It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your comics are? Police in Salt Lake City are looking for the owner of a stash of comics that was found, along with other suspected stolen goods, in a black chest under a tarp in the back yard of a local house. The items were turned up during a burglary investigation last year. (The story is a little convoluted.) The recovered items also included valuable pennies and baseball cards.
(Note: The image above doesn’t show the actual comic found by police, although this issue was among them.)
Color Commentary: The Paste Magazine comics team has rounded up a list, with examples, of the best comics colorists of the first half of 2017.
Book Expo/BookCon Special Report
Posting has been a bit spotty here because I was away at Book Expo America for part of last week. BEA is the trade show for book retailers, where publishers show off their hot books for fall, and graphic novels make a strong showing there every year. BookCon is the consumer show that follows, and that too had a big comics presence.
Hot Graphic Novels: I made it into town just in time to catch the Graphic Novel Buzz panel, which was moderated by Calvin Reid and featured six creators talking about five graphic novels that are coming out in the fall—all of which you’ll be hearing more about, I’m sure. Check this out for a quick roundup of what to watch out for.
The New Mainstream: Heidi Macdonald has posted the video of the panel she moderated, titled The New Mainstream: Diversity & Activism in Four Colors, in which Thi Bui, Marjorie Liu, Joe Illidge and Magdalene Visaggio discussed making comics in a time of political turmoil:
I think the one quote that stuck with me the most is when I asked if having a president who doesn’t speak up against white supremacists, transphobia and sexism makes it harder to get their message out. Without exception, all four said it makes it easier, since the message of inclusion and acceptance is so important now. Bui actually nailed it when she said (paraphrasing) “I think it’s even easier because people need to be reassured that everyone isn’t horrible!”
Interviews and Profiles
Hitting the Road: Eleanor Davis’s You & A Bike & The Road chronicles her cross-country bicycle trip from Arizona to Georgia. Of course, this is Eleanor Davis, so there’s a lot more to it than scenery and sore knees; in this interview with Hillary Brown she goes into depth about what she was thinking about, how she did the sketches, and how the journey has affected her.
Forgotten Places: Kristen Radtke discusses some pages from her graphic novel Imagine Wanting Only This, which is sort of a tour of abandoned places and forgotten history, along with some more personal meditations.
Way to Go… Back to Work on Doom Patrol: Gerard Way talks to Billboard about his work on Doom Patrol.
Saudi Superhero: Vice has a video interview with Fahad Al Saud, a Saudi prince who has created a comic, Latifa: The Bedouin Blade, featuring a veiled female superhero.
The Biz
Movers and Shakers: Chris D’Lando, formerly of Marvel Comics, has moved over to ReedPop, where he will be working on content for C2E2; ReedPop also runs New York Comic Con and a number of other shows.
Diamond Exclusive: The Canadian publisher Chapterhouse, which publishes the Captain Canuck comics, has signed an exclusive worldwide distribution deal with Diamond Comics Distributors for distribution to the direct market and Diamond Book Distributors for the retail book market.