Archives November 2022

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1) marvel has announced a new 3-issue mini-series beginning in March called woman Comics written, drawn, inked, colored, lettered, as well as edited completely by women. This is part of their year long women of marvel event.

2) caught the Iron guy 2 trailer yet? appears like the sequel’s going to be as great or much better than the original! inspect it out here.

3) Bryan singer is back in the X-Mansion as well as has signed on to direct X-Men Origins very first Class

4) grant Morrison begins his Return of Bruce Wayne mini-series in April, as well as we’ll see where Bruce Wayne has been  since being hit with Darkseid’s Omega permission eyebeams in final dilemma #6.

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Roger Ash

by Roger Ash

It’s that time of year when we’re inundated by “Best of” lists. This is actually something I enjoy as often I’ll learn about books, comics, movies, etc. that I’m unfamiliar with and it gives me something new to try. So, in that spirit, I present my favorite comics and books/collections from this past year. As I did last year, I’ve divided these lists into two top fives; one for comics and one for books and collections. Also, I’ve kept the list to books I’ve actually read. I haven’t even come close to reading all the comics material that came out last year, including some that I’m really looking forward to like Fanatagraphics’ new Pogo collection and IDW/The library of American Comics’ Opus collection, as it’s only fair to rate what I’ve actually read. with that in mind, let the countdown begin!

Comics

Roger Langridge’s Snarked!

5) Roger Langridge’s Snarked! (BOOM!/kaBOOM!)

Creator Roger Langridge takes classic Lewis Carroll characters and gives them his own spin in this rousing adventure. Wilburforce J. Walrus and Carpenter Clyde McDunk join forces with Queen Scarlett and prince Rusty to find their father, the Red King, who has been missing for six months and may be a victim of foul play. Along the way they encounter scheming royal advisors, the Gryphon, pirates, and maybe even a Snark (who could be a Boojum). The story didn’t get me best away, but as it progressed I grew attached to our band of heroes, especially Wilburforce and Queen Scarlett who both really developed as characters. As always, I find Langridge’s art to be a real pleasure to view. This is a great all-ages book that I have no problem recommending to anyone. even though the initial story has come to a close, I hope Langridge gets an opportunity to spin much more tales of the Walrus and the Carpenter.

Infernal Man-Thing

4) The Infernal Man-Thing (Marvel Comics)

Years ago, there were plans to publish a Man-Thing graphic novel by writer Steve Gerber and artist Kevin Nowlan. I was really looking forward to this as I’m a huge fan of Gerber’s work on Man-Thing. When the graphic novel was still unpublished when Gerber passed away in 2008, I figured it was one of those projects I’d look back on and wonder what might have been. imagine my surprise when the story was published this year as The Infernal Man-Thing. The story was fun and a solid providing from Gerber, though I kept wondering if he might have tweaked it were he still alive. The art by Nowlan was just outstanding. All around, this was a very enjoyable surprise.

Hypernaturals

3) Hypernaturals (BOOM!)

I’m a big fan of what writers Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning did with Marvel’s cosmic heroes, so I was really looking forward to seeing what they did with a universe of their own creation. So far I’ve really been enjoying the ride. set in the future, The Hypernaturals are the official superhero team of the Quantinuum, with new teams put into place every few years. They take on the menaces no one else can. At the start of the series, something has gone horribly wrong and the current team has disappeared. former Hypernaturals members come together to learn what has happened, and to say it isn’t good is a large understatement. It’s clear Abnett & Lanning have put a lot of effort into creating this new world as readers see as the layers of history unravel. and with art by creators including Brad Walker, Tom Derenick, and Andres Guinaldo, it looks pretty darn good, too. If you’re a fan of cosmic superheroes like The legion of Super-Heroes or the Guardians of the Galaxy, this book is best up your alley.

Fantastic Four

2) fantastic Four/FF (Marvel Comics)

I’ve delighted in Jonathan Hickman’s work on fantastic four (and later, FF), because I first read it near the beginning of his run. I think he really has a deal with on the character’s personalities and he kept the series focused on them as a family, which is one of the big reasons they’re so special. Unfortunately, his run on fantastic four and FF has ended but I liked how he wrapped up all the various plots threads that he’d been weaving through the books, some of them for quite some time. It made for a satisfying conclusion to an excellent run on the series. I look forward to seeing what he does with the Avengers and where Matt fraction takes Marvel’s first Family, the fantastic Four.

