Independent Opinions, News, and Reviews of Graphic Novels, Manga, and Comic Books
One small piece of news coming out of the Top Shelf acquisition by IDW was the fate of the wonderful Owly books by Andy Runton. Runton tweeted, in response to a question: “I’m actually gonna publish all of the Owly books myself.” @fleenguy @BrigidAlverson I'm actually gonna publish all of the Owly books myself. But I wish all my Top Shelf buddies well! ^,^ — Andy Runton (@Owly) January 6, 2015 There are five paperbacks, currently from Top Shelf, and […]
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Apparently, I can no longer say “I don’t like zombies”, because I’m looking forward to the upcoming iZombie TV series, launching March 17 on the CW. Here’s the first look teaser: The show is very loosely based on the Vertigo comic by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, but restructured into more of a procedural, with a case of the week that Liv (Rose McIver) helps solve after eating brains to give herself a victim’s memories and skills. It’s adapted by […]
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Two clips have been released from the upcoming Justice League: Throne of Atlantis original animated movie, due out January 27. The first one is the expected action scene, with Cyborg (Shemar Moore) interrogating a computer underwater. Since this movie is all about Aquaman (Matt Lanter, 90210), I expect lots of water scenes. But the second one is of more interest to me, since it’s focused more on the characters, with Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion) trying to pick up a receptionist […]
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Earlier this week, I wrote about Wizard’s upcoming digital streaming network CONtv. Now comes news that the project will launch next month, and one of the original programs will feature Bruce Campbell hosting a game show. Last Fan Standing will also be produced by Campbell. It will film live at comic conventions, beginning today at New Orleans Comic Con. The audience will play along, competing for cash and prizes, until the top four players battle for the title. More shows […]
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What a perfect book for a new year! Stephen McCranie has collected various illustrated essays into an inspiring collection of “principles for achieving artistic mastery”. This isn’t a how to draw book or a getting hired or publishing comics instruction manual — instead, it’s a collection of thoughts on how to become a good artist, one who is true to oneself, one who learns from the world around them without getting bogged down or discouraged, one who can find the […]
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Diamond Comic Distributors has announced the winners of the 2014 Gem Awards, prizes “selected by comic book specialty retailers” to recognize “sales achievement”. That last helps explain some of the award divisions. I think it’s interesting to look at what comic book retailers think helped them most last year — these decisions might explain some of what you see stocked in their stores. “We established the Gem Awards to give retailers an opportunity to recognize the suppliers, titles, and products […]
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Since I enjoyed Jeff Cohen’s The Question of the Missing Head, I thought I’d check out another comedy mystery he’d written. Some Like It Hot-Buttered is the first of three in the “Comedy Tonight” series, named after the theater the protagonist runs that only shows comedies. (The other two are It Happened One Knife and A Night at the Operation.) It’s the story of Elliot Freed, a divorced Jersey guy who wrote a book that became a bad movie. He […]
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2015 appears to be the year of direct-to-consumer TV network offerings, whether from established networks, movie studios, or specialty outlets (like the WWE, which sells its own network of nothing but decades of wrestling programming for $10 a month). Now Wizard World has announced CONtv, planned to launch early this year as a digital network sold direct to consumers and geared towards “fans in the Comic Con community”. It’s a joint venture with independent content distributor Cinedigm. Programming will include […]
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