Today is Popeye’s birthday of a sort on January 17 1929 was Popeye the sailor first appearance in thimble theater
Popeye the Sailor was created by Elzie Crisler Segar
Comic Nation
IDW to Appear at First UK Convention in February
Publisher will have booth, panels, exclusives at the inaugural London Super Comic Convention
IDW Publishing will be attending our first-ever UK comic convention when the inaugural London Super Comic Convention, kicks off the weekend of February 25th. In addition to having a booth on the show floor, IDW’s Chief Creative Offier/Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall will be in attendance participating in an IDW panel, doing portfolio reviews, and promising an exclusive announcement or two as well. The show is billing itself as “the U.K.’s Biggest American Creator-Driven Comic Convention.”
“I’m very happy to be present at the debut London Super Comic show and meeting the fans,” said Chris Ryall. “In fact, I feel like I owe it to our loyal UK fans to make a good first impression at one of their cons, so I’ll be announcing at least one gigantic new series, if not more.”
In addition to portfolio reviews, fans will have chance to pick up a con-exclusive cover for Infestation 2: Transformers, and get books signed by Ryall and creators such as Tony Lee, J.K. Woodward, Phil Jimenez, and others. A full signing and panel schedule will be announced as soon as it is finalized.
Visit IDWPublishing.com to learn more about the company and its top-selling books.
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Review of King Conan #1
By Alex Vazquez
I’ll have to admit it’s been a while since I’ve read an American comic book. If there was ever a comic to bring me back into the fold. I couldn’t think of any subject matter better than Conan the Barbarian. I’ve read The Phoenix on the Sword as written by the man himself, Robert E. Howard, and this first issue hits the mark with tone.
Our writer, Timothy Truman, accurately captures the characterizations from the source material. In addition to that, he expands the scope of the narrative a bit. This is evident from the first page, but I’m pleased to find that this approach doesn’t step on the toes of the original, if anything enhances it a bit.
Tomas Giorello’s artwork brings me back to the pages of Marvel’s Savage Sword of Conan, albeit in color. His appropriately hatchy line work isn’t lost in said colors either. On that note, Jose Villarrubia’s wonderfully drab colors serve to express the melancholia and paranoia that permeates the story.
This book would look just as amazing in black and white; the colors are almost the icing on the cake and the splash pages are epic. The story is broken up into four issues. Overall, nothing big transpires in this first issue. By the end you can surmise who the true villain is. I look forward to the upcoming issues when things start to ramp up story wise. Until then, enjoy this love letter to the very story that introduced us to Robert E. Howard’s barbarian, thief, general, and king.
Follow Alex on Twitter @nettomono
Reviews Princeless #’ s 2 and 3
By Chuck Suffel
I just finished rereading issue two and issue three and I’ve got to talk about it. With the final issue of this mini planned for release on January 25th I thought it would be cool to get everyone up to date on our favorite “princeless” princess.
As I’ve already said the art is top notch so are the inks and the lettering but the writing, the writing is what really puts this book over the top. Not only the story itself the dialogue also works really well. If you read my reviews you know that while I am a capes and tights fan there are other genres i delve into as well noir, thriller, sci-fi, horror, among others. well this All Ages, Swords and Dragons, Female protagonist, Adventure, Indie book is something I’m really enjoying!
Our story so far, our heroine Adrienne a teen age princess locked in a secluded tower by her Father and guarded by a (kind of) fierce dragon. She isn’t your run of the mill damsel in distress though, she’s decided that there’s no waiting for a knight to come rescue her. She going to rescue herself! And rescue herself she does, in doing so her father comes to believe she’s been killed and goes on the hunt for her “killer”. Now one would think after escaping from a tower and her parent’s she’d be off to find her destiny. No dear reader our heroine has sisters! And she’s not leaving them to rot in towers waiting for some goofball prince to show up, she’ll rescue them all, herself! All that all takes place in the first issue!
So if all that happened in issue one what went on in two and three?!?!
Princeless #2 Jeremy Whitley – Story (@jrome58 on twitter)
M. Goodwin – Art, Colors Jung-ha Kim – Letters
Action Labs Entertainment (@ActionLab on twitter) with Firetower Studios
I don’t like spoilers so I’ll do my best to be cryptic but give the gist of the issues. In two we follow Adrienne on her first rescue! Is it doomed to fail? Will she be recaptured by her father? And who holds the key to the secret to the sword that was under Adrienne’s bed? Will that person be friend, or foe?
