Year: 2013

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good this week

prophet volume #2 & prophet #36 : a double dose of the out of this world series reinvention from brandon graham & company. this second collection has some of the finest art farel dalrymple has done to date.

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mouse guard: legends of the guard #1 : david petersen’s newest anthology series spinning off of the charming all-ages MOUSE GUARD starts off strong, with petersen providing a framing sequence around some wonderful watercolor pages from stan sakai, a bang-up job by philadelphia’s own alex eckman-lawn, and a superbly delightful turn by ben caldwell.

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COPRA #7

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Michel Fiffe’s COPRA #7 is in the house. A fantastic, introspective issue that makes for a fine jumping on point for new readers and deepens the level of immersion for those of us who have been following along since the beginning. We also have a few copies of the COPRA COMPENDIUM, collecting the out of print issues 1-3. Fiffe sings his gritty warble in the key of Miller & Kirby, but the tune is all his own. If you enjoy good comics, you should be reading this book.

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HECK, by Zander Cannon

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Zander Cannon’s HECK is a devilish little slice of comics. Just published by Top Shelf in its original strip format, the deadpan fantasy tells the story of Hector “Heck” Hammerskold, a fallen high school football star who slinks back home after the death of his father, and inherits his family’s spooky old Victorian mansion, which just happens to house a portal to Hell. So Heck and his little buddy Elliot, the obsequious waterboy who still sees the faded idol as a star, set up a business running messages between the living and the damned.

Cannon’s book has all the trappings of a rip-roaring yarn, complete with terrifying creatures, rousing derring-do, a femme fatale and a stolen-treasure mystery, a square-jawed hero, and an astonishingly rich & fully developed metaphysics. But underneath its fun and familiar trappings, HECK has a ragged, disappointedly mortal core. It’s a story of regret and loss, of the inevitability of sin and temptation. It asks hard questions about the value of friendship and the nature of love, and doesn’t come up with any easy answers. It’s a skewering of the Hero myth and a celebration of the heroic heart.

HECK’s Hell is a place you come to find out who you really are. When you wind up there, you realize you’ve already been there all along. The story tears its characters to pieces, cutting and condemning until it finds something that refuses to be damned.
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good this week

saga volume #2 : to know this book is to love it. this second volume ratchets up the tension while deepening our understanding of the characters at the same time. fine, fine comicbook making from brian vaughan and fiona staples. highest recommendation.

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brother lono #1 : azzarello & risso jump back into the dirty waters of 100 BULLETS with this 8 issue series featuring the nastiest of all the minutemen. there will be blood.

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sweet tooth volume #6 : the final volume in jeff lemire’s bittersweet quest story. lemire & colorist jose villarubia, along with guests like matt kindt and nate powell, crafted one of the most visually consistent series in recent memory, and the single-minded nature of the story propels the reader through a cruel world brightened by the developing love of one man for a deformed little boy. it all started with a chocolate bar.

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Locust Moon Comics Festival 2013

This October, the LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL returns! If you want to find more info on the festival, its guests, and its programming, check out the Locust Moon Comics Festival website. And if you’re an artist, creator, or publisher yourself, you can apply for a table at the event. But before all that, check out the wonderful poster Rob Woods whipped up for the occasion:

LMCF2013 poster by Rob Woods

On Saturday, October 5th, Locust Moon Comics will host the second LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL, an annual celebration of comics, illustration, and graphic arts, to be held at the Rotunda in West Philadelphia (4014 Walnut Street).

Building on last year’s event, this year’s iteration will feature more than twice as many creators in a larger, more versatile space, and add an expansive schedule of programs including workshops, panels, and discussions on the art, business, and history of comics. More than just a convention, this unique event will honor comic creators and comic creations. The emphasis will be on independent and creator-owned books, as the Rotunda will play host to some of the most distinguished and acclaimed artists, writers, and publishers in the comics world.

The LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL will boast a variety of local Philadelphia talent such as J.G. Jones (Final Crisis), Robert Woods (36 Lessons in Self-Destruction), James Comey (Donkey Punch), and Box Brown (Everything Dies), alongside acclaimed cartoonists from across North America including Farel Dalrymple (Pop Gun War), Chrissie Zullo (Cinderella), Todd Klein (Fables), Tom Scioli (Gødland), Michael Kupperman (Tales Designed to Thrizzle), and Benjamin Marra (Lincoln Washington: Free Man).

The festival will be an all-day affair on Saturday (10am to 6pm), as a cornucopia of publishers and creators vend their wares, sign books, and greet fans. A number of artists will debut festival-exclusive prints, and several will debut new books, including Robert Woods’ 36 LESSONS IN SELF-DESTRUCTION, the long-awaited complete collection of DEPRESSED PUNX mini-comics. While the festival itself takes place on Saturday, events and festivities at Locust Moon Comics will spill across the weekend, including a Drink & Draw, 36 LESSONS book release party, and post-con pancake breakfast.

“This new annual tradition is our way of recognizing and celebrating the huge variety of unique, independent voices in the world of comics,” says Locust Moon co-owner Josh O’Neill. “We want to exalt the infinite possibilities of the medium and acknowledge the intrepid talents that restlessly explore and expand its edges.”

Locust Moon Comics is a retail store, art gallery, and publishing company based in West Philadelphia. This event is the most recent of their many efforts to unify, accelerate, and publicize the burgeoning Philadelphia comic book scene.

Find further information about the event and more guests as they’re announced on the LOCUST MOON COMICS FESTIVAL website (locustmoonfest.com), Facebook (facebook.com/locustmoonfest), and Twitter (twitter.com/locustmoonfest).

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heroes con 2013

we were in north carolina last week for heroes con. the con has been running for over 30 years and has a reputation for being maybe the best east coast convention, with a family atmosphere and emphasis on comics and comic creators–none of the pop culture nonsense that so many other cons have made the focus of their shows. it’s fair to say we were looking forward to this one.

josh and i left early thursday morning, hopping on a train, where we met up with our roomie for the weekend, ulises farinas. ulises is a fantastic artist and an easy guy to spend 13 hours on a train with. here’s the cover to his book coming out in july…

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there’s not much to say about a 13 hour train ride. we traded comics biz stories (shame on some people out there, ha) and ate lousy train food and discussed the eternal subject, women. we got into charlotte around 9 pm and headed for the hotel. andrew had flown in earlier and scouted out the bbq options, which, by the time we unwound and ulises had donned his RATTICUS costume, were limited. who’s RATTICUS, you ask?

we wound up eating at QUEEN CITY Q, a middle of the road BBQ restaurant that had good ribs, terrible brisket, and weak drinks.

friday was set-up time, and we were in INDIE ISLAND, along with the pittsburgh boys (jim rugg, jasen lex, ed piskor, and tom scioli), chris pitzer of ADHOUSE BOOKS, rafer roberts, and some other folks i’m spacing on right now. we were tabled next to chad bowers, who was from the area and a real nice guy to be stuck next to for 3 days. chad did a bunch of ‘terrible sketches for $1’ over the course of the 3 days, and they were all worth a chuckle. the show got off to a slow start, sales-wise (more on that to come), so i decided to hit the floor, say hi to some folks, and try to get creators signed on to our LITTLE NEMO: DREAM ANOTHER DREAM project.

i saw neal adams with only 1 or 2 people around him and figured what the hell, i’d give it a shot. after listening to some hilarious off-color stories about roy thomas and stan lee from neal, i pitched him nemo. i was excited and a little abuzz when, without too much work, he said yes. this kicked off a pretty spectacular weekend of recruiting creators for the project. when i got back to the table to hear sales were slow but josh had talked to–and gotten a yes from–peter bagge, the tone and type of weekend it was going to be was set. before the end of the day, tom scioli, ed piskor, nick pitarra, shawn crystal, and ben marra had all joined in. we also got to meet drew moss, who illustrated one of the stories in ONCE UPON A TIME MACHINE and is doing stuff at IDW now. drew is a swell guy, great finally meeting in person. Continue reading →

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good this week

the simon & kirby library – science fiction : a big book of jack kirby sci-fi, mostly from the ’50s and filled with fantastic little stories. al williamson inks kirby for most of the stories here, and he draws a couple, too. a trove of classic old-school sci-fi.

