Fantagraphics Blog Mike Baehr

We're kicking off 2010 right with the following books scheduled to arrive at comics shops across the nation this week: The Troublemakers by Gilbert Hernandez — Newsarama says "Girls! Guns! Gilbert Hernandez!" Jog says "Oh shit, here's how you start 2010 off right." Robot 6 says "it's very hard to imagine this not being fantastic." It's the second of the "Fritz filmography" series of standalone graphic novels. Pulpy goodness! The Unclothed Man in the 35th Century A.D. by Dash Shaw — by some accounts this was at some shops a couple of weeks ago, but it wasn't on the official…

No sooner did I post the Newsarama interview with Kim Deitch than I came across this profile by Graphic NYC's Christopher Irving: "When I’m starting to think of a good idea, I visualize myself walking into a comic book store, and I ask myself the question ‘What are you not seeing here that would absolutely knock your socks off, in terms of a book? You don’t expect that question is going to be answered right away, but by asking that question, it starts the wheels turning. After a while your subconscious mind starts to feed out little clues towards what…

Newsarama's Michael Lorah talks to Kim Deitch about his newest book, The Search for Smilin' Ed, coming this Spring: "I am definitely expanding (and redrawing a little here and there). I am adding 15 new pages at the end and there will be plenty of other new art visuals as well. The most ambitious new thing will be a double fold out of The Kim Deitch Universe. This will be a gigantic panoramic picture featuring one hundred of my characters past and present." There's a 3-page preview, too!

This great Drew Friedman portrait of Hizzoner Michael Bloomberg might have been cut from tomorrow's NY Observer (full story on Drew's blog) but it will live on in Too Soon?, our collection of Drew's celebrity portraits coming this Summer. 

Now available for preview and pre-order: Almost Silent, the new hardcover compilation of Jason's Meow, Baby!, Tell Me Something, You Can't Get There from Here and The Living and the Dead, most of which is heretofore out of print. Humor, monsters, mystery, doomed romance, and zombies, all in various combinations. Download an exclusive 27-page PDF excerpt right here (840 KB — that's 6 pages from each section, plus spacer pages). This book is scheduled to be in stock and ready to ship later this month and in stores roughly the same time (subject to change). View a photo & video…

Now available for preview and pre-order: the newest collection of "Yikes!" strips and stories from Steven Weissman, Chocolate Cheeks. You've thrilled to the serialized pages from this book on our website over the last couple of years; now it can be yours to own. The gang meets icky new characters like Crustache & Lumpy Noodle and faces their scariest adventure yet in the chilling 51-page story "Blue Jay." Download an exclusive 10-page PDF excerpt right here (5.1 MB). This book is scheduled to be in stock and ready to ship later this month and in stores roughly the same time…

"Jay Lynch Hand-Drawn Sketch Card in Every Box!" I like this, yes I do. (Via Jay Lynch at The Beat)

The first Online Commentary & Diversions of the new year might be the longest one ever, so let's get to it: • List/Review/Interview: As part of The Comics Reporter 's unique series of critical discussions on notable comics of the decade, Tom Spurgeon talks to Tucker Stone about Kevin Huizenga's Ganges: "That's the thing about Ganges #3 that makes it a unique comic — it cannot be told in another medium and work. How are you going to write that down, that aspect of Glenn chasing his own thoughts and memories about completely personal, mundane life aspects, without drawing the…

Following up on last week's post about the Usagi Yojimbo plush toy from Dark Horse, our own Jacob Covey alerted me to this series of polystone statues of Usagi characters soon to be available from RokuToys. They have exclusive editions with some nifty features — the interchangeable horn on Gennosuke is a particularly nice touch. Jacob says and I agree, "It's nice to see so much Usagi product getting made lately."

Another exclusive 2010 sneak peek at Robot 6: 3 pages from Megan Kelso's Artichoke Tales, coming later this year.