Random Comics News Story Round-Up

* ComicsPro is calling their 2011 meeting "2011's Most Crucial Comics Business Meeting." I hope I'm able to go.

* I haven't yet had the pleasure, but I can't imagine anything more timely than a podcast on the Tokyo Censorship law.

* Zack Smith has begun an oral history of Captain Marvel at Newsarama.

* a few random publishing news bookmarks unearthed and stared at early today: Kodansha planning an English site for Morning on the way to more coordinated worldwide releases, Bob Eckstein has launched a humor magazine called The Basement, and maybe the best news at all, DC planning Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko omnibus-sized collections.

* not comics: this secret history of Captain Hook is just lovely, and I had no idea it existed, let alone existed in its unique form. Really, really cool. Maybe the best monologue in a children's stageplay belongs to Captain Hook.

* Kenny Penman looks at the state of the comics blogosphere from the vantage point of the fine FPI blog and its apparent need to justify its own existence to the company's board every now and then. It's a good piece. I think what's going on is that writing about comics isn't very profitable in the first place. Not all that many people want to read that kind of writing, and fewer people wish to all the time. In addition, I think there are subtle but major changes in the way information is disseminated generally that kind of works against there being a ton of voices out there.

* Daryl Cagle talks cartoon censorship in Slovakia. (thx, Rob Tornoe)

* the Free Comic Book Day promotion has released its list of second-tier sponsors and their offerings. Included will be a John Stanley comic from Drawn and Quarterly, a classic Mickey Mouse comic from Fantagraphics and a kids' comic from Top Shelf.

* not comics: I always seize on links to prominent articles about social networking, because I don't understand it and wish to, and the jargon of the focused material loses me. However, it always seems like I'm disappointed by the articles being sort of dumb. Does anyone outside of the most dimwitted or pathetically sad and wounded soul really think that Facebook friends function like real friends and are therefore subject to psychoanalytical constructs that folks have applied to the latter? Also, and this is more of personal bugaboo, but weren't people forging relationships with other people on-line long before Facebook? I know I was, and I'm not in the top 20 percent of savvy, on-line people. You wouldn't know it from these articles, though, the vast majority of which seem to suggest through their lack of important, competing, instructive models that the phenomenon was invented by Mr. Zuckerberg and friends.

* here's a link to a nice-looking craft post from the very stylish artist David Aja.

* I guess I don't blame DC for trying to make something of its price-retreat to $2.99 serial comics, although I'm not sure anyone will respond. The good, I think, comes from the number of readers that don't see their weekly purchase pile jump up $5-$7 and bail out, which is one hell of a tricky measurable. That's where we are with the direct market right now, though: things that need to be done that may not have a measurable benefit.

* finally, the New York Times profiles how manga programs in Japan are attracting western students. (thx, Fabrice Stroun)
 
posted 11:30 pm PST | Permalink
 

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