Comics212

What do The RZA, Jay Z, Busta Rhymes, and ICE MUTHAFUCKIN T have in common? They’re all over Kagan McLeod’s completely, completely awesome HISTORY OF RAP poster, and Kagan’s been getting pics with all of them and the poster over at his Facebook page.

ICE T with Kagan McLeod’s History of Rap print. Photo by X-man from Disconnexions.com

RZA with Kagan’s History of Rap. Photo by X-man from Disconnexions.

There are another 20+ pics over at Kagan’s site…

I know I’ve blogged about this print before, but? Local boy makes very good, you know? We’ve sold a ton of these at the store and a ton more through the website (they’re only 20 bucks), I’m super happy for Kagan getting to live the dream and meet all these incredibly talented artists.

- Chris
Top Photo of Kagan McLeod at the Source magazine offices, by X-Man of Disconnexions.com.

In addition to featuring a bitch’n soundtrack, this new video trailer for Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix also features a very prominently placed logo for UDON, the publisher and creative studio headquartered right here in Toronto. UDON slapped a fresh coat of digital paint on the game, completely re-drawing all of the character animations, backgrounds, character art and ending sequences to bring the 20 year old classic screaming into the High-Def age. The game looks fantastic.

Pleasing die-hard Street Fighter fans is about as difficult as pleasing Trekkies, but this game is expected to make fans of the series happy. It’s a downloadable game for the Xbox360 and PS3 that features online competitive play, tournaments, and I’m pretty jealous that I don’t get to play, seeing as I’ve only got a Wii… Still, for those of you with the proper systems, you can thrill to getting your ass handed you by some random 12 year old kid anywhere in the world, rather than the random 12 year old kid standing next to you at the arcade machine.

This is a pretty major feather in Udon’s cap, as the game is expected to be one of the most popular titles of the holiday season, and it looks like the studio is going to be front and center in the promotions. I’m friends with the guys at Udon, so I know how hard they worked to pull this together, and I’m glad to see them getting their due… Likewise, I’m glad to be sitting on a few dozen copies of the currently-between-printings Street Fighter Graphic Novels, which should move quite nicely any day now thanks to the continuing build-up in interest in the series

Oh, and while I’m shilling, the second issue of the new SF2 comic drops in stores this Wednesday.

- Chris

“On the one hand, though, I haven’t ranted in quite some time to this degree, and for that, I guess, I have to thank this god-forsaken convention. But, anyway, what did any of you think, if you attended this thing? Am I crazy? Exaggerating far too much? Just being a dick?  Was this a barrel o’ fun? Are you unable to sleep because it’s a year away from the next one? Or are you at this very moment seeking therapy after a day or two of squeezing through the soul-deadening habitrails of a show that invites folks like David Lloyd and Bryan Talbot and leaves them high and dry on the Isle of Blight?” - Evan Dorkin

You gotta check this out.

- Chris

This weekend in Waterloo (about an hour outside of Toronto) is the Waterloo Animated Film Festival. It’s an amazing event! I’m going to be missing the screenings because I’m the best man at the wedding of two of my most wonderful friends… But if you aren’t going to be there, check it out online at http://www.wfac.ca/.
The two headline events for me are a North American premiere showing of the new Evangelion film, Evangelion 1.0: You Are Not Alone, and a special Canadian stop for a travelling presentation of the Ghibli masterpiece GRAVE OF THE FIREFILES which sounds amazing:

“Anime Masterpieces, a new screening series highlighting the best in Japanese animated feature films, will be presenting Isao Takahata’s Grave of the Fireflies on Friday, November 14. The winner of several international film awards, Grave of the Fireflies chronicles the experiences of two children as they valiantly struggle to survive amidst the ravaged landscape of Japan during World War II. It is considered by many critics as one of the most moving anti-war films ever made.

“The film, which critic Roger Ebert calls “an emotional experience so powerful it forces a rethinking of animation,” will be followed by a panel discussion with leading scholars and authors on the subject of Japanese animation. The panel will feature Frederik L. Schodt (author of Manga! Manga! The World of Japanese Comics), Brian Ruh (Stray Dog of Anime: The Films of Mamoru Oshii) and John O’Donnell (founder, Central Park Media).

“The presentation at the Waterloo Festival will be the first and only Canadian stop for this programme to date, before it goes to the Smithsonian and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.

“The Festival is presenting the programme free to the public. Advance tickets can be reserved through the Festival’s online box office, or via phone at +1 (800) 838-3006.”

Frederik L Schodt!

There are tons of amazing, amazing animated films screening this weekend. Piano no Mori! Genius Party! Sita Sings The Blues! Awesome, awesome stuff. If you’re in the area or can get there, GO.

