I went looking for some out-of-print manga volumes about a month ago, and I was kind of shocked by how many bookstores and online booksellers had given up on doing their own fulfillment and instead signed up with one of Amazon's various associate programs. It was therefore a little shocking to see Tower Records enter the online bookselling arena this week, and not relying on Amazon's fine-tuned infrastructure to do so.
Tower Records is a great big 'media' store, with (according to Publisher's Weekly where I nabbed the story) 89 stores in the U.S. and 144 internationally. Toronto lost its Tower Records when the company went through some tough times a few years back, but on my trips downtown when I was younger I always found Tower Records inspiring. Where the other book stores in the city would have graphic novels shunted onto a shelf at the end of the fantasy role/playing game section (when they would carry them at all), Tower would always have a great big rack of them front-and-center, and carry zines and a huge selection of artbooks besides. Visionary.
Tower Records is using the distributor/order-fulfillment service Baker & Taylor for their online operations, which is good news for comic fans. B&T is often cited in retail circles as an amazing distribution alternative to Diamond for book product, particularly from publishers who don't use Diamond to distribute to the book trade. I don't want to go in depth on the range and breadth of titles that B&T is able to provide (mostly American) retailers that Diamond seems... unwilling... to take a stock position on, but it's the kind of thing that top-10 lists are made of. What does this mean to you the consumer? Well, I did a quick check of their stock by title and they seem to have a really good selection of material ready-to-ship. Their prices are competitive for online retailers as well.
While I don't think they'll be knocking Amazon off the top of the heap any time soon, the whole effort does make me happy. Probably unreasonably so given that I work for a brick-and-mortar retailer. But yeah, more competition for your online sales dollars from people who have historically paid attention to graphic novels. That's pretty cool.
I am sick. My throat is so hoarse from coughing that I can do little more than whisper, pathetically. In the spirit of loving my enemies, I bring you the mental image of me squeaking out "hello, the beguiling" on the phone before just giving up and handing the phone to someone else. Hilarious.
As for those of you who actually like me, I'll start blogging again as soon as I get a chance to sleep for more than an hour.
Oh, and I'm at work because it's Previews order upload day. No rest for the wicked. Although I could really, really use some rest.
My friend Eddie is auctioning off some of his art, which has a sort of cute-goth-cat thing going on. I just figured that amongst my audience there might be some cute-goth-cat-lovers, and so you should head over and bid post-haste.
The following items are shipping to The Beguiling in Toronto, Canada, next week. You might notice a few oddities as we go through the list, I'll do my best to sort'em out for you as we go, talk a little bit about distribution.
This is the complete series of ALIAS (which is an excellent read, I strongly recommend it) all in one big barely managable hardcover edition. The printing and production on Marvel's first Omnibus (that big Fantastic Four collection) is excellent, so I'm expecting good things here too. JAN060291 ALL STAR SUPERMAN #3 2.99
Yay! NOV052979 ANGEL DIARY VOL 2 GN (C: 0-1-2) 10.95 NOV051714 ANT VOL 1 REALITY BITES TP 12.99 JAN063264 ARM OF KANNON VOL 8 GN (OF 8) (MR) 9.99 JAN061798 BALLAD OF SLEEPING BEAUTY TP 21.95
JAN063184 BANANA SUNDAY TP (MR) 11.95
Colleen Coover, best known for her delightfully porny series Small Favors really surprised me with Banana Sunday. I have to admit to being powerfully underwhelmed by the first issue when I read it at San Diego last year, but the series totally won me over as I continued reading and the end was fun and satisfying. It really feels like an Oni book too, which I can't qualify saying in any way but I'm leaving it in here. Anyway, most everyone I know decided to start 'waiting for the trade' on most of Oni's series, so this is your chance to read and enjoy. JAN060285 BATMAN JOURNEY INTO KNIGHT #8 (OF 12) 2.50 JAN060284 BATMAN LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #202 2.50 JAN063265 BATTLE ROYALE VOL 15 GN (OF 15) (MR) 9.99 JAN063380 BEET THE VANDEL BUSTER VOL 9 GN (C: 1-0-0) 7.99 JAN063381 BLEACH VOL 12 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.95
JAN060307 BLUE BEETLE #1 2.99
Hey, it's the Blue Beetle! One year later! FEB061759 BOOK OF SHADOWS #1 (OF 2) 3.50 JAN062020 BOOKS OF DOOM #5 (OF 6) 2.99 FEB063192 CANT LOSE YOU VOL 1 GN (OF 6) 9.99 JAN062019 CAPTAIN AMERICA 65TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL 3.99 JAN063256 CHIBI VAMPIRE VOL 1 GN (OF 5) (MR) 9.99 JAN063116 CHICANOS #5 3.99 JAN062796 CHRONO CRUSADE MANGA VOL 7 TP 9.99
JAN063382 CLAYMORE VOL 1 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.99
Kind of looking forward to this new Shonen Jump series, as the art I've seen seems interesting. I feel a bit behind the times though, not knowing whether to recommend this or not before it's out. I've really gotta work at getting back into the swing of things.... JAN062097 DAREDEVIL VOL 13 THE MURDOCK PAPERS TP 14.99 AUG052887 DARK EDGE VOL 5 TP 9.95 SEP051687 DEADWORLD #3 (RES) (MR) 3.50 JAN063266 DEARS VOL 6 GN (OF 7) 9.99 JAN063008 DIGITAL WEBBING PRESENTS #28 3.99
FEB063193 DOKEBI BRIDE VOL 1 GN 9.99
This, on the other hand, I can definitely recommend. I pikced up this new Korean manwha from publisher NetComics at the New York Comic Con a few weeks back, and it's really a unique, wonderful read. A more traditional-seeming 'horror' narrative gives way to an extended short story of familial love and tradition, which is terrifying too. The storytelling and style is a few degrees removed from manga, and if you've been enjoying some of the recent off-the-beaten-path manga like Monster or Dragon Head, you might want to give this one a shot.
JAN063051 DONALD DUCK ADVENTURES VOL 17 TP 7.95 JAN063267 DRAGON HEAD VOL 2 GN (OF 10) (MR) 9.99 JAN063383 DRAGONBALL Z VOL 25 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.95 JAN062988 DRAGONLANCE CHRONICLES KURTH CVR A #8 (OF 8) 2.95
JAN063257 EAST COAST RISING VOL 1 GN (OF 3) 9.99
Yay! It's Becky Cloonan's new graphic novel! East Coast Rising is apparently about pirates? Or something? I dunno, I've tried to deliberately not read about this so I could just settle in and enjoy it without much in the way of preconceived notions. Still, I love Becky's stuff so this should be at the very least, great. OCT052800 ESSENTIAL ARSENIC LULLABY VOL 2 DONUT COMETH TP (M 19.99 JAN062105 ESSENTIAL NOVA VOL 1 TP 16.99 FEB062908 EUREKA SEVEN VOL 1 GN (C: 1-0-0) 9.99 DEC054102 EXALTED RPG 2ND EDITION (C: 0-1-2) 39.99 JAN063389 EYESHIELD 21 VOL 7 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.99 JAN063098 FALLEN ANGEL IDW #4 (OF 5) 3.99 JAN062022 FANTASTIC FOUR #536 2.99 JAN062941 FIRST KINGDOM VOL 2 TP (OF 4) (RES) (MR) 19.95 FEB062986 FORGOTTEN REALMS DARK ELF TRILOGY VOL 2 EXILE TP 14.95 JAN063270 FRUITS BASKET VOL 13 GN (OF 14) 9.99 JAN062795 FULL METAL PANIC MANGA VOL 9 TP 9.99 JAN063114 GEORGE ROMEROS LAND OF THE DEAD TP (MR) 19.99 AUG052644 GLOOMCOOKIE #25 (MR) 2.95 JAN061812 GODLAND #9 2.99 JAN062839 GOLD DIGGER #73 2.99
DEC053139 GRAY HORSES GN (MR) 14.95
So, here's something interesting. This shipped to the west coast 2 weeks ago. The east coast is getting it next Wednesday. It all has to do with due-dates and timelines at Diamond and things like that, but really think about this: If Diamond as a distributor can't pull it together enough to ship a book to all of their clients at once, how can anyone expect them to be competitive when it comes to shipping books where they AREN'T the exclusive distributor? Why should any retailer expect to get their DEL REY manga product, or their TEZUKA'S BUDDHA from Vertical with anything resembling the promptness in which it is delivered from those respective publishers to the bookstore market? And why is so much of the bitching that I see about this situation aimed at the publishers, when it really isn't the publisher's act that needs to be pulled together...?
Anyway.
Gray Horses is marvelous. I got a chance to read author Hope Larson's copy last week when I was visiting, and it's just a great story, beautifully illustrated. I really like Hope as a friend, but I'm absolutly thrilled to see such obviously skilled work in comics by a woman creator. The comics industry needs new voices, particularly when they've got something important to say and say it so beautifully as Larson's work does. FEB063194 GREAT CATSBY VOL 1 GN (OF 5) 17.99
Another new NetComics manwha, I've been reading this online at their website http://www.netcomics.com. It's amusing and has made me laugh-out-loud a few times, but I can't help wondering if the translation is off. It read really awkwardly at times and it kind of put me off a bit. I guess I'll take a look and see if it maybe flows a bit better on the printed page.
