This just in...

Bankers still @$$holes.

***

When everything's said and done (and I'd kind of like that to happen as soon as possible, please) this won't be remembered as a week in which dreadful things happened to me. In spite of that, I feel dreadful in pretty much every conceivable way. So I'm going to recycle some stuff I wrote for/to the guys at Happy Harbor about February's Previews magazine. Each month HH employees are asked to make a couple of suggestions (plus an alternate in case there's overlap) for what they think customers might want to pay special attention to in the latest Diamond catalogue. This last time out, I wrote my picks and then kinda kept going for a bit...

STAR WARS OMNIBUS: A LONG TIME AGO... VOLUME ONE, by a whole lotta folks. As a reader, nostalgia very rarely drives me to buy anything, especially comics. There's so much awesome new stuff out there to be found, and I'm, like, the exact opposite of wealthy. And let's face it, if I'm really in a mood to try and recapture the rush of excitement I got from, say, Claremont and Byrne's Dark Phoenix saga or Frank Miller's Daredevil stuff, well, I do pull a few hours a week behind the counter at a comic shop. Once Jay's drunk himself into an insensate coma (usually happens by around 2:00), provided the vacuuming's done, there isn't a whole lot stopping me from plucking a trade off the shelf or something out of the back issue bins to remind myself of the appallingly bad taste I had as a boy. You can't go home again, and the days of me being heart-palpitatingly excited to find the latest issue of New Teen Titans hidden on the spinner rack at Patton's Place are gone, gone, gone. Having said all that, this Star Wars Omnibus, reprinting the first 26 issues of Marvel's original Star Wars series--which, as it happens, are among the first comics I read, actively sought out and collected--hits all my ageing fanboy happy buttons. ALL OF THEM, every single one. And at 25 yankee dollars, I can almost afford it. Even if I couldn't--I mean, come on, the first storyline after Star Wars proper features a humanoid green rabbit bounty hunter fighting alongside a delusional old librarian who thinks he's a Jedi Knight named Don-Wan Kihotay. DON-WAN KIHOTAY. It works on so many levels! So yeah, I don't care if I am buying this for all the wrong reasons (as I recall, Jabba the Hutt in this version is a tall, skinny, purple walrus guy. Which is an improvement over a glaringly obvious CGI inserted slug, really.) I MUST HAVE IT.

BEASTS OF BURDEN, by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson. You know what's fun? Reading the entire Previews catalogue looking for a couple of suggestions for stuff Happy Harbor customers want to buy, only to discover that your two picks both appear in the first fifty pages of the FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY+ PAGE BOOK. But what can you do? From the classic Star Wars Omnibus to this almost brand-spanking new book, Dark Horse is where it's at this month. With the kind of high concept that inspires burning envy in those of us who didn't think of it first, from what I've seen so far, this tale of a bunch of dogs (plus a cat) taking on supernatural menaces in their neighbourhood is possibly the cutest horror comic ever created. What I've seen so far consists of the first issue of the four issue miniseries this 8x11" hardcover collects (along with several previous short stories that appeared in the various Dark Horse Book of (scary things) series, if I understand things correctly). Having read that first issue, I realized this one was a keeper, something I was going to want to own as a collected edition, and now here it comes--maybe, POSSIBLY just in time to get artist Jill Thompson to sign it when she appears at the Calgary Expo in April. Fingers crossed.

TURF #1, by Jonathan Ross and Tommy Lee Edwards: "A hardboiled noir crime thriller with guns, fangs and aliens." The solicitation might as well be, "Hey, Andrew Foley! READ THIS COMIC!" How creepy would that be if that actually was the solicitation? For me, I mean, for you it would probably just be an oddity to be frowned over briefly and then forgotten. Anyway. If the pitch wasn't enough to get me interested, and artist Tommy Lee Edwards weren't enough to get me interested, the sample pages would probably be enough to get me interested. For a modern comic, there's a lotta text on those pages. If the full 22 pages is like the three on display here, this is going to be a two-bathroom trip read, minimum. That might frustrate some readers, but for me it says the creators are trying to give the pamphlet-reading audience something they can sink their teeth into. I like that, even if there are occasions where the writer's reach exceeds the artist's grasp and word balloons end up cropping artwork that I'd kind of like to see more of, as occurs in the very first panel of the first sample page. Still, I'd rather have creators try and put too much in and not quite make it than have them not bother trying to push the limits of what the comic page can comfortably hold at all.

PREVIEWS REVIEWS

JUSTICE LEAGUE: RISE OF ARSENAL #2: Hey, when did Winter Soldier join the DC Universe? ...Sorry, couldn't resist.

DV8: GODS & MIONSTERS #1: On the one hand, I promised myself I wouldn't flag something just because of the cover. On the other hand, I promised myself I'd shamelessly hype the wonder and glory that is Fiona Staples at every possible opportunity. What should I do, Happy Harborites? WHAT SHOULD I DO?!?!?!?

IMAGE FIRSTS: YOUNGBLOOD #1: Because finding a cheap copy of Youngblood #1 is SO. FREAKING. HARD.

ARMAGEDDON NOW: ANTI-CHRIST: Jesus, who wrote this solicitation copy? "Anti-Christ" is hyphenated IN THE TITLE and they can't be bothered to use a dash in the solicits? And "Corbin pursues Jada assassin in Rome."? How would the world work if everyone actually talked like that? "Hey, Jay comic shop owner. How's it going?" "Not bad, Andrew comic shop tillmonkey and sometime writer. How's your wife, Tiina graphic designer?" "She's good. Right now she's taking Data dog and Dare puppydog for a walk." Oy. It's times like this I'm glad my Allah is the Flying Spaghetti-Monster...

THE WEIRD WORLD OF JACK STAFF #4, by Paul Grist: WHERE THE HELL IS MY JACK STAFF VOLUME FOUR COLLECTION? Seriously.

PROJECT SUPERPOWERS: CHAPTER TWO #10: In this issue: superheroes nobody remembers play jacks in a futuristic subway station!

THE PHANTOM: GHOST WHO WALKS #10: In this issue, an obese Phantom takes a long hard look at himself and decides to make some changes. Be here next month for the start of brand-new series THE PHANTOM: GHOST WHO JOGS.

SPELL CHECKERS, VOLUME ONE: Teen witches in high school, in a manga-influenced art style. My nieces will LOVE THIS.

MERC: BROKEN WORLD #3: I would bet five dollars pencils aren't finished on this already-solicited comic. Prove me wrong, Dan Schneider. Prove me wrong.

PREVIEWS PAGE 338 & 339: There is nothing on these two pages that is not wrong, wrong, "abomination in the eyes of God" WRONG.

