PW Comics Week
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SPX Shines Despite Down Economy
 Despite the economic uncertainties gripping the world, the mood at last weekend Small Press Expo was resoundingly upbeat. Switching for the first time to a weekend (Saturday and Sunday) format after years of a Friday to Saturday schedule, exhibitors reported, in many cases, record sales, which wasn't surprising given the quality and diversity of the books available. If attendees were worried about their stock portfolios, they weren't showing it.
Saturday was the busiest day, with over 1000 attendance, more than half signed up for the whole weekend. A modest line had even formed before the show opened, and by noon, the aisles were jammed with an eclectic crowd that was in a buying mood. Several exhibitors—Exhibit A's Batton Lash among them—said this year's Saturday was their biggest day at an SPX ever. Secret Acre's Leon Avelino was blown away by the sales at this year's show. "We couldn't believe how much of everything was selling," he said.
Sunday was much slower, but allowed exhibitors and artists precious "schmooze and shop" time, adding to the reputation for sociability the show has long held.
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 Comics Education the Eisner Way
Will Eisner's three instructional books on comics are finally being released as a trilogy, the way he intended.
October Comics Bestsellers
Naruto Vol. 31 retakes the top slot from Jeff Kinney's Rodrick Rules, which has been #1 since February.
 Black and Naifeh make Good Neighbors
The Spiderwick Chronicles' Holly Black gets into graphic novels with The Good Neighbors: Kin.
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The Country Nurse, the third and final volume of Jeff Lemire's Eisner-nominated Essex County trilogy, alternates between the stories of an orphan boy from 1917, and a modern day nurse in the same small Canadian town. The Country Nurse was recently released by Top Shelf Productions.
Click above for the full preview. |
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Does Minx’s Demise Raise Questions about the Book Market?
When a big announcement hits in the comic industry, particularly if it’s about the demise of a publisher or a publisher’s line, you can count on a set of predictable reactions, followed by a set of cliches to describe those reactions—armchair/Monday morning quarterbacking, post mortem, finger-pointing, I-told-you-so—followed by a few cries to leave the poor people whose venture failed alone, followed by more reactions that open with an apology for it being yet another a reaction.
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The Portable Frank
JIM WOODRING. Fantagraphics, $16.99 paper (112p) ISBN 978-1-56097-978-4
 As with so many works of near-genius, the first reaction to reading Woodring’s perplexing, bewitching Frank is bafflement, followed not long after by wonder and delight. The kind of cartoonist other cartoonists rave about like love-struck bobby-soxers (Chris Ware and Daniel Clowes hyperbolically blurb this collection), Woodring presents in these 14 almost entirely wordless tales a strange sort of wisdom, spun out of low humor and harsh but simple truths. His none-too-bright protagonist is a Mickey Mouse–like character living in a world of magic surreality that resembles a Grimm fairy tale gone horribly awry. Buildings sprout like onion-domed planets, and
nightmare creatures (usually either dumb or malevolent) wander a landscape that frequently molts into cross-dimensional traps. Curious Frank goes wandering, often drawn by the promise of greener grass, and usually pays for his greed or callow cruelty. Lessons are taught but often ignored, with Woodring leaving the occasional gnomic clue in the bottom of a frame (“His father was a great machine”). A calamitous comedy that reads like silence, this concise edition is an ideal entry into Woodring’s unique universe. (Sept.)
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Yoshitaka Amano: From Vampires to Mozart
Acclaimed illustrator Yoshitaka Amano came of age an popular artist while working at an anime studio and creating characters for Gatchaman [G-Force], one of the most beloved television series in Japan. He was 15 years-old at the time. From there the ingenue has gone on to develop characters for the Final Fantasy video game and has moved beyond the confines of comics and animation to become a celebrated gallery artist with exhibitions of his work in Geneva, Hong Kong and New York.
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October 8, 2008
- Breakdowns (Random House)
- Batman and the Outsiders Vol. 1: The Chrysalis (DC)
- Emiko Superstar (DC/ Minx)
- Chiaroscuro Patchwork Book 1 (IDW Publishing)
- Daredevil Cruel and Unusual (Marvel)
- Labor Days Vol. 1 (Oni Press)
- There’s a Wolf at the Door (First Second)
- Hitohira Vol. 1 (Aurora Publishing)
- 9 Lives Vol. 1 (Tokyopop)
- Beauty Bond Vol. 1 (Go! Comics)
- Mamoru the Shadow Protector Vol. 2 (DR Master Publications)
- Sulk Vol. 1: Bighead & Friends (Top Shelf Productions)
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Ginee Seo to Publish Amelia Rules
- Scholastic Acquires Smile
- Spiegelman Book Tour
- Ghost World Screening with Clowes and Zwigoff
- Palin on Tales of the Crypt Cover
- Comic Writing Course on MediaBistro
- Death Note Promotion with Hot Topic
- Comic Foundry Release Party
- MyCup o' Joe: Secret Invasion Preview
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