Oh, and the reason for the $17.99 price point is that it's in full-colour. JAN060310 GREEN LANTERN #10 2.99 DEC052754 HAMMER KID #0 3.50 OCT053485 HANNES BOK SHOWCASE HC (MR) 17.99 JAN060380 HELLBLAZER LADY CONSTANTINE TP (MR) 9.99 JAN062997 HOW TO SELF PUBLISH COMICS #2 (OF 4) 4.95 FEB061780 HYSTERIA ONE MAN GANG #2 (OF 4) 2.99 JAN062102 INFINITY WAR TP 29.99
OCT051740 INVINCIBLE #30 2.99
I'm glad Kirkman is finding nice paychecks and attention at Marvel, but Invincible and Walking Dead are both months late at this point. I really wish he'd focus his energies here for the foreseeable future, instead of whatever fifth-week-event that Marvel has dreamed up. AUG052889 IRON WOK JAN GN #15 9.95
Just for the record, both volume 16 and volume 17 have already shipped through Diamond.
JAN062028 IRON MAN #6 2.99 NOV053046 JENNA #3 (OF 3) 3.95 DEC053120 JENNA AND NINJA HIGH SCHOOL #1 (OF 3) 3.49 JAN060317 JLA CLASSIFIED #19 2.99 NOV052754 JOVAS HARVEST #3 (OF 3) (NOTE PRICE) 3.50 JAN062999 KILLER 7 #2 (MR) 2.95 DEC050044 LADY SNOWBLOOD VOL 3 RETRIBUTION PART 1 TP (MR) (C 14.95 FEB063201 LAST ISLAND GN 6.00 OCT052697 LEGEND OF ISIS #8 2.99 JAN063255 LIFE VOL 1 GN (OF 9) (MR) 9.99 JAN063262 LOVE HINA NOVEL VOL 1 (OF 2) (MR) 7.99 JAN060382 LUCIFER #72 (MR) 2.75 OCT052701 LULLABY ONCE UPON A TIME VOL 1 PIED PIPER OF HAMEL 5.99 JAN062087 MARVEL MASTERWORKS GOLDEN AGE MARVEL COMICS VOL 2 49.99 JAN062031 MARVEL ROMANCE REDUX GUYS & DOLL 2.99 JAN062043 MARVEL SPOTLIGHT DAVID FINCH ROBERTO AGUIRRE-SACAS 2.99 JAN068200 MBQ VOL 2 GN (MR) 9.99 DEC053324 MIDDLEMAN VOL 2 #2 WINNEBAGO INTERROGATION CONTING 2.95
JAN062042 NEW AVENGERS ILLUMINATI SPECIAL 3.99
IT ALL STARTS HERE OR SOMETHING!
JAN062084 NEW AVENGERS VOL 3 SECRETS & LIES PREMIERE HC 19.99 JAN062052 NICK FURY HOWLING COMMANDOS #6 2.99 JAN060289 NIGHTWING MOBBED UP TP 12.99 JAN063384 ONE PIECE VOL 10 GN (C: 1-0-0) 7.95
FEB063009 OR ELSE #4 (MR) 5.95
This is an April release, it's actually shipping early. DEC053548 OXIDE VOL 2 SC (C: 0-1-2) 43.99 JAN061797 PACIFY GN 12.99 FEB063441 PRISM COMICS LGBT GUIDE TO COMICS MAGAZINE 2006 (M 5.95 JAN063185 QUEEN & COUNTRY #29 (MR) 2.99 JAN061845 RISING STARS UNTOUCHABLE #2 (OF 5) 2.99 JAN063385 RUROUNI KENSHIN VOL 25 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.95 JAN061818 SAVAGE DRAGON #124 (RES) 2.99 SEP052732 SCIENCE FAIR #4 (OF 8) 2.99 OCT051719 SEA OF RED VOL 2 NO QUARTER TP (MR) 11.99 JAN062058 SENTRY #7 (OF 8) 2.99
DEC053143 SHARKNIFE VOL 1 GN (MR) 9.95
This is the new edition of Sharknife, which has been reformatted and features a brand-new cover illustration. Odd that it doesn't say NEW EDITION anywhere, but whatever... Corey Lewis fans better show up and DEMAND a copy on Wednesday, that's all I'm saying. JAN062874 SOULFIRE #6 (RES) 2.99 NOV051759 SPAWN #154 2.95 NOV051724 SPAWN MANGA VOL 3 TP 9.99 JAN062001 SPIDER-MAN & ARANA SPECIAL 3.99 JAN063094 SPIKE VS DRACULA #2 (OF 5) 3.99 DEC050051 STAR WARS CLONE WARS VOL 8 LAST SIEGE FINAL TRUTH 17.95 JAN060138 STAR WARS KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC #3 (C: 1-0-0 2.99 JAN060130 STAR WARS RETURN OF TAG & BINK SPECIAL ED #1 (OF 2 2.99 DEC053138 STRANGE DETECTIVE TALES DEAD LOVE #2 (OF 3) (MR) 3.95 OCT051710 STRANGE GIRL #7 2.99 DEC053203 SUPER REAL #2 (MR) 3.25
SEP050222 SUPERMAN BATMAN #24 (RES) 2.99
HOLY SHIT BATMAN! I wonder how many months between this and the next issue? I wonder if they just chintzed it out and coloured it from the pencils, like they did on Churchill's last issue of Supergirl. JAN063354 SURROGATES #5 (OF 5) 2.95
JAN062956 TALES OF ALVIN MAKER RED PROPHET #1 ARLEM CVR A 2.95 JAN062957 TALES OF ALVIN MAKER RED PROPHET #1 BUXTON CVR B 5.95
Hmm. This is supposed to be kind of a big deal. I'm genuinely curious to see how it does tomorrow, if there's a market for the series or not. I read the first Alvin Maker book years ago and really enjoyed it, with each sequel seeming less and less interesting to me. I think I got to about half way through the third one before giving up. JAN063158 TALES OF TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #21 3.25 JAN062932 TAROT WITCH OF THE BLACK ROSE #37 (MR) 2.95 NOV050031 TARZAN THE JOE KUBERT YEARS VOL 2 HC (C: 0-1-2) 49.95 JAN060336 TEEN TITANS GO #29 2.25 DEC052762 TEMPEST ONE SHOT 3.50
NOV053247 TEZUKAS BUDDHA VOL 8 JETAVANA HC (AUG058161) (C: 4 24.95
Speaking of which, we've had this for better than 2 weeks already and I'm fairly confident it's been available through mainstream book distributors for 3-4 weeks. Better still, we're being SEVERELY ALLOCATED on our order of Buddha 8 through Diamond. We're getting 1 copy. Seriously, 1 out of like 20 or 30 I think? Anyway, someone fucked this up mightily.
I hate it when that kind of shit overshadows the conclusion to a brilliant comic like this, but at least it gives me plenty to talk about. JAN062061 THING #5 2.99 JAN063180 TRAILERS SC 11.95 JAN063091 TRANSFORMERS GENERATION 1 VOL 2 TP (IDW) 19.99 JAN061998 ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #92 2.50 JAN062073 UNCANNY X-MEN #471 2.50 JAN062048 UNTOLD TALES OF THE NEW UNIVERSE PSI-FORCE 2.99 JAN060077 USAGI YOJIMBO #92 2.99 JAN062871 VERONICA #169 2.25
OCT052708 VICTORIAS SECRET SERVICE #1 (NOTE PRICE) 2.99
Please, please someone sue them. NOV051761 WALKING DEAD #27 (MR) 2.99 JAN060331 WARLORD #2 2.99 FEB062887 WARREN ELLIS BLACK GAS AUXILIARY ED #1 (NOTE PRICE 3.99 JAN060345 WILL EISNERS SPIRIT ARCHIVES VOL 18 HC 49.99 DEC053039 WITCHGIRLS INC #3 (NOTE PRICE) 3.25 FEB062761 WIZARD COMICS MAGAZINE KUBERTS CVR #175 (C: 0-1-2) 5.99 FEB062760 WIZARD COMICS MAGAZINE SUPERMAN PHOTO CVR #175 (C: 5.99 JAN063283 WORLD EXISTS FOR ME VOL 2 GN (OF 2) 9.99 NOV054021 WORLD OF DARKNESS CHICAGO THREE SHADES OF NIGHT TP 14.99 JAN063259 X KAI VOL 1 GN (OF 2) (MR) 9.99 JAN062095 X-MEN COLOSSUS BLOODLINE TP 13.99 FEB062082 X-MEN DARK PHOENIX SAGA TP NEW PRINTING 24.99 JAN062075 X-MEN DEADLY GENESIS #5 (OF 6) 3.50
JAN062078 X-STATIX PRESENTS DEAD GIRL #3 (OF 5) 2.99
Yay! Been loving this series. Reads really well issue-to-issue too.
SEP052681 YENNY #3 2.99 JAN063386 YU GI OH DUELIST VOL 14 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.95 JAN063387 YU GI OH MILLENNIUM WORLD VOL 3 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.95 JAN063388 YU YU HAKUSHO VOL 9 TP (C: 1-0-0) 7.95 JAN063260 YUBISAKI MILK TEA VOL 1 GN (OF 4) (MR) 9.99 DEC052894 ZOMBIE TALES THE DEAD #1 6.99 DEC053153 ZORRO VOL 3 HC 12.95 DEC053154 ZORRO VOL 3 SC 7.95
What do Pascual Ferry, Simone Bianchi, Ryan Sook, Frazier Irving, and Yannick Paquette all have in common? They're all artists who worked on Grant Morrison's Seven Soldiers of Victory series for DC Comics, yes. But they're also artists who were offered really big gigs at Marvel while they were still working on those books, and in some the cases of Bianchi, Ferry, and just this week Paquette, the creators were offered exclusive contracts too.
