The Walking Dead: Season 3 So Far!
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Reviews, Television, Image Comics, Marvel Comics,
Of all the great horror icons - Frankenstein's monster, vampires, mummies and Black Lagoon creatures - my favorites are zombies.
I was a kid when I discovered that comics were forbidden to use the word "zombie" if they wanted the Comics Code Authority's Seal of Approval (so Marvel revived an old Robert E. Howard word "Zuvembie" as a workaround). So it should be no surprise that I’ve loved me some Walking Dead ever since the first comic appeared on the stands. I’m a sucker for horror comics and it hit me at just the right time. Also, Kirkman was telling his horrific story in a very intriguing way - bad stuff was happening, characters you liked were going to die, and it was hard to peg just where it was all going.
(Spoilers after the jump!)
Click to continue reading The Walking Dead: Season 3 So Far!
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Walking Dead: Season 3 Premiere
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Reviews, Television, Image Comics,
Oh Walking Dead, you make this so difficult! That’s because it’s hard to write about The Walking Dead without giving anything away.
Season 3 just debuted on AMC and so much happened that's gasp-worthy and intriguing in a "What's next?" kinda way that to write it out is to spoil it for anyone who DVR'd it. Sure, a bunch of zombies get killed, things aren’t quite what they seem, and Carl’s getting pretty handy with a gun and hand-to-hand zombie-fighting is pretty intense (I could probably do it if I had to, but I'd almost certainly be bad at it).
Click to continue reading Walking Dead: Season 3 Premiere
Reed Gunther: Cowboys, Monsters & Bears, Oh My!
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Reviews, Image Comics,
One of the great things I love about going to Comic Con International in San Diego is taking a stroll through the small press section, Artist’s Alley and the Image set-up. I never know what I’ll find, but I always find something interesting that nearly makes the whole convention worthwhile.
In 2011, it was Ian Churchill’s Marineman.
This year, it was Reed Gunther by Shane and Chris Houghton.
I’ve forgotten which one of the creators I met at the Image Comics booth (got to start writing these things down), but he hand-sold me a copy of Reed Gunther #2, one of the older issues.
This is a terrific comic book. The story is touted for all ages, and it truly is. I can easily see this being enjoyed by a 9-year-old and a 39-year-old - it’s just great fun with terrific storytelling chops on display by both writer and artist.
Click to continue reading Reed Gunther: Cowboys, Monsters & Bears, Oh My!
Weekend Reading: Spider-Man, Cyberforce, and Norm Breyfogle
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Movies, Reviews, Image Comics,
This is the week where the comics industry slows down for a couple of days as everyone saves their big news for Comic Con International in San Diego. That gets going on Wednesday evening - Preview Night - and you can expect the announcements to start flying faster than anyone can cut and paste a press release, and everyone's abuzz with their favorite version of the four Spider-Man movies.
For now, though, the internets still have some things to read:
A weather-battered Beau Smith looks at Spider-Man.
Longbox Graveyard also has a look at Spider-Man, of the Steve Ditko era.
Hero Complex reports the return of Marc Silvestri’s Cyberforce, with the words “Kickstarter” and “free” as part of the launch equation.
Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Spider-Man, Cyberforce, and Norm Breyfogle
Comic Con International: Ultraverse & Malibu Comics
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials,
Okay, so this is happening.
My good friend Paul O’Connor who used to write for Malibu Comics back in the day and is now one of the founder partners of the app company Appy Entertainment (and creator of the Longbox Graveyard blog), dropped me an email a couple of months ago. He wanted to host a Malibu Comics panel at this year’s Comic Con in San Diego.
2012, it turns out, marks the 25th anniversary of the founding of Malibu Comics; the company opened its doors in January 1987 and released its first three books in July of that year: Libby Ellis #1, Stealth Force #1 and Dark Wolf #1.
2012 also marks the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Ultraverse, Editor-In-Chief Chris Ulm's big idea to launch a writer-based super-hero universe. He started to implement his UV vision in the summer of 1992. The convention season that year was spent rounding up the seven creators who would become the Ultraverse Founders - Len Strazewski, James Hudnall, Steve Englehart, Steve Gerber, Mike Barr, Gerard Jones and James Robinson - which culminated in the first Ultraverse Founders Conference in Scottsdale, AZ.
