The Amazing Joy Buzzards: Smith and Hipp tell us how to rock

Just before I go on vacation, here's a special feature of the type that I've never done before:

The Amazing Joy Buzzards Interview!



First appearing in 2005, The Amazing Joy Buzzards was a super-fun comic about an adventuring rock band who fight monsters and world-threatening menaces in between playing awesome rock shows and starring in Hollywood movies. Over the course of two four-issue miniseries, they fought vampire robots, uncovered mysteries about movie stars, experienced awkward romance, participated in high-speed car races, and raised the ire of a group of supervillains called "The Spiders". This Wednesday, a new "director's cut" volume of those comics is coming out called The Amazing Joy Buzzards volume 1: Here Come the Spiders. And now, writer Mark Andrew Smith and artist Dan Hipp discuss their influences, the process of creating the series, and what's in store for the future:

So where did the idea for the series come from? You've got several genres mashed together here (action, superhero, espionage, monsters, sci-fi, etc.); do you have any specific influences or authors/artists that you want to pay tribute to?

Mark Andrew Smith: The idea of the Amazing Joy Buzzards was generated almost entirely from '60s cinema and combining my favorite elements of many films across a wide range of genres. Above all other mediums film is the greatest influence for the Amazing Joy Buzzards.

Dan Hipp: Yeah, it's a real mix of influences, to the point that I think when people read it they start to assign their own influences, which is always fun to hear about, whether they're spot on or not.

Mark, what are some of the specific 60s films that inspired you? I imagine A Hard Day's Night would be one, along with the James Bond films. Do you have any movies from that era that you would recommend to fans of the series?

Definitely A Hard Day's Night and James Bond. I went to film school but I was also one of those guys that worked in a video store as well and digested almost everything he'd heard about. So French New Wave such as Breathless, Akira Kurosawa like Yojimbo, Italian Cinema, Fellini Films, anything with Marcelo Mastroianni, then American Cinema as well, so it really runs a long and wide range in terms of the influence. If I get too into films it just feels like I'm dropping obscure references just to be cool and that's one of my new pet peeves. Two of my favorite films are 8 1/2 and Divorce Italian Style. I think with these movies there's such a beat to them and they're living and with great characterization and pacing. Marcelo Mastroianni is the basis for the Amazing Joy Buzzard's manager Dalton Warner.

It's impressive how many crazy concepts and ideas you threw onto the pages in the first couple issues of the series, introducing readers to the band, their skills, and the types of conflicts they come across, while keeping the energy level high, the comedy flowing, and the story moving quickly and enjoyably. I guess my question here is, is this all planned out meticulously ("gotta introduce El Campeon, throw in some screaming groupies, and be sure to include some action"), or is it more of a stream-of-consciousness style of writing, just putting ideas down on paper as they come?

MARK: Initially it was a lot more of a stream of consciousness type of writing but as the characters have grown it's started to become more planned out meticulously. There is definitely an aspect of surrealism to the first volume but with Volume 2 of The Amazing Joy Buzzards titled "Monster Love", it's more serious in tone and much more like an Amazing Joy Buzzards feature film.

DAN: This was our first book, so the ideas (good and bad) kept coming to the point we were holding the finished book in our hands. It was a fantastic learning experience, and probably worth remembering so we never lose that fresh spontaneity as creators.

I love the way the characters are all so differentiated, rather than being generic, pretty-boy musicians. They've got fun aspects to their characters, like Gabe's awkward relationship with Betty, or El Campeon's love of donuts. Is it a challenge to keep their interplay interesting and make them seem like real characters rather than blandly famous blank slates?

MARK: El Campeon is definitely one of my favorite characters. I think one of the things that works the best about the Amazing Joy Buzzards is the characterization, the awkward moments and pauses, and the character quirks. Every character in the book down to the very villains themselves all have their own hang-ups and distinct awkwardness about them that makes them endearing to the readers. Doing the interplay is never a challenge because these characters could potential talk to each other forever and it would still be interesting. So it always comes very easy.

DAN: I think on some level there are pieces of us in each character, so it's never difficult to come up with geeky awkwardness. What, did I say too much?

I enjoy the nonverbal gags that show up whenever Steve-o "talks". While this isn't exactly a new idea, you make it pretty enjoyable, throwing together some interesting juxtapositions or non-conventional images (my favorite might be the Jackson Pollock painting). Is it difficult to come up with imagery that is unique and non-obvious for his speech? I also notice that you often include translations of what he saying, so do you feel that sometimes the meaning doesn't really come across?

MARK: You know, that's all Dan Hipp who comes up with those. Initially, I just had Stevo never say a word, but in the first issue he began throwing those in there. Sometimes I may try my hand or write one or two of them in, but Dan is so much better at doing them than I am, so I usually leave them to him. So it's almost always Dan who is coming up with those. It's very refreshing because so often I see them and find myself unable to stop laughing.

DAN: HA, yeah those are too much fun to come up with! Usually they'll just invent themselves as I'm putting the page together. Sometimes I'll throw on the translations just to be safe, or to give it the comedic beat it needs, so the eye doesn't stop moving. It totally depends on moment and the pacing of the narrative at that point. They're always good for a gag or punchline, but we don't want to stop the flow of the story.

What does the AJBs' music sound like? Myself, I hear something like Weezer or The Strokes, an affable, high-energy band playing eminently singable and danceable music.

MARK: We're always quiet on what the Amazing Joy Buzzards sound like because every reader plugs their own favorite band into the spot. Eventually for film and animation they will actually have a sound if all goes well so then we'll have to chose. I'd say you're not far off in your assessment of what they sound like.

DAN: Everyone has their version of what the band sounds like, so it feels better to let everyone hold on to their hopes and dreams. I mean, when they find out that Billy Ray Cyrus was the driving force behind...(pause)...did I say that out loud?

The second miniseries (is that what they were? Or were they aborted ongoings?) ended with a couple of issues containing stories by other artists, with Hipp-illustrated framing sequences. Those stories aren't contained in the new collection, but the framing stories are (with some slight alterations). Was there a reason why the other stories aren't included? Did they stray too far from "official AJB continuity"? For that matter, why turn to guest artist to finish off that volume in the first place?

