#229 Thoughts on thought balloons

In a recent interview, Steven King is quoted as saying that a Vertigo editor asked him not to use thought balloons in his work on American Vampire. An article in Comics Comics Mag brought this to our attention, and sparked discussion. Why do some editors now discourage, or even ban, thought balloons — even when the writer is Steven King? Are they perceived as being cheesy, and if so, why? Tim, Kumar, and Mulele discuss. Also: The Walking Dead, Billy Bat, and Gin-Tama!

#228 Ruben Bolling

Ruben Bolling is a comic strip creator who admits that he’s less interested in drawing than he used to be. Known as the brains behind the hilarious, and sometimes absurd, weekly strip “Tom the Dancing Bug,” Bolling does want to continue the strip, but also concentrate more effort on writing, and to move into other types of creative pursuits. One such pursuit may be a movie project with New Line Cinema. In an interview with Tim, Bolling talks about the movie, his influences, his tools, and his characters, as well as answering questions from listeners!

Interview in Tufts Magazine

Also in this episode, Tim, Mulele, and Kumar discuss the upcoming WeirdCrimeTheater.com and Tim’s ongoing paid drawing gig (see his finished works below the break).

Continue reading #228 Ruben Bolling

#227 dharbin.com, and Developing Your Own Style

Tim and Mulele set out to review dharbin.com, but “the gold of the site” is hidden. Mulele explains where to find Dustin Harbin’s best work.

Then an interview with (former) Tokyo resident Ed Siemienkowicz and a discussion of how to develop your own style. Tim continues to struggle with this as he is paid (!) (by an English school) to do some illustrations.

Finally, Mulele has a few words about WordPress plugin ComicPress, and why he’s switching to InkBlot — er, no, sorry, Webcomic 2.1

#226 Hey, Managers! Comics!

Comics are being used increasingly to get messages across visually, even those aimed at the business world.

Doug Jackson, a Tokyo-based business consultant, was involved in adapting Patrick Lencioni’s “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” into a “manga version.” He talks to Tim about the challenges he faced in turningĀ  Lencioni’s “business fable” into a comics script, and the potential for using sequential art as a teaching tool.

Grant Brownrigg of Grantland.net sells usage rights to his business-themed comic strips and one-panel cartoons through the site, for use in everything from newsletters to presentations. He tells Tim about how the business started in 1984 and how it has evolved.

#225 Wizards of Oz… and “Toto” too!

L. Frank Baum’s classic children’s story The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published 109 years ago and still inspires attempts to adapt it to other media. While the 1939 MGM movie tends to define the story in the minds of many, subsequent adaptations do stick closer to the original book than to the movie, including the two we discuss this week: a French version adapted by David Chauvel and Enrique Fernandez (published in English by Image), and Marvel’s recent version, adapted by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young.

Rashad Doucet, a published children’s book author in his own right, joins Tim in comparing the two adaptations, as well as discussing Yuko Osada‘s “Toto: The Wonderful Adventure” and, uh, “sexy Dorothys“.

#224 Our Notes on “Death Note”

A bored, punk-dressing god of death and a genius high school boy are the main characters in Death Note, written by Tsugumi Ohba and drawn by Takeshi Obata. The boy, Light Yagami, receives from the god a notebook with which he can kill people simply by writing their names in it. A plot with many twists and turns ensues. Tim and Kumar review — first without spoilers, and then, 38 minutes in, totally and utterly with spoilers.

#223 Electronic Comics

Comics are increasingly read as bits and bytes, on PCs and handheld devices.

Blank creators Brothers of the Silence are publishing the comic in Flash on their site, and as image files on Facebook and several other sites. “Brothers” Ian LeWinter and Don Richmond talk about creating the comic and promoting it via social media sites.

Dale Wilson of DWAP Productions, making his second appearance on this podcast, discusses the ways his company is getting its traditional paper product out in handheld device formats.

Remember “Yon Kuma”? Tim and Mulele reviewed it a year ago. It’s now called “Bear Beater Bunyan,” and it’s an iPhone app. Artist Jorge Munoz talks about the path he and writer Josh Hechinger followed in making the comic available for handhelds.

“Bear Beater Bunyan” is just one of many comics available from Robotcomics.net. Robot Comics Deputy Director Dave Baxter fills us in on the state of the growing comics market for handhelds and how Robot does what it does.

Finally, Tim and Mulele review some of Robot’s output.

#222 Canadian Web Comics

Tim and Mulele review two Web comics that have little in common besides the nationality of their creators! Amya, a recently-started, manga- an fantasy-influenced comic; and Hark, a Vagrant, featuring contemporary, humorous takes on historical events.

Then Mulele critiques Tim’s recent artwork, and discussion of how to draw facial expressions ensues (view full post to see pictures below).

Continue reading #222 Canadian Web Comics

#221 Johnny Cash: We See a Brightness

Though Asterios Polyp made the point that comics and (written) music are similar, doing a comic about music is not such an easy task. But Reinhard Kleist beautifully presents the music, and life, of a country music legend in Johnny Cash: I See a Darkness, recently released in English. How does it compare with the Cash biopic Walk the Line? Tim and Paul review.