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§ The Strangers in Paradise Omnibus edition is on sale today! It’s only $100, which is cheap for all you get. I reckon many people will want to have this.

§ Today’s con preview is for this weekend’s Tampa Bay Comic Con, which has grown unexpectedly: advance tickets suggest an attendance of 20,000. This smart piece from the Tampa Bay Times actually questions what is happening:

In the past month alone, Tampa has hosted Metrocon, devoted to Japanese anime and fringe animation; the Fanboy Expo, a high-wattage meet-and-greet that included The Walking Dead’s Chandler Riggs and Elvira, Mistress of the Dark; and now Comic Con, which merges comics and celebrity and, if the past is any indication, will be the biggest party of them all.

“You may have heard that we had severe overcrowding issues at our last [Comic Con],” says Action 3’s Solomon, who comes from a “vintage comic” background. In April, more than 7,000 people showed up at the DoubleTree Hotel in Tampa, a lot of them there to see The Walking Dead’s Cohan. A scrum ensued, leading to complaints and vitriol online. “It was also the weekend of the Walking Dead finale,” Solomon adds, “and, well …”


§ Head over to the Huffington Post Japan for a gallery of delightful manga graffitti on the walls of the soon-to-be-destroyed Shogakukan building. This tweet by retailer and fequent Japan traveler Chris Butcher explains what is going on here:


Shogakukan is one of the biggest manga publishers in Japan, so this is like Marvel getting torn down and a bunch of artists drawing on the walls. Google Translate says the artists include Naoki Urasawa among others:

 Fujiko Fujio A’s, Urasawa Naoki, Shimamoto Kazuhiko, Yuki Masami, Mine Yoshizaki’s, black circle, Mr. Matsuda Naoko Takada, sancho’s, cartoonist who participated in the graffiti tournament of August 9, white snow Bambi’s, Sugiki Yasuko, Nishimura Tsuchika Mr., Mr. Pyokotan, Mizuho Rino’s, Asada Miho, Wao Akira Kato, Minori’s, storehouse Sun Cozy Castle, Tsukiko’s, Yuka longitudinal, Chiba Kozue, Mizoguchi Kyoko, Kashiwa 25 people Poti’s, Mr. Seiichi Takahashi, Naoki Mizuguchi-san, Takahashi Shinsuke’s.

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§ The LA Times interviews Hope Larson and previews her upcoming graphic novel FOUR POINTS, which has art by Rebecca Mock, above.

Now, Larson, previously best known for her middle-grade graphic novels “Mercury,” “Chiggers” and “Salamander Dream,” is turning her attention to other creative pursuits, namely a new graphic novel titled “Four Points,” an adventure story set in 1860 that will be told in two volumes and illustrated by New York-based artist Rebecca Mock, a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore who recently drew the cover for Boom! Studios’ “Adventure Time: Candy Capers” No. 1. The tale, however, is in its infancy; a release date hasn’t been set. There’s another project as well, a screenplay for a feature film that Larson hopes to direct, though she’s staying largely mum on the movie for now. It’s too early in the process to elaborate, she says.

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§ Diesel is making men’s underwear in the style of Batman 1966. The images shown do not include POW! and SMASH! and look, frankly, ungainly. I do not advise wearing these on a date where you intend to drop your trousers in front of a new partner.

§ USA Today rounds up some of the best genre comics of the fall.

§ Tramps, a comics shop in Saskatoon, has closed. Sad face. but it will be turned into a bar! Happy face I guess.

At one point, there were four Tramps stores in Saskatoon, but Wilson said sales just weren’t he same anymore. Much of the leftover stock is going to it’s location in Prince Albert, and the 1st Avenue North location will be cleaned out. But the store won’t be empty for long. Work is underway upstairs for the city’s newest live music venue. If you peek through the construction and bar stools you’ll see a familiar sign: Lydia’s.

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§ Movie still dept. A ’70s style picture of X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST was unveiled, and sideburns will never be the same.

1 COMMENT

  1. Just once, I’d like a movie to reference the 1970s via the Johnny Carson Apparel collection.

    Enough with the corduroy! Let’s see some plaids, baby blues, and patterns which inspired the Magic Eye craze!

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