Archive for the 'Comics' Category


Dog House

 

Ever wonder what your dog does when you are not home? Dog House is a unique little comic strip about a dog called Monti who was not told by nature that he is not human. When left alone in his master’s house, Monti takes on a whole new life. He is friends with a talking picture of Vincent Van Gogh. Monti loves coffee and is an online addict and a thinker. Monti is short for Montague and he is half terrier and chihuahua. Join Monti and Vincent in the Dog House as we see what happens when Monti is home alone, with his friend Vincent. Coming to the Net on the first week of 2008.

Comic Belief: Dan Piraro

Dan Piraro is a man on a mission. His daily strip Bizarro has a wide following in 250 newspapers. He is a one man show beyond cartooning. Most cartoonists are introverted, but not Dan. He is full of life as featured in this mini documentary. Having the pleasure of meeting Dan a few months ago, Dan is wealth of quirky information and acts out his passion as an artist but also as an advocate of being a human being by shedding off animalistic misunderstandings we have for the animal kingdom. His Vegan beliefs transcend his daily life and once in a while this message finds a way into his strip Bizarro. Robert Garver had the brilliant idea of bringing Dan to film with a documentary of this genius artist. Robert will not be disappointed, and neither will his fans, Dan brings much to the table with a wealth of stories and a true passionate individual drawn into a new life since he met his new wife. This rebirth also changed his set of beliefs and his move to New York brought new life to the strip and we all benefit in the process.

“Wonton Soup”

“Wonton Soup”

Johnny Boyo could have had it all. Women. Money. Fame. As one of the premiere chefs in the galaxy, Johnny’s culinary skills could have made him a star. So with everything he ever dreamed of his for the taking, why would Johnny leave it all behind to become a space trucker? Not even Citrus Watts, the girl he left behind, knows for sure. With the sizzle of life in the kitchen behind him, things were going okay for Johnny. Now after years out of the catering scene, Johnny and his pal Deacon are about to find themselves in water hotter than anything they’ve ever seen before! Johnny will once again have to pick up the whisk and skillet, but will his eroded skills be enough to get them out of the craziest cook-off in the Universe? And what good is a spatula against space ninjas? Read more >>

Ray Harryhausen Comics

 
Bluewater Productions has expanded the RAY HARRYHAUSEN PRESENTS comic line with nine new titles for 2008.

In conjunction with the 50th anniversary of some of the Harryhausen classic films, Sony DVD is releasing IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA and EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS. Bluewater will release comics inspired by these classics as well. The Sony DVDs will include previews of the comics as part of the special features.

“There are some cool stories that we are working with. THE ELEMENTALS was a story that was not made into a film and we wanted to bring that cool story to life,” said Bluewater publisher Darren G. Davis. “Harryhausen’s world [includes] classic stories that we feel we can bring to a new generation.”

Bluewater will also be launching their first ongoing series based on WRATH OF THE TITANS. Davis says, “We wanted to test the waters before we jumped into ongoing series and 2008 is the time to start. We will also be looking at developing an ongoing JASON & THE ARGONAUTS series.”
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Katzenjammer Kids Celebrates 110 Years

Katzenjammer Kids is celebrating 110 years of syndication and still holds the record of the longest running comic strip ever. It first saw print in 1897 on December 12th. It is still being published by King Features, not much jubilee to ceremonialize the event at their end. Long gone is the luster of the strip, but it had a lasting impression on many cartoonists who began their strips after Katzenjammer Kids started to fade into public obscurity. It’s more now as a token series of an attitude and lifestyle long gone. Katzenjammer Kids will always be the forefather of Peanuts, Pogo, and countless other strips that followed it.
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Fletcher Hanks and Stardust


Seems every publishing house is raiding the senior comic book characters. Must be that copyrights have elapsed or the ink well is drying up. Where are the exciting new characters this young generation is creating today? Most likely on the net for free, nobody is ready to gamble on new projects. Word has it that Mike Allred who is a great creator of original concepts is taking on Fletcher Hanks’ character Stardust. I really enjoyed the original comic reprinted by Fantagraphics. A real blast. The early artwork of this new project by Image Comics has me scratching my head. Why? The Golden Age characters did not graduate to the big show because they were not that good to start with. Alex Ross with super-hero realism art for both Marvel and DC of their older characters got him accolades. However, the characters he was given were strong characters with a rich history. All these new Golden Age characters who have not seen the light of day since the 40’s are re-hashed into a formula made famous by Alex Ross. Dynamite Entertainment with Alex Ross and Jim Krueger will be making SUPERPOWERS and with Mike Allred and Joe Keatinge with their attempt at Fletcher Hanks’ Stardust, and Erik Larson will jump into the fold  too. Ambitious or folly?  If they succeed the doors will open for more characters from the old folks home of comics. I’ll sit on the fench for this one. No offence to Allard, but if they really wanted to do justice to Stardust, I would pick a different artist. It looks just too pixelated, where is the flash. Everything looks stiff, homage perhaps to Fletcher’s own stunted art. Some of this stuff looks like an old arcade game of the 90’s. It just does not do it for me. Nice try.

