FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS ANNOUNCES PUBLISHING AGREEMENT WITH COMICS HISTORIAN RICK MARSCHALL
The Launch of the “Marschall Books” Imprint
Fantagraphics Books and noted historian and critic Rick Marschall have announced the establishment of a new line of books, Marschall Books, an imprint devoted to comics, cartoons, and graphic humor.
“Marschall Books will offer a unique and wide range of comics and cartooning projects,” said Fantagraphics Books publisher Gary Groth. “The breadth and depth of Rick’s historical vision is such that he will be editing anthologies of complete strips, ‘Best Of’ collections, critical appreciations, biographies, and some new multi-media projects.”
Rick Marschall is the author or editor of more than 62 books and hundreds of magazine articles, mostly in the area of popular culture and many on comics history. A former editorial cartoonist, he has served as comics editor at three newspaper syndicates. Marschall was also an editor at Marvel Comics (founder of Epic Magazine) and a writer for Disney comics. Recipient of many awards for his projects including the Eisner, Harvey, and Friend of Fandom awards in the US; the RTL award in France; the Max und Moritz Prize in Germany; and the Torre Giunigi and Yellow Kid awards in Italy, Marschall has been the American representative of the Lucca, ExpoCartoon (Rome) and Angouleme comics festivals, and has worked for several European graphic novel publishers, including as Vice President of Dargaud USA. He was consultant to the US Postal Service for the 20-stamp set of commemoratives marking the comic strip’s centennial and has taught various popular culture and comics classes at the School of Visual Arts, Rutgers University, the Philadelphia College of Art (now University of the Arts), and the Summer Institute for the Gifted at Bryn Mawr University.
“I am happy to be associated again with Fantagraphics Books,” Marschall said. “Together we made history about comics history with the magazine nemo: the classic comics library, which ran for 30 issues. Many other projects we did together – among them the original Complete E C Segar Popeye; Caniff’s Dickie Dare; Will Gould’s Red Barry; Winsor McCay’s Daydreams and Nightmares – pioneered the reprints-and-anthology genre.” Marschall was also the editor of packager of The Complete Color Little Nemo in Slumberland (which ultimately was packaged for 11 publishers around the world, including Fantagraphics Books), The Komplete Kolor Krazy Kat, and color reprints of Polly and Her Pals and Terry and the Pirates.
Said Mr Groth: “Our association with Rick began in 1981 when he began editing the now legendary and ground-breaking magazine nemo, the most breathtaking magazine about newspaper strips and cartoon illustrations ever published, and our first Popeye series shortly thereafter. We’re thrilled that he’ll be editing books on a regular basis.”
The Marschall Books imprint will draw upon the extensive and famed collection of Rick Marschall, arguably the nation’s largest private collection of comics and cartoon archives. It is a collection comprised of thousands of original drawings; complete runs of newspaper comics beginning in 1893; complete runs of the major cartoon and humor magazines from American and Europe; comic books and reprint comics, graphic novels, political cartoons and protest graphics, specialty collections including posters, ads, toys and games, post cards and greeting cards, pinbacks; cartoonist letters and sketches; biographies and anthologies.
“The major commitment to a publishing program that will re-introduce much of this material to the public will commence in the Fall of 2010 and continue in every Fantagraphics Books publishing season, as many as 4-5 projects a year,” said Groth. “Marschall Books will vary in size and format, always appropriate to the subject matter, and with an uncompromising dedication to quality.”
In addition to the first two releases described below, and the subsequent releases in production for the next two years, Marschall Books also plans several series: Cartoon Masters, monographs on major artists; and Cartoon Masterworks, anthologies based on themes, eras, and topics. Also projected is a definitive three-volume history by Rick Marschall, Comics: The American Art.
