You are the Scheming Political Father

I read Millennium Prime Minister Volume 3

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has a new version of its iPhone app).  This is a DokiDoki title from DMP.

Bluewater Productions Announces Taylor Lautner "Fame" Bio

TAYLOR LAUTNER COMIC BOOK BIOGRAPHY COMPLETES TWILIGHT SAGA FOR BLUEWATER

Bluewater Productions has already completed comic book biographies of Twilight actors Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart and of the author who first brought Twilight to life, Stephenie Meyer. In August, the comics company will add actor Taylor Lautner to the mix.

Lautner, who plays shape shifter Jacob Black in the Twilight films, will get his own comic from Bluewater this August. The 32-page Fame: Taylor Lautner will retail at comic shops, Amazon.com and other online sites for $3.99.

Lautner was a relatively unknown actor until he made his debut in the popular vampire-romance movies. Those days are over. Today, Lautner is as much a household name as are Stewart and Pattinson.

Lautner is also a committed actor. He studied martial arts and packed on 30 pounds of muscle for his role in the Twilight movies.

Of course, Lautner's smile and chiseled features haven't hurt his popularity, either, at least not among the movies' largely female audience.

Kimberly Sherman, who's penned the biography comics of both Pattinson and Stewart, also wrote the new Lautner comic. Warren Martineck, an artist for DC Comics' WildStorm studio, provided the interior art, while JuanMar Studios produced the comic's cover.

You can see exclusive pages of the comic book on MTV: http://splashpage.mtv.com/2010/05/17/taylor-lautner-comic-book-preview/

“The Twilight series has become a pop culture phenomenon,” said Darren Davis, president and founder of Bluewater Productions. “It's transformed previously unknown actors into superstars. It seems that the same thing is happening with Taylor Lautner. We at Bluewater are happy to bring Taylor's story to his fans, and hope that his comic helps introduce these readers to the joys of graphic storytelling.”

Bluewater Productions has carved out a niche for itself with its top-selling line of biography comics. The company's Fame line of biographies, which chronicles the life of influential celebrities, will debut this May with comics focusing on Pattinson and Lady GaGa. Both titles are available then at comic book stores on May26th as well as Amazon in which the comics have ranked up to #300 on the site.

Bluewater also publishes the Female Force and Political Power line of comics. These biographies have features such powers as Nancy Pelosi, Barack Obama, Nelson Mandela and Sarah Palin.

For more information about Bluewater Productions, please visit the company's Web site at www.bluewaterprod.com.


About Bluewater Productions
Bluewater Productions Inc. is one of the top independent production studios of comic books, young adult books and graphic novels. Its extensive catalog of titles includes the bestsellers “10th Muse” and “The Legend of Isis” ”Bluewater publishes comic books in partnership with entertainment icon William Shatner (“TekWar Chronicles”), legendary filmmaker Ray Harryhausen (“Wrath of the Titans,” “Sinbad: Rogue of Mars,” “Jason and the Argonauts,” et al) and celebrated actor Vincent Price (“Vincent Price Presents”), Additionally, Bluewater publishes a highly successful line of biographical comics under the titles “Female Force” and “Political Power.”

Bluewater aims to unite cutting-edge art and engaging stories produced by its stable of the publishing industry's top artists and writers.

For more information, visit www.bluewaterprod.com.

Legendary Michael Golden and Joe Jusko Tour Europe

Michael Golden and Joe Jusko Headline "LEI 2010 Euro Spring Tour"!

Paris, The Netherlands, Brussels -- The Eva Ink Artist Tour for May 2010 is underway! And this year sees the bi-annual event reprising the successes of two years ago by bringing back two illustration heavy hitters for the adventure-- creator Michael Golden and illustrator Joe Jusko!

"I admire the work of both of these talents immensely," says Renee Witterstaetter of Eva Ink Artist Group, "And I'm very happy to welcome them both back on the tour. It's seldom that we invite the same creators back so soon, but the demand for Joe and Michael was high, both from the fans of their work in Europe, and from the store owners themselves!"

And it's certainly no wonder!

Artist/writer/creator Michael Golden, co-creator of the X-men's Rogue character, is known for his detailed pencil work on "The 'Nam," "Micronauts," "G.I. Joe Yearbook," and "Dr. Strange, " among much more!

Milestones in Golden's career include the co-creation of "Bucky O'Hare," which led to an animated series and toy line designed by Michael, "The Mirconauts," as well as "Spartan X" with editor Renee Witterstaetter. Currently, Golden's work can be seen with new covers on "Spiderman 1602," "Iron Man", "Heroes for Hire", "X-Men," "Demon's Regret, " "Mice Templar," and many more. In addition, Vanguard Production's extensive art book, "Excess: The Art of Michael Golden," is on a second printing, while Creator Chronicles has also recently released a two part candid DVD on Michael and his career.

