EARTH PRIME TIME: BABYLON CONFIDENTIAL WITH CLAUDIA CHRISTIAN (PART ONE)

Actress Claudia Christian (Babylon 5, The Hidden, Clean and Sober) joins us to talk about her tell-all book about Hollywood, a new way of coping with an alcohol addiction, and more in Babylon Confidential: A Memoir of Love, Sex, and Addiction. Part one of our interview deals with her illustrious start in Hollywood and inspiring people as Commander Susan Ivanova in Babylon 5.

DIGBOSTON: Thanks for joining us to talk about Babylon Confidential.
Claudia Christian: Thank you for having me.

What I expected was a Hollywood tell-all book and what I got was much more than that! An inspiring story of recovery, as well as stories about Hollywood and your relationships. Can you tell me about the interesting things that happened when you first moved to Hollywood?
Back in the ’80s, it was a much easier profession, I think. Nowadays with the advent of reality shows and so forth it is difficult for actors or actresses to get a job. My beginning is almost a joke. I met an actor in Laguna Beach when I was 16 working in a coffee shop, he gave me the name of a manager. I met her, she signed me, I booked a series! It was so easy.

There was much less competition, you didn’t have families moving out for pilot season with children in tow.

That was really exciting, I worked all the time, it was a new environment. I wanted to be on my own since I was a little kid. I loved being independent. I moved to LA when I was 17.

The beginning was fun. When I look back now, I didn’t understand I was working with people like Faye Dunaway and Bob Hope, George Clooney … at the time, they were just people. I wasn’t really inundated with star-struckness. It was just work.

Unfortunately you had some negative experiences with some famous actors you talk about in the book, such as Cliff Robertson and William Shatner.
The Cliff Robertson thing was kind of shocking because I had never been treated like that, it was a silly incident and he pulled a very dramatic, sort of violent gesture toward me and I thought, “Wow, is this what Hollywood is like?”

I only had one real classic “casting couch” incident but that was with Bob Evans.

I’m sure every actress in town has one of those with him! That didn’t make the book.

The other incidences were men making passes or just being inappropriate or lascivious or whatever. I think I got a pretty good deal compared to some actresses I’ve talked to.

 [READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: INTERVIEW: MAGREET DE HEER

Dutch comic book artist Magreet De Heer comes to Cambridge tonight to educate children of all ages with her new graphic novel, Science: A Discovery in Comics (NBM Publishing). It was a delight to read her book and get some feedback on her exhaustive research, women in science, and how her husband contributes to the book as colorist and number one fan. Margreet will be at Million Year Picnic at 5pm tonight for the signing.

 
DIGBOSTON:Margreet, thanks for taking the time today to talk about Science: A Discovery in Comics!
MARGREET de HEER: No problem at all, thank YOU for the interest in my book!.

After your acclaimed comic Philosophy: a Discovery in Comics, what motivated you to take on Science? 
Science is actually the third book in the series – but it is the second book published in the States. The second book published in The Netherlands was about Religion, and there’s a good chance that will be published in the US next year.

When I was invited by my Dutch publisher in 2009 to talk about making a graphic novel about philosophy, he tentatively mentioned that it might be the start of a series. My husband and I looked at each other and immediately said: “Well, then the next needs to be Religion (because I am a theologist and come from a family full of church ministers) – and after that Science, of course.” It seemed a logical trio to us: philosophy, religion and science are all ways in which people try to make sense of the world.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: REALITY CHECK, NON-HUMANS, + MORE WITH GLEN BRUNSWICK

Image Comics has been, since 1992, the proving ground for comic book professionals to claim ownership of their work. Today we talk to Image creator Glen Brunswick about his awesome new series Reality Check, which tells the tale of a hero stepping into the real world, directly from the mind of his creator! Glen was gracious enough to talk a bit about his recent work with one of the fathers of Image, Whilce Portacio, entitled Non-Humansabout toys coming to life and walking among us. We’ve been a fan of Glen since his ‘Kirby as Genre’ series, Jersey Gods, so we would have been remiss to mention The Kingin our interview on this fine Wednesday. Reality Check #2 is released on Wednesday, October 2.

DIGBOSTON:Hi Glen! Thanks so much for talking to us today about your comics, and news of your most recent series, Reality Check for Image Comics! 
GLEN BRUNSWICK: Thanks for the invitation. Happy to be here.

In Reality Check #1 you’ve turned the mirror on a comic book creator that is being vetted by The Big Two and also we see a comic book origin like we’ve never seen before, the secret origin of a comic book creator! How much of this is based on your own experience? Is this an ongoing title?
I’m starting Reality Check off as a four issue mini-series. I have some ideas for future sequels, but this is a self contained full story experience. I clearly share some similarities with Willard—and that was a big part of writing about a comic creator who’s creation comes to life in the real world. There wasn’t a lot of research involved for me—it’s the old write what you know adage.

So many of the details about the comic industry and Hollywood seeped into the work based on my own memories or experiences.

Having said that, Willard as a character, is quite different than me—He’s single, while I’m a married guy. He’s has experienced great loss in his life—the death of his brother, while I fortunately haven’t been affected by that kind of tragedy.

[READ MORE AT DIGBOSTON.COM]

Movie T-Shirts

EARTH PRIME TIME: PEACEFUL TOMORROWS WITH SHANE W. SMITH

Shane W. Smith is an Australian independent comics creator with a successful sci-fi series The Lesser Evil under his belt. The sequel books Peaceful Tomorrows Vol. 1 & 2are now available on Amazon. Volume 2 was released just this week. Shane joins Earth Prime Time to tell us about the rich world he has created, with a galaxy at war and corrupt politicians pulling the strings.

DIGBOSTON: Thanks for taking the time to talk to us about The Lesser Evil and Peaceful Tomorrows. Care to tell new readers a bit about the world you’ve created?
SHANE W. SMITH: Thanks for having me here, Clay! Centuries of racial hate have kept a bitter conflict on the verge of engulfing the galaxy for as long as anyone can remember, even though the reasons for the hatred have long since ceased to matter.

Corrupt bureaucrats have been stoking the fires of fear and prejudice to strip their citizens of their rights.

That’s the macro story. The backdrop.

The story in my books, however, tends to focus a little more tightly on individual characters, attempting to navigate the moral pitfalls of a galaxy gripped by terror, and trying to carve out for themselves a place where they feel they belong.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

Video Game T-Shirts

EARTH PRIME TIME: “DRONES” WITH CHRIS LEWIS

 

Some great stuff comes my way via ComiXology Submit: a section on the site where creator-owned projects and independent creators get to strut their stuff with guided-view technology and sit right next to the big boys on the app! A recent gem I discovered was Drones, a comic about remote bomb pilots in Las Vegas bombing Afghanistan in the war on terror. Writer Chris Lewis was gracious enough to join us today to point some attention to his Kickstarter to get a trade printed with the conclusion of this action-packed and fun book!

