Tag: Indie Comics

Things are kicking into high gear worldwide for comics shows. So much is kicking off tomorrow. Here's a very quick look at some of them. In London's Crouch End a 2nd year CAF is taking place, the Crouch End Cartoon Art Festival or CECAF, organized by Sean Azzopardi.

Pop Star Assassin, the new comic by writer/creator Ed Lavallee and art by Marcelo Basile, is a mesmerizing and surreal look into the life of Bruce, an Elvis impersonator who thinks the real Elvis was his father. The explosive first issue sees Bruce thrown into a wild situation stuck between G-Men, mobsters, and shadow agencies. All of whom are trying to use him for their own needs. As the climatic events unfold Bruce is left tying to figure what is going on, who he really is and what his connection to Elvis is. If you like guns, action, espionage, the mob, G-Men, Elvis and shadow agencies then you will love this book. Definitely check it out. Here is the exclusive interview with writer/creator Lavallee.

There are scores of great webcomics to read from indie cartoonists on these internets. There are also tons of great mini comics on sale from cartoonists at CAFs. But what if you can't get to a CAF or want a more curated portal to help you find good stuff? Zco.mx (pronounced zee·com·ics) is a new site that offers a curated list of cartoonists with selected digital offerings, all available to read for free -- but you are also encouraged to make a donation. Comics are downloadable as CBZ files via torrents or DC. I'm not super crazy about that format, but the reader on the site itself works very smoothly, and I don't have any room on my iPad anyway.

Issue #4 of Tüki Save The Humans, Jeff Smith's saga of early humans and their migration, has been postponed from May to December due...

Canada's Koyama Press continues to present a lively slate of boundary-pushing work, and this fall they are putting out their biggest line ever, including two books by Michael DeForge, new books by Jane Mai, Cole Closser and some newcomers, a kid's book and a revamped version of Julia Wertz's Drinking at the Movies. I expect one of the most interesting will be Robin Nishio's Wailed which follows "a group of friends who also happen to be the vanguard of alternative comics making." And you thought The Sponsor was shattering! All the details below:

It's almost quitting time here in EDT so let's leave the week with something FUN for a change. Why just do a comic book based on a classically of it time TV show when you can reinvent it as an acid trip that bends time and space? And hooray for licensors who let you get away with it. Miami Vice: Remix by Joe Casey and Jim Mahfood is anything but a dull TV show comic...it's an audacious tale on tropes and icons, and a gem in the Lion Forge line-up.

The good news is that the 2015 MoCCA Festival moved to a new venue—Center 548 in the heart of Chelsea's gallery district—and it was ideal! Windows, flattering white walls, three floors of comicksy goodness, tons of foot traffic, and a rooftop lounge where you could sit in the sunlight and look out over the Hudson to the far lands of Jersey. And the panels held at the Highline Hotel wee a hop skip and jump away. It was smooth sailing! The bad news is that MoCCA will never be there again. (h/t Daryl Ayo) The building—once the home of the prestigious Dia Arts Center—has been sold and will be converted to condos, like everything else in New York. When all these people move into these condos will there be anything fun left to do in NYC except shop at the Stella McCartney store? I sure hope so.

Today is a day to send shout-outs to the Center for Cartoon Studies, located in White River Junction, VT and recognize it's many good deeds. While my shout out should be a loving essay on how teaching comics has had a strong effect on storytelling and how the bucolic yet isolated campus in rural Vermont allows students to focus in on making comics, or the print room or the other great things about the faculty which includes James Sturm and Steve Bissette, I don't have time for that. Instead I will just direct you to Rob Clough's series looking at the WORK of CCS grads and spotlight a few of them:

The Beat's own Zachary Clemente has just announced a new comic called Immolation and it looks very cool. ANNOUNCEMENT: The first installment in a...

Uncivilized Books has had a few knockout books, with Maya Neyestani's An Iranian Metamorphosis getting a lot of wards consideration. And now here's the...

TCAF, the Toronto Comic Arts Festival will be held May 9-10th this year, with a whole week of events, art exhibits, screenings. Special programming events include the CSSC-SCEBD Academic Conference, Library & Educator Day, Word Balloon Academy, and Comics Vs. Games 4. IN other words, it jam packed with stuff to see and do. As for programming the first spotlight has been announced: Drawn & Quarterly's 25th anniversary, which is certain to bring out some top notch sessions.

§ By chance, two websites have been devoting some time to overviews of...non Big Two Comics I guess you could call 'em. Multiversity is...