The Beat » Comics Media

The Daily Cross Hatch is on hiatus

The Beat — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:21 +0000

February 1st has yet ANOTHER comics birthday—the indie comics-focused blog The Daily Cross Hatch was five years old this week. However, owner Brian Heater was back with less-happy news. Due to his heavy workload editing the massively popular Engadget blog, Daily Cross Hatch is on hiatus:

This is the part where I explain what’s going on. I’m sure I’ve touch upon this briefly in the past – work tends to get in the way of life, and 13 hour days and worked weekends have the tendency to take their toll on interpersonal relationships and labors of love, and this site has always represented a bit of both. In a sense, I never wrote for anyone but myself, so it ought be regarded as some astronomical impossibility that so many other people I know and respect saw fit to put any stock in the words that came out the other side.

And then it slowed down and then it stopped. These things always end with a whimper. But there’s no use here for such finalities. There’s no end here. Let’s call it a hiatus. And certainly me and comics aren’t through. I’ve already got some irons in the fire – for the time being, however, my involvement with comics will likely involve work for others, like the Engadget Comics I’ve been curating for my day job and the Art Spiegelman interview for Publisher’s Weekly – there are a few others as well that I’m not quite ready to yank the curtain from.

During its five years, DCH has been a home for solid interviews and comics reviews, not only due to Heater but also co-conspirator Sarah Morean and a rotating shift of contributors. We’ll take this as a hiatus only, and not a goodbye, because it was always a fun place to visit.

Bookmark: Dylan Williams Reporter

The Beat — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 21:00:51 +0000

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A group blog devoted to memories of the much missed publisher. Above, Jason T. Miles and Williams talk comics late into an SPX night while Tom Neely tries to sleep.

2006 Boilerplate for All Future Comics Articles still holds true

The Beat — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:30:48 +0000

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While we were tidying up, we chanced upon the old archives of Beat articles no longer on the Internet, including one linking to Edward Champion’s Boilerplate for All Future Comics Articles. It’s as true today as it was in 2006!

Once [considered a lesser art form] [limited to superheroes and lasers], today’s comic books [are evolving into a bona-fide literary form] [are tackling personal stories in addition to superheroes] [are becoming more ambitious than their orignators].

The only thing missing from Champion’s roundup?

Publisher X plans for the next year include [releasing its comics on a new app] [the major studio debut of a film starring their main franchise] [releasing their comics for iPad in advance of the major studio motoin picture debut of their main franchise.]

Tokyopop back….sorta, teamed with GeekChicDaily

The Beat — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 18:42:03 +0000

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GeekChicDaily, the daily nerd news email, is launching an edition for New York, and also teaming with the Tokyopop brand for a special edition spotlighting Japanese culture trends and news.

The New York edition will cover the Big Apple’s lively offerings in geek culture, following localized versions for LA and a national edition. GeekChicDaily also added Microsoft’s Mich Mathews to its board of directors.

Teasings of the Tokyopop edition had excited fans to think they were returning to publishing, but the Tokyopop Facebook page quelled the rumors:

Loyal Fans, we’re very thrilled by your excitement but need to clarify: unfortunately we are not re-launching the manga – those properties have reverted to their owners and are amazingly difficult to get back. We’re launching an all new editorial TOKYOPOP newsletter about all things otaku and Asian pop-culture, powered by our friends at GeekChicDaily. We think you’ll really enjoy the news we’ll be bringing and apologize for the initial misunderstanding.

PR below:

Following the explosive growth of the National and Los Angeles regional editions, GeekChicDaily, the leading pop culture, opt-in email newsletter and cross-platform content publisher, today announced its expansion into the New York market and the upcoming launch of special edition “TOKYOPOP Powered by GeekChicDaily.”