DIGBOSTON: Thanks for joining us today to talk about your Kickstarter for Drones. What can you tell new readers about the series?
CHRIS LEWIS: Thanks for having me, Clay! Drones is a self-published, five-issue miniseries about the so-called War on Terror, Las Vegas style. It’s a satirical look at these crazy things we hear about in the news, with a special emphasis on unmanned aerial vehicles (AKA drones), the pilots who operate them, and the people (and goats) caught in the crosshairs.

Your first issue draws people in with a cool concept, plenty of action, gambling, and even sex. Are you trying to give people a heart attack?
This is just another example of reality being far stranger than fiction. With Drones I’ve tried to ride my imagination into the weirdest wild blue yonder, but I’m nowhere close to matching the pure insanity we’re consuming on a daily basis.

Just another day at work. Drones, Bruno Oliveira art

How much research did you do on drone pilots?
Quite a bit, actually. I’ve always been into politics, espionage, technology, etc., and I just started gobbling up news reports about drones after the events of September 11th. There’s an amazing book called Wired For War, and after I read it I started realizing that there was a very interesting psychological aspect to these drone pilots who are flying missions over war zones half a world away, sometimes firing missiles, but mostly just watching.

There’s a term that gets thrown about when describing how these drone pilots feel while they’re at work: The God’s Eye View.

The whole thing started to get uncomfortable when I realized that this technology mirrored how I was consuming media.

War via video feed. War as entertainment.

And guess what? A lot of drone pilots live and work at a base outside of Las Vegas, Nevada. They have access to the biggest stage in the world in Afghanistan, and they are literally a short drive away from the entertainment mecca that is the Strip. These two things should make you question your sanity.

[READ MORE AT DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: SUMMER OF VALIANT: BLOODSHOT, X-O MANOWAR & UNITY

Before another Summer of Valiant comes screeching to a close, new portals are opening up in the Valiant Universe introducing Matt Kindt (Mind MGMT, Frankenstein: Agent of Shade) to the characters in Bloodshot #0 and November’s Unity. Aric of Dacia (X-O Manowar) faces former brother-in-arms Eternal Warrior in modern day Romania in X-O Manowar #16. The second year of Valiant is just as exciting as the launch, with some of the industry’s top talent.

 
Matt Kindt’s Valiant debut, with Chrisscross on art, in Bloodshot #0 explores the origin of our favorite nanite-covered super soldier. Narrated by the scientist put in charge of throttling back the killer instincts of the nanite-driven soldier to give him a conscience, the story spans several decades of the government-run Bloodshot program. We’re taken through Vietnam, the Reagan assassination, and up to the unfortunate soul chosen for the 1993 Project Rising Spirit experiment.

The Man Who Would Be Bloodshot - Chrisscross Art

This is the true origin of Bloodshot that you may have been waiting 25 years to read.

Bloodshot #0 - Matt Kindt Variant

As with the previous issues of Bloodshot, we’re treated to some truly horrifying violence and horrors of war. The Vietnam version was in improvement, physically, with self-repair built in, but, like the real soldiers in the war, lines were blurred and unnecessary casualties were par for the course. It was not until the ’90s when the nanites were infused with the memories of dying men, a step closer to garnering a conscience for the killer.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: ROBIN HOOD: OUTLAW OF THE 21ST CENTURY WITH MATT DURSI

Matt Dursin is a comic book writer as well as the founder of the League of Ordinary Gentlemen Comic Book Podcast (LeaguePodcast). Dursin has written comics before, but taking the knowledge of his Comics Experience writing classes combined with his film-making degree from Emerson College has led him to applying himself to his latest project, green lit by Kickstarter: Robin Hood: Outlaw of the 21st Century #1. Fellow League member and Earth Prime Time comic book correspondent Clay N. Ferno interviews his close friend about his experience getting the project together, Robin Hood’s modern Merry Men, and the ridiculously high cost of medical expenses these days.

 
DIGBOSTON: Start with the origin of Robin Hood: Outlaw of the 21st Century!
DURSIN: This goes back to the Andy Schmidt (IDW, Hasbro) Comics Experience writing class I took in 2009. The first class assignment was to write a 5-page story with a beginning, middle, and end. I had this idea in my head because I wanted to make a screenplay out of it.

I had been writing scenes for the screenplay for many years. It was a classmate that suggested that we don’t know if they are good guys until the end … page 5.

Tell us about this Robin, the setting he is in. Does he use a bow and arrow? What is he stealing?
He doesn’t steal gold! I figured, “What do people need?” Because of my own health issues through the years, I always think of the cost of medications and medical supplies. “How would you even pay for this without insurance?”

What if this Robin Hood steals medicine and gives it to people that don’t have health insurance or can’t afford it or don’t have a job. That’s what people need these days.

In the traditional Robin Hood, he was just giving money to the poor. Now, who is richer than the pharmaceutical companies these days?

If you go back to serfdom and the knight class and the royal class of the medieval period, the gap is just about the same from the 99% to the 1% in modern times.
Spoiler here: in issue 2, he does actually steal money. Without giving away too much, there is someone that needs money and Robin Hood makes the decision to steal money, but it is a decent to a darker turn as he gets deeper into it. I was kind of inspired by Breaking Bad.

Every issue isn’t going to be a robbery; different things can happen.

Are there more characters from the old stories than the familiar Robin Hood who will show up in your comic?
There’s Robin Hood, The Merry Men, Little John, Will Scarlett, of course the Sheriff is the bad guy. Maid Marian of course—the lady friend of Robin Hood. She is not a maid, obviously. She’s a nurse and one of the people who knows where the medication needs to go, she knows where the supplies are that he can steal.

She’s the inside maid.

It’s basically Sherlock—not to compare my little comic book to one of the greatest shows ever!

Go for it!
That’s Sherlock Holmes in modern times.

Although when did Sherlock actually debut? I think I predate it with my 5 pages in 2009!

It’s the same idea. The character is one you know, and a story you can identify with. This Robin Hood uses a gun; it’s not bows and arrows.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

[Kickstarter page]

EARTH PRIME TIME: THE WATCHER’S LOOK AT BOSTON COMIC CON

This past weekend, citizens of Earth Prime finally got their Boston Comic Con at The Seaport World Trade Center. After much anticipation, the show was a glaring success for the fans, promoters, organizers and vendors. I am Uatu, The Watcher. I have taken an oath to aid humanity and monitor key points in human history without interfering. Here just some of the events happening at Boston on Saturday and Sunday, for us Watchers to study.

Boston Comic Con is angling to be a major independent comic book show in the country, and even after a reschedule and change of venue, founder Nick Kanieff has his target on being the number #3 show in the country behind touchstone San Diego Comic Con and New York Comic Con. If what I have seen from this past weekend is any indication, they may just make it. From the long entry lines, to the elaborate cosplay, to the amazing panel artists and guests the Beantown nerd and geek culture crowd uproariously rejoiced, seemingly forgetting about the unfortunate events of the Marathon Bombings in April that caused the show to move.

Observe! Boston Comic Con Fans Fanning Out on Fan Pier

As The Watcher, I’ve seen some things. but never have I seen a line for tickets in Boston for something other than October baseball.

