CR Week In Review

The top comics-related news stories from March 21 to March 27, 2015:

1. Two Turkish cartoon-makers were sentenced to jail for insulting Recep Erdogan not through a critical cover but through a supposed hand sign made to portray him as homo sexual. There are no words in that last sentence that aren't depressing. Luckily, the sentence was commuted to a fine which -- while not insignificant -- has to be better than going to jail. This practice needs to end.

2. A New Mexico school library board decides to keep Palomar on the shelves after a parent's complaint that compared the comics masterwork to child porn, a complaint that was given a big platform when a local television ran an idiotic report including the old trick of claiming not being able to show the comic in question. I'm glad calmer heads prevailed.

3. Emerald City Comicon launches, the first major North American convention of the year in the sense that a wide swathe of comics pros attend and the rest of the industry pays attention to it from afar. Conventions are one of the things that works about comics, and the perception of how well they work exceeds even their general effectiveness across the board. They're also increasingly important cultural events as a way to facilitate relationships made on-line that's not on-line.

Winners Of The Week
Gen Con. That kind of stand is difficult and comes with some cost.

Losers Of The Week
Everyone that backs the idiotic practice of suing people according to a special law that protects elected officials from insult. Just the dumbest laws ever.

Quote Of The Week
"Marvel was more streetwise and funky. When I visited both companies' headquarters in the early 1990s, Marvel's felt more like a college rec room than a serious business place. DC's on the other hand, by then wholly owned by Time Warner, was a grim, unwelcoming place, with dim lighting and employees talking in hushed tones -- more like a bank than an entertainment company." -- Jonathan Ross

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the comic image selected is from the brief but notable 1970s run of Seaboard/Atlas

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posted 2:00 am PST | Permalink
 

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