Popeye

1) Popeye (IDW)

While I’ve always delighted in Popeye, I’ve never been a huge Popeye fan. However, I love this book! A big reason for that is the writing of Roger Langridge who has a great feel for E.C. Segar’s classic characters and storytelling. He takes that and gives it a slightly modern spin and the result is one heck of an pleasurable comic. Langridge’s writing is the constant in the book which has featured art by Bruce Ozella, Tom Neely, Ken Wheaton, and Langridge himself, among others. So join Popeye, Olive, Wimpy, Sappo, Prof. Wotasnozzle, and all the rest for some of the most fun and excitement you’ll ever have reading a comic! and while you’re at it, check out classic Popeye for much more great Popeye tales!

The Zaucer of Zilk

Honorable mention: The Zaucer of Zilk (IDW). I always enjoy Bredndan McCarthy’s trippy comic stories and here he and co-writer Al Ewing deliver in spades. This is a really fun read.

Books

Frazetta – funny Stuff

5) Frazetta – funny stuff (IDW/Yoe Books)

Frank Frazetta is probably best known to fans for his fantasy paintings featuring muscled warriors, buxom women, and all manner of fantastical beasts. What you’ll see in this book is the Frazetta who drew some great funny animal comics and some starring funny humans as well. If you’re a Frazetta fan, you ought to definitely check out this little-seen side of his work. If you’re a fan of great comic art and fun stories, there’s plenty for you here, too. simply put, this is really an pleasurable book. If you want to know more, you can check out my full review of the book here.

Outland: The complete Library

4) Outland: The complete library (IDW/The library of American Comics)

I’m a huge fan of Berkeley Breathed’s Bloom County, so when he chose to end the strip and instead do a Sunday-only strip called Outland, I was much more than ready to go along for the ride. This volume collects every Outland comic from its beginning in 1989 to its end in 1995. The reproduction of the strips is remarkable and like the previous Bloom county volumes, the book includes an introduction and notes by Breathed. Bloom county fans will recognize numerous characters from the earlier strip, including Opus, bill the Cat, Ronald Ann, Steve Dallas, and Oliver Wendel Jones, along with new characters including Mortimer mouse and Tim W. 40, who disappears not long after the comic begins. This volume also includes what may be Breathed’s many famous strip which is referenced on the front cover as the men of the Men’s Kouch Club look at the thing that gives their lives meaning. While I enjoy Outland, it never grabbed me the way Bloom county did, I think primarily due to the fact that the 80s are when I did a lot of my growing up and Bloom county is very much tied into that. That being said, reading Outland as a whole gave me a greater appreciation of the strip. This is a fantastic collection and well worth your time.

Cartoon Monarch: Otto Soglow and the little King

3) cartoon Monarch: Otto Soglow & The little King (IDW/Library of American Comics)

I was only vaguely familiar with The little King prior to reading this book and found it to be an excellent look at Otto Soglow and his many famous creation. The strips are a whole lot of fun, often downright silly, and the art is a real delight to look at. If you want to know much more about this volume, check out the review I wrote of the book here.

Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse

2) Walt Disney’s Mickey mouse Vol. 3 & 4 (Fantagraphics)

The first two volumes in this series made my “Best Of” list last year and the two new volumes collecting Floyd Gottfredson’s Mickey mouse comic strips follow suit. These volumes are even better though, as Gottfredson really comes into his own as a storyteller and they include some of his best known stories including The Pirate Submarine in Vol. 3 and The seven Ghosts, Island in the Sky, and monarch of Medioka (which got the strip banned in Yugoslavia) in Vol. 4. While the comic strips are the highlights of the volumes, they also include a wealth of supplementary material about the comics, the characters, and Gottfredson himself. These are stunning collections that I highly recommend. If you’re a Disney fan or a comic strip fan, you need these books in your collection.

Judas Coin

1) The Judas Coin (DC Comics)

Hands down my favorite comic or book I read all year. Walter Simonson weaves an epic tale of a coin that was paid to Judas to betray Jesus as it is discovered at various points in the history of the DC Universe. This book kinda got lost in all the hoopla surrounding DC’s new 52, but it shouldn’t have. The writing and art are both top notch and make for great reading. If you want a closer look at The Judas Coin, take a gander at a review of the book I wrote here.