Princeless #3 Jeremy Whitley – Story (@jrome58 on twitter)
M. Goodwin – Art, Colors Jung-ha Kim – Letters
Action Labs Entertainment (@ActionLab on twitter) with Firetower Studios
In issue three we begin to see that Adrienne’s fathers kingdom isn’t as wonderful as we would assume it to be. And definitely not a place for a girl with aspirations to grow up. New friends, and new enemies, are made. Oh and there’s armor lots and lots of armor. The added nods to fictitious women warriors found in the issue were really well done, I love a comic that’s written for all ages and really makes a grown up laugh (wait did I just refer to myself as grown up? damn). By the end of issue three I was totally on board not only with Adrienne as a hero but also with her quest. This is the kind of story I love, it doesn’t hit you over the head with its message instead the heroine is allowed to be the focus and you can sit back and enjoy cheering her on.
Issue number four’s release date is January 25th! More than enough time to catch up! Preview review? Here? Maybe! Check back tomorrow!
Follow Chuck on Twitter @Chuck_Suffel
DARK HORSE ORIGINALS MAKE WAVES!
MATT KINDT AND GILBERT HERNANDEZ RETURN WITH NEW PROJECTS!
Dark Horse Originals is proud to announce two new amazing series from critically acclaimed creators Matt Kindt and Gilbert Hernandez!
Matt Kindt, the most original voice in genre comics, outdoes himself in his bold new espionage series, Mind MGMT. Reporting on a commercial flight where everyone aboard lost their memories, a young journalist stumbles onto a much bigger story, the top-secret Mind Management program. Her ensuing journey involves weaponized psychics, hypnotic advertising, talking dolphins, and seemingly immortal pursuers, as she attempts to find the flight’s missing passenger, the man who was Mind Management’s greatest success—and its most devastating failure. But in a world where people can rewrite reality itself, can she trust anything she sees? If you think you know what Matt Kindt can deliver, you haven’t seen anything yet!
Comics luminary Gilbert Hernandez envisions his strangest, most thrilling future yet in Fatima: The Blood Spinners, a horrifying new take on zombies! A drug called “spin” offers the wildest trip imaginable, followed by its users’ inevitable, rapid deterioration into undead flesh eaters. Despite the side effect, the drug is so popular that the human population is dying out! With no cure to be found, the beautiful, lovesick Fatima may be the only thing standing between the survivors and the apocalypse. Get ready for four issues of zombies, drug lords, and gorgeous women!
Also, announced last week was multiple Harvey and Eagle Award winner Peter Bagge’s Reset, which leads off the Dark Horse Originals variant-cover program.
Reset #1 is on sale April 18, 2012, and features a variant cover by Matt Kindt!
Mind MGMT #1 is on sale May 23, 2012, and features a variant cover by Gilbert Hernandez!
Fatima #1 is on sale June 20, 2012, and features a variant cover by Peter Bagge!
CONAN/GROO CROSSOVER! TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!
What was rumored as an April Fools’ joke has turned into a full-blown miniseries sure to bring laughs and excitement. Dark Horse Comics is proud to announce Groo vs. Conan!
It had to happen: The most heroic warrior in history meets the stupidest, as Robert E. Howard’s immortal Conan the Barbarian crosses swords with Sergio Aragonés’s Groo the Wanderer in Groo vs. Conan #1!
This four-issue miniseries was concocted by the Eisner Award–winning team of Mark Evanier and Sergio Aragonés, aided by master illustrator Thomas Yeates and master colorist Tom Luth. Will Conan annihilate Groo? Will Groo turn out to be the man who can defeat Conan? We’ll see.
Groo vs. Conan is on sale April 18, 2012!
Comic Nation TV: Round table at Big City Dare 2 Draw
RICH JOHNSTON CHARGED WITH MANY MURDERS! DARK HORSE PRESENTS #8
From the mind of the infamous editor of Bleeding Cool, Rich Johnston, comes a three-part tale of gruesome gossip: The Many Murders of Miss Cranbourne, set to premiere in Dark Horse Presents #8! Have you ever wondered how amateur detectives keep stumbling over dead bodies? Miss Cranbourne doesn’t. Because she kills them. Then finds someone else to pin the blame on. In “The Vicar Slash’d from Side to Side,” Miss Cranbourne is at odds with the local man of God, and so introduces him to his maker. But in a 1940s English village held together by gossip and sharp looks, how will Miss Cranbourne ensure people look in the direction she’d prefer? And what happens when a man from Scotland Yard arrives to take over the case? This is Dexter meets Miss Marple. “Some people wonder how comic book deals are done. Dark Horse publishing The Many Murders of Miss Cranbourne was a handshake deal made while standing in line at Ralph’s during San Diego Comic-Con. I recommend it to anyone,” states Rich Johnston.