Nick Kanieff’s initial attendance prediction of 12,000—15,000 people was exceeded, and with a venue three times the size of The Hynes, one wonders if this is the best spot for the convention in 2014.

But I am just an observer, sworn not in interfere with my cosmic juju.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: BOSTON COMIC CON WITH NICK KANIEFF (PART 2)

 CONTINUED FROM PART ONE ( HERE! ) 

Boston Comic Con has been rescheduled for this weekend, August 3-4, at The Seaport World Trade Center. Founder Nick Kanieff joins us for the epic conclusion of our two part interview (Part One HERE) about the challenges of moving this great independent comic book show and the incredible growth Boston Con has seen since its first years.

The Boston comics community was looking forward to the show in April, and now are even more ready to get together this summer as a celebration of comic books and pop culture at the rescheduled date and venue.

DIGBOSTON: We have portfolio reviews, cosplay contests. Is there anything you are looking forward to as an event organizer?
NICK KANIEFF: The ongoing joke is that as the organizer I never get to enjoy my own show. I’m really excited this year about the original art auction. We had our first art auction last year and a portion of the proceeds goes to the Mike Wieringo Foundation, a scholarship for aspiring comic book artists to attend a program at the Savannah College of Art & Design. Our first art auction was very successful.

This year we are still donating to that particular charity and we are also donating to The One Fund.

Once we put that out there to the artist’s community, the support was overwhelming. People that would not normally donate to an art auction—there aren’t that many of them in the comic book convention world (Heroes Con, Baltimore Comic Con, and us)—probably because we are the three conventions that are considered more comic book purist and comic art driven shows. Mike Mignola(Hellboy) said “I am putting a piece of original art at your auction.” That’s gigantic. Mike Mignola’s huge and his art goes for tons of money. Everybody is stepping up to the plate, so I have a feeling the art auction is particularly huge this year.

The Amazing Screw-On Head - Mike Mignola

We have the costume contest, every year that gets bigger and bigger and bigger. The cosplay community keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger.

I’ve been to Anime Boston and I scratch my head because it’s all cosplay. It’s a social event. There’s not a lot going on, but it is a huge social event.

It’s mindblowing to me how big the cosplay community really is. That’s always exciting. 
We have IDW showing up as a publisher this year. That’s pretty cool. We’ve got a Magic the Gathering tournament going on.

DC Comics and IDW will be doing portfolio reviews for you aspiring comic book artists out there. We’ve got our exclusive Boston Comic Con t-shirt by Tim Sale. We have our exclusive My Little Pony Boston Comic Con variant comic (Agnes Garbowska) – limited to 1000 copies.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: BOSTON COMIC CON WITH NICK KANIEFF (PART 1)

Boston Comic Con has been rescheduled for this weekend, August 3-4, at The Seaport World Trade Center. Founder Nick Kanieff joins us for a two part interview about the challenges of moving this great independent comic book show and the incredible growth Boston Con has seen since its first years. The Boston comics community was looking forward to the show in April, and now are even more ready to get together this summer as a celebration of comic books and pop culture at the rescheduled date and venue.

DIGBOSTON: Can you tell me how you started running this show?
NICK KANIEFF: We had our first show in 2007. I had been a collector most of my life. I got to a point where I decided to sell my collection. I had some good friends that ran a comic book store, I asked them the best way to liquidate the collection, they suggested a combination of eBay and going to Cons and setting up as a vendor. There is a little show that’s been run here for 15 years. I set up there, was selling my comics and I noticed that it was a small show and the vendors were unhappy. It wasn’t what I remember as a kid. I remember there was an electricity in the air. It was crowded with people, it was colorful. It was a huge trading floor, it was a stock exchange with so much excitement. I started poking around, how come Boston doesn’t have a major comic book convention? No one could give me a good common sense answer to that question.

If I could start a show and bring back the magic, the allure, the electricity that I felt as a kid, then this thing can go through the roof.

I did just that. I started the show in 2007 at the Back Bay Events Center with 900 attendees. Three-four times the amount of the existing show, that had been there for 15 years.

The show has gone from 900 people to last year’s 10,000. We moved from Back Bay Events Center to The Hynes. Unfortunately, the Boston Marathon tragedy happened and we postponed and rescheduled to The Seaport. Our estimated attendance for 2013 is between 12-15,000 people.

It’s just gotten bigger and better and we are now nationally recognized and ranked and a show people come to from all over the country.

We’re putting Boston back on the map as a major city that has a major comic book convention for fans that deserve it. Boston deserves a well-run, big comic book convention. We’ve hopefully given that to them. My goal at the end of the day is to put on the best show that I can. The way I know that I’m successful is if the fans, the vendors, and the artists all walk away saying we had a great time, a lot of fun, we made some money and that was the best show I’ve ever been too.

I just want to make it bigger and bigger and better.

That’s great. I’ve been going since 2009, and each of the Cons keeps getting bigger and bigger — to the benefit of the Con. There was plenty of space, and lots of happy people last year. I have just as good a time at Boston as I do at New York.
That’s the barometer, when a fan like yourself says that, I know we are doing our job right.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

HEY…PART 2 is HERE!

EARTH PRIME TIME: JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE FLASHPOINT PARADOX

The most recent Justice League animated movie stars the Scarlett Speedster—The Flash against his most formidable foe, Reverse-Flash (Professor Zoom). Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (July 30, 2013 release date) is an adaptation of the Flashpoint graphic novel from 2011, the precursor to The New 52 reboot of the DC Universe. Barry Allen awakes powerless to find his world is different and there is a disturbance in the Speed Force. He seeks the help of an unfamiliar Batman to right the world. The question remains—is this movie the end of story adaptations for the old continuity? Signs are pointing to yes, as the sequel of sorts, a post-New 52 tale, Justice League: War has already been announced.

The Flash/Barry Allen (voiced by Justin Chambers) certainly has what it takes to star in his own animated feature. He’s even had a two-season archive of a ’90s live action show with an art-deco backdrop of Central City (complete with DC Animation favorite Mark Hamill appearing as Flash rogueThe Trickster). The Flashpoint Paradox sets up a key Barry Allen life event as the ‘Butterfly Effect,’ or as seen in 2009′s Star Trek, the nadir of a divergent timeline. Based on Geoff Johns’ (DC Entertainment’s Chief Creative Officer) book of the same name, Flashpoint splits when Barry uses the speed force to go back in time to save his mother from a senseless murder after a break-in.

Confused? That’s OK. Flashpoint was set up from the company’s initiative to reset all of the DC heroes, and also rejuvenate the characters with familiar but new origins in The New 52.

In order to start fresh, they opted for this Reverse-Flash vs. Flash story, creating The New 52 continuity from quantum strings and vague memories from Barry Allen of the way things used to be.

The real meat of the story is in the divergent timeline, as Barry wakes up drooling on his desk at Central City Police Department, warned by his computer that the end is nigh. He runs outside to see his very much alive mother, with whom he has dinner plans with. Reverse-Flash Eobard Thawne is responsible somehow for traveling back from his time in the 25th century to create this new world.