I'm a paranoid type, so as soon as it was 'discovered' that Pascual Ferry would be leaving Seven Soldiers: Mister Miracle following the first issue because he signed an exclusive contract with Marvel, I wondered if Marvel was fucking with Grant Morrison (it also became clear that Ferry was offered the exclusive whilst otherwise employed AND that DC was not going to put up with that). Morrison did not leave Marvel under amicable terms, and I was at the Wizard World following his DC Exclusive announcement where a very intense, public conversation took place between Morrison and Marvel Editor-In-Chief Joe Quesada... I'm sure neither will admit it in public in any other tone than the 'jovial' back and forth that Marvel and DC have adopted as of late, but if any of you can stomach the CUP O JOE Fridays at Newsarama, there's a question to ask...
Anyway, that whole Ferry Exclusive thing is exactly the type of paranoia-minutae that I keep to myself, and I didn't really let it come up again until I read the press-release for Paquette's exclusive this week. Paquette just finished off the series Seven Soldiers: Bulletteer a few days earlier, and then at Wizard World: LA we got the news which includes this bitchy little number:
"Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada is happy to be part of completing on of Paquette’s professional goals. “Yanick’s a great guy, a fantastic artist, and someone who’s been toiling too quietly in the industry. He deserves to be up in the clouds with the rest of us at good ol’ Marvel…we’ll make a superstar outta him!”" - Press Release announcing Yanick Paquette's exclusive contract with Marvel Comics (Errors intact)
Yes, Yanick has been toiling far too quietly in the industry on that big critically-acclaimed crossover event... Actually, there's another funny line in there too, "[Paquette] may be best known for his work on the aforementioned two volumes of TERRA OBSCURA, for ABC." This is a series that sold less and was less recent than the Morrison book he worked on, by the by.
Apparently the air is a little thin up there "in the clouds" because Marvel 'had' Paquette. He used to draw Gambit for them back in the day, and it was a bit crap compared to his current work, and he used to go to conventions and bitch and bitch and bitch about how shitty it was working for Marvel and how much he hated it. So, you know, I hope the contract had some 'shut the fuck up' money (or 'hush money', I always forget what that's called) in it or something.
So, here's what it looks like:
Seven Soldiers #0/#1: JH Williams, Exclusive to DC SS Shining Knight: Simone Bianchi, new Marvel Exclusive SS Guardian: Cameron Stewart, working at DC/Freelance (No Exclusive!) SS Klarion: Frazier Irving, working on Iron Man (marvel) SS Zatanna: Ryan Sook, working on X-Factor (marvel) SS Mister Miracle: Pascal Ferry, new Marvel Exclusive SS Bulletteer: Yanick Paquette, new Marvel Exclusive SS Frankenstein: Doug Mahnke, Exclusive to DC
It looks like Cameron Stewart is the odd man out here, with no announced Marvel work in the near future or a DC Exclusive to prevent him from doing so. Cameron's a friend so I guess I could just ask him, but then I couldn't tell you whatever he ended up telling me. In the end the point is moot.
The larger point though is that publishing is petty and vindictive. In case, you didn't already know that.
THE GREAT OUTDOOR FIGHT "I just beat the asses of three thousand men. The hell you leave me alone." http://www.achewood.com
You know what's excellent? Achewood. Achewood is a semi-regular webcomic from creator Chris Onstad, and it can be found at http://www.achewood.com. The webcomic is about a series of stuffed animals and housecats that live and love and go through their daily travails. Almost every Achewood strip is currently available online for free, and is also available in books that Chris Onstad self-publishes.
If you want to be one of the normals, you know, just click there and start reading. Seriously, just click there and start reading all the way through, it's worth it (particularly when the cats show up).
However, if you are the kind of dude who lives life to the fullest and every action you make deserves a throbbing guitar chord soundtrack accompaniment, might I suggest:
THE GREAT OUTDOOR FIGHT
Yes, the greatest sporting event in the known world! 3 Days! 3 Acres! 3000 Men! Last man standing wins! Probably the most intense bunch of webcomics I've read, the strip has been firing on so many cylanders that there's some sort of crazy cylander shortage. It's so good that it crashed the site! It's so good that they've run out of T-Shirts! It's so good that I'm sending you right over to enjoy it, right bloody now. Check out these convenient starting places:
We're entering into the end game folks. Get started reading now, and then buckle up tight for the thrilling conclusion. And while you're at it, buy a couple books or a T-Shirt or something. Support alternate distribution and publishing channels...
So my 'vacation' was not so much metaphorical as 'real'. Andrew and I just got back from Halifax where we visited Hope and Mal for 6 days and drank and ate rich foods and generally just had a very nice time.
Thanks to Hope and Mal for putting us up and driving us around and just being awesome, and for the warm welcome from Calum and Mike Drake at Strange Adventures (see link above). This is the most relaxing six days I've spent in years, actually, and it's left me feeling really re-energized and positive about comics and the work I'm doing.
I have to admit to having felt a little burnt-out since Christmas, and I'm looking forward to putting the finishing touches on many of the things that I've been working on, and really moving forward. I'm also looking forward to spending time with my friends, who've gotten the short end of the stick for the past few months too. In short, it's going to be an exciting few months...!
Thanks for reading. Regular updating resumes later today.
Today has just gotten fucking wierd. Kai won't stop listening to The Smiths and text messaging some girl who broke his heart. Achewood has apparently updated with the coolest damned thing ever, except I wouldn't know BECAUSE THE SITE IS DOWN. I have to do 1 hour of shopping, 2 hours of driving, 3 hours of laundry, and eat dinner before getting on a plane tomorrow and I'm stressing the fuck out about it because there just aren't that many hours.
Why does Viz charge a dollar more per book for their Shoujo Beat books than it does for their Shonen Jump books? That's what Brigid at Mangablog would like to know:
"I realize that this isn’t a deeply significant issue, and also that some girls read shonen and some boys read shoujo. But I’m really, really tired of getting charged more for girl stuff. My husband and I go to the same hairdresser and get essentially the same haircut, yet I pay $10 more. Men’s clothes are consistently cheaper than women’s for the same level of quality. And we have to pay more for our manga as well? Boooooo!!!" - Brigid at Mangablog
The answer? Girls will pay more.
Seriously. These things are priced at what the market will bear. Girls will pay more for clothes and haircuts and manga. If they wouldn't, prices would come down.
Commerce is also the great equalizer though. While Kenshin and Inu Yasha and NARUTO all do very well on the charts, I heard more than once in New York that publishers and book-buyers are starting to wonder whether Naruto would have sold just as much at $9.99 as it did at $7.95. Because if it would...? That's hundreds of thousands of dollars that went 'missing'. And the average Shonen Jump manga takes up just as much space on the rack as the average Tokyopop manga, or Del Rey manga. Bookstores are making $2-3 more on those books with every sale... Do you think that's not a real, solid incentive to stock those books instead?
If anything prices are going to go higher. Del Rey and newcomer GoComi! have claimed the $10.95 price point, with only the most minor of consumer resistance. DMP's books, including their popular YAOI line, are all prices at $12.95. In fact, Del Rey has already staked out an even higher price-point, for their line of 'mature readers' graphic novels starting with BASILISK in May at $13.95 a volume. The fan base is chomping at the bit for that series, and if someone has bitched about the price please send me the link, I'd love to see it.
At this point, there's no incentive for prices to be as low as they are, because the current market is sustainable and renewable at $10 a pop. Prices coming in line with Japanese manga collections (maybe $3-$4 on average per book) is a pipe dream at best.
That said, if you argued for a $9.99 price point on manga 10 years ago you'd've been openly mocked. It took an upstart company to change the formats and lower the prices, and everyone that wasn't that company was exceptionally slow to react (Viz still isn't finished re-releasing their old books in the new format, though they're pretty darned close!). It'll take another upstart to crack a $5 price point, and that book would have to be an existing cultural phenomenon for anyone to consider taking the risk. Tokyopop is still experimenting though and we could see the $5 graphic novel sooner than you think. Their extremely popular KINGDOM HEARTS manga, an adaptation of the Disney/Final Fantasy video game (this is a simplification for the non-hardcore fans) landed at $5.99 a book, and is flying off the shelves. Price is definitely an issue too, at $6 anyone who's even remotely curious will give it a shot... And it's that sort of casual buyer that turns a growing niche into a mass-market.
So, yeah. Girls have it tougher than boys at Viz, but adults have it much much tougher and all of North America is taking a hit as compared to France's manga scene, let alone Japan.
But it's clear to me that someone somewhere is going to make the drop eventually, and I wonder how long a $14 price point will last, even with superior product and re-touch and translation, against a comperable book for a third the price (hint: ask Studio Proteus).
- Christopher Top Image: The French edition of NANA. It is cheaper to import the French-language version of Nana from France to Toronto than it is to buy Nana domestically from Viz, even though it's printed about an hour away from me.
Edit: I just wanted to mention I found the link to this story from David's Precocious Curmudgeon. Sorry I forgot to mention it David, it was very late last night. :)
"What if everything I did was expressly designed to make a certain someone love me?"
"That's so manipulative!"
"It's not manipulative! It's ADORING."
My friend Ryan North makes Dinosaur Comics, and everything's coming up Ryan these days. His comics will be featured in the upcoming Attitude Volume 3 collection from NBM, he's shortlisted for a "Blooker Prize" (which is very cool), and he just shaved his head (his hair was down to the middle of his back) for charity, and is now absolutely terrifying when he smiles. But he did it for the children.
DC Trade Paperback Solicits for July and August 2006 Don't get your hopes up, there's no NEW FRONTIER. http://dccomics.com
From the press release, with my comments in bold:
--
DC COMICS SCHEDULES NEW COLLECTED EDITIONS FOR JULY AND AUGUST
HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE ABSOLUTE KINGDOM COME AND ABSOLUTE DARK KNIGHT
Two new Absolute editions - ABSOLUTE KINGDOM COME and ABSOLUTE DARK KNIGHT - are among the highlights of DC Comics' list new collected editions scheduled to arrive in stores in July and August.
Scheduled to arrive in stores in July, the ABSOLUTE KINGDOM COME HC Collects the immortal work written by Mark Waid and illustrated by Alex Ross, with Ross providing a brand-new cover painting. The two-volume, slipcased set, coming for the tenth anniversary of the original miniseries' debut, includes an extended character sketch section, a peek into Ross's own sketchbook, text pieces by Waid and Ross, annotations of the entire series, rare art (from magazines, trading cards, T-shirts, the novelization and more), promotional images, a gallery of DC Direct KINGDOM COME products, the evolution of a story page, and much more!
- Interestingly, they don't come out and mention if this will have all of the extra material that was included in the original KINGDOM COME HARD COVER edition (which came with an extra book), or if it will include the extra material produced after the series and collected in the MYTHOLOGY book (or elsewhere). I don't know if it'll be the extras or the size of pretty art that sells the fans, but the announcement could have used more clarity...
And coming in August, the ABSOLUTE DARK KNIGHT collects both THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, written by Frank Miller and illustrated by Miller & Klaus Janson, and THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN, written and illustrated by Miller. This two-volume, slipcased Absolute edition contains all previous collection covers, retail posters, excerpts of press coverage, and sketchbook material originally seen only in the tenth anniversary edition of THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, along with never-before-seen material such as the plot to issue #4 of THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, excerpts of scripts to THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN, and a generous sketch section! In addition, Miller provides a new introduction, a new cover, and new art for the slipcase!
- I actually liked the second series, and I think comissioning Miller to do new slipcase art is a huge, huge mistake. I also find the design of the Absolute editions generally disappointing. I don't know who thinks they can improve on Chip Kidd's most recent kick-at-the-can, but Watchmen in particular was really under-designed.
Please note that this information is subject to change.
DCU titles scheduled to arrive in stores in July include:
BATMAN CHRONICLES VOL. 2 TP Writer: Bill Finger Artists: Bob Kane & Jerry Robinson Collects stories from DETECTIVE COMICS #39-45, BATMAN #2-3 and NEW YORK WORLD'S FAIR COMICS #2 224 pages, $14.99 U.S.
BATMAN: CITY OF CRIME TP Writer: David Lapham Artists: Ramon Bachs & Nathan Massengill Collects DETECTIVE COMICS #800-808 and #811-814 288 pages, $19.99 U.S.
- I'm kind of looking forward to reading David Lapham's Batman arc, though the covers were just consistantly better than the interior art in a way that I found off-putting. I think that Jason read a couple of these and thought that they were no great shakes. I'm just hoping that between this and Daredevil/Punisher he made enough to do some more Stray Bullets.
SUPERMAN/BATMAN VOL. 4: VENGEANCE HC Writer: Jeph Loeb Artists: Ed McGuinness & Dexter Vines Collects SUPERMAN/BATMAN #20-25 160 pages, $19.99 U.S.
SUPERMAN: INFINITE CRISIS TP Writers: Joe Kelly, Marv Wolfman and Jeph Loeb Artists: Ed Benes, Lee Bermejo, Howard Chaykin, Ian Churchill, Karl Kerschl, Phil Jimenez, Dan Jurgens, Ed McGuinness, Jerry Ordway, Tim Sale and various Collects SUPERMAN #226, ACTION COMICS #836, ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #649 and INFINITE CRISIS SECRET FILES 2006. 128 pages, $12.99 U.S.
SUPERMAN/DOOMSDAY: THE OMNIBUS TP Writers: Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway, Jeph Loeb and others Artists: Jurgens, Ordway, Gil Kane, Mike Wieringo, Ed McGuiness and others Collects SUPERMAN: THE DOOMSDAY WARS 1-3, SUPERMAN/DOOMSDAY: HUNTER PREY #1-3, DOOMSDAY ANNUAL #1, ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #594 and SUPERMAN #175. 416 pages, $19.99 U.S. This item is produced for specific mass market retailers and is available through Previews to the specialty market. - [Emphasis mine]
- Huh. I wonder which specific mass-market retailers those are, and I'm really curious if it'll be a simultanious release or not between markets. I thought this was a wierd collection when I saw it, but I missed that little slug of text. The next item, the Our Worlds At War, seems to be a similar deal (and an extra 5 bucks for an extra 100 pages isn't a bad deal at all). I imagine these will do alright.
SUPERMAN: OUR WORLDS AT WAR COMPLETE EDITION TP Writers: Jeph Loeb, Joe Kelly, Phil Jimenez and various Artists: Ed McGuinness, Ron Garney, Doug Mahnke, Jimenez, Bill Sienkiewicz, and various Collects the SUPERMAN: OUR WORLDS AT WAR VOLUMES 1 and 2 TPs. 512 pages, $24.99 U.S. This item is produced for specific mass market retailers and is available through Previews to the specialty market.
ABSOLUTE KINGDOM COME HC Writer: Mark Waid Artist: Alex Ross Collects KINGDOM COME #1-4, plus a sketchbook section, annotations and more. 340 pages, $75.00 U.S.
- Apparently my friend Kevin bugged someone in San Francisco and they admitted that the DC NEW FRONTIER ABSOLUTE was in the works. My guess is on this Christmas...?
METAL MEN ARCHIVES VOL. 1 HC Writer: Robert Kanigher Artists: Ross Andru & Mike Esposito Collects SHOWCASE #37-40 and METAL MEN #1-5 (1962-1964). 246 pages, $49.99 U.S.
SEVEN SOLDIERS OF VICTORY VOL. 4 TP Writer: Grant Morrison Artists: Doug Mahnke, Freddie Williams II, Yanick Paquette, J.H. Williams III and Michael Bair Collects SEVEN SOLDIERS: FRANKENSTEIN #2-4, SEVEN SOLDIERS: MISTER MIRACLE #3-4, SEVEN SOLDIERS: BULLETEER #3-4 and SEVEN SOLDIERS: SEVEN SOLDIERS #1. 224 pages, $14.99 U.S.
- Yay!
SHOWCASE PRESENTS THE ELONGATED MAN TP Writers: John Broome and Gardner Fox Artists: Carmine Infantino, Neal Adams, Murphy Anderson and Gil Kane Collects stories from THE FLASH #112, 115, 119, 124, 130, 134 and 138 and DETECTIVE COMICS #327-371. 560 pages, $16.99 U.S.
TEEN TITANS: LIFE AND DEATH TP Writers: Geoff Johns, Bill Willingham and Marv Wolfman Artists: Tony Daniel, Scott McDaniel, Paco Medina, Todd Nauck and others Collects TEEN TITANS #29-33, TEEN TITANS ANNUAL #1 and ROBIN #146-147. 208 pages, $19.99 U.S.
WONDER WOMAN: MISSION'S END TP Writer: Greg Rucka Artists: Rags Morales, Cliff Richards, David Lopez and various Collects WONDER WOMAN #218-226 208 pages, $14.99 U.S.
DCU titles scheduled to arrive in stores in August:
ABSOLUTE DARK KNIGHT HC Writer: Frank Miller Artists: Frank Miller and Klaus Janson Collects BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS #1-4 and THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN #1-3 512 pages, $99.99 U.S.
- That's really, really expensive.
BATGIRL: DESTRUCTION'S DAUGHTER TP Writer: Anderson Gabrych Artists: Alé Garza, Pop Mhan, Andy Kuhn, Jesse Delperdang and Cam Smith Collects BATGIRL #65-73 224 pages, $19.99 U.S.
GREEN ARROW: HEADING INTO THE LIGHT TP Writer: Judd Winick and Jim Calafiore Artists: Tom Fowler, Ron Garney, Paul Lee, Ron Lim, Dan Davis, Bill Reinhold, Rodney Ramos and various Collects GREEN ARROW #52 and 54-59 160 pages, $12.99 U.S.
GREEN LANTERN: THE GREATEST STORIES EVER TOLD TP Writers: Bill Finger, Robert Kanigher, Gardner Fox, John Broome, Dennis O'Neil, Len Wein, Elliot S. Maggin, Alan Moore, Ron Marz, Gerard Jones and Geoff Johns Artists: Martin Nodell, Irwin Hasen, Gil Kane, Murphy Anderson, Dick Dillin, Dick Giordano, Neal Adams, Dave Gibbons, Bill Willingham, Daryl Banks, Cully Hamner, Dan Panosian and Darwyn Cooke Collects stories from ALL-AMERICAN COMICS #89, GREEN LANTERN (VOL. 1) #1, GREEN LANTERN (VOL. 2) #1, 87, and 172, SUPERMAN #257, TALES OF THE GREEN LANTERN CORPS ANNUAL #3, GREEN LANTERN (VOL. 3) #3, GREEN LANTERN: MOSAIC #5 and GREEN LANTERN SECRET FILES 2005, and more! 192 pages, $19.99 U.S.
JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA VOL. 1 TP Writers: Gerry Conway and Paul Levitz Artists: Ric Estrada, Wallace Wood, Keith Giffen, Joe Staton, Bob Layton and various Collects ALL STAR COMICS #58-67 and DC SPECIAL #29. 224 pages, $14.99 U.S.
