Riding the storm out: The Pulse checks in from Wonder Con with news from WildStorm and the U.S. editions of Humanoids. First up, The Authority: Human on the Inside hardcover graphic novel by John Ridley, who wrote Three Kings. There also was talk of the August return of Terra Obscura, by Alan Moore, Peter Hogan, Yanick Paquette and Karl Story. The first 12 issues of Planetary will be collected as a hardcover edition in August called Absolute Planetary.

Squiddies reminder: Johanna Draper Carlson reminds us that the deadline looms for the 2003 Squiddies. You have until Sunday to vote for your favorite comics series and creators. Ballot information can be found here.

Dueling artists: The Oregonian covers the Comic Art Battle at Portland's Reading Frenzy, during which writers and artists faced off in a series of timed challenges:

"Mostly, they battled one-on-one. Occasionally there were tag-team face-offs, where artists worked in pairs to produce a six-panel comic in less than 10 minutes. As the evening progressed, the air grew thick with the scent of spent markers, and maybe it was a break with reality brought on by huffing pen fumes, or maybe it was the fact that Daniels and his three friends had decided to wear colorful and flamboyant costumes as they battled (Longstreth in screaming green cords, Renier in motorcycle helmet and vinyl black and red jacket that looked as if it had been rescued from Michael Jackson's 'Thriller'-era wardrobe), but soon the proceedings began to feel a bit like a comic book come to life."

We interrupt this blog ... That's it for blogging until this afternoon. The real world beckons.

Go West: UC Santa Barbara's Daily Nexus talks briefly with alumnus Kazu Kibuishim, creator of the upcoming Daisy Kutter series from Viper Comics.

Manga nation: The New York Daily News takes notice of manga's growing popularity in the United States:

"The $100 million U.S. market for these paperbacks -- focused mainly on 'tweeners and teeners, 12 to 17, but with many older fans -- is booming and drawing in new players, including mighty Random House."

Marvel sues search engine: The Naples (Fla.) Daily News reports Marvel Enterprises and Marvel Characters Inc. have sued the owner of Spiderboy.com, an Internet search engine. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Fort Myers, accuses Mark Pardo and Spiderboy International Inc. of trademark infringement, unfair competition and trademark dilution.

Comic art: The Poughkeepsie (N.Y.) Journal reports on "Slinging Some Ink," an exhibit of the work of eight comic book artists who live in the Hudson Valley. The show, which opens Saturday at the Art Society of Kingston Gallery, will feature work by Terry Austin, Kyle Baker, Charles Barnett III, Elliot Brown, Joe Sinnott, Joe Staton, Jim Starlin and Herb Trimpe:

''For many years, comic book people were considered the bottom of the barrel, as far as artists were concerned. there's a lot that goes into it, a lot of composition. And finally, now some of us are thought of as artists.''

The glory days of gore: At Time.com, Richard Corliss looks back fondly on Bill Gaines' EC Comics and the golden era of horror:

"The horror comics offered grown-up, or at least adolescent fare — which is why it was popular with kids; they wanted a passkey to the forbidden, the extreme, and in these campfire tales they could feel scaredy-brave both by subjecting themselves to horror tales and by daring to read something that might be condemned by their parents. Which suggests a financial oddity: EC’s main audience was teen and young adult males — the target demographic for today’s advertisers. Yet the average New Trend magazine contained no more than three pages of outside advertising. The revenue came almost entirely from readers."

Marketing Image: At Digital Webbing, B. Clay Moore talks about Hawaiian Dick, his new job as PR director for Image Comics -- and plans for an Image anthology called Four Letter Worlds.

The revolution will be televised: Franklin Harris writes about Tokyopop's planned TV-ad campaign, and talks to John Powers, the company's vice president of marketing:

"If publishers have traditionally shied away from TV advertising, perhaps it's their methodology that should be questioned rather than the medium."

So, the sky's falling? I realize owning a comics shop must be tough. But sometimes it seems retailers are just desperate for something to harp about. Case in point: retailer Mike Boze's complaint at ICv2.com about the "superstores":

"I would like to point out an event that happened yesterday. I had two high school age males in the store yesterday looking through the Magic: The Gathering commons and uncommons. As they were preparing to leave, one of two asked me if a new Punisher was out. I informed him that Punisher was a monthly comic and was out pretty regular. His reply, and I quote, 'No that isn't what I mean, I'm not sure what they are called, but I go to Books-A-Million and read them and I was wondering when the new one was going to be out.'

"I guess after he saw my look he just paid for his cards and left. We all know this is a common practice. I guess I was just shocked that he was so bold about it. I just wish that the publishers really considered how good a policy this is (to invest so much effort into large chain stores) and how long before we really begin to see the effects of the long-term damage to the smaller comic shops."

From page to screen: Northern Illinois University's Northern Star takes its turn with the comics-to-film trend.

Counterfeit crackdown: Celebrity Justice reports the owners of Betty Boop, including the Hearst Corporation, are cracking down on the unlicensed use of the character's image:

"In five lawsuits filed in federal court, Betty's owners are going after 43 defendants, including companies that make electronics, underwear, t-shirts, jeans, baby clothes, jewelry and more -- all accused of illegally using Betty's image."

Distribution deal: Simon & Schuster announced it will be the domestic manga distributor for Viz, providing warehousing, fulfillment, customer service and accounts receivable collection. Viz titles previously were distributed by Publishers Group West.

In somewhat related news, Viz's Naruto, Vol. 3: Bridge of Courage and Rurouni Kenshin, Vol. 4: Dual Conclusions apparently are the first graphic novels to appear on USA Today's Top 150 list of best-selling books.

Analyzing Superman: USA Today takes a look at Steven T. Seagle and Teddy Kristiansen's It's a Bird:

"This hardcover comic book about comic books easily ranks with Spirit creator Will Eisner's memoirs of life in the comic sweat shops and Michael Chabon's best-selling The Adventures of Kavalier and Clay."

You can't hurry Love: The Rockford (Ill.) Register Star includes Love Fights in its "10-Second Reviews":

"Think it's hard finding love in the real world? Imagine trying in a world where the standard of perfection isn't set by movie stars and models, but by superheroes. That's the premise of Love Fights ($14.95), a romantic comedy in comic book form by cartoonist Andi Watson. Jack and Nora pursue romance surrounded by flying men, mad scientists and Jack's suddenly superpowered cat. Watson's artwork, which owes more to New Yorker cartoons than Spider-Man comics, fits the story perfectly."

Dirty Diana: At Movie Poop Shoot, Scott Tipton delves into the origins of Wonder Woman, and the life of her kinky, kinky creator, William Moulton Marston.

Number crunching, revisited: Back at The Pulse, Marc-Oliver Frisch offers an analysis of month-to-month direct market figures for DC Comics and a handful of other titles, such as Wanted, Savage Dragon and Cerebus.

Clearasil nation: The San Francisco Bay Guardian takes a look at "teen angst" comics, including Zero Girl, Black Hole, Blankets and Demo:

"Characters in DEMO are endowed with superhuman strengths of one sort or another, but they are resistant to the notion of the superheroic gesture. These people are not in the denial stage of a story arc that will end in their saving the world. They're just trying to live their weird lives in the world as we know it, the world as it is. If their struggles can be deemed heroic, it's mostly a testament to how difficult it is to be odd in a normal place.

"Superpowers, not recognized as such, are really just enormous problems. And taken literally, DEMO's supernatural aspects somehow become starker and harder to bear. Marie's mother force-feeds her a cocktail of medications designed to shove her back toward the center of the bell curve (a detail reminiscent of the health care industry's addiction to mood stabilizers for children). Elsewhere, a young girl's speech has a terrible power over other people's, leaving her afraid to articulate anything and totally alone. A young man's superhuman strength leads him toward the thug life of a small-town criminal and the depressing knowledge that his friends are using him. None of these themes are solely the property of youth, of course. But an out-of-proportion sense of the effect your actions have on those around you is a regular event of childhood, while messages such as 'conform at any cost' tend to be sharply felt a few years down the road."

British invasion: Newsarama reports that DC Comics has acquired North American publishing rights to all current and future comics material from UK's Rebellion, including 2000AD and Judge Dredd Magazine. The deal means DC will have access to work in those publications by Garth Ennis, Frank Quitely, Mark Miller, Sean Phillips and the like. Look for the first of the volumes in September.

Call to arms: Steve Lieber suggests the energy being devoted to "rescuing" canceled titles like Wildcats and Stormwatch might be better used supporting struggling small press and self-published comics:

"Let's say that a well-organized and sustained push could raise a book's sales by five hundred or a thousand copies. That's not enough to keep a corporate publisher from cancelling a moribund series. It simply doesn't represent a big enough slice of their expenses. But that same increase on a small press book makes an unbelievable impact. It can push a book out of the red and into the black, It can significantly increase the buzz on a title, making fence-sitting retailers more likely to order that all-important first copy, and most importantly, it can keep a cartoonist working on his or her comics instead of moving off to do commercial art.

"So, to those of you who want to make a cause of a comic, I say pick a worthy black and white title - something you can really get behind like Finder or Scooter Girl or (your favorite indie here), and make that the beneficiary of your activism. It's may be almost impossible for a small clique of fans to change the fate of a color comic from one of the big publishers, but the economics of small press publishing are such that a relatively small number of fans can make a very big difference."

With this ring ... Let the message boards rejoice. Or whatever. Newsarama reports that, according to Wizard #152, Hal Jordan will return as Green Lantern in a five-issue miniseries called Green Lantern: Rebirth, which debuts in October. The current Green Lantern series will end in September.

Number crunching: At The Pulse, Paul O'Brien works his mathematical magic on Marvel's month-to-month direct market sales. Venom, Silver Surfer and Spectacular Spider-Man continue to hemorrhage readers. Ouch.

Your CrossGen is Doomed! story of the day: The Pulse reports that artist Greg Land has quit CrossGen.

Review review, Part 2: PopImage cranks out capsule reviews of David Wiesner's Tuesday, Prophecy Anthology: Vol. 1, Mythology: The DC Comics Art of Alex Ross, and more.

Review revue, Part 1: UnderGroundOnline reviews Jeffrey Brown's Be A Man.

Plug pulled on magazine: ICv2.com reports that Ross Rojek's indictment on charges of fraud and money laundering has led to the folding of Games Unplugged magazine:

"The entrepreneurial bottom feeder evidently had his tentacles in many different pop culture projects including Games Unplugged magazine, which he purchased from Fast Forward. Tony Lee, the editor of Games Unplugged, reportedly had an issue ready to go to press when news of Rojek's arrest and the dissolution of The American Entertainment Group (Games Unplugged's parent corporation) reached him. Needless to say Mr. Lee is now out of work and the new issue of Games Unplugged is likely to languish in limbo."

Knowing the Difference: At Time.com, Andrew Arnold reviews Derek Kirk Kim's Same Difference and Other Stories.

The Tale of manga: The UCLA International Institute reprints a speech by Prof. Lynne Miyake in which she dissects the manga adaptations of the 11th-century Japanese novel, The Tale of Genji. In her analysis, Miyake provides a nice overview of manga in Japan:

"In 1995, the peak of manga publication and production, 1.9 billion -- or 15 manga for every man, woman, and child in Japan -- were sold. This figure did not include the dôjinshi (or amateur manga publications), or mawashi-yomi when one manga was passed and read by several people. Since that time the statistics have fallen to 1.5 billion in 2000, the latest figures I have, but this still accounted for one third of unit sales and nearly a quarter of the gross sales of all publications for that year.

"Perhaps in recent years, manga reading on trains has been eclipsed by people engaging in text messaging or surfing the net on their cell phones, but Japanese manga have certainly left their mark. Manga is ubiquitous in Japan: it is used for a variety of tasks, ranging from training new bank customers in the whys and wherefores of banking, on the one hand, to instructing employees on how to estimate the cost of sewer construction, on the other."

Hollywood bound: Well, it looks as if this casting rumor is true. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Charlize Theron is in negotiations to star in the film adaptation of Brian Michael Bendis' Jinx. Bendis will adapt his own work for the screen:

"This is not the traditional comic book movie, which tends to be more about concept. This is a crime novel that is illustrated so you're more interested in the voice of it. Universal understood that and has thankfully given me a fantastic opportunity bring the character of Jinx to the big screen."

Review revue: Publishers Weekly (subscription required) takes a look at The Losers: Ante Up:

"... Diggle and Jock aim to bring the best parts of the 1980s action movie aesthetic to comics with this work, and they largely succeed. But in this first story arc, they rely too heavily on its tropes. Corrupt CIA? Check. Infiltration of a secure office building? Check. Speedboat chase climaxing with a jump off a conveniently placed ramp? Check. Diggle adds a number of fun new touches to his crew of misfits, particularly with some fresh takes on old action movie characters. For example, Jensen is the prototypical hacker, but also a barely repressed actor who patters through even the tensest scenes. Cougar, the strong, silent sniper type, epitomizes cool without saying a word. Jock’s art—with its deceptively simple, shadowed figures—is atmospheric and dynamic and shows a flair for inventive layouts. His raw talent could use a little refinement though, as his depiction of action sequences sometimes sacrifices clarity for novelty. These are small quibbles, however. With this work, Diggle and Jock have made sure readers come out ahead on the classic bang-for-buck exchange."

Your CrossGen is Doomed! story of the week: Newsarama reports that CrossGen has rescheduled Raven House, and replaced penciler Leonardo Manco with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang artist Mike Perkins. The horror miniseries, originally set to debut in June, now is scheduled for an August release. Questions from Newsarama about the future of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, which was conceived by Perkins, weren't answered.

Viz and fizz: It's no Tokyopop TV-ad buy, but it'll have to do. Viz has announced it's launching an ad campaign with Dr Pepper, beginning in the June issue of Shonen Jump. As part of the campaign, Shonen Jump and Dr Pepper will sponsor the -- brace yourselves -- "Be You, Be a Pepper, Be Manga" art contest. I'll let the press release explain it:

"SHONEN JUMP readers will be encouraged to draw themselves as an original manga-style character enjoying the great taste of Dr Pepper. Twenty submitted entries will be selected as finalists by the magazine’s editors based on originality, creativity and the incorporation of a Dr Pepper can/bottle/logo."

Trade secrets: At Comic Book Resources, Arthur Adams reveals DC Comics' cover-selection process:

"Usually I do about fifty different sketches for any one cover. I then send these sketches to Mr.'s Berganza and Palmer. They take the sketches to a huge staff of lawyers, scientists, and theologians. This committee then chooses the one that will be the most difficult for me to draw. Then , lately anyway (I think Eddie just can't stand to hear me cry anymore), Tom Palmer calls me to tell me which one they want. He tries to console me by saying the next one will be easier, but it never is."

Starting the engines earlier: At Comic World News, Jason Pomerantz talks to Neil Gaiman about 1602:

"What I specifically wanted to play with was the feel of the original Stan Lee (and Jack and Steve etc) characters. I wanted the simplicities. I wanted to write the characters I fell in love with when I was seven (in UK reprints, so I got the Marvel universe from the start). I didn't want to do something that was like a Marvel version of Alan Moore's 1963, though -- apart from anything because the original Marvel comics were those things that Alan was recreating, which meant that if I went that route at best I'd come up with something that was an imitation of what Stan and Jack had done.

"So I decided to do something else instead.

"The best thing for me about the 1602 conceit was the idea that I was going to simply start the engines of the Marvel universe earlier, and see how it worked.

"Some things were just sitting around in the back of my head, and had been for a long time -- I thought it might be fun to create a daredevil who was closer to Matt Murdock's imaginary brother Mike than he was to Matt himself, for example. Many of them turned up quite happily on the page. Mostly I was just impressed with how well Stan, Jack et al had built things."

Tokyohoop: Tokyopop is making headlines right and left. This time it's because of a deal with the NBA to develop an NBA Sports Manga series. Here's how ICV2.com describes the books:

"The fumetti-style volumes will utilize full color digital images freeze-framed into action-packed spreads and peppered with manga style word balloons and captions."

Top 300, winners and Losers: In this week's "Pipeline," Augie De Blieck Jr. offers his own take on Diamond's Top 300, and reviews The Losers: Ante Up. (How Augie can describe Jock's art as a "shortcoming" is beyond me, but I'll let it slide ...)

More Indy: The spring edition of Indy Magazine is online, with an analysis of David Mazzucchelli and Paul Karasik's adaptation of Paul Auster's City of Glass, interviews with the creators, and the introduction by Art Spiegelman. There's also an interview with Françoise Mouly about Little Lit, reviews and more.

War stories: The Seattle Times takes another look at the recent storylines in Doonesbury and Get Fuzzy, and turns to The Comics Journal's Dirk Deppey for comment:

"Trudeau is in many ways a trailblazer when it comes to subject matter in his strip. Because he tends to blaze these trails, he doesn't set it up with Howard Stern-style shock-jokes. He tends to approach it with some gravity."

