Super Celebrity

Celebrities and Comics have been connected since the beginning.  Celebrities from sitting Popes, to Martin Luther, to reigning kings have all been lionized and lambasted by industrious illustrators and publishers in the earliest days of printing.  In America, Presidents often faced the ire of satirists or the support of followers in cartoons.  And the process continues through today with illustrated cameos and entire comics lines dedicated to celebrity.  But something happened along the way.

Comics Characters themselves became celebrities.

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Bob Francis

Super Celebrity

Comics Around The World Part 3

Welcome once again to Comics Around The World!  Today, I have the great pleasure to chat with French artist Ood Serriere.  She’s a great natural talent that honed her skill studying architecture and has brought that to comics.

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Bob Francis

Comics Around The World Part 3

Comics Around The World Part 2

Welcome back to our Comics Around The World series!  This week, we’re back in Malaysia visiting another talented artist, Hanie Mohd!

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Bob Francis

Comics Around The World Part 2

Comics Around The World Part 1

The show stopping number “Put On Your Sunday Clothes” from Hello, Dolly! opens with the adventure seeking Cornelius Hackl finally getting the gumption to leave his comfort zone. That applies to comics, too. Often, we only focus on American comics in our analyses and forget that there is a “world outside of Yonkers.”  In a series of interviews, we will spotlight creators from around the world and attempt to get a glimpse in the local comics scene.  Our first stop on our world tour? Malaysia!

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Bob Francis

Comics Around The World Part 1

Register talks Change

BEWARE THE BATMAN! DC NATION! DOOM PATROL shorts! CG! 2D! Yes, we all get excited about new shows coming down the Warner Animation pipeline, but the well crafted teasers weren’t the point of Executive VP of Animation Sam Register‘s keynote address at the recent MIPJunior conference in Cannes, France.  In his address, he outlines how Warner Animation, and by extension DC Comics, rebrands their libraries.

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Bob Francis

Register talks Change

So This Guy Walks Into A Comic Shop

I have a confession to make.  My name’s Bob, and I’m a lapsed reader.  So, I finally have a little scratch to play with and I decide to drop in to one of the local shops and check out some of the New 52.
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Bob Francis

So This Guy Walks Into A Comic Shop

The New Spinner Rack

Reems of paper and countless bytes have been used describing the effects of the Internet on the print industry. Newspapers, once the bastions of facts and opinions, have given way to the countless pundit blogs and hard journalist sites.  Magazines continue to hold on by a thread, and nationally broadcast commercials now tout the benefits of digital delivery. (more…)

Bob Francis

The New Spinner Rack

The Many Lives of Dr. Watson

‘Elementary, my Dear Watson’. Although never appearing in any of the Conan Doyle adventures, the phrase ended many of the Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce movies searing the image of the hawkishly handsome detective and his bumbling-yet-beloved sidekick in the minds of movie fans for generations. And of course, it’s all due to revamps.

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Bob Francis

The Many Lives of Dr. Watson

The Business of Revamps with Bill Walko

Bill Walko is having fun. Known as the historian for all things Teen Titans at Titans Tower, Bill is branching out into webcomics with the hilarious, satirical love-letter to superhero comics: The Hero Business. Now wrapping up its second story arc, about the sometimes misguided attempts to make a long-standing character “more accessible” and “more relevant”, Bill sat down and talked about his inspirations for the series.

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Bob Francis

The Business of Revamps with Bill Walko

The Number Is The Beast

Issue numbers are a simple necessity.  All published periodicals: newspapers, magazines, comics, even this website use them to organize the schedule and to let the reader know what edition they’re reading.  However, no one notices that the 1136th issue of Rolling Stone just hit the stands; it’s just the latest Rolling Stone.  Superman Number 714? Suddenly, that’s a different story.

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Bob Francis

The Number Is The Beast