MARK: We found ourselves in a bit of a bind schedule-wise to finish of the second volume, and in comics you have to solicit three months in advance and we had solicited the next two issues in the series. But as we got closer to those two months we found ourselves under such a crunch and we knew that there was no way we'd make the deadline, and canceling would be certain death. So the guest stories was the perfect solution to fill in the last two issues of the volume and our friends were very kind to help us out, such as Jim Mahfood and Dave Crosland. I love their work and the stories that the guests did in those volumes, but they did appear abruptly and in the middle of Dan's continuity from reading the issues from A-B-C-, suddenly we had A-X-C. The guest stories aren't how the series was originally envisioned or intended to be read. The way it should be read is with a more seamless story that connects the continuity issue with all the art by Dan Hipp. The new volume does that and it best represents our vision for the series.

DAN: Yeah, what Mark said. Those lovely gents were kind enough to help us out, so kudos to them! The framing sequences are still contained in the new collection (reworked), because even though those issues were somewhat out of continuity, we had peppered in a lot of hints as to what is coming in the next volume. So we didn't want to lose those setups that had been established. Personally I'm not a huge fan of issues that are entirely out of continuity, so we wanted to frame them in such a way to help set up the new material, and give those extra stories a certain amount of importance (especially since we had such awesome artists working with us). When putting together the new collection, we didn't want to lose those elements, otherwise we'd need to do a lot more setting up in the next volume, rather than jumping right into the action.

I love all the detail that Dan puts into the art; looking over the new collection, I'm impressed by how much is crammed into the corners of the pages. The "attack of the zombie extras" story was a great chance to fit all kinds of cool references into the edges of panels. Is that sort of thing planned/scripted, or does Dan add it in as he's drawing?

MARK: Dan goes nuts and he adds in all of those cool references into the edges of the panels himself. Dan adds it in as he's drawing.

DAN: YAY! I have on a lot of movies when I'm working, so the backgrounds are usually filled with whatever movie is making me laugh, or whatever. I put a lot of my old students in there too (they think they're famous now).

It seems that Dan has really been refining his skill over the past few years, especially in his solo series, Gyakushu! I loved the gritty details and awesome action of that series, so is he going to have plenty of chances to deliver his unique AJB craziness in the upcoming new volume?

MARK: Dan's Gyakushu! series is overwhelmingly good. There will be a lot more chances for him to deliver his unique AJB craziness. The new volume is also an original graphic novel so we have a lot of room to stretch out and pace the story a lot more. So he's taking his tricks and his experience from GYA and plunging headfirst into the new volume of MonsterLove.

DAN: THANKS, guys! Yeah, Gyakushu! satisfies this massive itch I have for blood-soaked epics, but my heart has been aching to get back to the AJB boys, since so much of my regular (non-bloody) personality is tied up with them. It's been ridiculously fun and entertaining working on the new pages, and there are all sorts of new references and gags just waiting to be seen!

What can we expect in the new volume of the series (and when will it be coming out)? I'm particularly interested to learn more about the mysterious angel(?) who saved Steve-o's life during the race at the beginning of the second miniseries, and to see more conflict between the AJBs and The Spiders.

MARK: You'll be seeing a bit of the angel in this volume but he mostly comes to play in the third volume of the series. But this one is all about the conflict with AJB and the Spider Syndicate and things really come to a head in this one. I think folks will be taken aback because it's very different from the first volume in terms of style and mood but it still keeps a lot of the fun. It will be interesting to see once it comes out how people react to certain things we have in store for the readers.

DAN: This next volume keeps the same heart, but goes in a different direction, at a breakneck speed, so it will be fun to see the reactions it gets. Everyone has their expectations of how it's supposed to be, so it's always fun to turn things on their head a bit. I'm totally not making sense, but you'll see. YOU'LL ALL SEE!!!

It sounds like you might be taking a more serious turn with the upcoming story. Do you find it challenging to go in that direction? The characters and world of the series are so much fun, it would seem to be easy to rely on humor all the time, so is it difficult to keep from doing that? Or am I mischaracterizing what you've got planned?

DAN: The tone of the series does shift, but these are still the same characters, so the humor is inherent to them. In terms of the challenge to go serious, thankfully both Mark and I have other books that sit well in that territory, so it feels natural enough and fits the progression of the AJB story. Mark has had the general map set from the beginning, so we knew what we were headed toward. That said, there are still plenty of laughs and general ridiculousness along the way.

MARK: I think folks knew our beats a lot for writing by this point and caught on to the twist and turns, so it's important to change up the style of storytelling to keep it interesting for the audience and very interesting for us. The next volume feels very epic and more like a feature film. It's a progression of the characters and a fuller story without so much jumping around. So the first volume was many stories that are tied together while pushing forward the plot and then this is a direct build into this where, we're getting fully into THE story and there are no diversions. It's much more moody and Dalton is at the center of this one. But as Dan said, they're still the same characters and people.

Do you guys have any other projects in the works? I know Mark is writing Aqua Leung (which recently saw the release of its first volume) and Dan has one more volume to go on Gyakushu!, but is there anything else coming down the pipe?

MARK: I'm working on too much stuff to keep track of. So even I have trouble with it. On the Amazing Joy Buzzards front, there's MonsterLove that's out in October, then for next Spring, The Amazing Joy Buzzards & Tales from the Bullypulpit will come out, as well as an Amazing Joy Buzzards prequel adventure called "The Tunisian Lava Squirrel".

DAN: Right now I'm focusing on that last volume of Gyakushu! (OH, the epicness!) and the next volume of AJB (OH, the adventure! the excitement! (It's okay, I'm not a jedi)). You'll just have to wait and see after that. YOU'LL ALL HAVE TO WAIT AND...hello? Where'd everyone go?
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Thanks a ton to Mark and Dan for their time, and I encourage everyone to pick up the new book on Wednesday. You won't be sorry!

This week, I won't be reading these comics

I got some interesting stuff coming up on the blog this week (some of which, oddly, doesn't involve me), but for now, here's the regular Monday ritual:

New comics this week (Wednesday, 6/11/08):

Boy Who Made Silence #4

Wow, this series is coming out quickly. I'm glad; it's a fascinating book, even if I don't really understand it. Joshua Hagler puts together some incredible abstract-ish art, and he's developing an interesting story around it. It's certainly like nothing else out there, and that makes me happy.

