring minds want to know.

An Interesting Idea

2010-01-24T15:09:00.003-06:00

This article by Erik Larsen appeared on Comic Book Resources this week and I think it warrants some discussion. I won't recount the entire article here, but the gist is, Larsen believes a combination of the delivery methods of Japanese manga and European books such as 2000 A.D. could offer a way to sustain the direct market into the future. We all know that digital is the wave of the future, but what is the transition between the crest of that wave and the fall of the current one? Do we simply limp along with the direct market functioning as is, or would it behoove the industry to explore another option to make print a more viable method of delivery as we transition into a more digital format? It's a topic worthy of some discussion.

In his piece, Larsen argues that weekly or bi-weekly anthologies by the Big Two (Marvel, DC) featuring an entire family of characters, printed with more care and better materials than the current monthly titles and featuring a $5.95 price point would be more appealing to chain bookstores and newsstands and would therefore be more capable of building a large and sustained audience of new readers. Like I said, I won't plagiarize his entire article. I want you to read it and form your own opinions. But it does bear taking note of. One of the most interesting aspects of his theory is the room it would give less successful titles to grow, given that they would be tacked on to more successful books. For instance, Jeff Parker's Agents of Atlas might have a much larger audience and therefore would still be being published today if it were grafted onto the back of a larger Avengers anthology each week.

Where I think the delivery method could work extremely well is in comics for children and young adults. Anyone who knows me thinks that the way Marvel and DC run their kids lines leaves a lot to be desired. While there is some merit to certain books in those lines, for the most part they're just a mish-mash of one-off stories and licensed properties. While they're fun for kids who are already relatively familiar with the characters, they do little to build involved, ongoing storylines and therefore do little to build a young new audience. Without a sizable group of young people interested in these iconic stories, comics will continue to become a medium largely geared toward men aged 18-35. If you're in that age group, you get some great books, but there's not a lot for anyone on the edges these days. Not, at least, from the Big Two.

But consider if Larsen's ideas were implemented in the kids comics lines. What if you had an anthology each week, say in the vein of the WB's successful Animated Series, that featured the entire Batman family. You get a Batman feature, a Nightwing feature, a Batgirl feature, so on, so forth, each with its own ongoing story. Plus, in a format like that, you could easily cross the titles over without feeling like you were just fleecing the fans for all they were worth. Which, lets be honest, is how we all feel at times when we hear the announcement of another "big event." I'm not sure about you, but I think if you gave kids a nicely bound, 64-page Superman comic with ALL the Super-family involved and asked them just $5.95 for it, you'd have kids forking over that lawnmowing money for comics for the first time in years.

Perhaps its just wishful thinking on my part, but like I said before, it bears consideration.

What I'm Working On

2010-01-16T12:29:00.003-06:00

Hello fearless readers. Just here to give you an update on the different things I'm working on right now. I got that position with Broken Frontier so you'll see a lot of links to content over there here at the blog pretty soon. I'll be blogging for them as well as doing spot interviews with creators and other industry types about breaking news in the comic world. Fear not, for Surfing the Bleed will continue with the same mission statement as always. I'll still be doing some reviews, talking to creators about breaking in, and throwing the occasional rant in as well.

My first assignment for Broken Frontier was an interview with Emerald City Comic-Con organizer Jim Demonakos. I enjoyed coming up with the questions for Jim, though I must admit to an ulterior motive. Some of the questions were definitely aimed at getting to the heart of what it takes to build a successful con, partially because I'm quite interested in doing the very same thing here in Nashville. Think what you will, but we actually have a good comic culture in and around the city and the relative proximity of Nashville to other major Eastern and Midwestern cities makes it an ideal location for a comic convention. We have a small convention each year, but really it's just an excuse for Eric Powell to go sign some autographs. It's not going to draw anyone from out of town.

I've got a couple of irons in the fire as far as my projects are concerned as well. Over the past two weeks I have met two possible collaborators who are very enthusiastic about the prospect of working with me. I've tasked one with coming up with character designs for the Wendigo project which I hope to someday pitch to BOOM! and the other with Aces Wild, my pulp adventure send-up. Neither one of them has worked in comics before but they are both talented illustrators with a love of the medium, so hopefully with the right guidance things will work out swimmingly.

I have to say I'm extremely excited about the prospect of working on Aces. It's the project I've been sitting on the longest and one that's very dear to my heart. It's one of the only good things to come out of a pretty toxic relationship from my past and I'm glad to be working on it again. If you've read the blog you also know that I'm a huge fan of the old pulp stories and to be adding my own take to that rich tapestry is very exciting. I hope that it works out.

In other news, I had another phone conversation with a certain editor at DC about a set of young adult novels I'm pitching to their licensed publishing division. Given that things are extremely tentative right now and are still in their infancy, I'd rather not go into any more detail. Just know that this guy is in my corner and may be the nicest man in the entire comics industry, which is saying a lot. If we can get it done we will.

As I said in my previous post, you can also expect some new interviews in the new year, including cartoonist extraordinaire Danielle Corsetto and Agents of Atlas writer Jeff Parker.

Currently I'm working on fleshing out the history of my superhero world so I'm going to get back to that. I hope all of your projects and your lives are going well so far in the new year!

I'm Back!

2010-01-06T19:03:00.002-06:00

As those of you who follow me on Twitter or Facebook probably know by now, my crappy old laptop finally kicked the bucket. Luckily I had the only stuff on it of importance backed up, so I didn't lose too much. I have a nice, new laptop with the ever-so-streamlined joy that is Windows 7 and I'm back on the creative horse.

The other reason I've remained absent of late is my attempt to get used to my new schedule. I've started working again, as a barback and door guy, at a bar here in the neighborhood. I like the job, but the overnight schedule has taken some getting used to. Couple that with the fact that I had to cover a bunch of extra shifts so the other barback could go home to Cali for the holidays and you have a recipe for creative ennui.

But fear not reader, as I have some exciting new prospects lined up for the new year. I'm on the brink of accepting a job doing interviews and feature writing for an up and coming comics site, I've got upcoming interviews with the Agents of Atlas and Thunderbolts writer Jeff Parker, cartoonist Danielle Corsetto, lead singer of Art Brut Eddie Argos and a special guest that I'm not entirely at liberty to talk about yet.

On top of that I'm working on a couple of pitches, one of which involves an editor who is the nicest man in comics and a story centered around the lost years of my favorite character of all time.

2009 was a heck of a year for me. I made great strides in my career, I found a job that I like, I got married. Here's to 2010 being the next great step forward. Happy New Year!

My Favorite Comics of the Past Decade

2009-12-22T06:27:00.000-06:00

With the end of the decade looming, many comics bloggers around the net are taking the time to put together their "Best of the Decade" lists. All of their lists were different and all of them were contentious. So, in keeping with the current, I decided to make my own list. But upon sitting down to do it, I found myself utterly bored with the idea of trying to explain to all of you why such and such comic was more important, resonant, blah, blah, blah than the next. I just wanted to write something from my vantage point as a fan, not a critic, so what you have instead of a "Best Of..." is a "Favorite Of..." list. I hope you enjoy it, I hope that some of you agree with it, and maybe it will inspire those of you not familiar with these books to go check them out. Happy Holidays and here's to a great new year and new decade!

All Star Superman by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely

What can be said about All Star Superman that hasn't already been said? Perhaps no two creators have had more success as a pair than Morrison and Quitely, and All Star Superman marks the pinnacle of that success. The definitive story for the definitive hero, All Star Superman provides the Man of Steel with a story worthy of his legend. Applying some of the same principles of storytelling to Supes that Alan Moore used to such great effect on Tom Strong, Morrison gave us a version of the hero more human than any other, a primary colored everyman able to solve problems not with his great physical strength, but with his towering intellect and his capacity for compassion. Even when he is laid low by his longtime enemy, Superman never resorts to hatred or fear mongering. He accepts what he is and knows that, no matter how bleak things may be, in the end there is always hope. All of this is of course beautifully rendered by Frank Quitely, whose art on the book showed a softness that his work had previously lacked. All Star Superman is, in my opinion, the best comic of the aughts.

DC: The New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke with Dave Stewart and J. Bone

Darwyn Cooke's account of the transition from the Golden Age to the Silver Age is this fan's definitive DC hero story. Cooke, a student of the masters, did some of his most resonant and striking work on New Frontier. His renderings of the towering figures of the DCU are worthy of the same kind of praise heaped upon such visionaries as Kirby and Kubert, and the colors added to the beautiful layouts by Dave Stewart are quite possibly the best work ever by arguably the best colorist to ever work in the biz. Criticism of the book comes from those who worry that it's too derivative, too similar to tales that came before it, such as Watchmen or James Robinson's underrated The Golden Age. While The New Frontier does bear a resemblance to both those books (Cooke even cites Robinson's story as an influence), it is unique enough in its exploration of the theme to be just as relevant, if not more so, than either of its forebears. The greatest thing about The New Frontier is the sheer curiosity of its creator. To consider New Frontier a story simply about DC's Golden and Silver Age heroes would be to miss the point entirely. The New Frontier isn't a retelling or a reimagining of those stories from our past, it's the story between those stories. For years we've been taught that the real story in a comic exists in the gutters, the spaces between panels. With The New Frontier, Darwyn Cooke got down in the gutter and found something extraordinary; the truth behind the heroes we adore. And what a wonderful truth it was.

Catwoman by Ed Brubaker, Darwyn Cooke, Cameron Stewart, et al.

In a world dominated by male heroes and there unrealistic female counterparts, Catwoman was a breath of fresh air. By removing Selina Kyle from the sizeable shadow cast by Batman, Brubaker was able to show us all just how strong, enigmatic and capable a person Catwoman really is. Brubaker's story, on the surface, is about a villain trying to clean up her act and walk the straight and narrow, but that's really just one layer. Catwoman reads like a love letter to the DC Universe while at the same time reading like a critique of the hamfisted ideas of right and wrong espoused by so many of its denizens. Selina Kyle is a conflicted, complicated woman, but she's also a hero. Brubaker capably illustrates this and in doing so creates one of the most human, most relatable superheroes to ever grace the page. Plus the art, by Darwyn Cooke and later Cameron Stewart (and colored brilliantly by Matt Hollingsworth) is astounding and works as the perfect compliment to Brubaker's tale, grounding the book in a beautifully rendered and ultimately realistic environment.

Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona

Perhaps the most surprising title on the list, Runaways was one of the most consistent books of the decade. While most lists will probably include Mr. Vaughan's other volumnious title, Y: The Last Man, I chose Runaways for a very specific reason; it's perhaps the most widely appealing comic I've ever read. While I by no means want to discount the merit of the Batman stories by Grant Morrison, the Swamp Thing tales by Alan Moore, etc, when I stop to think about the perfect comic book story, I visualize something very similar to Runaways. Mining the same creative wells that made shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer so successful, Vaughan, along with the excellent Adrian Alphona, created a team of superpowered teenagers on the run from their villainous parents. That's right, the premise of the book is a bunch of teenagers rebelling against their parents. Sound simple? It is, but that's okay. The themes explored in Runaways (growing up, love, distrust, joy, betrayal, family and fellowship) are things that every reader, from age 12 to age 65 can instantly relate to. And that's what I mean about the perfect comic. When you pick up Runaways, regardless of your level of exposure to the Marvel Universe, your age or your tastes, there is something in that book for you. Perhaps it doesn't quite reach the heights of say, Tintin, but Runaways has to at least be in the discussion of best All Ages comics of all time.

Batman: Year 100 by Paul Pope

I was skeptical about Batman: Year 100 when I first picked it up. Sure, I love Paul Pope as much as the next guy (perhaps more), but upon first glance something about this book just didn't sit right with me. Given my faith in Mr. Pope, I decided to swallow my misgivings and give it a chance. Good choice. I'm not sure I've consumed a comic faster than I did Year 100. I could not put it down. Each new page brought a deeper understanding of the myth that is Batman, all set in a Gibson-esque future and rendered with the kind of haunting beauty and stark futurism that only Paul Pope can accomplish. This is a singular book about a singular hero and it is a must own.

The Umbrella Academy by Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba

Talk about skeptical. Dark Horse's latest is written by that guy from My Chemical Romance? Really? I wasn't sanguine. But the good reviews started to come in, then Grant Morrison called it his favorite new comic, and suddenly I found my interest piqued. The first volume was fascinating, exhilarating and utterly chilling. Way's writing on the book recalled the best moments of Grant Morrison's run on Doom Patrol and the story itself hinted at a larger, richer and darker world that Way and his talented collaborator, Gabriel Ba, would be peeling back the layers of again and again. As good as the first volume was, the second volume, Dallas, was a complete level up. Peeling back the veil of American history in an effort to show us all just how out of our control our world really is, Way and Ba created one of the most original, triumphant and ultimately heartbreaking stories ever committed to the comics page. I don't know what the next decade holds for the Umbrella kids, but if it's anything like this decade it should be outstanding.

Planetary by Warren Ellis and John Cassaday

Maybe it's the fact that I came to Planetary late that allowed it to get onto this list. I never had to suffer the long publishing delays and the frustrations with the creators that were born from them. Reading it as a collection, Planetary is perhaps my favorite comic of all time. Forget all the problems with deadlines, the complaints that some fans had that Ellis's exploration of the "science" of superheroes was too dense and obtuse to make for easy reading, and celebrate for a minute what really makes Planetary great. Planetary is Warren Ellis's explanation of why superheroes are important to us, why we continue to create them, and why, so long as there is a world in peril, they will always survive. Reading at times like a love letter to superheroes and at times like a critical exploration of the entire history of adventure comics, Planetary does what so many fans have tried to do for years; it explains comics. That's no small feat, and for accomplishing it, Misters Ellis and Cassaday will always have a place on any "Best Of..." list this writer creates.

Astonishing X-Men by Joss Whedon and John Cassaday

Yet another title that I managed to pick up once it was complete and therefore missed all the publishing delays. I guess it's a good thing Cassaday mainly does covers now, huh? I was a big X-Men fan growing up. I read it almost to the exclusion of everything else. If a book had an X on the cover, I was reading it. Like most comic fans around my age, my introduction to the X-Men came through the Chris Claremont/John Byrne stuff, and years later those stories still represent what I think about when I think X-Men. Over ther years there have been good X-stories, certainly, but none of them reached the heights of those original Claremont and Byrne books. Then came Astonishing X-Men, written by Joss Whedon and penciled by the aforementioned Cassaday. Whedon's voice was perfect for capturing the tone and the themes of the early Claremont books and the always stellar Cassaday lent so much energy to the characters that the four volumes they created together rivaled those stories from my youth. Whedon understands conflict, romance, sacrifice and heroism as well if not better than many of the people working in superheroes today, and all of those things are essential to telling a good X-Men story. Plus, he made Cyclops the badass this squeaky clean, Scott Summers-loving kid always knew he could be. For that alone, I am eternally grateful.

The Surfing the Bleed Review - Incorruptible #1 by Mark Waid & Jean Diaz

2009-12-15T23:39:00.009-06:00

Incorruptible is the companion title to Mark Waid's newest exploration of the superhero archetype, Irredeemable. If you're not familiar with the books, Irredeemable is Waid's exploration of what happens when a Superman-like hero finally reaches his breaking point and Incorruptible is what happens when that hero's arch-nemesis decides to "go straight" in an effort to stop him.

