Fantagraphics Blog

• Jason goes on a murderous rampage, plus more old strips and illustrations and new film reviews at his Cats Without Dogs blog • A doozy of an "I, Anonymous" spot by Steven Weissman at his Chewing Gum in Church blog • A new comic page by John Hankiewicz • Pages from "Professor Fleischmann," an in-progress collaboration between Lamelos and Olivier Schrauwen (via Kuš!) • This is just a small portion of the catstravaganza that is Drew Weing's back cover for Papercutter #15 from Tugboat Press (he's also in the issue) — see the whole thing at Drew's Here There…

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "[The Complete Peanuts 1979-1980] is… a genius volume… Some of the pieces here – especially the longer storylines – are absolute classics. […] Plus, there’s just the sheer kookiness of some of Schulz’s pop-cultural references and inventions, which continues to astound here… Schulz is at the height of his powers as a cartoonist here, as well. […] Such graphic flair! Such economy of line! A Peanuts nut couldn’t ask for more, really." – Naomi Fry, The Comics Journal • Review: "Littered with violence, inappropriate sexual innuendos, misguided bravado and infused with hilarity, Dungeon…

From Shadow to Light: The Life and Art of Mort Meskin by Steven Brower is a finalist for ForeWord Reviews magazine's 2010 "Book of the Year Awards" in the Art category. Actually, Steven is a two-time nominee as his book Breathless Homicidal Slime Mutants is also a finalist in the same category. Congratulations Steven!

Things You Might Find on Gary Groth's Desk, Part 1 of a series: A hand, by Sal Buscema!

Hey Robert Crumb fans: even if you can't make it to the retrospective exhibit R. Crumb: Lines Drawn On Paper, which opens next week at the Society of Illustrators in NYC, you can still buy the exhibit poster from the Society's online shop.

Johnny Ryan takes an elimination on America's Next Top Model to its logical conclusion in his latest Vice strip.

[The Comics Journal intern Laura Pieroni put together this series of discussion questions about Mark Kalesniko's Freeway for use in book clubs. As this is intended for those who have read the book and contains spoilers, the conclusion of the synopsis and the questions can be found behind the jump. – Ed.]

Synopsis:

Alex, Mark Kalesniko's recurring dog-headed character, has been stuck in Los Angeles traffic for longer than he can remember. In fact, Alex has been stuck in traffic through multiple time periods and alternate lives.

Freeway is a non-linear compilation of various alternate realities centered on Alex and his dream of being an animator at Babbitt Jones Studios. Alex takes readers through his memories as a child dreaming of a career in animation and into his experiences working that same dream job turned nightmare. Through the story Alex also has multiple visions of violently dying, and a fantasy of what it might have been like to work at Babbitt Jones during its Golden Age when the animators were treated like royalty instead of assembly-line workers.

Here's this week's Weissman, plus links to other strips from around the web: — Barack Hussein Obama by Steven Weissman (view at original size): — And elsewhere: Amazing Facts… and Beyond! with Leon Beyond by Kevin Huizenga: Belligerent Piano by Tim Lane: Ectiopiary by Hans Rickheit: Lucky by Gabrielle Bell: Maakies by Tony Millionaire: Mugwhump the Great by Roger Langridge (at Act-i-vate): The Pain — When Will It End? by Tim Kreider (from 1995, with artist's statement): Truth Serum by Jon Adams:

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "The main thing I kept thinking about while reading Wandering Son — beyond the continuous undercurrent of general squee — is how things that seem insignificant to one person can be secretly, intensely significant to someone else. […] The story is subtle, simple, poignant, and innocent. The tone is matched by Shimura’s uncluttered artwork, which features big panels, little screentone, and extremely minimal backgrounds." – Michelle Smith, Soliloquy in Blue • Interview (Audio): Inkstuds host Robin McConnell to Joe Sacco in advance of Joe's trip to Toronto next week • Interview: The A.V….