Picturesque

I've been incommunicado for a few days, holidaying with the extended family.The beach at Ards Forest park, near Cresslough. Pretty, innit?

Fancy a Sherman?

Continuing in a TANK GIRL vein, here's a new interview with Alan C Martin that's just popped up at Newsarama, complete with a few preview pages.

Hi, I'm Marty Dibergi...

...and if you want to see some of that new Spinal Tap footage, I recommend you hot foot it over to the Live Earth website now.

I still heart Paul Pope

Sometimes I daydream about Joe 90's specs. Maybe I'm on the toilet, and I think, hey, if I had Joe 90's specs, whose brainwaves would I want to nick, and why? I might come back to this motif again in further posts, but tonight the answer is Paul Pope.

Rockets, rayguns, etc.

If you liked those STAR-LORD covers by Nic Klein, howzabout this, then: his webshite.

Civil War is hell on the knees

Enjoyed this little webcomic by Eric Canete over at his blog. Embiggen and enjoy.

numberwang

Came across this this morning and thought it was noteworthy: Marvel editor Tom Brevoort posts Marvel's direct sales figures from April 1984 at his blog. I really don't know exactly what it says about the difference between the current market, and the one back then, but some similarities and differences are both quite glaring. Then, the top books like SECRET WARS and UNCANNY X-MEN were selling pretty much the same as modern counterparts like CIVIL WAR or NEW AVENGERS do now, only then there would have been sale or return figures on top of direct sales as a sizeable bonus, maybe three or four times as much I'd guess, though Brevoort claims these precise numbers are lost in time.

The real difference is in the mid and low-ranking books. Books near the bottom of the charts would these days be regarded as minor hits (eg THE NEW DEFENDERS #134, a truly abysmal comic, ranked at 21st of the 39 comics Marvel published that month, sold 62,700 copies; POWER MAN & IRON FIST #108, at 35 of 39 titles, was still selling 36, 100 copies). Interestingly, Marvel's creator owned comics from then, such as Epic's DREADSTAR (by Jim Starlin) and COYOTE (by Steve Englehart) way outsold Marvel's current creator owned books from their Icon imprint. Hell, Carl Potts' ALIEN LEGION was Marvel's 11th selling book, at 85,950. Even a master hyper like Brian Bendis can't get POWERS up to that level (though I'd put money on Mark Millar and John Romita Jr's KICK-ASS eventually hitting or beating those numbers).

That list has science fiction, fantasy, and even a historical title (AMAZING HIGH ADVENTURE #1, in with a bullet at 25th, selling 52,950), all doing great numbers. Certainly makes you think that Marvel's current line up could do with being more diverse, eh?

Image solicitations for the Twelfth of July, 2007.

Woah, a SILVER STAR collection, eh? I've got the first couple of issues in the attic, published by Pacific a long time ago in a galaxy far, far, away. I may well be tempted to lay out for this.

DUST sounds like a rather ridiculous high concept piece born to be optioned off to the games industry. But the Enki Bilalesque art shore looks purdy.

I get everything Kyle Baker does. Even this.

I'll get this - I've liked most things Doug TenNapel has done since escaping the games industry, especially CREATURE TECH. Of course, that groovy faux-EC cover design doesn't hurt its chances, either.

Oh yeah, plus the usual stuff - MADMAN ATOMIC COMICS, ELEPHANTMEN (no new GODLAND this month), and a couple of titles I'm trade-waiting for (the remastered STRANGE EMBRACE, Simon Spurrier/Frazer Irving's GUTSVILLE).

drink Spunk Beer!

Ashley Wood has been going on a posting Tank Girl images kick over at his blog these last couple of days, so I'm going to be a pal and show you them, too. Enjoy.
The cover to #1. Hmm, fanzine-y.

Woman, Roo and killing machine in perfect harmony.


Screen grab my arse. Looking feckin' good gents.

Marvel solicitations were out this morning...

...anything to report?

Well, I've already written about my nostalgic love for the character Star-Lord, so here's looking forward to #1 of his new series, by writer Keef Giffen and artist Timothy Green, whose work piqued my interest when I saw a fellow blogger condemning the corporate ethos behind RUSH CITY, causing me to pipe up that at least the art samples he was using to illustrate his points were pretty good. Since then, I've seen Green illustrate a Leah Moore/John Reppion story in a Dark Horse anthology, and yeah, his work has got bags of character - bound for bigger things, I'd wager. Here's the rather kick-arse cover to the clunkily-titled ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST - STAR-LORD #1 by Nic Klein.
In the same multi-part "event" (God, I'm sick of typing that word) comes ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST - WRAITH #1. Not going to buy this 'un, but hey! Clint Langley's done the cover. 2000AD in the hiz-ouse!Nice. Other than these? Might pick up the new THOR #1, 'cus I'm a sucker for that particular old Kirby Koncept, and a longtime admirer of garlic-guzzling Olivier Coipel. And I'll buy anything with Squirrel Girl in it, so I'll pick up that Dan Slott GLI summer special thingy. Oh, and CRIMINAL #8, of course. Here's the magnificent, moody cover, starring Gnarly, the second greatest bartender in the history of fiction. And Holden Carver, who seems to have been transferred over from SLEEPER. Fair enough.

Duncan Disorderly

Okay, it's not long now to HELLBOY: DARKNESS CALLS drops (as all us cool kids say), and leggy lovely Duncan Fegredo, (39, from Leicester), would like to alert you all to a couple of links that may well be of interest. Here's the rather juicy story behind the lengthy gestation of this series, and here are some bloomin' exquisite preview pages. I love Mike Mignola and all, but this is starting to feel much like Halle Berry ringing up and saying she can't make it tonight so she's sending Scarlett Johannson 'round instead.