NEW AVENGERS #64: "Plus the fate of the one they call Mockingbird!" Anyone want to give odds it's better than the fate of the one they called Wasp? And what happens if she dies and Hawkeye takes over her superhero identity (which is the style of the times), and then he's got a fate? What do they say then, "Plus the fate of the OTHER one they call Mockingbird!"?

FIRESTAR #1: Because somebody demanded it? Incidentally, Angelica Jones wasn't JUST a "friend." She was an AMAZING friend.

DEADPOOL CORPS #1: I hope you guys are wearing steel-toed boots, because if you aren't, sooner or later you're going to have to stop kicking that horse.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #630: Chris Bachalo drawing the Lizard. That is tempting...

NEW AVENGERS MGC #1: Now you can read the first issue of the title whose last issue we solicited a few pages ago! (Still the best comic of the cheap cover price MGC bunch, though. At least for this month.)

NEW AVENGERS: LUKE CAGE #1 (of 3): "So for the cover, what you do is you take this HELLBOY image, flip it around, lose the goggles--oh, those are horns? Well, whatever they are, they're gone. And you make the skin black instead of red and the big hand thing silver, but only, like, the arm part, the hand itself can be black too. Oh, and make sure it's got the right number of fingers." (All joking about the cover aside, I am a fan of Eric Canete's art and will probably check this out on that basis alone.)

DAREDEVIL #506: Hey Marvel? For future reference, there's no H in "Antony".

NEMESIS #2: "The most talked-about new series of 2010 rages on!" So Millar and McNiven's Nemesis is part of the Watchmen sequel/prequel thing? Got to admit, I did not see that one coming.

DARK REIGN: HAWKEYE TPB: Hey Marvel? For future reference, there's an "Antony Johnston" in "Antony Johnston".

A

There is no cause for alarm. Please remain comics.

So in the absence of much in the way of new North American mainstream comics tomorrow, Happy Harbor Comics is filling the New This Week shelves with work by local creators, as well as running a number of instore events to celebrate the medium. Which is cool.

Less cool: in an uncharacteristic moment of weakne--er, I mean, enthusiasm, I volunteered to be part of almost all of the proceedings that aren't scheduled during my normal shifts.

Which means if you want me to sign the copies of PARTING WAYS, THE HOLIDAY MEN in The Massacre Memorial Day Sale Massacre Extra-Special Collectible Black & White Edition #1, or even Cowboys & Aliens you're undoubtedly looking forward to buying, you'll be able to find me:

-jamming with fellow creators at the store tomorrow (Wednesday) night

-sketching for donations to the Edmonton food bank from 10-12 on Saturday, and

-on Sunday, again for charity, working in tandem with (what I sincerely hope is) a whole bunch of local creators to create a 16 page comic that, if everything goes smoothly (or roughly but according to schedule) will be printed and available the day after.

Details from the Harbor website:

Diamond Comics, the main distributor of new comics in North America, has announced that they will not be shipping any new comics the week of December 30 (with one exception), due to the holidays causing shipping delays to different regions across Canada and the US. So for that Wednesday, there will be no new, mainstream comics on the shelves which leaves Happy Harbor with some very empty shelves for a week.

To off-set that, we have decided to fill the NEW COMICS THIS WEEK rack at all our locations with locally owned and created material - including books we currently have in stock and several new ones by local creators made just for the event! Also, to help celebrate, we've lined up a few extra events!

Wednesday, Dec 30 - COMIC JAM! If you've never tried a Jam, improv comic art making, we'll be hosting Jams at as many of the HH locations as possible. Jams start at 7 pm, there's no charge and no materials are required.
**Volunteers to help run the Jams are still needed.

Saturday, Jan 2 - SKETCHFest! From 10 am to 6 pm at every Happy Harbor, bring a food good or cash donation for the Edmonton Food Bank and receive a custom sketch from any of the several local artists who'll be on hand drawing for the day!

Sunday, Jan 3 - COMIC IN A DAY! Between 10 and 11 am, bring in a donation for the Food Bank at HHv1 (downtown). The biggest donation gets to request the theme/title/characters for a 16-page comic that will be created by a host of local talent! Multiple writers and artists will work until 6 pm to complete the work which will be on sale the very next day!
The story will be credited to the winner as "INSPIRED BY" so this could be your chance to get YOUR comic made! Also, you'll receive a one-of-a-kind signature copy with the names of everyone who will work on the book!
Creators involved so far are professional comic writers Andrew Foley (Done to Death), Robert Richardson (DC Webcomic winner for Aug 09) and new Zenescope artist Daniel Schneider - with plenty of more talent to be named!

** To all interested creators, Happy Harbor will be providing meals and snacks for those attending the full day Sat or Sun.

A

The Lights are on...

Sorry, sorry. Mood's been in the toilet the last...30 years or so, and I'm trying cut back on the public moaning about how awful life is. It's unseemly (even if it is accurate).

So, not a lot of posting coming from me lately, and honestly, I don't see a whole lot more in the immediate future. But here's one bad thing I can whine about because I'm not doing it on my own behalf, and some good stuff that's going on.

First, the crappy thing. You may recall a year or two back I and Nick Johnson joining the online comics collective The Chemistry Set, where we released THE HOLIDAY MEN in THE MASSACRE MEMORIAL DAY SALE MASSACRE. There was a lot of good comics material on the Set, much of it unfinished for a variety of reasons, many relating to creators needing to do something other than a non-paying online comic to eat. Many, but not all.

For isntance, my favourite strip (other than the one I co-created, obviously), FCHS by Vito Delsante and Rachel Freire, stopped its ChemSet run after finding a print publisher.

FCHS, frequently pitched as "Riverdale, 90210", was a story about a group of teenagers in high school. Not the sort of subject matter that particularly appeals to my sensibilities, but Vito's writing did manage to hook me--the situations and characters rang true for me, something that's probably related to the story being at least semi-autobiographical.

But for me, FCHS's real draw was Rachel Freire's pared-down, cartoony artwork. Her FCHS work read to me like a cross between Dan DeCarlo and early Paul Grist. I loved it. My biggest gripe with FCHS's initial release on the ChemSet was that the creators had elected to work in a rigid three-panel strip format. I didn't mind the strip idea--in fact, I think it was great--but three panels every few days, well, I just wanted more.

Then Adhouse came along and agreed to publish an FCHS book. Vito and Rachel pulled FCHS from the Set and started retooling for print publication (losing the three panel tier along the way, which I still think is a shame.)

It was heartening to see Adhouse really get behind the book. In addition to Vito working relentlessly to let the online community know about the project, Adhouse released an FCHS teaser issue for Free Comic Book Day. I don't know the details of what went on behind the scenes, but as far as I can tell, a lot of people put a lot of effort into marketing a book I was looking forward to finally being able to read in full.

It's recently come out that Adhouse didn't get enough preorders and FCHS has been canceled. And that sucks.