Michael has served as an Editor at DC Comics as well as Senior Art Director at Marvel Comics, and has worked on scores of movie production projects, including some currently in development. His art has been the focus of gallery shows in places as diverse as Gijon and Barcelona, Spain, New York, Antwerp and Brussels, while his class on storytelling has been conducted from Spain to Brussels to Canada to The United States and most recently in China. He was recently honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award in Lille, France.

Following the successful "Heroes and Villains" sketchbook" released last year, Michael's new hardcover art book "Michael Golden: MORE Heroes and Villains," has just hit the stands, and his work on the Eva Ink project "Kerry and the Scary Things," is due out in October.

Joe Jusko is undoubtedly one of the best known Fantasy, Pin-Up and Comic Artists in the world today. His career has spanned almost 30 years, starting with the sale of his first cover for Heavy Metal Magazine in 1977 at the age of 17. Since , Joe has worked for almost every major comic book publisher, producing hundreds of images for both covers and interiors.

In addition to his work at Marvel over the years, Joe has produced art for many other companies and characters, including DC Comics, Crusade Comics, Innovation Comics, Harris Comics, Wildstorm Comics, Top Cow Productions and Byron Preiss Visuals, to name just a few. His recent work includes miscellaneous cover paintings for 'The Oz/Wonderland Chronicles', 'Vampirella' , and Sheena, among others. The next project due out on to highlight Joe's amazing work is "Joe Jusko: Savage Beauty," a hardcover art book from Eva Ink Publishing.

Jusko's work has earned him myriad awards and honors, including two "Favorite Painter" Wizard Fan Awards, multiple trading card awards, a Golden Lion Award from the Burroughs Bibliophiles (previous recipients include Frank Frazetta and Boris Vallejo) and a Chesley Award nomination for best cover .

The LEI 2010 Euro Spring Tour includes stops at:
Paris-- Diablo Blanc Comics-- May 21st and May 22nd
The Netherlands, Breda-- Der Stripspecialist-- May 27th
Brussels-- Utopia Comics-- May 28th and May 29th
Brussels-- Ganshoren Comics Festival-- May 30th

"We look forward to seeing all of our friends at all these stops," continued Renee, "And, hey, if you are a store in Europe and would like to be on future tour itineraries, drop me an e-mail. We love to work with new people as well, and meet fans we haven't met yet!

"Stories from the last two years of tours are legend, " laughs Renee. "It will be exciting to see what this year holds."

Golden and Jusko will be signing and sketching at all stops, as well as offering 4 prints each exclusive to the tour, while supplies last. For more information on the stores, locations, and any commission rates, contact Renee at: evaink@aol.com

Comics Critics at Skylight Books

Comics Critics Unite at Skylight Books May 27th!

BEN SCHWARTZ, SAMMY HARKHAM, and ROBERT FIORE discuss BEST AMERICAN COMICS CRITICISM at SKYLIGHT BOOKS!

Bookforum critic Ben Schwartz, editor of the new anthology Best American Comics Criticism, will discuss comics and comics criticism with Kramers Ergot editor and acclaimed cartoonist Sammy Harkham and comics critic Robert Fiore at L.A.'s SKYLIGHT BOOKS!

WHEN: Thursday, 05/27/2010
7:30pm - 9:30pm
WHERE: Skylight Books
1818 N. Vermont Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90027

Whether you choose to call them “comics lit,” “graphic novels,” or just “thick comic books,” book-length narratives told in words and pictures confidently elbowed their way into the cultural spotlight in the first decade of this new millennium — beginning with the simultaneous 2001 release of Chris Ware’s Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth and Daniel Clowes’ David Boring, and continuing on through ground-breaking and best-selling works such as Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis, Robert Crumb’s Genesis, Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, and Joe Sacco’s Palestine.

This renaissance in turn brought forth a chorus of critical commentary that not only addressed these recent works, but also initiated a much-needed look back at the previous century’s neglected and forgotten masterpieces.

This chorus, as presented in The Best American Comics Criticism, comprises both criticism (Douglas Wolk on Frank Miller and Will Eisner, Robert C. Harvey on Fun Home, Donald Phelps on Steve Ditko and Phoebe Gloeckner) and history (David Hajdu on the 1950s comic-book burnings, Jeet Heer on Gasoline Alley, Ben Schwartz on Little Orphan Annie, Gerard Jones on the birth of the comic-book business), as well as revelatory peer-on-peer essays by novelists (Jonathan Franzen on Peanuts, John Updike on James Thurber) and cartoonists (Chris Ware on Rodolphe Töpffer, Daniel Clowes on Mad’s Will Elder, and Seth on John Stanley).