DRAWING POWER: A COMPENDIUM OF CARTOON ADVERTISING
Release Date: November 2010
While critics debate whether comics are high art, or is low art… the truth has been, is, and will be, that the comic strip was born as a commercial medium and was nurtured by competition, commerce, and advertising. Drawing Power will be the first book-length examination (and celebration) of the nexus of commerce and cartoons. It will focus on the commercial roots of strips; the cross-promotions of artists, their characters, and retail products; and of the superb artwork that cartoonists invested in their lucrative freelance work in advertising. The book will examine cartoonists as celebrities, and their advertising efforts from the first heartbeat of the comic strip as an art form. Here are surprising and familiar examples of products and memorable ad campaigns… histories of the major ad agencies... catch-words… popular examples. Cartoon ads through the years will include Yellow Kid advertising; Buster Brown Shoe campaigns; Dr Seuss’ “Flit” cartoons; WWII ads; Pepsi and Pete by Rube Goldberg; Peanuts shilling Falcons and BC shilling Mountain Dew; Duke Handy selling cigarettes; Dagwood selling atomic energy; and virtually every superhero trafficking in the mortal realm to shill every product imaginable. A special section will showcase ads that featured cartoonists themselves as hucksters; can you believe Walt (Pogo) Kelly selling cement? Includes bibliography and publication-sources. By Rick Marschall with Warren Bernard.
MR. TWEE-DEEDLE: RAGGEDY ANN'S SPRIGHTLY COUSIN: The Forgotten Fantasy Masterpiece of Johnny Gruelle
Release Date: February 2011
Before he created Raggedy Ann, the great Johnny Gruelle drew Mr Twee Deedle, an astonishing graphic and fantasy Sunday page. He secured the job with the New York Herald by winning an open competition for a strip to succeed Little Nemo in Slumberland! Twee Deedle was a worthy successor to McCay’s masterpiece. This Sunday color page (1911-1914) by Johnny Gruelle is unjustly forgotten by history: charming fantasy; a wonderful child’s world (the title character was a sprite who appeared to the strip’s two human children, Dickie and Dolly); moral lessons, light whimsy, bizarre surrealism; stunning artwork and composition; and impressive color work that made every full Twee Deedle page look like a painting. This oversize collection will reprint the best of Gruelle’s pages; information and artwork from the competition that won his place as Little Nemo’s successor; background information on Johnny Gruelle, including his earlier work (when he worked at George Herriman’s side) and later work (… a doll named Raggedy Ann); and much more. // John Barton Gruelle (1880-1938) drew for newspapers in Indianapolis and Cleveland before joining the pre-print syndicate World Color Printing Co of St Louis. He won a nationwide talent contest to draw a Sunday page for the New York Herald, intended to succeed Little Nemo in its pages. Mr Twee Deedle ran between 1911 and 1914 and generated two color reprint books. Subsequent to this strip, Gruelle created Raggedy Ann, whose tales and fellow characters became staples of American children’s literature. Gruelle wrote and drew many other books; full-page cartoons for Life and Judge (subjects of a future Marschall Books anthology); and another Sunday page, Brutus, for newspapers. The book will feature an introduction by the cartoonist Tony Millionaire (Maakies).
Future Marschall books will include:
Krazy Kat's Birthday Party -- A Celebration In Song and Dance: Release Date: T.B.A.
The music and movement of Krazy Kat are as characteristic as the brick and changing landscapes, and this important book will complete the circle for Kat fanciers. This book-and-disk set will deal with the multi-media lives of the kat who walks, and dances, among us. An unprecedented treatment of the legendary Krazy Kat jazz ballet and rare animated cartoons.
Of Extraordinary Interest: Sherlock Holmes' Vital Evidence: Release Date: T.B.A.
Fans of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s immortal creations will rejoice at this overflowing art book featuring faithful reproductions of original book illustrations, unpublished artwork from Doyle’s era, theatrical and movie posters, and complete runs of Sherlock Holmes comic strip and comic book versions, and parodies.
Mail Order Geniuses: The Cartoon Correspondence Schools: Release Date: T.B.A.
This glorious history-and-compilation is long overdue – filling a hole in the tracking America’s cartoon and comics heritage. Mail-Order Geniuses is a survey of the legendary correspondence courses of the Landon School, the Federal School, W L Evans, ZIM, Clare Briggs, Billy DeBeck, Russell Patterson, Jefferson Machamer, Charles Kuhn, Bill Nolan, Joe Musial, Famous Artists, etc.
Rose O’Neill – The Fairy-Tale Bohemian: The Life and Work of a Pioneering Cartoonist: Release Date: T.B.A.