I'm hoping Vito and Rachel come back and manage to find a new home for the project, either a new publisher or online. Not for them, but for me. As always, I want more FCHS, damn it.

***

GOOD STUFF

Happy Harbor Comics continued to earn its 2007 Outstanding Retailer Shuster Award this past weekend by raising in excess of $2700 for Alberta Literacy via a 24 Hour Comic event. HH is kicking in 10 cents for every dollar raised, which puts the total the charity will receive at over 3 grand.

That was last weekend. This weekend sees the launch of the Gilbert Bouchard Memorial Art Show: Visions of Comics. An exhibit of works by local artists, the show celebrates the creators, icons and history of the comics medium. The opening, at 7:00PM Saturday night, will have...cheese or something, and it will have me. I got my crummy sketches I did of Will Eisner in San Diego that I also got Will Eisner to sign shortly after the panel I drew them in framed. There is a reasonably entertaining story to go along with the piece--longtime readers of this blog (provided this blog is LiveJournal) might remember me relating it, but if you don't, or you want to hear the live version, or you just want to support the community and remember Gilbert, you should come down to Happy Harbor Volume One Saturday night.

Finally, thanks to Diamond electing not to release new comics on the Wednesday between Christmas and New Years this year, the Harbor's declared that Local Creators week. For those seven days, the New This Week shelves will feature comics almost exclusively by local creators. I believe Jay's talking to people about doing signings too. I wonder if I could talk Fiona and Nick into coming up...

***

SPEAKING OF FIONA...

...This used to be the weirdest interview with her ever, but apparently who- or whatever replaced words in her answers with more Lovecraftian language ("comic" became "jocose") has undone what they did. Still a nice interview, but I kind of miss the sensation I got when I first read it that I'd either fallen into a David Lynch film or suffered a massive stroke.

***

ALSO...

There's talk of someone doing a movie of Chris Carter's MILLENNIUM, with original series star Lance Henriksen reprising his role as profiler Frank Black. Sounds like Carter might not be involved, but then, I don't know how involved he was in the second season of the show (my favourite), either.

Millennium had two of the absolute best season-ending images ever, the super-bleak "We probably won't be back for a third season" S2 finale, and the final image of season 3.

Now all we need is for David Lynch to return to Twin Peaks and I can die of geek nostalgia-induced bliss.

A

I should really do a blog update.

But I'm not gonna. This last couple of weeks have left me drained and fragile. I am a delicate, five hundred and seventy pound flower.




***

OK, maybe a quick note on a comic thing...

"Only one resurrection ever impressed anyone."

So said Happy Harbor's Jay Bardyla, in response to the revelation that the Major Announcement Marvel'd promised regarding the mysterious miniseries REBORN was that it would feature the return of Steve Rogers.

I'm sure the story will be good. Brubaker's the guy who "killed" Captain America, and he's the guy who's bringing him back, and I'm assuming he's not having his arm twisted too hard to do so Brubaker brought Bucky back and made it work; Captain America's been easily the most consistent quality read produced by either of the Big Two for ages now. The writer obviously has a strong vision for the story he wants to tell and the art teams, aided by some skillful (if subdued) colouring, have provided a pretty much seamless story on the visual end of things. It's reasonable to expect more of the same with Reborn, and that's not a bad thing at all in this case.

Personally, I think Marvel would be better served by preserving their first really successful legacy superhero story rather than restoring the 70-year old status quo, but that's me--I don't have an upcoming movie to promote. And I'm kind of scratching my head as to how they ever thought bringing back a character killed a couple years ago would make any kind of major media splash. But never mind that.

The biggest problem with the return of Steve Rogers, I mean, the one massive issue, the elephant in the room that I'm sure keeps Joe Quesada awake at night is that, when push comes to shove, I prefer the Fantastic Four to Captain America. There are all sorts of reasons for that--my not being American is certainly a factor--but I don't really feel like going into them. Suffice it to say that, after Doctor Strange, my next favourite Marvel property is the FF.

So I was actually quite happy a year or three ago when the new creative team of Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch was announced for the title. Not because I'm a huge fan of the creative team, but because I figured having the guys who did the first two Ultimates series was a surefire way to raise the profile of The World's Greatest Comic Magazine. I haven't really looked at the sales numbers, but I gather from skimming Paul O'Brien's comments at Publisher Weekly's The Beat that, for whatever reason, they haven't been as awesome as one might have expected/hoped.

Which will happen from time to time. It may be that the FF is a concept whose time is past, that the people who aren't reading it are disinclined to do so for pretty much the same reasons I like the concept. What struck me as odd, though, was this comment from Joe Quesada:

"You try to use (Bryan Hitch) for the biggest projects possible. We try to do that with our very best talents. So when Ed had the idea of "Reborn" and we knew it was going to be a big deal and wanted to get the most out of it, we wanted to use ... Hitch. So it was literally that simple. You want to bring your A-Team for your A-Story and have them bring their A-Game."

Which is well and good for Reborn, but when that statement is made in response to a question that at least in part was made regarding pulling Hitch off the end of Millar's Fantastic Four run...well, maybe it's just me, but couldn't that be read to imply that The Fantastic Four, the book that started the Marvel Age of Comics, either isn't considered a priority for the company, or that Millar and Hitch are delivering less than their best work on the project?

I dunno. Just struck me as weird comment coming from the Editor in Chief.

A

Andrew Gets Overly Excited, Sometimes

Over at LiveJournal, Mad Creative Genius Dan Schaffer teased the release of a DOGWITCH: THE WHOLE SHEBANG book collecting his entire supernatural goth punk sex farce in one volume. This is great news.

Also great news: the first issue of Aaron Williams and the Future of Comics (I) Fiona Staples' new Wildstorm miniseries NORTH 40 is in the current PREVIEWS magazine. And it's being promoted with some actual oomph--I don't know what DC pays for the privilege, but last time I checked, two solid pages of Previews cost more than I generally make in a year. And I have no idea what the Diamond Order Code is! But you should still order it from your local comics retailer!

Especially if your local retailer is Happy Harbor Comics. HH frequently goes the extra mile for the works of local friends of the store, and NORTH 40 is no exception. People who order the miniseries will receive it at 50% HH's fair price (based on the exchange rate the day HH acquires the non-returnable issues.) This ought to mean a lot of orders for North 40 from the Harbor, but bugger-all return for selling them to Jay and Shawna. That's just the kind of people they are.

I'm going to go do a little dance around my office now. Ta!

A

One Man's Treasure

Jay at Happy Harbor really didn't enjoy Final Crisis #7. I mean, really didn't, to the point that I'm actually a little worried about him.

He started a thread at Canadian Geek, in which he expresses his disappointment, ultimately declaring that either the series was lousy or he's dumb, while projecting a motivation for FC writer Grant Morrison that I don't believe is supported by the available evidence (though in fairness, I don't think Morrison's defensiveness during his Final Crisis Exit Interview at Newsarama didn't do him any favours when it comes to PR.)

