Tom Spurgeon's Web site of comics news, reviews, interviews and commentary











September 30, 2008


Bundled, Tossed, Untied and Stacked

* I don't fully understand a lot of the new sites about comics that pop up, and I don't understand this one beyond the fact that seems like it would be an expensive URL. I did get the usual e-mail from someone at the site talking about how I should be assisting them to do whatever, and how it will benefit me to do so.

image* the latest iteration of the Legion of Superheroes will end at issue #50. That's the cover image from #49, by the way. Anyway, not that DC canceling stuff or a Legion title biting the dust is ever news, but I had to wonder: how many times out in official fashion is that for this series? Six? Seven? Eight?

* the publisher Del Rey has announced two manga series from a newly-formed partnership with Cartoon Network: Bakugan Battle Brawlers and Ben 10 Alien Force. The first book will be December's Bakugan Battle Brawlers: The Battle Begins, and will employ stills from the animated shows. The Ben 10 Alien Force series will begin in April. Original works in both series will start the next season: Summer 2009 (BBB) and Fall 2009 (B10AF).

* this seems like a pretty ambitious on-line endeavor man-hours wise for a promotional thing. Hadn't heard of the book before now, so I guess the announcement part worked.

* finally, if you're ever really, really bored you can always look at a bunch of forthcoming (mostly) small-press work by going to a blog search engine and typing in the phrase "my graphic novel." Here are some from the first page that pops up today: Kalpa, Sharks and Butterflies, Untitled by Dave Wagner, Untitled from Chris Harrison, Untitled by Megan Baehr.
 
posted 11:00 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Pat Oliphant Cartoon Featuring Sarah Palin Draws Hundreds Of Complaints

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I missed this: the cartoonist Pat Oliphant's early September cartoon that feature Sarah Palin speaking in tongues led to at least 350 complaints. One reason for that may have been that it automatically went to an on-line feed, an incident and practice discussed here.
 
posted 8:10 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Two More Staff Cartoonists Let Go

News has hit various newspaper industry news sources about two more editorial cartoon positions lost. Richard Crowson of the Wichita Eagle was laid off, according to a note at Editor & Publisher, having held that position for slightly more than two decades. Peter Dunlap-Shohl accepted a buy-out from the Anchorage Daily News rather than let one of the other two people in his department take the hit. He had also been at his position for more than 20 years. E&P estimates that there are about 80 staffed editorial cartoonist positions still out there.
 
posted 8:05 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Collective Memory: BCC 2008

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Links to stories, eyewitness accounts and resources concerning Baltimore Comic-Con, held September 27-28 at the convention center in Baltimore, Maryland.

This entry will continue to be updated for as long as people .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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Institutional
Convention
Physical Location
Host City
Harvey Awards

Audio, Photos, Video
Ad House Books
Evil, Inc.
Greyloch
mrghode1
Stuart Immonen
Vinh-Luan Luu

Blog Entries
Adhouse Books
Aquariann
Are You A Serious Comic Book Reader?

Bent Corner

Capes & Babes
Capt'n Eli
Critical-Hits
CWR: Harvey Results

Danny Douglas
davextreme
Drew's Reviews
Duck and Cover Studios

fanboywonder

Howling Curmudgeons

Jimmy T's Blog
Johanna Draper Carlson
Johanna Draper Carlson on Convention Giveaways
Johanna Draper Carlson Post Mid-Show

Lost Ronin Studios

Matt Maxwell
Mike Manley

Rablog
Rebel Scum
Rob's Blog
Russ Anderson

Stuart Immonen

The Beat At The Harveys 01
The Beat At The Harveys 02
The Beat At The Harveys 03
The Beat BCC Preview
The Far Reaches
The Illustrator Blog
The Process
The Surfing Pizza
The Zap! Pow! Zoom! Initiatives

News Stories and Columns
CBR: Boom! Studios Panel
CBR: The Superman Panel
CBR: Marvel Your Universe Panel
CBR: Image Comics Panel
CBR: Webcomics Panel
CBR: Harvey Awards Winners
CBR: Bendis/Kirkman Debate
CBR: Cup of B Panel
CBR: Tucci Presents Sgt. Rock
CBR: DC Nation Panel
CBR: Love of Comics Panel

ComicMix: Bendis/Kirkman Debate

Critical Hits

Johns Hopkins Publications

Newsarama: Boom! Studios Panel
Newsarama: Image Comics Panel
Newsarama: Bendis/Kirkman Debate
Newsarama: Dark Horse Panel
Newsarama: Superman Panel
Newsarama: Cup of B Panel
Newsarama: DC Nation Panel

PWCW

Retriever Weekly

Tucker Stone on DC Comics Panel
Tucker Stone Predicts The Harveys
Tucker Stone on the Convention Overall

Variety

Wizard: Bendis/Kirkman Debate

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posted 8:00 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Your 2008 Harvey Awards Winners

The 2008 Harvey Awards winners were announced during a ceremony on Saturday, September 27, at the Marriott Inner Harbor Hotel in Baltimore. The awards are named after the legendary cartoonist and comics editor Harvey Kurtzman. I believe they are the only North American major comics awards focused primarily on comic books in which the general voting pool generates both nominees and winners. This year's winners are in bold.

