Identity Issues

Here's an autobiographical 24-hour minicomic that we picked up at the SPACE convention in Columbus OH.

Title: Identity Issues
Publisher: Canada Keck
Date: 2011
Writer: Canada Keck
Artist: Canada Keck

Minicomic created for 24-Hour Comic Day 2011.

When a new piece of software shows up at work promising "Identity Management", the narrator takes us on a trip back through her own identity issues.

Using Erik Erikson's theories as a framework, the author explores the different identities she created for herself in high school, college, and as a mother. The simple pen and ink art style and one-panel-per-page format work well to convey the story, and there were some cute touches of humor.

Rating: 7.5/10

24 Hour Comic Presents: Sentinels Of Blood Island

Title: 24 Hour Comic Presents: Sentinels Of Blood Island
Date: 2011
Publisher: Free Lunch Comics
Writer: Matt Ryan
Artist: Matt Ryan

This is Matt Ryan's 2010 24-Hour Comic Day effort, published in standard comic format.

The story is a pretty basic horror tale. A recently married couple is enjoying a "working honeymoon". The husband, a professional travel writer and explorer who appears on cable TV shows about exotic locations, is planning to visit the mysterious Blood Island. Interspersed with the story pages are pages of his notes and observations. A guide brings him to within sight of the strange island, but various forces conspire to keep him from making landfall.

In addition to the story itself, this book also includes creator Matt Ryan's notes on the 24-hour comic process, with page-by-page updates on his progress as he worked plotted out and drew the comic.

This is a nice package for anyone interested in the 24-Hour Comic Day event, and it's packaged with a decent little creepy tale.

Rating: 7/10

How Dear To Me Is Sleep

A fitting title for the moment, I think.

Title: How Dear To Me Is Sleep
Date: 2009
Publisher: Drowned Town Press
Writer: E.J. Barnes
Artist: E.J. Barnes

Half-sized minicomic completed as part of 24-Hour Comic Day 2008.

Part science and part autobiography, this minicomic explores the concept of sleep from several angles. The opening discussion concerns scientific (lack of) understanding of the nature of sleep, followed immediately by a discussion of sleep in the animal kingdom.

From there, the comic explores EJ Barnes' childhood, the unusual sleeping habits and patterns of her parents, and her brother's struggle with sleep apnea. EJ goes on to recount the sleep study that she went through, and then ends with several pages illustrating a relevent quotation from Michelangelo (Renaissance painter, not mutant ninja turtl),

There is some clever art here, showing peoeple's different experiences with insomnia, and I liked the ending with the Michaelangelo quotation. Nice cover too! Gotta love the cat curled up in the blanket.

Rating: 7.5/10.

The Care And Feeding Of Cats... Or How To Train Your Human

Title: The Care And Feeding Of Cats... Or How To Train Your Human
Date: 2011
Publisher: Canada Keck (kitakitsune@rocketmail.com)
Writer: Canada Keck
Artist: Canada Keck

From 2011's 24-hour comic day comes this collection of cat-sitter instructions adapted into minicomic form. Canada Keck has four cats, each one with a list of nicknames and a startling array of quirks. The jokes are spot-on here although they stick to fairly standard observations about felines.

There is also a running joke about TS Eliot which is pretty amusing. I like my cat comics literary.

This is a fun minicomic and an excellent example of what can be accomplished in 24 hours.

Rating: 7/10