Manga's Lolita complex: The Japan Times examines whether the "eroticization" of children in many manga and anime is just a pop-culture quirk, or a greater societal problem:

"Cute characters and 'lolicom' (Lolita complex) themes are a staple of the Japanese pop culture consumed at home and abroad. Many otaku anime and manga products feature sexy school-girl heroines. Some extreme varieties of lolicom manga are clearly pedophilic pornography. Some pressure groups and NGOs suggest a link between a 'lolicom culture' that idolizes young girls and social problems such as child prostitution and sexual abuse."

While the main story quotes politicians, activists and culture critics, the sidebar turns to people on the street for rather mixed views on "lolicom" manga.

Not-so-poor Bastard: According to The Hollywood Reporter, HBO and David X. Cohen are teaming up to develop a series based on Joe Matt's graphic novel The Poor Bastard.

Women and comics: Friends of Lulu/New York is relaunching the "Women and Comics" series on May 5 at the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art. First up is Marvel's Teresa Focarile, who will "describe how to submit writing samples and speak about Marvel's interest in comics written by women for new audiences."

Marketing moves: Image Comics announced that Hawaiian Dick writer B. Clay Moore has been named as the company's public relations and marketing director.

Marvel's all up in your grill: Marvel Enterprises, that "global character-based entertainment licensing company," and hip-hop clothing company AST Sportswear have announced a deal to produce a line of Marvel urban streetwear. "The new apparel will combine the fresh, street vibe of the hip-hop world with several characters from the Marvel Universe, to produce edgy clothing with a distinct flare."

Wait, it gets better. Here's AST's Larry Zimmer, on Marvel's street cred:

"There is an evident connection between the hip-hop community and the Marvel brand. We began to realize the immense connection through our conversations with top creators in the hip-hop industry and many of our consumers who referenced the Marvel mythos time and time again. By combining our popular urban apparel line with the many Marvel characters we will bring these two cultures together through a line of affordable, high-quality clothing."

And Marvel's Tim Rothwell is keepin' it real:

"Marvel is quite simply one of the premiere entertainment brands available in the market today. Our characters have a 21st Century edge and hipness to them and nothing speaks louder to these same values than hip-hop. This will also function on a truly symbiotic level where we will work with AST in developing specifically tailored designs for the line and crossovers in our comic books and various forms of music can be expected."

Lightning bolt! Lightning bolt! On the 30th birthday of Dungeons & Dragons, BBC News wonders whether anyone still plays the grandfather of geek games. Joshua Turton, 29, says yes:

"I get to be braver, stronger, wiser, smarter, faster, handsomer, and just generally more than I am in real life. I can perform miracles, save damsels, slay dragons, cast spells, right wrongs, raid tombs, drink ale, and live dangerously."

Small town life: The North Adams (Mass.) Transcript profiles Stuck Rubber Baby creator Howard Cruse, who moved with his partner to the city last August:

"It would not have been possible 15 years ago. Because, professionally speaking, one needed to be in New York City. But, everything's changed because of the Internet. I can do the same things here that I was doing in New York City in the last six or seven years."

Looking at Valentino's Image: At Newsarama, Jim Valentino dances gingerly around the question of his removal as publisher of Image Comics:

"The Publisher is an employee of the corporation, even if he is also a shareholder/partner. California is an 'at-will' employment state. That means the employer can terminate an employee for no reason whatsoever. So, it's perfectly okay to dismiss any employee. I was not voted out as an Image partner or Board member ... yet. I may be after this interview, however, I'll keep ya posted -- I'm kidding ... sort of. Bottom line, they wanted a change. All I can do is wish Erik the best."

Money matters: Also at Ninth Art, Paul O'Brien takes another look at Marvel's emphasis on licensing, and what that approach means to its comic books:

"... Spider-Man has value because he's already a household name, not because of today's comics. Less well-known characters such as Blade have value (if they have it at all) because somebody thinks there's a good central idea. It's vaguely useful to have ongoing comics for the major characters to stop them turning, like Mickey Mouse, into historical relics. And for the second tier characters, the existence of a comic is totally irrelevant to the success of the film. But really, the value in these characters is already there -- and once they become the multimedia juggernauts Marvel seem to be hoping for, the comic becomes a bit of a side issue."

A familiar name: At Ninth Art, iComics' Greg McElhatton takes over the monthly "Things to Come" column.

"A fools' game?" At ICv2.com, retailers Calum Johnston and Ilan Strasser respond to news of Tokyopop's TV-advertising plans:

"How is it that Tokyopop has already made the wise and potentially far-reaching decision to use low cost cable advertising to promote its products while all Marvel and DC have said for years was that advertising is a fools' game?"

Not enough hours in the day: The L.A. Daily News reports on the 24-Hour Comics Day event at Newhall's Brave New World Comics:

"Unlike film or many other media, the only thing you need to create comics is a pen and an idea. This artistic marathon has given creators an opportunity to see what they're capable of."

Becoming a legend: The Orlando Sentinel wonders whether Zorro and James Bond should be classified as "legends," and turns to MoCCA trustee -- and former comics editor -- Jim Salicrup for the lowdown on the swashbuckler:

"There's nothing outrageous about him. There have been revolutionaries who would possibly wear masks and strike at night and leave marks behind."

Philadelphia, in Focus: The Philadelphia Daily News (registration required) talks to writer David Tischman about Fraction, part of DC Comics' new Focus line. Oddly, the newspaper refers to Fraction, which is set in Philadelphia, as Tischman's "first creator-owned monthly book." I don't recall seeing anything about the Focus line being creator-owned; does anyone have any idea about this?

Charlie Brown, existentialist: The Toronto Star examines the legacy of Charles M. Schulz, and focuses on Fantagraphics Books' planned 25-volume The Complete Peanuts.

"Usually, gigantic merchandising phenomena and art-house concerns never collide, but I would argue that, in this instance, they do. When Peanuts appeared in 1950, it really was something of the avant-garde. It dealt with all kinds of existential issues that comic strips did not deal with. So really, Peanuts is an art-house comic strip. It just so happened to appeal to the general public."

Animated fantasies: Malaysia's The Star interviews cartoonist Butch Hartman, creator of The Fairly OddParents and Danny Phantom:

"Danny is pretty much me at age 14 -- a skinny, black-haired kid in high school. That’s what I always wanted to be in high school-- a kid with super powers -- but I never was."

Review revue, Part 1: New York Newsday reviews Buddha, Vol. 3: Devadatta and It's A Bird.

Doing it himself: The Gwinnett (Ga.) Daily Post spotlights Lawrenceville retailer Joseph Lawson, owner of Yojo's Comics:

"I was displeased with the service I got at nearby comic book stores and I decided I could do a better job. I was still in high school when I rented the space and had a grand opening one month after graduation. I was 18 years old."

All in a day's work: The Richmond, Va., Times-Dispatch checks in on the 24-Hour Comics Day event at Richmond Comix.

Screen gems? The Las Vegas Review-Journal talks comic-book movies with Marvel Studios CEO Avi Arad, Blade creator Marv Wolfwoman and Movie Poop Shoot columnist Scott Tipton:

"'People expected popcorn and they got steak,' Arad says of The Hulk. While 'I think steak is better than popcorn,' he acknowledges that the sequel 'will be more popcorn.'"

Redesign shocker! Franklin Harris trots out the all-new, all-different Franklin's Findings 2.0, while Ken Lowery's Ringwood Ragefuck sports a fancy new header. I apparently missed the memo about the new spring fashions.

(Now are you happy, Ken?)

Review revue: Laura Gjovaag reviews Batman Adventures #13, Astro City/Arrowsmith, and Digital Webbing Presents #11, which contains my first published story. (Thanks for the review, Laura.)

Blunt and critical: The Los Angeles Times (registration required) profiles The Boondocks creator Aaron McGruder.

Retailer indicted: The Sacramento Bee updates the story of Ross Allen Rojek, owner of the Comics and Comix chain, who has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of bilking investors out of more than $1.3 million. Rojek, who is being held in lieu of $1 million bond, was indicted on eight counts of mail fraud, two counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering.

Responding to tragedy: The Guardian looks back at Marvel Comics' response to 9/11: Heroes and A Moment of Silence:

"Among the Marvel characters who make an appearance in Heroes, there are two who figure more prominently than the rest, both for a good reason. Captain America had been invented as Marvel's superweapon against Nazi Germany in 1941, leading the way a whole year before the US finally went to war. The Hulk, meanwhile, would unfold his devastating superhuman powers only if he was 'made angry'. Together, these two seemed a good choice for driving home the notion of yet another historic cause, stressing the connection between anger and justified violence without having to depict anything more than a well-known and well-respected protagonist."

Justice on wheels: The Columbus, Ga., Ledger-Enquirer notes that nine cars in August's NASCAR weekend in Michigan will sport, of all things, characters from the Justice League cartoon.

Business Wire has the official press release.

Comics' foothold in India: Outlook India uses the release of Sarnath Banerjee's Corridor as a chance to examine graphic novels and the fledgling comics industry in India:

"The direct inspiration to develop a distinctly Indian style may be the success of manga, or Japanese comic art, which is not only read by nearly every Japanese citizen, but also rivals traditional American comics in markets worldwide. With distinctive artwork based on centuries-old traditions and a cinematic narrative structure currently in global focus thanks to films like Kill Bill, manga (capricious pictures), especially shojo manga aimed specifically at girls, is the biggest growth area in international publishing."

Man of action: Chu at Grammarporn provides an interesting panel-by-panel breakdown of an action sequence from Jeff Parker's The Interman. (Link via Laura Gjovaag.)

Comics odyssey: Archaeology magazine talks to Age of Bronze creator Eric Shanower about trying to sell a Trojan War epic in a market largely populated by superheroes:

"I knew it was going to be a hard sell, this is not something that people generally thought of as comic book material, telling the story of the Trojan War. But I was confident that it was a story that would be fascinating for people to read, once they gave it a chance. I ran the idea by many different publishers. I had originally a small publisher who was interested, they were just starting up their public publishing program, but it was taking a long time for them to get going, so finally I realized I just better look for some other opportunities. The publisher that I ended up with, it was actually quite easy. A friend in the comic book industry, who I had met many years before, was now in the position that he could give me the green light, whether he would publish this or not, and he saw some of my samples. I wasn't even showing them to him, trying to get it published by him, I was just showing him because this is what I was working on. And he looked at it and he goes, 'Oh, I'll publish this.' So that's how it happened, it was just sort of serendipity."

(Link via Newsarama.)

Good market news, for a change? A year ago, Diamond started using a new method to calculate its order indexes. So today, ICv2.com combs through the data to compare sales from last month to those from March 2003. And the news is, well, not bad: Single-issue sales saw a 13 percent increase in March '04 over March '03, while graphic novels saw just a 2 percent increase (keep in mind these are direct market figures, not book market).

Dark Horse grew by 78 percent, due largely to the Hellboy trade paperbacks, followed by Viz (75 percent), Tokyopop (39 percent), Dreamwave (36 percent), DC Comics (18 percent) and Marvel (12 percent).

Manga for the people (Part II): I must've been asleep at the wheel this morning, because I missed this news, courtesy of ICv2.com: Tokyopop will begin advertising some of its titles on television beginning in May. The ad spots, which will run on Cartoon Network, MTV, Spike TV, G4 and Tech TV, will feature Saiyuki, D.N.Angel, Tokyo Babylon, Princess Ai and Tokyo Tribes:

"Although comic publishers have produced television ads for use in co-op programs in the past, and Hasbro paid for television ads for comics featuring its toy properties in the 80s, this is the first time in our recollection that a comic publisher has borne the full cost for television advertising for its products. Retailers have asked for such publisher support for comic sales for decades; Tokyopop is to be applauded for taking this bold step."

(Thanks to Shawn Fumo for the heads up.)

Neufeld wins Xeric: New York cartoonist Josh Neufeld has received the Xeric Foundation Grant to self-publish his 120-page graphic novel, A Few Perfect Hours (and Other Stories From Southeast Asia and Central Europe). Silver Bullet Comic Books has the press release.

Between hell and his hometown: Massachusetts' Town Online talks to Dark Horse Comics editor (and Ipswich native) Scott Allie about setting a Hellboy adventure in his hometown in the upcoming Hellboy: Odder Jobs.

Previews overview: Laura Gjovaag combs through Previews so you don't have to. (She also mentions Digital Webbing Presents, which she says isn't a "terribly exciting title," but "a solid anthology." Fair enough. I appreciate the mention.)

Manga primer: Variety.com's Bags and Boards gets the manga basics from Anime Insider's Richard Bricken.

Update: Shawn Fumo points out all the errors in the "ABCs of manga."

Moving day (again): Well, here's a surprise: Newsarama reports that MV Creations is moving back to Image Comics. The studio had left Image for CrossGen's CGE imprint before that publisher's structural and financial problems led MV Creations to go it alone.

Word play: Newsarama examines how one word in the Gaiman v. McFarlane decision -- "compilation" -- could have a broad effect on creator's rights.

Animator dies: Former Disney animator Harry Holt, who helped design scenes in Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and Lady and the Tramp, died on April 14 at age 93. The Associated Press has Holt's obituary, while The Orlando Sentinel offers a more detailed look at his life and career.

Jewish parallels: The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports on a lecture at Case Western Reserve University about the similarities between comic-book superheroes and Jews:

"There have always been strong Jewish undercurrents in comic books. Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, two Jewish boys from Cleveland, wrote a story about parents who feared their child would be killed. In order to save him, they placed him in a vessel and sent him off, hoping that a kind person would rescue him. That is the story of Superman, but it is actually the story of Moses."

Celebrating comics: The Moscow Times previews Russia's third annual ComMission festival, which celebrates comic strips, graphic novels and manga with classes and exhibits. The 150 participants come from more than a dozen countries:

"Comics were completely forbidden during Soviet times. The government told us that they were an American propaganda tool designed to make Soviet youth stupid."

Retailer reopening: The Lawrence (N.J.) Ledger reports on the reopening of Comic Relief in its new location, an event the store marked with signings by area creators Fabian Nicieza, Michael Avon Oeming and Michael Gallagher.

The newspaper also speaks more in-depth with Nicieza about his career and those halcyon days of the mid-'90s:

"I miss the big checks. I also miss (my) hair, but I don't know if that had anything to do with the 'boom.'"

Drawing customers: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (registration required) profiles retailer Kyle Puttkammer, who's begun teaching comics-drawing courses at his Galactic Quest stores:

"One of those enrolled in the class is Lawrenceville resident Mac King, 41, who is retired from the Navy. He decided to accompany his soon-to-be-stepson, Tyler Shope, to the class so that the 9-year-old would feel more comfortable. Comic books have helped them bond — Tyler's bedtime stories usually involve Marvel Comics' Wolverine character, King said.

"'Kyle did a really good job of talking about the history of comic books and why it is that some people just have to draw them,' King said. 'It's certainly not as easy as everyone says it is. If you think you're going to have the next big thing, you better think otherwise, because it takes years of practice.'"

Image in July: Image Comics has announced its solicitations for July, including a new Brit one-shot called Red, White, Black & Blue, the debut of the Flight anthology, the first Firebreather trade paperback and the third Kane collection.

Ghost in the machine: On his message board, Ben Templesmith offers a glimpse of a Ghost Rider project he and Dan Wickline pitched to Marvel: "[N]o idea what's going on with it ..." I'm no Ghost Rider fan, but I'd buy that book for the art alone.

(Link via Rick Geerling.)

Blogger worth reading: John Jakala points out that Johanna Draper Carlson of Comics Worth Reading fame has started a blog called Cognitive Dissonance. I enjoy her reviews and snark at CWR, so this should be good reading.

Phantom jacked: For those cursing the loss of American Power, here's a preview of the cover to Phantom Jack #5.

Manga for the people: The April 19 issue of Publishers Weekly features on its back cover the above ad from Tokyopop (minus the scuff marks, courtesy of the U.S. Postal Service). Now that's how comics advertising to mainstream outlets should look.

(Of course, I just noticed the typo at the bottom, so maybe that isn't how comics advertising should look.)

Cross-blog traffic: Ken Lowery, Dave Intermittent, Ken Lowery again, and Rick Geerling blog in the round about the role and/or failure of advertising in spreading the word about quality comics.

Update: Shane Bailey also chimes in on advertising and comics activism.

Confronting continuity: David Fiore has a nice essay about comics continuity (I mean, awareness of tradition).

Manga and anime guide: ICv2.com also has released the ICv2 Retailers Guide to Anime/Manga, which include the staff's picks for the Top 50 manga and anime for the first quarter of 2004. The guide can be purchased by non-retailers for $10 from the ICv2 online store.

March figures: ICv2.com posts its estimates of Diamond's Top 300 for March 2004. In its overview, the retailer website notes that DC had a stronger month than usual, with 10 of the top 25 books. Fourteen of the top 25 titles saw a sales increase over previous issues.

Hellboy, helped by the release of the film adaptation, held seven of the top 25 graphic novel spots.

I'd hesitated writing this, because it might come across as crass. But I'll do it anyway: What does it say -- if it says anything at all -- that Phantom Jack #1, a comic that was promoted online virtually every week for a year, sold an estimated 7,020 copies? Granted, that's pretty good for an Image book. But after all the hype (and drama), I'd have thought the first issue would have garnered a little more interest. Of course, I didn't buy it either ...