Add in still more voices (The Daily Show’s John Hodgman on Jack Kirby, Sarah Boxer on Krazy Kat, Ken Parille with a meticulous deconstruction of Clowes’s David Boring), and a selection of revelatory interviews with comics masters (Kim Deitch, Yoshihiro Tatsumi, Marjane Satrapi, Will Elder, Chester Brown) and cartoonist tête-à-têtes (Eisner/Miller, Jonatham Lethem/Clowes, Dan Nadel/Sammy Harkham), and The Best American Comics Criticism offers a riveting and comprehensive look at a medium finally come into its own—not just creatively, but in terms of the respect and prominence within American culture it has so long deserved.

The Best American Comics Criticism is edited by Ben Schwartz, a contributor to The New York Times, The Washington Post, Salon, The Atlantic On-Line, and Bookforum.

"Murderland" Coming from Image Comics in August

A REFORMED KILLER FINDS HIS HAPPY PLACE IN BALTIMORE

Bizarre New Crime Series from David Hahn and Stephen Scott Hits the Streets in August

Artist DAVID HAHN joins newcomer STEPHEN SCOTT tell a story of doomed romance, bloodshed and the outer limits of human potential in MURDERLAND, published by Image Comics

Scott states, "In MURDERLAND, I wanted to do several things: (1) Teach people what an Arabber is before they are all gone, (2) show why Baltimore is more like a difficult lover than a crack head relative, and (3) stir funny feelings about a bearded woman. All I'm sure we did was mix some comedy with solid action and strangely authentic characters."

"Method is the money character," says Hahn. "Not just another pretty face, but one with the most unusual body issues I've ever seen. She is at one moment beautiful, then unexpectedly repulsive. I have a certain squeamishness regarding Method's 'hair powers,' but I have to say, I have never seen a writer so unafraid to 'ugly-up' his female lead without just beating her up. This is like nothing else I've drawn or even seen in mainstream comics."

BOO COOK, who provides the flip cover for the first issue, adds, "It just so happened that I was fired up about Baltimore from watching THE WIRE, and the MURDERLAND pitch just hooked me in."

"I've been a fan of David's artwork since his PRIVATE BEACH days, so I was thrilled when he and Stephen approached Image with MURDERLAND," says Image Publisher Eric Stephenson. "Together, they've come up with one of the more unique takes on the vigilante concept, and I think fans of crime comics are going to eat this up."

MURDERLAND unfolds on the "complicated" streets of Baltimore, Maryland. The Arabber is a reformed killer bent on bringing peace to his hometown. Method is his lover and partner in crime, but she may not be long for The Arabber's crusade.

MURDERLAND #1, a 32-page full-color comic book for $2.99, will be in stores August 4, 2010.


Image Comics is a comic book and graphic novel publisher founded in 1992 by a collective of best-selling artists. Image has since gone on to become one of the largest comics publishers in the United States. Image currently has five partners: Robert Kirkman, Erik Larsen, Todd McFarlane, Marc Silvestri and Jim Valentino. It consists of four major houses: Todd McFarlane Productions, Top Cow Productions, Shadowline and Image Central. Image publishes comics and graphic novels in nearly every genre, sub-genre, and style imaginable. It offers science fiction, romance, horror, crime fiction, historical fiction, humor and more by the finest artists and writers working in the medium today. For more information, visit www.imagecomics.com.

Rin-ne's New Boy Exorcist

I read RIN-NE, Vol. 3

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which just released the latest version of its iPhone app).

IDW from Diamond Distributors for May 19 2010

IDW PUBLISHING
MAR101062 BEYOND THE WALL TP $17.99

MAR101007 CLASSIC GI JOE TP VOL 08 $24.99

MAR101015 GHOUL HC $14.99

MAR101001 GI JOE #18 $3.99

MAR100986 JAMES PATTERSONS WITCH & WIZARD #1 BATTLE SHADOWLAND $3.99

MAR101032 KILL SHAKESPEARE #2 $3.99

FEB100938 LAST UNICORN #1 SGN ED $9.99

MAR101027 STAR TREK MOTION PICTURE TRILOGY TP $24.99

MAR101045 TANK GIRL ROYAL ESCAPE #3 (OF 4) $3.99

MAR100993 TRANSFORMERS LAST STAND O/T WRECKERS #5 $3.99