In any event, at some point in the thread, Canadian Geek Man Swamp made a comment that I just had to respond to. Both the comment and the response are below.

[quote="Man Swamp"] if you need an essay to even [i]understand[/i] a comic, it's rubbish.[/quote]

I challenge this notion on the same grounds I'd challenge someone telling me Picasso's Guernica is a rubbish painting or David Lynch's Lost Highway is a rubbish film.

Taking the latter specifically: I watched Lost Highway a half dozen times; always enjoyed the experience; and couldn't make sense of it as a story. Same goes for Mulholland Drive, though I didn't like it as much or watch it as often.

One day I got it into my head to do a little reading on Mr. Lynch's films online. After reading a few articles and posts from people who are REALLY into Lynch, I discovered both LH and MD actually did have (mostly) linear plots. These were stories I might have been able to grasp independently, if I'd applied myself. But I didn't, not because I was lazy, but because I enjoyed the experience of watching them regardless. That said, I wouldn't hold someone not enjoying the experience against them--tastes vary, as do expectations.

Jay didn't enjoy the experience of reading Final Crisis, for much the same reason I didn't enjoy my experience reading Infinite Crisis--for whatever reason, the execution of the books didn't appeal to us and eventually we stopped caring. And expressing our disappointment at having something not appeal to our sensibilities--that's fine. In the same way that a lot of people look at Jackson Pollock's paintings and see nothing special, our frames of reference in regards to those particular series didn't align with the creators', at least not enough for us to enjoy them.

That doesn't mean that either of them is bad. In our post-modern culture, I don't know that there is such a thing as a comic being objectively bad anymore, anyway. Between sales and critical reception, there are tons of comics I think are awful on almost every front that are terribly popular (emphasis on the "terrible"). Meanwhile, some people don't think Jack Staff's the best superhero book going. There's no accounting for taste.

Or maybe there is. When reviewing a book, I always attempt to establish what it is the creators were attempting to achieve, and base any critique on my perception of whether or not they achieved it. Which means I could, in theory, end up giving a positive review to something I didn't enjoy (in theory because nobody puts a gun to my head and says I *must* review something--if I didn't enjoy something, I don't see myself expending resources giving it a positive review even if it did achieve its creators' goals.)

For whatever reason, every review I've read of Final Crisis #7 (mostly at Newsarama, Comic Book Resources, and The Savage Critics) has been generally positive. I don't believe all these people are pretending to enjoy something because they're afraid they'll look dumb if they don't. I'm also not convinced all of these people are entirely, 100% clear on exactly what actually happened, in plot terms. They enjoyed Morrison's fragmented spectacle style of storytelling, or the metacommentary on imagination and storytelling, or Batman killing the personification of evil, or whatever, to the point that they could forgive Morrison's deliberate deviation from the traditional North American superhero comic storytelling style.

At the end of the day, Morrison was trying to do some things wildly different from what's usually in the pages of a North American superhero comic. I admire him trying something new (as I usually do with Morrison), I don't know if it really worked, even judged by the writer's own criteria (I usually don't with Morrison), and I'm really not sure if this was a huge, universe wide crossover was an appropriate place to blast sequential narrative into pieces--from a business perspective, if nothing else.

I will say this: while not understanding Final Crisis doesn't make someone dumb and not enjoying it doesn't make someone dumb, at the same time having a significant number of people not understand or enjoying Final Crisis doesn't make it a bad comic. Too many people enjoyed the experience of reading it for me to believe that.

For myself, I'd take Final Crisis over Infinite Crisis, Civil War, or Secret Invasion (or Invisibles or The Filth, if it came to it). And that's even though I don't really understand what happened, something I'm going to blame on my trying to blast each issue in ten minutes before my shift started...hopefully, when I read it collected, it'll work like Seven Soldiers and the whole will prove greater than the sum of its parts. Even if it doesn't...well, I'd rather read something that reaches high and misses the mark than aims low and just fills the requisite number of pages.

A

Comic Zirconia

My first reaction to the news that Diamond Distribution was increasing the minimum order requirement to carry comics in its Previews catalogue was my typical response to an awful lot of comic industry news this last few years: frustration.

Diamond's in a no-win situation. There's no doubt they were losing money carrying many titles that are deficient in some ways--either underpromoted by the publisher/creators, or just not of sufficient quality to be commercially feasible. As terrifying as the new guidelines seemed to someone who's always been in the small press, I can't blame them for not wanting to expend resources on such material.

Some maintain that Diamond has a moral responsibility to carry as wide a breadth of comic material as possible.* As the effective monopoly for direct market comics distribution (the primary feeder system for material to comic-centric retailers), soliciting through Previews has long been considered a must for small press publishers. At least, it has been for those publishers I've heard talk about it. One of my big arguments in favour of the comics medium has long been the relatively (in the case of some stuff that got into Previews, the obscenely) low barrier of entry for newcomers. Unlike the prose novel industry, direct market comics have a history of successful self-publishers, from the Pinis and Dave Sim up through Jeff Smith.

I can't recall a new successful self-publisher springing into existence in the direct market in the last few years, but I suspect the idea that it was at least possible gave a lot of creators and would-be creators some much-needed (if undeserved) hope. As a hopelessly unorganized introvert, self-publishing through Diamond was always an option of last resort, but until now, it always felt like it was an option.** That, it seemed, was now gone.

DONE TO DEATH, the last comic I had published in the direct market, with art by Rising Superstar Artist of SECRET HISTORY OF THE AUTHORITY: JACK HAWKSMOOR Fiona Staples, hadn't come anywhere near the minimum Diamond was setting for its books. Come to think of it, it hadn't come anywhere near the previous limit, partly for reasons I'm prevented from going into and partly because Diamond hadn't done a great job distributing it. Stories of unfilled orders, claims comics the publisher still had hundreds of copies of were sold out, and other such problems happened with stomach-churning regularity.

Even so, the new requirements seemed designed to kill the small press comic, at least in the traditional, 32 page monthly/bimonthly/whatever floppy. People smarter than I am seemed to be saying as much (The Beguiling's Chris Butcher and columnist Steven Grant among them). The optimistic view seemed to be that the small pressers would now be forced to focus on the trade paperback format to meet the requirements. The pessimistic saw Marvel and DC crushing all other direct market companies. Crushing them more than they already do, that is. Somewhere in the middle was a world where webcomics took over as the primary mode of serial delivery and creators sold directly to their audience, which for good or ill would take Diamond and retailers out of the equation almost entirely.