Confessions of a Superhero trailer

It’s not easy being a super-hero in Hollywood. Matt Ogens chronicles the lives of Christopher “Superman” Dennis, Maxwell “Batman” Allen, Jennifer “Wonder Woman” Gehrt, Joe “Hulk” McQueen in this documentary of the hardships of being a super-hero without powers. Their love for the characters is their bread and water and also their falter. Tragic at times but resilient at what lengths people would go for their passion. This film is making the rounds all around North America, it’s a fun flick.  Read more>>
A feature length documentary that chronicles the lives of three mortal men and one woman who make their living working as superhero characters on Hollywood Boulevard. This deeply personal look into their daily routines reveals their hardships and triumphs as they pursue and achieve their own kind of fame. The Hulk sold his Super Nintendo for a bus ticket to LA; Wonder Woman was a mid western homecoming queen; Batman struggles with his anger, while Superman’s psyche is consumed by the Man of Steel. Although the Walk of Fame is right beneath their feet, their own paths to stardom prove to be long, hard climbs. CONFESSIONS OF A SUPERHERO explores the fascination, obsession and allure of fame through the eyes of some very unique people struggling to make it in Tinseltown.

Nickelodeon Magazine October 2007


Nickelodeon Magazine "comic book edition" is out again this year. This and the New Yorker comic strip edition are the only two mags I look forward to each year. The cover is graced by Dan James and inside you will also find other cartoonists such as Rich Tommaso, James Kochalka, Jesse Reklaw, Jef Czekaj, Nate Neal and few other surprises.

Zuda’s Alpha Monkey

I have seen the future and it’s called Zuda. Zuda? This is a DC online comic experiment to bring in new talent to the masses. There are many properties that many publishers would not print, but Zuda is up to the task of taking a risk and putting them on the online map. With the premiere of the site up and running, we are treated to a new character called Alpha Monkey for all ages. Created by Howard M. Shum and Bobby Rubio, Alpha Monkey is a highly polished little strip in glorious Flash to accommodate and screen resolution of your computer. It’s fun to glide through the easiness that the site offers. It’s a whole new way to see the comic media exposed in such a new light. Great to see the big boys taking the Internet as a serious tool in discovering new talent.
Hitch is a smart-mouthed, egotistical 8-year-old kid, whose dad is a brilliant, but whacky, scientist who thinks Earth will soon be destroyed by a giant comet. Hitch’s dad builds a rocket to send his beloved son safely to a distant planet, but the rocket ends up opening a dimensional rift in space and crashes Hitch on a planet inhabited by intelligent monkeys. Not only that, but the comet also ends up missing Earth. On this monkey-world, Hitch discovers that when he eats bananas, he gains amazing super powers, such as flight and super strength. As it turns out, the dimensional rift that his rocket created is also allowing monsters from other dimensions to the monkey-planet. Hitch strikes a deal with the monkey-government to fight the monsters while their scientists help find a way to get him back home. He takes on the super-hero name of Alpha Monkey but when not fighting monsters and crime, disguises himself as an ordinary monkey-kid (wearing a cheap plastic Halloween mask).

The Red Hulk


I am getting a bit frustrated lately with the recycling of characters and stories. We had grey, green, and back to grey and green once again for the Hulk. Now we are getting the red hulk. Wow! That is a big change. Let’s give it up for the colorist who has to remember that the red is (D6071B)*. Captain America is dead. The Hulk is red. What next? Thor will be back from the dead.(Oh they just did that one) I would like to see new characters. When was the last time both Marvel and DC created new characters? Not many since the 90’s. Why? Royalties of course. You have pay more for the creations. More for the shareholders if you keep recycling.  Think of all the money when the characters cross over to the big screen and you have to pay the creators. Can’t do that, they don’t have families to feed.  You can’t dish out for in-house royalties. Milk your characters for what they are worth. Now that makes me red. Must be the companies don’t want to see red, keep the books in the black. (000000)*
*denotes Adobe Color Picker (cheap humor) More colors>>

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