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Looking Back Through 2007

December 2, 2007 - 18:53 | Xaviar Xerexes

In years past (2004, 2005) we undertook the monumental chore of picking out the biggest headlines of the year. This year, I took another swing at it. So without further adu, here's the biggest webcomic headlines of 2007.

If I missed a story you think was key to this year, please post it in the comments to this article.

I Am The World's Worst Judge... But Here's Your BSC Webcomic Idol Final 3

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on November 13, 2007 - 17:55

I have been utterly lame at giving feedback this year during the BSC Webcomic Idol contest. And at this point it's down to three comics:

  • Lucid TV: an utterly brutal but often funny comic about what, dear god!, I hope is an unrealistic portrayal of most doctors.
  • Templar, Arizona: which is about a town and a cast of characters and is hugely enjoyable to read. Blame Thank creator Spike for not making it so simple I can actually explain it in a sentence.
  • Simulated Comic Product: I'm less familiar with this one but I've laughed at the recent ones I've checked out.

Vote, read. It's all good!

Monday Update

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on October 21, 2007 - 21:51

COMIXTALK

LEGAL BEAGLES

INTERVIEWS

REVIEWS

JUSTIFY MY HYPE

  • I thought David McGuire's Webcomics Are Awesome is pretty funny as a parody of webcomics community (not sure if he's going to update it further) on the level of "lots of this absurd stuff happens and it's always healthy to make fun of yourself" since McGuire is a comic creator himself and as part of the now defunct Bag of Chips collective has certainly been "in" the webcomics community as much as anyone. On the otherhand I don't really know David (met him once at SPX) so I'm not sure how he views this comic.
  • Everyone's making comics about the latest videogame Portal. This one's from Hijinks Ensue (whose creator Joel Watson also makes comics that appear on the website Apple Insider)
  • Tough Guys is a pretty good concept for a comic (or probably more likely an Adult Swim animated series) but the execution of this webcomic by Zac Marshall and Nuno Teixeira is all wrong. The art is strange and largely looks cut and pasted. Maybe a chibi style would have worked better here. It's also largely not funny nor interesting yet. You're aiming at a huge chunk of American pop culture over the last 30 to 40 years (the "action movie") -- that's a big fat softball across the plate, if you're doing jokes you ought to be hitting multiple base hits everytime out.
  • The Tower by Saki Miyamoto and Brendon Bennets is a textless comic about a princess who escapes her intended role in search of adventure.
  • David Wright (creator of Todd and Penguin) has a new webcomic out called The Best Kids Show Ever - sort of if Fox News decided to get into the children's television business.
  • Butternut Squash versus Mahna mahna. (Original muppet song here!)

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 BLOGS

The Visitors Guide to Templar, Arizona: An Interview with Spike

October 20, 2007 - 14:38 | Xaviar Xerexes

Charlie "Spike" Troutman is the talented creator behind the well-received webcomic (and book) Templar, Arizona. The comic is a story about a town that may or may not completely conform to the regular laws of reality and features a growing assortment of interesting characters who both intrigue and intimidate the protagonist, a young man named Ben. Spike has also created other webcomics, including Sparkneedle, Lucas and Odessa and Playing With Dolls (which used Sims Online screen captures for the artwork).

A Road Less Traveled: Taking Your Webcomic to a Traditional Publisher

October 7, 2007 - 23:02 | Tim Broderick

I thought things were changing. Apparently I was wrong.

When Zuda released its contracts last month, I think they showed that the major comics publishers are more interested in acquiring properties than publishing books. As Gary Tyrrell over at Fleen said about the contracts, "Webcomics can do better and so can you."

Believe that! Contracts like Zuda's play off the insecurities of creators -- you're the harshest critic of your work. Put that aside. If the comics industry refuses to change the way they operate, go to the publishers who will give you a fair deal.

I have a book coming out in January with a small but respected publisher, and receive compensation comparable with others in the prose publishing industry.

I thought things were changing. Apparently I was wrong.

October Cover Art

Cover art by Spike, creator of Templar, Arizona

SEPTEMBER FEATURE ARTICLES, OCTOBER COVER ART AND TODAY'S NEWS

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on October 1, 2007 - 08:49

Welcome to October! A big thanks to Spike, creator of Templar, Arizona, for creating this month's cover art. This past weekend we posted the rest of the September issue: interviews with Gisele Lagace and Shayna Marchese; a feature by Grant Thomas examining the integration of text and images with an interesting look at different ways to use speech bubbles; and Michael Payne looks at some great print comics that have moved to embrace the web. More interesting articles are on their way in October...

And in other news...

HEADLINES

MILESTONES

JUSTIFY MY HYPE

  • A recent Big Fat Whale from Brian McFadden on why protesting maybe doesn't always work so well at getting results...

EVENTS

TECHNOLOGY

AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 BLOGS

  • Andrew Farrago has an interview with Jason Thompson, the author of Manga: The Complete Guide. Thompson read and reviewed every English-language manga ever released in preparation for his new book. (h/t Dirk Deppey)
  • At The Telegraph, Robert Colvile writes up webcomics with comments from Chris Onstad, Gary Tyrrell and others. (h/t Dirk Deppey)

BLADE DVD Giveaway This Month

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on September 12, 2007 - 20:34

Hey let's try a give-away this month since I have something to give away!

BLADE: HOUSE OF CHTHON is a sequel to one of the Blade flicks and I have five (5) DVDs of it to give away (from the studio). And it's the un-rated version... Anyhow if you're interested post a comic about the Blade movies or vampire stuff in a comment to this post. I'll give one DVD to the one I like the best, one to the one that's funniest and the other 3 I'll draw names out of a hat from those who posted sketches in this thread. You have until Friday, October 5th to enter and we'll announce prizes sometime before the end of the following weekend.

They made another Blade flick, you ask yourself? Yes they did (and you gotta love a show where Blade is played by someone with the name Sticky Fingaz):

The ultimate vampire hunter is back, and he is badder than ever! Blade continues the battle against his immortal bloodsucking enemies in Blade: House of Chthon, arriving on DVD from New Line Home Entertainment on September 18, 2007. Based on the successful Blade franchise, Blade: House of Chthon is the feature-length, extended and unrated pilot of the hit television show, Blade: The Series.

Here's some more details on this if you're interested. (I'm actually not getting anything for this -- I'm doing it all for you the readers!)

100 Installments of Templar, AZ

Submitted by Xaviar Xerexes on July 27, 2007 - 13:06

Hey - 100 episodes of Templar, AZ!

Here's hoping we get many more from talented creator Spike.

Spike