Happy Harbor owner Jay Bardyla offered an alternate viewpoint I hadn't seriously considered. In his opinion, Diamond's new moves were the best thing that could happen for people who disliked the company's perceived monopoly on the direct market (by which he meant me, as I've never heard anyone else go on about it in the store for any length of time.) As he saw it (or as I understand him to be seeing it), by threatening to cut a substantial number of small pressers, the company was effectively forcing publishers to either step up and properly promote their product, or find another distributor, the obvious candidate being Haven Distributors, formerly known as Cold Cut Distribution.

I was, to put it mildly, skeptical of whether Haven getting a bunch of new publishers who couldn't sell a couple thousand copies of their comic through Diamond would have much of an effect on either the distributor or the publishers. Jay argued that one of Haven's major problems to date is that they haven't had sufficient product available to make it worthwhile for a retailer to order through their service, if only on a shipping cost level. A thicker catalogue would force retailers like him to take another look at Haven and reevaluate whether it's worth dealing with them.

I'm still not sure that's going to fly. When we'd discussed/argued the merits of Diamond's position in the past, I always got the impression he was hesitant to deal with more than one distributor unless it was absolutely necessary--finding enough time in a day to keep track of everything going on at Diamond was hard enough.

That said, if put in a position where he felt he had to do it for the sake of the business, he'd do it even if he didn't want to. Jay's one of the hardest-nosed business people I know; he's also always looking to one-up himself when it comes to Happy Harbor's Next Thing, whatever it may be (this year's tenth anniversary celebration + Free Comic Book Day is going to be something.) Maintaining the Harbor's edge isn't all that matters to him, but it's a Big, Big Thing. I have a hard time believing there are many retailers out there who'll be willing to do what Happy Harbor will. If there were, there'd be a hell of a lot more comic shops currently in existence.

Jay's position did shine a light on the major flaw in the current Comics' End is Nighers point of view, which is: Diamond cutting out a lot of small press publishers is only a disaster for the direct market if one accepts that Diamond and Diamond alone is the direct market. For many in the industry, up till now, that belief has simply been a given. There's no upside to believing it, and honestly, I'm thinking there hasn't been for some time--it's just one of those things publishers and creators clung to because they couldn't envision anything else. Now, they/we have no choice. If we continue to see Diamond as the Only Option, we are indeed doomed.

The one thing Jay didn't understand when we last talked was why Haven wasn't stepping up and making some noise about their suddenly much more attractive services. Since then, Haven owner Lance Stahlberg's done at least one interview at Newsarama. I mailed Jay the link this morning, and got this in reply:

"See, it’s not the end of the world. If anything, my job just got that much more difficult."

A

*I'm not one of them. I always thought it'd be nice if Diamond were a bit more supportive of the small press, but never for a second believed it should be required of them.

**In fairness to Diamond, from what I've been reading in the last week or so, it still might very well be. But this post deals with my initial thoughts almost immediately after coming upon the subject.

Quotes of the Day / Timekillers

"He's the kind of guy who checks for gas leaks with a lighter." - Tiina.

"Enthusiasm is a sugar rush. You really feel it when it’s over." - John August, responding to someone who thought they were going somewhere but actually weren't (not me, though it might as well have been.)

" He wants what he wants. He wants it the way he wants it, if he thinks it's not fair. And he stamps his feet and heat visions people if he doesn't get it. He's a psychotic brat wearing blinders." - Geoff Johns, talking about Superboy-Prime - a character who interviewer Vaneta Rogers charitably describes as "loosely represent(ing) the attitude of some readers."

http://johnaugust.com/archives/2008/post-buzz-blues
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/080825-SpoilerSportL3W.html

***

THE FRUITS OF MY LABOUR. WELL, MOSTLY SOMEONE ELSE'S LABOUR, BUT A BIT OF MINE, TOO.

The first two comics I edited for Zeros 2 Heroes, BLACK JACK O'BREEN and KNIGHTCAP: NOVEMBER'S SONG can now be read online, for free, free, free! You owe it to yourself to read one or both books, and you owe it to me to sign up at Z2H and become Official Fans of them.

OK, you don't owe me squat, but it'd be nice if you did become Official Fans (assuming you like the books) (which I AM assuming), because the more Fans a book gets, the more likely it is to continue.

BLACK JACK O'BREEN: Fleeing an English noose, Jack O'Breen left Ireland behind and found a new life packing a gun in the American west. He could run from the English, from the Fenian rebels, even from the girl he loved. But the faeries don't give up so easily. So join us for fantasy, adventure and romance! Face off against pagan magic with six-shooters and cold iron bullets. Come and ride with Black Jack O'Breen.

Written by John Michael Sullivan, painted art by Frank Grau Jr., letters by Ed Brisson. Edited by no one of note.

http://www.zeros2heroes.com/property/black-jack-o-breen

KNIGHTCAP: NOVEMBER'S SONG: "Boy Meets Girl. Boy Loses Girl. Girl Destroys Universe?"

That's a fine hook for a comic, but not really reflective of KC:NS' first issue, which is more a straight-up superheroic comedy in the vein of the DeMatteis/Giffen Justice League. Knowing what the writer has planned for the characters, it'd be really nice to get the chance to see the Girl Destroy the Universe.

Written by Stephen Cmelak, pencils through to letters by The Future of Comics (II) John Keane (which is reason enough to read it on its own, if you ask me.)

http://www.zeros2heroes.com/property/knightcap-november-s-song

***

HARBOR LIFE AND PRINT CULTURE

Once again earning the accolades rightly heaped upon it, on Thursday at 7:00 PM, Happy Harbor Comics (Volume One) is hosting a talk by Writer and Comics Herstorian Trina Robbins. The event is sponsored by the Edmonton Small Press Association, and is free, though donations will be gratefully accepted. I'd be there to watch her myself, but I'll be seeing her speak tomorrow at the Edmonton Pop Print Culture Festival. I'll also be appearing there, on Thursday at noon as part of Comic Wars, and on Friday along with Dark Horse Assistant Editor Rachel Edidin and local artist Bob Prodor as part of the comics festival Pro Panel. Should be interesting, and I believe the comics festival stuff is free, so if you've got the time and inclination, come on down. Here's the more or less complete schedule.

www.happyharborcomics.com
http://www.trinarobbins.com/
http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/popprint/
http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/popprint/festival.html#schedule

***

BRANSON & CHOPRA'S COMIC COMPANY DIED A VIRGIN

I didn't care much for what I saw of Virgin Comics' output (though Jenna Jameson's Shadowhunter was always handy to have around as a prime example of everything that's wrong with the comic industry), but if a lot of individual people don't take a hit from this, the small press comic industry certainly will, as yet ANOTHER non-Big Four comics publisher proves it can't deliver the good long-term - and this one financed by some of the deepest pockets in the world. Which makes it even less likely that a retailer will take a chance on something from a smaller comic publisher, no matter how good it may be. Understandable, but depressing as hell. I hope everyone involved with the company who isn't a multimillionaire comes out of the situation relatively unscathed.

