Browse by page:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Reviews on this page:
More MF.com Reviews
Pulp Fiction
Science Fiction
Non-Fiction
Soldier Tales #1
by Tom Vutayon
Soldier Tales consists of two stories written and drawn by an ambitious small press comic creator named Tom Vutayon. Both stories are continued but the book includes at least twenty pages of each to ensure both get off to a great start. The tales feature the Sunsaints, a group of warriors who protect their world from evil. The first story, Within and Without, is set in a medieval sort of place with swords and sorcery. Vutayon has given the development of this world a great deal of thought, inventing kingdoms, history, and culture that help move the adventure forward.
However, my favorite of the two is The Sun Saints, set in a modern world, epochs from the first. With less orientation required to understand the setting Vutayon launches into the action immediately resulting in a more exciting, faster paced yarn.
Vutayon uses a variety of techniques on the artwork. Some pages look like pen and ink, some pencil or charcoal, and others appear to be painted or filled in with oil-based crayons. The black-and-white printing helps keep the varied textures and media from being a distraction and Vutayon has taken care to transition one style to the next. In fact, it's a pleasure to see such free-flowing experimentation with the visuals. Just the sort of thing that makes small press comics such an exciting medium.
All said, this is an ambitious storytelling effort. The size of the stories and relatively low production values of this single issue seem to suggest there are plans for a perfect bound collection someday. But for now, Soldier Tales #1 is 42 b&w pages, plus cover. The book is 7" x 8.5" with groups of printing signatures stapled together. It's available for $4 (plus $2 postage) from Tom Vudtiyanon, 1023 E. Wabash, Spokane, WA 99207.
Playing the Sims
by Daniel Nauenburg
In Playing the Sims writer and artist Daniel Nauenburg takes a stereotypical gamer and pushes him over-the-top. Sid Cellulite is vastly under-motivated, addicted to "dew", and about to be evicted. Luckily, he spots a Sims contest worth a cool grand at the corner convenience store that'll be child's play for a caricature of his ample capacity.
The ensuing 24-hour marathon is a hilarious send-up in which Sid battles one crisis after another in his quest to successfully reach the next level. The writing is filled with clever bits and fast-paced patter as Sid talks himself through each challenge. But the real star of the book is the artwork. Nauenburg skillfully stretches and contorts Sid's massive bulk in one antic panel after another. The ones that reveal the cavernous depths of his mouth are particularly funny. Yet despite all the distentions and twists Nauenburg still manages to convey the character's heft in every panel. Like the hippo ballet in Fantasia, it's a visual treat.
Nauenberg is also the webmaster for the Small Press Syndicate. The SPS is a group of Small Press writers, artists and publishers who've banded together to support each other's creative efforts and promote the art of self-published comics. Membership is open to anyone who creates their own comics. Members receive the club newsletter and are encouraged to contribute columns and artwork to it. They can also participate in comic jams and trade their books with other members.
Playing the Sims is 28 b&w pages, plus a color cover. 6.5" x 10.25", POD, with saddle-stitch binding. It's published by Nauenberg's Fictar Graphics and available for $3 from the Fictar Graphics Shop.
For another review of Playing the Sims see Matt Levin's at Comic Related.
Lump of Coal #2
by Art Explorer Post 407
If your Christmas lights are still up in February this may be just the mini comic you need to get you through March.
Lump of Coal is a comic anthology produced by the Art Explorer Post 407 in December of 2008. The 407 is an organization that provides young people (ages 14 and up) an opportunity to explore careers in the field of art. The group is affiliated with Learning for Life—Exploring and sponsored by the Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD).
Their latest zine showcases the work of over a dozen budding cartoonists in one- to three-page comics. There are too many contributors to include sample panels from each of them, but the cover jam provides one character each from many of the comics inside. All of the stories and gags are Christmas-related and it's fun to see the perspective, influences, and energy each of the contributors brings to the party.