Incorruptible #1 is a fantastic flip side of the Irredeemable coin. While it suffers from the unfortunate failing of many first issues (it seems to go by far too quickly), it still succeeds in offering a good introduction to the characters who appear to be the central focus of the book. Chief amongst those characters is Max Damage, a villain of the worst sort who appears to be the only man alive capable of standing up to the Plutonian, Waid's villainous Superman analog, and living to tell the tale.

Damage is a character with immediate impact. From the first moment you see a supporting character react to him (a method Waid uses to great effect to quickly paint a picture of Damage's previous life) you want to know more. There is depth to this man, there are layers, more so, perhaps, than there are even to the Plutonian himself. What Waid has done with this first issue is tap into the Superman/Batman dynamic that made Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns such a successful look into the possible future of these godlike figures. While the situation is certainly different (The Plutonian is no government stooge and Max Damage is no aging hero), the core of Miller's premise is there; casting Superman as the villain responsible for the ailing state of the world and Batman as the only man on the planet capable of stopping him.

To hammer this analogy home, Waid has even given Max Damage, his flawed Batman analog, his very own underaged sidekick and grizzled police veteran to aid him in his attempt to go straight. These are no shining beacons of justice, however. Robin here is cast as Jailbait, the overtly sexual, underaged female Bonnie Clyde to Damage's Clyde Barrow. James Gordon is represented by Lieutenant Armadale, a dirty cop trying to reform. And really that's the point of Incorruptible; reform. Max Damage isn't perfect, neither are Jailbait nor Armadale, but they're trying, which is more than can be said for the Plutonian.

There is more hidden beneath the surface of Incorruptible, a surface capably rendered by artist Jean Diaz (whose style is close enough to that of Peter Krause, Iredeemable's penciler, that a very consistent world is being built), but I don't want to ruin it all for you.

If we're to judge a book by its first issue then it would appear that Incorruptible is a story well worth investing in. What Waid is doing is along the lines of Kirkman's Invincible, Moore's America's Best Comics and Busiek's Astro City. He's showing us a world full of walking gods and high adventure, a world of vast potential and deadly greed, a world full of larger than life heroes and nasty as hell villains. In short, it's all stuff we've seen before, but with Iredeemable and now with the inclusion of Incorruptible, Mark Waid has done what those creators before him also did so successfully; he's turning our pop mythology on its head and giving us a new world to explore.

So let's go exploring.

Five Page Preview of Mark Waid's Incorruptible!

2009-12-07T18:27:00.002-06:00

MARK WAID’S NEW SERIES
INCORRUPTIBLE
HITS SHELVES
12/16!

MARK WAID WAS EVIL
MARK WAID
IS
INCORRUPTIBLE!

The Flip Side To This Year’s Break-Out Smash Hit IRREDEEMABLE!

A New Ongoing Series That Asks The Question:
What Happens When A Villain Becomes A Hero?

FIRST LOOK! – 5 PAGE PREVIEW

What happens when a villain becomes a hero? Find out on December 16th when BOOM! Studios' new series, INCORRUPTIBLE, the flip side to Mark Waid’s super hero epic IRREDEEMABLE, hits store shelves! Written by Waid and sporting sensational interior art by Jean Diaz (WONDER WOMAN), INCORRUPTIBLE features A & B covers by John Cassaday (ASTONISHING X-MEN) and Tim Sale (BATMAN: LONG HALLOWEEN) with a C cover by Jeffrey Spokes.

INCORRUPTIBLE showcases super villain Max Damage, who had an epiphany the day The Plutonian destroyed Sky City. That day, when The Plutonian turned his back on humanity, Max Damage decided to step up. Now Max Damage has changed his name to Max Daring and turned from his formerly selfish ways to become… INCORRUPTIBLE. The flip side to this year’s break-out smash hit IRREDEEMABLE, INCORRUPTIBLE examines the hard, difficult road to changing your ways and making a difference in the world.

“Buckle yourselves in and prepare for one of the best titles you’ve seen of this or any year,” said BOOM Marketing Director Chip Mosher. “And while you don’t need to be picking up IRREDEEMABLE to enjoy this new series, INCORRUPTIBLE continues Waid’s complex study of caped morality at the end of the world.”

About BOOM! Studios
BOOM! Studios (www.boom-studios.com) is a unique publishing house specializing in high-profile projects across a wide variety of different genres from some of the industry's biggest talents, including Philip K. Dick's DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?, The Henson Company's FARSCAPE, and the original Mark Waid series IRREDEEMABLE. BOOM! recently launched its youth imprint, BOOM Kids!, with Pixar's THE INCREDIBLES, CARS, and TOY STORY, as well as Disney's THE MUPPETS, DONALD DUCK, UNCLE SCROOGE and WALT DISNEY'S COMICS AND STORIES. This year, BOOM! Studios celebrates its fourth anniversary.

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund Is Hiring.

2009-12-01T15:06:00.003-06:00

The CBLDF announced today that they are looking to fill two open positions in their organization. If you have non-profit experience and you love comics, perhaps this is the opportunity you've been looking for.

More about the positions can be found here.

Good luck and don't forget to support the CBLDF!

The Surfing the Bleed Interview - Joy Taney

2009-11-30T15:39:00.011-06:00

Joy Taney is a writer and artist currently interning at Gaijin Studios, the home of such talent as Laura Martin, Brian Stelfreeze and Cully Hammer. A child of two musicians and a graduate of the prestigious Savannah College of Art and Desgin, Joy has creativity in spades. She sat down with me over the holidays for this very candid interview. Enjoy!