Flash - Barry Allen from Flashpoint Paradox

The Flashpoint universe has some familiar faces, but they act very differently here.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: BEWARE THE BATMAN

The new Batman television show Beware the Batman brings an animated Bruce Wayne and Batman back to the television screen. Historically, the Bruce Timm Batman: The Animated Series has been revered in the comic fan’s eyes, and the 2008 Batman: Brave and The Bold had a lighter, Adam-West feel to the caped crusader. The most recent incarnation is a huge paradigm shift from either of the previous series, moving from cell to computer animation, major character reinterpretations and a b-side rogue gallery. Quite possibly, this is the Man Of Steel for animated shows, driving classic fans away but perhaps appealing to a more general audience for The Dark Knight.

Comic fans fear change! From creative teams to character reboots to even the change of the paper being used on a book will spark endless debate online and at the very least fidgets and sighs. We had just gotten used to the campy and sometimes musical Batman: Brave and The Bold and even beaten the button mashing video game, all the while falling in love with that version of the swashbuckling and bearded Aquaman. In Beware The Batman there is a familiarity to the dark tones in both Batman: The Animated Series and The Dark Knight Trilogy.

There are stepping stones into another territory for longtime fans of The Bat in the new series that may endear you to it or have you check yourself into Arkham, driven mad by the seemingly infinite versions of Bruce Wayne and Batman.

The series is rendered in the same computer animation style as the cancelled Green Lantern Animated Series and Tron Uprising. If you can let the slick glass look of Gotham and complex architecture of Wayne Manor, The Batcave and the streets of the city wash over you (I watch on a retina MacBook) it leans toward an immersive experience. The fight scenes are well choreographed and fun to watch as the Batman clobbers the bad guys. The Batsuit owes a lot to the Nolan movies, all black, including the bat symbol, save his yellow or brass utility belt. It is a good but not great design of the Batsuit, which saddens me because I like to get excited when Bruce suits up.

Overall, the design and the computer rendering as a choice work for me withBeware The Batman, as I learn to let go of my nostalgia for cell animation and expect more of this from my heroes in the future.

Mr. Toad and Professor Pyg - Beware the Batman

The enemies in episode one are Professor Pyg and Mr. Toad, introduced by Grant Morrison in Batman and Robin. The masked freak and animal (respectively) are of the 99% and also environmental activists, seeking revenge a land deal signed by Simon Stagg and Bruce Wayne that forced many animals from their native wetlands. The Hitchcock-sounding Pyg uses kidnap and murder instead of words to resolve his issues. Toad has a sonic croak, used to break glass and knock his enemies to the ground. Batman gets involved when Alfred is kidnapped by accident (Toad mistakes him for Wayne).

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: IMAGE, BOOM! AND AMAZON COMIC INDUSTRY NEWS

The comic market hashtag on twitter is really a discussion of the ever-changing landscape of opinions, cancellations, creator-owned titles tying to get off the ground, and musings on ComiXology and other digital formats. Two of the bigger independent companies, Image Comics and Boom! Studios have redesigned their digital presence and commerce leader Amazon steps in with a huge announcement this week, the launch of it’s own Jet City Comics imprint. Earth Prime Time re-introduces you to these websites and shows you what digital offerings they have to offer.

Scans and PDFs of comics have been in existence for years now, especially since digital files have been used to produce the books. Before the age of iPads/Kindles/smartphones, reading digital comic meant reading a poorly formatted .CBR/.CBZ archive file on your computer monitor. Likely, these files were scanned in by pirates or those wishing to give access to out of print books, and hosting the files on torrent sites. Our world has changed, and with it the comic market.

ComiXology offers a Guided View that animates panel to panel on your computer or your device, as well as the traditional full page layout. Amazon offers a similar experience to some of it’s graphic novel selections for reading on your computer or Kindle Fire, but the experience is not as great, but serviceable. After watching Man of Steel, I caught up with Mark Waid’s Superman: Birthright as the cheapest digital option on the Kindle app for iPhone and Mac. Not bad, but not great.

Though more expensive, ComiXology would have offered a better experience for my devices.

I do not have a color Kindle. Comics are also available on the Apple iBooks store, and are locked into the Mac ecosystem, but the store does provide an option for publishers. iBooks expands to the Mac from being tablet or phone exclusive with the next version of OS X, Mavericks.

Satellite Sam - Howard Chaykin Art | Image Comics

IMAGE COMICS / imagecomics.com
Last week at Image Expo 2013, the publisher revealed a new website and web store for both it’s current and expanding back issue catalog. Image recently tapped Ron Richards, formerly of the comic book podcast iFanboy, as the Director of Business Development. Richards gave a great interview to Comic Book Resources last week that goes into Image Comics’ view on piracy and the digital comic market.

The creator owned and creator driven publisher has opened up a direct to the consumer store, at full cover price on Wednesdays new releases available in a variety of formats, with no copy protection.

.PDF, ePUB, .CBZ, and .CBR are all available for the taking when the book comes out. Image Comics even provides you with the resources to read your books. There is no restriction on the files, so you own these comics just like you are comforted by your collection in a longbox. Save ‘em, back ‘em up, let a friend borrow. Yours to keep. By not restricting the files or buying into a particular digital file ecosystem, Image has once again become an industry pioneer.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: ‘SUPER KNOCKED UP’ WEB SERIES SEASON 2 WITH JEFF BURNS

Last year we spoke with creator Jeff Burns of the webseries Super Knocked Up about super villain Darkstar bringing a child into the world after a one night stand with super hero Captain Amazing. Season 2 is a big hit and winning awards, so we check in with Jeff and the stars of the show as everyone ramps up for San Diego Comic-Con.

DIGBOSTON: Thanks for taking the time today, Jeff! First off congratulations on The Geekie Awards for Most Original Web Series. Things are going well?
JEFF BURNS: Things are going amazingly well!  We just won The Geekie Award for Most Original Web Series and swept all four categories in last week’s We Love Soaps poll (week of June 16—22).  We won Favorite Web Series, Favorite Couple for Jessica and Michael (Darkstar and Captain Amazing, Favorite Actress for Jourdan Gibson, and Favorite Actor for Mark Pezzula.

Super Knocked Up also screened at LA WebFest, where we won a Visual Effects Award for the awesome work of our Visual Effects Artists Daniel DeFabio and Christopher Vincelette. And we’re official selections at Marseille WebFest and Melbourne Web Fest.

Creator Jeff Burns and Jourdan Gibson (Jessica James/Darkstar) of Super Knocked Up

The most exciting news of all is that Jourdan and I got invited to be on a web series panel at San Diego Comic Con.  I’ve always wanted to go and to get to be on a panel there is a dream come true! It’s called Web Series Creators Assemble! and will take place Thurs. July 18 at 7:30 p.m. in Room 24ABC.  Katrina Hill and Alex Langely (Geeks and Gamers Anonymous) did an amazing job organizing the panel and they’ll be on it with us along with Jane Espenson (Buffy, Once Upon a Time, Husbands), Brad Bell (Husbands), Sandeep Parikh (Save the Supers, The Guild), and Tara Platt and Stephanie Thorpe (Shelf Life).

