Fantagraphics Blog

Above, one of two variant covers by Johnny Ryan for the new issue of the Spanish edition of Vice magazine. The second, you'll see, is war fantasy at the opposite extreme, Johnny-style.

R.I.P.: Best of 1985-2004 by Thomas Ott 192-page black & white 6.25" x 10" hardcover • $28.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-417-7 Ships in: March 2011 (subject to change) —Pre-Order Now This omnibus collection of Thomas Ott’s short shock-ending horror stories — imagine E.C. Comics done with no words, and executed in an impossibly lush black-and-white scratchboard style — collects a dozen stories originally published in three (now out of print) thin European style “graphic albums” (Tales of Error, Greetings from Hellville and Dead End) during the 1980s and 1990s, plus 8 previously uncollected tales, including "The Breakdown" from Fantagraphics' Mome anthology and Ott's…

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "Hell fuckin’ yeah. New Prince Valiant. Fantagraphics really does these reprints right. While they could easily pump out lazy reissues of the same poorly recolored old strips like everyone else did before them, they actually go ahead and find the original colors and it’s like nothing you’ve ever seen before. Unless you were reading Prince Valiant in the newspaper back in the early 40s. […] The whole story is sick as hell from beginning to end. […] What a book! For thirty bucks you get to own some of the prettiest comics that…

I'm just going to copy & paste Gabrielle's explanation from her blog, where you can learn more, see a bigger image, and find out how to order: "To celebrate Kevin Kinsella’s upcoming release of Poems From Childrens Island from Lightful Press, Tony has created this poster of Green Verses-which was featured here last May, as well as in The Believer."

It's the final episode of the season (but hopefully not the series) for the animated adventures of Steven Weissman's "Yikes!" gang! Relive all the episodes here.

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery loves local comix! This Saturday features the festive opening of "Lovesick," an exhibition of emerging and established artists from the Bureau of Drawers cartoonist collective. The show includes original art, handmade books and prints by over 16 Seattle comix artists and illustrators who will be present on February 12 from 6:00 to 9:00 PM — just in time for Valentine's. Acoustical serenades by Bureau of Drawers members Dennis Driscoll and Sean Robinson, DJ Russ Fallout spinning lovely platters, and complimentary beverages promise to make this a memorable evening. Bring your sweetie — or find one in…

  Secret Headquarters in Los Angeles is showcasing original art from Tim Lane's Fantagraphic book ABANDONED CARS. SHQ customers will know Tim's work from the awesome bags he designed for them. From SHQ's press release, here's Tim's statement:  This collection of original comic pages depict my first experience freight train hopping, and are from the story SPIRIT in ABANDONED CARS. They are my favorite pages in the book, mainly because they represent a past experience that changed my life. Since I drew them a decade after the initial experience, they required a great deal of research to depict accurately, since the details of…

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "I’ll admit that Blecky Yuckerella isn’t a comic for everyone, and that Johnny Ryan’s sense of humour is definitely an acquired taste. However, if you’ve got a sick sense of humour, like I have, you will laugh your ass off non-stop, as you read this hilarious collection from cover to cover. I loved it so much that I actually contacted Johnny Ryan by email and purchased the original artwork for the very last Blecky strip from him. If that’s not a seal of approval, I don’t know what is!" – Edward Kaye, Hypergeek…

We've made a perhaps-overdue update to our online shop, creating a new category called "Vintage Comics" for our collections of early comic book stories. This should make them easier to find all together than in the overarching "Classic" category, which includes newspaper strips, illustration books and other stuff. What it is: "Fantagraphics is pleased to present collections of the finest comic book art and artists from the pioneering days of comic books in the middle decades of the 20th Century (and scholarly writing thereon). These lovingly-restored, beautifully-designed tomes present the best and most noteworthy work from the era, in genres…

Here's a couple of divergent but equally great 2011 Angoulême Festival scene reports from the unofficial Fantagraphics contingent: From smilin' Paul Karasik at his Rules to Vivere By blog… …and from Dash Shaw (behind the camera) at Comics Comics.