Rose O’Neill shattered glass ceilings her entire career. She was the first major female cartoonist, more than a century ago. She achieved her greatest fame as creator of the inimitable Kewpie dolls. This mature treatment of Rose O’Neill’s life and place in cultural history will be accompanied in this oversized color book with hundreds of her compelling wet-brush cartoons and full-color art, along with photos of Rose and her sculptures.
The Big Big Book of the Teenie Weenie World: An Anthology of William Donahey’s Fantasy Cartoon: Release Date: T.B.A.
The dozens of Teenie Weenies characters were stars of a little-mentioned but fondly recalled and long-running classic of newspaper cartoons and children’s books. William Donahey was a Chicago Tribune cartoonist who created the next generation of Brownies in 1914, and the diminutive cast sought adventures and withstood trials through glades and dells into 1970. This breathtaking collection features biography, photographs, the characters’ merchandising history – and, for the first time, a major portion of full-size reproductions of the Teenie Weenies’ adventures.
Other Marschall Books in planning stages include a book-and-disk series that traces the history of animated cartoons through the various studios; Santa Claus in Cartoons; Uncle Sam in Cartoons; an annotated anthology of Pulitzer Prize winning cartoons; an anthology of artwork and prose from Dutch Treat Club annuals; an anthology of radical cartoons; annotated cartoon histories of World Wars I and II; a treasury of comic pages from Boy’s Life; biographies and anthologies of Heinrich Kley, F Opper, A B Frost, Gluyas Williams, Ralph Barton, Bill Holman, Dr Seuss, and Virgil (VIP) Partch.
It should be noted that many of the projects in the Marschall Books line are being produced with the cooperation of cartoonists and artists’ estates, as well as museums and institutions. Says Marschall, “My own archives and image bank notwithstanding, I want to assure readers of my commitment to secure the best visual material, and to uncover the fullest historical accounts I can. A lifetime of research and associations will enable Marschall Books to produce definitive treatments of every artist and title we will publish.”
Many Marschall Books releases will be supported by, or inspire, productions of Rosebud Archives, which Marschall has established with Jon Barli, and whose products will be available through Fantagraphics Books. These formats include prints, portfolios, posters, limited-edition art, framed and frame-ready works, stationery, and card sets. The mission and product offerings of Rosebud Archives can be found at: http://www.rosebudarchives.com/wp/
Fantagraphics Books ( www.fantagraphics.com ) has been the world’s leading publisher of comics and graphic novels since 1976.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
New Stephen King Book Due from Cemetery Dance
Cemetery Dance Publications Announces Blockade Billy by Stephen King Surprise New Book Coming Next Month
Cemetery Dance Publications, the world's leading independent publisher of collectible horror and suspense books, has just announced Blockade Billy by Stephen King, an original, never-before-published novella that only the King of Horror could have dreamed up. The Cemetery Dance exclusive hardcover will ship mid-April.
"I love old-school baseball," Stephen King said, "and I also love the way people who've spent a lifetime in the game talk about the game. I tried to combine those things in a story of suspense. People have asked me for years when I was going to write a baseball story. Ask no more; this is it."
Cemetery Dance and Stephen King kept Blockade Billy under tight wraps so it could be a surprise publication for the beginning of the baseball season. Even diehard baseball fans don't know the true story of William Blakely, but in just a few weeks readers will be holding this dark tale in their own two hands.
"As a lifelong baseball fan -- and long suffering Orioles' fan -- I can't think of a better way to open the 2010 season than publishing Blockade Billy," said Cemetery Dance Publisher Richard Chizmar. "Stephen King and I have corresponded about baseball and books for almost 20 years now... So to combine the two is a dream come true for me."
Chuck Verrill, King's agent, said: "Any time a Red Sox fan, an Orioles fan, and a Yankees fan can cooperate on something, the result is bound to be fantastic."
For a very limited time only, Cemetery Dance Publications will include an authentic William "Blockade Billy" Blakely baseball card with every copy of the trade hardcover.
Please visit http://www.BlockadeBilly.com or http://www.CemeteryDance.com for more information.
