Last weekend, at MorrisonCon I had the opportunity to chat with some of the most inspirational creators whom I regularly subscribe to. One interaction in particular left me feeling as though I had engaged in a conversation that wasn’t built around my love for their work, but rather a conversation between two lovers of the medium. During the chat we managed to cover why we latch on to certain books. More to the point, why the hell do we so emphatically pursue creators to sign our books?
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For too long comic characters built the framework of their success on the pretense of “badass”. The 90’s boom of Liefeld-inspired artwork that flaunted jacked-up “heroes” sporting an entire arsenal on their persons became somehow a norm for character designs. Not across the board, but enough so to recognize it as a trend of the era.
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All too often it takes a tragedy to remind us of our blessings. We get lost in our day to day and forget how amazing all of this really is. Aurora Rises reminds us of how fragile and important we all are.
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By now you’ve certainly heard all of the big announcements and reveals that are customary to San Diego Comic Con. Sara Lindsey (comicbloc writer and ladyfriend of mine) and I had the chance to attend this year’s event. Instead of telling you more of what you already know, we thought we’d take the chance to tell you about some of the great creators we got to meet who may not be on your radar yet.

Before Watchmen: possibly the two most polarizing words in the comic book community right now (Grant Morrison is a close second.) (more…)

There is a certain stigma that has always been attributed to graphic novels that undermines the significance of the writers and the material. The use of illustrated pages somehow denotes the medium for many, as the instant parallels between graphic novels and comic books are drawn.
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If you type just “90’s” and “comics” into Google you’ll find a search page overflowing with negativity. Article after article about “why the 90’s sucked” or how the 90’s almost ended it all.

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A few weeks ago we had to opportunity to attend Chicago’s wonderful convention C2E2. Here we caught up with Batman, Swamp Thing, and American Vampire author, Scott Snyder, he let us in on the creative process, current and upcoming arcs.

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Comic books have existed in three distinct phases that have been categorized to identify the era, the characters, and the tone. Ask any comic aficionado and they’ll be able to give you at least a ball park explanation of the defining features that create the “Golden Age”, the “Silver Age”, and the “Modern Age” of the medium. We now find ourselves in an era that simply doesn’t fit into the current “Modern Age” definition. It’s creativity and success, like a period in human history itself, should be called a Renaissance.

Growing up I remember how important teaching diversity was in the education system. Even though I grew up in a predominantly homogenous city, the importance of acceptance and tolerance for all people was heavily instructed.

At the time I wasn’t able to put one and one together, but these morals weren’t new to me; thanks in particular to the Uncanny X-Men. The themes and characters that the X-Men have often worked with are some of the most poignant and relevant explorations into the problems that plague our society.