With a focus on events and pop culture influencers in the NY Metro area, GeekChicDaily’s New York Edition will continue to deliver a daily dose of popular culture, from comics to video games, film, television, toys, collectibles and applications, alongside multi-platform media partner and nerdcore site, Nerdist. In addition to editorial coverage, the company will also co-host local events that help New Yorkers feed their inner geeks whether on the web or on the town. To sign up, visit http://bit.ly/rqP3hs. Official launch partners include Street Fighter® X Tekken®, AMC’s The Walking Dead, Toyota, and OtterPops.

“Servicing the biggest media market in the world has always been a top priority and following the overwhelming enthusiasm from our National edition and GeekChicLA audience, New York was an obvious next step,” said GeekChicDaily Co-Founder and CEO Peter Y. Levin.

GeekChicDaily has also partnered with TOKYOPOP, the major publisher that popularized manga in the West to produce a special edition powered by GeekChicDaily that will cover the hottest Asian pop culture news and trends. “TOKYOPOP Powered by GeekChicDaily” is an evolution of the original TOKYOPOP magazine a decade ago, which featured Asian Pop Culture lifestyle, including manga, anime, gaming, music, cos-play, gadgets, celebrities and more. The magazine and online companion reached over 100K + subscribers. While TOKYOPOP was forced to discontinue its North American manga publishing operations in Spring 2011 due to the declining book retail environment, “TOKYOPOP powered by GeekChicDaily” revives the TOKYOPOP brand in an exciting way, leveraging its substantial social media footprint to tie the Asian-infused content across multiple platforms.

“GeekChicDaily and its daily, opt-in format provide the perfect opportunity to revive the original TOKYOPOP magazine Asian Pop Culture concept with a refreshed approach for our loyal and passionate fanbase,” said TOKYOPOP Founder, Stu Levy. “The time is right for a well-balanced Asian Pop Culture online newsletter with a West-looks-East perspective. We couldn’t be more thrilled to continue the TOKYOPOP brand and its contribution to pop culture with GeekChicDaily.”
 “TOKYOPOP’s audience, brand cache and significant influence on Asian Pop Culture over the last decade falls right in line with our long term strategy,” added GeekChicDaily Co-Founder and CEO Peter Levin. “Our objectives are to dig into that sweet spot where Eastern and Western pop culture trends collide for comprehensive, full-circle coverage for our content hungry community.”

At the same time, GeekChicDaily welcomes Microsoft marketing veteran and tech industry luminary Mich Mathews to its all-star Advisory Board, which already includes industry heavyweights such as former DailyCandy CEO Pete Sheinbaum, Thrillist CEO and co-founder Ben Lerer, Broadway Video CEO Jack Sullivan, ex-Legendary and Activision executive Kathy Vrabeck and former ShineReveille managing director Howard T. Owens.

GeekChicDaily investors include Legendary Pictures, Mandalay Entertainment, Bob Pittman, Seattle venture capitalist Mike Slade, Machinima CEO Allen DeBevoise, fomer Legendary and Activision executive Kathy Vrabeck, Gamespy Industries founder Mark Surfas and Japanese media juggernaut Yoshimoto Kogyo.

The Beat wins Shel Dorf Award for Best Comics Blogger!

The Beat — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 12:00:02 +0000

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The Shel Dorf awards were given out this weekend at the Detroit Fanfare con, and while the complete winner list has not been posted anywhere we could find, we know we won for Best Comics Blogger! Woot! The competition was tough and to have prevailed is really humbling and gratifying. We don’t know who exactly voted on these awards, but whoever did — thank you so much.

Photo by Lauren Sankovitch.

Brian Chippendale on JUSTICE LEAGUE #1

The Beat — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 14:32:55 +0000

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Do we need to even tell you how great this is? Imagine Stephen Malkmus analyzing the April 1995 issue of Wizard Magazine.

Via

New website Spandexless launches

The Beat — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 22:45:24 +0000

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A new website focusing on reviews of non-superhero comics has just launched, Spandexless. It’s fronted by frequent PW Comics World writer Beth Scorzato, who was down at SPX along with her partner Alex Jarvis, and they seemed to be covering the show with tons of enthusiasm. It’s a nice looking website — bookmark!