Surfing the Bleed: Welcome to Surfing the Bleed, Joy. Thanks for taking the time to do this interview. Let's get started!

Joy Taney: Delighted.

Surfing the Bleed: Your parents were both musicians. You say that you grew up moving in and out of various folk music scenes. Does that mean your family uprooted a great deal, moved from city to city?

Joy Taney: We actually didn't move around that much. We did spend a lot of time in my father's station wagon driving all over the Northeast US, though. I spent a fair amount of my childhood in the backseat with a bunch of instruments.

Surfing the Bleed: What sort of an affect did that have on you as a child? Is there a part of that sort of gypsy lifestyle that you believe made you more aware of the "real world" and taught you more about life and people? That is to say, do you feel that having a non-traditional childhood made you a better storyteller?

Joy Taney: I consider myself extremely lucky to have experienced a childhood immersed in the artist community. I was exposed to the professional lives of literary, performing, and visual artists, and any expression of my own creativity was rewarded. I even played bass for the band for four years. Growing up in that environment made me think differently from the other kids my age, which helped with the originality of the stories I wrote and drew. It also prepared me for the hardships of being a professional artist.

Surfing the Bleed: You attended the Pennsylvania Governor's School of Excellence for the Arts when you were young. Can you speak a bit about the experience you had there and how it helped you develop as an artist?

Joy Taney: PGSA was the moment when I decided to be a comic book creator over being a writer. I always knew I wanted to tell stories. It was also the first place where I saw individuality being rewarded by my peers, which for a high schooler was pretty different. It was a magical experience. I have a distinct memory of coming back from the ER--I had this horrible ear infection--and being blown away by the kids setting up sheets in the grotto so they could project a movie on them and watch a life-sized Fantasia. We all had this deep love of the arts that united us, the dancers, writers, musicians, actors and artists. I keep in contact with some of the people I know through there, but not enough. I recently did a photo shoot with my fellow PGSA alumnus, Nathan Kuruna.

Surfing the Bleed: Does it disappoint you to see that the program for 2009 had to canceled due to the current abysmal state of the economy?

Joy Taney: It breaks my heart. For those of us that went to PGSA that didn't already know we wanted to go into the arts, that was the clincher. It means less lifelong artists.

Surfing the Bleed: You mentioned to me that you had a pretty tough set of years in your teens. Your mother succumbed to cancer, your grandfather to Parkinson's, and you yourself suffered from a chronic illness. It was that series of hardships that you say lead you down the path toward comics. I know it's not easy to recall, but could you talk about that time period in your life, what was affecting you, and how you eventually turned to comics to help you through that time?

Joy Taney: The worst period of my life was from when I was 14 to 19. First we discovered I had reflex sympathetic dystrophy (learn more at http://www.rsds.org/index2.html), which is a nervous system disorder that causes me to be in constant pain. Then my mother had a seizure that led us to learning she had a brain tumor, then my grandfather developed Parkinson's, and became verbally abusive to the people he loved. My mother and grandfather died six weeks apart, just months after I moved away for college. Comics were my escape. I would be lying in bed, in intense pain, but I'd still be able to draw. I made comics about my mother's cancer. I worked on stories where I created situations similar to the ones I was going through, and where it was safe to work through the ordeal without anyone telling me what was appropriate or how I should be feeling. When I was in pain, my stories would examine illness. When my mother died, I killed off my favorite characters. It was an exhausting process, to exorcise my feelings through story, but very therapeutic. And I know, when I'm having a bad day due to the RSD or missing my mom or something else, I can always turn to my comics as a way to let it out.

Surfing the Bleed: Were there any particular titles or any particular creators that really resonated with you during that time period and helped you start to cope?

Joy Taney: I started reading Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise at the tail end of all that misery, and I think it's been a very big influence on me, both in storytelling and style. Moore is never afraid to experiment with form.

Surfing the Bleed: Did you ever sense any disappointment from your father or the rest of your family when you decided to pursue art instead of music, or did you always feel a lot of support for your pursuits?

Joy Taney: If not for music, my father would have been a cartoonist. He was the one who taught me to draw, with me working from a cartooning book on the floor and him on the art desk above me. He has been my number one fan and supporter throughout my college years. My mother was more interested in my writing--aside from being a musician, she was also a journalist--but was happy to see me choose comics. In fact, on her death bed she made me promise not to drop out of college from grief. If anything, they were worried that I chose to be an artist because their lives proved that it could be difficult financially. The people who took it a little harder were my maternal grandparents. My grandmother wanted me to be a doctor and my grandfather wanted me to be President.

Surfing the Bleed: You attended the prestigious Savannah College of Art and Design in Savannah, GA. SCAD has a history of really supporting the medium of graphic storytelling and even offers a degree in that field. Can you talk about your experience there, how it helped you mature as an artist and how it affected your approach to comics?

Joy Taney: I learned just as much about how to act like an artist as I did to draw like one at SCAD. Being able to do creative problem-solving and take criticism was something I really struggled with, and I think only in my senior year did I make headway (and if any of my former professors are reading this, I'm well aware and very sorry that I was a miserable little troll in your classes. I really am, I was terrible). For my last three years I attended the satellite campus in Atlanta, and the teachers there were very focused on visual storytelling, which is the key to getting the story across clearly. Let's be frank, my art isn't as beautiful as a lot of the other people who came out of SCAD, but with sharp visual storytelling skills I can make it more appealing.