Charlatan Ball #1

Ooh, this is a good start to the week's list. A new ongoing series from Image by Joe Casey and Andy Suriano, it appears to be a Kirby-esque tale of a magician getting thrown into a world where real magic works, and thus having lots of crazy adventures. I'm excited to see what kind of interesting twists Casey brings to the concept, as he has done in his other Kirby-style series, Godland, and Suriano's art looks pretty incredible (there's also an interview with the creators at that link). I'm all over this one.

Chuck #1

I only watched one episode of this series, and it didn't seem interesting enough to keep following, but apparently it's popular enough to spawn a comics spin-off. Who knows, maybe it'll work better as a comic than as a show. It's a fun concept, and the unlimited budget of comics action and special effects could make for some enjoyable stories. I know nothing about the creators (Peter Johnson writes and Joel Gomez and John Stanisci provide art), but maybe they've got something interesting planned. Or maybe it'll be a bland, boring tie-in to the show. I'll wait and see before spending any money.

Doktor Sleepless #7

I'm either losing interest in this series or not paying enough attention, because I'm having trouble remembering the plot from issue to issue. Didn't the last one have something to do with secret government apocalypse bunkers? I still find it enjoyable enough that I don't think I'll drop the series, but it's kind of near the bottom of my "must have" list if I need to cull my comics spending. Change my mind, Ellis!

Eternals #1

After the disappointing non-ending of Neil Gaiman's resuscitation of Jack Kirby's original ideas, it was only a matter of time before Marvel followed it up with a sequel. But I don't know if nobody wanted to touch it or what, because somehow it got handed to Daniel and Charles Knauf, who haven't done much (that I know of) besides write the regular Iron Man series. Daniel Acuña is providing the art, and he's not a bad artist when it comes to covers and such, but I don't know how well he does with actual storytelling. So, it almost seems destined to fail, doesn't it? But you never know, it might actually be good. I'm supposed to write a review of the issue for Comics Bulletin, but I don't know if I'll have time before tomorrow. I'll let you know.

Golly #1

This looks like an odd concept of a book, about a regular-guy repairman who gets choses as heaven's weapon against demons that invade the earth, or something like that. It's written by Phil Hester, which makes it worth a look, at least. Art is by Brook Turner, with whom I'm not familiar.

Goon #25

Last issue was kind of a fill-in, with a story about the Buzzard encountering a cursed member of the Donner Party (or some analogue thereof), and a non-Powell-written bit of silliness about a portal to hell. Hopefully we'll get back to regular business this month.

Local #12

Whoa, I had no idea the final issue of this series was coming so soon on the heels of the last installment! I've gotten used to waiting six months between issues. I'm excited to check this out and see what Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly have in store for the big finish. Will Megan conquer all her demons and live happily ever after? Probably not, that's silly, but I bet it will be fascinating and touching and emotional and all sorts of good.

Madman Atomic Comics #9

Oh man, please, Mike Allred, please don't make me drop this series. I love Madman, and I want to read good Madman comics, but the series has really gone off the rails as of late. Last issue was an obnoxious recap/origin-rehash, quite similar to the one that kicked off this series. I know you're trying to get new readers on board or something, but I just read all that stuff seven issues earlier. So, please give us a good story or something here. I really don't want to drop the title. Oh well, I guess I'll always have Madman Adventures, Madman Comics, and The Atomics.

Narcopolis #3

This series is late too, isn't it? What's up with Avatar these days? Or is Warren Ellis drinking too much to get his scripts in on time? Oh, wait, this is Jamie Delano. Ellis is only late on Black Summer and Doktor Sleepless. Anyway, I've enjoyed this Orwellian-future series well enough, so I hope the second half of the mini finishes things up satisfyingly. That is all.

Newuniversal Shockfront #2

I succumbed to temptation and ended up getting the first issue of this new miniseries, and I actually thought it was pretty good. There were a few bits that seemed off, like the revelation that the "Justice" character thinks he is dead and in hell, which was never really explained in the first series, as far as I can remember. But I liked it well enough; it's Warren Ellis doing a sci-fi take on superheroes. Let's hope it doesn't go downhill.

Red Mass for Mars #1

New Jonathan Hickman! This one is about, uh, off-planet Catholicism? Nah, just kidding. From the description, it sounds like an ambitious sci-fi story dealing with utopias, dystopias, world(s)-ending threats, etc. I trust Hickman enough to follow him wherever he goes, so I'm all over it. Art by Ryan Bodenheim, and it looks cool. Bring it.

Sky Doll #2

Being the second part of Marvel's version of the sexy, satirical, and, um, shiny French series. I did like the first issue, but I read it for free; I don't know if it was worth six bucks. Maybe I'll pick the whole thing up when it's collected. Lord knows I need more naked sex robots in my life.

Superior Showcase #3

So is this an annual series or something? It's a pamphlet-format spinoff of Adhouse's Project: Superior superhero-themed anthology, and I never did find issue #2, even though it's supposed to be on my pull list. I'll have to make sure I get a copy of this one though, since it's got a new Street Angel story from Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca. There are also stories by Dustin Harbin and Laura Park, and a cover by Roger Langridge. Don't miss it!

Absolute Sandman HC Vol. 3

Giant brick number three of four shows up. I wish I could afford these, because man do they look nice. Uh, not much else to say, I guess, since I don't really need to direct anybody's attention toward the works of Neil Gaiman.

Amazing Joy Buzzards GN VOL 01 Here Come The Spiders

Oh, hell yeah. This is one of my favorite series of the last few years, and this volume collects everything that has already come out (minus some stories from the last couple issues of the second miniseries which featured guest artists), in preparation for a new volume to come this fall. For those who don't know, the series is about a popular rock band who, in addition to enjoying fame and fortune, get in all sorts of crazy adventures involving things like giant monsters, robot vampires, and world-ending threats, accompanied by their magical Mexican wrestler pal. It's written by Mark Andrew Smith (Aqua Leung) and illustrated by Dan Hipp (Gyakushu!), and it's tons of fun, full of goofy jokes, awesome action, and stylish art. I got a sneak peek at this volume, and it's a great-looking book; I highly recommend it if you haven't read it before. And stay tuned to the blog today or tomorrow for a special event involving the series!