Besides YouTube, obviously, where else are you able to screen the show?
Outside of our own YouTube Channel, Super Knocked up is part of the online networks atKoldCast.tv and JTS.tv.  And we can be seen on the very popular MovieManiacs YouTube Channel.

There’s been a casting change for Darkstar – Jourdan Gibson now in the starring role as the new Mom. Were there any fan reactions to the switch?
I’ve been thrilled to see that the fan reaction to Jourdan taking over as Darkstar has been overwhelmingly positive. They really love her in the role and love the amazing chemistry she and Mark have together on screen. But we did a few things to really help the fans accept her and introduce her to them. I had her do VLOGs called Super Jourdy! after she was first cast to show her super-goofy and fun personality to the fans. And a couple of months before Season 2 premiered we started doing live Google Hangout shows called Super Geeked Up where Jourdan, Mark, and I talk about geeky stuff, answer fan questions, and have a guest from the web series world on each week. These live shows really let the fans see how amazing and personable Jourdan is and I think many of them fell in love with her before they even saw her in Season 2. And then even more so when they actually go to see her kick ass in the episodes. So doing all this stuff and gradually introducing the fans to Jourdan over time I think was really key.

It was much more effective than if we had just said, “Hey everyone here’s Season 2 and oh by the way here’s a new actress playing Darkstar.”

That would have been a lot harder to sell. So I’m really proud of the way we handled it. But a huge factor is just that Jourdan knocked it out of the park with her performance. She kicks ass as Darkstar!

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

Season 1 interview here!

EARTH PRIME TIME: MAN OF STEEL

The latest Superman (Henry Cavill) movie, Man of Steel has had a polarizing effect on fans and comic creators. While everyone was looking forward to the reboot of the franchise, and hoping for Christopher Nolan‘s (writer, with David S. Goyer) influence to give us a Superman and a Metropolis that melded with his vision of Gotham and Batman. Director Zack Snyder (Watchmen, 300) gave us something different. He shuffled the card deck around to move away from the 35-year-old Richard Donner and Christopher Reeve version of Superman to give us a different and unintentionally destructive Clark Kent. There are things to criticize about the movie, but as a fan of a wide swath of Superman stories throughout the years, Man of Steel sets the stage for a DC Cinematic Universe that can rival The Avengers movies across the street.

 
This isn’t my first review of the Man of Steel, but one written after reading other criticisms and listening to podcasts all around the Internet. Please check out Steve’s insightful critique atADAPATION NATION on this very site. I’ve seen the movie twice, once at the Boston preview with press and excited contest winners and my fellow podcasters. The second was a Sunday matinee, in 3D this past weekend.

Though the movie has been out for two weeks, I will present this column as having spoilers.

For my fresh out the cinema, and non-spoilery review, please go here.

The cinematics are specatacular in this superhero movie. Perhaps the best yet. While aping parts ofInception and The Avengers and Transformers 3 at points on the scale of big city fights, with glass and brick exploding everywhere, we are still given what we come to expect from a sci-fi movie with cutting edge CGI. Standout features of how the movie looks are the techno organic society that makes up the Krypton homeworld of Jor-El (Russell Crowe), Lara-El (Ayelet Zurer), and Zod (Michael Shannon). Costume design, including the muted but textured Superman ‘armor’ seemed spot on to me, and the Zod/Faura battle armor was a highlight of the overall design.

The bad Kryptonians are all in black, (likeTerrance Stamp and co-horts in Superman I and II, but have more than a skintight bodysuit to protect them from Superman.

All of the Kryptonian ships, armor and Phantom Projector scenes are redesigned from the ground up, and make for space scenes that rival last summer’s Prometheus and both of the recent Star Trek films.

Man of Steel - Jor-EL and Krypton

A critique of the film is that this is more of a sci-fi film than it is a superhero movie. I can understand that, but laying the foundation for and growing attached to the doomed planet of Krypton makes for better Superman stories.

He is an orphan, can never find his real home, but has his adoptive parents (and Lois) on Earth to care for him.

Man of Steel - General Zod

Zod is the key to pushing this movie into hyperdrive. Those of us fans of his creepy masochistic (former) Agent Van Alden in Boardwalk Empire project similar feelings onto his evil motivations for both characters. Van Alden sneakily breaks the rules if it benefits him to do so, and this Kryptonian general is following his military objectives to continue to perpetuate the Kryptonian race at whatever cost. It is not his fault he was born this way!

A gripe I have about the marketing for this movie was that with all of the trailers leading up to the release, there was not enough Zod.

If attempting to make a darker storyline appeal to a more modern audience, why not party with ad campaigns based on the villain? The viral video campaign of Zod taking over the airwaves was pretty bad-ass and comic book-like, so kudos for that.

There are plenty of jump cut scenes with Ma (Diane Lane) and Pa Kent (Kevin Costner) dealing with a super powered son in the non-linear narrative of the film. Costner nails being a protective father and the generous, kindly and hard working man that lives up to our expectations, rivaled only by our recent memory of John Schneider in the role. This Smallville, KS main streets look more like any old small town street (NH for example) and less like the eponymous television show version. The Kent Farm looks mostly like every other version we’ve seen before but also like Superman/Batman Apocolypse, the farmhouse and barn are both destroyed in a gigantic fight. Looks like Clark has a weekend project coming up!

Smallville and Metropolis are just background in the movie, not necessarily ‘characters’.

Gotham, however, in the Nolan films is a dark lady, and Krypton is an alien world that we don’t get to know well enough!

Kent Farm - Man of Steel

Henry Cavill is much more of a bulked up larger than life actor than his predecessor Brandon Routh was in Superman Returns. His story after leaving Smallville leads him to be a fisherman and a wanderer, hiding his powers until the time is right.

Our traditional Superboy turned reporter storyline is ditched in favor of a Bruce Banner wandering from town to town vibe.

This is not a tack I’ve seen before, but it works here in service of the story. The Daily Planet action comes later for Clark as Lois Lane has discovered his secret identity way before he works for the Planet. Lois (Amy Adams) in this movie has her hands in the action, another shining example of how different this movie is from every other iteration. Laurence Fishburne as Perry White really worked for me, love that guy and he’s a more realistic editor than J.K. Simmons as the cartoon of J. Jonah Jameson was in the Spider-Man film series (though he was equally brilliant).

Man of Steel - Perry White

I have tried my best not to be as enthusiastic about this movie just because it stars Superman.

My first step in super-humility was paying attention to what critics are saying, but mostly what people who have had a role in Superman’s history had to say.

Mark Waid (Superman: Birthright) has both a short and long form version of his criticisms at theThrillbent Blog. Some of his Birthright elements are integrated into the dialogue and main beats of the story and he’s a ‘proud-papa’. He also says, “It’s a good science-fiction movie, but it’s very cold”.

