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Still on the Shelf #51 - Independent Minds Originally published March 22nd, 2004 on www.ComiXtreme.com. This work is, of course, © Andrea Speed and StillontheShelf.com. Nobody panic - I haven’t taken over this part of the site too. No, after his 50th column special, Craig deserved a break, and I was more than happy to muscle in … er, fill in for him while he lets his keyboard cool off.Usually he spotlights just one title, but since I just went to the Emerald City Comic Convention and found several small but worthy titles, I thought I could feature them all in a sort of omnibus column. The funny thing about the majority of these titles is that your best bet to get them is at conventions or on-line, at least for the moment; you might be able to ask for some of these at your local comics shop, but I think you’d have to know them pretty well to get them to order them for you. Okay, enough foreplay - let’s get to the good stuff (in no particular order - and all printed in glorious black and white). Me and Edith Head - Cold Water Press, written by Sara Ryan, art by Steve Lieber. This is, as you can see, a one off, not in typical glossy comic form but in a pamphlet size edition with a stiff cardstock cover. Basically, in roughly a dozen pages, it tells the story of an awkward teen who gets assigned to make costumes for the school’s production of “A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream”. She wanted a role, not that job, and is incensed by both it and the snotty girl who got the part she wanted. But a sympathetic member of the drama department gives her two books to read, by Oscar winning costume designer Edith Head, as well as some sage advise. In these short, smart pages, we watch this girl grow out of her alienation and find not only a talent she didn’t know she had, but a newfound confidence in herself. This was amazing - nothing feels forced or rushed, and it has more naturalistic character development than a year’s worth of most mainstream comics. It’s a very real, touching story, and Steve Lieber (yes, of Whiteout fame) does a beautiful job of showing the small but noticeable changes Katrina undergoes as she learns to take charge of her life and feel comfortable in her own skin. It’s almost impossible how perfect an example of storytelling this book is. You can get it from Steve himself at conventions he attends, or go on line right now to www.stevelieber.com and buy it for two dollars - yes, just two measly bucks (includes shipping). If they charged by quality, it would be twenty. Valentine - running series and trade paperback, Fully Loaded, which includes the first six issues. Red Eye Press, story and art by Daniel Cooney, with various inkers and cover artist and colorists. There’s nothing instantly original about a good looking female assassin, and yet Cooney turns in a highly entertaining spin on the genre, basically creating a heroine who could kick Elektra’s sorry butt and seem more realistic while doing it. It’s basically an action movie in handy to carry form, although its plot and character development is far more complex than most movies will allow. Basically, to just strip it to bare bones, Dana Valentine is a top operative in the secret QCC agency, who discovers the hard way she has been double crossed while on an “undercover” assignment within a so called “Assassin’s Guild”, a shadow branch of the CIA. In the course of the ambush, Dana comes into possession of a mysterious, encrypted disc that points to a nigh immanent coup d’etat lead by a treacherous CIA agent. While she is being hunted down by those who want the disc back, will she do the right thing and stop them, or simply try and save her own skin? What do you think? But it’s a fun ride, more La Femme Nikita than Alias, as Dana has some real problems. For one thing, her memories are butchered if not gone, and she has the occasional “fugue state”, an after-effect of her chemical brainwashing at the hands of the MK-Ultra project. So who is she really? What has been done to her, by who, and why? Well, you’re going to have to read it for yourself to find out. There are issues seven through nine available as well, recounting her later adventures as she attempts to construct some type of life for herself in the aftermath of advents in the Fully Loaded arc. Will there be an issue ten? I hope so, because it seems like the adventure is just beginning. And I have to take a second to mention the artwork is often fantastic - sometimes Dana seems almost art deco in style, with her raven hair and black lips, and heavy inking is often used as attractive high contrast. Cooney is quite an artist, and quite an author as well. If you like a good conspiracy/ espionage action story, or just kick ass babes who seems far more realistic than most (She has scars! She gets hurt! She doesn’t wear gravity defying outfits!), you really must check this out. Go to www.redeyepress.net for more details. Jade: Hide and Seek - Story and art by Edward Pun. This is a