- Chris

So this has been bubbling under for a little while. The Canadian graphic novel (and Doug Wright Special Award Winner) Skim has been nominated for the Governor General’s Literary Awards here in Canada, which is excellent. Unfortunately, however, only Mariko Tamaki has been nominated, as she is the book’s “author” whilst Jillian Tamaki has been ignored as the book’s “illustrator.” Anyone with a functioning understanding of the medium knows that, particularly outside of genre work, the distinction between “writer” and “illustrator” is not nearly so easy to make in the world of graphic novels… Graphic Novels are a medium where both the words and pictures are equally important, and frequently entirely indivisible.

And so two of Canada’s most prominent graphic novelists have written an open letter to the administrators of the Governor General’s Literary Awards, in the hope of getting co-creator Jillian Tamaki her due in the acclaim for this fine book. Take it away, Seth and Chester Brown:

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE GOVERNOR GENERAL’S LITERARY AWARDS

November 12, 2008

As individuals involved in the art form of comics and graphic novels, we are glad to see that a graphic novel has made the short-list for this year’s Governor General’s Literary Awards.   SKIM (by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki)  is a wonderful book and deserves the attention.  But we’re troubled by the fact that only one of its co-creators is receiving credit for the creation of the book’s text.  We understand that an award-category exists for illustration, but to have nominated Jillian in that category would not have rectified the problem.  Indeed, that would have highlighted how our medium is misunderstood.

We’re guessing that the jury who read SKIM saw it as an illustrated novel.  It’s not;  it’s a graphic novel.  In illustrated novels, the words carry the burden of telling the story, and the illustrations serve as a form of visual reinforcement. But in graphic novels, the words and pictures BOTH tell the story, and there are often sequences (sometimes whole graphic novels) where the images alone convey the narrative.  The text of a graphic novel cannot be separated from its illustrations because the words and the pictures together ARE the text.  Try to imagine evaluating SKIM if you couldn’t see the drawings.  Jillian’s contribution to the book goes beyond mere illustration:  she was as responsible for telling the story as Mariko was.

In an October 21st article for the CBC website, one of your jurors, Teresa Toten, was interviewed:  ”Toten praised SKIM for using the graphic novel format to tell a sophisticated story about what life is like for teenaged girls.  The work is remarkable in part because of how the words and pictures both contribute to the literary quality, she said.”  And that is the point of this letter.  ”[T]he words and pictures both contribute to [SKIM's] literary quality”.

A new category does not need to be created to properly address the graphic novel.  In fact, it is best to see graphic novels appear in literary awards only when they deserve to compete equally against prose on their literary merit alone.

In writing this letter, we don’t mean to slight Mariko.   One of the reasons this collaboration works so well is because she understood how to write for this medium.  But we feel that as things now stand, Jillian is being slighted. We want both of the enormously talented creators of this book to be honoured together for their achievement.

Yours,

Chester Brown (Author of Louis Riel)
Seth (Author of It’s a Good Life, If You Don’t Weaken)

NAMES IN SUPPORT OF THIS LETTER
Lynda Barry (Author of What It Is)
Peter Birkemoe (Owner of The Beguiling)
Dan Clowes (Author of Ghost World)
David Collier (Author of The Frank Ritza Papers)
Julie Doucet (Author of 365 Days)
Chris Oliveros (Publisher of Drawn and Quarterly)
Joe Ollmann (Author of This Will All End in Tears)
Bryan Lee O’Malley (author of Scott Pilgrim)
Michel Rabagliati (Author of Paul Moves Out)
Art Spiegelman (Pulitzer Prize winning author of Maus)
Adrian Tomine (Author of Shortcomings)
Chris Ware (Author of Jimmy Corrigan, Smartest Kid on Earth)

I imagine this will create something of a stir within staid Canadian literary circles.

- Christopher
Edit: I missed the ‘names in support’ somehow. Sorry!

McDondalds has a dedicated Quarter Pounder restaurant in Japan. Two of them. The only thing you can order is a Quarter Pounder or a Double Quarter Pounder (set, which is like value meal). Yes.

A new site I discovered, Tokyo Reporter, has an interview with a couple of great hentai (or maybe just ‘ecchi’?) manga artists, Takeshi Oshima and Toshio Maeda. Oshima’s work definitely runs closer to the cute side of ecchi material, none of which has been translated into English. Maeda’s repetoire includes popular hentai manga like La Blue Girl and Legend of the Overfiend, which is far, far filthier. Both are worth reading.

The interviews, I mean.

My lovely and talented friend Scott Robins is blogging again! He’s a contributor to the Good Comics For Kids Blog at School Library Journal. So far he’s written about a kids drawing panel at the San Diego Comic Con, and interviewed Jimmy Gownley of Amelia Rules! about his move to Simon & Schuster. You can check out all of his articles [here].