Alien: The Illustrated story original Art Edition

Honorable Mention: Alien: The Illustrated story original Art edition (Titan) and Skippy Vol. 1: daily Comics 1925-1927 (IDW/The library of American Comics). Archie Goodwin & Walter Simonson’s adaptation of Alien is one of the best film adaptations ever in comics and this oversized volume lets you see Simonson’s in all its glory, scanned from the original art. There are even a few bonus offer features that are the icing on the cake.

Skippy Vol. 1: daily Comics 1925-1927

I was unfamiliar with Percy Crosby’s Skippy, but when I interviewed Jared Gardner about this collection (which you can read here), I was fascinated enough to give the book a try. I’m thankful I did. Gardner’s introduction, which features a look at Crosby’s early life and work, is fascinating and really sets the stage for the strips. The comics themselves are a lot of fun, though as with many comic strips from this period there are the occasional ones that I just don’t get. in some cases that’s due to references I don’t understand and other times I think it’s that humor changes and something that was funny then just doesn’t make sense to a modern reader. Be that as it may, in general this is a fun strip and I’m on board for the ride to see how Skippy develops over the years.

Those are my choices. how about you? What were your favorites of 2012? comment below and let me know!

Now, go read a comic!

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Devolution #1 Jae Lee cover

Rick Remender is the popular writer of such books as Black Science, worry Agent, Captain America, and numerous others. His newest series is Devolution from Dynamite in which our world has devolved into a much more primitive state. Westfield’s Roger Ash recently talked to Remender about this upcoming comic.

Westfield: What was the genesis of Devolution?

Rick Remender: This is a book I cooked up in 2005 and wrote the outline for in 2006. I pitched it to Nick (Barrucci, Dynamite CEO/Publisher) in 2006, I believe. I know for a fact that I was listening to Devo, one of my favorite bands. The general idea behind the band and a lot of what they talk about is the devolution of man in modern society. Their version of it is certainly much more of a social commentary. I just started thinking about how amazing it would be to live in a world where a lot of people had been reverse-engineered into Neanderthals. just make-believe science, chickens become Velociraptors and spiders become giant. especially back then, I was searching for ideas that could give me a playground that smelled like an old EC comic book. I think that’s part of where it came from as well. At that point in time, there was no new road Warrior or Jurassic Park film to look forward to, and I liked the idea of kind of mixing those two things; a high velocity story that has sort of a road Warrior feel in a world that was like Jurassic Park. That was the catalyst. I didn’t have an artist lined up immediately, but somebody’s gonna want to draw that.

Devolution #1 preview page 1. Art by Jon Wayshak

Westfield: What’s taken so long for it to be published?

Remender: A lot of varying factors; contract negotiations being a big one. Scheduling. once contract things were worked out, schedules would get screwed up. Paul Renaud had, at one point, signed on to draw it and then, due to some of my own scheduling problems, he couldn’t. I was very fortunate to get to work with him at Marvel. during that time, that was one of the things that was eating up many of my schedule. It was a lot of varying factors. once I got back around to it, and Paul had already moved on; I had to line up a new artist. I got Jon Wayshak, who is one of my favorite artists. He came up with Jerome Opena and those two men were two of my heroes, going back to my time in the Bay Area. We brought in Jordan Boyd to realize it and give it his color love. It was just a series of road blocks. At one point, it just kind of drifted. once Jon and Jordan signed on, it was simpler to realize it. It’s very odd seeing a script I wrote a decade ago brought to life. It’s very interesting, because I see a lot of my old writing practices and I haven’t seen them in a while. certainly I’m going to be punching up the dialog a bit and revising bits, but it’s mostly the same thing I wrote ten years ago.

Devolution #1 preview page 2. Art by Jon Wayshak

Westfield: What can you say about your collaboration with Jon?

Remender: It’s a dream. Jon is a world class illustrator. In his world, he’s a substantial name. He dabbles in comics once in a while because he loves them. He doesn’t live in comics. For me it was a big get to pull him in. He’s quite possibly one of the best illustrators in the world, but certainly one of the best in terms of his rendering and his imagination. I knew that getting Jon in to do some of the crazy creatures and unusual worlds and things that I wanted was going to be a treat. and it really has been. as well as our main antagonist, the Nazi redneck Gill. He’s one of the greatest artists when it concerns capturing insanity and depravity.

Westfield: aside from Gill, who are some of the major characters that readers will meet in the book?