Lois, Clark and Faora-UI - Man of Steel

Our pal MC Chris (see below!) didn’t like the Jesus allegory stuff (agreed) and has a great review at his tumblr. Our favorite quote (sic), “Go see it, it’s long as fuck, so if you see it at midnight when you come of theater it will be dawn. ” truth.

Ever been an obsessive comic book fan, needing to collect them all?

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: PRIMATES INTERVIEW WITH MARIS WICKS & JIM OTTAVIANI

Somerville comic artist Maris Wicks was tapped to illustrate another fine Jim Ottaviani science book and the result is Primates from First Second. Jim and Maris were kind enough to talk with us about observers that inspire us. Primates is the story of “Leakey’s Angels”—Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdika—and is a beautifully crafted story, lushly illustrated for all audiences. Get your feet wet in the jungle with us as we swing from the trees!

 
DIGBOSTON: Hi Jim and Maris, thanks for taking the time to talk about Primates. The response to the book seems extremely positive so far. Why a comic about Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas? More specifically, why choose comics to tell your story?
 

JIM OTTAVIANI: I’ve been writing comics about scientists for more than 15 years now, so in one sense I’ve gotten into the habit of telling stories using comics. But the reason I started to do it in the first place is because I suspected it would work. And it does!

It’s no coincidence that scientists communicate with each other using words and pictures all the time.

In fact, I was just in the other Cambridge doing research for an upcoming book, and the scientists I talked to were adamant: they couldn’t do physics without drawing pictures. The ones I talked to had a strong preference for chalk over dry erase markers too, for what that’s worth!

As for Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas, I wanted to learn more about them, and it turns out the best way for me to learn is to give myself a writing assignment. I also like stories about tough, intelligent, and courageous people changing the way we think about ourselves and our place in the world. And these three scientists were and are all of those things, and did just that.

Maris, How did you get approached to illustrate this story?

MARIS WICKS: In the spring of 2008, I was contacted by First Second Books; they were looking for artists to submit samples for the script of Primates. So I essentially “tried out” for the book. I should back up by saying that I had been going to indie comics conventions since 2002, and selling my self-published comics. In 2006, I worked with Adhouse Books on their anthology Project: Romantic (I did the cover, spot illustrations, and a 12-page story).  Prior to that, I had done a handful of editorial and educational illustrations for various non-comics publications and institutions.  So I was just starting out in comics.

Do you love drawing animals? I’m sure your drawing research was intense. Did Jim feed you the reference you needed for the apes and orangutans?

MARIS: Um, YES I LOVE DRAWING ANIMALS!!

When I started my work on Primates, Jim gave me a 3-inch stack of photocopied visual references (as well as a list of helpful books).

I also used a good amount of internet references, both pictures and videos.  Sadly, I did not go on any exotic field trips (although I did visit the Harvard Museum of Natural History quite a few times).  My other (non-comics) job is working at the New England Aquarium as a program educator, so I draw lots of non-primate animals in my spare time.

PRIMATES - art by Maris Wicks

This is a somewhat fictional account of these three ladies, care to tell us about how you are able to bridge the gap between research and comic book script?

JIM: The pictures build that bridge, I think. Because we had to imagine scenes from the point of view of our scientists or the primates they studied or even as seen by some other animal up in the trees are down among the fallen leaves on the forest floor, it freed us to think about how things felt, not just how things actually were. So even though there are fictional bits, I think — I hope — they were emotionally true, if you know what I mean.

And emotional truths are the tendons that hold together the factual truths that make up the backbone of any story.

Leakey’s Angels featured in the book are real life inspirational ladies in the field of archeology and ethology, prompting many girls (and boys) to study science. Do you have similar heroes that got you to start drawing?

MARIS: My mum always encouraged my artistic tendencies, and I had fabulous art professors in high school and college. As for early inspiration, I loved the illustrations of Maurice Sendack, Eric Carle, Edward Gorey, Arnold Lobel…I was also very fond of the book Koko’s Kitten (woo! gorillas!). In my early teens, I discovered the work of Evan Dorkin (Milk & Cheese, Dork), and that was pretty much my gateway drug into the realm of comics.  Later comics influences include David Mazzucchelli (he was also my professor in college!), Hergé, and Darwyn Cooke.  Aside from my mum, the author of Koko’s Kitten, I realize that all these folks I’ve listed so far are male…my contemporary influences reflect a much more diverse line-up.  Science-writer Mary Roach and French comics artist Marion Montaigne (would some one PLEASE translate her comics into English already?) are some of my current inspirations.

PRIMATES - art by Maris Wicks

You’ve distilled the biography and research of at least three individuals down to an accurate tale, deftly weaving the lives of these three incredible ladies into this book. Did you also get to ‘know’ some of the primates featured in their research? Do you have a favorite?

JIM: An artist friend of mine once told me that all good cartoonists are method actors: They make the faces and adopt the body language of the characters they’re drawing. I took that to heart, and figured I should try to do that with my writing as well. Not that I can hang from a tree while typing or anything crazy like that, but I do think you can get to know your characters by imagining their actions and thoughts and coming up with ways to describe them. So yes, I think I got to know all of them.

As for favorites, I certainly don’t have a favorite among the scientists; they’re all heroes to me.

But with regards to the other primates in the book, I’m most partial to orangutans. Writers often need to, and like to, spend a lot of time alone, after all!

Has researching primates for this comic taught you anything about human behavior? In general what do you like most about working with or observing animals?

MARIS: I would have to say that both Primates AND my experience at the Aquarium have taught me a great deal about both science and education.  I’m not sure if I can attest to human behavior specifically, but I’ve certainly learned a great deal about the importance of observation, creativity and critical thinking.

In both of my jobs, I hope to inspire a love of science to an audience of all ages and backgrounds.

PRIMATES - art by Maris Wicks

Science and comic book art are largely male dominated fields even today, which still seems strange to me. Just as you open the book to Jane Goodall reading Tarzan and dreaming of spending time with the apes, I picture a young lady reading this book and being equally inspired! What can be done—from small scales to large—in the worlds of science and art to change the gender paradigm?

JIM: Here’s a quote from the author Junot Diaz that I read the other day: “[I]f you want to make a human being into a monster, deny them, at the cultural level, any reflection of themselves.” The positive version of that might be that if you want to encourage excellence, show people what it looks like, and make sure they see something of themselves in your depiction of it.

MARIS:  I agree!  And Jim summed it up so eloquently. Just like how I mentioned above, so many of my early inspirations were male. But even now, there are more women scientists and artists and writers and (well, you get the picture), creating work not for women, for all people, inspiring future generations.

I think that having more stories about people of all genders, races, backgrounds, etc. is imperative to inspiring young readers.

I would also classify this book as all ages, meaning not just for the 12+ crowd to enjoy, but for all to enjoy, from our daughters to our grandparents. Do you think all ages books also have a timeless, enduring quality to them?

JIM: Thanks to joining a reading group a few years ago, and to the influence of a number of friends who write for young adults (Hi, Sara! Hi, Lara!) I now read a lot of books classified as young adult. They hold up even for this not-very-young-at-all adult. So, in short, yes!

