Tim Across America pt 5! In Minneapolis, Tim visits the studio of Zander Cannon, author of Heck (discussed in episode 381) and layout artist for Alan Moore’s Top Ten and Smax. He talks with Tim about developing Heck, working with Alan Moore, whether going to San Diego is all that essential for a newbie to the comics business, and — Hey, Kevin Cannon’s your brother, right?!?
Big Time Attic (Zander and Kevin’s studio)
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In the early ’90s, Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell’s From Hell, based on the true story of Jack the Ripper, was published in issues, and collected in 1999. Kumar and Dana find that, upon re-reading (or re-re-re-reading), new questions still arise. What’s the story about? Why does the killer sometimes come off as a wise prophet? Many scenes are simply puzzling and need sufficient time to unpack. And then there’s the Star Wars reference…
Also this week, Kumar and Mulele discuss their upcoming Kickstarter project for Weird Crime Theater!
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FLASHBACK! Tim and Brandon struggle with League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: The Black Dossier, zip through Alex Robinson’s Lower Regions, revisit The Black Diamond, and go back in comics history for The Grendel Archives. (originally published May 5, 2008)
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While this podcast has covered the odd League of Extraordinary Gentlemen book here and there, no one has dared think of trying to discuss all of them in one episode… until now! Kumar and Dana take on the task, with special attention paid to Black Dossier (and the record that was recorded for it), the Century trilogy, and the injustice that Kumar feels was done to Volume 2 in the 2006 episode we republished yesterday!
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FLASHBACK! Leading into tomorrow’s look at ALL the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen books, we look back to this early episode, in which Tim, Mulele, and Brandon talk about the merits — or, in Brandon’s view, lack of merit — in League Volume 2. That is, once they’re done going down the Star Wars rabbit hole. Originally published May 1, 2006
Alan Moore interview on MTV.com
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Due perhaps to the passage of time, poorly handled reprinting by DC, or some other reason, Alan Moore’s writing stint on Swamp Thing in the 1980s does not seem to get mentioned much today. Which is a shame, because it ranks with Moore’s best work. And the art by Stephen Bissette and John Totleben (and able fill-in artists) is worth the price of admission by itself, not to mention Tatjana Wood’s colors.
Tim and Kumar had a blast reading the early issues of the run (#21-37) and are here to share the experience with you.
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Written by Alan Moore.
Illustrated by Jacen Burrows.
Avatar Press, 2010.
This book is several things.
It is a kinky H.P. Lovecraft worshiping Cthulhu Mythos pulp story, with endless name checks. It is a raw, meaty slab of new Alan Moore story. It is a meta-narrative that discusses the possibilities of linguistic based psychedelic experience. It is some high concept, dark science fiction short story. It was a piece of work made to pay off Alan Moore’s tax bill.
In my opinion all of those statements are true. This is an example of why Alan Moore is a master craftsman. The panel layouts, pacing and dialogue are top notch. Burrows’ art is excellent. The ideas that are at work here are intellectually rewarding and inventive. The stories mirror the Weird Tales formula that they are based on, down to the morbid endings that push the indescribable horror by just showing their effects, their aftermath. Continue reading Review: Alan Moore’s Neonomicon
Alice from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Wendy from Peter Pan, and Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz meet in a hotel in Austria in 1913 and perform almost every sex act conceivable with each other, animals, objects, relatives, consenting and non-consenting minors, and numerous combinations thereof (it’s all just lines on paper, folks!) nearly non-stop for 240 pages. Close to 20 years in the making, Alan Moore and Melinda Gebbie’s Lost Girls is perhaps the most ambitious, lavish, and beautiful project of Moore’s career. And yet, does it all amount to mere slash fiction? Or, on the contrary, is it so intelligent that it sabotages its own pornographic objectives? Or is it, in fact, impervious to criticism? Kumar and Dana turn up their trenchcoat collars and slink into the grimy back room to discuss.
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Writer: Alan Moore, Penciller: Zander Cannon, Inker: Andrew Cannon
America’s Best Comics, 2004.
This trade paperback collects issues #1-#5 of the miniseries Smax, which was spun out of the Alan Moore created Top 10 series. The story follows the character of Jeff from the Top 10 police force, who returns to his home world/dimension to attend a funeral. Robyn accompanies him and Jeff tries to pass her off as his wife. Robyn is none too happy about this, and it is a waste because no one really believes Jeff. It seems that Jeff is a bad liar and he didn’t even go to the trouble of securing fake wedding bands. It seems that Jeff is really scared that he will hook up (sexually) with his twin sister Rexa.
Moore approaches Jeff’s home world with a humor that is reminiscent of Terry Pratchett. The series does defiantly compare with the magical realism found in the Discworld novels. The world is a spoof on the fantasy genre but Moore incorporates some real cutting satire. Jeff’s recounting of his ogre father’s abuse to him (physical) and his sister (physical and sexual) keeps the story from being a light and airy satire of Dungeon and Dragons campaign cliques though. There is a dark side to the relationship between Jeff and Rexa that involves their disturbing prior incestuous couplings.
by Gary Spencer Millidge
Ilex Press, 2011
Conflict of Interest Warning: I provided scans of some of the rare material featured in this book, and I have a “Thanks” credit in it.
When this book was first announced, many of us Alan Moore fans were expecting a prose biography (the first) of Alan Moore. What we get instead is actually more like a coffee table art book chronological biography of the writings of Alan Moore.