- Uhh...? What? Is this like those chronicle books? Are they only collecting it because Levitz worked on it? Anyone know what's up with this?
PLASTIC MAN ARCHIVES VOL. 8 HC Writer: Jack Cole Artists: Jack Cole Collects PLASTIC MAN #9 and 10 and stories from POLICE COMICS #72-77 204 pages, $49.99 U.S.
ROBIN: DAYS OF FIRE AND MADNESS TP Writer: Bill Willingham Artists: Scott McDaniel and Andy Owen Collects ROBIN #140-145. 144 pages, $12.99 U.S.
JOHNNY DC titles scheduled to arrive in stores in July:
TEEN TITANS GO! VOL. 4: READY FOR ACTION TP Writer: J. Torres Artists: Todd Nauck, Mike Norton and Lary Stucker Collects TEEN TITANS GO! #16-20 104 pages, $6.99 U.S.
TEEN TITANS GO! VOL. 5: ON THE MOVE TP Writer: J. Torres Artists: Todd Nauck, Sean Galloway, Khary Randolph, Mike Norton and Lary Stucker Collects TEEN TITANS GO! #21-25 104 pages, $6.99 U.S.
Johnny DC titles scheduled to arrive in stores in August:
THE BATMAN STRIKES VOL. 3: DUTY CALLS TP Writers: Bill Matheny and J. Torres Artists: Christopher Jones and Terry Beatty Collects THE BATMAN STRIKES #11-14 and 16. 104 pages, $6.99 U.S.
THE BATMAN STRIKES VOL. 4: BEHIND THE SHADOWS TP Writer: Bill Matheny Artists: Christopher Jones and Terry Beatty Collects THE BATMAN STRIKES #17-21. 104 pages, $6.99 U.S.
Will Eisner Library title scheduled to arrive in stores in August:
THE SPIRIT ARCHIVES VOL. 19 HC Writer/artist: Will Eisner Collects Spirit sections from July - December 1949 196 pages, $49.99 U.S.
CMX titles scheduled to arrive in stores in July:
THE RECIPE FOR GERTRUDE VOL. 1 Writer/artist: Saki Hiwatari 200 pages, $9.99 U.S.
CIPHER VOL. 4 Writer/artist: Mitsuba Takanashi 240 pages, $9.99 U.S.
OMUKAE DESU VOL. 1 Writer/artist: Kaoru Mori 192 pages, $9.99 U.S.
TENJHO TENGE VOL. 9 Writer/artist: Oh! great 216 pages, $9.99 U.S.
THE DEVIL DOES EXIST VOL. 7 Writer/artist: Mitsuba Takanashi 184 pages, $9.99 U.S.
TOWER OF THE FUTURE VOL. 4 Writer/artist: Saki Hiwatari 192 pages, $9.99 U.S.
THE YOUNG MAGICIAN VOL. 5 Writer/artist: Yuri Narushima 208 pages, $9.99 U.S.
WILDSTORM titles
WildStorm titles scheduled to arrive in stores in July:
SILENT DRAGON TP Writer: Andy Diggle Artists: Leinil Frances Yu, Gerry Alanguilan and Richard Friend Collects SILENT DRAGON #1-6 144 pages, $19.99 U.S.
- This has been selling really well for us, although almost entirely for the art. It's wierd, this series has generated a good deal of interest in Yu's last Wildstorm series High Roads (written by Scott Lobdell or Joe Casey, I can't remember). Yu's an extremely talented artist and I'm glad to see him finally getting some attention.
TOP 10: BEYOND THE FARTHEST PRECINCT TP Writer: Paul DiFilippo Artist: Jerry Ordway 136 pages, $14.99 U.S.
WildStorm title scheduled to arrive in stores in August:
THE AUTHORITY/LOBO: HOLIDAY HELL TP Writers: Alan Grant and Keith Giffen Artists: Simon Bisley and Henry Flint Collects the LOBO PARAMILITARY CHRISTMAS SPECIAL, THE AUTHORITY VS. LOBO: JINGLE HELL and THE AUTHORITY/LOBO: SPRING BREAK MASSACRE. 160 pages, $17.99 U.S.
- Finally! Someone's collecting the Lobo Paramilitary Christmas Special! And not a moment too soon!
VERTIGO titles scheduled to arrive in stores in July:
SLOTH HC Writer/artist: Gilbert Hernandez An original graphic novel. 128 pages, $19.99 U.S.
- I guess I appreciate that Vertigo really keeps trying to do things like this, and GRIP, and Peter Bagge's material, but they seem to be completely incapable of getting anyone to buy it. I suppose the price-point doesn't help, though usually their stupid OGN's are $25 for 128 pages, so this is something of a break.
HELLBLAZER: ALL HIS ENGINES SC Writer: Mike Carey Artist: Leonardo Manco A softcover edition of the acclaimed original graphic novel. 128 pages, $14.99 U.S.
LUCIFER VOL. 10: MORNINGSTAR TP Writer: Mike Carey Artists: Peter Gross, Ryan Kelly, Colleen Doran and Michael Wm. Kaluta Collects LUCIFER #62-69 192 pages, $14.99 U.S.
TESTAMENT VOL. 1: AKEDAH TP Writer: Douglas Rushkoff Artist: Liam Sharp Collects TESTAMENT #1-5 128 pages, $9.99 U.S.
- Trade paperback solicited before the issues are out.
Vertigo titles scheduled to arrive in stores in August:
DOOM PATROL VOL. 4: MUSCLEBOUND TP Writer: Grant Morrison Artists: Richard Case, Steve Yeowell, Mike Dringenberg, Vince Giarrano, Jamie Hewlett, Rian Hughes, Mark McKenna, Doug Hazlewood, Malcolm Jones III, Scott Hanna, Mark Badger and various. Collects DOOM PATROL #42-50. 256 pages, $19.99 U.S.
- The Flex Mentallo volume. Well, the first Flex Mentallo volume, not that it collects the Flex Mentallo mini-series or anything. Although I guess this would clear the stage for that, wouldn't it? This is sort of a wierd collection, because it ends up splitting up the big Brotherhood of Dada arc that ends in issue 52...? I wonder what they were thinking?
THE EXTERMINATORS VOL. 1: BUG BROTHERS TP Writer: Simon Oliver Artist: Tony Moore Collects THE EXTERMINATORS #1-5. 128 pages, $9.99 U.S.
- Trade paperback solicited before the issues are out. This is interesting, because in the past DC or Vertigo would never, ever do this. Ever. Even to their own detriment (I'm thinking the gap between the first few Y The Last Man and Fables trade paperbacks).
HELLBLAZER: STATIONS OF THE CROSS TP Writer: Mike Carey Artists: Marcelo Frusin, Leonardo Manco, Chris Brunner, Steve Dillon and various Collects HELLBLAZER #194-200. 192 pages, $14.99 U.S.
Hey folks! What follows are the solicitations for Drawn + Quarterly's June-shipping books and comics. It's a 'Monsieur Jean' kind of a month, as the excellent and long-serialized series gets it's first collection and stand-alone volume. These books tie in with D+Q's free comic book day release, which will be available at better stores on FCBD so if you need a little nudge, check it out. Long time art comix readers will remember the stories from their serialization in the old D+Q anthology, but this is going to be a special month for new books. I've got Advance Reader Copies of both here, and they're right up at the top of the to-read pile (they look great!)
Oh, and click on the graphics to see larger versions.
Get A Life Dupuy & Berberian HARDCOVER book, 148 pages, 6.75 x 9 inches, FULL COLOR. $ 19.95 USD UPC Code: 1-896597-79-3
For 20 years Eisner-nominated Dupuy & Berberian have collaborated on every aspect –sharing both the writing and drawing– of their highly acclaimed Mr. Jean short stories, creating one of the most endearing, clever, and readable series in contemporary French comics. Their award-winning, critically acclaimed series has sold more than 120,000 copies in France and has won one of comics’ most coveted awards, the prestigious Angoulême Alph-Art Award for the Best Book of the Year. Get a Life is a collection of the early Mr. Jean stories where the reader is introduced to the life of the titular character, a laconic, single Parisian male struggling through the usual calamities of life: bachelorhood in his twenties and early thirties and the impending responsibilities of marriage, kids, and deadlines for his publisher. Mr. Jean is a typical everyman – a scholar who fancies himself a man of letters, a nostalgist whose memories carry a weight few can understand, a lover whose heart knows the greatest of burdens. Melancholic yet joyful reflections on past loves, favorite authors, marriage, and fatherhood are laid out in a breezy, comic style. Also offered this month in Previews is Maybe Later, an excellent companion volume by the same authors. A small excerpt of this book will also be featured in D+Q’s Free Comic Book Day comic (+20,000 copy print run)
******************
Maybe Later Dupuy & Berberian HARDCOVER book, 128 pages, 9.5 x 7 inches, b/w. $ 16.95 USD UPC Code: 1-896597-21-1
Maybe Later sees Eisner-nominated Dupuy & Berberian working separately for the first time, each cartoonist taking turns to tell the behind-the-scenes “making of” their bestselling Mr. Jean series. In fluid black-and- white, with hilariously paranoid digressions and surreal dream sequences, Maybe Later is a record of their unique artistic partnership, midlife and its demons, the stress of deadlines, and the friends and colleagues who help and goad along the way. Above all, it's about the creative process, with aliens, pawns, and deflated superheroes battling procrastination and self-doubt in defense of the simple pleasure of telling stories through pictures. Maybe Later is a rare opportunity to discover each of the artists in his own right. And for newcomers, it's a superb introduction to the quiet wit, brilliant narrative style, and refined visual language of the Mr .Jean stories, the first three short stories are collected in D+Q’s Get a Life (offered in this month’s Previews). A small excerpt of this book will also be featured in D+Q’s Free Comic Book Day comic (+20,000 copy print run)
******************
Offered Again: Drawn & Quarterly Volume 3 Dupuy & Berberian, Frank King, covers by Chris Ware. Trade paperback, 176 pages, 9 x 12 inches, full color $ 24.95 USD UPC Code: 1-896597-30-0
Dupuy & Berberian’s first full-length Mr. Jean story (not collected in Get A Life) is featured in this first large format D+Q, an excellent companion to their two new books offered in this month’s Previews. Also in this edition of D+Q is a breathtaking overview of Frank King’s Gasoline Alley Sundays (not yet collected in any other book), with covers and endpapers by Chris Ware. This edition is a Harvey Award winner for Best Anthology.