A new comics review website, Spandexless.com is making its official launch this weekend with their coverage of the Small Press Expo 2011.

Spandexless’ mission is to promote the review and discussion of comic books and graphic novels outside of the superhero genre. The site reviews and analyzes books across genres for readers of all ages and enthusiasms, providing a critical voice and focusing on a close reading of topics, themes, and presentation. Some books previously covered by Spandexless’ writers are Vertigo’s American Vampire Vol. 1, Avatar and Warren Ellis’ Supergod and new webcomic Cucumber Quest by artist Gigi Digi.

Spandexless will be adding to its usual fare this weekend by reporting from SPX 2011 with creator interviews and book previews as well as general show coverage. You can follow the website’s coverage of the show, as well as continuing book reviews and discussion by visiting Spandexless.com or following the site on Twitter at @spandexless.

Spandexless is the product of Alex Jarvis (@Alxjrvs) and Beth Scorzato (@nyxnimby), childhood friends and comic book enthusiasts. Editor-in-Chief Jarvis has a background in digital humanities and has written for Wired’s Geekdad, The Consumerist and The Chronicle of Higher Education’s Profhacker. Managing Editor Scorzato is a children’s book editor and journalist, covering comics as a freelancer for Publishers Weekly.

Spandexless.com is also looking both for writers and publishers who want to partner with the site to promote their books. Review policies can be found on their website. For more information, please contact the editors at talktous@spandexless.com.

Guest review: Champion! magazine

The Beat — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 19:36:15 +0000

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by Matt Demers

[Recently, a new comics magazine for iPads was announced, Champion!, created by a crew that includes many ex-Wizard magazine staffers. Since it's iPad only and we don't have an iPad, reader Matt Demers volunteered to write a review.]

The other day, The Beat covered the launch of Champion!, a new iPad-only magazine that’s being staffed by a number of former Wizard personnel. As a huge fan of the latter, I decided to load up the free preview issue and give it a look.

Inside, I was treated to a number of different features, including interviews with Jim Lee and Will Friedle, spotlights on toys and t-shirts and a number of off-beat features (such as comic creators’ first books) that Wizard was famous for. However, capturing the spirit of the old magazine isn’t the only good thing that Champion! is managing to pull off.

Champion! is doing something that a lot of other magazines aren’t, in that they’re realizing that the digital medium isn’t just a place to copy-and-paste they would post on a blog or publish in print. They seem to have nailed the balance of interactive elements to text and images, so as to not overwhelm the reader with glitz.

A typical page will have a number of interactive elements that supplement the text, including audio and video which don’t require you to leave the app (big pluses!). Having two Twitter feeds that you can follow and reply to (again, without leaving the app) were also welcome additions. Even though they looked exactly like Twitter.com’s web layout, they fit it with the rest of the issue, which can be a bit challenging to pull off. Other widgets, like a spin-able 360-degree view of a Rocketeer statue, add some great value to the consumer: I mean, what toy collector wouldn’t want to see all of a product before he/she buys it?

Sadly, not all of these features work as well as they could – sometimes it’s quite difficult to get rid of pop-up word balloons in order to read the article underneath. While the magazine offers a helpful “how to read” page, there could be some way of indicating some of the more hard-to-find interactive elements, like scroll bars or different coloring.

Ultimately, these problems are indicative of the youth of the medium and not the ineptitude of the creators, as they’ve been prevalent in other publications, as well. It’s kind of a difficult balance to strike: do you sacrifice form for intuitiveness, or the other way around?

Hopefully that balance is something that Champion! will be able to fix, as they’ve been able to capture the spirit of Wizard otherwise, if not with a little bit of maturity thrown in. I really felt like I was opening up an old friend who had taken steps to fix the problems he had gone through in the past, and was looking to make a fresh start towards the future. I felt like I was fifteen again, reading about the first rumblings of Batman Begins.

There is no word on how much the magazine will cost when it eventually starts offering paid issues, which needs to be done right in order to secure the reader base they need to succeed. Though the magazine is fancy, the content takes time and effort to produce; hitting a (presumably) monthly quota with limited capital will be difficult.

If the price point is too low, Champion! won’t be able to support itself, and if it’s too high, the userbase won’t follow it and produce much-needed revenue. The fact that the magazine appears to support (non-intrusive) ad pages should give it some wiggle room, however.

It may be too early to tell, but as far as I’m concerned, Champion! is worth reading. It has put effort into making a good first impression, uses the medium well and is more than a glorified PDF viewer, which is more than what I can say for what Wizard World is doing these days.

[Matt Demers is a Toronto columnist and Wizard fan who writes about comics for a number of sites across the Internet. You can find more of his work on his Twitter, or personal Tumblr.

]

Champion! Magazine debuts for iPad from many ex-Wizard staffers

The Beat — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 20:46:09 +0000

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Well, here’s a press release with some familiar figures behind it, and the head shots to prove it.

• Steve Blackwell is the co-founder and Creative Director of Champion! Magazine. Before joining the Champion! revolution, Blackwell was the creative director of Wizard Magazine and a world-class freelance designer.

• Ralph Cirella is the co-founder and Development Director of Champion! Magazine and can be heard every week on GEEKTIME!…HOWARD101…SiriusXM radio.

• Mike Cotton is the co-founder and Editor in Chief of Champion! Magazine. He spent the last decade working for Wizard Magazine and currently co-hosts the GEEKTIME! radio show.

• Sam Simon is a co-founder and Publisher of Champion! Magazine, which is second only to his long list of television credits including “The Simpsons,” “The Drew Carey Show” and nine primetime Emmys.

In addition, the PR came from April Wiggins, who used to do PR for….Wizard Magazine.

So what is Champion Magazine? An iPad-only magazine promising “In-depth, well-written content paired with innovative functionality allows fans to experience the quality journalism and design of a print product with the flexibility, timelines and functions of a website or blog.”

Cirella has already described it as “life changing” in the rather amusing press release quoted at length below. Comparisons to the ’70s Comics Journal are also certain to bring a smile. Or a smirk.

We’d give you a review, but we’re such plebians that we don’t have an iPad. Yet. However the first preview issue is available for free here. Let us know how you like it.

Listen, watch, read and interact—those are the marching orders of Champion! Magazine.

Just like the heady, thoughtful Comics Journal of the late-’70s and early ’80s gave way to the slick and glossy fan magazines of the ’90s, and the turn of the 21st century saw websites dominate, we’re proud to say Champion! is the latest progression in comic industry and pop culture content.

Download the new app to your iPad by tapping here and see why you don’t just read Champion!, you experience it.

Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief Mike Cotton explains why this new iPad app is unique.

“In-depth, well-written content paired with innovative functionality allows fans to experience the quality journalism and design of a print product with the flexibility, timelines and functions of a website or blog.”

Champion! uses exclusive tablet technology so users can decide what information they want to spend time with and what information they can return to later. It lets the reader decide how they interact and interpret the content. Unlike traditional print publications, Champion! is a living product.

Live Twitter feeds allow readers real-time access to staff and other readers. Additionally, when there’s breaking news, you won’t need to wait a month like a print magazine. An issue update will provide the reader quick access with up-to-the minute industry announcements presented in a way only Champion! can deliver.

“From the moment I picked up the iPad, I knew it would be life-changing for me,” explains Co-Founder Ralph Cirella. “I geek out when design and content are made fun and entertaining. My iPad is a huge part of my life and is always with me. I love how this magazine is jam-packed with all this great content and interactivity that can be viewed virtually anywhere you go…home, train, plane or even outer space!”*

Champion! Magazine will be coming to the Android market later this year.

Champion! publishes monthly. The preview issue is available now for FREE. Issue #1 drops on 9/1/11.