A

HOLIDAY MEN Signing at HH This Weekend

- April 19, 2008 -

Happy Harbor Comics is proud to bring local creators from Edmonton and Calgary in for a special in-store signing event.

Proudly debuting their brand-new comic, THE HOLIDAY MEN IN THE MASSACRE MEMORIAL DAY SALE MASSACRE EXTRA-SPECIAL COLLECTIBLE BLACK AND WHITE PRINT EDITION #1 - the print version of their hilarious new webcomic on the Chemistry Set webcomic collective - writer Andrew Foley and artist Nick Johnson will be in attendance, as will Chris Peterson, who will have copies of his new release, PETER THE PAN: SPECIAL EDITION. An extended version of the story he wrote for the Vicious Ambitious horror anthology, Pumpkin Juice, the PAN SPECIAL EDITION includes a "Director's Commentary", notes about the Making of, as well as a special edition trading card giveaway "while supplies last".

All three creators will start off at Happy Harbor vol. 2 (180 Manning Crossing) from 2pm - 4pm, and then will travel to Happy Harbor vol. 3 (10326 - 81 Ave) to hang out from 6pm - 8pm. And if you can't make it out on Saturday, you can still catch Nick and Chris at the Edmonton Collectible Toy and Comic Show on Sunday!

###

If you're in Edmonton, or near Edmonton, or have been thinking of traveling to Edmonton, you owe it to yourself to come hang out with me and the Boys.

A

Where the wind blows.

Weather is changing. After a week and a half of above zero temperatures, snow has started to fall. I feel like someone has kicked me in the brain.

***

SELF-REFERENTIAL LINKBLOGGING

As you may recall, a couple days ago I referenced the recent practice of many small press comic publishers of creating comic projects that are intended less to be successful comics than they are cheap back-door pitches for movie and television properties.

The very next day, Dirk Deppey, the guy behind my favourite comics blog, The Comic Journal's !journalista!, ran a good portion of an interview with Barry Levine, the guy behind a new comics publisher with that very business plan, Radical Comics, accompanied by the occasional snarky comment. You know you're in for an entertaining time when the intro to a story begins with an intro like this one: "The Hollywood connection continues to attract parasites to comics publishing..."

Or maybe you just know *I'm* in for a good time when that happens.

***

SELF-REFERENTIAL LINKBLOGGING #2

Over at the Andrew Foley Writes Things blog, Scott O. Brown, the guy responsible for my March 11 Quote of the Day left the following comment in response to it:

"Expect a package."

Oh yeah. When it comes to giving notes, I've still got it.

***

SELF-REFERENTIAL LINKBLOGGING #3

Happy Harbor Comics has put up photos from the Make-A-Wish event on Monday featuring Udon Studios artist and all-round good guy Joe Ng, including one of me, Jayce Morrow, and the sketch of the Decepticon BARRICADE I did for him. That hour and a half at HH was the highlight of my week in a lot of ways. Certainly it put me in as good a mood as I've been in for too long awhile.

***

SELF-REFERENTIAL LINKBLOGGING #4

After a number of false starts at other small press comic publishers, George Singley has decided it'd be less of a hassle to publish Chimaera Studios comics himself.

I did some writing work on the Chimaera RPG, as well as the upcoming TITUS: HEROIC FAILURE miniseries--a book I put a lot into and will be happy to finally see published. T:HF is pretty much the direct creative forerunner of THE HOLIDAY MEN, so if you like that, you'll probably like Titus. On the other hand, if you like pretty much everything else Chimaera's doing (which tends to be in much more of a straight superhero vein), this is something you'll probably want to avoid.

I'm also informed that T:HF now has an artist, one I'm very happy with, but I don't think I'm supposed to talk about it yet.

***

THE TO-DO LIST (weekend edition)

-Finish first 20 comic pages of script of MASTER OF THE HOUSE, so Fiona's got everything she needs when she starts drawing it in May.

-Talk to editor about the shape (or lack thereof) of GONE.

-Dig up projects a prospective new collaborator might like to work on.

-Work on the textras for THE HOLIDAY MEN print version.

-Do Not Panic.

A

Above and Beyond (Happy Harbor earns its name)

From today's Edmonton Journal:

"A stop at the Manning Crossing store of Happy Harbor Comics was the highlight of a whirlwind day of media interviews and shopping sprees for Jayce, a nice break from the needles, intravenous treatments, radiation and that general sick feeling that have been his life for the past 15 months.

The Hinton boy suffers from T-cell leukemia, a particularly aggressive form of blood cancer...

On Monday, thanks to the Make-a-Wish Foundation, Happy Harbor owner Jay Bardyla and Joe Ng, the illustrator of Transformers who made a special trip from Toronto just to meet Jayce, the youngster had the best day he could remember..."

Bloggityblogblogblog

Having breakfast with my brother-in-law yesterday at the insanely early hour of...I don't know, it was a lot earlier than I'm usually up, let's just put it that way. Anyway, we're talking about this and that, this being hi iPod Touch, and that being blogging. He pointed out that I don't post as much these days, which doesn't feel true but I know is.

Stopping to think about it, I came to some conclusions as to why that's the case. There's only so much whining one person can do in public; stuff I'd like to talk about I can't for legal reasons; other stuff I'd like to talk about runs the risk of hurting, inadvertently or otherwise, people I'd rather not see hurt; even though I've completely written the first two storylines, THE HOLIDAY MEN, between lettering tweaks and spreading the word and figuring out how to post images and generally keeping things going in the right direction takes a lot of time out of my week (even more since Ward bailed.) T and I spent most of Friday and much of the last couple days getting this week's Very Special Installment ready for tomorrow night.

And of course, there's always, always other things I SHOULD be writing right now.

But I do feel bad about not posting more. That might not actually get me to post more, but it can't hurt.

Just for fun, here's a page of script I wrote as a favour for Jay at Happy Harbor. He's been doing a lot of speaking engagements at local schools lately, and needed a single page that could be drawn by different artists, the idea being that the kids would be able to see how different artists interpret the same script.

He didn't ask me for anything more than that--he even said it didn't need to be a finished story or anything (and arguably it isn't.) But I set some guidelines for myself, which made it a bit of a challenge. I wanted something that could be shown to kids without issues (there goes the swearing and any graphic violence.) I wanted something that involved a lot of different scripting terminology--I don't know if Jay's going to be talking about what a full bleed or an establishing shot is, but it couldn't hurt to have it in there. I did want it to stand on its own (always a challenge, again, not sure I managed it) and in the absence of heavy action, I wanted it to be funny.

This is what I came up with:

PANEL 1 (FULL ACROSS, FULL BLEED)
A panoramic shot of devastation and destruction on a cataclysmic scale. Buildings in ruins, smoke, flame, the whole nine yards.
1 CAP: (tech font) My first game of soccer did not go well. I was sent to live in Edmonton with my Aunt Helen.