DC solicitations out again

Not much to report, other than......Ryan Sook gives good ordnance, tattooed bikers (in a tie-in comic to a TV show I don't watch, but Jeff does - SUPERNATURAL).

Mike Carey and Jock's FAKER finally ready to land.
And who exactly buys this kind of crap? "Hi, I'm Randy and I masturbate over action figures".

Cracking new guitar blog, Gromit.

The Ig Blog. That is all.

Brendan McCarthy update, slight return

An e-mail conversation with Brendan McCarthy is prone to heading into rather unexpected territories, as you may expect from the man's work. But when he drops some mini-bombshells and asks me to "spread it about", I'll happily oblige.

"I'm putting together a new story about two Bunteresque drunken Invisible Schoolboys and their pissed adventures in Larvador, the hidden world inside the school's Tuck Shop.

I recently came across an old script I commissioned Grant Morrison to write, about 20 years ago, based on an unused character of mine called ULTRASIR. It's a kind of cross between the films "IF" and "The Leather Boys" and "The Invisible Man"... It's like Harry Potter and Lord Snooty on magic mushrooms.

There's a whole new 'McCarthy universe' brewing, I fear...

Spread it about! It's, like, TOTALLY RUPERT!"

bunch of cults

I've just received a couple of e-mails from the yo-yos behind that whole "cosmic ordering" bollocks, who presumably thought I was simpatico after seeing this entry here. So, no, I won't be linking back to you. Unless you send me a Gretsch custom shop Brian Setzer G6120SSC tribute guitar.

'bout time for a Brendan McCarthy update

Fans of Brendan McCarthy may well want to check this book out - THE ART OF REBOOT from Arcana Studios. McCarthy was the production designer on this fondly-remembered trailblazing series, and the book contains a fair chunk of his work.

And while I'm on this theme, here's a rejected page from last year's SOLO #12. It's f#cking brilliant.

Take a look at the lawman

My one problem with the second series of LIFE ON MARS was that it didn't exactly build to a climax. It was lots of sarky fun back in the days of THE SWEENEY, then bam! Back to the metaphysicals for the last episode. That complaint out of the way, I loved the last episode, and the ending was completely satisfactory to me. And great use of Tom Wait's Hope I Don't Fall In Love With You, which features the best poetic use of my drug of choice, stout, in rock.

Frankly, Mister Shankly

A new Frank Quitely interview up at Newsarama. It's short, but any insight into the big brain of Vincent Deighan should be gratefully received.

Lines And Colours

I love DRAWN!, and I'll always check in there every few days to see if there's any engaging new artists worth seeing. But the other day I came across this blog covering much the same ground, and it's pretty spiffy, too.

Keith Giffen's THINGS THAT ARE OVERRATED/THINGS THAT ARE UNDERRATED

Over here. More career suicide by comic's greatest exponent of biting the hand that feeds.

Give my regards to Sgt. Fury

Fancy seeing an eleven page preview of the second issue of Dark Horse's surprise mega-hit BUFFTY THE DRAGON SLAYER SEASON EIGHT? Make with the clicky. Main problem? These pages are mainly in the form of double page spreads, and you can only see them one page at a time. D'Oh!

Drinking beer makes you a better guitar player

And here's the proof. Kinda.

that'll be the DARK HORSE solicitations out again, then

Another amazing HELLBOY cover, as usual. Frank Miller and Diamond Dave Gibbons finish the Martha Washington saga. The title rather gives the game away, though, dunnit?

Two great STAR WARS pieces to finish. The first by is-he-isn't-he-Irish man of mystery Killian Plunkett, the second by the slowest man in cartooning, Travis Charest. God, I'm a geek.

Like she owed me money.

Thanks largely to Film Ick's coverage of this story, I'm starting to really look forward to GRINDHOUSE.

non-librarians look away now.

Apparently, the dude who wrote MADAGASCAR and CHICKEN RUN, Mark Burton, is writing the script for an animated movie adaptation of REX LIBRIS, Slave Labour Graphics' kick-arse, evil-fighting, librarian. Jolly good. Nothing to see here. Carry on.





They all gone yet? Good. Sapere Aude, brothers and sisters!

Kyle Baker's blog

Oooh, Kyle Baker has a blog! I'm a little embarrassed I never noticed before.

"Perspective? Too much f#cking perspective!"

Stuart Immonen will always be in my good books because he's a smart, articulate, cookie (but if I'm honest, mainly because he drew NEXTWAVE).
Here, he expounds expertly on how computers have changed the working methods of his chosen medium. Well worth reading.

Cosmic ordering

Dear Universe, please send me one of these. I promise only to use it for good.

a little ADAM WARREN in the afternoon

Like Paul Pope, Adam Warren is one of that rare breed of American creator who has taken the influence of Japanese manga and assimilated it at a deeper level than just the odd artistic tic. Here's the cover to the second book of his "sexy superhero comedy" EMPOWERED that has just seen its first "issue" (seems like the wrong word for such a chunky little package) published by Dark Horse. Everyone should check out his deviantART page regularly for just this type of pervy hidden gem.

Pol Pot

A couple of days ago, Paul Pope posted the bullet sticker design for the outer cellophane wrap of his PULPHOPE artbook at his blog. Oooh, I squealed girlishly, this must mean it'll be hitting the shops soon!

Manic depression is a frustrating mess

I hate April Fool's Day. Worra load of aul' shite. Thank God it's on a Sunday this year - that should stop a lot of the usual attempts to catch out vulnerable, date insensitive, people, such as those too poor to afford a calendar. That said, some people always go all-out for it, such as Chris Sims, who's turned his usually respectable blog for the day into fatasgardian.com, the web's no.1 Volstagg fansite. Do check it out before it disappears into the ether.