The thrill is gone? Also at Silver Bullet Comic Books, Regie Rigby laments that many comics just don't excite him like they used to:

"Perhaps it’s a reliability thing. I was quite excited by Ministry of Space when issue one came out. But issues were so far apart I forgot the story in-between editions. That’s been known to happen in ongoing books, which I can just about forgive, but in a limited issue series there’s no excuse surely? Why not wait until the whole thing is finished before putting out the first issue? If it’s good enough for Peter Jackson, it’s good enough for us surely?

"There seems to be a slightly slapdash attitude amongst some creators (and in spite of the previous example I’m not actually having a go at the Min of Space team here) which does kinda take the gloss off for me at the moment. Sort of a 'well, if they don’t care, why should I?' attitude, which might well suggest that although I’m not growing out of comics, I am growing up a bit and as I get older I get less tolerant."

Voice from the past: At Silver Bullet Comic Books, Clifford Meth reprints part of an interview he conducted with Stan Lee some 18 years ago. The passage of time makes for a jarring and surreal disconnect:

Meth: "How is your relationship with Jack Kirby these days?"

Lee: "I don't think we’re as friendly now. He isn't as friendly toward me as I wish he were. I'm not really 100% sure that I know what the reason is. Maybe he feels he is not as well known or he feels that I've achieved a little more something than he has. I don't know. He has never told me. Jack is certainly one of the most talented if not the most talented guy that the comic book industry has ever produced. He is the most imaginative, most creative guy I have ever known in this business. His mind is an endless source of stories, concepts, and ideas. He was a fantastic artist with one of the most powerful, dramatic styles you could ever find. I've always said that. I've always felt that about him and I still do."

A Cannes first: The Hollywood Reporter notes that Mamoru Oshii's Innocence is the first "manga film" In Competition at the Cannes Film Festival, and just one of two animated features in this year's lineup (the other is Shrek 2).

Animated memories: At Animation World Magazine, legendary animator Gene Deitch discusses the difficulties in bringing Elzie Segar’s Popeye and George Herriman’s Krazy Kat from the comics page to the TV screen:

"With Krazy Kat, we did at least get to come up with an unambiguous gender. At that time, any hint of a homosexual relationship between Krazy, (who was always referred to as 'he' in the original comic strip), and Ignatz mouse, an obvious male, was a loud no-no. Even in the old strip Krazy always wore a ribbon around his/her neck — whatever that meant — but it did give us the final reasoning. So we declared Krazy a girl cat, and that was that!"

French connection: CBC Montreal reports on an exhibit that recognizes the first French-language comic strips were published in Montreal, not in France.

Cooler than Gene Simmons? Maybe we've misjudged Marvel Studios CEO Avi Arad. The L.A. Daily News talks to NASCAR driver Brendan Gaughan, who caught the Hollywood premiere of The Punisher:

"John Travolta and Kelly Preston were there. Gene Simmons from KISS was there. Tom Jane and his fiance Patricia Arquette were there. The coolest guy in the world is the guy from Marvel Comics. His name is Avi, and I don't know his last name, but he was the only guy I wanted to meet. He's the neatest guy, and he's a big race fan. I had my Kodak with me, and I took his picture. He's going to come to Fontana and hang out with us."

Hip-hop hero: Reuters picks up on the Blockhedz comic series.

Not lost in translation: Taiwan's Taipei Journal reports that Japanese has become the most popular "second foreign language" -- defined as any foreign language other than English -- taught in the nation's high schools, largely because because of students' overwhelming interest in Japanese manga, anime and video games.

Hawaii, by way of Hollywood: Comic Book Resources chats with Hawaiian Dick co-creator B. Clay Moore about yesterday's announcement that New Line Cenema will develop a movie adaptation of the series, starring Johnny Knoxville:

"And fingers crossed that it helps the book reach a larger audience. Hawaiian Dick is not a superhero comic, and it's not published by Marvel or DC, so it has to fight for readers. We've done well so far, but we want to do even better. Massive critical acclaim, Eisner nominations, a Hollywood deal. All things we hope bring new readers into the fold when Hawaiian Dick: The Last Resort debuts."

Behind the scenes: The Oregonian talks with Matt Wagner, who will give a lecture about comics at the Beaverton City Library with Jacob Pander and Greg Rucka:

"'When I was growing up, art schools I went to really pooh-poohed comics,' he said. 'The only comic worth aspiring to was to be a cartoonist for The New Yorker.'

"Now, like mysteries, science fiction and other genres, comics are gaining acceptance, he said, because they contain 'complex ideas and social commentary, internal reflection -- all the things you think of when you think of true literature.'"

Demo demo: In his Delphi forum, Brian Wood posts the above page from Demo #7, providing further proof of Becky Cloonan's artistic range.

Central character: The Pulse has an interview with Michael Lark, who talks about Gotham Central, his Eisner nominations, and the challenges of producing a monthly comic:

"The reality of producing a monthly comic makes that [not getting trapped in one style or genre] a fine line that I, or any other artist, have to walk. As an artist, I have to balance the need to get the book done on time with the need to experiment. So there are times when I have to rely on formula. Thankfully, with this book, our intention was to make it seem like a television cop drama, so it's ok sometimes to rely on grids or fairly formulaic page layouts to get the style across. I can use the same few establishing shots of the police headquarters or the squad room every time, just like they would in a TV show. If that's the best way to get the story told, then so be it. That being said, I don't want to bore the reader by doing the same type of scene the same way every time. And I don't want to bore myself either. So I look forward to, and rely on, those times when I'm in a good groove and those inspirations strike, when a new way to tell a certain sequence occurs to me. It's hard to plan on those, so it's always nice when it happens."

Troll, but not the message board variety: I don't usually write about prose fiction, but this blog already has gone to hell today with entries on movies, television, toys and the euro, so I might as well throw this into the mix. The April 12 issue of Publishers Weekly contains a review of Troll: A Love Story, by Johanna Sinisalo. It apparently comes out in May, but I find it listed at Amazon and other places, so I don't know. At any rate, it sounds delightfully bizarre. I must have it:

"A young Finnish photographer makes a pet of an orphaned troll in this strange, sexually charged contemporary folk tale, a hit in Europe. Mikael, nicknamed Angel for his stunning blonde good looks, finds the troll behind some dustbins after a night of drinking, and feels compelled to bring it home ('It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen... I know straight away that I want it'). The troll is small and black, thoroughly wild but also oddly human, with an overpowering, arousing juniper-berry smell. ... Sinisalo's elastic prose is at once lyrical and matter-of-fact, but this is not a comfortable novel. The troll brings out Angel's animal instincts, representing all the seduction and violence of the natural world. As the troll becomes ever more unmanageable, the sense of doom grows; the ferocious ending is thoroughly unsettling."

See? I must have this.

The envelope, please: Nominees have been announced for the 2004 Harvey Awards. Particularly interesting nominations go to Mark Waid for Best Writer (Fantastic Four), George Perez for Best Artist (Avengers/JLA), Jeff Smith for Best Cartoonist (Bone), Andi Watson for Best New Series (Love Fights, not Namor), Dave Sim for Best Letterer (Cerebus), and Tomer Hanuka (BiPolar) and Dave Johnson (100 Bullets) for Best Cover Artist. Greg Rucka and Michael Lark also were nominated for Best Single Issue or Story (Gotham Central #6-10).

Con games: Steve Lieber and Jeff Parker file a belated report from Wizard World LA. Sure, it's late, but it's worth the wait for observations like this:

"Brent Irwin and Brenda Cook were doing their usual fine job of getting the pros their badges and pointing them to tables. I know they have to put up with a lot of people who swear they registered and bought artist alley space when in fact they only found out about the show days earlier. So they deserve medals for that. Also for using humor when placing people in Artist Alley; in between the two porn stars (now, are they all really stars?) was talented Brad Rader with some of his extremely gay comics, and a guy with a Christian comic book. Randomness does not generate that kind of placement, it's too good."

... And for the heartwarming tale of "The Little Porn Boy."

Cancellation meditations: In this week's "Permanent Damage," Steven Grant takes another look at the cancellations of Wildcats 3.0 and Stormwatch:

"By now you may have recognized that comics companies do a crappy job of promoting, particularly with new 'untested' concepts. Comics companies, like most other American entertainment media these days, are geared toward The Franchise, that 'iconic' product that can generate sales on name alone and will, theoretically, continue to do so for the indefinite future, from a variety of sources. (With a big enough franchise, like Superman, the actual comics sales become irrelevant to the secondary market money.) New properties have a major liability: they aren't franchises and most aren't likely to be, and no one has yet figured out the formula for deciding what the next big franchise will be, try as they might to pretend they do. ... Generally, promotion consists of a blurb (sometimes an ad) in PREVIEWS, some house ads in the other comics they publish, if you're lucky a puff piece or two designed to make the book sound like the answer to the unified field theory on news sites that understandably give equal weight to everything from the death of a giant in the field to a minor character guest-starring in some other character's minor book."

Nightwing-ing it: Newsarama chats with Devin Grayson about Nightwing, and staying away from online forums:

"It's impossible not to wonder and worry about what people think of your work, but honestly, that's not what I get when I go to message boards anyway - I get what they think of my status and their perception of me as a professional and as a person. Am I interested in what the readers think of Nightwing? Definitely. Am I interested in hearing strangers mouth off about my personal life? Not even a little. Staying away from comic message boards has made me much saner and happier, but I do get a lot of feedback on my work, particularly from my editors and other pros."

The man behind The Shield: This is only marginally connected to comics, but today's blogging is turning into such a hodgepodge that I don't think it matters anymore (where's the news, dammit?). UnderGroundOnline talks to Shawn Ryan, creator of that fine TV show The Shield, about the necessary evil of Vic Mackey, and getting David Mamet to direct an episode:

"The 11th episode will be directed by David Mamet. He did a movie Spartan that is out right now. One of the stand-ins on our show worked as a stand-in on that movie. David got to know him and talked to him, and the guy talked about working on The Shield. David had seen a couple of episodes, liked it, and mentioned causally that it looks like it would be fun to direct that show. Word filtered down to us, and by the time it got to me, it was like fourth generation. So I wasn't sure if he meant it. Fortunately, we're both at the same agency, so I asked my agent to talk to his agent to see if he would be interested. It turned out he was interested, and we talked on the phone a little. We talked about how directing for television is different from film because he had never directed a TV series before. As it got closer and closer, I expected it to fall out, so I kept having these contingency plans, but he never fell out. You expect some gruff, profane guy to show up, and he could not have been more intelligent, sweet and respectful of what we've done. He came in and told us he loved what we do with the show, and he didn't want to do anything different. He made me feel at ease. I was so tongue-tied; ever since my college days he's been such a hero of mine. It was such a scary day to hand him the script he was going to direct. He loved the script and made one or two suggestions. It really turned out to be one of our creepiest and best episodes ever."

Cover guy: John Jakala links to a March 30 story that I somehow missed: the Morris County (N.J.) Daily Record's interview with Fables and Batgirl cover artist James Jean.

Tintin on a coin: The Montreal Gazette reports that Tintin has been honored with a 10-euro coin. Two Belgian newspapers and France's Le Figaro are producing special editions to mark the occasions.

Shopping for toys: Toy designer Jakks Pacific is looking to acquire the Play Along, which makes Lord of the Rings figures and playsets, and Batman and Justice League MiniMates and C3 sets. Reuters has the story.

In vaguely related news, ICv2.com reports that in a depressing first quarter for Mattel, Batman and JLA toys were the only bright spot. Sales in the company's "licensed" category were up 16 percent.

Tropical noir on the big screen: Don't tell me this is going to be Movie Day at Thought Balloons. Anyway, The Hollywood Reporter (subscription required) has news that New Line Cinema will develop Image Comics' Hawaiian Dick as a "starring vehicle" for Johnny Knoxville. Coming Soon has a few of the details.

Old Boy's new gig: Korea Times reports that Old Boy, the film adaptation of a manga about a man who is kidnapped and imprisoned for no reason, has been invited to compete in the 57th Cannes Film Festival.

Just because I can: Digital Webbing Presents #16 is solicited in May Previews for July release. I don't have anything appearing in this issue, but there are plenty of quality, and diverse stories in the 32-page anthology (that's 32 pages of content). You can get a sneak peek here. How's that for pimping?

Cover me: The "official" Marvel solicitations for July have been posted (they were actually "unofficially" leaked last week at Millarworld).

Since I already commented on the listings on April 13, all that's left is to look at the pictures. It's nice to see Marvel is starting to inch away from those dull "iconic" pinups covers, in which the title character(s) struck essentially the same pose month in and month out. Sure, it looks as if most of them still have the depth of a convention sketch. But look hard enough and you find a gem like Dave Johnson's cover to Captain America #29. There's action, humor, more than one character ... and even a word balloon!

Star-spangled banter: Robert Kirkman talks to Comic Book Resources about bringing the fun back to Captain America:

"After the tragedy of the Sept. 11th attacks, an unfortunate side effect on comics was that Marvel was sitting on a character called Captain America, so they decided to deal with America's emotions in the book. For a while it worked, but after a while you have to get back to the Serpent Society -- to jumping off buildings."

Script discovered: Japan's Daily Yomiuri reports that a complete comic script written by prominent novelist Kenji Nakagami, who died in 1992, has been found in his family home, and will be published this week in Shingenjitsu magazine. He's probably best known for his book The Cape, and Other Stories from the Japanese Ghetto.

The shipping news: Previews Review updates with a rundown of the comics shipping in June.

Rogue, that meddling kid? Robert Rodi tells The Pulse his plans for the Rogue solo series, which may or may not include the Mystery Machine:

"We’re going to try for a different tone from the other X-books; a more Southern Gothic kind of feel. Rogue will be spending a lot of time down south, pursuing more supernaturally inclined menaces -- for a very specific reason, which we’ll reveal in the first arc. I’d like to use WOLVERINE as my template here; everyone connected with that book does a great job of making it as different as possible from the character’s X-Men adventures, while still honoring what originally made him stand out there. That’s my goal with ROGUE."

The incorrigible Peter Bagge: UnderGroundOnline talks to cartoonist Peter Bagge about Hate, and learns some of the story behind the still-unpublished The Incorrigible Hulk:

"My editor at Marvel keeps asking me not to whine too much about it because there is still a chance it might come out. It all has to do with corporate politics. ... About three or four years ago, a few guys were put in charge of Marvel when they were in really bad shape. They figured they had nothing to lose so they asked some people who don't normally do superhero comics to do them. They went kind of nuts, which is great, but if you ask me they didn't go nuts enough. Since then, Marvel has huge a string of huge blockbusters recently, especially Spider-Man. Now the company is worth a fortune, which has next to nothing to do with the comics. But what the comics sell is peanuts compared to the movies and the merchandising. Some new board members, who are trying to protect their investment, very carefully manage their more valuable brands. When the editors asked me to do Spider-Man, they were thinking the exact opposite because people who wouldn't normally buy it would buy it. But now the new people running it don't want Peter Bagge f**king around with their characters. My vision of the Hulk doesn't match with theirs."

Redemption and sympathy: The Orlando Sentinel reviews Garth Ennis' Pride and Joy:

"It's ultimately a story of redemption, a common theme for Ennis dating back to his work on Preacher. Pride and Joy, however, is a great deal more grounded, free of any supernatural sidelines or religious musings. It's also one of the author's most mature stories. Fans of The Punisher's over-the-top bloodletting should know that this is a story about family with violence as a backdrop and not the other way around. Admittedly, there is an obligatory disembowelment and an empathetically painful knifing, but this is Garth Ennis. For anyone who's gotten through his later stuff, Pride and Joy will seem incredibly tame.

Building a comics empire: The San Jose Mercury News profiles Steve Mortensen, who runs Mortensen's Colossus Comics, an Internet-based company that caters to "serious" collectors and the speculator market:

"For $33 a month, send serious collectors packs of two brand-new comics of the same title. One is in all-but-perfect condition (as rated by a company that is universally accepted as the authority on comics) and sealed in hard plastic. The second is unsealed and meant to be read by the subscriber."

War comes to the comics page: The Associated Press reports on Garry Trudeau's plans to have Doonesbury regular B.D. lose a leg while fighting in Iraq. B.D. was injured in yesterday's strip, and will wake up later this week to find his leg amputated.

Fair warning: This is shaping up to be a painfully slow news day. Unless something major happens -- say, Bendis pulls up stakes and moves to Avatar -- this ain't going to be pretty. Consider yourself warned.

The other Sleeper agent: Ed Brubaker talks to The Pulse about Sleeper, and addresses the possibility of a television adaptation:

"I hope so. I was approached by two different big name producers last year about the book at San Diego, and told them to talk to DC about it, since Sean and I just have creator-participation, not ownership. I don't know from that point if anything has happened or not, though. I think it would make a great show for cable, even on Sci-Fi or FX. If FX can do the Shield, they can handle Sleeper."

He also reminds us that he'll be writing The Authority, "which should finally announce an artist sometime soon."

Anyone want to wager that it's Dustin Nguyen?