really cute, brief piece of anime in booklet form. Again in pamphlet size with a stiff cardstock cover, this seriocomic story involves Jade, a legendary demon hunter who also happens to work as a barmaid in a quasi-medieval, demon infested world. She has to work the waitress job because, as vital as her services are, it’s not a job that pays well. But she also has a bit of a soft heart for people in need, and in this case a traveler is in trouble, being hunted by a terrible beast that has killed his family, and now seeks to kill his infant daughter. But while Jade takes the job, she quickly finds out things aren’t quite as cut and dried as they seem. Pun has a style of drawing that did remind me of the kind of Japanese cartoons you can often see playing on Cartoon Network, which is not only appropriate for the action scenes, but adds to some of the comedy. A pleasant diversion, and a wonderfully paced, tight story for a mere twenty pages. I’d love to see more of Jade in action. Please go to http://hometown.aol.com/pungang/ for more information, and to check out his work. PV Comics #1 - PV Comics, with short stories by Nate Piekos, Matt Johnson, Steven Taylor and Kris Thor, Tom Stackpole, Jay McLeod with Dineshsingh T., and D.J. Coffman. The first printed collection of works by some (but not all - not even close ) of the many contributors to pvcomics.com, a new on-line comics site that offers a lot of content for a cheap price. This is their first printed venture, and all the stories are original, not to be found on their site, and it’s a very eclectic collection that lets you sample some of their top talent. Included here is the somewhat humorous (but always disgruntled) adventures of “Lint McCree in Tall Tales”, an ex-superhero but full time curmudgeon, who - in the story included here - has his van break down in a small Maine town, where a strangely Stephen King looking (nice touch) store owner tells him a story about the woods being haunted by clowns killed long ago by crazed loggers. Yes, it’s pretty funny. “Dewclaw: To You, My Brothers” is an odd bit of science fiction that involves quite literal dog soldiers in a dystopian future, where humanity is dying away, and its genetically engineered creations find themselves torn between trying to help them or simply turning their backs on them. This story is quietly melancholy and has some lovely art, as well as a very well thought out back story. “Jake Dyson’s Big Move” is a quaint bit of surrealism where a man who is described as being “a simple man of limited athletic abilities” moves into a new home, but can’t escape such things as time, middle age spread, and life. But my favorite of all of these is Coffman’s “Yirmumah!”, which is not only worth the price of the book by itself, but worth the cost of an online subscription. A semi-autobiographical comic involving Drew the disgruntled artist (and Bob the tortured writer), this is a scathing, hilarious skewering of the comic book industry, as well as several creators (who can’t help but kick Liefield?), the companies (both big and small), and the people both behind the scene and on the internet and in the conventions. I think I might have recognized myself in here, and I’m frightened. Absolutely not for kids, but wonderfully bitter and funny. This print edition will be in the April Diamond catalog (shipping in June), but is available now at any convention where the company is represented, and will eventually be up for sale on their web site. Go to www.pvcomics.com and see everything they have available now, for both purchase and free viewing on the web. A Monk’s Tale #1 - Konsequential Studios, with story and art by Laurie Breitkreuz and Kandrix Foong. This is a a four part series about three young monks in ancient China, who find adventures and trouble on their way to a tournament. A simple martial arts story, but told with lots of enthusiasm and love, for both the characters and the setting. And I can’t say enough about the art; the pencil work (in sepia and white, as opposed to black and white, for a wonderful “aged” feel) by Breitkreuz and Foong is elegant and stunning. How come neither of the major comics companies have grabbed these two up? The care and detail that goes into each and every page is awe inspiring, and the story moves very well, deftly balancing character moments with action. See their website http://www.konsequential.com/ to see what issues are available now. This was very long winded, wasn’t it? Ultimately, I hope you check out the independent titles, whether it be at comic conventions, in your own comic store, or online. Sometimes you’ll find real gems that you might never see on the Diamond sales chart, but - in a just world - deserve to be there. And who knows? You just may discover the next Rob Liefield. ( Ha ha, I kid! Please don’t sue.) What are your favorite independent or little known titles? Please add them below, so I know you’ve all made it to the end of my long winded report. Gracias. |
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