MARIS:  Totally!  I think the term “all-ages” is sometimes misconstrued as being “just for kids”…the correct definition is exactly as you have stated it above: “[all ages books] have a timeless, enduring quality to them.”  I sure hope the Primates fits this description!

PRIMATES (First Second Books) - MARIS WICKS (art) & JIM OTTAVIANI (author) - COVER

What other projects are you all working on? Can we see another collaboration between you two? Where can we find you online?

JIM: Leland Purvis and I have a book coming soon about Alan Turing, the mathematician, code breaker and computer scientist. It’s called “The Imitation Game” and it should be out in 2014…maybe sooner. Further out, the pile of books and notes on and around my desk is still rising as I do research for another book, which I can’t talk about just yet. I’m really excited about it and hope we can announce it soon.

I’ve also written a novella which may show up next year in some form, if I can get it right.

Fiction…turns out it’s hard!

And would I work with Maris again? That must be some kind of trick question, because the only possible answer is yes!

MARIS:  I am currently at work on another graphic novel for First Second Books about the human body (I’m writing and drawing it!); it should be out in 2015 (so you’ll have to wait a little bit…sorry!). Smaller projects include regular 1-page marine biology comics for Spongebob Comics, a back-up Fionna and Cake story for Adventure Time Comics (written and drawn by me and Joe Quinones) and a Batman: Black and White story (written by me, drawn by Joe Quinones).

And, yes!  Of course I would work with Jim again!

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

CLAY N. FERNO / CLAY FERNALD - Writing Samples

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EARTH PRIME TIME: MOTH CITY INTERVIEW WITH TIM GIBSON

Tim Gibson, a New Zealand based artist and writer is taking full advantage of genre, digital comics on devices and innovating how a reader participates in the comic reading experience with his debut graphic novel Moth City. Mainstream and back catalogs of comics have been available on computers and other devices via ComiXology since 2009. Webcomics themselves are nearly 30 years old. Gibson is transforming the page and webpage with panel layers and acting to give a more full reading experience. Moth City #3 is available today on ComiXology. We talk with Tim about process and the importance of word of mouth support for independent comics.

DIGBOSTON: Tim, thanks so much for taking the time today to tell us about Moth City! We’re here to talk about comics, mind telling the fans out there some of the projects you’ve worked on in the past? Your name probably scrolled by them at some point.

TIM GIBSON: Moth City is actually my debut comic, I’ve mainly worked as an illustrator and concept designer in the Film and TV industry. The closet I’ve come to working in comics before this was being a designer on The Adventures of Tintin film and some coloring work on The Red Star (Image Comics) when I was working at Weta Workshop (Lord the of Rings Trilogy, The Hobbit, King Kong, Avatar, District 9).

How long has this idea been growing? Are all art projects eligible for funding in New Zealand?

  The idea of an entire island under the rule of one damaged man has been with me for a while. There is just something about the isolation of an island that makes bad stuff happening so much worse. It’s been with me for many years, but it was really the Creative New Zealand grant that enabled me to dedicate myself the massive amount kind of time needed to translate ideas into comics.

Completing a graphic novel has got to be one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.

There’s so much work when it’s a solo venture, and the things you can’t do (copy editing, websites etc.) you have to convince talented friends/family to help for the lowest wages (i.e. nil) that they’ve ever worked for. 

The funding is really the only reason that Moth City exists in the way that it does. It’s not easy funding to get, there’s a lot of competition for it.

You put forth the strongest case possible, because you’re competing with published authors, people with track records and whole institutions who look to Arts Funding to do their work.

It’s probably safe to say that this book takes place in an alternate history, around the 1930s, on an island in China. There’s always been cowboys and rich tycoons wearing cowboy hats around the world, such as your Governor McCaw. He’s there to weaponize the Chinese army for profit. What else can you tell us about the city?

  The island of Moth City shares a lot of features with Hong Kong; it has a highly condensed city center, a towering peak for the elite and scattered fishing villages and docks. There are influences from both Hong Kong’s history, as well as Singapore’s. 

New Zealanders, as (still) a part of the British Empire are obsessed with colonization and imperialism. McCaw’s place at the head of his little empire is a part of that.

The populace certainly doesn’t want him there, but they were effectively sold to him as indentured labour along with the island itself.

This isn’t strictly a military or political thriller set in the past, we’re also dealing with murder set in on a noir backdrop. Do the multiple genres come from you trying to build this world from the ground up?

I think there’s a genre-freedom with indie graphic novels that you don’t get with most mainstream continuity work. There’s this great history of genre work in comics, obviously Wertham and the Comic Code did a lot to hamper that diversity, but looking around at great modern titles like Walking Dead, Saga, Fatale or Skullkickers you can see a strong resurgence. I think it’s what we need if we’re ever going to entice new readers into comic book shops. I didn’t plan it, but the four seasons of Moth City break down into genres surprisingly cleanly.

Season One is largely political thriller and mystery, Two moves into detective and noir, Three has some horror and kung fu and Four is balls-to-the-wall action and conflict.

The artwork is amazing, from the character designs to the architecture and coloring. I compare the art to my friends as that ‘inky’ line, such as your conteporaries Paul Pope and Ming Doyle. I also see the Mazzucchelli influence a bit, please take these as compliments — I’d hate to have you walk away from this interview at the beginning! The book is unique in that way, especially with you being the writer and the artist. Where do you start with the artwork, are you storyboarding the comic as you go?

Oh that’s very generous of you to say so, I certainly don’t mind being included in such fine company. I feel like I’m still finding my feet with inking – most of my illustration work is full color painting where the whole goal is to kill ‘outlines,’ not showcase them. I had to spend a long time, and produce a lot of test art and pages, to find that ‘voice’ when it comes to the inks and the colors.

This being my first comic I went about it all in an odd way. I actually wrote the whole thing as a straight narrative piece, like a novel. No page breaks, no panels.

It meant I could easily give it to people for story feedback and they could respond readily without having to learn to read a new format. When I was happy with that, I went through and picked my page breaks and then figured what I could fit into panels.

Of course, with the way my digital formatting works, I often do one and a half pages of illustration to make up one page of comic.

What makes Moth City so incredible, and the reason I wanted to talk to you was the way you are formatting the book digitally. You are using ComiXology to its fullest potential by animating transitions, pacing, dialogue and more. Much the way a director or editor can cut a film, you are curating the way we see the book. Panel transitions are ‘faux’ animated, layers are revealed in Moth City. Could you tell this story on a 9 panel printed page?

Yes and no. Yes in that I create a ‘print page’ of each digital page sequence. I make a decision on the optimal static version of that scene or sequence. I might break a panel that has two digital states into two smaller, static, panels side by side. Or, I might find that one state can carry the story. What the digital form gives you as a creator is more control of the timing of events, like you point out, it gives you the added control of a film editor, and I would also add actor. So much is conveyed in film with a lingering look, or a character who smiles, and within that same shot you see their demeanor crack and show their inner turmoil for a split second.

To tell that in print comics, you either need to use a lot of ‘voice over’ type, or a lot of panels.