Online experiment: Two creators whose work I enjoy, Takeshi Miyazawa and Arthur Dela Cruz, have joined together on a new weekly webcomic called BFX. The Pulse gets the lowdown on the project via a conversation between the two.

Sleeper agent: The Pulse chats with Sean Phillips about Sleeper:

"I'm constantly disappointed with my work. It's never as good as it was in my head, but with Sleeper, I think I've gotten better over the issues. I think overall, I did quite a good job. Over the years, the actual drawing have become less important to me compared to the storytelling."

Man of tomorrow: Broken Frontier talks to Jim Lee about Superman, Batman: Hush, and the differences between Jeph Loeb and Brian Azzarello:

"Both are great writers to work with. Jeph stages things more elaborately, very cinematically. Brian has a lot of the tension come through dialogue, through silent beats. I’m drawing a lot more shots where the camera is cutting back and forth between the characters or holding still on one character while he ‘acts’ out his lines. They both have a flair for the dramatic though and I consider them both not only to be some of the top writers in the field today but also good buds."

Lee also tries to put at least one rumor to rest:

Broken Frontier: "Rumor has it that the three Superman books will have separate continuities before coming to a head at the end of 2004, with the three Supermen squaring off against each other. Is there any truth to that gossip?"

Jim Lee: "I have no idea how this rumor got started but it’s a funny one. No truth to it at all. Every element of the rumor is incorrect. There will be three different Superman titles, each handling a different aspect of Superman, not always set in the same time period, but it is all about the one and only Superman."

Format changes: First, The Comics Journal announces it's changing formats. Now it's the Comics Buyer's Guide's turn. With June's Issue #1595, CBG will switch from newsprint to magazine, with 244 squarebound pages.

The good, the bad and the canceled: In this week's installment of "The Comic Pimp," James Sime looks at what went wrong with WildStorm/Eye of the Storm, boiling down the problems to advertising, trade dress and market penetration:

"... [T]hat's the thing about the comic business. It's one part comics, and one part business. And sometimes it just doesn't matter how much as I enjoy these books. And sometimes it doesn't matter how much the Isotope customers also appreciate the titles. And sometimes it doesn't matter how many times I've easily used Wildstorm titles as an introduction to modern American comic books to new readers. And sometimes it doesn't matter how often these titles were successful at getting these readers to return to my shop time and again to pick up more Wildstorm books and ask what else they might like reading."

Hitching our wagons to Hollywood: At Ninth Art, Bulent Yusuf wonders what long-term effect "celebrity writers" like Kevin Smith, Bryan Singer and Joss Whedon will have on the comics industry:

"In the short term, there is positive publicity, yes, and both the die-hard fans and the casual reader may well snap up the first couple of issues. There's a crossover appeal, where the TV/film audience for the work of the celebrity wordsmith might be tempted to check out their work in comics. Sales go up, and the industry lives to fight another day.

"In the long term, however, we should be asking how qualified these celebrities are to determine the futures of our favourite characters. It sounds pompous, but writing funny books is a serious business, and they have a sophisticated audience. If one of these celebrities underestimates the workings of the medium, then their book will be an embarrassing failure, and the market gets cheapened that little bit more (if that's possible)."

ICON-ography: Silver Bullet Comic Books talks to Brian Michael Bendis about ICON, Powers, and his 127 other monthly titles:

"People who are wait for the next big thing that is going to revitalize the industry are mistaken. The business is actually in the process of a slow and gradual recovery. DC and Marvel’s job is to print comics that people want to read, and to make sure they're worth reading. They know that, and that’s what we all keep trying to do. Creators put their names to books so they all want to do their best."

"If it's Japanese, it's in": While we're on the subject, the Cox News Service looks at how elements of Japanese pop culture, such as anime, manga, video games and music, are being embraced by "the young and the hip around the world." Here's Tokyopop's Kristien Brada-Thompson:

"The influence of 'all things Japan' on American culture has hit an all-time high. Manga (and especially its animated counterpart, anime) is everywhere ... and I believe we're just now seeing the start of it."

Fashion pioneers? The Baltimore Sun also looks at "under-employed" youths in Tokyo who try -- perhaps a little too hard -- to set fashion trends:

"Many looks are tested here that wouldn't make it in the West. The looks often emerge from the imaginative artwork of manga comic books and anime movies, distinctive and popular forms of Japanese entertainment, resulting in colorful, ultra-cute, futuristic or otherwise outlandish cartoon styles."

Gun-safety comics: The Baltimore Sun reports that Eddie Eagle, a gun-safety mascot created by the National Rifle Association, may be used in Frederick County, Md., schools. The program uses comic books and other materials to educate children in pre-K through third grade about guns.

Mmmm ... money: USA Today explains the contract dispute involving The Simpsons cast.

A story of India: The Calcutta Telegraph checks in on Sarnath Banerjee, author of "India's first graphic novel":

"In Corridor, a 112-page paperback comic book from Penguin, Banerjee tells 'stories emerging from living in an urban space.' There are characters as varied as Jehangir Rangoonwalla, a know-all bookseller in the heart of Delhi’s Connaught Place, Digital Dutta, a software expert who lives in his head 'exploding the midfield alongside Garincha' or 'climbing Mount Everest several times,' and newly-married Shintu looking for aphrodisiac drugs in the bylanes of old Delhi."

Monster mash: The Nashville City Paper sits down for a quick Q&A with The Goon creator Eric Powell.

Reanimating Mickey: The New York Times (registration required) examines the decline of Mickey Mouse who, at 75, is being described as "boring," "embalmed" and "irrelevant." Children's book author Maurice Sendak even calls him a "lifeless fat pig."

The ubiquitous Avi Arad notes, without a hint of irony, that indecision and uncertainty are largely to blame for the fading of corporate icons like Mickey Mouse:

"Companies at times let a character linger because they are not sure what to do with it and fear going the wrong way. So they do nothing. Mickey right now doesn't have a dialogue. He's not carrying any banners. Maybe right now he doesn't stand for anything but nostalgia. Nostalgia is fine, but it is not enough."

Art Spiegelman has his own take on jump-starting the mouse: ""How would I renovate Mickey for our times? Easy. Make him gay. He's half way there anyway. You keep the voice the same as it's been; beyond having him take a passionate interest in Broadway musicals and occasionally wearing pink shirts, you don't have to do much. You just have to change the world around him."

The Times also asked several artists to "reimagine" Mickey Mouse. So, Marvel editor Nick Lowe, along with Andy Kubert, Danny Miki and Frank D'Armata, turn in a Spandex-clad mouse (above) with a Captain America-esque shield.

Advance praise: Ex Machina isn't out for another two months, but Christopher Butcher already is gushing about the series (he even titles the entry "Gushing"). When I saw the solicitation copy, and Tony Harris' name, I knew it would be good.

Convention as fund-raiser: Silver Bullet Comic Books carries a nice press release from students at Hawthorne High School in Hawthorne, N.J., who are holding a comic book convention on May 8 to raise money for their school's art program. More than two dozen pro creators, including Evan Dorkin and Sara Dyer, are scheduled to attend.

Screen time: Writing for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Michael Sangiacomo runs down the list of comic books heading to the big screen within the next few years, and speaks with Marvel's Avi Arad, who assures us, "There are no second-string superheroes. They are all first-string when done right."

Anime legions: The Boston Globe checks in on last weekend's AnimeBoston, which drew more than 3,300 anime fans, including 18-year-old Rachel Bernfeld, who dressed as Sagashite from Full Moon:

"I'm a geek. I go on the computer, I study Latin, and I go to anime conventions."

Back to the Future: Comics Worth Reading points us to the Future Comics website, which heralds the company's return ... as Future Entertainment. First on the agenda: Deathmask: Vol. 1, a digest-sized trade paperback priced at $9.95. However, it looks as if Future is side-stepping Diamond, and going the self-distribution route.

The big event: Silver Bullet Comic Books has a brief preview of 24 Hour Comics Day, which now boasts some 50 sites for the April 24 event.

Favorite Son: In The Washington Times, Joseph Szadkowski reviews Superman: Red Son, along with Tales of Ordinary Madness, Scooby-Doo: The Essential Guide and Punisher #1-2.

Comic shop blues: From time to time, I've mentioned how, shall we say, sub-par my local comic shop is. This is going to be one of those times. I went there today for the first time in about two months to pick up some comics goodness, and walked away with just four books (and I didn't really want two of those, but picked them up anyway to help justify the trip).

DC: The New Frontier #3, She-Hulk #2, Planetary #19 and Bite Club #1. That's all I have to show for my visit. Now, I have no illusions about my local store. If I were a Spider-Man fanatic or a Superman completest, I'd be in hog heaven. However, I'm neither of those things.

Maybe I should move.

Comics, by way of Hollywood: Variety.com's Bags and Boards has a few questions for Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, and a few words about Spider-Man #1, Dead@17: Blood of Saints #1 and Bite Club #1.

Fantasy life: Writing for NYU's Washington Square News, columnist Eric Kohn uses Danny Fingeroth's Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society to examine why Hollywood -- and the film-going public -- is so drawn to comic-book heroes:

"In general, cultural phenomena seem to respond to societal needs. If Fingeroth is right about the durability of the superhero resulting from an intriguing fantasy - and the logistics of his argument suggest that he is - then the desire for said fantasy has reached a high point. It is in this troublesome day and age, when war and collective corruption have returned to the forefront of Western consciousness, that people desire something promising that they can look up to, regardless of its manifestation in reality.

"Consider, as an analogy, the arrival of Jesus. Whether or not you accept that this rabbinic scholar was indeed the Messianic figure he claimed to be, it is an indisputable fact that his teachings and promises provided a sense of redemption for some of those who suffered under the oppressive Roman rule. During times of turmoil, a sense of hope abounded.

"In the same vein, Superman battled Nazis during World War II. How difficult, then, to imagine the Green Goblin (Spider-Man's main foe in his feature film debut) as a metaphorical stand-in for al-Qaeda?"

Going global: Meanwhile, London's Evening Standard talks to Bruno Maglione, president of Marvel International, about the corporation's efforts to beef up its foreign marketing and licensing:

"The main thing is to understand what Marvel is. We are not a comic book and we are not a toy company. We are an entertainment licensing company that owns a fabulous catalogue of proprietary characters."

Movie madness: The Philadelphia Daily News gets the lowdown from Avi Arad about Marvel's film plans for the next few years, which include sequels to Daredevil and Hulk, as well as early discussions for a Punisher follow-up.

Blogger, interrupted: I have errands and other real-world things to do this morning, so I'll resume blogging early this afternoon.

Holding out for a heroine: The Hartford Courant (registration required) looks at comic-book superheroes and asks, Where are the women? For answers, the newspaper turns to Trina Robbins, Dan DiDio and Tom DeFalco.

Autobiographical art: Lebanon's Daily Star profiles 26-year-old cartoonist Riad Sattouf, who's begun to make a name for himself in France with his first two graphic novels Manuel du Puceau (Handbook for a Virgin), and Les Jolis Pieds de Florence (Florence's Pretty Feet), which which won the 2003 Rene Goscinny prize for best BD writer. His next work is the autobiographical Ma Circoncision (My Circumcision), recounting his youth as the son of a French mother and Syrian father:

"In Ma Circoncision, Sattouf recounts how one day his cousins notice that he isn't circumcised. He is immediately accused of being an Israeli, the worst insult the children can think of. Sattouf, who was blond as a child, lies in bed wondering if he is adopted. 'Perhaps I really was Israeli?'

"From the very first day my difference was apparent. I was the only foreigner in the village ... I went to the Muslim school and studied the Koran. We traveled to France sometimes so I knew there was another way of life. But the village was a place out of time, in a parallel dimension."

More on death of Gigantor creator: BBC News picks up on the death of Gigantor creator Mitsuteru Yokoyama, but doesn't have any more information than I could dig up yesterday.

Gigantor creator dies after fire: (update to earlier entry) The Mainichi Daily News reports that cartoonist Mitsuteru Yokoyama, best known as the creator of the Gigantor series, has died from injuries suffered in a fire at his Tokyo home. Yokoyama was 69.

Gigantor (Tetsujin 28-go), which first appeared on TV in 1963, is considered to be the first of the Japanese giant robots. The original series ran for 96 episodes, while the U.S. version lasted for 52. Yokoyama, who was particularly prolific in the 1960s, created Rokushin Gattai God Mars, Babel II and Kamen No Ninja Akakage.

Yokoyama also was responsible for Mahoutsukai Sari (Sally, the Witch), which the Ultimate Manga Guide calls "the basis for the first shoujo and magical girls-anime ever."

The sum of all fears: Ed Brubaker talks to Newsarama in an attempt to calm rumors about Sleeper's cancellation:

"So, to all the fans scrambling around and worrying, please calm down. Sleeper will reach you every month for a year starting in June, assuming you order it in advance through your retailer, or shop at a cool enough store that puts it on the shelf.

"On the fates of Wildcats and Stormwatch, I'm as shaken up as everyone else is. Joe Casey is a really good friend of mine, and I think Wildcats is the best thing he's written. The fact that this industry couldn't support a book like that or Stormwatch, says a lot about what's wrong with the Direct Market right now. This backwards way of putting out material, which has devolved into a system where a majority of stores don't carry anything for the shelves that isn't in the top 20 or 30 and every other book must be special-ordered by the customer is simply killing the diversity in this field. No matter how much buzz a book generates, if a fan can't find it on the shelf when he looks for it, it may as well not exist."

Famous first: The Indian Express profiles 31-year-old writer Sarnath Banerjee, whose 112-page Corridor is being called "India's first graphic novel":

"I’m very nervous about the sales of the book. Its success or failure will decide the fate of aspiring comic artists in India."

Bloggers infiltrate The Journal: Several current and former comics bloggers contributed reviews and interviews to The Comics Journal #259, namely Sean Collins, Tim O'Neil, Bill Sherman and Alan David Doane. This is the first issue of The Journal under new managing editor Dirk Deppey.

Too fast, too furious? Also at ICv2.com, retailer Gabriel Habman questions the speed with which Marvel is releasing collected editions:

"Is anyone else disturbed by the fact that the new Marvel Age Spider-Man Digest, which just shipped today, contains issues 1-4 of this new series when issues 3 and 4 haven't even shipped yet?

"Now, don't get me wrong, I love the fact that Marvel is publishing these formats, especially for these titles, as I am positive that I will be able to successfully market them to younger readers. However, unless Marvel has plans to make issues 3 and 4 of the periodical format returnable, I guarantee you that I'll cut my orders completely (except for box customers) on both Marvel Age: Spider-Man AND Marvel Age: Fantastic Four."

The discount debate, Part 3: At ICv2.com, retailer Ilan Strasser continues the back-and-forth over volume pricing and special incentives:

"Relative to volume discounts, I would like to ask Dave: let's say a customer came into your store and after looking through your shelves, brought 10, 15, or 20 trade paperbacks to the front counter. Let us assume you do not regularly offer discounts on store merchandise. If he then inquired about receiving a discount given the sizeable purchase he was considering making, would you risk losing such a large sale by not giving him a discount you could afford (say 20%)? If you already offered a discount, would you give him an extra 10% over other customers to facilitate the sale? I certainly would."

Strike two: Just two days after the cancellation of Wildcats 3.0 was announced comes official word that the plug has been pulled on StormWatch: Team Achilles. Newsarama talks to writer Micah Wright:

"Well, I started to suspect something was up two weeks ago when I learned that the third trade had been removed from the schedule for August. The series cancellation became official late last week, but I promised Wildstorm that I wouldn't comment on it until it had been made public and I keep my word about things like that."

Cartoonist unconscious after fire: The Mainichi Daily News reports that cartoonist Mitsuteru Yokoyama, best known as the creator of the Gigantor series, remains unconscious after a fire broke out early Thursday in his Tokyo home. The 69-year-old artist, who has been unable to walk on his own since an injury three years ago, suffered serious burns in the fire.

Senior moments: Editor & Publisher reports on The Sunshine Club: Life in Generation Rx, a syndicated comic strip that takes a humorous look at life in a senior community.

Time Warner smartens up: Ties between the Smallville TV series and the comic book are being strengthened via AOL's "Chloe Chronicles" online video segments. The second season of the online feature also will use the DC Comics series to continue the show's plotlines:

"In a wonderful example of cross-company promotion, the storyline of 'Chloe Chronicles' starts on the pages of DC Comics' Smallville, continues on AOL and wraps up back in the comic books. Not only does this offer added content for viewers of the Smallville television show, readers of the comic book and to members of AOL, but also drives exposure beyond the television screen, comic book and computer, hopefully creating new viewers, readers and online fans along the way."

Comic Book Resources has the press release.

Taking Flight: Kazu Kibuishi tells Comic Book Resources the publicity and interest generated by the move of the Flight anthology to Image Comics will mean bigger things for later volumes:

"Future contributors include Michel Gagne, Doug TenNapel, Rhode Montijo, Douglas Holgate, Becky Cloonan, Joana Carneiro, Justin Ridge, Richard Pose, Amy Kim Ganter, and Rodolphe Guenoden. I'll announce a few more artists once I'm sure of their involvement. Of course, every member of the original gang will be back to do more stories, and that's what I'm looking forward to most of all."

