Red Bird Comics #1

From the Random Stack of Unread Comics by way of the SPACE convention.

Title: Red Bird Comics
Issue: 1
Publisher: Dimestore Productions
Date: April 2009
Writer: Madison Shires, Ally N., Kaitlyn R., Hanna M., Ben B.
Artist: Madison Shires, Ally N., Kaitlyn R., Hanna M., Ben B.
Editor: Ian Shires

This is a minicomic anthology that grew out of a comic workshop run by Ian Shires for his daughter's elementary class. The short stories by young creators include football rivalries, a family of lost birds, and time travel (complete with a T-Rex!).

Cute, fun, and heartwarming to see kids encouraged to make comics!

Rating: 8/10

The Belles of Ball Point

From the random stack of unread comics. I'm pretty sure I picked this one up in Columbus at SPACE, but I'm not sure what year.

Title: The Belles of Ball Point
Publisher: Fridge-Mag
Writer: Suzanne Baumann
Artist: Suzanne Baumann

What's the biggest thing I've reviewed on this blog? It's Jeff Smith's Complete Bone, reviewed here.

But now let's talk about the smallest thing I've reviewed. That prize goes to this micro-minicomic, along with its companion piece The Birds of Ball Point (reviewed here).

This tiny collection of portraits presents six notable ladies of Ball Point (plus the cover illustrations), in a whimsical art style with a hint of political satire (Pat Riotact!).

Suzanne Baumann's work is always a lot of fun, and this was a very cute item presentation of a nice collection of sketches.

Rating: 7/10

Slice With Dice Part The First

The reviewing marathon continues. Looking through the random stack of unread comics, I discovered one duplicate, IDW's Beowulf Comicon Promo, which I have previously reviewed here. So with that one moved to the finished stack, I'll have ten to go after this review. This one comes to me by way of the SPACE (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo.

Title: Slice With Dice
Issue: Part the First
Publisher: Killjoy Comics
Date: 2008
Writer: DOC
Artist: DOC

Twelve-page photocopied minicomic featuring a group of adventurers attempting to ambush a party of gnolls. The starts well for the good guys, but things soon go awry.

The action is all very D&D-based, even more so when the break-the-fourth-wall final page is considered.

The art is hurt somewhat by the printing process, but it's still a good fight scene with enough hints in the interactions between the characters to suggest more character development in future stories.

Rating: 6/10

Lackluster World #5

Another item from the random stack of unread comics.

Title: Lackluster World
Issue: 5
Publisher: Generation Eric Publishing
Date: February 2008
Writer: Eric Adams
Artist: Eric Adams

My wife and I have been following Eric Adams' work since we met him at our first time attending  SPACE., the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo, in Columbus OH. We got this issue at SPACE 2008.

This is the fifth issue in Eric Adams' saga about a young man named Fahrenheit (his siblings are names Celsius and Kelvin). This issue is almost entirely a flashback to Fahrenheit's childhood, dealing with abuse from his older brother and a bullying environment at school. It's heartbreaking, and there are some unexpected details and moments, as well as some insights into the characters that are central to the story as we get to see them as children.

This was powerful storytelling, and the artwork did an effective job of bringing out the emotional impact of the story.

Trigger warning for animal abuse (a necessary part of the story, and certainly not glorified, but still disturbing).

Rating: 8/10

Everything You Wanted To Know About Killjoy Comics... But Were Afraid To Ask

From the random Stack of unread comics. We got this one at the SPACE convention in Columbus OH in 2008.

It's now two days into May, which means 45 days until we head back to the US. And after today's review, 38 comics left to go in the stack. I'm also trying to read a few more graphic novels, some that I own, and some from my school library. 

Title: Everything You Wanted To Know About Killjoy Comics... But Were Afraid To Ask
Publisher: Killjoy Comics
Date: 2008
Writer: Todd Swanson, Daniel "Doc" Holiday, Mark Anticole, Rick Antolic, Tony Schiffbauer
Artist: Todd Swanson, Daniel "Doc" Holiday, Mark Anticole, Rick Antolic, Tony Schiffbauer

This is a minicomic containing samples of five comic strips. Todd Swanson's Killjoy pairs two girls in a classic optimist vs. pessimist dialogue, that felt original and entertaining in spite of its fairly straightforward premise.

Martin Molotov by Daniel "Doc" Holiday features some good geeky science humor in a college setting.

Lab Rats by Mark Anticole also goes for the geeky humor vibe, but stumbles a bit more on its premise. It has some amusing moments, though, especially when it breaks the fourth wall.

Rick Antolic's Slap of Reality Man repeats the same joke every time. The things that annoy the creator coincide with a couple of my pet peeves, so I found myself laughing along, but I do wonder how sustainable this concept is.