Lump of Coal #2 is 32 b&w pages, plus a full color cover. The book is 5.5" x 4.25" with saddle-stitch binding. Although the format is landscape, the comics inside are about 50/50 portrait and landscape orientation. This mini comic goes for $1.50 through Bob Corby's Back Porch Comics and includes a two-page comic by him. You can also order other Post 407 projects from him like Untitled. For more samples and news about comics by Post 407 check on their page on ComicSpace.
Top
Tiki Joe Mysteries
by Mark Murphy
This graphic novel contains two stories. The first, shorter tale serves as an introduction to the series while the second, High-Stakes Patsy is a full-blown crime adventure story.
Joe Halliday owns a tiki bar in Vegas. A WWII veteran, Tiki Joe knows his way around fists, firearms, and fights. In fact, all his ex-military pals do too. One is "Mr. Fix-it", one is all muscle, and one is a crack shot with any weapon. When not fighting criminals, they make up the bar's tiki band. Joe has a serious but somewhat mysterious relationship with a sexy blonde named Samantha, or Sam for short. The series is set in 1959. It's a sizzling cocktail of Vegas cool and crime noir.
Oh, for the good old days. At Tiki Joe's the morality is as sharply drawn as the shadows cast by a full moon on a desert night. Think Brat Pack as vigilantes with a tiki twist.
Murphy's artwork is a pure joy to peruse. He's captured classic noir in beautifully stark black-and-white, with little or no gray in-between. His layouts are nicely varied emphasizing long shots that give the stories just the right feeling of formality and distance for this ultra cool pack of paladins.
The stories are fast paced, well-plotted and fun to read. I only wish the characters had a little more depth. A peek beneath Joe's icy cool persona would add an emotional connection to what is otherwise an outstanding noir joy ride. I'm ready for another.
Tiki Joe Mysteries is a 5.5" x 8.5", perfect bound, comic book published by Slave Labor Graphics. The High-Stakes Pasty was inked by Jeff Smith. Retail price: $9.95. Available from Last Gasp and other comic sellers. Check out Tiki Joe Mysteries for lots of goodies.
HomoBody #4
by Rio Safari
This self-published comic takes a light-hearted look at the gay experience through a series of gag cartoons and short comics. The main themes are thumbing your nose at intolerance and celebrating gay sexuality. The narrative and gags are filled with exuberance and sarcasm with a touch of righteous indignation woven into the mix.
Safari is a good gag writer and cartoonist. Most of his work in this issue consists of sketches, gags, and one or two page comics. It would be fun to see him tackle something longer with more of a story.
HomoBody #4 is 16 b&w pages, plus cover. The book is 5.5" x 8.5" and looks as if it's printed on a laser printer and hand-stapled. It's available for $1.50 or trade directly from the artist at his website.
The Rivers and the Sea by Sophie and Celso
This ongoing paradoxical series is inspired by biblical parables and poems like the story of Jonah and the Whale and The Thunder, Perfect Mind. In book one, a succession of nymphs emerge from the mountains. When one falls incapacitated, another dreams of tragedy until her tears spill down and revive her sister. Suddenly the series' guide appears, emerging from the mouth of a large fish swimming in the river Perat. She takes us downstream to a band of Jews who lament their homeless state in song.
Celso joins Sophie for book two where our guide meets Jonah in the abyss. In this case the abyss is depicted in a series of striking pages with images of deep sea creatures so far below the surface they've never seen the light of day. When Janah awakes, the nymph comforts and warms him with her caress and then slips away while he sleeps. Her visit moves him to reconsider his anger with God. The book closes as our guide recites portions of The Thunder, Perfect Mind with a few titillating additions of her own.
Sophie frames this ambitious series as a visionary erotic epic. The writing is filled with rich phrasing and inventive concepts. The ideas presented are open to the reader's interpretation. The artwork is simple and stylized. It's wavy lines flow seamlessly from the rivers and seas into the landscapes. The shading resembles a woodcut style, which complements the symbolic, lofty prose nicely.