“If you voted for [Proposition 8] or support those who did or the sentiment they expressed, I have some questions, because, truly, I do not… understand. Why does this matter to you? What is it to you? In a time of impermanence and fly-by-night relationships, these people over here want the same chance at permanence and happiness that is your option. They don’t want to deny you yours. They don’t want to take anything away from you. They want what you want — a chance to be a little less alone in the world.” Thanks, Mr. Olbermann. And thanks for not drinking at the Hyatt too.

According to the Forbidden Planet blog, Andi Watson’s young readers graphic novel series Glister has found a new (additional) home with UK pub Walker Books, as part of their new graphic novel initiative. Granted, Walker Books have been publing graphic novels for a while, but this looks like a consolodation of their efforts into a cohesive whole. Congrats to Andi!

Finally:

Did you read Jog’s review of Acme Novelty Library 19? Any best of 2008 list without this book on it is a sham. This is one truly amazing piece of work, and Jog explains why. Go check it out.

- Chris
P.S.: Tom: Was your fav comic of 2008 Clowes’ Mr. Wonderful?

An Evening with Igort and David B.
Discussing the international Ignatz publishing line
Rocco’s Plum Tomato, Plum Room
585 Bloor Street West (Enter off of Markham Street)
Saturday November 15th @ 7PM (doors open at 6:30pm)
FREE

Please join us in welcoming internationally acclaimed graphic novelists Igort (Italy) and David B (France) on the occasion of the release of their newest works, Baobab and Nocturnal Conspiracies. The evening will include a slide presentation of the authors works, an on-stage discussion and a question and answer session moderated by The Beguiling’s Owner Peter Birkemoe beginning at 7:00pm. Following the presentation the authors will be available to sign their books.

Their new titles, and many books from their backlist in both English and French are available now at The Beguiling and will be available for sale at the event (Cash and Credit Card only, no Debit at the event).

IGORT is the creator of the international publishing effort known as “Ignatz”, which simultaneously releases new comics and graphic novels in numerous languages and countries around the world. His own work for the line, Baobab, is a sprawling epic that will eventually amount to over 600 pages. With a career spanning nearly 30 years, he has created a wealth of notable comics albums. His works published in English include the first 3 installments of Baobab and the graphic novel 5 Is The Perfect Number.

DAVID B. is a founding member of L’Association, a group of French cartoonists who banded together as publishers in 1990 and have revolutionized European comics with their groundbreaking approach to format, subject matter, and style. He has received many awards, including the French Alph’ Art award for comics excellence in 2000, and he was cited as European Cartoonist of the Year in 1998 by The Comics Journal. His works published in North America include Epileptic, Babel, and several stories in the anthology Mome. He lives in France.

This event is generously supported by the Italian Cultural Institute, the cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States and the French Consulate of Toronto.

Here’s a question: How many of you even knew Kuwata’s name before this book was released? Dave Merrill might have… But before this controversy? This book that prominently credits Kuwata (though not on the front cover), that is dedicated to Kuwata, that has his name on the back cover, inside flap, has an interview with him, has all the proceeds donated to him?

I call bullshit on all of this, all of this fake fanboy outrage. I’m sorry, honestly, if this is an affront to your sensibilities? But. BULL. SHIT. You know who the legal author of those comics is? DC FUCKING COMICS. Kuwata owns or is owed nothing, because That’s The Way Comics Works. Kidd went out of his way to see Kuwata credited and compensated above and beyond the call of duty. If you can’t see that, then your naivete is like a fucking cyst in your eye.

When was the last time you got upset about the shitty work for hire system? When was the last time you let THAT influence your buying decisions? That Chip Kidd wrote and presented a history-book about these works, alongside a couple of other folks, and didn’t include Kuwata in the subtitle to assauge white liberal guilt? Bullshit. If you’re going to be indignant, pick a real target, take a real stand. This isn’t even shitty, in comparisson to Standard Operating Procedure. Complain on behalf of Chuck Dixon, or Peter David, or any of those poor schmoes getting kicked off of their shitty work-for-hire gigs that they’ve invested too much of their personal lives into. Go to bat for the poor dumb bastards who signed contracts with Tokyopop, or Platinum, or any number of shitty companies. The “I’ll get your idea into hollywood” fly-by-night “companies” that just want a creators IP and won’t even wake them up as they slip out the door the next morning. Turn all of your indignant rage somewhere worthwhile, for a few minutes instead of piling on an easy target, regardless of your lack of accuracy.

To go after a designer who’s put his time and money on the line to bring new attention to an entirely unknown artist? Who went the extra mile to ensure that artist was happy and compensated–when that was neither necessary or even desirable–with every step of the work? Who’s planning another work in future, to bring more people in?

Your outrage is meaningless, your arguments are worthless, your complaints invalid.

Not to mince words here, but bullshit.

- Christopher