Digital gives us that opportunity. Of course, I still have to draw all those extra moments.

Many, including Mark Waid, whom I respect for his Thrillbent digital comics experimentation are praising your innovation in the digital comics space. What more can you tell us about your motivations? I find your approach to be not only unique but innovative in an instinctual way. There’s some programming involved, too, right?

Moth City is the world’s most elaborate, time-intensive Power Point slide show.

My Web guys did some amazing work with mothcity.com in streamlining what is essentially a slide show of more than a thousand images, but you can read Moth City in a PDF and it works the same way.

The main motivation for doing Moth City as a digital comic was an honest analysis of my chances as a debut creator, with no comic credits, getting a publishing deal with someone like Image, IDW, Dark Horse or Oni without bringing an audience to the table. I felt I had to earn a print run.

Once I made that decision I spent a lot of time looking at what I felt was broken in the presentation of long-form webcomics, and started to explore what I could do with the digital medium. I did a lot of research. A lot. Some of my experiments were happening at the same time as Yves “Balak” Bigerel, Dan Goldman and then Thrillbent’s.

I was borrowing stuff from everywhere and anywhere.

Moth City not only defies genre and moves us away from caped superheroes in the comic book medium, but does so in such an intuitive and familiar way, it outshines panel-to-panel digital comics and makes them look not fully developed comparison.

Thanks, I attribute that to our ability as readers to understand genres and tropes which give creators a certain shorthand when we create stories.

It feels familiar because it is, but where we go once you’re comfortable is a different story.

Issue 3 - or Season 2, part 1 is at the ComiXology store today. The price of entry for all three issues is almost the price of one regular priced comic. What can we tell people to go get all three today?

Oh geez… It’s awesome? It’s awesome and affordable? It’s awesome and affordable and I need a new pair of shoes?

Moth City already twisted my head around and shocked me in different ways at the ends of issues #2 and #3. Do you like to end on cliffhangers? If so, you’re really pushing this to the top of my recommended comics of the year.

Yeah, I’m really happy with the twists and turns in Moth City. The world is filled with great endings, what I’ve tried to do, and I think it works because I have this 8 issue arc all mapped out, is make sure those endings have an impact on the following issues.

There’s nothing worse than being left on the edge of your seat, only to come back next time and that problem/drama/twist is resolved in moments as though it never really mattered.

Of your influences, who in your opinion has changed the way we think of the comic book printed page?

Alex de Campi, Dan Goldman, Yves “Balak” Bigerel, Mark Waid and the whole Thrillbent.com family, Scott McCloud, Kurt Christenson and Reilly Brown and the entire world of Webcomics.

Where can we find you and Moth City online?

If you want to read Moth City in nice, shiny HD then you can grab it from Comixology, and you can read it online and check out videos and blog posts over at my site mothcity.com as well as its second home at thrillbent.com.

[READ MORE at DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: SUMMER OF VALIANT ’13 PART 1 WITH 8-BIT COVERS

We’re at a year into the relaunch of popular ’90s comic book publisher Valiant Comics and just in time for another Summer of Valiant. We’ll try not to get any water on these comics as we sit by the pool, drink in the sun and follow the adventures of Archer and Armstrong and Shadowman in our summer series that celebrates successes on our first birthday of our cherished Valiant Comics. Also, we take a look at their cool 8-bit variant covers and Harbinger Wars: Battle For Las Vegas free retro video game for iOS andAndroid.

A look through the Earth Prime Time Archives will show you what we have an affinity for, and that’s the story of an independent publisher rising from near obscurity. Valiant was fortunate enough to have a loyal fanbase to rebuild on their properties long thought lost to many die-hard comic fans. It is the underdog story that Bostonians write about ad nauseam and tend to wear on our sleeves. This column was only a few months old when X-O Manowar #1 hit the shelves, and naturally we have covered most major events in the universe since then.

What can we say a year in?

There is likely a better reaction to the Valiant books, on a whole, than after the first twelve months of DC’s New 52initiative.

Marvel NOW! reaction from fans seems to be split between both positive and negative, with a varied selection of titles appealing to different kinds of fans.

Valiant’s strength lies in not relying on a 75 or 50 year history to complicate matters.

Over at the new publisher, they can make the same kinds of superhero and supernatural books with the industry’s top talent and a completely clean slate. There certainly are nods to the previous continuity as fan service, but with low-numbered issues and trades, the appeal to a new audience without being intimidated by continuity allows for an easier entry point.

As far as the old characters go, Valiant has paced the introduction of new books, concepts, leading heroes and villains, and background information on the shared universe in a way that paints a lush tapestry but does not rely on throwing everything at you at once.

Let’s take a look at two books that are coming out today, Archer and Armstrong #10 and Shadowman #7.

Both books ship with an 8-bit variant cover that ties into their cool 8-bit side scroller Harbinger Wars: Battle for Las Vegas (Storm City Games).

[READ MORE AT DIGBOSTON.COM]

EARTH PRIME TIME: COMIC FAN INVADES ANIME BOSTON 2013

Comic book fans and enthusiasts of any niche pop culture genre can be secular at times, closed minded, and exclusionary. It is the nature of the thing, I suppose, to be deeply invested and engaged by taking ownership of what appeals to you and what may become the building blocks of your identity. I’ve ignored the last ten Anime Boston conventions on this narrow-minded reasoning. After the Marathon bombings postponing Boston Comic Con this year, I put on my black costume karate gi to embrace the sense of pride and engagement with the nerd fan community that one can only get at a large convention in your hometown. This is how I, as a superhero comic fan, learned to stop worrying and love Anime Boston 2013. 

My photographer Stacey and I headed for our passes early in the day, eager to take in the wonders of Anime Boston on Saturday. Lines were manageable with bag checks and plenty of volunteers to assist directing traffic. In light of the terrorist attacks, no weapons were allowed at the con this year.

There were plenty of foam swords, accessories, and larger than life costumes this year, so the restriction was certainly not affecting anyone’s creativity.

It should be noted, cosplay at Anime Boston is intricate and omnipresent. Well over 80 percent of the crowd is dressed up or decorated in some way.

Iron Man takes a load off - Photo By Stacey Rizoli

Nerds of all fashions are here, Doctor Who fans, Vorlons (Babylon 5), superheroes, kitty cats with mechanical ears, all manner of tails and white masks swarm around you in a sea of paper mache, facepaint, leather, and vinyl. Cosplayers range in age from young to old and costume materials range from $2 to $2,000.

Cosplay at Comic Con is huge, don’t get me wrong, but as Stacey pointed out, “You’d be out of place if you didn’t dress up here.”

My thirst for nerd knowledge makes me a panel junkie. Anime Boston uses Guidebook, a live updating smartphone app that makes it easy to look at a complicated schedule such as this that includes screenings, martial arts demos, panels, kid’s activities, signings, and contests. We had set up our schedule in advance the night before and backed this up with the hard copy on the convention floor. Getting the lay of the land took some getting used to, Anime Boston uses most spaces in the gigantic Hynes Convention Center.

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