Surfing the Bleed: You're interning right now for Gaijin Studios in Atlanta, a comics collective that includes such heavy-hitters as Laura Martin, Brian Stelfreeze and Cully Hamner. Can you tell us how you landed the job and what all it entails?

Joy Taney: I got the internship through SCAD. The application process went like a basic portfolio review, except that the guys cracked a couple offensive jokes to see if I was cool with their sense of humor. The internship itself is a dream--studio space and time to work on my own projects interspersed with jobs or errands that I do for the people at Gaijin. I've flatted, I've filled in blacks, scanned and resized work... the other day I used a kneaded eraser to lift off extra graphite so Karl Story, another of the awesome artists at Gaijin Studios, could ink some pages with less difficulty. Did you know there's even a special technique (learn more) for that? The most consistent job I do, though, is cleaning up the studio and taking out the trash. Maybe someday I'll find a discarded sketch in the garbage and sell it on eBay! Don't get your hopes up though, I can't see a faster way of getting that internship canned.

Surfing the Bleed: What have you learned from your time there and how has working with those big creators affected your work and your approach to the industry?

Joy Taney: I've been interning since June and I still can't stop geeking out over how cool it is, to work under the pros! They have all taught me something. What I love about Gaijin is that it's essentially a continuation of my education, only this time I don't have to pay for it. I get a lot of tips on advanced storytelling and professional etiquette.

Surfing the Bleed: You're currently working on your own creator-owned property, Son of Babylon. It's a story with deep roots in Hebrew history. Can you tell us a bit about the book and what your inspiration for the story was?

Joy Taney: Son of Babylon is my prequel to the Book of Ezra. It takes place in 500 BC, when the Hebrews were forced out of their home city of Judah to live in Babylon as second-class citizens. It follows Zerubbabel, who will eventually become the man to free the Hebrews, in his younger years and sees him start to take a hand in Hebrew history. The first thing on his task list is to ferret out the mole in his community who is secretly working for the shah of Babylon.
The inspiration for Son of Babylon was actually something that happened 2000 years before, involving the mysterious, marauding Sea People. There was a quote by Rameses III about them, "No land could stand before their arms... They laid their hands upon the land to the ends of the earth." Tell me that doesn't send chills up your spine! Originally the story would have taken place in 2500 BC and been about a farmboy who encountered the Sea People, but when I was researching Assyrian names I came across the history of Zerubbabel and realized that would make for a much more interesting topic. No one's told any stories about the events I'm covering since the writers of the Bible, so I have a lot of untouched material to play with.

Surfing the Bleed: What creative and historical influences are you drawing from for Son of Babylon?

Joy Taney: I've been developing this story for almost a year now, and the hardest part is the research. For instance, my best friend wants to do a comic that takes place during the French Revolution. She can get books on the historical clothing, take a virtual tour of Versailles, and if she was really hard up, she could go on Wikipedia. I don't have it anywhere as lucky. In a year, I've acquired only four books on the time period and a handful of websites. One of my biggest resources has been the Bible itself. You can agree or disagree with what it has to say theologically, but the records kept on the time period I'm studying were pretty detailed. There are some things in Son of Babylon that are intentionally historically inaccurate, like how all of the carts in my rendition of Babylon are actually Roman carts, because I can't find any pictures of Babylonian carts. Most of the inaccuracies I am aware of, and use for dramatic purposes. The creative part comes in when I not only have to weave a story around this series of historical events, but when I come to a piece of history, mostly visual, that I don't have any information on. Luckily Babylon has its own aesthetics and I'm learning to fake it convincingly.

Surfing the Bleed: You identify yourself as reform Jewish. Can you speak a bit about your journey through your faith, how it affects your life and how it influences your work?

Joy Taney: I came from a family that took a broad variety of influences into their faith. Every Passover seder, my grandfather, an environmental scientist, would loudly proclaim that the God he worshiped was not a little man in the clouds taking notes on everything bad that you did. My mother was, in college, part of a Hindu cult, and my father went to Catholic school, and I studied Theosophy for a while. It kept me very open-minded and I have had the opportunity to see a lot of different faiths in action. Jewish culture encourages intelligence and analysis--one of the most respected things you can do is become a Rabbi so you can analyze the hidden meanings of the Torah all day. I take a scientific approach to faith, and that's perfectly acceptable within the religion. It also allows me to look at the Bible, a major part of my research for this book, as not only a religious text but as a historical one as well as a guide to the culture at the time it was written.

Surfing the Bleed: Talk a bit, if you would, about the process of creating the pitch for Son of Babylon and what the reaction to it has been so far. Also, you're in competition for some grants for your work due to the nature of the subject matter, correct?