Remender: It’s an ensemble cast so there’s a large cast. one of the POV characters is Raja. She is someone who has information on a laboratory that was developing a revolution agent that could ostensibly reverse the state of the world and re-evolve things. She’s on a pilgrimage to make it to this laboratory in Silicon Valley to get her hands on this, when she runs afoul of some of the marines that were inoculated against the devolution agent when it was used in warfare. They are still Sapien, and they are still human. They are barbaric. Her story changes course once she runs into these people. From there the action begins.

Devolution #1 preview page 3. Art by Jon Wayshak

Westfield: Did you look at what things would devolve into scientifically?

Remender: No. This is 100% nonsense pulp and that’s how I like it. There are the standards, like birds are remnants of the dinosaurs. I’m like, “OK. Chickens become Velociraptors!” Is there an actual chain that links those two? There probably isn’t. Humans aren’t probably directly linked to Neanderthals, but you have fun with science a little bit. in that sense, I’m defining it as they are reverse developed but they’re also reverse mutated so you get things that existed a couple million years ago and in some cases you get things that never existed. That way I can create whatever I want.

Devolution #1 preview page 4. Art by Jon Wayshak

Westfield: how much world building did you do for the series?

Remender: A good bit. It’s only five issues so it doesn’t demand the most. In terms of the cast, in terms of where they’re headed, and in terms of the end goal I cooked all that up in the initial outline and it’s still the same as it was. before I tear those scripts out and send them to Jon I review them and change bits and pieces but then I realize that changing things that I wrote ten years ago seems like [George] Lucas. That was an idea I had ten years ago that I might not write best now. There’s a lot of gratuitous violence and sex and not necessarily the way I would deal with it now, but I left it there because that was the intent I had ten years ago. It’s fun to see this last thing that I cooked up as part of a slew of books like unusual girl and worry agent and Last Days of American crime and end League. It’s fun to see the last one of those that I developed get made so I’m leaving it, for the most part, how it was.

Devolution #1 preview page 5. Art by Jon Wayshak

Westfield: What are some of the differences you notice about your writing then vs. now?

Remender: one of the big ones is how I condense things now. If you look at the first six issues of Black Science, for example, that was an outline I started picking at in 2012. The first six issues was 12 issues of outline. I went through and gutted everything that wasn’t mandatory and I shrunk it down as much as I could. What you get is a shotgun blast in six issues. I’ve always been a compressed storyteller, but I think I got even much more compressed as time went on. There are some things here that I’m thinking about reconsidering. issue #3 is really one big chase sequence with all these crazy creatures and it’s very much a chunk of road Warrior story where they’re being chased through this world. It’s kinda wonderful. It’s good to see an illustrator put down that motion and that action on paper. There’s a lot of technique stuff and craft stuff that I’ve picked up along the way. When I looked back at the script, I tweaked a few things here and there to smooth it out. At the same time, there was something about the purity of the objective of the idea in the first place and just letting it be what I wrote a decade ago and seeing it come to life.

Westfield: Is there anything else readers can look forward to in the book?

Remender: There’s a little social commentary peppered in there but it’s not too heavy handed. It would be a bit flat if it weren’t in there. The greater example of our own devolution. much more than that, it’s just a fun, high octane comic book. I can’t speak to ten years ago Rick Remender’s writing but I can say that Jon and Jordan have certainly delivered a lot of stunning pages.

Westfield: would you like to say anything about the other projects you’re working on?

Black science #19

Remender: Black science is starting back up this week. That is a story that starts to dig into who grant McKay is and takes us to the strangest world we’ve been to yet, which I think is a lot of fun. It’s a layered mystery so as soon as you think you know what’s going on, you don’t.

Tokyo Ghost with Sean Murphy is coming out from image as well. Deadly class is coming back. issue #17 begins the new run and that’s about a month off. That’s the battle royale. It’s a lot of horrible, gut-wrenching fun. The low with Greg Tocchini comes back in January. The characters try to make their way to the surface of Earth; to be the first people up there in 20,000 years and find out what’s on the surface of the irradiated planet. My last marvel book, Hail Hydra #4, comes out in about 2 or 3 weeks. That about covers my workaholic load.

Purchase

Devolution #1

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Roger gives you the lowdown on DC Comics – Vertigo’s Delirium’s Party: A little limitless Storybook HC in this Westfield Comics pick video. For fans familiar with Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, Jill Thompson is back with her lovely, captivating artwork and her diminutive versions of the Endless. Enjoy!

