Now here’s the perfect way to teach your kids the alphabet and pop culture at the same time. Courtesy of artist Neill Cameron you can view 26 renditions of awesomeness, such as, “F is for The Fantastic Four saving the Finnish ambassador from Fred Flintstone, who’s flinging flaming fajitas at his Ford Fiesta,” or the much simpler, “U is for Uhura and Ultraman on a unicorn underwater.” Hilarious, absurd and educational. See the whole alphabet here and check out Cameron’s site here.
I was going to put these pics in the last This Week In Pictures post, but they really do deserve their own focus. Basically, Iron Man 2 is landing on cinema screens on May 7 and Marvel have given free rein to some very talented folks to create unique covers over a variety of Marvel titles for the month of April. They had a similar approach with their Wolverine Art Appreciation covers from last year, and these samples below look to do even more for Ol’ Shellhead. Mmmm…luscious. Just a reminder that these are variant covers, so you’ll have to ask your friendly neighbourhood comic shop specifically for them, or get there early on new comics day and grab them yourself. Oh, and don’t expect Iron Man to actually be in the comic – he’s just used to the Hollywood treatment now. Below the pics you’ll find more info including release dates on these specific issues.
Writer Warren Ellis’ popular site has a challenge to its many readers, and this is it:
So here’s the deal:
You are an artist/designer. You have to put together the cover for a comic called SUPERMAN. It is issue 1 of this book.
You have been told that Superman is a man who dresses predominantly in a shade of blue, and wears a red S symbol. You know nothing else about the character.
The cover must include a logo and the text THE COMPLETE STORY OF THE DARING EXPLOITS OF THE ONE AND ONLY SUPERMAN.
And that’s it.
It’s up to you what kind of company you’re at. What kind of comics you make. How you translate that description of Superman. What era you’re in. Who you are, even. Go nuts with it.
What a great idea. There’s some absolutely awesome pieces and it’s certainly worth going through the pages to see them all. Below are some of my faves.
Well, technically this issue isn’t out just yet but you can pre-order it, as I heartily recommend you do. The conclusion of Robot 13 (hopefully, only for now) is a great example of the talent found within the ranks of indie comics. Writer Tom Hall and artist Daniel Blackford, working as Blacklist Studios, know how to craft a decent tale. There have only been 3 issues of this series centred on the enigmatic monster fighter of the title, but each one has been getting great buzz. Apparently a TPB will be released at some point, and coupled with the issues, via Panelfly and Robot Comics, on mobile devices means R13 will get more respect.
The simplicity of R13 is what lends it its charm. Robot 13 is the name of a centuries old skull headed robot who is charged with battling mythical monstrosities (one in every issue) with a fearless attitude and gangly limbs. With his origin becoming slightly less mysterious with every issue (and thankfully explained beautifully here), and Hall’s sparse use of captions and dialogue, this is one of those comics that can be easily read within minutes, but will more than likely be read multiple times. In this conclusion, R13 struggles to recall his ancient past, and recuperates from last issue’s battle while in the hillside home of a blind man called Oliver, and his dog.
It’s not long before a huge crimson cyclops tracks him down on a mad quest for vengeance and the battle heats up. This is by far the best issue yet. Bradford’s Mike Mignola comparisons seem far less necessary by now. Every issue has been filled with pages designed with such gusto that they demand to be gazed at. With #3 Bradford pulls out all the stops and fills these 32 pages with many moments like that. He has an uncanny knack of just knowing what looks unashamedly cool on paper, and it’s all done with so few lines and such subtle colouring, that it makes it even more impressive. The hard-edged approach to every shape, use of silhouettes and great tension building arrangement of panels all work splendidly to make this an engaging, and easy to follow tale. I could easily see Hall and Bradford working on a Clash of the Titans comic with the same vigour they show here.