Both volumes of The Rivers and the Sea are printed on heavy colored paper in black ink. The printing is very crisp, even the thinnest lines of the deep sea creatures are reversed clearly against a sea of saturated black. The books are handmade. The pages are slightly misaligned, but in this case the handmade feel adds more to the package than it detracts. Just be careful not to skip a page by mistake as you turn the pages. Book one is 36 pages (with cover) and book two is 44. Both are intended for adults only. They're available for $2 each from:
Sophie & Celso
3423 N. Commercial Ave.
Portland, OR 97227
Infandum! #3
by Molly Lawless
This self-published comic is packed with one-pagers that cover a wide variety of subject matter. Its letter-size pages offer more space than many other small press comics and Lawless puts the extra real estate to good use. Her eight pages of comics here would occupy sixteen pages of a digest-sized book. Her cartoons are skillfully drawn, most with the detailed crosshatching she uses on the cover.
The comics are Rules of Romance (written by Carlton King), Great Moments in Baseball (two episodes), Repressed Memory Theatre, My Health Regimen (two episodes), Why Do We Read US Weekly?, and Beers with the Boringtons. It's a nice mix of autobio, baseball history, and lite social commentary. The writing is lively, engaging, and funny.
Infandum! #3 is twelve b&w pages, including the self-cover. It's available for $2 from Lawless. Just send her an email. Her contact info is listed on her website Hooray for Mollywood!
Papercutter #8 edited by Greg Means
The eighth issue of this artsy comic anthology is another solid addition to its run. The lead story, Growing Up Haunted by Corinne Mucha, is part memoir, part illustrated essay about the childhood horrors of monsters under the bed or inside the bedroom closet. Mucha's meandering narrative recounts key moments with parents, witches, spirits, and an energy healer. This could be routine material, but Mucha enchants her readers with a charming caldron of nostalgia and humor laced with moments of perilous doubt. After a thorough examination of the victim she releases her to the world with a warning that side effects may linger.
Elijah Brubaker, the man behind Reich, contributes a funny two-pager about High School. A couple of classroom outcasts discuss the state of education from the back row.
The final entry, Pete at Night, is from Jeremy Tinder. With elements of night life, genies, and the solitary life of the writer, this humorous fairy tale was unpredictable and entertaining.
Papercutter #8 is 28 b&w pages, plus a color cover. As usually, the production and printing of this book is outstanding. The inside front cover features an illustration by Nate Beaty. The front cover is by Corinne Mucha and the back cover is by Jeremy Tinder. It's available for $4 from Atomic Books. Other relevant websites include Tugboat Press, Corinne Mucha, Elijah Brubaker, Jeremy Tinder, and Nate Beaty.
Good Minnesotan #3
edited by Raighne & Meghan Hogan
It's fun to see a title grow and improve over time. The third episode of this comic art compendium is the most ambitious and diverse yet. The production values and perfect binding are also nice improvements over the previous issue.
Most of the contributors are based in Minnesota or have roots there. The emphasis is on experimentation with the medium through presentation, storytelling, and/or artwork. This issue provides a good mix of all three as well as stories of varying lengths. Here's a quick overview of the contents:
Squid Has an Idea by Noah Harmon. This one-pager is a humorous musing that attempts to clear the waters when a cephalopod is suddenly struck by inspiration.
It's Much Worse by Toby Jones (guest drawings by Madeline Queripel). This five-page story looks like an embellished autobiographical adventure. Toby's house is invaded by rats. He tries to share the living space, but when they start eating his food and destroying his property he decides they've poisoned the tenuous relationship for good.
One Year Anniversary by Madeline Queripel. In this one-pager a young woman and man exchange impressions, hidden messages, and innuendoes through a series of emotional encounters.
You are the Great Horned Owl by Meghan Hogan. This five-pager is the beginning of a new ongoing series for GM. It began as a memorable biology assignment that Hogan is recreating in words and pictures. The story flows through the night skies like the calligraphy inscribed across the painted panels of this beautifully rendered art comic.
