meltblog

“So,” you ask, “just how awesome was your star-studded Y: The Last Party event last weekend?”

VERY would be the short answer. Good times were had by all. There was an actual monkey, for crying out loud. And Brian K. Vaughan brought straight jackets!

But you don’t just have to take my word for it. CBR has photographic proof. (Of course, trying to capture the rampant energy and fun of the evening in still pictures is a bit like translating Tolstoy into Klingon…much of the impact and nuance of the original’s bound to get lost somewhere in the process)

See? Monkey! What did I tell you?

If you like laughing, then this is the event for you! If you don’t like laughing…well, there’s not much more we can do for you.

I’ve made it no secret that Scalped is my favorite comic right now. Scalped writer and creator Jason Aaron has recently signed a Marvel exclusive, and today marks the day that he takes over both Wolverine (remember #56, his fantastic fill-in issue from October?) and Ghost Rider. We got the advances of both titles last week, and they’re both great reads. I was all set to make one or both of them my pick of the week: the most interesting Wolverine in a long time and maybe the first take ever on Ghost Rider that’s got me interested to see what happens next.

Until I read New Avengers #38 last night and, despite my love of Aaron and his work, it won out. In fact, I liked this story so much that when I finished reading it I immediately turned back to the first page and read it again. This is an amazing issue: Bendis’s best script since New Avengers #22, which also happened to be a stand-alone focusing on Luke Cage and his family. Bendis’s love for these characters is no secret, and it really comes through in his work. Not to mention the absolute treat of seeing Michael Gaydos drawing Luke and Jessica again. The dialogue is intense! As my friend Vito says, it’s almost too raw and too real…like watching your parents fight.

This is not just good comics, this is good storytelling in ANY medium. Read it.

A Group Art Show and Release Party for MotorCity, the Graphic Novel!
Saturday, March 8th 2008 7-10PM Los Angeles – CA, Melt Gallery
is proud to present GREASERS, GHOULS & GALS – a group art exhibition in connection with the release
of the independent comic book graphic novel MotorCity.
 
It will be an evening of ghoul-filled goodness as local area artists plus artists from Detroit, Denver, San Francisco and New York City come together for a group show celebrating rockabilly culture, psychobilly music, classic monsters, comic books, and the classic American pin-up girl. The evening is a release party, book signing and art show all in one!   (more…)

Keep Staring……Keep Staring………Keep Staring……..See it?

My new interview column is now up:

We’ve all faced them before and most of us will face them again. Some of us love them, some of us hate them, and some of us are eternally torn. But one thing’s for certain: anyone planning on being a writer (especially a comics writer) is going to face a career full of them.

They’re DEADLINES. As in, “Cross this line and you’re dead.”

Featuring a full 8-page comic from creator extraordinaire Felipe Smith as well as wisdom and horror stories from Christina Weir, Ande Parks, John Rogers, Richard Starkings, Andrew Cosby, Matt Fraction, Jason Aaron and more!

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, my pick of the week is, once again, Scalped. There’s a double-dose of this book on stands today, so you can pick your poison. For those of you reading the series in trade, the second collection, titled “Casino Boogie”, is now available:

And for those of you reading it monthly, today sees the debut of issue #14:

As for those of you who aren’t reading Scalped at all yet…well, the only person you’re hurting is yourself. Get your butt in here today and pick up volumes 1 & 2!

That’s right! Ten years after issue #20 SCUD the Disposable Conclusion begins this week with issue #21. You won’t want to miss it.

Danger! Death! Disposability!

And you!

Keep Staring……Keep Staring………Keep Staring……..See it?