Fantagraphics Blog

Today's Online Commentary & Diversions: • Review: "The real reason to read Lucky in Love, of course, is DeStefano's art, which is intensely expressive and cartoony, among his best work, with fabulous panel designs, wonderful grotesque characters, and amazing energy throughout." – Andrew Wheeler, The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent. • Review: "The Book of Mr. Natural by the legendary and infamous… R. Crumb is a gorgeous mini-coffee table comic book published by Fantagraphic Books. […] This book is for Mr. Natural’s legions of cult followers, 60’s believers, as well as new and younger readers who can hack the…

Periodic clips & strips — click for improved/additional viewing and possible artist commentary at the sources: • Michael Kupperman illustrates a New York Times op-ed piece written by William Gibson • This video posted by Jim Woodring has a surprise ending • At Comics Comics, Jeet Heer reminds us of Kevin Huizenga's tribute to Floyd Gottfredson in Or Else #2 • Another stage in Matthias Lehmann's scratchboard work in progress • An unpublished 1987 Bob Fingerman drawing of young zombies in love • The cover of the first comic Jason ever made, circa 1979 (it means Tim and Tom On…

Another awesome fan tattoo shared with us on Facebook, this one based on the cover of Black Hole #4 by Charles Burns.

The new ish of Smoke Signal is out and it is a doozy! With contribs from Peter Bagge (that killer cover), Tim Lane, Gabrielle Bell, Michael Kupperman, Kevin Huizenga, Jon Vermilyea, Nate Neal, Noah Van Sciver, Derek Van Gieson, Martin Cendreda, our own Jason T. Miles, Kaz (back cover) and many more of our faves, this one is a must-get. Pick one up for FREE at Desert Island in Brooklyn, or order one here.

Here's a couple of impressive Maakies-related tattoos recently shared on Facebook by Tony Millionaire:

We have an update to our schedule of Fantagraphics-related events at this year's Bumbershoot festival: our own Nico Vassilakis will be participating in the Pecha Kucha multidisciplinary arts showcase tomorrow at noon. Looks fascinating!

So Jim Woodring was officially declared a Genius by The Stranger; now he and the other Genius Award winners are being feted with a gala event on Friday, September 17, at the Moore Theatre in Seattle. Get your tickets here! (The portrait of Jim is a good likeness, but why is he dressed like Brock Samson?)

First a bit of related happy news: Peter Kuper's "Ceci n'est pas une comic" (which Peter generously allowed us to host here following its various print appearances) was selected for inclusion in Best American Comics 2010, edited by Neil Gaiman. This week we're pleased to bring you a sexy & romantic Flog-exclusive unpublished 5-page story by Dame Darcy, a hilarious new strip by Stephen DeStefano which will run for the next 11 weeks, and our usual weekly visit with the President from Steven Weissman: "The Tunnel of Love" by Dame Darcy (permanent link): — Monday's Strip by Stephen DeStefano (view…

Success! Thanks to everybody who pledged toward actualizing Jim Woodring's amazing project; we look forward to bringing you progress updates on this: