June 26, 2006 Johanna Oni Press / Lion Forge Leave a comment

Scott Pilgrim & the Infinite Sadness

In the third book in Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel series, Scott’s band drama continues. His ex-girlfriend, Envy Adams, and her group are much more successful than he is, and she’s offered to let his band open for them. Unfortunately, Scott still has to fight his girlfriend Ramona’s evil ex-boyfriends, and one of them is a member of Envy’s band. O’Malley’s work has been criticized as “too emo” by those who don’t have an appreciation for young adult soap opera. […]

June 25, 2006 Johanna Viz Manga Reviews One comment

Even a Monkey Can Draw Manga

Even a Monkey Can Draw Manga by Koji Aihara & Kentaro Takekuma hides useful information about creating and analyzing readable, marketable comic stories inside savage parody of the industry. Inspired by the crap people read and publish, two manga creators decide to lay bare the secrets of success, using the rationale “if they can do it, anyone can”. They aim to create popular series that become anime, spawn character merchandising, and make them rich. The first lesson is therefore choosing […]

June 23, 2006 Johanna Other Publishers 2 comments

Dykes to Watch Out For

Dykes to Watch Out For (DTWOF) is a lesbian soap opera with political themes, populated by a variety of fascinating women who come in all shapes, ages, races, and inclinations. The books poke fun at the foibles of human behavior, making this an entertaining read for anyone, regardless of sexual preference. The first book is a collection of single-page strips about such topics as lesbian etiquette, wearing short hair and being mistaken for a guy, the perils of roommates and […]

June 19, 2006 Johanna Other Publishers One comment

Supernatural Law: #1 With a Silver Bullet

I regularly watch CSI. The writing and cast are good enough that I’m kept entertained, and it’s a nice distraction for 45 minutes or so.1 Not everything has to be destination entertainment that you seek out, and there’s nothing wrong with competent craft that doesn’t aim to be high art. Many of the mass media — movies, TV, popular literature — are built on such products. Why am I nattering about TV shows in what’s supposed to be a comic […]

June 18, 2006 Johanna Fantagraphics Leave a comment

That Kind of Girl

A writer takes an erotic road trip in this graphic novel by Molly Kiely for adults only. Diva is heading out to her trailer in the desert for some time alone writing. During the day, it’s just her and her typewriter and open space as far as the eye can see. There’s a brief hetero encounter, after Diva fixes a guy’s stalled car (go talented woman!), but the core relationship of the book begins when she picks up the larger-than-life […]

June 17, 2006 Johanna Image Comics 2 comments

The New Adventures of Abraham Lincoln

Think back… it’s 1998. After revolutionizing the medium with Understanding Comics, Scott McCloud hasn’t published comics for several years. Instead, he’s been talking about micropayments and digital work and how computers will open a brave new world for comics. The New Adventures of Abraham Lincoln was him putting his theories into practice, created entirely on computers, and oh, what a disappointment it was! The technology wasn’t yet ready for what he was attempting, and the result was very minimal cartoony […]

June 17, 2006 Johanna SLG Publishing Leave a comment

Hectic Planet: The Bummer Trilogy

This one-shot collects three love stories, previously printed in Dark Horse Presents #118-120: “5 Years and Counting”, “Shot on Goal”, and “Love You Madly, Elsie; or, Scumbag of Oz”. They’re modern takes on romance conventions. The stories turn on promising to meet five years after a separation; locking eyes with a mysterious stranger across a crowded dance floor; or finding an ex-boyfriend’s gift and trying to get back in touch with him. As expected, the art is the usual Evan […]

June 16, 2006 Johanna Other 2 comments

My Thoughts on Continuity

I’ve talked about this before online, but I thought I’d capture the core of my position in one location. Many continuing comic fans say, “Continuity is no barrier to readers to new readers. When I was a kid, I loved knowing that there was a bigger universe out there with more stories.” It’s a common thread among those who defend a tight continuity as an attractive element for a superhero comic universe. I’m not sure people realize a key factor […]

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