Last up is Tony Schiffbauer's Garbanzo, which mostly focused on food and vegetable puns.

There were funny moments in all of these, and I thought at least the first two had some potential to work long-term. The print quality of the minicomic itself could have been better, as I found myself reaching for the magnifying glass a few times to read the dialogue.

That being said there was plenty in here that amused me.

Rating: 6.5/10





 

The Adventures of Marky #2

Today I read the 2008 Free Comic Book Day offering from, Virgin Comics, Dan Dare / The Stranded / Ramayan 3392AD Reloaded, only to realize I had previously read and reviewed it. One less comic to review in the stack! You can read that review which I wrote in 2011 here.  So back to the random stack of unread comics for this minicomic. I picked this up at SPACE (Small Press & Alternative Comics Expo) 2008 in Columbus OH.

Title: The Adventures of Marky
Issue: 2
Publisher: Dimestore Productions
Date: March 2008
Writer: Madison Shires, Ian Shires
Artist: Madison Shires, Ian Shires
Back Cover Art: Dan Taylor

Cute minicomic by a young artist (Madison Shires did this book at age 7).

It's Valentines Day, so Marky is dressed to impress (with a slight resemblance to Mr. Potato Head). He's determined to explain Valentines Day to his friends, Fred and Mary, and he's also got a special plan involving a secret message in a bottle.

Cute stuff.

Rating: 7/10

 

The Death of Antisocialman Chapter 12 Preview Pages

A minicomic promo item from Matt Feazell, which I probably got at one of the SPACE conventions in Columbus OH.

Title: The Death of Antisocialman Chapter 12 Preview Pages
Date: 2007
Publisher: Not Available Comics
Writer: Matt Feazell, Walt Lockley
Artist: Matt Feazell, Walt Lockley

This is a four-page half-sized promotional minicomic previewing the long-awaited chapter 12 of The Death of Antisocialman by Matt Feazell and Walt Lockley.

Most of the panels presented here center on a frantic chase to get to the Obnoxico Corporation's company picnic. There is lots of bad driving, a truck floating down a river, and a map of Qatar, which is decidedly unhelpful.

Some of the individual panels are pretty amusing. I didn't get much sense of the characters from this preview, and only a pretty minimal idea of the plot. Since I'm familiar with Feazell's work, I know the kind of humor to expect, and this left me interested in checking out the full story. I feel like it might be a less effective promotional book for people who have yet to be introduced to the Cynicalman universe.

Rating: 5.5/10

Tales From Swafford Creek Vol. 1 #1

I attended the Cosplay Festival here in Ho Chi Minh City today, and can gladly report that geekery is alive and well in Vietnam. The vendors were largely the same as at the Manga Festival, which I attended in July, so I didn't end up buying anything this time around. I am still slowly making my way through my first Vietnamese-language manga, and I have a small stack of those waiting, so I didn't feel I should add to that stack.

The Kiddo and I did do some cosplay at this convention. We had a blast showing off our Minecraft outfits:

With no new comic purchase at the con, I turn to another minicomic from the unread comics pile. As with the previous one, the Columbus OH connection of the creator leads me to suspect that I got this at one of the SPACE (Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo) conventions that I attended in Columbus.



Title: Tales From Swafford Creek
Issue: Vol. 1, No. 1
Date: 2008
Publisher: Swafford Creek Studios
Writer: Brent Bowman
Artist: Brent Bowman

This half-sized minicomic is a collection of true (or at least, inspired-by-a-true-story) tales from the Sequatchie Valley in western Tennessee, where the artist's family is from.

The stories alternate between crime stories and love stories, with a final tale that has a bit more of a mythical feel to it.

The storytelling voice of the narration is great, and the tales all have a very authentic feel to them. The b/w artwork is nicely detailed with a flavor that matches the narration.

This was an enjoyable collection of stories that are straightforward, but pack a solid emotional punch.

Rating: 8/10

The Amazing Cynicalman #20

From the random pile of unread comics. Probably acquired at the SPACE convention in Columbus OH.

Title: The Amazing Cynicalman
Issue: #20
Date: February, 2008
Publisher: Not Available Comics
Writer: Matt Feazell
Artist: Matt Feazell

I loved the inside cover artwork on this minicomic, depicting the World Headquarters of Not Available Comics in Hamtramck MI.

For those not familiar, Matt Feazell does stick-figure minicomics, usually quarter-sized (as this issue is) featuring a whole cast of characters including Cynicalman, Cute Girl, and in this issue, Robot Lincoln.

