Patrick Shand's Writerly Writings

REVIEW: Vowels by Skye Ogden

I recently had the chance to read and review a graphic novel called VOWELS by Skye Ogden. It was my first time reading a book from Gestalt Comics, and it surely won’t be my last, not only because of how interesting their other books look, but because of how damn good Vowels was.

This book came out in 2007 and managed to pass me by until now. It’s a completely “silent” graphic novel, and it pulls the wordlessness off by distilling its images gracefully into visually uncomplicated but morally complex images of humor, connection, tragedy, and hope. The characters are anthropomorphic non-humans that have quite a lot in common with our society and history. The narrative follows them through different time periods and bookends stories of heartbreak with basic but visceral tales of predators and prey, and the “humans” involved in these roles are never simplified.

It evokes A Contract with God in tone and, oddly enough, Goodbye Chunky Rice in style, but never copies either. Writer/artist Skye Ogden has a startlingly original voice (a bit ironic for a wordless book) and Vowels is a true vision. Fans of Top Shelf and Fantagraphics would do well to pay attention to Gestalt Comics, because if this book is any indication of the rest of their catalogue, they are preparing to inject a dose of much needed originality into the comics industry.

-Patrick Shand  

Hiatus

So, I’m taking a hiatus from Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Blogger, and whatever other social networking thingers I do for some reason. I’ve got writerly deadlines during finals week, so I’m going cold turkey to prevent myself from getting all distracted. I’ll be back Saturday, May 12th!

Zenescope’s Kickstarter - GRIMM FAIRY TALES

It’s the eleventh hour. Four days left until Zenescope’s Grimm Fairy Tales: The Animated Series Kickstarter is either funded or not funded. The goal is $175,000 and they’re currently at $148,573. That’s a giant number, but it needs to be a bit beefier before this project gets greenlit. Take a second to click on the link and read up on it.

All caught up? Good.

Okay, so I know what you’re thinking. Of course I’m saying support the Zenescope Kickstarter. Zenescope pays me to write comic books that I’d be reading even if I were involved in the process at all. I will say this, though - I am not even slightly involved in the Grimm Fairy Tales Animated Series project. I found out about it when you did. I donated my money and I have been promoting it because I want it to happen. It’s a show I want to see. It’s good for Grimm Fairy Tales as a series. It’s good for Zenescope.

It’s good for independent comics.

If people watch and like the series, they’ll seek out the comics. They’ll go into the comic shop specifically for non-Big Two titles - and that’s what initially brought me into the shop. Looking for Angel comics from IDW. Now, my pull list has grown and I make it a point to support indie comics over and above all else. I believe this series will get more people into the comic shop the same way The Walking Dead has, and I like that. I like that as a comic book writer and I love that as a comic book fan.

So if you have a few extra dollars, consider throwing it toward this Kickstarter.

If you have $100 and choose to send it toward the Kickstarter, I will send you a signed copy of every Zenescope comic I do this year, starting in June. I’ve already got a bunch on deck. I’ll offer this to five people who support the Kickstarter with new donations of $100 or more. You can message me on Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, or Blogger. Send me a screenshot of your Kickstarter confirmation, and we’ll start talking!*

*This is in addition to the rewards that Zenescope itself offers.

Grimm 52, Raven Gregory in Wonderland, and GFT: April Fools 2012

So, Zenescope and I got all April Foolsey this week. They leaked two of the pin-ups that I co-created from this week’s Grimm Fairy Tales: April Fools edition 2012.

The first was the announcement of the latest crossover: THE GRIMM 52

This pin-up was written by me and drawn by Sarah ‘Pickles’ Dill, with whom I’m also working on an all ages graphic novel called Thomasina’s Human Zoo. The best part of this joke was how serious some GFT fans took this. A few posters expressed outrage that we were copying DC’s famous New 52 reboot. Personally, I thought the titles were enough to give the “it’s a joke” clue, but I’m glad this one punk’d a few folks.

That said, I really want to write Sela Reading Bedtime Stories in Her Nightie. Sounds like it’ll be a compelling story.

And then, they posted this (all over, which was awesome):

Wonderland writer Raven Gregory and cover artist Eric Basaldua get sucked into a world of their own creation. My Blood Pong collaborators Ian McGinty (line work) and Javier Reyes (coloring) brought this wonky idea of mine to life, and… well, I want this on my wall forever. Raven put it up as his profile picture anyway, so that was pretty cool.

Both of these pin-ups will be featured in tomorrow’s GRIMM FAIRY TALES: APRIL FOOLS EDITION 2012. You can find it in your local comic shop and find it there, or you can order it right here:

DIGITALLY (already available!).

SHIP TO HOME.

Or, you can head to www.zenescope.com tomorrow and buy the exclusive Pinocchio cover by Eric Basaldua.

Hope you guys dig the issue. All of the tales were co-written with Ralph Tedesco, who also wrote the plot for my GFT: Holiday edition. Let me know what you think!

I’m not dead -

- I’ve just had a lot of writing and a lot of grading. In the meantime, I have a comic coming out in nine days! A post about that is coming soon.

Incoherent Rambling about SAGA #1

A few hours or so ago, I finished reading the first issue of Brian K. Vaughan’s new series, Saga. He co-created it with Fiona Staples, who always does great work… but if I’m being honest here, I showed up to the party primarily for BKV. I often go back and forth about who my absolutely favorite comic book writer is, and I almost always settle on either Brian K. Vaughan or Alan Moore. Nick Spencer, Scott Snyder, Brian Lynch, Joss Whedon - they’re all up there, for sure, but BKV’s work on Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina, and Runaways has completely changed the way I look at comics as a medium and perhaps even the way I look at storytelling. BKV is a master, and this is the first time that I’ve had the privilege of following one of his comics from the first issue on the day of its release.

Saga gets off to a great start. Perhaps the best start of all of BKV’s series. While his other series often take a few issues to fully live up to their premise, I’m already invested in the strange characters that populate the world(s) that BKV and Staples have created. The seeds of many interesting ideas have been planted, and a lot of it hits home in really weird ways because I’m working on a book called Roadkill with Ian McGinty (my Blood Pong co-creator) that has a few similar themes. Romance in the midst of an intergalactic war is nothing new, I suppose, but I’m ecstatic and absolutely relieved that BKV’s version is nothing like my own. There’s nothing scarier than when the best writer in comics announces that he’s doing a new series with a concept similar to something you’re working on.

Anyway, that aside, the writing here is as excellent as I’d hoped and (frankly) expected. Especially the stuff with Prince Robot IV. That character (an alien whose head looks like a TV screen - he may or may not suffer from erectile dysfunction) proves that those worried about BKV’s normally pop-culture infused writing suffering in this aliens-only story can breathe easy. Vaughan’s strength is that all these characters, no matter how alien they get (and man, they get alien as all fuckout), have insecurities that we can relate to… but through the screens of fully fleshed out alien cultures.

It’s too early to say “Saga is great and will revolutionize comics,” but I think this first issue has come at a great time. Image Comics seems to be attempting to prove that the comics industry has talent, that creator owned books are the future, and that the line should remain drawn at $2.99.

And hell - I’m with it.

-Patrick Shand