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Roger & Cracker’s Johnny Hickman

by Roger Ash

I can’t keep in mind a time when music wasn’t part of my life. I’ve listened to it as well as ended up being consumed with preferred bands as well as musical styles (ska makes my heart happy). I’ve sung in church choirs, played trombone because fifth grade, as well as struggled with piano lessons in junior high. Life would really suck without music. My life certainly has a soundtrack (as I type this, it’s the authorities reunion concert). I likewise like going to concerts. The connection between the crowd as well as the musicians is something wonderful as well as it’s something I’m clearly addicted to as I get that exact same rush from numerous type of online performances (theatre, standup comedy). I’d like to tell you about a couple shows I went to recently, Roger Waters The wall trip as well as the MarchFourth Marching Band. Don’t worry, this does associate to comics.

Pink Floyd’s The wall was part of my soundtrack growing up as it came out when I was in junior high. I believe almost every youngster in institution might partner with one more brick in the wall part 2’s rousing “We don’t requirement no education.” The shows for The wall ended up being legendary partly because of their extravagance as a wall was built between the audience as well as the band during the performance, as well as their rarity as it was only carried out online a handful of times, 31 to be exact. It passed into rock history as well as it was a show I never expected to see. then former Floyd bassist as well as composer of much of The Wall, Roger Waters, revealed he was putting together a new version of The wall trip based on the original production however likewise taking advantage of the advanced innovation as well as updating a few of the messages so it stayed appropriate to a contemporary audience. I had to go.

Roger Waters The Wall

And go I did, together with buddies David as well as Cyndi, to the Xcel energy center in St. Paul, Minnesota a couple weeks back to see Roger Waters The Wall. The tickets weren’t cheap, however we had fantastic seats as well as it was worth every penny. as well as you might certainly see where the money went. It was an outstanding show with an exceptional band, amazing sound, projections, huge puppets, animation, the wall itself, as well as so much more. It was much more like a huge theatre piece than a rock concert. It was a thrilling experience as well as I liked every minute of it.

Exactly a week after seeing The Wall, I headed to the Majestic, a club right here in Madison, to see a group called the MarchFourth Marching Band. I’d never heard of them before, however a video of them on the club’s web page fascinated me. Here, have a look for yourself.

MarchFourth Marching Band

Pretty cool, right? It appeared like so much fun as well as the cost was best (read cheap) so I chose to go. Man, am I glad I did. The show was a hoot as well as a half. The band, 15 members strong, was outstanding as well as the music made me glad I had on my dancing shoes. add to that three amazing stilt walkers as well as two attractive as well as fun burlesque dancers, as well as you had a show that you truly had to be there to experience all the life as well as energy they given the club.

Both shows were great as well as had so much going for them that I can’t pick a favorite. I delighted in them both. This got me believing about exactly how these shows were like comics; partly since I have a column to compose weekly as well as partly since I’m just strange that way.

Blackest Night

The wall was an event much like Blackest Night, Siege, Brightest Day, Civil War, or one of the different events that Marvel, DC, as well as other publishers have done over the years. It’s the huge experience that overwhelms your senses as well as leaves you muttering your finest Keanu Reeves “whoa.” I like events as well as they’re fun for their extremely bigness. However, if that’s all I ever checked out or all a business published, the event would soon ended up being the norm as well as would lose its grandeur, the extremely thing that made it special in the very first place. Plus, events get costly as well as my purse can’t deal with that numerous of them.

The Sixth Gun

That’s why I’m glad there are the smaller shows as well as much more personal books. I like seeing shows by groups like MarchFourth, Cracker, as well as Cowboy Mouth in the exact same method I like reading comics like Usagi Yojimbo, The Sixth Gun, as well as The Muppet Show. as well as even when a publisher is having an event, not all of their books tie into it. They may not have the bells as well as whistles of events, however the people playing in these bands as well as making these comics bring a passion, intensity, talent, as well as like to these jobs that isundeniable.

The thing is, I like variety. After all, it is, as they say, the flavor of life. I want the huge events as well as the much more personal stories. as well much of any type of one thing gets boring. I believe one of the strengths of comics is there is such a broad range of stories being told. There truly is something for everybody if you take the time to look. as well as if you’re getting bored, you just aren’t trying to delight in yourself. put on your dancing shoes as well as have fun!

Now go checked out a comic! (And put on some music.)