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BEST WRITER
* Ed Brubaker, Captain America, Marvel Comics
* Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
* Grant Morrison, All Star Superman, DC Comics
* William Van Horn, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
* Brian K. Vaughan, Y: The Last Man, Vertigo/DC Comics

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BEST ARTIST
* Gabriel Ba, Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
* John Cassaday, Astonishing X-Men, Marvel Comics
* Guy Davis, BPRD, Dark Horse Comics
* Frank Quitely, All Star Superman, DC Comics
* William Van Horn, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone

*****

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BEST CARTOONIST
* Darwyn Cooke, The Spirit, DC Comics
* Matt Kindt, Super Spy, Top Shelf
* Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
* Bryan Lee O'Malley, Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
* Vasilis Lolos, Last Call, Oni Press
* William Van Horn, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone

*****

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BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM - ORIGINAL
* The Arrival, Scholastic Books
* Donald Duck: The Case of the Missing Mummy, Gemstone
* Exit Wounds, Drawn & Quarterly
* Laika, First Second
* Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press

*****

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BEST GRAPHIC ALBUM -- PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED
* The Annotated Northwest Passage, Oni Press
* Antiques, Vol. 1, Gemstone
* Captain America Omnibus, Vol. 1, Marvel Comics
* Damned, Vol. 1, Oni Press
* Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born, Marvel Comics

*****

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BEST DOMESTIC REPRINT PROJECT
* Complete Peanuts, Fantagraphics Books
* Complete Terry and the Pirates, IDW
* EC Archives, Gemstone
* Popeye, Fantagraphics Books
* Walt and Skeezix, Drawn & Quarterly

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BEST AMERICAN EDITION OF FOREIGN MATERIAL
* Eduardo Risso's Tales of Terror, Dynamite Entertainment
* Exit Wounds, Drawn & Quarterly
* Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet, Abrams
* Moomin, Vol. 2, Drawn & Quarterly
* Witchblade Manga, Top Cow/Image

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SPECIAL AWARD FOR HUMOR
* Chris Eliopoulos, Franklin Richards, Marvel Comics
* Nicholas Gurewitch, Perry Bible Fellowship, www.pbfcomics.com
* Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
* Bryan Lee O'Malley, Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Oni Press
* William Van Horn, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone

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BEST ON-LINE COMIC
* Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney, Self-Published.
* EZ Street, Robert Tinnell and Mark Wheatley, Comic Mix
* Penny Arcade, Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, Self-Published.
* Perry Bible Fellowship, Nicholas Gurewitch, Self-Published
* Surreal Adventures of Edgar Allan Poo, Dwight L. Macpherson, Thomas Boatwright and Thomas Mauer, Drunk Duck

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SPECIAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN PRESENTATION
* The Annotated Northwest Passage, Scott Chantler, Oni Press
* Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Jeff Kinney, Amulet Books
* EC Archives, Various, edited by Russ Cochran, Gemstone
* Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, edited by Jason Rodriguez, Villard
* Super Spy, Matt Kindt, Top Shelf

*****

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BEST SINGLE ISSUE OR STORY
* Alice in Sunderland, Dark Horse Comics
* All Star Superman # 8, DC Comics
* Captain America # 25, Marvel Comics
* Donald Duck: The Case of the Missing Mummy, Gemstone
* I Killed Adolf Hitler, Fantagraphics Books
* Immortal Iron Fist #7, Marvel Comics
* Stephen Colbert's Tek Jansen # 1, Oni Press

*****

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BEST BIOGRAPHICAL, HISTORICAL OR JOURNALISTIC PRESENTATION
* Blah Blah Blog, Tom Brevoort, Marvel.com
* The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth and Michael Dean, Fantagraphics Books
* Meanwhile...: A Biography of Milton Caniff, R.C. Harvey, Fantagraphics Books
* The Naked Artist: Comic Book Legends, Bryan Talbot and Hunt Emerson, Moonstone Books
* Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, edited by J.C. Vaughn, Gemstone
* Reading Comics: How Graphic Albums Work and What They Mean, Douglas Wolk, Da Capo Press

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BEST COVER ARTIST
* John Cassaday, Astonishing X-Men, Marvel Comics
* Marko Djurdjevic, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
* James Jean, Fables, Vertigo/DC Comics
* Mike Mignola, Hellboy, Dark Horse Comics
* William Van Horn, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone

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BEST LETTERER
* Chris Eliopoulos, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
* Jared K. Fletcher, The Spirit, DC Comics
* Willie Schubert, Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, Gemstone
* Douglas E. Sherwood, Local, Oni Books
* Chris Ware, Acme Novelty Library, Acme Novelty

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BEST COLORIST
* Susan Daigle-Leach, Uncle Scrooge, Gemstone
* Jamie Grant, All Star Superman, DC Comics
* Matt Hollingsworth, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
* Matt Kindt, Super Spy, Top Shelf
* Laura Martin, Thor, Marvel Comics