Must Read: Thoughts on the comics life

The Beat — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 18:14:39 +0000

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“You have a life-threatening condition,” the doctor said.

“We need to get you somewhere where they can operate on you,” he continued, the words tumbling out of him.

“We need to get you there immediately.” A breath.

“We have a hospital. We have a surgeon. When we have an ambulance, you’ll go.”

Unless you have been living under a rock, you’ve seen Tom Spurgeon’s essay on facing a life threatening illness, an illness which led to his unexpected blogging absence earlier this summer, and which still affects him, although he’s recovering. Since looking death in the face usually prompts some inventory of life, Spurgeon does just that in an astonishing essay that covers his life and his life in comics, if there is a difference. That a man fighting for his life should spend that time thinking about the Green Lantern movie is both ridiculous and awesome — Tom’s thoughts on why we chose the comics life and why we stay there speak for me about 80% of the time. It’s not that we have no choice, but rather why would we WANT to leave a field that is full of such honest, unpretentious work and creative, life-loving people?

I mean no disrespect to Tom’s great essay by linking to two others in the same post; but they amplify many of the same thoughts. This weekend Frank Santoro writes of a fun comics weekend in the city:

That’s when Dan waved his hand again because I was being too loud. What-ever! I was having fun. I can’t help it! See, the cool thing about comics is that if you hang in there long enough your heroes can become your friends. And what’s cool about comics people is that we all know how hard it is to do comics or publish comics or write about comics – and so there is a certain comfort in sharing stories because no one really outside of comics actually gets what comics is about. So this was an occasion to celebrate this most crossroads-y, interzone-y – most impure art form on the planet. I was happy.

And last week Becky Cloonan was asked about the freelance life and mentioned both its horrible drawbacks — long hours for little pay — and why it’s so great:

What makes it worth it though, is I love drawing. I LOVE IT. I love making comics. I love starting a new page and buying new paper, ink and brushes. I love telling stories! I love the people I work with, I love the people I meet. I love thinking about the syntax and language of comics. I love esoteric discussions about the comic book industry. I love the opportunities I’ve had in life because of comics. The second I stop loving it I will find something else to do. Comics are hard work. Comics are relentless. Comics will break your heart. Comics are monetarily unsatisfying. Comics don’t offer much in terms of fortune and glory, but comics will give you complete freedom to tell the stories you want to tell, in ways unlike any other medium. Comics will pick you up after it knocks you down. Comics will dust you off and tell you it loves you. And you will look into it’s eyes and know it’s true, that you love comics back.

Personally speaking, the reason I love comics is getting to know people like Tom Spurgeon, Frank Santoro, and Becky Cloonan, as well as appreciating their work. We need them to stick around forever. Wishing you the best for your recovery, Tom.

The Comics Reporter has returned

The Beat — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 15:43:29 +0000

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Since going on a nearly month long hiatus from blogging, Tom Spurgeon has left indie comics readers in serious withdrawal from golden age comics reprints, indie comics art dumps, old photos of cartoonists doing things, and of course, insightful commentary. Luckily
as of today Tom is back to blogging today, with a San Diego preview, and a look at why it may have been time for the Xeric to go. Sadly, the elements that caused the hiatus have also prevented him from making the San Diego trip, but we’re sure that he’ll give better coverage from afar than most of us could do from the ground.

Wolk’s Dredd Reckoning

The Beat — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 16:33:12 +0000

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Douglas Wolk is blogging about Judge Dredd . The author of “Reading Comics,” has presented us with several specialized comics blogs in the past — like his amazing 52 Pickup analyzing all the metadata of DC’s 52 — but now he’s wading right in to the world of the ultimate law, and one of Britain’s most popular native characters:

Mills’ Dredd never really feels like Wagner’s, though. In some ways, more power to him–nearly every other writer’s Dredd feels like a watered-down imitation of Wagner’s, and Mills definitely has his own voice. (Even Garth Ennis, Mark Millar and Grant Morrison, when they wrote Dredd, often seemed to be doing Wagner lite, and they’re not writers you can ordinarily accuse of not having strong voices.) But a tiny thing that illustrates the difference is that Mills’ Dredd exclaims “By Stomm!” all the time. Wagner’s Dredd is more likely to say “Stomm!”–a curse, but not an oath sworn in the name of some sort of greater entity.