The artist behind the story is Simon Rohrmüller, whose previous one-shot with Johnston, Watchmensch, received critical acclaim. “Working on The Many Murders of Miss Cranbourne was loads of fun, as aside from the interesting concept, it reunited me with Rich on a project again. Having worked with Rich in the past, and knowing how easy he is to work with, there really was nothing to it; I just jumped straight into it, knowing I’d have a great time,” said Rohrmüller. Dark Horse Presents #8 is on sale February 1, 2012!
Review of The Strain #2
Writer – David Lapham Artist – Mike Huddleston Colorist – Dan Jackson Cover Art – Mike Huddleston
Now we’re getting somewhere, this was what I waiting for! There was story, some gore, good character development. It’s always difficult to adapt work from one medium to another but looking at issues one and two together I truly think this will be a great story to experience all in one shot.
This book jumps right in following Dr. Ephraim Goodweather as he does his job as the CDC’s lead investigator. Scene investigation, witness (survivor) interviews even the press conference. We’re introduced to a new player Eldritch Palmer and The Stoneheart Group. Nefarious? Maybe. Definitely creepy and kind of wrong. We also get another taste of the cane and the “pick pick pick”. Things are getting interesting and it’s obvious that Lapham is just getting started. He’s giving us a good procedural while keeping the horror just on the periphery.
Then just when you think an issue has gone by without gore Mike Huddleston hits you with a couple of panels that flip your stomach and make your skin crawl. Well done Mr. Huddleston, well done.
This twenty four page comic packs a hell of a lot of story and I read it twice just to make sure I was keeping up, I’m glad I gave issue two a chance and I can’t wait for issue three.
Can’t wait till Wednesday? Follow the link below to see a six page preview posted over at Dark Horse’s site The Strain #2preview
Follow Chuck on Twitter @Chuck _Suffel
Review Lobster Johnson: The Burning Hand #
By Chuck Suffel
Writer: Mike Mignola, John Arcudi (@artofmmignola) Artist: Tonci Zonjic (@tozozozo) Colorist: Dave Stewart (@Dragonmnky) Cover Artist: Dave Johnson (@Devilpig666)
From the Dark Horse site:
“When a tribe of phantom Indians start scalping policemen, Hellboy‘s crime-fighting hero Lobster Johnson and his allies arrive to take on these foes and their gangster cronies!”
TASTE JUSTICE!
You heard it right comic book fans, Lobster Johnson is back! For the uninitiated Lobster Johnson is a vigilante crime fighter who operated in New York in the 1930’s. He fought both criminal and paranormal threats with a small band of allies from his secret base in the city’s sewers. We first meet him in the pages of Hellboy years after his death when he appears as a ghost (spirit?) to come to the aid of Hellboy and Roger.
Now granted it’s only a five issue mini but when it comes to “The Lobster” I’ll take what I can get. And what we get is pretty great, taking place in February of 1932 this prohibition/depression era book hits all the right notes. Tonic Zonjic’s art is dead on, the clothes, cars and buildings look great. There’s at least one classic movie actor cameo (which I can’t believe was unintentional). Dave Stewart’s colors show the muted, drab qualities of the depression with out being depressing (couldn’t help it, sorry) while still having life and moments of true beauty. I truly hope Mike Mignola and John Arcudi had as much fun writing the dialogue as I had reading it, they use some of the lingo of the day without getting bogged down by it.
Speaking of the writing, I’d like to talk a bit about the story but it’s really difficult with out getting all spoilery. As I said it’s 1932, the city is New York City and something just ain’t right. Indian ghosts running the streets? Scalping police officers? Be prepared for; ghosts, mobsters, hitmen, reporters, thugs, oh and a great cliffhanger ending that had me trying to turn to a next page that wasn’t there! I call this story an Occult Hard-Boiled Horror Mystery Thriller. In other words another great offering from Mignola and the Hellboy crew!
Follow Chuck on Twitter @Chuck_Suffel