American Terror Vol 1 Confession Of A Human Smart Bomb GN

This graphic novel takes place in the peaceful future world of 2041, and it concerns one man's retelling of the wars that brought about that world. I think. It certainly sounds interesting, so I might try to find it and check it out. Here's a preview.

Burnout TPB

The latest Minx book to come down the pike, this one is about a girl who is in love with her step-brother, and gets involved in eco-terrorism, and stuff. It's by Rebecca Donner and Inaki Miranda. Could be good? I'm more interested in Janes in Love or The New York Four.

Eternals by Jack Kirby TPB

Hey, just in time for a late-era bastardization, you can find out what kind of awesomeness Kirby was doing back in the 70s. This is some good stuff, dealing with evolution, the human perception of gods, and, of course, large scale conflicts and crazy Kirby action. It was eventually awkwardly shoehorned into the Marvel universe, but the best stuff is early on, when Kirby just goes nuts with big ideas. Read it.

Freddie & Me Coming Of Age Bohemian Rhapsody TPB

I've seen reviews of this book (an autobiographical story dealing with Queen fandom) popping up around the comics inter-blog-o-net (in fact, keep your eyes peeled for something about it around these parts), and it sounds pretty good. I just might have to read it.

Green Manor Vol 1 Assassins & Gentlemen GN

I probably won't see this book on any shelf anytime soon, but it sounds interesting. It's a European (French?) series about a Victorian-era hideout for murderers and other criminals. It sure looks nice, as you can from the non-English preview pages here; I would love to read it sometime.

Novo Vol 1 Birth Of Novo GN

This appears to be a sci-fi/fantasy book about the adventures of the last survivor of a dead world, the only member of his species. Could be interesting. Here's some pages.

Out Of Picture Vol 2 Art From The Outside Looking In TP

I guess there's already been one volume (the "volume 2" in the title would indicate that, duh) of this series of comics stories by animators from Blue Sky Studios, who produced animated films like Ice Age and Robots. I never read that one, and who knows if I'll ever get to read this one, but it looks nice, so maybe.

Programme Vol 1 TPB

Well, this Peter Milligan-written series has been interesting, but I think I might have to wait until the final issue comes out before I render a verdict on it. It hasn't blown me away, but it's had some good bits. I'm hoping Milligan pulls some sort of craziness out of his ass and blows my mind. But that might be too much to expect. At the very least, it's pretty unique, with an art style (by C.P. Smith) that's different from most superhero books. Is that a recommendation? I dunno.

Robots GN

I hadn't heard of this before, but apparently it's an anthology from the UK about, well, you can probably guess. It features stories by Leah Moore and John Reppion, Mark Buckingham, Kieron Gillen, and Frazier Irving, among others, so it would be worth checking out if I could find it. You can see preview pages at the publisher's site, although I found it kind of hard to navigate.

Silver Surfer In Thy Name TPB

I read the first issue of this miniseries by Simon Spurrier and Tan Eng Huat, and it seemed all right, with nice art and a decent concept. I suppose I could check out the trade, just to see how it turned out, but it's not likely I'll spend the money to do so.

Smuggling Spirits Book 2 GN

I reviewed the first volume of this series from Ambrosia Publishing last September, and I liked it a good deal. So I'll definitely have to check out this concluding book and see how it turns out.

Vinyl Underground Vol.1 Watching The Detectives TPB

Did this series ever get good? I thought it looked interesting, but waited to read reviews before checking it out, and those were almost uniformly negative. I haven't heard anything since; did the book get better? Worse? Stay exactly the same? I guess I'm wondering if it's worth a look, but the deafening silence indicates that it's not.

Gimmick Vol 1 GN

I just finished reading this manga about a makeup and special effects wizard, and it's, well, not terrible. I'll elaborate when I write a review, but that might not be for a while.

Manga Shakespeare Midsummer Nights Dream GN
Manga Shakespeare Tempest GN

So how many "manga" versions of Shakespeare plays are there out there now? This has got to be at least the third set that I've read about over the last six months or so. I don't know if I've heard of Kate Brown, the artist on A Midsummer Night's Dream, but Paul Duffield, artist of the Warren Ellis-written webcomic FreakAngels, is illustrating The Tempest, so that one might be worth checking out.

Yumekui Kenbun Nightmare Inspector Vol 2 TP

Here's another volume that's on my review pile, so I'll be getting to it sooner or later. It's about a guy who exorcises nightmares or something, I think. I dunno, it looks interesting (I guess "interesting" is my favorite word today or something).
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And that's it for this week. Whew. Some good stuff, but unfortunately I won't be able to read any of it for a while, because we're going out of town on vacation for the next couple weeks, so I won't be grabbing stuff from the shop. And I won't be blogging either, but don't worry, I've got plans to keep things going around here. Stick around and find out, but I'm excited for what's coming up.

One-Pound Gospel: Cute nuns make an interesting boxing accessory

Holy cow! The Manga Blitz continues!

One-Pound Gospel, volume 1
By Rumiko Takahashi



Surprisingly, I don't think I've read anything by Rumiko Takahashi before this, although I've seen snippets of the anime versions of Ranma 1/2 and Inuyasha, and I have a bunch of the old pamphlet-format issues of Maison Ikkoku sitting around unread. I don't know what's taken me so long, but there's nothing like a good series that I was previously unaware of to kick-start my interest.

And this one, originally published in 1989, is an excellent example, detailing the travails of Kosaku Hatanaka, a cheerful young boxer who is talented but undisciplined, always struggling to control his raging hunger and stay in his weight class. After a string of defeats caused by him having to resort to laxatives to stay in the target weight, his always-exasperated coach is ready to give up on him, but Sister Angela, a nun at the local Catholic church, has taken a liking to him and encourages him to stick to his regimen and succeed.