Getting out the vote: The Hatfield Valley (Mass.) Advocate spotlights Thom Hartmann, who is using a comic book titled We the People to teach uninformed voters a lesson in political history:

"But is We the People the much-needed handy tool to bring the radical Middle out of the fog of misinformation the remakers of democracy have brought to America? Will it make Aunt Gladys and Uncle Mervyn in smalltown Middle America into proud populists who can look past divisive social issues to realize that democracy itself is at stake, no matter their conservatism or liberalism? The answer is a resounding maybe."

The Planet Lar connection? Larry Young begins to see a weird AiT/Planet Lar domino effect in the comics blogosphere:

"Since the thousands of dollars worth of AiT/Planet Lar books went out two short weeks ago, John Jakala suffers from 'failing stamina,' Tim O'Neil doesn't linkblog anymore, and Sean Collins, Bill Sherman, and Johnny B have all slowed down with the daily blogging. Only the heroic Laura Gjovaag continues apace unabated. She's like the Terminator of bloggers.

"I'd send more comics out, but I don't want to tire out Mike Sterling, Marc Singer, Steven Wintle, and Kevin Melrose."

Total recall: I'm no safety expert, but one glance at the Batmobile's Rear Tail Wings of Death would've been enough to make me think the 20-inch toy might pose a hazard to children. But since Mattel didn't bother to check with me first, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a voluntary recall of all 314,000 units of the toy. Collectors, snatch them up while you can.

Silk purses and sow's ears: Jason Kimble takes an interesting look at what may have been at the core of CrossGen's problems: "For the bulk of the CG line, there was a whole lot of packaging and gloss, and (in most cases) a whole lot of nothing special underneath."

The horror! The horror! I just saw the press release at Newsarama announcing that The Sandman: Endless Nights and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume Two have been nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for illustrated narrative. I'm guessing this is a DC Comics release because: a. the Bram Stoker Awards are given by the Horror Writers Association, not the "Horror Writers of America," as the release states; and b. nominations were (apparently quietly) announced nearly two weeks ago. I think the HWA could use a better PR person.

Other Bram Stoker Award nominees of particular interest include:
* Nonfiction: Alan Moore: Portrait of an Extraordinary Gentleman, edited by Gary Spencer Millidge and Smoky Man (Abiogenesis Press)
* Illustrated narrative: Kolchak: Devil in the Details by Stefan Petrucha (Moonstone); Graphic Classics: Ambrose Bierce edited by Tom Pomplun (Graphic Classics); and Vampire the Masqerade Giovanni -- The Machiavelli Conundrum by Robert Weinberg (Moonstone/White Wolf)
* Work for young readers: The Wolves in the Walls by Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins)
* Alternative forms: Ghosts of Albion (webcast script) by Christopher Golden and Amber Benson (BBC Online)

The awards will be presented June 5 in New York City.

Screen play: Variety.com's Bags and Boards went to The Punisher premiere and after-party, and sneaked in a couple of questions with Marvel Studios CEO Avi Arad about the differences between the comic and the film:

"When you bring a comic book to life, you want to elevate the art form. But in a movie, you cannot do four frames like you can in a comic book. We thought that this was a good way to dramatize that he didn't really want to be alive. He just wanted to exact punishment and go."

Eyeing ICON: In this week's "Permanent Damage," Steven Grant takes another look at the move of Powers and Kabuki from Image to Marvel's new ICON imprint:

"If nothing else, this shakes up the business a little at a time when shake-ups are desperately needed, and is a wake-up call to Image and other companies. It's time to get creatively competitive again. With all the chatter, it's still not clear what the Icon deal really is – are there advances, page rates, or does it duplicate the Image deal where the company pays nothing but publishing costs to be recouped off the back end, with any profits going to the talent? – but, at least at the moment, it seems likely it's back to the original Epic concept of an invitation-only 'prize' for select talent deemed valuable to the company. If that's the case, there won't be many wider repercussions. At least not unless creator-owned books make enough money and get enough media interest that Marvel's bosses come to believe them worth publishing for their own sake, and that's a big if."

Made for TV: I somehow missed this yesterday. I'm obviously slipping. At Movie Poop Shoot, Marc Mason reviews Demo and asks, "Should it be a movie?" The answer:

"By its nature, the anthology is generally not something well-suited for adaptation to the silver screen. However, it is well-suited for the small screen, and DEMO is a wonderful example of that.

"Some of the finest television ever produced from genre material was anthological in format. THE TWILIGHT ZONE. THE OUTER LIMITS. Concepts built around a small inner-idea and fleshed out by talented writers and directors. DEMO represents an excellent opportunity for a savvy producer to put together a nice package for a smart cable network looking for a prestige, limited episode product. I think there's way too much risk to put something like DEMO on the air for five years and destroy the subtlety of the types of tales Wood and Cloonan are telling; however, putting together a couple of thirteen episode seasons and getting them to DVD after they're finished sounds like a very nice moneymaker for the right person. Let the bidding begin!"

Mason also throws in some quick capsules of Punisher: The End, Queen & Country Vol. 5: Operation Stormfront and Tell Me Something.

Oh, that explains it: Also at SBC (not a permalink), "Zack S." tries to explain why he went after manga and superheroes in his last two columns:

"I’ve been told that I’m only writing these columns to stir up trouble and make a name for myself. To that, I shake my head. First, it’s sad when a person tries to get a point across and people accuse them of trying to make a name for themselves. Second, if I wanted to make a name for myself, I’m pretty certain I’d have to use my name. I’m not writing this column in an attempt to reach fame and fortune within the industry. I’ll leave that up to Brandon Thomas, Tim Hartnett, Rich Johnston, Markisan Naso and the countless other comic book columnist trying to claw their way to the top. I’m simply, and honestly, trying to open eyes to what is really going on. Many people know that today’s comics are in dire need of help, but obviously, there are still some people out there who need a little push."

All Larsen, all the time: Erik Larsen seems to be making the rounds this week. Now he's talking to Silver Bullet Comic Books and Digital Webbing about -- you guessed it -- the departure of Powers and Kabuki, the future of Image Comics, and the benefits of creator ownership:

"I think it's pretty obvious what benefits there are to owning your own characters. Not only can you decide what you want to do in your book but for those inclined to do so there are other avenues to explore as well. From t-shirts to toys and motion pictures to video games. Sure, it's fun to work on Batman or Spider-Man but when a Batman or Spider-Man movie is made, the people working on those titles don't benefit from that. It's nice to work for a company that takes no ancillary rights of any sort and lets creators own their creations fully. Even small independent companies that you'd think wouldn't take such things are cutting themselves in for a huge piece of the action. We don't do that."

Talkin' 'bout my generation: At Silver Bullet Comic Books, "The Panel" is asked, "What are the benefits and drawbacks of the large-scale comics publishers predominantly choosing comics readers to be the next generation of writers/artists/production staff?" Dark Horse's Scott Allie and cartoonist Donna Barr tie for best, and shortest, response.

Allie: "That's like asking about Simon and Schuster's habit of hiring authors who also read."

Barr: "Good - Who else is going to work for the promise of a good party? Or buttons and cards?

"Bad - Nepotism? Insular viewpoint? Stale stories and repetitive cookie-cutter art? Tiny market that can't get outside of One Bomb?

"'Large-scale' is a relative concept."

Ex-retailer arrested: ICv2.com reports that Ross Rojek, former head of the Comics & Comix chain and CEO of Another Universe.com, has been arrested by the FBI on fraud charges stemming from his operation of Face Information Technology:

"Rojek purportedly told investors his company was developing a face recognition software system that would match facial images to a database, but according to an FBI spokesperson, 'it doesn't seem to be anything he was seriously working on.' According to the FBI the prospectus Rojek produced for Face IT included bogus biographies of the company's management team claiming that they were all experienced 'former executives of Netscape Communications.'"

Giving time: The Binghamton, N.Y., Press & Sun-Bulletin profiles Swamp Fox creator Jonathan Myers, who teaches art at Saint Joseph's School for 12 to 15 hours a week for free.

Troubled waters: The Lansing (Mich.) State Journal reports that a basement flood in 2000 has led to the March 29 closing of Capital City Comics & Books, which couldn't recover from the $161,000 loss of one-of-a-kind comics and collectibles after a main waterline broke. The owners, who continue to sell comics from other stores, hope a settlement can be reached in a lawsuit over the flood, allowing Capital City to reopen.

Re-imagining Image: In this week's "Waiting For Tommy," Rich Johnston talks with Image Comics Publisher Erik Larsen about the company's future, and its impact on the comics industry -- but not about the departure of Powers and Kabuki, which he refused to discuss:

"We've made a huge impact on a LOT of levels. Other companies scrambled to keep up with us and coloring, printing and production values HAD to go up in order for these guys to compete. Page rates went through the roof. Many creators got huge raises because of Image. Creators rights have been helped a LOT over the last twelve years--creators have more options than ever. And things will continue to grow and change. Creators come, creators go--it's just the way things are. We've had hit books in the past--we'll have hit books in the future."

On the possibility of changing the "Image model":

"Image is really about giving creators a chance to do things for themselves -- if a creator bring us an uncommercial book and it fares poorly -- are WE to be blamed? I think the creator needs to take some responsibility for their own success. We take a small flat fee off all of our titles. A person who sells a million copies puts as much money into Image as the guy who sells 5000. You're not punished because of your success. We do the same work for both books -- why should we get more money from the more successful creator?

"On that same front -- IF we start fronting money -- it would not be unreasonable to expect something MORE in return. If I'm risking thousands of dollars on a book I'm going to want a piece of the action. I think, ultimately, that the standard Image deal is a better deal--but a second deal is not impossible in the future. I know that there are folks here that would like to make that happen."

Super salesman: ClickZ.com reports that American Express' web-only ad featuring Jerry Seinfeld and Superman attracted more than 1 million visitors in the two weeks following its March 29 launch. At its peak on April 7, the movie sub-site drew 32,000 visitors.

More at stake than just d'oh: The New York Times (registration required) takes a closer look at the contract demands of The Simpsons cast, and what the negotiations could mean to voice actors and other television networks:

"What faces the networks — and the actors — is the question of how important are the voices, and even personalities, of the performers portraying animated characters. Are they anonymous, perhaps interchangeable? Or are they as important to the success of an animated series as, say, the actors on Will and Grace and Friends? Animation might play a much smaller role on television if voice performers were to be paid as much as actors who appear in the flesh."

Wildcats gets the ax: Newsarama reports that DC/WildStorm will cancel Wildcats 3.0 with August's Issue 24. Writer Joe Casey tells it like it is:

"The reasons were completely financial. I hate it when I see people trying to spin things in their favor just to pump themselves up. Let’s just be honest here… in this particular case, it was low sales that did us in."

Marvel's summer lovin': Millarworld snags Marvel's July solicitations early (again), complete with information about the much-heralded "Avengers Disassemble" event. Spectacular Spider-Man #17 is lumped in with the other tie-ins, lending credence to the rumor that Spider-Man (and Wolverine?) will be among the new Avengers lineup.

Also of note:
* Iron Man #86 -- I couldn't care less about this title, but it's Tony Harris doing sequentials
* Thor #82 -- Michael Avon Oeming starts his arc
* Uncanny X-Men #446 -- Claremont wastes little time in jumping into his first Good Girl Gone Bad story of the Reload era as an "alien cybernetic lifeform" turns Sage against the rest of the team
* Rogue #1 -- the uneven Robert Rodi kicks off what is undoubtedly the first of many new X-Men solo series (can Chuck Austen's Nightcrawler be far behind?)
* Starjammers #1 -- Kevin J. Anderson's long-rumored miniseries launches, with Ale Garza as artist
* Cable/Deadpool #5 -- what happened to the Rob Liefeld covers? (not that I'm complaining)
* NYX #6 -- I'll believe it when I see it
* Man-Thing #1 -- uhhhh
* Incredible Hulk #74 -- Iron Man and the Hulk are still going at it?
* Loki #1-2 -- where did this come from?
* Captain Marvel #25 -- the end
* ICON -- Powers and Kabuki start their stay at Marvel

(Link via Fanboy Rampage)

From page to screen: MSNBC contributor Christopher Bahn offers his recommendations on which comics should be made into films. Among his picks: The Sandman, starring Johnny Depp, and Watchmen, directed by Terry Gilliam.

Unleashing The Escapist: It's Michael Chabon Day! New York Newsday talks to the Pulitzer Prize-winning author about bringing The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist to Dark Horse Comics:

"Surprisingly, Chabon released his protagonist to a number of other writers, who contribute original story lines for five of the comics in the book. (The Escapist will come out quarterly; future stories are to be penned by Chabon pals Glen David Gold, Jonathan Lethem and Dave Eggers, acclaimed novelists all.) Didn't the author worry about relinquishing creative control? 'I don't feel proprietorial,' Chabon explains. 'What appear in the novel are not actual comic books. They're narrative summaries, retellings of these purported comic books in prose form. The actual comics themselves, panel for panel, drawing for drawing, were not mine. In some weird way, the Escapist is not my character, he's Sammy and Joe's.'"

The shipping news: Previews Review updates with a rundown of the books shipping this week, along with some solid recommendations and the occasional stinging commentary. And hey! It looks as if the long-promised Prophecy Magazine Anthology Vol. 1 finally hits the shelves. But $29.95? Jesus.

Review revue, Part 1: Variety.com's Bags and Boards reviews Enginehead #1 and Wolverine/Punisher #1.

ICON under the microscope: At Comic Book Resources, Augie De Blieck Jr. dissects Marvel's new ICON imprint, and asks what the creator-owned line -- and the move of Powers and Kabuki from Image -- will really mean to Marvel, the creators, Image and readers.

Gods and monsters: Michael Avon Oeming talks with Newsarama about his six-issue run on Thor, and how he got the gig to begin with:

"Bendis got me in the door, he has huge coat-tails. But once I was in, they had to read over Hammer of the Gods and my other books to see if I could handle the job. So far, so good."

Wheelin' and dealin': At ICv2.com, retailer Dave Brzeski doesn't think bookstore chains "deserve" better discounts than individual comics shops:

"I understand that the comic companies and the distributors need to encourage everyone to spend that little bit more, but this has always been the bane of any small retailer trying to compete with just one shop against huge chains. To say the huge chains 'deserve' the better discount because of their higher buying power astonishes me. These sorts of deals have always been, and will always be, the leverage used by stronger businesses, be they publishers or retailers who want to cripple any competition before it gets a foothold on the market. It's a fact of life. We have to live with it in every commercial market, but I don't have to like it and I don't see why big chain stores 'deserve' a better deal than I do."

"Dead art forms"? The Simon offers a brief, and occasionally terse, assessment of Visible and Invisible Drawings: An Evening with Chris Ware and Ira Glass, held Saturday at UCLA:

"Two talented guys working in dead art forms, they couldn’t have been more mismatched on stage. Artist and illustrator Ware, semi-famous for his Jimmy Corrigan graphic novel, played the Robert Crumb role, all misanthropy and self-deprecating asides. This American Life host Glass, nasally and ingratiating, amiably handled the P.T. Barnum part, entertaining with a showman’s brio."

The rest of the piece is a bit more positive.

Kitty litter: The European Union delegation in Japan has announced it will use Hello Kitty to promote the euro in Japan: "We just want to convey a friendly, human face of the European Union."

So, they use a slightly creepy animated kitten? Anyway, the EU delegation has ordered plenty of Hello Kitty cellphone straps and key rings as promotional giveaways.

Riel world: Time.com's Andrew Arnold talks with cartoonist Chester Brown about Louis Riel.

Fortress of solitude: Writing for The New York Times (registration required), Michael Chabon addresses the furor over the recent expulsion of a student from San Francisco's Academy of Art University for submitting an explicitly violent story in a creative writing class:

"The imagination of teenagers is often — I'm tempted to say always — the only sure capital they possess apart from the love of their parents, which is a force far beyond their capacity to comprehend or control. During my own adolescence, my imagination, the kingdom inside my own skull, was my sole source of refuge, my fortress of solitude, at times my prison. But a fortress requires a constant line of supply; those who take refuge in attics and cellars require the unceasing aid of confederates; prisoners need advocates, escape plans, or simply a window that gives onto the sky.

"Like all teenagers, I provisioned my garrison with art: books, movies, music, comic books, television, role-playing games. My secret confederates were the works of Monty Python, H. P. Lovecraft, the cartoonist Vaughan Bodé, and the Ramones, among many others; they kept me watered and fed. They baked files into cakes and, on occasion, for a wondrous moment, made the walls of my prison disappear. Given their nature as human creations, as artifacts and devices of human nature, some of the provisions I consumed were bound to be of a dark, violent, even bloody and horrifying nature; otherwise I would not have cared for them. Tales and displays of violence, blood and horror rang true, answered a need, on some deep, angry level that maybe only those with scant power or capital, regardless of their age, can understand."

Small space and a Big Idea: The Pitt News spotlights Big Idea, a tiny bookstore dedicated to "promoting the distribution of radical and alternative literature," including locally published comic books.