Click to continue reading Comic Con International: Ultraverse & Malibu Comics
Quote Of The Day: Ed Brubaker
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Image Comics, Marvel Comics,
“[I'm] beginning a shift from work-for-hire to books I own, instead. I hit a point with the work-for-hire stuff where I was starting to feel burned out on it. Like my tank is nearing empty on superhero comics, basically. It's been a great job, and I think I found ways to bring my voice to it, but I have a lot of other things I want to do as a writer, too, so I'm going to try that for a while instead.”
- Ed Brubaker in an interview with Tom Spurgeon
And check out our other notable quotes.
Read More 
| The Comics Reporter
Weekend Reading: Before Watchmen, Mark Waid, Pogo & Ultraverse
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Reviews, DC Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics,
Welcome, weekend warriors! The internets have released a bounty of digital delights, so let's check 'em out!
John Rogers (Leverage) talks about his role in Mark Waid’s digital comics venture, and also talks about digital comics in general. John's a very smart guy, so he's well worth listening to.
One of my favorites, SF author Jay Lake (Rocket Science; Mainspring), is profiled in the Sunday Oregonian.
Over at John Scalzi’s Whatever, author Justin Jordan writes about the trade collection of his Image comic, The Strange Talent of Luther Strode, inspired by those Charles Atlas ads in old comics. After reading about it, it’s now something I need to get.
Heidi nails what’s going on over at Disney, with link to Nikki Finke.
David Brothers nails Before Watchmen. I love the phrase “ethical rot.”
Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Before Watchmen, Mark Waid, Pogo & Ultraverse
Weekend Reading: Watchmen, Shazam!, Archie and Image
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Movies, Reviews, DC Comics, Image Comics, Marvel Comics,
Watchmen! Shazam! Archie! Oh my goodness! Could a weirder week get any weirder? Oh, it can. It’s only February.
Here’s a few things to read until the Super Bowl fever hits you and, oh, wait. No one reading this cares about sports!
Well, of course DC was going to do Watchmen prequels and create more Watchmen-related graphic novels. The series will never be considered out-of-print (and now with online availability, you can get it digitally 24/7/365 so it will truly be “in print” in perpetuity). Since it’s a thing that can’t be stopped, I wish the creators well and I wish the original creators well as well (and hope they’re being compensated for the reuse of their creations). Forbes, the journal of the 1% weighs in with the “It can’t be wrong if everyone’s doing it” argument. Although Before Watchmen has to be one of the least grabby titles in modern comics history.
Michael Cavna at Comic Riffs, the Washington Post blog, collects various opinions on the coming new era of Watchmen prequels.
Here’s the Daily Beast on the behind-the-scenes soap opera at Archie. Once you realize that this is all about controlling the privately-held company, it starts to fall into place.
Click to continue reading Weekend Reading: Watchmen, Shazam!, Archie and Image
Marineman by Ian Churchill
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Conventions, Editorials, Image Comics,
This year, 2011, was no exception.
Of all the things I picked up at the various booths, there was one that really stood out for me and I stumbled across it by accident while lurking around the Image Comics area.
Marineman: A Matter Of Life And Depth by Ian Churchill (Cable, Deadpool, The Coven).
Churchill had a spot to himself and was selling trades, individual issues, and sketches.
He’s a charming, affable guy who genuinely believes in his story and his work.
He handsold me on the trade - I’d only heard of the in passing and yet I gladly handed over the $15 to get a copy.
Click to continue reading Marineman by Ian Churchill
Brent Anderson: Astro City Art Theft
Posted by Tom Mason Categories: Editorials, Image Comics,
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This was posted on Facebook and I’m reposting it here to help get the word out.
Artist Brent Anderson had his car broken into at the San Diego Zoo this week and a whole pile of his original art was heisted by the thieves.
Pages are from Astro City Vols. 1 & 2 & Local Heroes; Astro City: Dark Age Books 1 (#s 1-4), 2 (#s 1-4) & 3 (#s 1-4).
Keep an eye out and if you see them on the market via eBay or Craigslist or at conventions, please contact Brent immediately.
Also, the thieves might be dopes and not realize how hard it is to dump stolen original comic art without the whole of the internets finding out, so comic book shops, flea markets and pawn shops should also be wary.
Additional details can be found at the Comic Book Resources forums.
[Art: Astro City: Dark Age; cover by Alex Ross, not one of the missing pieces, but it's dramatic]
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