Cemetery Dance Publications is widely-considered the world's leading specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense. Now celebrating over twenty years in business, Cemetery Dance magazine has won every major genre award and the Cemetery Dance Publications hardcover imprint has published over 200 affordable and collectible Limited Edition hardcover books from the genre's most acclaimed authors. These authors include Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Ray Bradbury, William Peter Blatty, Peter Straub, Graham Masterton, Richard Laymon, Michael Slade, Douglas Clegg, Jack Ketchum, William F. Nolan, Joe R. Lansdale, and hundreds of others, along with the best new writers in the genre.
Cemetery Dance Publications, the world's leading independent publisher of collectible horror and suspense books, has just announced Blockade Billy by Stephen King, an original, never-before-published novella that only the King of Horror could have dreamed up. The Cemetery Dance exclusive hardcover will ship mid-April.
"I love old-school baseball," Stephen King said, "and I also love the way people who've spent a lifetime in the game talk about the game. I tried to combine those things in a story of suspense. People have asked me for years when I was going to write a baseball story. Ask no more; this is it."
Cemetery Dance and Stephen King kept Blockade Billy under tight wraps so it could be a surprise publication for the beginning of the baseball season. Even diehard baseball fans don't know the true story of William Blakely, but in just a few weeks readers will be holding this dark tale in their own two hands.
"As a lifelong baseball fan -- and long suffering Orioles' fan -- I can't think of a better way to open the 2010 season than publishing Blockade Billy," said Cemetery Dance Publisher Richard Chizmar. "Stephen King and I have corresponded about baseball and books for almost 20 years now... So to combine the two is a dream come true for me."
Chuck Verrill, King's agent, said: "Any time a Red Sox fan, an Orioles fan, and a Yankees fan can cooperate on something, the result is bound to be fantastic."
For a very limited time only, Cemetery Dance Publications will include an authentic William "Blockade Billy" Blakely baseball card with every copy of the trade hardcover.
Please visit http://www.BlockadeBilly.com or http://www.CemeteryDance.com for more information.
Cemetery Dance Publications is widely-considered the world's leading specialty press publisher of horror and dark suspense. Now celebrating over twenty years in business, Cemetery Dance magazine has won every major genre award and the Cemetery Dance Publications hardcover imprint has published over 200 affordable and collectible Limited Edition hardcover books from the genre's most acclaimed authors. These authors include Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Ray Bradbury, William Peter Blatty, Peter Straub, Graham Masterton, Richard Laymon, Michael Slade, Douglas Clegg, Jack Ketchum, William F. Nolan, Joe R. Lansdale, and hundreds of others, along with the best new writers in the genre.
Kim Deitch in Baltimore
CARTOONIST KIM DEITCH TO SPEAK AT JOHNS HOPKINS APRIL 26
The Homewood Art Workshops wraps up its 35th anniversary celebration with a slide talk by legendary cartoonist Kim Deitch on Monday, April 26. Deitch’s talk, “The Search for Smilin’ Ed and Other Tales,” will begin at 5:30 p.m. in Room 101 of the F. Ross Jones Building, Mattin Center, on the Homewood campus at 3400 N. Charles St. in Baltimore.
Along with Robert Crumb, Bill Griffith and Art Spiegelman, Deitch transformed the art of cartooning in the psychedelic late 1960s. Combining a love of early 20th century comic strips and animation with the media-savvy satire of mid-century MAD Magazine, these artists gave a raucously subversive jolt to a nearly moribund medium.
Deitch, 65, began doing comic strips for the New York underground newspaper, the East Village Other, in 1967. Since then, his work has appeared in dozens of publications, including RAW, Pictopia, Details, Nickelodeon Magazine, and Little Lit. Among his groundbreaking comic books and graphic novels are Hollywoodland, The Mishkin Files, A Shroud for Waldo, The Boulevard of Broken Dreams and Alias the Cat! His latest book, The Search for Smilin’ Ed, will be published by Fantagraphics in June. Deitch will sign advance copies of Smilin’ Ed at the Johns Hopkins Barnes & Noble, 3330 St. Paul Street, on Sunday, April 25, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Deitch has been recognized with the comics industry’s highest honors, including an Eisner Award, an Inkpot Award and a retrospective exhibition at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in 2008. He lives in New York City with his wife, Pam.