In Focus: Two of the creators behind DC's new Focus line get some play as Silver Bullet Comic Books talks to Steve Gerber about Hard Time -- as well as Howard the Duck and Man-Thing -- while UnderGroundOnline chats with John Francis Moore about Touch.

Digital age: Eagle One Media has announced it will distribute Intec Interactive's line of Marvel and CrossGen Digital Comic Books to retailers, and to customers through Eagle One's website. Suggested retail price is $9.99 for Marvel titles, and $7.99 for CrossGen. Or you can just download them for free somewhere else.

High heels and high kicks: Malaysia's The Star reports on a local publisher that offers its violent and "mature-themed" comic for free online. China Doll's -- yes, there's an unnecessary apostrophe -- is about a boy genius who creates the world's "first android pop stars, supermodels and action heroes."

Adolescent male power fantasy, you say? Objectification of women, you say? Never! China Doll's was inspired by real llife. Really:

"[Creator Suffian Abdullah] witnessed a car accident involving two vehicles when one of the passengers alighted. 'It was a young Chinese girl smoking a cigarette and dressed in a school uniform. Her shirt was tied at the midriff. Tied in two ponytails, her hair was bleached blond. She was wearing blue contact lenses,' says Suffian.

"That girl inspired the China Dolls and Suffian found himself drafting a story and character notes that very day. 'By the time I went to bed that night, I had created all the players and plotted the first story,' he says. "

Girl power: The Chicago Sun-Times looks at two attempts to reach a young, female audience: Marvel's Spider-Girl Digest #1 ("Saved by the Bell with a superhero twist") and Cartoon Network's new Miguzi anime programming block. Here's Marvel's Gui Karyo:

"Simply put, we've taken this approach because of manga. Manga publishers have been able to grow a large audience interested in illustrated fiction and chapter books through sales in bookstores."

The fervors of July: DC Comics posts its solicitations for July, which include four new series, a few Humanoids releases and the end of Superman: Birthright. First, the number one's:

DC kicks off the month with DC Comics Presents: Batman #1, the first of eight weekly comics paying tribute to Julius Schwartz. That's followed by Mystery in Space #1, Green Lantern #1 and Hawkman #1, all with stories inspired by classic Schwartz-edited covers.

Bloodhound #1 looks to signal the return of the grim-and-gritty vigilante as an ex-cop imprisoned for killing his partner is enlisted to profile a super-powered serial killer. Dave Johnson's cover reminds me of some of those late-'60s Jim Steranko covers for Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD.

July also sees the launch of the 12-issue JLA spin-off, called Justice League: Elite. The team's going "deep under cover" to infiltrate a group of assassins. More grim, more gritty.

Tim Hunter returns with Books of Magick: Life During Wartime #1, written by Neil Gaiman and British TV writer Si Spencer.

Other books of note:

* Batman: Hush Vol. 1 collects the first half of the over-hyped series by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee
* Igor Baranko's The Horde is the first of the Humanoids releases, followed quickly by Metal Hurlant #12 and Townscapes
* Gotham Central #21 -- the return of Harvey Bullock
* The Legion #35 -- Gail Simone takes over as writer for four issues
* Batman #630 -- is it just me, or does Matt Wagner's cover art make Batman look like a 1950s pro wrestler?
* The Compleat Moonshadow -- the new printing collects the original run and the sequel
* Fables #27 -- I can't force myself to read this series, but I love me some James Jean cover art
* Sebastian O -- Grant Morrison's miniseries is collected and reprinted
* The Losers #14 -- just because
* Ex Machina #2 -- just look at that Tony Harris cover!
* Sleeper Season Two #2 -- just because

The ol' college try: eigoMANGA has announced it's partnering with MTV in an effort to connect with university students. During its Campus Invasion stop at San Francisco State University, eigoMANGA will produce a pilot for broadcast on mtvU, the music network's new channel targeting college students.

In a convergence of random capitalizations, mtvU also has approached eigoMANGA to be the official sponsor of the channel's student animation talent search.

Will the last person to leave CrossGen ... Newsarama reports that James Brietbeil, CrossGen's director of sales, direct and foreign market, resigned sometime last week.

The envelope, please: Ken Lowery announces the, um, winners of the Great Losers Giveaway.

Review revue, Part 1: Jim Henley cranks out capsule reviews of Queen and Country, Operation: Storm Front, The Sandman Presents: Thessaly, Witch for Hire #3-4, My Faith in Frankie #4 and a few others, while Tim O'Neil examines Abel.

Meanwhile, Comics Worth Reading updates with reviews of several indy comics, some recent Image releases, and True Story, Swear to God.

Boy's life: Ninth Art also talks with cartoonist David Kelly about the 10th anniversary of the Boy Trouble anthology, and the relative lack of gay comics:

"I seem to notice more gay titles now than even a few years ago, probably because groups like Prism Comics promote the visibility of gay creators. When Rob and I were putting together BOY TROUBLE #4 in 2000, we were hard-pressed to identify many current gay-themed comics. Most are self-published, and for creators to get them out periodically requires a lot of time, organization, and financial investment.

"I think this probably accounts for why gay-oriented comics do not appear as often as they might; they do not have the support of comic book publishers. Self-publishers like Tim Fish and Paige Braddock are to be commended for getting quality issues of their respective comic books out on a regular basis."

A matter of taste? At Ninth Art, Paul O'Brien looks at the hubbub over CrossGen aborting American Power:

"... [T]he criticism of AMERICAN POWER is essentially that it's a really bad, tasteless idea. Debates along these lines often result in people screaming about the first amendment. That misses the point completely. People have not been calling for AMERICAN POWER to be banned (or at least, not in significant numbers). They have merely argued that it was a terrible idea."

Separation anxiety: Newsarama talks to Image Comics Publisher Erik Larsen about what the departure of Powers and Kabuki means to the company:

Newsarama: "From just the basics, the Icon deal sounds a little like what the Image founders wanted 12+ years ago - a place/imprint to do their own thing with creations that the creators own, with little or not editorial input from Marvel. Does that factor make this somewhat even a little more-for lack of a better word, painful?"

Larsen: "Uhhhh--no.

"I think some people are really blowing this out of proportion. On our end--it's a couple books--and books come and go all the time. For Marvel--it's a couple books--and they've already got a hundred of 'em that they're making more money on--this won't be a serious revenue stream for them if the Icon deal is anything like the Image deal. As far as retailers and fans go--there won't be much of a change--the same books will be coming out by the same creators.

"Dale Keown took Pitt from Image and self-published. Groo went from Marvel/Epic to Image to Dark Horse. Bone was here for a while and then Jeff Smith went back to self-publishing. Both Gray Area and Phantom Jack were supposed to be Marvel/Epic titles and they ended up at Image. These sorts of things happen all the time. I'm not happy to see these two titles go by any means but I'm hardly getting ready to slit my wrists either."

Direct market vs. book market, round ... whatever: At ICv2.com, comics retailer Buddy Saunders gets it, at least when it comes to Marvel's book-market distribution deal:

"Marvel, as with any publisher or manufacturer, has not only the right but the obligation to market to as many outlets as possible. The question is not one of loyalty; Marvel is not betraying us by cultivating other markets. A vendor will and should go where the money is. We direct market retailers, by the way, do the same."

But Ilan Strasser doesn't like the "special deals" that Marvel, DC and other publishers give to the "big boys":

"In the end, those of us who are portrayed as being angry or negative or whatever --well, that's our right. I, along with hundreds of other dedicated, hard-working retailers carried Marvel, DC, Image and everybody else on our backs for the last 20 years or more. We carried them through every stupid decision, every inept marketing scheme, every management changeover, and every change in editorial and marketing direction. And the thanks we get is being shunted aside.

"Adapt or die? That notion is painfully obvious to all of us and no retailer with any sense at all would quibble with it. But it is impossible to change and adapt when you are left to clean up the mess that others create. It is also impossible to compete and thrive when you routinely get product weeks after everyone else does; my sales of manga trades has dwindled to nothing since Barnes & Noble and Borders gets them three weeks before I do."

Guiding hand: At Silver Bullet Comic Books, Tim O'Shea talks to AutobioGraphix editor Diana Schutz about developing the project and deciding the placement of stories by creators like Frank Miller, Will Eisner and Matt Wagner:

"It’s curious that reviews have both lauded and castigated me for story placement. Some people know exactly what I was thinking, and some don’t get it at all. It’s hardly a science!

"I knew I wanted to start with Frank’s 'Man With Pen in Head' — because it’s kind of a balls-out, in-your-face, very non-traditional approach to an autobiographical tale. About as far from navel-gazing as you can get! And I knew I wanted to end with Paul Hornschemeier’s deeply meditative and philosophical 'Of This Much We Are Certain' — which calls into question the very nature of truth, and so, thereby, the very nature of the anthology’s enterprise."

The funnies, in black and white: The New Yorker takes a look at often-controversial cartoonist Aaron McGruder and his "popular and subversive" comic strip The Boondocks:

"McGruder doesn’t read the funnies, and he doesn’t like the people who draw them. Growing up, he was a Peanuts fan, like everyone else, and he counts Doonesbury and Bloom County, featuring Opus, the iconic political penguin, as influences. But mostly he sees the comics page, with all its benign Dennis the Menaces and Heathcliffs and Blondies, as the domain of 'seventy-year-old white men,' some of whom — like Bil Keane, the author of the vaguely Christian Family Circus, and Mort Walker, of Beetle Bailey —he freely admits to not respecting.

"'I don’t go to the cartoonist conventions,' McGruder said. 'I went once, to the Reuben Awards' — the Oscars of cartooning — 'and I didn’t feel very welcome. I felt a palpable sense of resentment. Bil Keane was the m.c., and he opened doing more than one joke that was clearly aimed at me. It was raw — just some fucked-up shit. O.K., and yet, if I get out of my chair right now and beat the shit out of you, then I’m the bad guy? You’re sitting here, clearly dogging me — not by name, but how many black cartoonists are working? He told some joke about diversity in comics. Like "There’s a lot of diversity in comics these days. They don’t have to be funny, they just have to be diverse." There were a couple of shots at me where I was like, "Motherfucker, you don’t know me. We’re not cool".'"

Vintage find: While we're on the topic of collectors, the Knight Ridder/Tribune news service (registration required) reports that Lem Fasnacht of Golden Eagle Comics in Reading, Pa., has bought a collection of 15,000 comics ranging from 1961 to 2000, valued at $75,000. The haul includes long consecutive-issue runs of Iron Man and Fantastic Four, and a copy of Amazing Adventures #1. The article includes tips from Stuart Moore on collecting comics.

Finding religion: Reuters reports that after four decades, Jack Chick's pocket-sized Christian comic books finally are getting some recognition -- at least from collectors, who are willing to drop as much as $500 for some copies of the religious tract:

"These ubiquitous gospel tracts feature a dramatic story line that typically ends with an ultimatum: 'The Bible says there's only one way to heaven! Nobody else can save you. Trust Jesus today!' The covers, in black-and-white plus another color, have titles like 'The Word Became Flesh,' 'The True Path' and 'Allah Had No Son.'

"They turn up mysteriously in bathrooms, buses, airports and anyplace else where a lost soul might find redemption.

"Chick's Rancho Cucamonga, California, publishing company has printed more than 500 million of these pamphlets in more than 100 languages, making him the most widely read underground comic book writer and an American pop culture icon -- so much so that the tracts are enshrined in Washington's Smithsonian Institution."

Moving day, revisited: Wait. Someone's moving to Image Comics? Phil Hester has announced that Deep Sleeper will move to the "I" in August, beginning with Bumper Editions, which reprints the first two issues originally published by Oni Press. The series' third issue will follow later that month, with the fourth scheduled to appear in September:

"I have nothing but gratitude for the opportunities Oni gave me as a new writer and my time there will be remembered fondly. I think Oni makes some of the best books in the business, and the probably the saddest part of this whole thing for me is that I won’t be getting Queen and Country or Love Fights for free any more."

Silver Bullet Comic Books has Hester's full statement.

Insert "Todd's balls" joke here: Major League Baseball News reports that the Todd McFarlane Show will return to MLB.com Radio. Past guests have included Rob Zombie, Stan Lee, Frank Miller and Alex Ross.

Cuts like a knife: Curetteblade Inc., a manufacturer of surgical blades, has turned to a comic strip called The Adventures of the Curette Crusader as part of a nationawide direct-mail campaign to promote its product. The art's not half-bad. The DM News has the full story.

International love story: BBC News looks at how romance publishing giant Mills and Boon has latched onto the manga market in Japan, fighting for shelf space and struggling with a few cultural differences:

"And when it comes to manga, the romantic tastes of Japanese women cannot be satisfied by Mills and Boon alone. Offerings from other publishers include explicit sex scenes and love stories between men.

"These are not produced for gay men, but are aimed specifically at women. While Western romance has made its mark in Japan, it could be that this sub-section of the genre may not be making the return journey quite yet."

Anime alternatives: Columbia College's Chronicle Online recommends a handful of recently released anime DVDs as alternatives to lackluster, big-budget sci-fi/action films (cough -- The Matrix -- cough).

We can be heroes, for ever and ever: Salon.com (click-through ad required) examines how those greatest of Western legends Davy Crockett and Wild Bill Hickok, like the Old West itself, have been remolded and retconned over the past 100 years to suit the needs of each era:

"Westerns go through cycles to match our moods. In the '50s and '60s they were seen as stand-ins for everything from McCarthyism (High Noon) to America's Cold War resolve (Rio Bravo, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, et al); in the late '60s and '70s westerns were analogies for our involvement in Vietnam (Little Big Man). Early into this century the western has gone east: to Arabia in Hidalgo, to Japan in The Last Samurai, and to North Africa in Secondhand Lions. In a couple of cases the East came west, as in the Jackie Chan-Owen Wilson movies Shanghai Noon and Shanghai Knights. (We'll probably be seeing essays any day now on how these films parallel our 'cowboying' of the East.) Whatever we use them for, and however we reinterpret our frontier legends, westerns keep coming back. As a nation, we've become like the detective in Memento: our memories stop at a certain point in the past and we seem incapable of creating new ones."

Beware: The article's first paragraph contains a major spoiler about tonight's episode of Deadwood. Consider yourself warned.

Girls! Gone! Wild! My knowledge of anime is limited, to say the least. I watched Akira way back when, and saw Princess Mononoke on cable. I've caught bits and pieces of Witch Hunter Robin, Vampire Hunter D, Metropolis and a few episodes of a series about couriers competing in a flying race during some sort of sky war. And that's about it.

So, I was pleased to see the Science Fiction Book Club offers DVDs like The Weathering Continent, Witch Hunter Robin and Grave of the Fireflies. I figure I eventually can increase my exposure to anime at a low, low book-club price.

Imagine my surprise when I opened this month's mailing to find a four-page flier titled "VIDEO VIXENS." Said vixens apparently are "heating up the screen" with their "wild encounters."

Among the selections is Urotsukidoji: New Saga: "An immortal vagrant with an insatiable sex drive escapes prison with one thing on his mind. His depraved appetite takes him to a college campus crawling with luscious ladies. It seems his arch-nemesis, the Ultra God, is also loving college life -- and has made breeding an army of lust-crazed killer demons his number one extracurricular activity." I'm not making this up. The three-DVD set can be yours for just $89.99.

Then there's Sacrilege: "When a carnal cult uses illicit drugs to turn men into sex-crazed monsters, police partners -- and lesbian lovers -- Atsuko and Kei investigate. But can our frisky friends tame their love-play long enough to handcuff the criminals too?" Ah, yes, the dilemma faced by lesbian law-enforcement the world over: sex or crime-fighting.

And that's only the beginning. There's also La Blue Girl Returns: Demon Seed, about a "deadly sex ninja," and Vixens, about "a wish-fulfilling android" who gives a lovesick loser "super-voyeurism powers."

Where to begin ...

Review revue, Part 2: At Eat More People, Rick has quick-hit reviews of Batman #625, Hellblazer #194, The Losers #10, Demo #5 and Hellboy: The Corpse.

Pros and cons: J.W. Hastings has an interesting dissection of the caper genre, dividing it into three basic types: the heist, the con artist and the combo. He's discussing film, but most everything he says easily could be applied to comics (which, unfortunately, don't seem to have many caper storylines).

The Springfield chronicles: The Associated Press reports on a Brooklyn College sophomore who has turned his fascination with The Simpsons into a serious scholarly study titled The Simpsons and Society.

Playing dress-up: Singapore's Straits Times looks at the cosplay phenomenon, in which fans dress as their favorite characters from manga, anime, video games and "even Hollywood movies." But, the newspaper discovers, cosplay isn't for everyone:

"Female students dominate Singapore's cosplay community. Mr Tan said many guys are not used to the idea of dressing up in fantastical costumes and parading in public.

"'It's also difficult for guys to cosplay since they cannot sew and can't keep very long hair for cosplaying purposes. We tend to lose many guys to National Service as well because cosplay is a time- consuming activity,' he added."