Dredd wlll be the subject of a movie starring Karl Urban this winter, so consider this your chance to get in on the ground floor. If Doctor Who is a bit too twee for your tastes, Dredd may be the Brit institution for you.

Preview: Tripwire #55

The Beat — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:00:59 +0000

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TRIPWIRE, edited by Joel Meadow is an excellent magazine about comics and their satellites. Like most paper-based periodicals, it’s found a new distribution method as a e-magazine — but you can still order the ppaer version from Diamond. Meadows’ blog has a preview and come highlights:

•Under an exclusive Elric cover painted by illustrator David Michael Beck, we celebrate 50 years of the White Wolf in the year that BOOM! brings the character back to comics and we talk to its creator, MICHAEL MOORCOCK
•London-based writer CHRISTOPHER FOWLER, writer of Bryant & May and Rune, lifts the lid on a career influenced by comics
•It’s fifty years since Fantastic Four #1 so we commemorate this with a look back at Marvel’s first family with the help of some of the creators who’ve been part of FF history
•WALT SIMONSON’s eagerly awaited The Judas Coin hardcover is published this Christmas and we preview the book including a unique sketchbook and pencils and inks section
•JASON AARON discusses Scalped, Wolverine and his other work
•Location Scouts Sarah Eastel talk about their work
•Shaenon Garrity writes about the history of webcomics seen from the inside
•SERGIO ARAGONES discusses The Funnies and his work
•PLUS STRIPWIRE, TRIPWIRE’s comic-within-a-magazine returns as does The Power List and Graphic Novels you should be reading

Kittens or Keffiyehs? The truth behind Superman #712

The Beat — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 23:58:54 +0000

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Comics controversy!

This morning Jill Pantozzi wrote a story about changing contents in SUPERMAN #712. The issue was originally solicited to contain a story by Chris Roberson about Superman going to LA and meeting up with a Muslim superhero.

The contents NOW include a story by Kurt Busiek about Krypto, which has been in the inventory drawer for YEARS, and the subject of its own conspiracy theories.

So…a little different. Was the story changed because of uneasiness about Superman teaming up with a Muslim in light of Supe’s recent unAmericanism?

Pantozzi wrote:

The intended story revolved around a non-white hero coming into contact with prejudice in America. With all the flack DC has gotten recently for its patriotism (or lack thereof), is it any wonder this story got pulled at the last second?

Chris Sims at Comics Alliance was also on the case and wrote a very detailed piece covering all of DC’s recent activities with regards to Muslims, politics, and Fox News. (Sims himself was a guest on The Daily Show over the outcry over BATMAN franchising his cowl to a French Muslim.) Sims put the blame for the story being pulled squarely on the political fallout:

But whether they were prepared or not, the outcome was the same: there was now attention focused at DC, rooted in a desire to catch the publisher in activities so un-American that Glenn Beck would have to wheel out another chalkboard. As much as I don’t buy the “it doesn’t work with Grounded” explanation, it’s far easier to believe that after Nightrunner and Action #900, DC didn’t want the hassle of dealing with an anchor leading off the news with “Superman renounced his American citizenship — and you won’t believe his new terrorist sidekick!” Not that Sharif is actually a terrorist, but the accurate description doesn’t spike ratings.

And here’s the thing. As you may have heard, DC’s currently engaged in a line-wide reboot, something that they announced in USA Today. It’s a stunt that’s explicitly designed to grab headlines and get publicity. DC’s actively courting the media in an effort to get this news out there and draw in new readers, which is exactly what they should be doing. But if the decision to axe Superman #712 is motivated by wanting to avoid getting attention for something as innocuous as “Superman inspires a young Muslim hero to do good in the world,” then what does that say about the comics they’re pushing to the spotlight?

