Michel FiffeNotes and thoughts on comics, cartoonists, and events. May include random reviews, rants, and run downs.
It’s Kyle Baker’s birthday today and in true celebratory fashion, I wrote about Kyle’s comic art over at the Beat! No, seriously! I go on about digital art versus real ink and all sorts of other good stuff in honor of one of my favorite cartoonists. But over here, I’ve posted a bunch of cool odd and ends from Kyle Baker’s past.
You’re gonna have to trust me on this.
Just click on this here link, JUMPSTART THAT COMICS CAREER!, and do yourself a favor by reading this new article Tucker Stone and I wrote. Don’t just sit there, man… get a cup of coffee and absorb every bit of advice that we have amassed for your convenience. At first, it may seem like a modern “How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way”. Don’t be fooled; we’re all past that stage. What we give you in is an insider’s path to the backdoor to comics. It’s a love letter to all things funnybook. Why did we write this list? Well…
Trust me, I said.
Tucker Stone and I recently discussed Love & Rockets: New Stories #3 at length, especially why the Jaime Hernandez portion is not only his finest effort to date, but it sets a new standard for comics. It’s definitely a storytelling milestone, but why rant about it here when you can read it over at The Factual Opinion. It’s always a pleasure speaking to Tucker (who has been known for liking comics), so it was especially great to discuss a comic we both deemed amazing.
Fair warning: our breakdown contains spoilers, so be sure to buy, borrow, or steal a copy of L&R New Stories #3 before reading our inspired discussion.
Tucker writes for Savage Critics, his column for comiXology is This Ship Is Totally Sinking, and his videos are Advanced Common Sense. Trust me, these are all worth your time. His own site, The Factual Opinion, remains true to the name, especially the factual part.
I had a last minute chance to attend the Baltimore ComicCon this past Saturday. I was happy to have been able to make it even for just a day, which turns out to be the perfect amount of time to enjoy the show (unless you’re running a booth, of course). I caught up with Joe Keatinge for a bit (Mr. Glum thanks you, Joe!), which included giving me the Hard Sell to move to Portland. The rent situation actually made me reconsider for a second. Also, I got to meet Tom Scioli of Godland & the Myth of 8-Opus fame. I saw the original pages of his web comic, American Barbarian, and they were gigantic… probably the best way to read this comic.
In between booth hopping and catching up with folks, I dug up a few comics of interest.
I’ve always more or less enjoyed the MoCCA festival, but I’ve never walked away feeling as if though I had been through a completely gratifying experience. The reasons for that are unimportant right now, but they are in direct contrast to this year’s experiences. I met as lot of new cartoonists, caught up with the familiars, and bought/glanced at tons of cool new work.
Haven’t posted recently due to finishing up this comic I’m working on (see above image) which is written by Nick Bertozzi. I love working with a cartoonist I really admire, but it’s taken some getting used to draw other people’s stories. There are no inherent cons about the process/division of labor, and it’s way easier to just draw what the story demands instead of making up the story from whole cloth. The lines of communication are open and Nick and I are equally interested in each others contribution. But, man, he sure packed a lot of information into a page!
(Mix CD cover I did as part of a set.)
Above you will see my rejected submission for Robert Goodin’s awesome blog “Covered”. That’s right, I’m the one who rejected it because I was 6 years old when I drew it. I can try harder these days… and, maybe I will.
[Original Hulk #199 cover by Rich Buckler and John Romita circa 1976, in what I think is a swipe-free Buckler image… feel free to prove me wrong.]
(Warm up drawing I did for a cast of characters I haven’t worked on in a while.)