******************
Offered Again: Drawn & Quarterly Volume 5 Dupuy & Berberian (interior + covers), R. Sikoryak, Michel Rabagliati, Rutu Modan, Albert Chartier. Trade paperback, 176 pages, 9 x 12 inches, full color $ 29.95 USD UPC Code: 1-896597-61-0
Dupuy & Berberian’s second full-length Mr. Jean story (not collected in Get A Life) is featured in this large format D+Q, another excellent companion to their two new books offered in this month’s Previews. Also in this edition of D+Q: short stories by Michel Rabagliati, Rutu Modan, R. Sikoryak, and a remarkable overview of Quebecois cartooning pioneer Albert Chartier. Covers and endpapers by Dupuy & Berberian. This edition won both the Eisner and Harvey awards for Best Anthology.
It was 17 degrees Celcius here in Toronto today, which is about 63 degrees in the American scale. That's a warm day by any stretch. Before heading in to work (we're building more manga shelves) I sat with a copy of the Toronto Star and just drank my coffee (actually Diet Coke) and read the paper. I was genuinely surprised to come across an interview with myself.
Nathalie already gave me crap this year for not keeping track of what I'm giving interviews about or to whom, I'm just sort of used to being 'The Expert' that people get on the phone. Harlequin Romance Manga? I'm your guy! Speakeasy Comics? Sure, I've got a quote for you. This summer's big comic-related movies?
"Chris Butcher, comics manager at The Beguiling: [V For Vendetta] could not possibly be as bad as the other interpretations of Alan Moore's work. The standards are so low that almost anything is an improvement. ... The source material has remained consistently excellent with his stuff, so we don't really mind if the movie is horrible, but we're not holding our breaths. "
Anyway. Readingthe article it sort of drove the point home that if you want to make sure you get your point across, you're only allowed to talk in sound-bites. They asked me all about the Superman movie and I talked about it. Which, you know...
Alright, so I think there's so much buzz and excitement around the new Superman movie because of the times we find ourselves in. Conservatives in the white house, an unending war with no exit strategy, a world that looks darker and more complex than what we remember. Then up in the sky is Superman, you know? Superman is an incredibly evocative icon, primarily of a simpler time. Superman is good, therefore whatever Superman is fighting is bad. Superman is primary colours and easy answers and couldn't you use an easy answer? Everyone's looking forward to Superman.
Except they didn't use my answer, they used Peter's answer:
"Peter Birkemoe, owner of The Beguiling: I think with Superman Returns, the original Christopher Reeve movies are so paradigmatic that a lot of people will judge them on that standard ... So this one is going to judged the most harshly (of the big summer comic movies)."
And then they got the commentary from another comic store here in town:
"Michael Dillon, buyer at the Silver Snail: I'm sure it will be pretty. Bryan Singer did awesome stuff with the X-Men movies but he's come off like a real freak doing this new movie ... he did this huge interview with Vanity Fair about how the Superman suit is a big fetish for him and yeah, you're just like, we don't want to know that."
Yeah. A male director thinks that Lynda Carter looks hot dressed as Wonder Woman and, you know, nods of agreement from the crowds of fanboys that can't wait to buy a ticket. Male director thinks that the Superman costume is sexy? BACK THE FUCK IN THE CLOSET WITH YOU, FAGGOT.
But wait, it gets better:
"Michael Dillon, buyer at the Silver Snail: Oh, I can't wait to see [300, based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller]. I think that's going to be amazing. I think that's going to have a huge unsung success with gay viewers. I'm telling you. I'm the only fag that works in a comic book store and I'm so stoked for 300. It's going to be a bunch of burly men running around in togas. It's going to be great."
Ah, sorry Michael, didn't realize that togas were drool-worthy and the fetishization of Superman's costume 'crossed the line'. My Bad.
I also wasn't expecting to read the newspaper and be 'inned' this morning either. Cheers to the only fag that works in a comic book store, the rest of us will have to start [euphamism for cunnilingus]. Geeez. Bahaha. Ah well. At the very least, there's the possibility that Michael was misquoted. For example, they attributed the following to me but really it was Peter:
"Butcher [But really Peter]: I saw a screener (Birkemoe is friends with Clowes) and I enjoyed it very much. The original comic was very short and doesn't tell a story so much as evoke art school. In this film, that is the strength."
Anyway.
I'm giving up a pass to go see V For Vendetta tomorrow night so I guess I'm not that enthused about the big summer movies anyhow. But if we do get to go to a sneak-preview of Superman, I'll be there.
- Christopher PS: I know I got the lyric wrong up top, it just worked better. PPS: Surprising everyone, I spelled cunnilingus right on the first try. PPPS: The Family Guy is written exactly for me. Great Space Coaster, Mr. Myxzptlk, and ColecoVision. All within 5 minutes. Fuck.
So if you're looking for something to do this afternoon, here's three sites you can check out. I am not looking to do anything, of course. I am very busy. Ahem.
First up, the next two installments of Chip Zdarsky's new newspaper strip for the National Post, COMIC STRIP, are online. Chip seems to be... implying... that it would be nice of you to send a letter to the editor to let them know you're enjoying the story. So I guess that's four things for you to do this afternoon...!
I'd been meaning to link this for a little while now. Over at http://www.cindycenter.com/, Chris Shields of the cIndy Centre has been conducting mp3 interviews with comics creators (and other artists). Megan Kelso, Jim Rugg, Eric Kim, and many more. Really neat stuff for the most part, with a very art/indy focus. Check out the interview with Alisia Chase in particular, as she talks about curating a neat-sounding art show featuring a ton of female comics artists and cartoonists, but also recounts a wonderful story about a female artist pulling her work out of her vagina as part of the performance. Note: not all of the interviews are linked on the sidebar, so make sure to scroll down and read the main window.
Finally, fringe comics creators get namechecked all-to-hell in an article up today at the CBC. "Poster Expressionists" covers the art-poster and screen printing scene poping up worldwide, and pays tribute to Fort Thunder, Julie Doucet and Le Dernier Cri, and former Beguiling employee Michael Comeau (who TCAF attendees will be familiar with, probably?). It's a very cool article about a resurgence of DIY, and the thinking really dovetails with things I've read recently including Eddie Campbell's big interview in the Comics Journal, and the fate of the artists who were left in the lurch following the dissolution of SPeakeasy. Just being published by someone else or breaking in aren't the only ways to do comics, and the more reading and thinking you do outside of the medium, the greater the chance you'll find success (in my humble opinion).
Something More Substantial: New Comics! Today was just an absolutely amazing day for comics...
So I've just finished up my shift at work and... man! WHat a great day for comics! I sort of went into the morning thinking that there wouldn't be much to read, but if I went home with everything I wanted to today, I'd be broke! For a small week quantity wise, it was packed with a great selection of titles. I figured I spend a few minutes talking about the great books in stores right now.
The Abandoned, by Ross Campbell: From Tokyopop's OEL line comes probably the most unique book to date. It's a zombie book, but before you start groaning and moaning louder than the undead do, having read a good chunk of pages on this thing it turns out that it's really good. Outstanding art with lush grey washes and a second-colour red ink, printed on really really good paper. The whole book just pops right off the racks, and I can't wait to read it.
American Virgin #1 & Bram Stoker's Dracula, by Becky Cloonan and various: My friend Becky has not one but TWO new books out this week! First up is the new Vertigo ongoing series AMERICAN VIRGIN, written by Steven Seagle. It's a really solid first issue, it reminds me a little of the recently released SUPERMARKET #1 (which I also really enjoyed), in that it involves a radical fucking-up of an established status-quo in an apocalyptic way. Becky's art also graces the Puffin graphic novel version of Bram Stoker's Dracula, and it's pretty darned cool too. The adaptation is by Gary Reed, I think, but the 'manga-style' art is the most successful attempt at adapting a 'classic' to something the kids will read. Much better than any of the Puffin graphic novels released so far. To buy some Becky art from Dracula, or Demo, or Jennie One, or Flight, go check out The Beguiling artstore: http://www.beguiling.com/artproductlist.asp?ID=68.
Dungeon: Twilight Volume 1, By Sfar and Trondheim: Yay! Not only is it a new volume of DUNGEON, it's a new line of Dungeon. The art by Trondheim is amazing on this volume, and I've enjoyed the English-language Dungeon volumes released to date. If you're looking for a place to start, any of the three different volumes with #1 on the spine are good places.