It all seemed very plausible…or…WAS IT? A little while later, Bleeding Cool chimed in with what they claimed was a well-sourced story : that the issue in question was pulled because of a kitten-saving episode that made Superman look like…a pussy.

And this caused considerable problems with certain DC executives. They thought it was too corny and heavy-handed, and not the kind of Superman stories they wanted to tell. The kitten up a tree image symbolised for them what was wrong with the Superman books. It became totemic in the office, standing for far more than it could possibly symbolise. It had to go.

That the book also has a lead Islamic superhero character, the kind of thing that does get the attention they like, seems to have passed them by.

BC’s Rich Johnston offered up the fact that the issue now included a Krypto story as a sort of deliberate kitten-refutation.

So…which is it?

Over the last few weeks, Johnston has absolutely been killing the DC relaunch story (and many others) with leaked or available but hidden information from what appear to be a variety of sources. In an era when 99 percent of what you read is canned filet of flack, this is a refreshing and remarkable performance and has been, as we’re reminded several times a day, rewarded by a huge traffic spike. And people inside DC are eager to close down the leaks.

But Johnston also runs a rumor site, not a news site…so was it possible that someone would plant a story that was ludicrous on the face of it…so ludicrous that Rich couldn’t’ resist?

Let’s use Occam’s razor here.

Either the issue was pulled because of problems over a story involving the most controversial topic of our times, and a story about a cute little kitten in a tree was used as a cover—or even to root out the leakers—to avoid the kind of bad PR that DC has gotten constantly over recent diversity issues, and someone somewhere is having a very big laugh at Rich’s expense right about now…

….or the story was pulled over a scene with a cute little kitten in a tree because it made Superman look like a pussy.

We’ve heard it both ways from good sources inside DC. Someone is spinning this like a Harlem Globetrotter.

Our advice? Be careful what you read. And wait for the Alter Ego interview in 20 years with the real story.

One thing we do know….Chris Roberson is getting Kurt Busiek’s comps, according to Twitter:

CR: Hey, @KurtBusiek, let me know if you didn’t get your comps of 712. WorldColor sent me two boxes that I’d be happy to forward to DM me your mailing address, and I’ll get them to the post office!

KB: You know, I was just thinking that they’d send you the comps, much like they sent me Todd Klein’s comps of a GLC trade…
…after my story was pulled for one of his. I got his royalty check, too. So you may have another treat coming.

CR: Well, JMS already gets half of my royalties for Supes, so it would be half-a-treat, at best.

KB: In any case, yes, that would be very nice of you. Thanks!

CR: Well, truth be told, I *am* keeping one copy for my own self. I’ve been looking forward to this story for YEARS!

Let’s leave this story on that civil friendly note, almost as friendly as a cute little kitten up a tree.

Heroine of the week: DaYoung Jung

The Beat — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 12:30:25 +0000

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It’s been a crazy week at Stately Beat Manor and beyond. In addition to covering all the DC brouhaha, and the usual comics tumult, I also had to put together the Graphic Novel listings for Publishers Weekly’s fall announcements issue. Unlike other categories, most comics publishers — like DC and Fantagraphics — aren’t included in the database that book publishers use. So I had to put together half of it by hand. Blergh. Luckily, I was aided tremendously by our new PW intern DaYoung Jung. What can I say…she’s a gem, whether it was helping pick the 50 selections or putting the hyphens in ISBN numbers. She’s also a pretty good cartoonist. Check out her various art sites. Thanks, DaYoung!

I was also greatly aided by this page from Sandy Bilus’s I Love Rob Liefeld blog. Bilus is — like Dick Hyacinth before him — another AWOL blogger. I really miss his roundups of reviews and best-ofs, but I guess doing that kind of thing is tiring. He’s still around on Twitter a bit but that’s about it, with no posts since April. Hope he’s still out there somewhere.