PANEL 2
Exterior establishing shot of a middle-class house in an Edmonton suburb. It’s a nice sunny day in July.
2 CAP: (tech font) My cousin Gavin...was not thrilled with this arrangement.
3 GAVIN: (from house) --I DON’T WANNA. THE OTHER KIDS DON’T LIKE HER.
4 AUNT HELEN: (from house) SHE’S YOUR COUSIN AND YOU’RE GOING TO MAKE HER FEEL WELCOME.

PANEL 3
Interior establishing shot of the house’s kitchen. Neat but not sparkling, very homey.
GAVIN (eleven years old, unruly hair, dressed in shorts, t-shirt, and sneakers), is arguing, or at least trying to, with his mother, HELEN (mid-thirties, dressed comfortably but well).
Helen isn’t looking at her son; she’s focused on chopping a cucumber to add to the salad bowl on the counter. Gavin’s spluttering in impotent fury.
5 GAVIN: BUT SHE’S A KILLER ROBOT!
6 AUNT HELEN: THAT’S BESIDE THE POINT. SHE’S FAMILY.
7 AUNT HELEN: (connected) NOW GO ASK HER.

PANEL 4 (SMALL)
Head and shoulders shot of a scowling Gavin. He knows he isn’t going to win this one, but isn’t happy about it.
8 GAVIN: FINE.

PANEL 5
Interior establishing shot of a pre-adolescent girl’s room. Lots of pink, lots of frills. Teddy bears and Barbies line shelves along the walls.
Sitting on the bed--which bows noticeably under the weight--is our narrator, the MAXIKILLDROID-XI (or MAXI, for short.) Maxi is an eight-foot tall humanoid robot, and every inch of her grey metal body looks like it could cut, maim, kill, explode, and otherwise do grievous bodily damage to anyone who got on her bad side. Barrels of guns, flamethrowers, and a bazooka protrude from various parts of her body; blades, both stationary and buzzsaw, cover much of the rest of her. Her eyes are green, glowing slits.
And she’s dressed in a modest skirt, a t-shirt, and socks with little pom-poms on them.
9 SFX: KNOCK KNOCK
10 MAXI: (electrical tail, tech font) COME IN.

PANEL 6
Past Maxi, head turned to look at her cousin, to Gavin, standing framed in her bedroom doorway. He’s holding a soccer ball.
Artist note: Make sure to leave sufficient room for word balloons.
11 GAVIN: HEY.
12 MAXI: (ET, tech) HEY.
13 GAVIN: SO, UH, YOU EVER PLAY SOCCER?
14 MAXI: (ET, tech) ONCE.
15 GAVIN: YOU WANNA COME PLAY WITH ME NOW?

PANEL 7
Head and shoulders side view of Maxi, head turned to look out of the panel at us (and Gavin.)
NO DIALOGUE

PANEL 8
Same shot.
16 MAXI: (ET, tech) SURE.
###

Nicknames I have been known and loved by.

Nicknames I have been known and loved by.
A couple of my friends are really getting kicked around the last few days. One's being screwed over by unscrupulous ex-business partners; the other's waiting to hear back from a doctor whether or not he's just in rough shape, or terrifyingly bad shape, healthwise.

Knowing that these guys have troubles that make mine look like molehills with delusions of grandeur, I find myself pre-shamed into not complaining about my sixteen-month long sinus headache, or sore back, or the Catscan I had yesterday.

Actually, I couldn't complain about the Catscan--well, I could, I can complain about anything, it's a gift--but I shouldn't. It was the smoothest medical procedure I've ever had to endure, and I've had to endure a lot of them. In fact, I was actually halfway back home when the time of my appointment rolled around. I got there early and they took me right in. I don't think that's ever happened for me before. Every medical test should be like yesterday's Catscan.

Unwilling for the moment to dwell on the awful void that is my near-perfect life (for the Perfect Life, just Add Money!), I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to write about (in public--I've got TONS of stuff I ought to be writing independently...). So what you get is this:

As some of you know, I've been writing a monthly column for Award-Winning comic retail chain Happy Harbor Comics, "Kid Drew's YOU WANT TO BUY THIS!" When he read the title of the column, my friend Marc "Marcus" Bryant (writer of THE GATESVILLE COMPANY and SHOTGUN WEDDING, two generally excellent comics cut down in their prime by the demise of Speakeasy Comics) was...less than enthusiastic about the title. The reason he wasn't enthusiastic had nothing to do with the contents of the column (which is my picks for the best bets from each month's PREVIEW catalogue--I started doing this in lieu of my Skewed Perspectives reviews because I was getting sick of writing about what I didn't like that I was reading. It's much easier to be enthusiastic and upbeat about something that sounds interesting and/or good in advance of its release, even easier when a few people actually take a chance and order something I recommended...nothing like an audience to get a writer's juices flowing...).

No, Marc's problem was with the title. He thought I'd dubbed myself "Kid Drew". And to him, that was hinky.

The people who actually read YWTBT! probably also read the HARBOR LIFE webcomic, and know that Kid Drew is a character in the strip based loosely on yours truly. Unlike Kid Drew, I don't habitually wear a Luchadore mask, nor do I try and frighten people into buying comics I like. I do, however, shove comics I like in the faces of people I think should buy them. If they find that frightening, well, that's not my fault.

Over at his blog, artist vunderkind Nick Johnson has declared me "The Pastor of Disaster." Which, given my deeply-held conviction that everything sucks, is certainly apropos. Or at least Tiina thinks so.

Kid Drew and The Pastor of Disaster are just two of many nicknames I have had over the years--a few of which haven't fallen through the holes in my swiss cheese memory. Some of them I liked, some of them I didn't mind, a couple of them I tried to convince everyone to call me because I thought that would be cool. None of them stuck for any length of time, which I believe was the point of a nickname I had in high school--one I was so proud of I even painted it on a ballcap, just so everyone would know I self-identified as "The Undefined."

Inside my high-school social group (read as: roleplaying geeks who hung out with each other), there were two subgroups: the Man-Men and the others. The Others each got unique nicknames, none of them particularly complimentary. The Man-Men were the ones who could pass as cool; they were known by the nickname "The (Insert Name Here) -Man". There was The Matt-Man, the Don-Man, a couple others. Sometimes I was granted the Andy-Man status, but mostly it was agreed that I just...wasn't a Man-Man. But neither then was I really one of the Others. I got along with all of them fine, for the most part; in some ways I was the one thing they all had in common. But I didn't really fit in either group...I was The Undefined.

Mind you, now that I think about it, most of the Man-Men eventually got into body-building and weightlifting (I recently reconnected with The Matt-Man and found out that he's been taking part in Strong-Man competitions...). So maybe The Undefined wasn't the compliment I liked to think it was...