La Perdida Hard Cover, by Jessica Abel: The Pantheon-produced hard cover collection of Jessica Abel's LA PERDIDA is a really lovely book. The outer dust-jacket, one of the beautiful painted street-scenes of Mexico that graced the covers of the serialization is there, but under-neath the dust-jacket is the same scene at night, quiet and serene. It's a really nice touch. I stopped reading LA PERDIDA at about issue 3, so I'm really looking forward to settling down with this book before Jessica's appearance here in April. Oh, and for Jessica Abel art, go check out: http://www.beguiling.com/artproductlist.asp?ID=66
Lenore: Cooties TP, by Roman Dirge: Totally not my thing but it made more than a few people happy today. Besides that, the acid-yellow cover is actually quite eye-catching. We're going to sell a ton of them.
Luba: The Book of Ophelia, by Gilbert Hernandez: I'm nowhere near reading this one, I'm so far behind on my Love & Rockets reading. I just wanted to mention it to make Jason happy, as he's been waiting for this book for months and months now.
The Maxx Volume 6, by Sam Kieth: Collecting the three-issue Friends of Maxx series, as well as the extra short-story added to the "Maxx 3-D #1" from back in the day. Save for a few crossovers and fall-starts (Darker Image anyone?) , Sam Kieth's entire run on of Maxx comics is now in print. I'm kind of shocked by this, so many of the comics I bought as a teenager feel so ephemeral and, to be honest, shouldn't be collected. I had every issue of the Maxx (plus all of the spin-offs, guest appearances, Friends of Maxx, and more) and loved them, but sold them when the time was right and the getting was good. I think that, particularly from what I've read, the work holds up but I don't have any interest in owning it again. Lots of people do, though, and the 6 volumes of The Maxx have been consistent sellers for us. Sort of along the lines of Tank Girl or other favourite series. I feel good knowing that they're out there if I ever suffer a fit of nostalgia, or just need to read the series again, but I find myself more interested in the comics Kieth is doing now, particularly as he's really grown as a writer and an artist. Check out My Inner Bimbo shipping soon from Oni Press, for example...!
Mom's Cancer, by Brian Fies: Did you know that Henry Abrams' graphic novel line is called "Image"? Yeesh... I sense problems. Anyway, I bought this from the creator in New York and have to admit that I haven't had a chance to read it yet. But most of my webcomics-savvy friends really loved it, and it won an Eisner too. I'm really hoping that it's as good as I think it'll be. It's certainly a good-looking book though, a perfect size and beautifully bound in hard cover.
Placebo Man, by Tomer Hanuka: This graphic novel collects all of Tomer Hanuka's short strips from BIPOLAR COMICS issues 1-5, as well as a short that appeared in an anthology called New Thing. I'm a huge fan of Tomer's work, and it was really hard not picking this up in New York a few weeks back. You might know Tomer Hanuka's work from his covers for DC's Midnight Mass series, or the covers he drew for the DC FOCUS line. Or just from being an amazing illustrator. Anyhow, check out this neon-pink trade paperback if you see it, it's good comics. Oh, and you can check out a bunch of Tomer's original art at: http://www.beguiling.com/artproductlist.asp?ID=61
Powers #17, by Bendis and Oeming: I'm really enjoying the current story-arc, though I'm finding the interstatials featuring comedian archetypes much more annoying than the monkey-fucking issue. It's lazy and more than a little stupid, particularly considering it's so distracting in tone when you compare it to the other two storylines. Here's hoping that after this arc that shit just vanishes into the cornfield. Otherwise, this is much stronger than the start of the Marvel series, and really enjoyable.
Rocketto TP, by Frank Espinoza: The least fun part of my day was explaining to Rocketto fans that there would be no issue 5 or 6, and if they wanted the end of the story this was it. Really shitty, I gotta say. The trade is gorgeous though, printed on heavy paper and with gorgeous reproduction. It's very easy to recommend to new readers, and as I was enjoying the series up through issue 2 or 3, I'm going to give this one a read after I work through the stack of comics on the endtable.
Seven Soldiers Frankenstein and Mister Miracle, by Grant Morrison and Various: I liked the Mister Miracle ending, though it wasn't quite the revelation that Guardian #4 was. Frankenstein continues to be absolutely wonderful. I kind of want to see Doc Frankenstein and Morrison's Frankenstein fight for 12 pages, before they team up and blow up an evil church or something. Anyway, yeah, both issues will bear a re-reading or two.
--
Oh, and CRYING FREEMAN VOL 1 in the new edition too, shit. Completely missed that one. SORRY! Anyway. Good comics day! Yeah!
Diamond has released the covers for the April Previews (for items shipping in June), and they're actually kind of nice. A nice change over this month's stuff... Casanova from Matt Fraction and Gabriel Ba marks the front cover in a very smartly-designed piece (I feel the character should be a bit more handsome though, given the name...), and the back features a lovely iconic drawing of Wonder Woman by Terry and Rachel Dodson, launching the new series written by Young Avengers writer Allan Heinberg. Here's hoping that one comes out on a slightly more reliable schedule, eh Allan? :)
Dribs and Drabs... 15 minutes of blogging goodness.
I just had a customer come in.
"Do you have books from two years ago?". "Usually," I answer. "My friend saw this book two years ago when she was here and I looked and I couldn't find it." "What's it called?" I reply, being the helpful salesperson. "Yami No Matsuei." "Uh, well it's not on the shelf under 'Y'. I've never heard of it either. Does it have an English name?" "No. My friend was here two years ago and she saw it on the shelf. Under Y. Can you get it?" "Well, maybe, let's check Google. Oh. It seems like you mean Descendents of Darkness. Yeah, I got that right here. Under D." "Oh, great. Well, I'll get them when I have money. Bye!"
I love my customers and don't talk shit about them all that much, but the last 2 minutes struck me has hilarious and I needed to share.
- Less thinly-veiled than the gay porn that makes up Descendents of Darkness is STICKY, from Fantagraphics. That series' writer Dale Lazerov e-mailed me this morning, as apparently he's looking for collaborators on his next gay porn comic. Someone's got to do Comics Porn Idol. I wonder what Torres is up to? Anyway:
Dale Lazarov, writer/editor of STICKY (out now in hardcover from Bruno Gmünder Verlag) [Chris's Note: And also available as a three-issue series from Fantagraphics], seeks a queer comics illustrator interested in collaborating on an all-new 80-page album of gay erotic comics. Payment for the work will be split 60% artist / 40% writer/editor. Ideally, the illustrator for this project combines strong comics-based narrative and draftsmanship skills with a keen sense of how actual human beings look and interact in intimate situations with carnality and sweetness. Please contact Dale Lazarov at homoludenz@aol.com with a link to an online portfolio (if available) if interested. - Dale Lazerov, looking for collaborators.
- Speaking of porn, over at his Livejournal (sort of a blog for sad teenagers), artist and occasional pornographer Will Allison talks about working in the porn industry. Well, the comics porn industry anyway, which is much like the larger porn industry but involves more furries and less money. I really enjoyed reading it, it reads like something he needed to hash out for himself and get off his chest. As a smut-peddlar it's the kind of thing running through my head sometimes too...
"I draw porn comics. I also work for a company that wouldn't exist if they didn't publish porn. So I guess it'd be safe to say I'm for porn comics, if not an outright advocate. Even though I draw porn, I'm not an unequivocal flag-waver, though. I'm caught in a cross-fire: if I ever admit porno can be disgusting or dehumanizing, I'm playing into the hands of ultra-conservative types, but if I claim all porn to be beautiful and great I'm endorsing material that sickens me personally. It's basically a no-win situation, which is why I guess no one really talks about the subject." - Will Allison gives it to you straight about pr0n.
- Oh, and speaking of Livejournals, my friend Jim Zubkavich (he of Udon Comics) is currently talking about his day-job, and that is working at an art school here in Toronto, specifically in the animation/illustration department. It's portfolio submission time, and the pickings are hilariously slim:
What NOT to put in your submission portfolio to an art school:
- For the drawings we require of your own hand drawn from life, do not draw it with slit wrists gushing blood with a title like “Despair”. - Scribbled ballpoint pen drawings on lined paper of surreal mish mash checkered patterns, crying eyes, ribbons, circles, flowers and bubble words like “love” and “sadness”. - A resume is not a 6 paragraph letter detailing your rabid passion for anime. It is also not the place where you explain that you play video games to the exclusion of all other things in your life. - Self portraits where the artist looks insane, is crying blood and/or is on fire with glowing eyes. - Self portrait pictures where you explain in word balloons how lonely you are, how sad your life is and that the right girl must be out there looking for you right now. This can be further enhanced when those word balloons are littered with spelling and grammatical errors. - Professor Jim Zubkvich, talking about art school admission portfolios.
All this and many more belly-laugh-inducing commentary at these two Livejournal entries:
The voting for the 2006 Shuster Awards is now open online at http://www.shusterawards.com/2006vote.asp. The Shusters are awards named after Superman co-creator Joe Shuster, and are meant to recognize the achievements of Canadian comics creators and publishers. Voting is open to Canadian citizens (no cheating!) and couldn't be easier.
My picks: Adrian Alphona for artist, Ian Boothby for writer, Bryan Lee O'Malley for cartoonist, and D&Q for publisher. I decided to go with Killoffer's 676 Apparitions of Killoffer as my international pick, because Taiyo Matsumoto seemed a bit obvious ;).
