Comics

When this Spider-Men teaser campaign began from Marvel, everyone was all, What can it be? Now it's looking like a Spider-Man/Ultimate Spider-Man x-over. There are worse things in the world.

André Franquin's Marsupilami is a very popular character in the Franco-Comics belt. Marsu is a funny cat monkey with a long tail who lives in the jungle. Cat monkey. Sold. He's also known for his funny cry of "Houba!" which is what cat monkeys say instead of "Wooah!"

Some old art on Kyle Baker's hard drive, probably for licensing.

Over at Comic Book Resources, Kiel Phegley interviews David Gabriel about what's going on at Marvel right now. There aren't a lot of raw numbers discussed but the vector they're moving in is certainly worth noting.

The Croatian superteam of writer Darko Macan and artist Igor Kordey have collaborated on several comics for Marvel and elsewhere (SOLDIER X), but to our knowledge, TEXAS KID, MY BRO is their first creator-owned webcomic/thingie. And it's incredible.

Yes, we know that there is only one Reuben Award, the big one, but for the sake of a headline, here are the NCS divisional nominees. This is the first time the NCS Awards have recognized webcomics, a welcome and inevitable move towards modernization. The choices — The Oatmeal, Penny Arcade and Scenes from a Multiverse (above)—aren't too groundbreaking but they are all good strips. The winners will be announced Memorial Day weekend at the annual NCS meeting, to be held this year in Las Vegas.

Lew Stringer debunks the idea that Beano and The Dandy invented the speech balloon with a look at some older comics., like this 1917 cover of Picture Fun No. 428, which uses word balloons AND the then-current wads and wads of text, as originated in The Yellow Kid.

Here are some of the more interesting titles being published in the first three quarters of this year! Get 'em while you can...

Chris Claremont reveals what might have been in X-Factor #1. Read on to discover Alan Moore's involvement!

Once upon time there was a webcomic called Goats. It was reasonably popular, to the point Del Rey published three print collection. Then the dark shadow of despair passed over Goats.

How on earth have we somehow never noticed Jillian Tamaki's webcomic SuperMutant Magic Academy? It's a bit of a dark look at the mutant/magic academy genre. You know, Ronald Searle for the Hunger Games generation. She's made a mini-comic with added strips, but it's already sold out. She assures us more is coming. More had better be.

Earlier today, we spotlighted the new Wonder Woman Chuck Taylors. But with spring in the air, the ornamental crabapple blooming, and weather warming everywhere, maybe it is time to think of lounging by the pool. And if you favor a star-spangled posterior, Spencer Gifts has just the stuff for you: Wonder Woman and Supergirl bikinis.