Robot Lincoln attempts to boost his reputation by taking up modern art. Cynicalman deals with a home warranty phone scammer. President Bush hand-delivers an economic stimulus package. And my favorite bit in this issue: a want-ad for a cartoon character.

Some of the jokes were a bit obvious, but this is part of the fun with Cynicalman. The artwork is entertaining, with a very wide range of actions and characters, despite the limitations of working with stick figures.

This was good for a few laughs.

Rating: 6/10

Truth Or Consequences #0

Another find from the 2013 SPACE convention.

Title: Truth or Consequences
Issue: #0
Publisher: Torc Press
Date: 2013
Writer: Joseph Morris
Artist: Joseph Morris

Three rather surreal superhero stories make up this standard-comic-format volume. Up first is "Mango-Habanero", in which Dr. Dream gives Octopus Jones some much needed assistance in defeating a toxic sludge monster. There is also another monster whose only dialogue is to repeat the word "Goat!" throughout the story. Which is actually pretty awesome.

Goat!

See what I mean?

The second story is a Jack Kirby style epic cosmic battle featuring Cactus Joe the Clown and Pengy the Penguin in their cosmic incarnations taking on a Nullaphon.

And finally, an introductory sequence set at an intergalactic burger joint introduces an impressive-looking and mysterious new cosmic being.

The artwork had a few moments where it was difficult to figure out exactly what was happening in the action, but I liked the wacky surreal feel to these cosmic adventures. The pacing was good and the characters were intriguing.

Goat!

Rating: 7/10

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

The Birds of Ball Point

And now for a small something that we picked up at SPACE 2013 in Columbus OH.

Title: The Birds of Ball Point
Date: 2012
Publisher: Fridge-Mag
Writer: Suzanne Baumann
Artist: Suzanne Baumann

When I say that a minicomic is quarter-sized, what I typically mean is that it is the size of 1/4 of an 8x11 sheet of paper.

In the case of this micro-mini, we have a comic that is approximately the size of a quarter.

This "doodlecraft" features a selection of fanciful bird sketches for imaginary species like the Sullen Mudfoot and the Golden Wetwee. The art style a cute cartoony look that is reminiscent of the Angry Birds game.

I always love how Suzanne Baumann stretches the definition of what a comic is, and this is just one "small" (and adorable!) example of the type of work that she does.

Rating: 7.5/10

Even the Deformed Stub Their Toe

Unfortunately, during the hiatus the to-be-read pile has gotten pretty disorganized. I believe that this is one that my wife brought home from the SPACE convention in Columbus OH.

Title: Even the Deformed Stub Their Toe
Publisher: Pedophobic Records
Date: 2013
Writer: Mike B.
Artist: Mike B.

Quarter-sized minicomic credited to Mike B. The illustrations are one-per-page with accompanying text.

This is essentially an illustrated poem, accompanied by a set of drawings of bizarre and stylized body parts and organs. The artwork is an effective accompaniment to the words, and the whole thing does a nice job of being creepy and disturbing.

Rating: 7/10

Plastic Farm #19

This is the last of the individual issues of Plastic Farm that Gynn brought home from SPACE. In general, the stacks of comics I've acquired from the Spring conventions are finally starting to shrink, and I'll be digging more and more into the backlog in the coming weeks. With 19 issues read, Plastic Farm is by far the title I've followed the most during this year, and it's definitely kept me interested.

Title: Plastic Farm
Issue: #19
Date: 2011
Publisher: Plastic Farm Press
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Rafer Roberts, Matt Dembicki, Jim8Ball

There are essentially three stories here, plus the snowed-in airport lounge framing story which has been ongoing. In college, Chester Carter learns of the state's actions against the orphanage where he was raised and the surrounding town, but he's drunk and high at the time, and his buddy keeps wanting him to change the channel to Scooby Doo.

Also in this issue is a continuation of the cannibal farmers story that has been recurring. It's a pretty intense segment and Matt Dembicki does a wonderful (and horrific) job with the illustrations.

Last up is a story by guest artist Jim8Ball of two teenagers following a map to the mysterious temple of the Immaculate Defacation, which, ironically, grants to power to see through all the bullshit that people hide behind. Goofy premise, but executed pretty well, especially the ending.

With three stories plus the framing bits, this issue had a very choppy feel to it, but individually, all of the segments were quite good.

Rating: 7.5/10

Plastic Farm #18

Closing in on the last of my Plastic Farm stack.

Title: Plastic Farm
Issue: #18
Date: 2010
Publisher: Plastic Farm Press
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Rafer Roberts, Chris Piers, Dale Rawlings

Two stories with bits of framing sequence. First up, Elaine tells the tale of the day the next door neighbor died. The next door neighbor with all the animals. And the library. And the secret passage and the hidden laboratory. The fun of this story is Elaine's inability to communicate what she is seeing coupled with Chris Piers' illustrations which let the reader in on the secrets that Elaine is failing to get across to her own audience.

