November Has Come – This Week’s Links
Got the bug at a Halloween party last weekend, and honestly it’s what I deserve for socializing.
Article Archive
Adult Comics
A reader of comics since the days of EC and MAD in the 1950s, Bob Levin now grapples with the idea of AI comics, through a book that purports to critique AI by using it.
The Keith Giffen Tribute
Critics, cartoonists and colleagues pay tribute to the late Keith Giffen, as assembled by Austin English.
Keith Giffen, November 30, 1952 – October 9, 2023
Noted and notorious, a superstar behind the scenes – Keith Giffen was one of the major players of superhero comics in the American direct market for nearly half a century. Andrew Farago unpacks the work and the influence of Giffen, who died earlier this month.
“This Book Is About My Hatred Of Chaos”: Daniel Clowes on Monica
There’s been a few Daniel Clowes interviews in the last few weeks, but none go as deep as John Kelly does today. Learn the secrets of Monica – or at least as many as the author is willing to tell.
Lost in the Shadows – This Week’s Links
“I’m here to deliver smiles.” I perform my katana routine to volcanic applause.
Reports from the ShortBox Comics Fair
Hagai Palevsky visited the ShortBox Comics Fair, that annual month-long market of new digital comics, and came away with five reviews of experimental and satirical works.
Inside the Canada Comics Open Library with Rotem Anna Diamant & Jordan Reg. Aelick
Continuing her journey through the Toronto comics scene, Kim Jooha interviews Rotem Anna Diamant & Jordan Reg. Aelick of the Canada Comics Open Library, which is dedicated to community access and artist involvement.
These Are The Damned – This Week’s Links
“Even though the ideal is high, I never give in,” I whisper, switching to Bluesky Social.
The Cartoonist and the Paint Lady
Combing through library archives, newspaper files and his personal collection, Michael O’Connell assembles a beguiling portrait of Milton Caniff, young and hungry, drawing industrial cartoons for a charismatic young editor.
“Boy Am I Glad I’m Not In This Business”: Catching up with Larry Marder
Catching up with the creator of Tales of the Beanworld, extensively travelled through the art and business of comics and several bordering terrains.
DJ Please, Pick Up Your Phone – This Week’s Links
What, I’m at a funeral… no, NOT for my career in writing excerpt text…
The Structure of Expressions in Manga
Natsume tackles the fundamentals of manga composition: the particular qualities of pictures, words and panels that deliver meaning to the reader. With examples from the work of Tiger Tateishi, Tori Miki and Natsume himself!
Arrivals and Departures – October 2023
October brings another batch of tricks and treats (small press and self-published comic books) for RJ Casey to read, and for you to read about.
“Something As Bland As Possible”: The Making of Sunday, with Olivier Schrauwen
One of the standout comics of 2023 is the fourth and final installment of Olivier Schrauwen’s Sunday, a 468-page depiction of one day in the life and mind of a self-centered man. Matt Seneca questions the artist on the making of this proudly unextraordinary epic.
Walk Without Rhythm – This Week’s Links
MMMM, NEWS! I dive in like it’s a money bin of sparkling candy.
Strange Planet and the Instagram Mainstream
Brief musings on the wildly popular yet curiously unambitious Instagram comics ‘mainstream,’ and its difficulties in travelling beyond the particularities of its audience.
Strong Men Also Cry: The Tom Strong Compendium
Revisiting one of the millennial artifacts of writer Alan Moore’s final foray into the superhero mainstream: Tom Strong, now reprinted as a single large softcover.
Scenes from a Marriage: Fujiwara Maki and Tsuge Yoshiharu
An examination of two books documenting roughly the same period in the lives of married artists: Fujiwara Maki’s My Picture Diary and Tsuge Yoshiharu’s The Man Without Talent.
Flashback: Photos from SDCC 2023
Re-live the memories of summer with dozens of photos from San Diego Comic-Con International 2023, courtesy of Chris Anthony Diaz!
“If They Know What To Expect, Then I’m Just A Can Of Campbell’s Soup”: Matt Wagner Reflects on Finishing Mage, Returning to Grendel, and What Comes Next
Zach Rabiroff sits down with the creator of Grendel and Mage, two of the most prominent 1980s indie genre comics still active today, in distinctly different forms.
The King Stay The King – This Week’s Links
Whew, I’m so glad the writer’s strike is over; now I can go back to hiring million-dollar talents to write these post descriptions. We never skimp on quality down here.
Married to Comics: A Powerful Film About the Lives of Justin Green and Carol Tyler
John Kelly reports from the world premiere of Married to Comics, a documentary about the lives of memoir comic masters Justin Green and Carol Tyler.
Remembering Joe Matt
A collection of tributes to the cartoonist Joe Matt, who died earlier this month at the age of 60. Longtime friends mingle with young artists Matt befriended, affording us a variety of new perspectives on one of the standout memoirists of his generation.