“The Search for Smilin’ Ed and Other Tales” is co-sponsored by Homewood Art Workshops and Homewood Arts Programs. Visitor parking on campus is available in the South Garage, 3101 Wyman Park Drive, Baltimore, Md. 21211. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, call 410-516-6705.
The Homewood Art Workshops wraps up its 35th anniversary celebration with a slide talk by legendary cartoonist Kim Deitch on Monday, April 26. Deitch’s talk, “The Search for Smilin’ Ed and Other Tales,” will begin at 5:30 p.m. in Room 101 of the F. Ross Jones Building, Mattin Center, on the Homewood campus at 3400 N. Charles St. in Baltimore.
Along with Robert Crumb, Bill Griffith and Art Spiegelman, Deitch transformed the art of cartooning in the psychedelic late 1960s. Combining a love of early 20th century comic strips and animation with the media-savvy satire of mid-century MAD Magazine, these artists gave a raucously subversive jolt to a nearly moribund medium.
Deitch, 65, began doing comic strips for the New York underground newspaper, the East Village Other, in 1967. Since then, his work has appeared in dozens of publications, including RAW, Pictopia, Details, Nickelodeon Magazine, and Little Lit. Among his groundbreaking comic books and graphic novels are Hollywoodland, The Mishkin Files, A Shroud for Waldo, The Boulevard of Broken Dreams and Alias the Cat! His latest book, The Search for Smilin’ Ed, will be published by Fantagraphics in June. Deitch will sign advance copies of Smilin’ Ed at the Johns Hopkins Barnes & Noble, 3330 St. Paul Street, on Sunday, April 25, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Deitch has been recognized with the comics industry’s highest honors, including an Eisner Award, an Inkpot Award and a retrospective exhibition at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art in 2008. He lives in New York City with his wife, Pam.
“The Search for Smilin’ Ed and Other Tales” is co-sponsored by Homewood Art Workshops and Homewood Arts Programs. Visitor parking on campus is available in the South Garage, 3101 Wyman Park Drive, Baltimore, Md. 21211. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, call 410-516-6705.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
I Reads You Review: Ultimate X #1
ULTIMATE X #1
MARVEL COMICS
MARVEL COMICS
WRITER: Jeph Loeb
PENCILS: Arthur Adams
INKS: Aspen MLT’s Mark Roslan
COLORS: Aspen MLT’s Peter Steigerwald
LETTERS: Richard Starkings & Comicraft’s Albert Deschesne
Last year Marvel Comics brought an end to its Ultimate Comics line with a big event called Ultimatum. Never one to let its suckers… I mean customers keep a few extra bucks in their wallets, Marvel has relaunched the line and Ultimate X-Men is now Ultimate X.
Ultimate X #1 introduces readers to shirtless Jimmy Hudson, the adopted son of trailer park denizens, James and Heather Hudson. In the regular Marvel Universe, the Hudson’s were part of Alpha Flight. Here, James is a redneck sheriff and Heather is a home-bound harpy. Their little Jimmy is actually the spawn of Wolverine and some unnamed female. It’s a good thing that Bill Jemas and his regime of “realistic” comic book stories no longer reigns at Marvel or Jemas would make Jimmy’s mother an actual Wolverine.
The rest of the story (Chapter One: “His Father’s Son”) involves Kitty Pryde showing up to tell Jimmy all the secrets he should know. God forbid that he could learn that on his own and give this story a little more drama and action.
When I first heard of this comic, I was excited because I am a long time fan of artist Art Adams. I figured that it would be hit or miss with Jeph Loeb, and it is all miss. I’ve often wondered why Loeb is so acclaimed and popular. He has written some good comics, but most of his work is so stunningly mediocre. I figure that Loeb gets so many writing assignments because (1) people like him and (2) he is good at kissing ass, brown-nosing, and/or bee-jaying. The script for Ultimate X #1 is so dull that it is practically a strong dose of sleeping pills. Obviously, it is not good, but it isn’t so much bad as it is flat. In fact, even when Loeb attempts to create intrigue, it comes out as the opposite of intrigue.