I had several nicknames among the painters I worked with as a summer job while I attended art college. My favourite (though I have a hard time fathoming why at this point in time) was "The Human Eclipse", which generally got shortened down to "Eclipse".

Partly because I've had greying hair since my mid-teens, and partly because I dressed up to go out for the crew's annual Calgary Stampede Drink-Up (in which the boss did the impossible and made Stampede tolerable by paying for his crews' consumption of a terrifying quantity of alcohol), the boss' brother dubbed me "The Silver Fox". I imagine I was called other, far less complimentary names behind my back. I vaguely recall repeatedly calling someone an awful name (I don't remember what it actually was anymore, but it wasn't nice) for a couple days, simply because I'd never heard anyone on the crew refer to him by his actual name and had written off the nickname as an unfortunate choice made in a moment of weakness by cruel parents...ahh, the joys of the blue-collar life...

One of my closest friends in Art College made a valiant run at getting me known as "Boxcar." If that had stuck, I believe I would've taken up blues guitar.

As much as I like the idea of being known as The Pastor of Distaster, I still think the longest-running nickname I had for several years as a child is probably the most accurate.

Dad had my number from a very early age, when he started calling me "Bummer." I was fifteen before I realized "bummer" had a negative connotation.

A

Three Things

1. Nick Johnson's and my Creator Commentary on the second HOLIDAY MEN installment can be found at in that installment's comments section.

2. My monthly trawl through Diamond's PREVIEWS catalogue for items good, interesting, and depressing, Kid Drew's YOU WANT TO BUY THIS!, can be found in the Products section of the Happy Harbor website.

3. The Future of Comics (I) Fiona Staples is going to be a HUGE STAR.


A

Is It Possible for a Head to Tread Water?

Because mine isn't exactly swimming, but it's not on solid ground, either...

Been feeling sick most of the week. Back of the throat's sore, I've got that "axe in my face" feeling that characterized the sinus infection a few months back, and my body's achy.

I could deal with all of that--it's almost par for the course, for me in an Edmonton November. So this afternoon I went to Happy Harbor Volume 3 to do a little painting. And by little I mean LITTLE. Rolled primer on most of the upstairs, started cutting and that's around the time the room started to shrink and I almost fell down. Fortunately, there was a door frame handy to prevent me from doing an out of control face plant, but still...

After driving about halfway home, I realized what my problem was with the traffic--my eyes kept wanting to go out of focus and see double. It's a weird experience, consciously forcing your eyes to focus every few seconds. And distracting. I think I might've technically driven better if I'd just let the focus go, picked the version of traffic that looked most welcoming, and ran with it.

***

WORK

Almost got MERLYN COMPANY figured out. Started scripting a few days ago, and the holes left in the plotting I'd done started filling themselves. I love it when that happens. Still one major story element that needs to be worked out, but it's started, now.

Nick Johnson's gotten the first two pages of art for THE HOLIDAY MEN done done done, and they are gorgeous. Tiina's taking a shot at lettering, to hopefully help Nick pick up speed. Things aren't coming together as fast as anyone had hoped, but when they do fall into place I think we're going to have something special. I can't wait for the press release to go out--it's the kind of thing I've tried to write repeatedly over the years and had someone above me balk and go, No, let's do something that doesn't make a mockery of the idea of press releases. But nobody's going to stop this one from going out. Whether it gets picked up remains to be seen...

***

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/11/magazine/11wwln-cowboys-t.html?ref=magazine

Fantagraphics founder Gary Groth called COWBOYS & ALIENS "undistinguished pap." For some reason, this has actually improved my mood.

Casting a wider net, Toronto comic shop The Beguiling's Chris Butcher says he has yet to see a Platinum project that didn't feel like a pitch. It's not likely he's going to come across many that don't any time soon--high-concept material suitable for exploitation in other media is pretty much the model Platinum's built on, after all. Off the top of my head, I'd say the Platinum projects that at least SEEM most driven by the creators executing them are HERO BY NIGHT (the writer/artist of which was given extraordinary creative latitude by Platinum's standards of the time) and WEIRD ADVENTURES IN UNEMPLOYMENT. That this can be said of the last example is more than a little ironic, as it's actually being done by someone other than the strip's originator. But it's also one that at least feels as though the creator's being left more or less to his own devices, and is producing an idiosyncratic webcomic as a result.

That isn't to say the webcomic is better than the original version--I don't think it is. But, as the one-time editor of that original version and staunch supporter of the artist who drew it, John Keane, I'm obviously more than a little biased.

Good night (hopefully.)

A

24 hours = six days

At least, it does when you're a decrepit geezer like myself. I'm still not feeling entirely human after the 24HCBD slog. Body's still sore, brain still feels like it was sucked out my nose and replaced with a cement-like substance. On the upside: more than $2700 will be going to the Alberta Literacy Fund. Yay team. The weather's not helping my general condition, yoyoing as it is from 22 degrees this afternoon to a high of 5 tomorrow. This didn't stop me and T from going to listen to Gilbert Bouchard and a bunch of Unitarians and/or university students discuss various aspects of vampire and zombie mythology at the U of A this evening. It was an entertaining, occasionally frustrating discussion that had the floor thrown open to the peanut gallery earlier than I'd have preferred. Gilbert's an entertaining speaker whose thoughts are worth listening to even when he's wrong, wrong, wrong. The desperate desire to appear clever and erudite made some of the audience participants' input absolutely intolerable. If I never have to hear how the myth of the vampire is tied to giving a loved one a hickie so that you can control them again, it'll be too soon. While I was out, my Scott O. Brown, originator, co-creator and co-writer of THREADS, had a conversation with a fairly well-established film producer about the project. We'll see if that goes anywhere. The only place I'm going is to bed. A

Happy Harbor II and III filming back-to-back

This just in (if by "just in" you mean, "It's been in the works for weeks and I found out about it last night"): Happy Harbor Comics Volume III, is opening in early November, 2007, at 10320-81 Avenue, a space currently occupied by Warp One Comics and Entertainment. Tell all your friends.

TELL THEM!

Speaking of the Shuster Award-winning comic retailer, Blog@Newsarama ran an interview with co-owner Jay Bardyla yesterday: http://blog.newsarama.com/2007/07/01/blogcanada-day-canadas-best-retailer-happy-harbor/#comments

EDITED TO ADD: This really is just in, from HH's mailing list:

Saturday - MAKE POVERTY HISTORY - 7% of all sales on Saturday at the Downtown location will be donated to help fight poverty so make sure to pick up your file or make an extra trip this week to the store and do your part to fight poverty. Why? Because you can.

http://07for07.googlepages.com/

***

CANADIAN SUPERHEROES

Here's a website I'll be reading closely in the next few days. And hopefully adding something to in the next year or two.

Foley