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primates : this ogn looks at the lives of jane goodall, dian fossey, and birute galdikas, three women whose remarkable contributions and dedication to primatology offers a wonderful example of the human spirit. the art style is simple and charming, allowing easy entry into the lives of these women and the primates they study and love.

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the manhattan projects #12 : this book has been on a roll. nick pitarra and jordie bellaire are looking good.

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savage wolverine #6 : joe madureira jumps back into the game with gusto in this fun romp starring spidey, wolverine, elektra, and the kingpin. zeb wells came up with a great hook here (i won’t spoil it) and joe mad looks good. fun stuff.

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guardians of the galaxy #3 : i love rocket raccoon. steve mcniven draws a badass groot. that’s enough for me.

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the true lives of the fabulous killjoys #1 : gerard way wrote some fun, zippy comics in THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY books. becky cloonan brings a joy for the medium and considerable chops to every project she works on. let’s see what they do together!

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wolverine & the x-men #31 : nick bradshaw returns for the first day of school at the hellfire club academy. one of the little treats in comics every month.

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-chris stevens

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HeroesCon underway!

heroescon table

Locust Moon’s CHRIS STEVENS, JOSH O’NEILL, and ANDREW CARL are in Charlotte, North Carolina this weekend for the city’s beloved HEROESCON.

We’ll be selling books (ONCE UPON A TIME MACHINE!) and beautiful prints, signing anything and everything, giving away nice free stuff, and they’ll even have a few little teasers for upcoming books that you’ll only be able to see in person.

Come find TABLE 1028 in Artist Alley’s “Indie Island” — though it’s a huge con, so you may just need a map (click to embiggen):

Locust Moon at HeroesCon 2013

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good this week

herobear and the kid special #1 : mike kunkel’s charming tale of a toy stuffed bear come to life as a cape-wearing hero who gets into mischief & adventure with his little boy best friend displays the ample cartooning chops at kunkel’s disposal; the easy wisp of a line that creates movement and voices characterization; the comedic timing and childlike imagination, where the every day becomes a playground for herobear & the kid.

fun stuff!

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east of west #3 : issue #1 was the best 1st issue in a long time. issue #2 was a little bit all over the place. this issue should let us know where we’re at with jonathan hickman & nick dragotta’s enticing new series.

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the hollows hardcover : the best looking sam kieth book in a long time. beautiful, sweeping vistas, strong settings that evoke an eastern feel, quirky, cute critters…welcome back, sam.

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the end : devastating. sad. realistic. you could call anders nilsen’s new book dealing with the death of his girlfriend any of these things, and you’d be right. but it’s also a graceful meditation on loss, and living, and a fine testament to the enduring spirit of love and partnership that’s at the center of the common human experience.

this cover kills me…

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lone wolf & cub new edition #1 : over 700 pages of this comic book masterpiece for 20 bucks? the folks at dark horse are bringing this samurai masterpiece to the masses in a big way. highly recommended.

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solo-the deluxe edition : one of the best mainstream projects of the 2000’s is finally collected in a hearty, handsome hardcover collection. DC COMICS editor mark chiarello gathered up some of the best artists in comics and gave them 48 pages to play with. darwyn cooke, tim sale, teddy kristiansen, scott hampton, sergio aragones, mike allred, richard corben, and paul pope are among the creators here, and they all take full advantage of the creative free rein, whether it’s with stories set in or outside of the DC universe. paul pope’s issue is worth the price alone, with one knockout story after another, from greek myth in ‘the problem with knossos’ to childhood magic in ‘life sized monster ghost’ to pure nyc pope in ‘on this corner’ to the james jean colored, eisner award-winning robin & joker story, ‘teenage sidekick’. darwyn cooke’s issue weaves in and out and somehow sews up a perfect single issue out of several short stories. neil gaiman writes a DEADMAN story for teddy kristiansen. mike allred runs around the dc universe like only mike allred could. and there are treasures to be found in each artist’s outing. one of the finest collections in a long, long while.

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–chris stevens