October 3, 2016 Johanna Other Publishers One comment

Secret Smithsonian Adventures: Claws and Effect

The second in the series of science fiction educational comics under the imprint of the Smithsonian Institution is due out later this month. The first, The Wrong Wrights, dealt with a key moment of technological development and the National Air and Space Museum; Claws and Effect instead explores Natural History. This time, the kids start seeing dinosaurs. Cats and dogs have been replaced by lizards, appearing just as we think they did way back when. Josephine comments to her “new” […]

October 3, 2016 Johanna Comic News Leave a comment

Top Shelf Returns to Comic Book Format After a Decade Away

Coming December 21 from Top Shelf is Gumballs, a solo-creator anthology by Erin Nations. Based on the cover and the preview pages at the link above, the mention made in the promotional copy of Nations’ Matt Groening influence is understandable, with the odd-shaped heads. (Nations’ are square, as you can see.) Of more interest, though, is the subject matter. Among other topics, Nations covers gender transition. Nations is the first openly transgender cartoonist published by Top Shelf. Gumballs is also […]

October 2, 2016 Johanna Graphix / Scholastic One comment

King Baby

Following the success of her first children’s book, The Princess and the Pony, Kate Beaton returns with the hilarious King Baby, as announced this past summer. It’s aimed at children, but I believe parents or anyone who’s had to put up with a demanding child (so, everyone) will enjoy it even more. It’s amazing how effective a drawing of, basically, an egg with a face and a crown can be when in the expressive hands of a skilled artist. With […]

October 2, 2016 Johanna DC / Vertigo 2 comments

Astro City #39

I normally don’t care much for the supernatural-focused stories of Astro City. Although there’s a long tradition of the combination in Bronze Age comics, I’ve never liked the way magic mixes with the more science-fiction-y superheroes. So I was surprised at just how much I liked this issue of the long-running series by Kurt Busiek, illustrated by guest artist Carmen Carnero. It begins with the origin of the Hanged Man. Think the Spectre mixed with the Watcher, an ominous ghostly […]

October 2, 2016 Johanna Image Comics Leave a comment

Eclipse #1

A number of recent Image launches have done a terrific job setting up killer first-issue premises, but I find myself wondering how much I’ll enjoy the series. Take, for example, Eclipse #1 by Zack Kaplan and Giovanni Timpano. It’s a world much like ours but in a future where the sun will literally kill you. Ten years ago, a solar flare wiped out billions of people, and now, the environment and culture has permanently changed. People interact at night and […]

September 26, 2016 Johanna Comic News One comment

I Went to SPX 2016 and Loved It

I had a terrific time at the 2016 Small Press Expo (SPX), as I do every year. It’s the nation’s premier independent comic arts festival, and everyone knows that everyone there has at least one thing in common: a love of the medium. For a factual overview of the show, please see my SPX coverage at ICv2. I also published a photo gallery there, and I’ve previously written about the Ignatz Awards winners this year. But for more of a […]

September 24, 2016 Johanna Art 2 comments

Good Art and an Imaginative Story — With Balloons!

I love comics for a whole bunch of reasons, but one of them is seeing creative visions I never would have dreamed of. Take, for example, “Till Her Final Breath”, written by Greg van Eekhout and drawn by Sarah Winifred Searle. It’s about a super-skilled balloon animal competition. What a great idea for visuals! But it’s about more than that — it’s also about generational change and creativity and aging and caring and tradition. And it’s wonderfully drawn, particularly the […]

September 19, 2016 Johanna Comic News 3 comments

Award-Winning Writer Announced for Supergirl Miniseries

As reported at the Hollywood Reporter, DC will launch a Supergirl miniseries at the end of December that takes a different approach to the hero. Supergirl: Being Super will be written by Mariko Tamaki, best-known for the Ignatz- and Eisner-winning This One Summer, which was illustrated by her cousin Jillian Tamaki. The art is by Joelle Jones (Lady Killer, You Have Killed Me) and Sandu Florea. The goal is “retelling her origin story for a new generation.” Presumably, that includes […]

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