As for Adams, he’s good enough to keep me coming back. I think Adams best days are behind him, having peaked in the 1990s around the time of his work on Monkeyman and O’Brien and his work with Wildstorm. Peter Steigerwald’s colors are professional, if not inspired. The coloring on Jimmy’s jeans, however, really stands out for some reason. Overall, I don’t see myself paying $3.99 per issue for Ultimate X, unless there is improvement, but I’ll continue to read it even if I have to shoplift a copy or download a pirated copy.
C
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Bluewater Productions Announces July 2010 Titles
Bluewater Comics for July 2010
Vincent Price Presents #20
Writer: Brent Schoonover
Pencils: Brent Schoonover
Cover Artist(s): Brent Schoonover
Popular radio show couple BENNY and BETTY have hit a snag in their off-air relationship. Low ratings and a new romantic interest threaten to put BENNY out of a job for good. With the stress building, BENNY'S inner turmoil finally surfaces in a horrific fashion. Will this be enough to silence the voices in BENNY'S head for good?
Writer: Brent Schoonover
Pencils: Brent Schoonover
Cover Artist(s): Brent Schoonover
Popular radio show couple BENNY and BETTY have hit a snag in their off-air relationship. Low ratings and a new romantic interest threaten to put BENNY out of a job for good. With the stress building, BENNY'S inner turmoil finally surfaces in a horrific fashion. Will this be enough to silence the voices in BENNY'S head for good?
Gearz
Writer: Dan Rafter
Pencils: Thiago Silva
Cover Artist(s): cover: Rantz
From the creator of the 10th Muse comes the newest female group of unlikey heroes. Lonely high-schooler Karen Chugg just wanted a dog. Instead, she got three of the most powerful, deadliest and hippest robot bodyguards to hit the sleepy town of Westville.The good news? Karen's three robots -quickly become her best friends. The bad news? Someone very high up, Oval Office high up, wants those robots back. And he won't stop at anything. Can an ordinary, if slightly unpopular, teen survive killer robots, super-powered school custodians, snotty classmates, chemically boosted monsters and hooded assassins while staying on track to become class valedictorian? Karen Miller's about to find out.
10th Muse: Gallery
Writer: Marv Wolfman
Pencils: Roger Cruz, Randy Green, Andy Park
Cover Artist(s): Ken Lashley with JD Smith
10 years ago this book from IMAGE COMICS blasted onto the scene as the 6th highest selling comic book. Covers by famed comic book artists like Chris Bachelo (X-Men) , Andy Park (Tomb Raider), Randy Green (Witchblade), Roger Cruz (Spiderman) were published. Now in one place you will find the best of the best of 10 years of covers. Greek mythology has documented the nine Muses, the inspirational daughters of the almighty Zeus. But history forgot one--the 10th Muse. Come celebrate 10 years with a cover by Ken Lashley and JD Smith.
Female Force Anne Rice
Writer: Scott Davis
Pencils: Various
Cover Artist(s): cover: 2 covers Juan Mar and Vincent Deporter
Anne Rice's uniquely gothic, sensuous, and existential approach redefined the modern vampire mythology. Shaped by personal tragedies, critical successes and failures, and a fervent rediscovery of her Catholic roots, Rice has penned over 27 novels from the supernatural to historical tomes, erotica and religious themes. But Anne Rice's life is just as interesting as the tales she spins.
The Claw and the Fang #3
Author(s): Mike Kutcher
Artist(s) Matias Basla
Cover Artist(s): 2 covers - all equal: A: Matias Basla B. Steven Babb
Noc rescues Justin from the clutches of the Four and the eternal adventure is realized when Justin begins to comprehend the power given to him by the Firewoman. Eremon, the warrior king that once was, is once again and must now save both Earth and the Spirit World from the evil demon Noro.
Political Power: Presidents
Writer: Various
Pencils: Various
Cover Artist(s): cover: Azim
A spin-off series from the popular FEMALE FORCE line comes Political Power. Political Power, a new title that focuses on past and present American politicians. This new graphic novel features the Presidents of the United State, Backark Obama, Bill Clinton, George Bush and Ronald Reagan.
