Fantagraphics Blog Jen Vaughn

Wednesday is here yet again and we have a new digital release through comiXology just for you. A visionary work of comic art for all-ages: Portable Frank. Readers who haven't discovered Jim Woodring's Frank stories have a colossal treat waiting for them in this all-ages gem collecting the character's greatest adventures. Frank is a unique, visionary comic, exquisitely drawn and so fully realized that adults and children alike find themselves drawn deeply into Woodring's hallucinatory mindscape. The stories, almost entirely wordless, unravel like a good puzzle, rewarding re-reading, providing an experience as immersive as that first love affair, that first samadhi,…

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund continues to bless objects with Jaime Hernandez's artwork. They have taken his Libby image from the Membership Card seen below (and shirts and hoodies) to make gorgeous limited edition prints. Utilizing the press at Aardvark Letterpress and help from CBLDF Member Store The Secret Headquarters in LA this 11 x 14 inch print is available to people pledging at the DEFENDER Level ($250) and higher. Here Jaime is approving the design by cartoonist Malachi Ward to accompany his own artwork. Deputy Director Alex Cox states, "Mr. Hernandez was involved in the design process, and as you…

Janet Hamlin Uncovers the Humanity Hidden Within Guantanamo's Walls in Sketching Guantanamo (not final cover art) Sketching Guantanamo: Court Sketches of the Military Tribunals, 2006-2013 by Janet Hamlin In the wake of 9-11, alleged terrorists were housed on a U.S. military base in Guantanamo, Cuba. While there, these terrorist suspects were confined in "indefinite detention," off the American mainland, unaccountable to the U.S. judicial system, nameless and faceless to the world. At the military trials of Guantanamo, which started in 2006, no photographs were permitted in the courtroom. Only one person was allowed to cover the trials, not with a…

Since Fantagraphics and comiXology shook hands that fateful weekend last summer, the hits just keep a-galloping through the gate. Here are the books we have kickin' around in our digital stable ready to be rode hard, combed down and fed oats (in the form of your high-star ratings). Here's a run-down of the digital comics we currently have available to read on your tablets, iPads, eReaders, myPads, ThinkTouches and more. Click on titles to be taken to their page at comiXology. Life is Rough and Tales of Misspent Youth Cruisin' with the Hound by Spain Rodriguez7 Miles a Second by…

The first peak of sun of Online Commentaries & Diversions: • Review: Noah Berlatsky on Slate reviews 7 Miles a Second by David Wojnarowicz, James Romberger, and Marguerite Van Cook. "That feared and desired encounter is in part the collision of comics and art—but it's also, and emphatically, the intermingling of queer and straight…7 Miles a Second still represents a road largely avoided…even if 7 Miles a Second never went mainstream, this new edition remains a stirring reminder that everything pushed to the side isn't gone." • Review: Full Page Bleed and Tom Murphy read 7 Miles a Second by…

No Straight Lines: Four Decades of Queer Comics was announced as a finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards in the LGBT Anthology category. Edited by Justin Hall, No Straight Lines showcases major names such as Alison Bechdel, Howard Cruse, and Ralf Koenig (one of Europe’s most popular cartoonists), as well as high-profile, crossover creators who have dabbled in LGBT artooning, like legendary NYC artist David Wojnarowicz (whose work has now been reprinted in 7 Miles a Second) and media darling and advice columnist Dan Savage. No Straight Lines also spotlights many talented creators who never made it out of the…

Fantagraphics and comiXology continue to roll out the beautiful Jason classics with Werewolves of Montpellier. A faux werewolf-cum-burglar named Sven runs afoul of a real society of werewolves who don't take kindly to the pretender. So while Sven spends his days playing chess and poker with his friends, sketching his way through his picturesque chosen hometown, and coping with romantic dilemmas — both his and those of his best friend, the Breakfast-at-Tiffany’s-obsessed Audrey, who has girl troubles of her own — little does he realize that a genuine threat to his life, and for that matter his humanity, is closing…

Fantagraphics with comiXology releases Oil and Water the gripping collaboration between Steve Duin and Shannon Wheeler. This devastating look at the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history follows ten Oregonians to the Gulf Coast to gather first-person accounts of the destructive impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. In this 144-page graphic novel — written by Steve Duin, a columnist for The Oregonian, and illustrated by Eisner-winning New Yorker cartoonist Shannon Wheeler — readers will tour the shark-pocked beach at Grand Isle with the local head of Homeland Security; step aboard the crabbing boat of a 20-year-old Mississippian who works…

This week's comic shop shipment is slated to include the following new titles. Read on to see what comics-blog commentators and web-savvy comic shops are saying about them (more to be added as they appear), check out our previews at the links, and contact your local shop to confirm availability.  Messages in a Bottle: Comic Book Stories by B. Krigstein edited by Greg Sadowski 272-page full-color 8" x 10.5" softcover • $35.00ISBN: 978-1-60699-580-8 "Krigstein treated each assignment as a chance to put theory into practice, and even among EC’s formidable roster of stylists, Krigstein stands out as one for whom the words around…