September 28, 2007 at 11:54 am
By: Dustin Harbin
At this rate, we’re going to have to hold part of the convention outside. Just added to our HeroesCon 2008 Guest List are cover artist and animation director Stephane Roux. He’s probably best-known for his cover work on Birds of Prey and Supergirl: Stephane will be coming all the way from France for his very first HeroesCon, so be sure to make him feel welcome! Also just added to the list is Image Comics inker G.W. Fisher: besides work on Jim Valentino’s Shadowhawk and The Intimidators, G.W. is working on the forthcoming Revival! Coming hot on the heels of yesterday’s big Homestarrunner addition, this HeroesCon may be our biggest ever! Stay tuned for more!
Filed Under: Guest List, HeroesCon, HeroesCon News
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September 28, 2007 at 10:41 am
By: Seth Peagler
by
Gerard Way &
Gabriel Bacovers by
James Jean
reviewed by Seth Peagler
Last week Dark Horse premiered a new miniseries called The Umbrella Academy. The book’s creative team consists of Gabriel Ba on interior art, James Jean on cover art and Gerard Way on writing duties. Some of you may know Ba from his work on the series Casanova, and Jean for his covers for the series Fables. If you don’t recognize the writer Gerard Way, don’t feel bad; this is Way’s first comic series. Apparently he started creating the book when he wasn’t working his day job as singer of the band My Chemical Romance. Though unfamiliar with this band’s music, the thought of a rock singer writing a comic intrigued me. Can rock stars write comics?
Beyond the curiosity I had about the book’s story, what initially prompted me to pick up this new book was the respect I have for the art of Ba and Jean. Their contributions seem to fit the story’s super-hero/science fiction tone very well, which didn’t surprise me, considering the excellence of their previous work. What did surprise me was how well-constructed the story ended up being. For a first issue we aren’t bogged down with endless dialogue, but are given enough information to want to continue reading. We get a bit of action, but not so much that we don’t have an investment in the story. And by the book’s end, we have several unanswered questions propelling us toward issue two, and the introduction of the major conflict of the series.
Throughout issue # 1 we travel through an odd world where the Eiffel Tower wreaks havoc on Paris, a super-powered boy dreams of growing up to be a space man, and zombie robots threaten society. Though The Umbrella Academy unabashedly takes cues from the X-Men, with its inclusion of a super hero school, it also seems to be related to titles as divergent as Hellboy and Casanova. This is a quirky book that blends archetypes of science fiction and comics in a unique, high-paced format.
If there are any of you who have hesitations about a rock star writing comics, you might just be surprised at the book’s quality. James Jean provides a beautiful cover for issue number one, featuring the academy’s children being mirrored by their adult selves. Gabriel Ba delivers energetic panels that fit nicely with the story’s quick delivery. Gerard Way, for his first comics work, offers a surprisingly enjoyable story, and with it, quite possibly the arrival of another promising writer in the realm of comics.
Filed Under: DISCUSS, Reviews
Comments (13)
September 27, 2007 at 2:55 pm
By: Dustin Harbin
Oh yes, babies! Just confirmed today, Homestarrunner.com creators Matt and Mike Chapman will be guests at their first ever Heroes Convention next June! Very exciting news–for those of you who don’t know, Homestarrunner is only one of the most popular methods of time-wasting-at-work ever to be devised by mortal minds–duh! By all accounts these guys are super friendly, so don’t miss the chance to meet the creators of Strongbad, Trogdor the Burninator, and the entire ginormous cast of the site, not to mention the rest of the already ridiculously awesome Indie Island guest list. Special thanks to our buddies Carsten Wyche and Scott Clackum for helping us land this big fish! You guys…
Filed Under: Guest List, Heroes Aren't Hard To Find, HeroesCon, HeroesCon News
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September 26, 2007 at 9:52 am
By: Dustin Harbin
Our snazzy new site came at a price–a number of our old links have changed. As announced on our Heroes Hotline last Friday, you’ll need to update your bookmarks accordingly. While each person’s needs will be different, here’s a quick reference list of most popular links on our site:
HeroesCon Info:
http://www.heroesonline.com/heroescon.html
HeroesCon Guest List:
http://www.heroesonline.com/con-guests.html
Indie Island:
http://www.heroesonline.com/con-indie.html
New Releases:
http://www.heroesonline.com/new-releases.html
Feel free to browse the site to your heart’s content, searching hither and yon for things to bookmark to. And feel free to comment if you’re still perplexed! We watch this blog like hawks!