The grasp of Catholicism seems a bit shaky, since I don't think nuns take confession, and it amuses me that Angela prays so hard for Kosaku to succeed, as if boxing matches are a big priority for God. But their relationship is quite charming, with Kosaku attracted to her inappropriately:





Oh boy, you could see that coming. Kissing a nun is never a good idea (at least, not this early in the series). But she can't help wanting him to succeed, alternately encouraging him and screaming at him from ringside:



She's actually a bit more interesting of a character (at least so far), since he's mostly just one of those always-cheerful manga protagonists who never gives up, while she struggles with the conflict between her faith and her attraction to him. In one of the best scenes of the book, she goes out drinking with some fellow nuns, then drunkenly confronts some guys from a rival gym when she hears them badmouthing Kosaku:



I love scenes like that; comedy is definitely one of Takahashi's strong points, and she uses it to excellent purpose here, with some goofy slapstick and hilarious facial expressions, like the over-the-top frustration of Kosaku's coach:



I also love the way Kosaku's opponents are all so ridiculously intense, a parody of the Japanese male honor that's been around since at least the era of samurai. Takahashi spoofs that type so well, scenes featuring them can't fail to bring a smile to the face:



And to add to the humor, these overly-honorable athletes usually get a humiliating comeuppance, with Kosaku winning through sheer luck or unconventional fighting. It's incredibly entertaining, and Takahashi makes the variations on the theme and growth of character really enjoyable. And while her art is a bit rougher than that of most modern manga, the fights are easy to follow and wonderfully dynamic:



It really seems like you can feel the blows right alongside the characters. It all makes for a really fun book, and a compelling, if fairly simple, story. I look forward to seeing Takahashi continue to develop the characters; Kosaku can't keep skating along on luck and good intentions forever, can he? Knowing Takahashi's grasp of character development, I expect she has plenty of nice developments in store. I can't wait to find out, and this definitely makes me want to search out and read as much of Takahashi's work as I can get my hands on.

This review was based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher.

Drifting Classroom: In which we learn the origin behind all the screaming

Manga Blitz part 3 (which will be the last one for at least a few days; I got sidetracked in my reading when this week's comics showed up):

The Drifting Classroom, volume 8
By Kazuo Umezu



By this point in Kazuo Umezu's super-crazy series about kids stranded in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, everybody might be suffering from fatigue, including the characters, the readers, and even Umezu himself. At least, that would explain why this is possibly the weakest volume so far (which is not to say that it's actually bad or anything). Or maybe my thought processes have been warped enough by the insanity that I require an escalation each time around and feel some withdrawal when Umezu doesn't deliver it.

But even though the level of craziness is slightly below expectations, there's still plenty of insanity to be had. As we saw last volume, the only surviving adult, the evil Sekiya, had taken over the school, and he immediately sets to accusing Sho of somehow causing the whole catastrophe, getting some students to accuse him:



That doesn't really make any sense, but what does on this series? Maybe Umezu is going to retcon in some tragedy, giving Sho the guilt of causing everyone's troubles and the motivation to lead them to survive as best he can. Or maybe it's a throwaway detail that doesn't mean anything.

Anyway, Sho and his pals end up being confined to a deep hole in the ground and told to dig a well, but they end up finding a tunnel that leads to a subway system, where they find a working train car (!) and stumble across a society of monsters that seem to have mutated from humans (it's likely, since the kids who ate the mushrooms last volume are starting to look like them). They end up witnessing a film strip that the monsters show (using an old school projector, powered by who knows what) that gives a possible explanation for the end of the world. It's a full-on environmental fable, with the polluting humans causing climate change that turns the entire planet into a desert:



There are some interesting bits about humanity's rejection of nature in favor of facsimiles thereof as they isolated themselves itself in cities. It was probably a pretty resonant point in 1960s Japan, as the population became increasingly dense and concentrated in big cities like Tokyo. It makes for a good explanation of the apocalyptic environment, but I like the ambiguity that comes when the monsters (who speak Japanese, but only as a formality, since they communicate telepathically) state that they don't know if the film is a documentation of reality or a work of fiction.

The whole thing is kind of a decrease in energy, but luckily things get exciting again when the kids have to escape from the mutants:



In another resonant bit, the half-mutated students come to their aid, showing that they haven't completely lost their humanity. It's a nicely emotional scene, as these children who seemed lost manage to dredge up some feeling for their fellow students and choose the right path, instead of embracing the dark side of conformity. Who knows if we'll ever see them again, or if they're destined to disappear, half mutated and torn to pieces in a barren future.

As Sho and his gang escape, they end up discovering some more crazy shit, including a pile of mummified bodies and what might be the last surviving human, along with a pool of water that seems like a blessing, until it turns into a vent for a volcanic eruption. The kids have to escape from underground before they're trapped, leading to awesome scenes like this:



Or pseudo-scientific (or childlike, to be more apt) explanations of the happenings:



Or even this bit, in which one of them gets blown out of a tunnel by a sonic shock wave:



Damn, I love that kind of thing. While this volume seems a bit less intense, Umezu can still surprise with some crazy shit. I also love the "rumble" effect he uses on the characters, as if they're vibrating so fast we can't see them clearly. He does some other cool artistic stuff, like the rippling pools of light created by Sho's flashlight:



So while it's not my favorite volume of the series, it's still pretty damn good. I'm especially intrigued by the way the conflict between Sho and his friend Otomo is coming to a head, with the two of them ready to kill each other. That's a fight to the death to look forward to in the next volume, along with whatever other batshit nuttiness Umezu can deliver. I can't wait to find out what he's got in store.

Parasyte: I hope it doesn't become one on my pocketbook

Manga Blitz, part 2:

Parasyte, volume 3
By Hitoshi Iwaaki

So is this kind of a filler volume for the alien-arm series? Sure, there’s at least one cool fight, but the plot doesn’t rush forward as quickly as the first volume, and it’s not as deliciously formula-altering as the second. No, instead it sees a bit of a return to the goofy comedy (and attendant awkward character art) of the first volume, and only a little exploration of the changes that I found so fascinating the last time around. It ended up being somewhat disappointing, but there were still enough moments of interesting boundary pushing that I feel like I'm going to continue to buy it.

I think mostly I like that Iwaaki continues to explore how the eponymous alien parasites work, what different variations on their normal head-replacing modus operandi he can come up with, what their actual purpose is on earth, how humans react to them, and how Shin, our heroic student who might be bonding a little too closely with his own parasite, will relate to them, as well as to the changes going on in his own body.