Logan's Run #6
Author(s): Paul Salamoff
Artist(s) Daniel Gete
Cover Artist(s): Daniel Gete
Logan's life has led him to this moment. A decision that goes against everything he was born and bred to be. But can a man conditioned to kill to protect the system, kill to destroy it? As Logan's run comes to an explosive end who will be left standing on Lastday?
Political Power: Arnold Swarchenegger
Author(s): Justin Peniston
Artist(s) Matt Filer
Cover Artist(s): Deborah Max
From bodybuilder to movie icon to Governor of California, the man formerly known as the Conan the Barbarian and the Terminator is truly living the American Dream. From his humble beginnings in Austria to having realistic goals of being the first immigrant in the White House, Schwarzenegger has proven the power of popularity. Experience his climb to the top in this comic book biography.
Violet Rose: Graphic Novel
Writer: Emma Davis & CW Cooke
Pencils: Brian Hess & Erik Thompson
Cover Artist(s): cover: Erik Thompson
Violet Rose is a self-proclaimed sixth grader super-sleuth, a foster child who discovers that many of the people in her normal suburban town are actually supernatural beings hiding in seemingly ordinary lives. With best friends, Lindsey and Ciara, a spirit from a Renoir painting, Violet is a little detective that never gives up. Solving cases after her homework is done while learning about the magical gift her grandfather gave her before he passed.
Rock 'N' Roll Comics: Joan Jett
Writer: Spike Steffenhagen, Jay Allen Sanford
Pencils: Joe Paradise, Larry Nadolsky
Cover Artist(s): Michal Szyksznian
"Rock 'N' Roll Comics, Joan Jett” She is best known for her work with Joan Jett & the Blackhearts including their hit cover "I Love Rock N' Roll". This one shot tells about her life from when she was in the “Runaways” to when she broke off to her iconic solo career.
Roger Corman Presents: Battle Amongst The Stars #4
Writer: Martin Fisher
Pencils: Ben Hansen
Cover Artist(s): Ben Hansen
“The battle concludes! The Malmori press their assault and get closer to their target, the Oztem replication technology. Zed and the resistance forces face their greatest choices. Are they willing to lay down their lives to stop Remlar and his forces? Who will survive at the end to tell the tale?”
Legend of Isis/ Black Scorpion - One shot
Writer: Aaron Stueve
Pencils: Dahar L. Butler
Cover Artist(s): Azim & Dahar L. Butler
In a stand-alone issue, Isis runs away from her problems in L.A. to the opposite side of the country where she meets up with Roger Cormen's Black Scorpion! While in Black Scorpion's stomping ground of Angel City, Isis comes across a foe from her past and now that she is developing new god-like powers, she deals with him with more finality than ever before! Leading up to an explosive story-arc, this issue is a CAN'T MISS!!
Friday, March 26, 2010
I Reads You Review: HAPPY CAFÉ, VOL. 1
Creators: Kou Matsuzuki with Lianne Sentar (English adaptation) and Lori Riser (translation)
Publishing Information: TOKYOPOP, B&W, paperback, 192 pages, $10.99 (US), $13.99 CAN
Ordering Numbers: ISBN: 978-1-4278-1730-3 (ISBN-13)
Happy Café stars 16-year-old Uru Takamura, a clumsy girl who chose to live on her own because she thought that she was in the way of her mother and 29-year-old stepfather. Not only is she clumsy, she’s also prone to misunderstanding.
In Happy Café, Vol. 1, Uru talks her way into a job as a waitress at Café Bonheur, located in Happiness Town. Her colleagues are Ichiro Nishikawa, an unsociable waiter who needs a snack shoved into his mouth every time he falls asleep, and Shino, the equally unsociable manager. Between dishing out sweets to customers and annoying each other, they just may find happiness and maybe… love.
With the pretty art one would expect of a shojo manga (comics for teen girls), Happy Café is a standard workplace romantic comedy. It even has a hook similar to the popular and acclaimed shojo manga, Love*Com, a relationship between a tall person and a short person. What makes this work? I have a hard time putting my finger on why I like this. Happy Café comes across as one of those “sparkling romances,” and maybe that is why it is a pleasant read. It is a familiar story that entertains, and like its title suggests, Happy Café is a place readers can go to feel happy.
B+
Buy Happy Cafe Volume 1
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)