Sex Box by Justin Skarhus and Raighne Hogan. Skarhus' script and Hogan's artwork are nicely synched to depict the gritty side of neighbors, roommates and shared housing. This humorous ten-pager is loaded with bodily functions and sexual encounters that mostly take place off-panel.
Fuckleberry Hinn by John and Luke Holden. The main character in this 21-page comic is such an expert loser, he's funny. He can't really take care of himself, so it's not surprising when he's canned from his caregiver job at a group home. (Lucky break for the residents.) He tries to leech his way through the next few days as he annoys friends and strangers alike.
Polaroids by Ed Moorman. This five-pager is a short memoir of one fourth of July in Minneapolis. (It can be read online here.)
Tiny Dreams by Abby Mullen. Another five-pager—this one explores the call of adventure and the appeal of the road hinted at in the previous comic by Moorman.
To Take Back by Anna Bongiovanni. A two-page wordless comic stuffed with beautifully rendered images of dark humor.
My Town and Nicholas Breutzman. This 18-page story was my favorite in this issue. It's well rendered and Breutzman creates some really interesting and fun visuals by integrating the words and pictures of this humorous tour of his hometown. Breutzman also contributed the covers. (You can see the front cover in black-and-white here.)
Why Won't She Call? by Reynold Kissling. Although his story is only three pages, Kissling does a nice job portraying the multiple emotions of waiting for that special someone to call. It's poignant and funny too. (It can be read online here.)
The Shriner by Danno Klonowski. This six-page frenzied episode is a fitting finale to GM #3. The Shriner is totally out of control as he cuts a path through town mouthing off his whacked out wisdom.
Good Minnesotan Episode #3 is 104 b&w pages with a full color cover. 7" x 8.5" with perfect binding. It's available for $12 from the Poopsheet Shop and 2D Cloud Shop. For GM news and updates see their blog. Adults only.
King-Cat Comics and Stories #69 by John Porcellino
This long running small press comic zine is always a pleasure to read. The stories are most often based on moments from Porcellino's life and his musings about them. Porcellino brings honesty, humility, and real insight into his arty comic stories. His writing is poetic and literary, warm and engaging. After a few issues you begin to feel as if you know him as he shares significant events and observations about his life.
A lifelong cat fancier, this issue chronicles the arrival of "the Skweezil sisters", Liz and Charlie, Porcellino's new cats. Maisie, his cat of sixteen years passed away over a year ago. In a series of stories he depicts not only the search and selection process of finding a new pet, but also the sort of mental dance one does to move on and invite a new furry friend into your life.
Being that cats are such a big part of Porcellino's life, the comics with Liz and Charlie are the centerpiece of the issue. But there are several others that offer news of other events in the author's life and his powerful connection to nature. There's also an entertaining recollection about his Metal Years in college.
Music is also featured in The King-Cat's Top Forty list for the period, as well as a special Mid-Life Crisis top 40.
Several King-Cat readers and friends share their stories and insights through the substantial three-page letters column.
The issue ends with a sense of resigned whimsy as Porcellino confronts a receding hairline in one story and a feline version of forming, storming, and norming in another.
King-Cat #69 is 28 b&w pages, plus heavy-weight cover. Letter-size paper, folded to digest-size, with saddle-stitch binding. It's available for $3 from the Poopsheet Shop. For a long list of stores that carry King-Cat see the Links page on his website.
Mini Comic Reviews
Send your mini comix and small press efforts to Midnight Fiction for review. Be sure to include cost, information on how to order, and permission to use the cover or a panel or two in the review.
Send to:
Midnight Fiction
6327 SW Capitol Hwy.
Suite C, #293
Portland, OR 97239
Check the review queue in the right sidebar on the Review Index page. Books are reviewed in the order they arrive.
Other Reviews Sites
Kevin Bramer
Jack Cheiky
Nat Cook
Daily CrossHatch
Allen Freeman
Larned Justin
Shannon Smith
Silver Bullet Comics
Tom Spurgeon
Stumptown Trade Rev.
Syndicated Zines Revs.
Brendan Wright
Review Zines
Comic Fan
Xerographic Debt
Zine World