There are certainly some interesting developments going on, like the Japanese government becoming aware of the alien menace lurking within the populace and trying to figure out what to do about it, or the continuing threat of the female parasite from volume one, who seems to want to test Shin and Migi and learn their capabilities. But the big plot here involves another parasite who poses as a student named Shimada and joins the student body of Shin's school, trying to form some sort of actual friendship with him. Or maybe he's just trying to get close enough for the kill. It makes for an interesting cat-and-mouse game though, and the big, violent finale is pretty awesome. In fact, it's probably the goriest bit of nastiness in the series so far, and it's pretty shocking, even when you're used to monsters slicing off heads like they've been doing for three volumes now.

I'm also liking Shin's continuing character development, as we see him start to lose his humanity while barely even realizing it. There's a great moment early on in which he finds a dog that had been hit by a car and is lying in the middle of the road, dying. He picks it up and holds it while it takes its last breaths, which impresses Murano, his love interest, but as soon as it's dead, he chucks it in a nearby trash can, and when Murano protests, he replies that it's dead, and no longer a dog, just "meat in the shape of a dog." Surprisingly, Migi is the one who questions him on this, saying it sounded like something an inhuman parasite like himself would say. While not even realizing it, Shin is becoming more and more like Migi (and as much as he protests, it seems Migi might be gaining a little bit of humanity). It's moments like this that make the series interesting outside of the action scenes.

Unfortunately, these character bits are often accompanied by some poor character art, and awful "humorous" expressions:



But this weakness becomes a strength when depicting the alien Shimada, who just looks wrong:



It's mostly the eyes, which are either drawn to look like he's got a lazy eye, or are just too far apart. And his weird lack of expression is certainly offputting; Iwaaki really makes him creepy, even before we see him kill anybody. The awkwardness is also effective when we see Shin's "feral" face, which emphasizes his fading humanity:



That's pretty creepy, and I'm sure it's at least half-intentional.

But while he can be awkward with the character stuff, Iwaaki shines when depicting action and freaky monsters. In the climactic action at the end of the volume, a parasite gets wounded and can't shapeshift properly, and Iwaaki makes it look even more weird-looking and gross than these things normally are:



And while I'll avoid spoiling any of the excellent violence, there was one moment that I liked a lot:



I love that use of blood smears to indicate a character being wounded when it shows up in movies, and Iwaaki replicates the motif perfectly. Nicely done.

So, yeah, I wouldn't call this volume a failure or anything, but if it represents what we can expect for the remainder of the series, I don't see myself following it for much longer. The series is at its best when exploring the ideas of the parasitical invasion and going crazy with the action and gore. There wasn't enough of either of those in this volume, and too much of the lame attempts at comedy. More character development (or drama) and less silliness, please. And maybe bring back that guy with the parasite chin; he was funny.

Nana: Rock and roll, cootchie-coo

Ah, something to link to: a review of Haunt of Horror: Lovecraft #1. Good stuff. And now this, from what seems to be becoming a manga blitz of sorts (I'll keep my fingers crossed that it doesn't stall):

Nana, volume 10
By Ai Yazawa



Even though this isn't exactly a quiet volume of the series, it's something of a breather, at least compared to the emotional turmoil (for both the characters and the readers) of the last couple outings. Instead of big, dramatic, angst-filled character developments, we mostly see plain old forward plot movement and quiet revelations about characters major and minor.

Yasu especially seems to get a bit of a spotlight here, as what seemed to be a close friendship with and protectiveness toward Nana turns out to be actual unrequited love, which he knows will likely never be returned due to her relationship with Ren. And this also adds an interesting wrinkle to his relationship with Reira, since he broke up with her by saying he wanted to study law instead of playing music, but we now realize was actually because he loves Nana. And who knows if this revelation will have consequences down the road, or if it is simply a nice moment here. That's what's great about Yazawa's writing: all the characters seem so well-realized, and their web of connectedness leads us and them to realize how small decisions and revelations affect everyone else. It's a bit more dramatic than real life, but it's got enough of a realistic quality that we can easily relate to the characters.

And then there's Hachi and Takumi's relationship, which seemed doomed in the last volume, but gets a bit deeper and sweeter here. While he still seems to take her for granted and act all controlling, we do get to see the facade peel back a bit and reveal his affection for her and his excitement about their baby (what's the statute of limitations on spoilers from volume 8? I think I'll wait another volume or two before I start cavalierly mentioning stuff from that volume's big twist. Anyway, you can highlight that last bit of inviso-text to reveal said spoilers). And Hachi is really starting to love him, but how much of that is still based on his fame and image? Is she just trying to convince herself that she loves him in order to make the best of her situation? She is prone to that sort of activity, dating all the way back to that pedophile businessman she dated before the series even started. But whatever the case (and I will certainly enjoy seeing how it all plays out in the future), Yazawa isn't taking the easy way out and making Takumi a hissable bad guy. She's deepening their relationship, which will make for more drama if it ends up falling apart. Damn, she knows what she's doing.

But no, the big events here aren't personal, they're professional (although in the music business, those two often get enmeshed, don't they?). A small slip-up on Ren and Nana's part leads to the paparazzi getting photos of the two of them together, splashing their relationship all over the tabloids and inadvertently kick-starting Blast's major-label debut. Or is it inadvertent? There are hints that higher-ups in their record label masterminded the whole scandal as a means to get people interested in the band, and that leads to some interesting quandaries about the mixture of art and commerce. Nana and the guys want to become famous, but is it right to piggyback on Trapnest's popularity? Shouldn't they be able to make their name by themselves? Or should they take advantage of the situation into which they've been thrust, and make the best of things, showing that they deserve acclaim and aren't just riding their more famous friends' coattails?

And in the midst of all this, I'm loving the character moments and fun details that Yazawa includes throughout the volume, like Yasu punching out a tabloid reporter who is harassing Nana:



Or Nana making a public promise to Hachi:



And Yazawa really makes it fun to read, having the cast engage in goofy repartee and adding funny little details into the art, like this bit in which Shin has trouble using chopsticks:



And that last panel makes me laugh, since it features that flowery philosophizing and descriptiveness that often shows up in Japanese works. Here's another example, which I think is a great thing to yell at people when you're angry:



And as you can tell from these samples, Yazawa is a really good artist, varying from cartoony stylizations to beautiful emotional imagery and wonderfully evocative expressions of emotion. I did want to point out one thing I noticed:



That's a scene with Hachi, her sister, and their mother. I was really impressed at how well Yazawa makes these characters all look like they're related, without just drawing basically the same face on all three of them. The sister looks like an older, more domesticated (i.e. plump) version of Hachi, and the mother looks like an older version of that. It's fascinatingly subtle, and just one tiny example of Yazawa's artistic excellence.

