Updates of Online Commentary & Diversions may be oddly timed for the rest of the week as we're eyeball deep in MoCCA preparations.
• Review: "[Harvey] Kurtzman and company aimed high for a more sophisticated humor mag than the competition… Fantagraphics’ package for it is bar none — handsome, sturdy and restored with great care… I was most interested in the behind-the-scenes story of Humbug and the creative process that went into it — not to mention doomed it — and the book’s introduction and exclusive interviews more than satisfy on that count." – Rod Lott, Bookgasm
• Review: "Humbug " – Byron Coley & Thurston Moore, Arthur Magazine
• Review: "…[U]nparallel parodists Kurtzman and Elder ran rampant for themselves when they published these 11 exceptional issues of comic art anarchy. This two-volume hardcover box set has been reproduced from the original art and digitally restored to make everything look even better than when it first came out in 1957. This long-overdue definitive edition of Humbug is an essential slice of satire from the masters of the genre." – Jeffrey Morgan, Detroit Metro Times
• Review: "Everybody Is Stupid Except For Me [is] a compilation of the notorious Seattle libertarian [Peter Bagge]’s politically (and sexually) charged comics for Reason magazine… It’s great. So colourful (always my favourite part of Pete’s comics) and acerbic and smart-ass, but with a heart and purpose behind the bickering and keenly observes caricatures… It’s too early to say now, but right now I’m thinking it’s perhaps my favourite stuff of his, full stop…" – Everett True
• Review: "Connective Tissue… make[s] for an engaging read… While Darla sounds like she could be a handful, she is a good and sympathetic protagonist, making her a modern-day Alice in a 21st century Wonderland." – Jason Borelli, Beyond Race Magazine
• Preview: At Newsarama, Michael C. Lorah comments on our scheduled August 2009 releases as seen in the current issue of Previews (and right here on our site)
• Preview: Spotlighting comics shipping this week, The Comics Reporter says of Uptight #3: "The previous issue of this series from the great Jordan Crane was super, super strong." Likewise, Chris Mautner at Robot 6: "The latest issue in Jordan Crane’s very good series about ghosts and melancholy comes to town. I feel we should be doing all we can to ensure Crane keeps making comics, don’t you?" And Matthew Brady says: "I missed the second issue of this series, but the first one was great… Check it out if you see it on the shelves."
• Profile: My Adventure Is Your Advantage spotlights the design work of our very own Art Director Jacob Covey, calling him "the bees knees of design" and presenting previously unseen previews of the forthcoming Abstract Comics anthology
• Profile: "[Dash] Shaw's online and bound comics inhabit surreal spaces both cerebral and emotional, leaping from zombie love stories to futuristic set pieces without resorting to predictability… It's probably safe to say he has arrived." – Wired
• Interview: Publishers Weekly's Heidi MacDonald asks our own Eric Reynolds for his thoughts about Book Expo America and its value for comics publishers like us; The Comics Reporter's Tom Spurgeon comments on the interview; meanwhile, The Daily Cross Hatch's Brian Heater gets a few words from Eric on the show floor
• Interview: Comic Book Resources' Jeffrey Renaud talks to Gilbert and Mario Hernandez about their forthcoming sci-fi miniseries Citizen Rex (Dark Horse is publishing it, but how could we not link?)
• Interview: Newsarama's Michael C. Lorah talks to Stan Sakai about the 25th anniversary of Usagi Yojimbo and gets a little bit of scoop about our forthcoming Usagi Yojimbo: Special Edition deluxe set
• Oddity: Julie Demboski's Astrology peppers her advice with a little Romance Without Tears