Review revue, Part 1: The San Francisco Chronicle reviews DC/Vertigo's Lovecraft and It's a Bird ... hardcover editions.

Review revue: Johnny Bacardi is on fire, cranking out short takes on My Faith in Frankie #4, B.P.R.D.: A Plague of Frogs #2 and The Sandman Presents: Thessaly, Witch For Hire #3, plus lengthier reviews of Last of the Independents, Codeflesh, The Couriers, Dirtbike Manifesto and Couscous Express. (Whew.)

Not to be outdone on the AiT/Planet Lar front, Pop Culture Gadabout also looks at The Couriers, Dirtbike Manifesto and Couscous Express.

No slouch herself, Laura Gjovaag wraps up her three-day review-fest with takes on Supreme Power #9, Amelia Rules: Superheroes #2 and Banana Fish Vol. 1.

And ... Johanna Draper Carlson adds Fade From Blue to the impressive list of Comics Worth Reading.

For the love of Seuss: It's shaping up as Pop Culture Day at Thought Balloons. Writing for The Guardian, Michael Rosen examines the life and legacy of Dr. Seuss:

"Many of the books succeed because they represent a response to language that coincides with a young child's discovery of the pluck and knock of words. I've just read Green Eggs and Ham to my three-year-old and an hour later I heard her muttering: 'That Sam-I-am! That Sam-I-am! I do not like that Sam-I-am!'"

The Guardian also has a "Seussentennial" quiz.

East meets West: This really doesn't have anything to do with comics, but I found it interesting. So, let's just file it under "Pop Culture." The New York Times (registration required) examines how Quentin Tarantino borrows from Eastern and Western action-revenge films in Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 to demonstrate how heavily Asian and Euro-American popular culture have influenced each other.

The princess diaries: MIT's newspaper, The Tech, likes X-Statix Vol. 3: Back From the Dead, despite the watered-down story that resulted from the Princess Diana "controversy":

"But even with the occasional censorship, X-Statix still beats the competition in pushing the genre, riffing on topics that are completely taboo in every other comic book, let alone every other form of popular entertainment. Who else would use last year’s sniper attacks in DC or the selling of chemical weapons to Hussein as admittedly somewhat perverse plot devices? Or have a team of villains called 'Euro-trash' (which includes 'Oxford Blue,' described as having 'ferocious violence with a boyish stammer and a predilection for black hookers.')? Or have a Princess Di-esque character as leader of a superhero group, redesigning their costumes in 'stunning ethnic lycra with bold highlights'?"

2-D or not 2-D, that is the question: Despite the film industry's steady move toward computer animation, the L.A. Daily News reports that many art schools are making sure their students are as handy with a pencil as they are with a mouse:

"One of the fundamentals of good animation is drawing and story. If you understand how to structure that, handle your character, no matter what the technology, the film will have appeal to audiences and we've done our job."

ICON update: Newsarama updates its ICON story with statements from Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack, culled from their message boards. Here's Bendis, in part:

"Everything is the same except the company logo. Most people won’t even notice the change.

"If you are already a reader of Powers, stay cool. It’s all the same goodies.

"If you have heard of Powers but haven’t read it, but you are a fan of my Marvel work, particularly Daredevil and the Pulse, I truly think you will love Powers and now you have a perfect and totally easy way to get on board the first issue of the new series.

"The reason for the move is not a slight against image on any level. Both David, Mike and I are still part of Image. We will continue to produce our existing library through image, which thanks to your good word of mouth is a big part of our lives. That includes the first five Powers trades and all the Jinxworld titles (Jinx, Torso, Goldfish, Fire, and Total Sell Out.)

"We will still continue our foreign licensing through Image and I will still have my wild and crazy message board at Image as I have for many years."

Update addendum: Newsarama now has included a statement from Image Comics Publisher Erik Larsen, and it's not an entirely a cheery one:

"I think it's terrific that Marvel has come to their senses and finally realized that there is value in letting creators actually create. They've been dependent on 40 year-old characters for too long and while they've yelled from the rooftop that they're the 'house of ideas' -- it's nice to see the possibility of a few new ideas actually getting out there from this publishing giant.

"And, in what has become typical Marvel fashion -- their first move is NOT to innovate, but to imitate. They’re not creating something new, but are instead taking titles that have been around for years and have stood the test of time, essentially trying to imitate us in the process. As you might expect, I'm less than thrilled that they're cherry picking from Image. And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't concerned about the future of Brian, Mike and David and their creations. I can't help but feel this is ultimately an unwise move for these creators, but part of supporting creators' rights is supporting a creator's right to choose. These guys feel it’s the thing to do and if a creator does business at Image -- they have the freedom to do things like that. We don’t sink our claws into properties or tie people down. Creators are free to make their own choices, even if they’re not choices we agree with.

"How will the loss of these two titles affect Image? In all honesty -- not a lot. Kabuki hasn’t had a new miniseries in years and Powers is a single title. Brian, Mike and David are keeping their trade paperback libraries at Image and we will continue to sell them through our backlist. Of course we're sorry to see them go, but it’s not the end of the world. We take a small flat fee from every title that comes out through Image and financially this isn’t a huge hit. At this point we’ve got literally dozens of exciting new titles in the works that we’re thrilled to be publishing. The loss of a couple of our older titles isn’t something that pleases us on any level -- but we’ll get over it. All of us here at Image wish Brian, Mike and David the very best and if things go sour -- and they aren’t contractually bound to another company — we’ll be more than happy to welcome them back. These are good guys. We’ve treated them well, they've treated us well -- and I hope Marvel treats them well."

Armageddon it: The New Zealand Herald goes behind the scenes for a preview of Armageddon Pulp Culture Expo, and describes George "Mr. Sulu" Takei as one of the convention's most famous guests. Oh, yeah, Brian Bendis and Marc Silvestri will be there, too.

Moving day: It appears as if the rumor was true: Marvel is launching a creator-owned imprint -- definitely not Epic and not devised by Bill Jemas -- that will house Powers and Kabuki, formerly of Image Comics. Franklin Harris has Marvel's press release heralding the arrival of ICON (not to be confused with the DC/Milestone series of the same name). Fanboy Rampage has the Bendis message board reaction which, essentially, is, "What will happen to this message board?"

Playing in other people's toyboxes: At Ninth Art, Alasdair Watson wonders what appeal Marvel and DC's properties hold for comics creators:

"Beyond the financial aspect, I just don't understand what the reward is in working on SUPERMAN, or X-MEN, or any of these other properties. And it's not because I hate them (I don't), or because I think they're for kids (I do), or because I'm a snob (I may well be, but it's not really relevant). I just plain don't see the point in working creatively for someone else. I don't see the point in working creatively in a situation where the aspiration is commercial success, rather than the freedom to say what you think, (other than, I guess, the ability to have a lifestyle that allows you to set your own hours, and spend a lot of time inside your own head)."

A tale of two markets: At ICv2.com, Torsten Adair of Barnes & Noble (speaking for himself) responds to earlier comments about Marvel comics being distributed at bookstore chains:

"Comic books are like wine. You can pick up a bottle at your local grocery store and trade expertise for price and convenience, or you can go to a wine or liquor store and become an oenophile. Drinkers of wine fall into three categories: those who like a glass of wine every now and then but don't really care about vintage, those who drink it socially and decide to cultivate their knowledge without being obsessive, and those who are introduced to fine wine by an oenophile and are seduced into the hobby.

"Newsstands, libraries, and bookstores serve two markets: the casual reader and the customer who avoids comic book stores. The casual reader is difficult to entice unless you have a location with a lot of foot traffic. The customer who avoids your shop can be enticed by making your store more welcoming (clear the windows of posters, install carpeting, offer seating for drag-along parents). You can entice the casual reader to go out of his or her way by fostering "moles" at bookstores who will recommend your store, donating (and selling) books to libraries, and by engaging in outreach (such as handing out free comics and fliers at movie theaters showing comic book movies)."

Comics retailer David Craig also replies, hoping to distance himself from "angry, negative, antisocial comic store owners":

"Well, unlike most retailers I do run my shop as a retail establishment, not a cave for my collections that allows select few people to come in and browse MY stuff, only sometimes relenting to let an outsider buy something! I run a store like it is a giant retailer -- no antisocial, card-wielding, 'don't wrinkle my comics' employees allowed. Just people who are interested in getting the CUSTOMER what they want when they want it and at a reasonable price. Contrary to popular belief, the comics specialty market is STILL a customer service field ... let's remember that retailers!"

Changing face of animation: The Baton Rouge (La.) Advocate looks at how Japanese anime has changed cartooning in the United States, influencing TV network programming and video games.

Avengers assemble (to sue the Enquirer): At Silver Bullet Comic Books, Chuck Austen reveals what The Avengers might have become had he continued as writer:

"... [T]hese are Marvel’s 'A' list characters. They’re the heroes everyone knows and they have a ton of respect and goodwill in the world for all they’ve done. X-Statix is all new people, and it’s a mostly satirical look at various elements of stardom. Avengers was intended to be played straight — as if this were the real world and really happening. Paparazzi, internet rumors, Enquirer stories, rumor rags, Superheroes Tonight! Photos ending up in public of embarrassing moments, secret identities exposed. You could see some of that coming in the conversation between Martin, the little boy, and Hawkeye, when Martin knows Hawkeye was Goliath. But it never came to be, so it’s all a moot point, now."

Great escapes: The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles examines the tradition of escapism in Jewish history, and focuses on more recent examples, such as Michael Chabon Presents: The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist and Art Speigelman’s Maus.

Faster than 100 Bullets ... Comic Book Resources asks Brian Azzarello why he agreed to write a 12-issue run of Superman:

"The biggest thing with Superman for me, the reason why I'm writing it, is the character is missing inspiration right now. He has, arguably, inspired every character after him, but he's no longer inspirational. I'm looking to instill that back in him. Is that a task that is possible? I don't know, but that's my goal. I want to be inspired by Superman."

But it's not the Superman most fans might expect.

"I want to write a Superman story that somebody who doesn't read Superman comics will understand. So, with that in mind, there's a lot of comics continuity that I'm not dealing with. Superman in real mainstream culture, not comics mainstream culture, is the Christopher Reeve Superman. The Daily Planet has a globe on top of it, not a hologram. Lex Luthor is his villain, everyone knows that. You're mother does. I want to write a Superman story your mother understands. She may not like it, but she'll understand."

The envelope, please: The nominees have been announced for the 16th annual Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, with Eric Powell's The Goon, The Sandman: Endless Nights and Little Lit's It Was a Dark and Stormy Night leading the list with four nominations each. The Pulse has the press release.

Waiting is the hardest part: At Broken Frontier (not a permalink), Shawn Hoke finds that some comics are worth buying on a monthly basis instead of waiting for the trade: namely, DC: The New Frontier, Demo and Dead@17. (Link via Grotesque Anatomy)

Lightning strikes twice: The Pulse talks to Jeff Smith about the end of Bone, and the long-promised Shazam/Monster Society of Evil miniseries (which I've so been looking forward to for quite a while):

"Billy Batson is the most important character of the Captain Marvel saga. That's the character that has GOT to be nailed. I think it's true for all the superhero characters with secret identities. Bruce Wayne saw his parents murdered in front of him. Clark Kent is the goofy guy who can't get the girl's attention in the office, but if only she could see him when he rips his shirt off, she'd know what's what. Billy to me is someone small, a defenseless kid who needs help protecting himself against a grown up world.

"In my version he's a little younger than what you might be used to, because I wanted to play up the difference between him and Captain Marvel."

Don't hate the playahs, hate the game: At Grotesque Anatomy, John Jakala hilariously reviews Avengers/JLA as if it were a video game:

"At first it appeared that Avengers/JLA would be either a platformer (collect all the artifacts!) or fighter (I've always wondered if Superman could beat up Thor), but in the end it's a simple melee brawler: In order to save the universe, you have to battle through wave after wave of increasingly powerful villains until you reach the Big Boss himself - Krona! The developers have planted plenty of rewards along the way in an effort to keep the game entertaining, but, as noted earlier, the desirability of these bonuses in undermined by making them so random. Players are unable to save costumes or characters, so they're often gone as soon as they were unlocked. There are also problems with the consistency of power levels: At the very end, it's possible to destroy Krona's big cosmic doohickey sphere thing with an arrow. I don't know if this is a bug in the game, or if one of the developers just had an overly sentimental soft spot for archers."

Review revue, Part 2: Variety's Bags and Boards reviews Planetary #19, Kinetic #1, Robin #124 and Superman/Batman #8.

Review revue, Part 1: At Movie Poop Shoot's "Breakdowns," Chris Allen reviews a bevy of comics and comics-related books, including Foodboy, The Complete Peanuts: 1950 to 1952, Essential Punisher and Nightjar. You're unlikely to find a wider spectrum of books than that.

Pimping for myself: I usually try to promote the work of friends, but this time I'm going to be self-serving. After much schedule-jostling, I found out yesterday that Digital Webbing Presents #17, which contains my story "Bad Elements: Good For the Soul," will be solicited in June's Previews for release in August. It's a 16-page tale about friendship, murder ... and frogs. Art is by Brian Churilla, with grayscales by Eric Erbes. And so ends the shameless self-promotion for today.

(Super-nice guy John Jakala is kind enough to promote "Bad Elements" on his blog, too. Thanks, John.)

Manga mumblings: At Silver Bullet Comic Books, "Zack S." demonstrates his vast knowledge of manga:

"My biggest problem with Manga is that it all looks the same. I’ve been told that I need glasses (or stronger glasses if I wear a pair already), but perhaps the Manga lovers are the one’s in need of an eye examination. Seriously, there is no way in hell you can possibly win an argument that not all Manga looks the same. It does. That’s it. Pick up any two books (yes, by different artists) and tell me they don’t look like the same thing. You can’t. Besides, when there are nearly hundreds of books on HOW TO DRAW MANGA, you know you’re in an uphill fight. If all Manga did not look the same, then why are there books on top of books detailing the proper ways to draw it? Huh? Answer me? You can’t! Their faces, their bodies, their hair, their clothes, their creatures/animals, they all look the same. They have big eyes, little upward noses, skinny bodies (females of enormous breasts), huge fucking hair, crazy ass clothes that look strangely futuristic, and the animals are just too fucking cute. I’m sorry, but I like to be able to tell the difference between comics I’m reading. Again, this doesn’t mean that super-hero comics don’t look the same, but they are nowhere near as bad as Manga. You know I’m right, so just accept it."

All zines, all the time: In Toronto's Eye Weekly, Guy Leshinski turns his, um, eye to a handful of cartoonists' zines: Owly: The Way Home, Burning Nemo, Window and Ambergris Digest.

Making musical stories: The Sydney Morning Herald profiles DJ Kid Koala, who talks about the comics he created to accompany his albums:

"I'd say if you're confused at all by the audio on the CD, if you can get your head around the silent comic book -- at least the humour involved in it -- it'll make a lot more sense.

"I'm not saying, 'If you turn the page every four bars it's going to make perfect sense all of a sudden.' It's just another way to look at it. For me, it's just stories. Musical stories."

Pop-culture paradise: The Washington Post spotlights a quirky Alexandria, Va., shop called Card & Comic Collectorama and Exotic Planterium, which features everything from old comic books and used videos to Star Trek cards and, um, plants:

"The eyes glaze over before they can focus. Comics and comic book memorabilia -- posters, mobiles and cardboard stand-ups -- brighten the room, where the plants get natural light.

"The wall behind the sales counter is covered with vintage comics in clear plastic bags, including a $115 copy of Marvel's Strange Tales No. 115, published in 1963, in which Dr. Strange's origin is revealed; No. 3 of the first printing of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1984), from when they weren't yet a kid craze, for $25; and Bewitched No. 1 (1965), Dell's version of the fantasy sitcom, for $20.

"Just inside the door are such curiosities as a 25-cent plastic rosary, a half-dozen 'wheatback' pennies, dice bearing pictures of animals and an official photo of Peter Falk as Columbo."

Storytelling experiment: The San Bernardino County (Calif.) Sun talks to This American Life host Ira Glass, who will collaborate on a story with artist Chris Ware during a presentation Saturday at UCLA.

Top of the pops: The San Antonio Express-News (registration required) reports on a joint meeting of the Popular Culture Association, the American Culture Association, and the Southwest/Texas Popular Culture and American Culture Associations, which runs through Saturday. It's no geeky comics or sci-fi convention, though. Okay, it's probably geeky. But more than that, it's a meeting of some 2,200 academics discussing comic books, horror films, the Alamo and the like.

You're a Loser, baby ... Don't forget about the Great Losers Giveaway. Ken's offering the entire run of The Losers, posters autographed by creators Andy Diggle and Jock, and more!

U.S. comics in a manga format: Singapore's Straits Times reports on Gotham Entertainment Group, which publishes collected editions of Marvel and DC comics in Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei. The $10 "specials" are a little smaller in size, but most contain the same content as the American trade paperbacks:

"For the Big Two (DC and Marvel), they are assured of the collectors' market which will still buy the trade paperbacks from speciality stores. ... What we offer DC and Marvel instead is an expansion of readership in the Asia market, which might eventually start buying the original American comics."