So, yeah, it's another great volume of one of my favorite series. Are things settling down after the big shakeups, or will more dramatic rumblings continue to develop? I can't wait to find out.

This week, I get my fable on

Still nothing much anywhere else. I'm all about my own territory, baby! I suppose I could talk about the crazy fucking movie I saw last night, but I'll just say, if you like weird shit, and you can tolerate incest, necrophilia, and lactation, check out Takashi Miike's Visitor Q. It's totally nuts. Anyway, here's my usual thing:

New comics this week (Wednesday, 6/4/08):

American Splendor Season Two #3

All right, more from good old Harv. Last issue was okay, although I don't know if there were any real standouts. Maybe the one about his cats. This issue features Darwyn Cooke (who contributes a nice cover), Rick Geary, Warren Pleece, and others (including Dean Haspiel, as always). Good times.

Angry Youth Comix #14

I don't think my shop gets this title in, but I would probably buy it if it did, because Johnny Ryan is always hilarious, in an incredibly offensive manner. I don't know how he does it, but somehow he always manages to go farther than you think is possible, and it's ridiculously funny. Maybe I should add it to my pull list...

Astonishing X-Men Sketchbook

Looks like this is a promo for the upcoming Warren Ellis/Simone Bianchi run on the title, which has been patiently waiting in the wings while Joss Whedon and John Cassaday ever-so-slowly finished their tenure. They finally wrapped it up last week (it was pretty good, even if I'm souring on X-related stories), so now everybody can finally move on. I won't be joining, but I suppose I could pick up a trade if I hear good things. I do like Ellis, so who knows, maybe he'll do something awesome.

Batman Death Mask #3

I've been enjoying this manga take on Batman, just for its fairly unique nature, at least compared to the type of Bat-stories that we usually see. Last issue was all flashback to Bruce Wayne's karate training in Japan, so now we can get back to the demons and the facial removal. And the angst. Always the angst.

Boys #19

Man, this book just keeps plugging along, coming out regularly with only a few people even noticing (or so it seems to me). It's been quite good lately, and this next arc promises to reveal the teams sordid past, or something. I expect plenty of Ennis violence and tasteless jokes. Don't let me down, Garth!

Criminal Vol 2 #3

Man, how good has the relaunch of this title been? I'll answer that: really fucking good. It's really one of the very best monthly comics coming out at the moment. Just plain excellent crime stories featuring broken people screwing each other over. That's something to cherish. This issue wraps up the interconnected "storyline" that's been running, and next time we'll get to another big arc. Keep up the good work, Brubaker and Phillips! I don't want this to ever end.

Duo Stars #1

New Ashley Wood, on a non-zombie title! There are still robots though, in the form of Transformer-like street-racing cars, or something like that. Wood is an artist I'll buy just about anything by, so I'll be getting it. I hope I'm not disappointed, but that's unlikely, since it will surely feature some incredible artwork and pretty girls. Don't let me down, Ash!

Haunt of Horror Lovecraft #1

Richard Corben delivers some more Marvel MAX horror, adapting some of H.P. Lovecraft's stories and poems to comics form. I should have a review of the issue up at Comics Bulletin tomorrow, but I'll say that if you like Corben, you should be happy. I hope. I know I was.

House of Mystery #2

I dug the first issue of this series (sorry, Tucker!), so I'm on board for now. This issue features more advancement of the regular story, plus a short by Jill Thompson. I doubt it will creep me out as much as the one Ross Campbell did last time, but we'll see.

Invincible Iron Man #2

More of that Matt Fraction armor-related stuff. I liked the first one well enough. Looks like it should be a pretty good series.

Trinity #1

Not that I really care, but here's the debut of the new weekly series from Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley, featuring Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman doing something or other. Hopefully not just sitting around a table and looking at polaroids. That's some boring shit right there.

Scream Queen #1

From Boom!, it's a horror story about a monster that falls in love with a prom queen, I think. Eh, could be fun. It's written by Brendan Hay, as staff writer for The Daily Show, so maybe that means it will be funny. Maybe? You never know how these things will turn out.

Ultimate Origins #1

Marvel's Ultimate universe jumps the shark (probably for the fourth time now, at least), with a new series by Brian Michael Bendis and Jackson Guice about the conspiracies behind everything and shit. Here's a hint: everything involves Wolverine. Surprise, surprise, am I right?

Complete Jack Kirby Vol 4 1947B TP

I would love to check some of these books out sometime, even if the early Kirby stuff isn't as good as he was in the 60s and 70s (in my opinion). This volume features plenty of romance and crime stories, and who knows what else. Gotta love the Kirby.

Cory Doctorows Futuristic Tales of the Here and Now HC

Here's the hardcover collection of the kind of middling adaptations of Doctorow's fiction. I thought one of the issues was quite good, and the others I read were not terrible, but not great either. Doctorow has said that the volume will be made available for free download, since he releases all his works under Creative Commons licenses, but I can't find any information about where to get it, so I guess it's not out there yet. I'll be sure to link to it once it's available.

Essential Fantastic Four Vol. 1 New Printing

Speaking of Kirby, here's a reprint of the beginning of one of his best and most famous series. I've read a bunch of these, and the first seven or eight issues are pretty rough, but it gets really enjoyable after that, once Lee and Kirby really figured out what they were doing. I mean, check this craziness out (that was one of my very first blog posts, and I still think there are some good jokes in there). So, yeah, good stuff. Read it if you haven't before.

Fables Vol. 10

Ooh, here's the thing I'm most excited about this week. I love this series, and I can't wait to read this latest volume, which involves poor, tragic Ambrose, who will probably have something terrible happen to him. Man, I hope he doesn't die...

Infinity Inc vol. 1

I considered checking this series out, just because Peter Milligan is the writer, and he can be really good. I haven't heard too much about it (although Jog seems to think it's decent), and it's getting canceled soon anyway, so maybe I'll end up reading it sometime. Yay, enthusiasm!