The second story is a creepy little bit of urban mythology involving a dancing statue of Jesus in a cemetery somewhere in New Jersey. Dale Rawlings does a nice job with the illustration for this one.

As always with Plastic Farm, half the fun is figuring out how these disjointed pieces fit into the overall jigsaw puzzle.

Rating: 7.5/10

Plastic Farm #16

Back to some Plastic Farm. Continuing to work through the complete run of this comic that Gynn brought home from SPACE.

Title: Plastic Farm
Issue: #15
Publisher: Plastic Farm Press
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Rafer Roberts

The opening Kamikaze Kid sequence is tentacly goodness. From there it's back to Chester Carter's college days as his buddy sets him up as the lookout for his great textbook buyback scam. As one might imaging, that doesn't go well, and the result is pretty funny.

This was another issue with really strong art by Rafer Roberts, and some good smooth dialogue as well.

Rating: 7.5/10

The Adventures of Marky #3

So... Wagon... Totally fell off it. Blogger had an outage last Wednesday, which was a convenient excuse to skip a day. Somehow that turned into skipping six days. Ugh. I'm going to try double duty until I catch up.

I was at the Granite State Comicon in Manchester NH on Sunday. I didn't do much purchasing there because I've still got books from SPACE and from FCBD to review. In fact, I found this minicomic from SPACE tucked between pages in the notebook I use to record sales.

Title: The Adventures of Marky
Issue: #3
Publisher: Dimestore Productions
Date: March 2011
Writer: Madison Shires, Ian Shires
Artist: Madison Shires, Ian Shires

Marky goes all the way to Italy and ends up ordering pizza (with brains on it!). He also meets a fellow brain juice connoisseur named Matilda. Could this be true love? Daughter/father team of Madison and Ian Shires delivers the silly in this $.50 quarter-sized minicomic. Cute and fun.

Rating: 7/10

Plastic Farm #15

Another issue of Plastic Farm. I tend to buy a lot of different books, so this is one of my few chances to really work my way through a whole series from the beginning.

Title: Plastic Farm
Issue: #15
Publisher: Plastic Farm Press
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Rafer Roberts

Chester Carter wakes up late for his first college class, advanced physics with the strictest professor on campus. And the stairs are out of order. Meanwhile, inside Chester's head, the Kamikaze Kid is dealing with his own set of problems.

The art in this issue was gorgeous, easily Rafer Roberts' best work in the series so far, with three separate two-page spreads showing the college campus in all of its creepy glory, plus some beautiful wordless sequences involving the Kamikaze Kid. The plot was simple, but did a great job of building tension.

Really good issue.

Rating: 8.5/10

Plastic Farm #14

Continuing through the Plastic Farm run.

Title: Plastic Farm
Issue: #14
Publisher: Plastic Farm Press
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Rafer Roberts

Nice to see the letter column and editorial back, as well as clearly marked credits.

Chester continues his tale to his captive audience at the snowed-in airport lounge. This time, the flashback is to his college years. After some early hints that Chester is being taken to a college that is not-quite-normal by has parents, the experience turns fairly mundane.

Chester makes friends with his roommate, gets introduced to alcohol, and proceeds to get drunk and make an idiot out of himself in pretty typical college freshman style.

This was a good story in spite of (or in some sense, because of) its lack of some of the surrealism that characterized earlier issues. It was nice to see writer/artist Rafer Roberts devoting some space to teenaged Chester just being a kid, and the dialogue flowed smoothly and naturally.

Rating: 7.5/10

Plastic Farm #13

Another comic from our purchases at SPACE.

Title: Plastic Farm
Issue: #13
Publisher: Plastic Farm Press
Writer: Rafer Roberts
Artist: Rafer Roberts

Plastic Farm returns to minicomic format with issue #13. There's also no credits or contact information given. I'm assuming this is all Rafer Roberts' work.

Two stories. The opening is a fairly detailed set of scenes from Chester Carter's arrival at Greybridge as a baby and his baptism by the Brethren. This is as close to a detailed origin story for Chester as we've seen in the series. The artwork very nicely captures the flavor of the abandoned mental hospital, now being taken over by the Brethren, who may not be as united as they first appear.

From there, we return to the snowed-in airport for a short scene that serves mostly to introduce new characters to the cast. Oh, and there's more cannibalism.

Good start to the new format, although I'll miss the lettercolumns and Rafer's editorials and his spotlighting of guest creators.

Rating: 7/10.