Hellboy, in a nutshell: I haven't seen the Hellboy movie, but I have skimmed over 137,000 reviews of it. Moments ago, I stumbled across the best of the bunch, by one Neil Gaiman:

"Saw Hellboy last night and very, very much enjoyed it. It was like a Mike Mignola comic, only you could see everyone's feet.

"(Sorry. Small Mike Mignola joke there. Very small. And Hellboy was a terrific piece of work.)"

Fashion Crisis: Newsarama talks to Rags Morales about the long road to success, and some of the sartorial obstacles to the upcoming Identity Crisis event:

"Certain costumes, we decided to ignore certain things. We hated Zatanna’s top hat, so that’s gone, but she has the rest of the outfit. Other touches like Black Canary sometimes showing up with her hair up like she’s 15. We just took it down. Little things like that. We tinkered with it all a little."

Morales also discusses the actors on whom he based some of the characters. Ladies and gentlemen, may I present Mr. Ron Jeremy as Captain Boomerang:

"I went online and pulled references of actor’s faces for a lot of them –- not as a template, but as a starting point. For instance, Dr. Moon, if you look at him, that’s Jerry Lewis under there. Carolyn Jones, from The Addams Family is Phobia. Jackie the Joke Man Martlin/Ron Jeremy is Captain Boomerang. I took Ricardo Montalban from The Wrath of Khan, and he was my Meryln. Little things like that. Monocle and the Spider pretty much came out of my head."

Review revue: PopMatters updates its comics section with reviews of The Monolith #1, Rex Mundi: Book One trade paperback, Rogues! and 2 to the Chest.

A survivor's tale: CBC News reports on Smile Through the Tears, a comic book marking the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide, created by an artist who survived the mass killing:

"I had to write and draw what I lived through because it had to be expressed in images -- a medium that I know well. I love to draw and to bear witness to the whole world."

Too good to be true? I can only hope the costume design on this character sheet means Chuck Austen will be tackling religious themes in his new WorldWatch series.

No, no. The other one: At Movie Poop Shoot's "Comics 101," Scott Tipton looks at the history of Marvel's soon-to-be-canceled (again) Captain Marvel.

Takin' it to the Street: At Newsarama, Patrick Neighly looks at Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca's Street Angel and Stephen Buell’s Video:

"Street Angel is the sort of book that defies criticism – discussion of the nonsensical plot is pointless, and to trace the laughs is the ruin the joy. Suffice to say that the book is a kindred spirit to Kill Bill, in that it recognizes that the strength of a medium is not necessarily in the stories that it tells, but in how it tells them. As such, all I can really do is that this: Trust me. Street Angel is pop comics at their finest, one of the handful of books you can give both hardcore fans and total newcomers."

Review revue: The Johnny Bacardi Show and Pop Culture Gadabout have thrown their hats into the AiT/Planet Lar blogging ring, with reviews of Scurvy Dogs, White Death, Badlands, Demo and Last of the Independents.

The way of the dodo: The Comics Burrito joins the list of the recently departed. Good-bye, guys.

McDuffie's milestones: Variety's Bags and Boards talks with Dwayne McDuffie about Milestone Comics, the Justice League cartoon, and an upcoming graphic novel:

"I'm self-publishing an original graphic novel right now. It's a romantic comedy. Road to Hells a love triangle. A guy, a girl and Satan. He loves her, she loves Satan."

Masters of the obvious: The hits just keep on coming for Silver Bullet Comic Books' "The Panel." This week, the question is, "Why don't Marvel or DC (or anyone else) advertise comics on television?" The obvious answer, of course, is cost, but Donna Barr has a funny response:

"I have no clue. Except our industry is always ahead on publishing -- and squat last on advertising."

Big time: The Dallas Morning News (registration required) reports that a giant version of the Lucky Cow comic strip, measuring 135 feet wide and 47 feet 9 ½ inches high, has been certified by Guinness World Records Ltd. as the world's largest comic strip. Cartoonist Mark Pett assembled the larger-than-life version last summer with the help of Mississippi high school students.

Comic book villain: The Toronto Star reports that a comics dealer has admitted his part in a $130,000 fraud scheme that involved money laundering under the guise of purchasing a comics collection.

Tombs and milestones: At the Oni Press website, Ian Shaughnessy chats with Steve Rolston (One Bad Day, Queen & Country) and Chris Mitten (Last Exit Before Toll, The Tomb). Here's Rolston:

"It has indeed been three years since I helped Greg start Q&C. It was intimidating back then because it was my first real comic book gig. I was also drawing in a style I wasn't very used to. Returning to the characters has been almost as intimidating because my style has evolved since then and I've had to search for the proper balance of styles. Upon seeing some of my pencils for #25, (James Lucas) Jones actually commented on how my character designs combined elements from several of the other Q&C artists. I don't know if that will be apparent to all the readers but it was intentional. It didn't make sense for me to revert back to the look of the first arc and ignore what came after it."

Amazing stories: The Sci Fi Channel has announced it will produce a half-hour comedy based on Mike Mignola's Amazing Screw-On Head.

Good grief, in brief: MSNBC.com previews some of this spring's new fiction, including Fantagraphics Books' The Complete Peanuts: 1950-1952.

Busy, busy: In its "Distribution Daybook," Publishers Weekly (subscription required) runs down some of Diamond Comic Distributors' recent distribution deals. Much has been made of the agreement with Tokyopop, but we may have overlooked or forgotten about the exclusive deals with HK Comics Ltd., Troll Lord Games, Silicon Times and MV Creations.

Demo review roundup: Larry Young's offer to send AiT/Planet Lar books to bloggers and reviewers is paying off, with John Jakala, Tim O'Neil and Laura Gjovaag turning out some solid reviews of Demo.

Euphemism of the day: Newsarama previews the upcoming Wanted Dossier one-shot: "While the miniseries takes a break ..."

High-tech Mech: UnderGroundOnline talks to writer Ivan Brandon about NYC Mech:

"NYC Mech is a world we built up around the existing frame of New York City, with a twist: this is a world populated by robots who match our desires and our actions. These robots don't have laserguns so much as crowbars and 45s and teeth and anger. They don't want to take over the world, at least not any more than you do. It's basically a realm in which we can tell an infinite amount of stories through the eyes and experiences of a million potential characters all walking in and out of our ongoing story. And through the miracle of ink and Andy MacDonald we're able to give you every single thing you could ever want to see without a multi-million dollar animatronics and CGI budget."

Everything is go: Speaking of Astro Boy (and we were), ICv2.com reports that Harper Collins Children's Books has acquired a license to publish a series of 30 books based on the new anime series.

The curse of the mainstream: At CBC News, Dan Brown writes that, in their struggle to be embraced by popular culture, comic books have become too slick and respectable:

"I don't remember my parents coming out and telling me that they disapproved of all the money I blew on comics (and it was a lot), but they didn't have to verbalize their distaste. I just knew. And I don't blame them – after all, comics in the '70s were still suffering from the smear they had suffered two decades before, when it was generally understood they were the root cause for both juvenile delinquency and homosexuality. But here's the thing: I liked that my parents looked down on my favourite reading material. I think my friends liked it, too.

"Knowing we were partaking in something scandalous just reinforced the feeling that comics were a world apart from parents and their rules. We loved them because they allowed us entry into a universe in which we were the authorities, the experts. I could tell you, for example, exactly why my favourite X-man, Wolverine, didn't get along with the team's leader, Cyclops. I may not have been good at math when I was in Grade 4, but I knew all about mutants."

Obsessive, and proud of it: The Japan Times reports that the growing numbers of manga and anime fanatics in Japan wear the otaku label as a badge of honor:

"The word otaku means more in Japanese than its English translation of 'obsessive geek' or 'anorak.' A loose meaning refers to enthusiastic hobbyists like jazz otaku or train otaku.

"But the real otaku, at least according to the stereotype, are the socially dysfunctional virtual hermits who eat, sleep and breath nothing but otaku subculture.

"And now, whether by weight of numbers, consumer power or just the fact that they are such an integral part of modern Japanese culture, Japan's otaku have become impossible to ignore."

Sticky situation: Joan Crosby Tibbetts' four-decade crusade ended yesterday when the Supreme Court refused to hear her lawsuit against the makers of Skippy peanut butter, claiming the name was stolen from her father's popular Depression-era comic strip. The Associated Press has the story. More on Tibbetts' father, Percy Crosby, and the Skippy comic strip can be found here.

Hellboy haiku? Yes, Dark Horse Comics is sponsoring a Hellboy haiku contest. The grand-prize package is valued at more than $200. Deadline is May 14.

The great Escapist: The Long Beach Press Telegram talks to local author Glen David Gold, who wrote "The Lady or the Tiger" in Michael Chabon Presents: The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist #2.

A different note: Japan's Mainichi Daily news reports that a new currency, of sorts, will be distributed on Wednesday in the Takadanobaba area of Tokyo's Shinjuku-ku to commemorate Astro Boy. The "horsepower" notes will be redeemable for a limited time at participating stores.

Online adventure: At Silver Bullet Comic Books, Tim O'Shea talks to Steve Bryant and Paul Daly, creators of the Athena Voltaire webcomic.

Way of the Samurai: Although I don't usually write about gaming, I found this interesting ... and a little odd: There's a new PlayStation 2 game called Seven Samurai 20XX, based on Akira Kurosawa's 1954 classic film and created with the blessing of the director's son. Wait, it gets even more interesting: Jean "Moebius" Giraud is among the game's creators. Wired.com has the story.

Kid culture: A new entertainment company has launched, targeting boys ages 8 to 13 with a comic book, monthly magazine, live-action and animated TV shows, toys, collectible and electronic games and trading cards. Riot Media Inc. hopes to trot out its first products by next spring:

"With 15 million boys ages 8-13 spending $18 billion annually on their own and influencing an additional $145 billion in spending, many companies have devoted considerable time and resources marketing individual products to them. Yet no one has been able to successfully create an integrated brand that delivers content for multiple platforms simultaneously. We will fill this market niche in a way that our target audience will embrace and make their own."

Here's the press release.

Information superhighway, my ass: My Internet connection has been horrible over the past few days, and only seems to be getting worse -- making blogging today far more trouble than it's worth. So, this may be it for today, until I get the problem fixed.

The Great Losers Giveaway: Over at Ringwood Ragefuck, Ken is running a contest to promote Andy Diggle and Jock's The Losers. The top prize is the Ante Up trade paperback plus Issues 7-10, which brings you up to date on the series. Other prizes include Monolith and Sword of Dracula. Go check it out.

And if you're not reading The Losers, there's a nice column at Paperback Reader detailing why you should be. Now, between Ken's contest and that column, you really have no excuse.

The shipping news: Previews Review updates with a rundown of the comics shipping in May.

Greener pastures? In this week's "Lying In The Gutters," Rich Johnston reports a rumor that Powers and Kabuki may leave Image for ... Marvel?

"Marvel have relaxed their recently imposed no-creator-owned comics role for these titles. Whether this is an exception for these two books, or whether it will be offered to others, I do not yet know."

Well, here's a surprise: If Dirk Deppey were blogging, he'd probably write: "Would the last person to leave CrossGen please turn out the lights?" Or something like that. Anyway, Newsarama reports that Bill Rosemann, CrossGen's VP of publishing, quit the troubled company on Thursday. Details, of course, are sketchy.

Subatomic levels: Ninth Art spotlights Subatomic creator Patrick Neighly, who also wrote Anarchy for the Masses, the definitive guide to Grant Morrison's Invisibles.

Survival of the fittest: At ICv2.com, retailer J. Carmody thinks specialty stores might benefit from Marvel's bookstore-distribution deal with Source Interlink:

"In the end, those that adapt will survive. Those that refuse to pay attention... no more need be said. In other words, if you feel threatened, then start doing something now about your options. Work out how you're going to keep your customer base and influence more people to join you. Fail and ignore the situation or simply give up on your existing customer base and you're more than likely history."

Currency curse? The International Herald Tribune looks at a possible case of the "magazine-cover curse" involving the manga Golgo 13 and a supposedly fictional scheme by U.S. officials to pressure the Bank of Japan to buy dollars:

"On the assumption that once a financial trend becomes part of the cultural zeitgeist it must be near the end."

Bigger than Jesus: For the past several days, it's been nearly impossible to avoid stories about Hellboy. In fact, it's hard to find a comic book article in newspapers today that isn't Hellboy-related. Why? For starters, it was the top movie of the weekend, pulling in an estimated $23.5 million. Here's the Associated Press report.

Going Vertical: The San Francisco Chronicle spotlights Vertical Inc., a publisher best known for bringing Koji Suzuki's Ring and Osamu Tezuka's Buddha to an American audience:

"We're trying to bring in stuff that doesn't fit the party line of what Americans think Japan's culture is like."

Identity crisis: The Seattle Times mentions an exhibit at Western Washington University's Western Gallery called "Comic Release: Negotiating Identity for a New Generation," which explores the cartoon images artists use to make statements about war, race, sexual orientation and other issues. The show, which runs through May 28, features comic strips, animations, sculptures and other media.

Twist and shout: The Jerusalem Post examines Will Eisner's Fagin the Jew and Peter Kuper's adaptation of Kafka's The Metamorphosis.

Spooky: Brian Wood gives a peek at Demo #6.

Time travel: Silver Bullet Comic Books takes a walk down memory lane with Mark Waid, going clear back to his work for Amazing Heroes.

Manga royalties: The Anime News Network reports that a group of manga artists has petitioned the Japanese prime minister for illustrators to receive royalties from their books rented at libraries:

"The group is seeking a reform to the Japanese copyright act that would set royalty fees for the lending of manga and other printed material in the same was that royalty fees are applied to the lending of Music CDs and other media."

Endangered species: The Providence (R.I.) Journal (registration required) carries an L.A. Daily News story that wonders whether "traditional animation" has gone the way of the dodo:

"And now after outright failures (Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Treasure Planet), middling successes (Brother Bear, Lilo & Stitch) and huge layoffs in its animated division, Disney is charting yet another new course. The studio has no traditionally drawn animated features currently in development, aside from a long-planned segmented sequel, Fantasia 2006. Disney's next major projects include the computer-generated comedy Chicken Little (2005) and an adaptation of William Joyce's comic fantasy-adventure A Day With Wilbur Robinson (2006)."

Love at first bite: National Public Radio's Intersections talks with Hellboy creator Mike Mignola about one of his early influences, Bram Stoker's Dracula:

"It's the atmosphere and the mystery, the idea of a world beyond ours that functions in a way we'll never completely understand… It's perfect. It just clicked."

Comics, with a hip-hop beat: AllHipHop.com spotlights twins Mike and Mark Davis, whose Blokhedz comic book chronicles the adventure of a teen-ager rapper named Blak, "who hopes to save his home from malevolent forces and also learn to manage his mystical power over words":

"Blokhedz is a story about love, loss, and life. It’s about the decisions that effect your life and following your dream. Hip Hop is vital to the story's essence because it's our language -- not just blacks and Latinos, but youth as a whole. When we’re bombarded by exploitive, over-saturated versions of the media’s definition of hip hop, it’s imperative to re-instill a sense of integrity, authenticity, creativity, and quality in this art form that mainlines into the soul."

Summer reading: DC Comics has announced its first six trade paperbacks from Humanoids, set to arrive in stores in July and August: The Technopriests, The Horde, Townscapes, The Metabarons, Deicide and The Hollow Grounds.

More on the manga uproar: Publishers Weekly (subscription required) chimes in on Shonen Jump being pulled from book fairs by Scholastic Inc., and actually gets comments from Viz -- something that all the other reports I've seen failed to do. Here's Viz spokeswoman Evelyn Dubocq:

"The book was presented to younger kids, but the magazine and books are clearly marked on the cover for older teens. We believe in ratings. It is the responsibility of the person in the classroom to make sure the rating is appropriate for their students."

School officials were stirred up by what they described as mild profanity, violence, a swastika and cigarette smoking in an issue of Shonen Jump. Dubocq counters some of the complaints, telling PW, "the character uses a cigarette to light his way; he never smokes." She also points out that the symbol in question isn't a swastika, but a manji -- something that's explained in the book's disclaimer.

Retread rebuke: At Broken Frontier, Matt Maxwell laments DC and Marvel's penchant for trotting out the same old properties again and again:

"Whether you consider it necrophilia or laziness or unabashed fanboyosity, comics can’t survive on a diet of infinitely re-warmed leftovers. Sure, they might have started out as filet mignon, but enough trips through the microwave and they’re going to be tougher than the beef jerky that you found under the seat of your car that you had lost three summers ago. It isn’t enough that we get new creative blood in the mix (which, thankfully, we seem to get fairly regularly)."

"Pipeline" hits the books: In this edition of "Pipeline," Augie De Blieck Jr. gives readers what they've been longing for: a photo of his bookshelf. Okay, he also combs through Previews.

Nightmare visions: The Pulse talks to Serena Valentino about the trade paperback of Nightmares & Fairytales, the dark and delightful series by her and Foo Swee Chin:

"From time to time, Nightmares is a stage for my personal demons (however in