Lobster Johnson vol. 1

Another one that I might try to read at some point. I believe it involves World War II shenanigans by the titular crustacean-themed superhero, who is somehow involved with Hellboy and company (I'm not very up on the whole Mignola-verse). I dunno, Tucker Stone didn't think too highly of it, but Jog said it was good. Conundrum!

Monster Zoo

New Doug TenNapel! It's about a boy and a zoo full of monsters, I guess. Man, I'm amazing with the informational capabilities. I like TenNapel's art a whole lot (here's what I thought about some of his other stuff), even if I sometimes dislike his religious views, so I'll definitely check this out. I bet it'll be good.

Tales from the Starlight Drive In

Apparently, this anthology of stories written by Michael San Giacomo was supposed to be published by Speakeasy back in 2006, but that company went under, and the book is only now hitting shelves. It features 22 different artists illustrating tales centering around the titular movie theater. It might be good, or maybe now. But it's obviously a labor of love, so I expect it will be worth a look.

Tom Strong vol. 6

The final volume of Alan Moore and Chris Sprouse's ABC series. I never really got into Tom Strong, but what I read wasn't bad. I liked Promethea and Top 10 a lot better, really. But this ties into the end of Promethea, so while I won't buy it, I could get it from the library or something, just to see what happens.

Wormwood Calamari Rising

Man, I haven't even picked up the second volume of this super-cool Ben Templesmith series yet, and here's the third collection already out. I have to get off my ass and buy that thing; I need to experience more weird demons and tentacles and shit.

Honey & Clover Vol 2 GN

Ooh! Get this, if you want good manga! I love this series. Read it!

MPD-PSYCHO Vol 5 TP

I've read the first three volumes of this (why I didn't review the second or third ones, I don't know), and it's pretty enjoyable, in a gross-out/big-action sort of way. I still need to get volume 4, but I'm sure I'll make my way to this one eventually.

Okami Official Complete Works TP

This isn't really comics, but it's a translation of a Japanese artbook related to one of my favorite video games ever, so I might have to buy it, or at least flip through it in a bookstore. Here's my review of the game, if you're interested.

Rosario + Vampire Vol 1 GN

Finally, here's a manga that might not be that great (I think it involves vampires in high school or something), but I've got a review copy sitting at home, so I'll probably end up posting about it at some point. Just a heads-up, I guess.
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And I think that's everything. Whew. Okay, back to work.

Ayre Force: Oh, to be rich and self-important

Do I have anything up at the other site? I don't think so. I was supposed to write something about the latest issue of Northlanders, but I guess I flaked out on that one. Sorry, fellas. Anyway, here's this odd thing:

Ayre Force
Written by Adam Slutsky and Joseph Phillip Illidge
Art by Shawn Martinbrough



I don't think I had ever heard of Calvin Ayre before receiving this book to review, but apparently he's a big deal in the world of online gambling, having founded a company called Bodog Entertainment Group, which runs a major online poker site, and also owns a music label and sponsors mixed martial arts fighters. So, being a billionaire with money to burn (outside of his charity work), he has created and published this graphic novel, featuring himself as a badass action hero who rights wrongs across the world, leading a team composed of various Bodog personalities like poker players, recording artists, and MMA fighters.

Writers Slutsky and Illidge have done a decent job of turning these personalities into action stars, making Ayre over as a government mercenary turned "crusader for human and animal rights" who operates the whole Bodog company as a (highly profitable) facade to distract his enemies. They've also grafted exciting backstories onto the various team members, painting them as things like badass bounty hunters or exotic jewel thieves who were called up by Ayre to join his forces of good. And there's also the evil Janus Winter, a ponytailed rich douchebag/low-rent James Bond villain who performs lots of genetic experiments and whatnot while acting as a pharmaceutical magnate. Hey, sounds like it could be fun, right?

Well, it is, kind of. I can't fault Ayre for wanting to turn himself into an action hero; that would be a pretty cool thing to do if I had the money for it. And he does work real-world concerns into the story; the mission that kicks off the book sees his men shutting down an illegal bear bile farming operation. Initially, I thought bear bile farming was an exotic-sounding made-up practice, but it turns out it's all too real, and it's something Ayre's foundation crusades against. So good on him for getting the word out about it.

No, the real problem here is that the plot moves kind of overly fast, never really fleshing out any of the characters beyond them all being badasses. There are a few inspired touches, like Winter's evil "children", who have DNA spliced with animals, giving them the abilities to morph into a lion, run super-fast like a cheetah, or become invisible, chameleon-style. Sure, that's ridiculous, but I don't call for absolute realism in my action stories. It is nice to have relatable characters though, and aside from Ayre himself (who gets the most panel-time but still comes off as a cipher, with even "Calvin Ayre" being a pseudonym) and maybe his assistant, Fawn LaBrie, they're all just tough guys devoid of personalities.

And unfortunately, while Martinbrough's art is often nicely moody and full of noir-style shadows, I often had trouble distinguishing some of the characters from each other, and some "cool" poses occasionally came off as unintentionally amusing:



And many of the action sequences seemed kind of choppy and hard to follow. Early on, the team gets to do the bit where they have to clear a runway so Ayre's plane can take off. This climaxes in an exploding tanker truck, which the plane just barely clears. The problem is, before that panel, there was little indication that the plane had even started moving down the runway. Elsewhere, we see Ayre recruiting one of his operatives, a bounty hunter that is confronting a white-slavery ringleader in a grungy Southwestern bar:



In that scene, is he beating up one bandanna-wearing henchman, or several? It looks like the same guy in each panel, but earlier we saw that the bar was full of bad guys, so maybe he's supposed to be kicking all their asses. It's hard to tell, and thus distracting.

So, I don't know, I don't think I can really recommend the book, unless you're a big poker fan or something and have a liking for these characters in real life. I would have loved to see what somebody like Matt Fraction or Ed Brubaker or Warren Ellis could have done with the concept, but as it is, it's just not really unique, innovative, or entertaining enough to keep my interest. It's not terrible or anything, just kind of mediocre. And with all the stellar comics out there, mediocre just isn't good enough. Maybe next time.

This review was based on a complimentary comic provided by the publisher.