Joy Taney: I've worked on my pitch packets with a few people looking over my shoulder, chief among them Cully Hamner. I try to market them in eye-catching ways--Matt Kindt's creative designs inspired me to wrap the physical packets in actual papyrus, which I would cut down to size and print designs out on. The reactions I get from publishers have been two-fold--everyone finds the pitch and sample pages to be very exciting, but so far none of them have said it was a good fit for the company. I showed Scott Allie of Dark Horse my packet, for instance, and he was very enthusiastic, but when it came down to it, Son of Babylon just wasn't in the direction Dark Horse is moving. As for grants, I'm trying to find the right organization for Hebrew history that would be interested in the comic.

Surfing the Bleed: You mentioned that you have a couple of other projects going right now. Without divulging too much, can you tell us a bit about the other irons you have in the fire and what your plans for them are in the future?

Joy Taney: After Son of Babylon, which will be two graphic novels, I have plans for a three-graphic novel mystery set in a bar. That's inspired by my own experience working as a barmaid as well as a late-night musing on the duality of pleasure. However, the project I'm working on simultaneously with Son of Babylon is a lesbian romance novel with a setting similar to A Handmaid's Tale. It was inspired by Twilight, actually--or to be more specific, my reaction to Twilight, which was, "I can write a better story than this!" So I am.

Surfing the Bleed: You're a comics professional currently trying to break in. So far I've interviewed a number of people who struggled for a while but have finally managed to crack that glass ceiling. What's it like being right on the cusp, feeling like you're so close to a big break? Is the anticipation exciting, nerve-wracking? And what advice do you have for people in a similar position to your own?

Joy Taney: Definitely nerve-wracking. I'm creating this book that's in a genre you don't see a lot of, and that's working against me right now. It's a thrill to get such a good reaction from fellow creators though, there's a number of people out there rooting for me to break in. For people in my situation, I'd say treat every opportunity as a potential for business. Like this interview, for instance--I would love it if I a publisher read this and contacted me about working with them (hint, hint), but it's also adding to my visibility before I get that first job, which is good because people might recognize me.

Surfing the Bleed: The comics industry isn't one dominated by female creators. Do you think your gender makes it harder for you to break in? Have you encountered any situations yet where you felt like people were marginalizing you as a "female" creator instead of treating you as simply a creator?

Joy Taney: At this point in the comic industry's development, I feel that being a girl is an asset instead of a liability. People get excited when they hear about new female comic book creators. At Baltimore Con, the thing I kept hearing was how badly everyone wanted to read more books about girls, written by girls. That was great for my friend to hear, who's working on a female-oriented superhero story, but there I was, feeling awkward about being a girl writing a book about a boy! If anything, I've experienced reverse discrimination--people are more interested because I'm female and that's still rare. However, I do feel there aren't enough truly interesting women characters in mainstream comics, and I'd love a chance to help change that. Most mainstream comics are written for a male audience, and so the male characters have the more interesting stories while the women act as love interests and eye candy. It's rare to find a girl character who can really hold her own with the men while not simultaneously being shot in angles that emphasize her T&A. Men are strong, and women are sexy. I'd like to see some more inversions of that trope.

Surfing the Bleed: What creative goals would you like to achieve in your time in the comics industry? Any particular tropes you'd like to shatter or stories you really want to tell? What are you passionate about and what do you want the industry to know about you, about what you plan to do to advance comics into the future?

Joy Taney: That relates back to the last question, and what I said about interesting female protagonists. I would love to introduce new characters or rework establishing ones to be fascinating independent of their male counterparts. I'm also a strong proponent of idea-driven stories, and my goal with any story I work on is to carry through on the strong idea behind it.

Surfing the Bleed: Thanks again for doing the interview Joy! It's always great to sit down with a fellow Browncoat. You've been absolutely fantastic and I really appreciate your candor. I wish you the best of luck as you continue down this road and Surfing the Bleed will be pulling for you!

Joy Taney: It's been a pleasure, and I wish Surfing the Bleed all the best in the future!

The Surfing the Bleed Review - Incredibles #3 by Mark Waid, Landry Walker and Ramanda Kamarga

2009-11-30T13:09:00.007-06:00

Issue three of BOOM! Studios ongoing The Incredibles book by Mark Waid, Landry Walker and Ramanda Kamarga offers a fun, fast-paced finale to the current Jack Jack-fueled storyline that is sure to delight comics fans of all ages.

The script, penned by Waid and Walker, is a thing of streamlined beauty that balances the exposition with enough humor and sweeping action to keep things moving at a brilliant pace. The pair also inject the book with a fair helping of superhero tropes, playing a familiar game with their own set of rules and in the process creating a book that will please longtime superhero fans while offering a good jumping on point for new readers.

The pair of Waid and Landry are joined again this issue by Ramanda Kamarga. Like Marcio Takara before him, Kamarga captures the energy and aesthetic of the original animation while remaining true to his own style. And it's a style that compliments the action in Waid and Walker's script perfectally. Every big action sequence, every facial expression, every nuance of costuming or power represenation is conveyed with serious skill by Kamarga.

The story in issue three closes up the Jack Jack illness storyline and ends with a cliffhanger that leaves readers craving more. And really, that's what I think is best about the BOOM! Kids line, The Incredibles especially. While there is plenty of value to be found in the kids offerings from the Big Two (Marvel, DC), it could be said that the one-shot format employed for most of their books does little to engage young readers in a manner that will keep them coming back for more. Not to sound too mercenary, but one of the most important aspects of publishing comics for kids is making sure that they keep reading the comics you're publishing and in the proccess create a new generation of comic readers. The best way to do that is to give them a book that embraces the traditions of the medium by requiring that they come back each month to get the next installment of the story. BOOM!'s The Incredibles title does exactly that, and that's what makes it the best introduction to superheroes you could possibly give a young reader right now.