Hall breathes humanity onto these pages to work hand in battle ravaged hand with Bradford’s artistry. Just a few conversations here and a few hints there and the story falls into place like toppling dominoes. There’s no verbose speeches in the vein of Brian Michael Bendis or Kevin Smith needed. I’m glad this pair have received the recognition they deserve. Really, R13 is just the product of 2 hard working fellows who obviously care about their end product greatly and that streamlined approach to storytelling makes this series as likeable as its metallic hero.
If you love R13 as much as I (and many others) do, you can also vote for the title in the Best Horror Comic Book category at the Rondo Awards before April 3. Below are the details from the R13 site, and here’s a great interview with both gentlemen, which is necessary reading for any would be self publishers.
The 8th annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards Ballot has been released, and Robot 13 has been nominated for Best Horror Comic Book!
The Rondo awards are a yearly program to allow fans of Horror to vote for their favorites in Horror film, books, comics, music and general fandom and can be voted on by YOU the fan! If you go to Rondoaward.com, you can get the ballot information as well as info about the Rondos and lists of past winners. You can vote for as many or as few of the categories as you like- so if there are those that you just don’t know anything about, feel free to pass on those and vote for the categories you feel strongly about. All votes must be emailed to taraco@aol.com with your name (so they can adhere to the One Person=One Vote rule) by Midnight of April 3, 2010.
While we would LOVE for you to Vote for Robot 13 for Best Horror Comic Book, I want to also encourage you to check out the site and vote for as many of the categories as you feel knowledgeable about. It’s an awesome, grass roots type of thing and a HUGE honor to be nominated for everyone involved.
I first became aware of Sam Kieth’s curious artistry when the animated series of his The Maxx comic was shown late at night on TV during my teens. I’ve followed him on and off ever since, most recently with his 2 issue Lobo: Highway to Hell series for DC. He’s also worked on The Sandman, as well as with Batman and Wolverine over the years. I guess he’s more known for the offbeat works that suit his unique sketchy style however, such as Epicurus the Sage and Zero Girl.
Unfortunately his website is inactive, so this attractive hard cover sampling of his work is a great place to start. IDW do have it in them to make well presented, stylish art books like this, as their Sparrow series of books (the latest one is centred on artist/designer Pushead) and their handsome tome covering the first decade of their own publishing history prove. Their quirky series such as ZVR Aventure (no, that’s not a spelling mistake) show that the decision makers behind IDW are indeed brave enough to produce non-standard comics. So, a book on Sam Kieth then seems like a logical step. Whether this is part of a series as the Vol. 1 subtitle indicates remains to be seen, but if so, it’s off to a good start.
Sure, it’s only 48 pages, but the oversized format and replications of Kieth’s sketchbook, (with dirt, scribbles, and all) works well. One look at Kieth’s artwork is all you’ll need to know if you’re a fan. There’s much diversity in these pages, and some minor comments from Kieth on the odd page. There’s a few pages dedicated to fashion, some to Japanese inspiration and several visual ideas on a film called Four Women he was once going to direct.
The different media used include paint, watercolours and pen and ink. Busy pages are sandwiched by superb examples of minimalist landscapes and flowing lines. This is $10, sure, but it’s a book you’ll certainly look at more than once.
My mate Mladen has finally started a blog. The long haired man with a stranger name than me certainly has some eclectic interests and his awareness of quirky sci-fi films, classic novels and music I’ve never heard of is most impressive. He unleashed his blog, The Drowning Machine last month. Check it out now. He’s always been a good writer and it’s encouraging to see him put it to good use. Right now, you’ll see a deleted scene from Terminator 3, a review of Crime and Punishment and some dazzling videos. Yep, eclectic. You can also check some of his own music out right here. Yes, he’s a musician and a writer. Thankfully, he can’t dance and this keeps him humble.
Awesome design site Abduzeedo has featured some great t-shirt designs in the last few days (including from Threadless), and they’re simply too good to not spotlight here. So here we go.
comicbookjesus 