Ben Wickey has created a graphic novel, More Weight: A Salem Story, that gives us a very deep dive into the Salem witch trials: why they happened, who was to blame, and how the city has dealt with their legacy. This week Koom gets the scoop on what inspired Ben, why his art style seems to vary depending on what point in the past he’s writing about, and more.
More Weight: A Salem Story on Amazon.com
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Fifty years ago, four students died when national guardsman inexplicably opened fire during an anti-war protest at Kent State University. The craziness of 2020 has hindered planned observances of the craziness of 1970, but we do get this: Derf Backderf’s Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio
In this episode, Tim and Kumar review the book, to be released September 8, and then Tim chats with Derf himself, answering our questions about the tragedy and the book.
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Alex is a Webtoons comic about the life of Alexander the Great, by Dave Malley. How much were we able to learn about the comic’s subject?
Andrew Perry and Chris Holmes’ Undetermined centers on a middle-school boy, Robert, who is running into people – including himself — from other dimensions, and they’re getting injured by his actions. What’s going on, and what can Robert do to solve the problem?
Tim and Mulele critique.
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Tim and Mulele critique a couple of history-based comics:
A Light Before the Darkness by Ken Mora and Cyrus Mescarcia tells the story of an artist named Michelangelo — but no, not that one. It’s about Michelangelo Da Caravaggio Di Merisi, often known simply as “Caravaggio”. Mora seems to have done his homework, but has he given us a reason to buy into his subject?
The Satsuma Rebellion is Sean Michael Wilson and Akiko Shimojima’s retelling of the titular event in Japanese history. We found it interesting — but then, we live in Japan.
ALSO: Mulele’s “PSA” about what to look for when signing (or, perhaps, NOT signing) a contract with a publisher.
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Time travel is a fascinating topic to many, and Fred Van Lente‘s current Ivar, Timewalker series from Valiant is timesurfing at both its most fun, and most scientific, with nods to Stephen Hawking’s writings on the subject. Van Lente did his own time jump to the past a couple years ago in The Comic Book History of Comics. This week Tim discusses both these works with him, along with Spider-Man, Archer & Armstrong, reassessing Fredric Wertham, and more.
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This week, a collection of cut paper comics, each one better than the last. We critique Monarch Monkey and Other Stories, by Brad DeRocher, Dan Mazur, and Hyun Supul.
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If you’re not Canadian, this week’s topic may be a bit of a head-scratcher. Louis, uh, who now? To Canadians, though, including our own Kumar and Dana, Riel is a famous historical figure of the 19th century who led a rebellion against the Canadian government. His story is the subject of Chester Brown‘s recent graphic novel which, while complete with end notes, also takes Shakespearean liberties with the historical record. And what’s up with the weird placement of characters on the page? An accident? No… nothing in this book is an accident.
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FLASHBACK! Tim and Brandon snack while examining Houdini: The Handcuff King and 24-hour Comics Day Highlights 2006! (Originally published May 21, 2007) Continue reading #076 “Houdini, the Handcuff King”
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by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon.
Hill and Wang, 2010.
So, why does a publisher which doesn’t normally deal in graphic novels / comics decide to put out a book like this?
1) It’s a way to re-publish existing material. This is especially true for The Anne Frank Center whose mission it is to perpetuate her story.
2) They assume – mostly incorrectly – that graphic novels are currently trendy.
3) They assume that kids are too slow / callous to appreciate a prose presentation of the same material.
Continue reading REVIEW: Anne Frank: The Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography
A 200th episode extravaganza!
St. Louis resident Matt Kindt, creator of Super Spy, has been hard at work on several new titles, set at various points in the 20th century. Matt tells us what’s coming up and answers a few questions about Super Spy.
Tracy Butler, also of St. Louis, shares Matt’s interest in comics set in the past — in particular, St. Louis in the 1920s. Her Web comic Lackadaisycats (now available as a book) is beautifully drawn, interesting, and hilarious.
Then Tim and Mulele respond to some recent mail from listeners, and Mulele gives his impressions of the Image series Chew!
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