If you haven't checked it out, the first volume by Mark Waid and Marcio Takara (The Incredibles: Family Matters) is available in collected form now. With the first volume out, the second volume wrapped up and the third ready to start soon, (oh, and by the way, Christmas and Hannukah are coming up) this is a great time to introduce your favorite superheroes to this great offering from BOOM! Kids.

Tracking Back Around

2009-11-25T18:06:00.005-06:00

I was a bright kid, but that didn't stop me from not giving a damn in high school. Hell, maybe it's why I didn't give a damn in high school. Like a lot of smart people stuck in bad schools, I felt less than motivated throughout my teen years. As a result of that, I didn't do as well in class as I could have and had to miss out on the one AP class my high school offered: English. Given that English was the only thing I cared about in high school, missing out on the one chance at a real English class was pretty heartbreaking. The closest thing I could get was taking standard English from Mrs. Joyner, the woman who taught the AP class. At my school, senior English involved stuff like Macbeth, Chaucer and, most importantly to me, Beowulf. For a kid who had grown up reading fantasy novels and playing Dungeons & Dragons, Beowulf was a revelation. Here was the foundation for every epic fantasy hero I'd ever loved. Tolkien was in there, more importantly Howard, and I loved every single line of it. When it came time to take our final exams in that class, Mrs. Joyner gave us the option of taking the test or re-writing the Beowulf epic in our own fashion. Being a writer of some burgeoning talent who at the time was obsessed with Stephen King's Dark Tower series, I decided to re-write Beowulf as if it had occurred in that world. The resulting manuscript was close to twenty single-spaced pages. Mrs. Joyner loved it and asked me to read it for the class. If you ever need to put an entire room full of bored teenagers to sleep, read them a Dark Tower retelling of the Beowulf story. Regardless of the audience reaction, Mrs. Joyner said something that day that has never left me; "Don't you all think Brett will be a great writer some day?" Those words still resonate with me every time I sit down to write. I've girded myself with them throughout the years and despite moments of complete creative lethargy, her words have always helped me soldier through and keep believing in myself.

So when I sat down earlier this year to start thinking about concepts I'd like to work on as a comic writer, Beowulf and the Old West came back to mind. I won't go into a lot of detail, obviously, because I don't want you dingoes stealing my baby. Needless to say, I've come up with a fairly cool angle on the story that adds a lot of my own personal touches and seems, so far, to resonate with the limited audience I've introduced it to. While I have other projects that I'm working on, any of which I'd be glad to have published, it feels important to me that this Beowulf story be my first. I owe it to the teenage me that saw a future with so much potential and I owe it to Mrs. Joyner for teaching me to believe in myself.

Oh, in case you were wondering, I spent the second half of that year as Mrs. Joyner's teacher's assistant. She slipped me all the AP reading material, let me grade all their reports, and at the end of the year sneaked me into the AP exam. Entry-level college English successfully skipped.

Thanks Mrs. Joyner. I'll make you proud.

Prove Bill Wrong

2009-11-23T17:00:00.003-06:00

BOOM! Studios officially launched their campaign today to prove Diamond wrong and make themselves into one of the top five comics companies in the direct market next year. CBR has a great article on it here.

The "Prove Bill Wrong" campaign saw a soft launch at this year's Diamond Retailer Summit in Baltimore. While everyone was clamoring over what DC and Marvel have planned for next year, BOOM's Ross Richie was laying down the company's mission statement for direct market relevance. Can BOOM! continue its surprisingly quick rise? Well, when you've got the kind of love and enthusiasm for comics that they do, I'd say you stand a good chance. I wouldn't bet against them.

Big Marvel Money

2009-11-23T15:00:00.003-06:00

Here's an interesting article from the Wall Street Journal that outlines just how much the top dogs at Marvel are going to be pulling in as a result of the company's recent sell to Disney.

Big Marvel Money

No word yet on just what effect this is going to have on creators, but if enough trickles down to Bendis to make him a millionaire then I think it's only fair he officially change his name to "Wilson Fisk."

The Surfing the Bleed Interview

2009-11-21T18:32:00.003-06:00

I wanted to take a second to welcome any new readers I might have received from the word of mouth surrounding the Phil Hester interview I just did. When I started Surfing the Bleed earlier this year it was in an effort to document my journey into comics and to hopefully create a resource for other new creators trying to break in. While I occasionally write opinion pieces, give my pull list or throw down a review, the main focus of the blog has shifted toward interviewing creators (both green and veteran) about their experience in the comics industry. I do what I can to promote the blog, but the best promotion is still word of mouth. So if you're a comics creator and you want to set up an interview, just contact me through the e-mail I have linked at the right of the blog. If you're a fan and you really dig what I'm trying to do here, then please tell other comics fans about the site, get them here, and lets all have a good time loving (and making) comics together.

Thanks sincerely for all the support and welcome to all the new fans.

If you want to check out any of the previous interviews I've done, just click the "interviews" tag in the cloud on the right.

Now somebody call Jenny Sparks and lets all go surf the bleed.