Japanese Artist Mamechiyo in Toronto Sort of a Goth-Loli Harajuku Girl Thing, Spread The Word http://www.magic-pony.com
Chris here. This is a press-release for an event at Toronto toy and Japanese culture retailer Magic Pony. I'm pretty psyched, this kind of thing doesn't happen very often and I'm hoping it's successful. If you can make sure to try and drop by the event this Thursday. Chances are it's going to be packed but why chance it? Oh, and if you're the media and you want to cover the event or interview the artist, there's still time. E-mail contact at the web address above, or just e-mail me and I'll send you the official PR and put you in touch with Kristin at Magic Pony. Hope to see you there...!
Mamechiyo The Modern Art of Kimono Opening Reception Thurs. March 9th, 6-10pm Running from March 9 to April 3, 2006
Magic Pony Gallery 694 Queen St. W. (Queen West of Bathurst) Toronto, ON M6J 1E7 416.861.1684
Toronto, ON March 6, 2006 - Magic Pony would like to invite you to Mamechiyo : the Art of Kimono opening Thursday March 9th, 2006. Mamechiyo is a contemporary designer who has been revolutionary in redefining traditional Japanese dress. Her use of modern intertwined with tradition has resulted in a refreshing and unique interpretation of the kimono. Pulling inspiration from all around her, Tokyo-based Mamechiyo sources vintage fabrics, creates her own textiles and styles whimsical Kimono creations that are enthusiastically embraced by a new generation. Mamechiyo’s flair for creating cutting-edge fashion centered around the Kimono has resulted in a resurgence of popularity in both the Kimono and traditional Japanese dress. Celebrated throughout Japan for her textile design and kimono styling, Mamechiyo has only recently gained recognition in North America.
Mamechiyo : the Art of Kimono will be Mamechiyo’s first solo exhibit in North America and her first appearance in Canada. The exhibit will combine photography, textiles and Japanese Kimono dress to create a fantastic portrayal of the exquisite world of Mamechiyo’s Kimono. Artist will be in attendance for the opening.
Soon I'll be on Wordpress and the direct-post-links will work. But after reading three or four messages today that they aren't, currently, well... I'm hoping this will fix it! - Chris
Sometimes you shouldn't let the photographer talk you into taking an 'interesting' photo.
The above photo (taken by Tibor Kolley for The Globe and Mail) was part of a full-page article on Speakeasy Comics that ran in Canada's The Globe and Mail newspaper on Saturday, January 28th 2006. This article was never run on the web anywhere (including The Globe's site), and as such, it has not (yet) become part of the discussion surrounding Speakeasy's announcement to cease publishing this week. So let's start now: Click here to view a scan of the article.
(There's could be a larger post here on comics news and the internet (which is why I'm going to be blogging the hell out of Toronto events from now on...), but for now, let's talk Speakeasy.)
First: I'm sorry this has taken me over a month to scan and put online. Put simply, I've been busy. To be completely honest, I'm not sure of the legality of doing what I'm doing here, and that kept me from being too gung-ho about putting what is, essentially, a puff-piece online. But I'd say the situation is different now. I'm more than happy to pull this down should someone from the Globe ask.
That out of the way: This article makes it perfectly clear that Speakeasy's future in publishing was contingent on spending money to acquire a few extremely high-profile licensed properties. As we found out from Adam Fortier at Newsarama, that money (likely from Ardustry Entertainment, mentioned in the article) did not materialize, and it made moving forward with their publishing plans impossible.
I knew since before Christmas that these properties were based on HBO's original content, including comic/graphic novel material based on The Sopranos, Deadwood, and Rome, among other properties. I was asked by the reporter to keep my mouth shut until the article saw print when they interviewed me. I stand by what I said, Speakeasy was on it's way to breaking out of it's niche, and we sold a fuckload of ROCKETO. Also, we at The Beguiling are indeed very hip. I honestly believe that, had the money come through from Ardustry to acquire the HBO licenses, the discussion about Speakeasy would have been a very different one. Publishers have certainly survived larger cullings than the one Speakeasy was going through (the Image non-line was decimated about one year in...), and these licenses combined with a few changes to their business practices and some licensing money on their original properties could have contributed to a very successful media company. I have to say, I honestly did not see Adam throwing in the towel on this. Hell, many (many) of Adam's employees didn't either. He really must be burnt out.
Actually, it's funny. Platinum Studios is an entirely virtual publisher at this point, buying up properties and completing whole graphic novels that never get printed, never see the light of day. The guys at Platinum have deep pockets though, and are constantly licensing these projects into new mediums. They don't need to publish any books, in fact, given the market they'd almost be fools to publish anything and they know it. It's very, very hard to launch a successful comic or graphic novel right now in the direct market. Primarily if it isn't superheroes. Why try and market the hell out of a graphic novel when the returns are so limited, when even a modest 5-figure deal for media rights more than pays for the time of the creators who did your graphic novel in the first place? Speakeasy was losing money with virtually every book that they published. I wonder if the numbers would add up that they would have lost less money by just comissioning the books and not publishing?
Anyway. We were starting to see good, consistent sales on Spellgame, Rocketto, Elk's Run, Butternut Squash, and even Grimoire and Beowulf, and the whole thing is a shame as it shakes conumer confidence and it leaves us with a bunch of dead stock. I think Speakeasy really did expand too quickly, with no customer in mind for many of their titles and we had many books that we never sold an issue of.
Educated Guessing: It's my understanding though, that Speakeasy needed to plump up its line in order to "gang-print" their books to achieve a publishing discount. Er, gang-printing means printing a bunch of books that are the same format at the same time, which cuts down on the work that the printer has to do which generally means that you get a better deal on printing. Anyway, when Lamp-Post (owned by one of the Alias Comics owners) decided to stop offering their cheap printing services to anyone but Alias, Speakeasy still had to keep their printing costs down while moving to Quebecor, a much more expensive publisher. Result? Gang-printing, and you need to have enough titles to gang print (which is why you'll usually see comic companies shipping a lot of their titles at the same time, they're all printed at the same time).
As a "Prefered Retailer" or whatever their designation was, The Beguiling agreed to keep 5 copies of all of Speakeasy's books in stock, all the time. We did too, actually, and still have almost all of the line available (want some?). Yeah, things were starting to look a little off-kilter and we took a hit on a couple of books, but we made a deal with Adam and he treated us at the store very well while the company was still in business. So we kept ordering the books at the same levels (give or take maybe 3 books that we couldn't justify). It's just what you do if you enter into a partnership with someone.
At any rate, I'm genuinely sorry to see the company go and hope that no one ends up too hurt by what happened.
I hope this has been interesting to you. If you could avoid direct-linking the JPG that'd be swell. I'm probably going to change the file name every once in a while anyway.
Still too hammered (busy, not hammered/drunk) to get a real post online so here's some cool things for you to do rather than read my site:
My friend and New York travelling companion Jon Ellis put up his own summary of our trip to New York over at PopImage.com. Head on over and read his commentary, then visit the brand-new PopImage Forum to offer your own opinions on the big day.
Thanks to my buddy Kean Soo (check out his webcomic Jellaby at the Secret Friend Society website), I learned all about this excellent webcomic Moresukine. Mor
So my 'vacation' was not so much metaphorical as 'real'. Andrew and I just got back from Halifax where we visited Hope and Mal for 6 days and drank and ate rich foods and generally just had a very nice time.
Why does Viz charge a dollar more per book for their Shoujo Beat books than it does for their Shonen Jump books? That's what Brigid at Mangablog would like to know:
If anything prices are going to go higher. Del Rey and newcomer GoComi! have claimed the $10.95 price point, with only the most minor of consumer resistance. DMP's books, including their popular YAOI line, are all prices at $12.95. In fact, Del Rey has already staked out an even higher price-point, for their line of 'mature readers' graphic novels starting with BASILISK in May at $13.95 a volume. The fan base is chomping at the bit for that series, and if someone has bitched about the price please send me the link, I'd love to see it.
Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon
So if you're looking for something to do this afternoon, here's three sites you can check out. I am not looking to do anything, of course. I am very busy. Ahem.
Something More Substantial: New Comics!
La Perdida Hard Cover, by Jessica Abel: The Pantheon-produced hard cover collection of Jessica Abel's LA PERDIDA is a really lovely book. The outer dust-jacket, one of the beautiful painted street-scenes of Mexico that graced the covers of the serialization is there, but under-neath the dust-jacket is the same scene at night, quiet and serene. It's a really nice touch. I stopped reading LA PERDIDA at about issue 3, so I'm really looking forward to settling down with this book before Jessica's appearance here in April. Oh, and for Jessica Abel art, go check out: 
Placebo Man, by Tomer Hanuka: This graphic novel collects all of Tomer Hanuka's short strips from BIPOLAR COMICS issues 1-5, as well as a short that appeared in an anthology called New Thing. I'm a huge fan of Tomer's work, and it was really hard not picking this up in New York a few weeks back. You might know Tomer Hanuka's work from his covers for DC's Midnight Mass series, or the covers he drew for the DC FOCUS line. Or just from being an amazing illustrator. Anyhow, check out this neon-pink trade paperback if you see it, it's good comics. Oh, and you can check out a bunch of Tomer's original art at: 
I just had a customer come in.
Japanese Artist Mamechiyo in Toronto
Toronto, ON March 6, 2006 - Magic Pony would like to invite you to Mamechiyo : the Art of Kimono opening Thursday March 9th, 2006. Mamechiyo is a contemporary designer who has been revolutionary in redefining traditional Japanese dress. Her use of modern intertwined with tradition has resulted in a refreshing and unique interpretation of the kimono. Pulling inspiration from all around her, Tokyo-based Mamechiyo sources vintage fabrics, creates her own textiles and styles whimsical Kimono creations that are enthusiastically embraced by a new generation.