Filed Under: Heroes Aren't Hard To Find
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September 25, 2007 at 3:08 pm
By: Dustin Harbin
I’m just kidding–I know you wouldn’t forget. BUT in case you were thinking about maybe forgetting before too long, don’t do it! Forget what? That’s exactly the kind of thing I’m talking about. Scott Pilgrim creator Bryan Lee O’Malley will be appearing in our store on Friday, October 5th, at 7pm, specifically to meet you: so if you don’t show up, it’s going to be super embarassing for him. I’ve only met him a couple of times, but he seems like a really nice guy–he might even be The One–so if you mess this up for me I will be so mad!
To that end, I’ve prepared a couple of items that will not only keep the event fresh in your mind, but will allow you to help us promote it. Clicking right here, or on the big black & white image above, will open a .pdf file in a new window, which you may then print and distribute to your local record stores, used book stores, hip restaurants, punk rock club bathrooms, etc. Or, if analog is too boring for you, feel free to swipe this little web banner I made. You can put it on your own sites/blogs OR send it to all your friends in e-mail form! That will show analog who’s the boss!
Filed Under: EVENTS, Heroes Aren't Hard To Find
Comments (16)
September 24, 2007 at 1:21 pm
By: Dustin Harbin
In a development that’s actually a few weeks old, but was made official at last week’s staff meeting, our very own Shawn Reynolds has moved to a full-time position as Store Manager. This means that now Shawn is your first stop for suggestions about the store, complaints about Jason Wheatley, and any other store-related topics you’d like to discuss. Congratulations, Shawn!
Filed Under: Heroes Aren't Hard To Find
Comments (17)
September 24, 2007 at 12:04 pm
By: Dustin Harbin
Some would wonder why he wasn’t on the Guest List in the first place–Tim is one of our oldest friends and biggest boosters. Fortunately for his career, he’s also one of the most renowned inkers in comics, having worked on a host of high profile books, over
some of the biggest pencillers in the industry, including Frank Quitely, Chris Bachalo, and Joe Madureira, to name just a very few. Tim also has a personal style that is, er, unique–as seen here, in this photo with Joe Madureira, circa (I hope) the 90’s.
Filed Under: Guest List, HeroesCon, HeroesCon News, Indie Island
Comments (2)
September 21, 2007 at 5:42 pm
By: Andy Mansell
Here walked a giant. Besides being one of the great idea men, one of the great innovators (romance comics, kid gang comics, the first direct only sales success, and especially the co-creator of the Marvel universe)
Jack Kirby always provided the WOW factor. Look at any comic art today–you see influences of
Neal Adams, the
Image group, even
Milt Caniff, but the guys who made the single and two page spreads his own was Jack Kirby.
Pick up any Marvel Masterworks or Fourth World Omnibus–the art explodes off the page–you stare with gape-jawed awe. Your eye lingers and–back in the day–you had to buy the book.
In the same way Hemingway stated that all American literature derives from one source, Huckleberry Finn, all modern comics derive from what Jack Kirby wrought over his fifty-odd creative years. A lot has been written about Kirby, but here is the simplest way to sum it up. If it weren’t for Kirby’s explosion of creativity in the sixties, I doubt we would all be here today praising comic books.
Filed Under: DISCUSS
Comments (2)
September 21, 2007 at 5:30 pm
By: Shelton Drum
Most people who know me know that I’m a big Spidey fan. And while I’m also a big fan of Stan Lee, John Romita, and Jack Kirby, there’s only one man that could have made Spider-Man work if you ask me: Steve Ditko. Spider-Man stood out right away in the Marvel universe, because he was so different than all the other characters–he was this nerdy teenager who dressed up in a weird spider costume and fought crime, meanwhile juggling school, girls, and all the other pressures teenagers face. I love Jack Kirby–some stories suggest that Jack Kirby had a lot to do with the initial idea of a “spider man”–but can you imagine Kirby doing a book like that? Steve Ditko brought the kind of energy and imagination to Spider-Man that only he could, not only in the look of Spider-Man, but often in the plotting of the book, and many people say, most of the creation of the character. Only Steve Ditko could make something as crazy sounding as “a teenage crimefighter with the proportionate strength of a spider” not only work, but become an overnight sensation. Steve Ditko only did 38 issues of what many consider the greatest comic ever, but he’s still hailed as one of the greatest comics artists of all time to this very day.
Filed Under: DISCUSS
Comments (5)
September 21, 2007 at 2:03 pm
By: Dustin Harbin
I invite you to please go and check out the officially out-of-the-box new release of
www.heroesonline.com/, which represents the last couple of months of work for a certain Creative Director. Please feel free to comment–especially if you notice any typo’s or other gaffs. Praise is of course
expected welcomed, as well. Now that
that’s out of the way, Todd and I will have a lot more time to watch Flight of the Conchords episodes.
Finally.
Filed Under: DISCUSS, Heroes Aren't Hard To Find
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