*****

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BEST INKER
* Stefano Gaudiano, Daredevil, Marvel Comics
* Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
* Steve Leialoha, Fables, DC Comics
* Mark Morales, Thor, Marvel Comics
* Kevin Nowlan, Witchblade, Top Cow/Image

*****

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BEST SYNDICATED STRIP OR PANEL
* Doonesbury, Garry Trudeau, Universal Press Syndicate
* Get Fuzzy, Darby Conley, United Feature Syndicate
* The K Chronicles, Keith Knight, Self-Syndicated
* The Mighty Motor-Sapiens, Mark Wheatley, Daniel Krall, Robert Tinnell, MJ Butler, Craig Taillerfer, Matthew Plog, and Jerry Carr, Self-Syndicated
* Mutts, Patrick McDonnell, King Features Syndicate

*****

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BEST CONTINUING OR LIMITED SERIES
* All Star Superman, DC Comics
* Captain America, Marvel Comics
* Damned, Oni Press
* Daredevil, Marvel Comics
* Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics
* Uncle Scrooge, Gemstone Comics

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BEST NEW SERIES
* Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
* The Order, Marvel Comics
* Resurrection, Oni Press
* Thor, Marvel Comics
* Umbrella Academy, Dark Horse Comics

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BEST NEW TALENT
* Jeff Kinney, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Amulet Books
* Jeff Lemire, Essex County, Top Shelf
* Vasilis Lolos, Last Call, Oni Press
* Robbi Rodriguez, Maintenance, Oni Press
* Christian Slade, Korgi #1: Sprouting Wings, Top Shelf

*****

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BEST ANTHOLOGY
* Flight Vol. 4, edited by Kazu Kibuishi, Ballantine Books
* Mome Vol. 8, edited by Gary Groth and Eric Reynolds, Fantagraphics Books
* Popgun Vol. 1, edited by Joe Keatinge and Mark Andrew Smith, Image Books
* Postcards: True Stories That Never Happened, edited by Jason Rodriquez, Villard
* Walt Disney's Comics and Stories, edited by John Clark, Gemstone

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posted 7:57 am PST | Permalink
 

 
If I Were Near Yale, I’d Go To This

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posted 7:50 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Go, Look: Heeb’s Best Of 5768

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posted 7:45 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Go, Read: 150 Panels Of Concrete

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posted 7:45 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Go, Look: Charles Hatfield’s Trip To The Center For Cartoon Studies

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posted 7:45 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Random Comics News Story Round-Up

* officials expect a resolution soon in a dispute between Geppi's Entertainment Museum and the state agency that rents space to it. Depending on how you look at the world, you may be more shocked by the rent figures being thrown around or by the fact that Geppi's museum isn't a non-profit.

* if I'm reading this correctly, the Seattle Times is in the midst of a massive changeover to emphasize on-line content, which should include the liberal use of editorial cartoons. In fact, this makes me think that editorial cartoons may not even be in the print edition anymore -- or appear much less frequently than they used to. The Times is a real meat-and-potatoes newspaper in a lot of ways, so I'll be interested to see how this goes over.

image* the interesting thing to me about the forthcoming Windy City Comicon on October 25 is that it's being held in within Chicago proper, at the Center on Halsted, which is basically three blocks towards the lake from the Waveland side of Wrigley. Being inside of a city like Chicago means you might be slightly less accessible to people in the suburbs and in, say, Milwaukee, but you're a lot closer to a lot of city folk that don't want to go all the way out by O'Hare. I think a number of people will be checking in on this to see how they did.

* the writer Paul Gravett offers up a 2001 article about comics reading habits around the world -- I had not seen those figures for Mexico before. Judging from what I saw in Rome's airport last month, you're much more likely to find manga there today than you are a copy of a Joe Kubert album.

* building on this theme, Matt Thorn takes a two-part look at the latest Mainichi newspaper manga reading survey compiled in 2007 and published earlier this year.

* this article suggests that United Media only recently offered their on-line and e-mailed daily comics in color.

* those of you with a fondness for goofy superhero comic books that prefer the days when there wasn't a super-obsessive, moralistic fan community digging into plot points according to some precious conception of a favorite character and thus ruining the simple joys of junk-culture might join me in making a yuck face whenever today's fans decide to go over some narrative from 30 years ago in that same, relentless, bordering-on-miserable fashion.

* this DC panel report by Tucker Stone from last weekend's Baltimore Comic-Con captures the essential strangeness experienced any not-diehard fan that rolls into one of these presentations, although I'm happy to hear that the Green Lantern milieu has been thematically re-worked to better correspond to Jimi Hendrix's "Axis, Bold as Love." I've long wondered if you could have an entire panel made up of presentations from old panels without anyone knowing the difference.

* site note: I should be caught up with 50 Things A Comics Collection Should Have additions by the time this rolls out; thank you to all that participated so far and please keep them coming if it interests you.

* finally, I love the suggestion made here, perhaps unintentionally, that a reason why webcomics cartoonists do their originals on paper is to facilitate original art sales.
 
posted 7:30 am PST | Permalink
 

 
Happy 57th Birthday, Deni Loubert!

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posted 7:15 am PST | Permalink
 

 
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