King Cat Comics & Stories #72 by John Porcellino

I don't know where to start with King Cat. It's a complicated comic. It comes out so infrequently it's like sighting a rare bird (or a woodchuck!).  John Porcellino has been self publishing King Cat Comics since 1989 (according to Wikipedia) but part of desperately wants Porcellino to have been publishing King Cat since the dawn of time and to continue publishing it till the universe ends. its that good. But this thought makes me feel guilty because King Cat is autobiographical and it's content is emotionally charged.

For me reading King Cat is like prodding a bruise or deliberately reminding yourself of time when you were sad/unhappy/depressed. I don't want to make King Cat sound melancholy or 'emo' (I know this word is essentially meaningless but hey, I never said I was a writer) or in any way self-indulgent, it is far, far from being any of those things.

There is an almost serene nature to stories in King Cat, thanks to Porcellino's simplistic but beautifully descriptive lines but also to the achingly beautiful subject matter of what Porcellino is telling.

this is from King Cat #60 but it's so beautiful i had to include it...

'But!' I hear you shout 'We thought you said this comic was complicated! so far you have made it sound very simplistic, buddy!'

Well King Cat is complicated because WE are all complicated people. We are walking talking autobiography. Everything that has ever happened to us is written on to our person, written into the way we feel when we stand in our back yards looking up at the stars, the way we feel when someone we love dies or leaves us. Porcellino imparts these emotions onto the page so so well you barely register the fact an actual person has drawn it, its almost like actual emotion itself has manifested itself on the page, when I read King Cat it hits me hard, right in the chest. 

Porcellino's work is so pure. Visually, yes but also in the transition from thought to what we see printed on the page. Text and dialogue in King Cat is delivered is short captions above or below each panel. The linework, as I mentioned before is beautifully spare, like looking out of your window and seeing crisp, unsullied, virgin snow laying on the ground. 

another one from King Cat #60

I won't harp on about John Porcellino's personal situations, he chronicles his life in his comic and I wouldn't want to subtract from that. All I will say is his life, like any of our lives, has been fraught with sadness, illness, death of relationships, moments of wonder and discovery, moments of quiet realisation and reverie.

This issue, like most issues I have read before it, balance moments of melancholy and reflective sadness with upbeat and fun short stories, the legendary King Cat Top Forty list and the 'Catcalls' letters page. The letter featured in issue #72 brought a huge smile to my face.

For me the centrepiece of issue #72 is the 'Christmas Eve' story. A solemn figure walking through a snowy neighbourhood looking thoroughly sad. This story hit me like a ton of bricks

i took this one myself, its from #72...

I would recommend King Cat to anyone with a passing interest in comics, obviously. But more broadly I think every single person alive would be able to take something from any issue. I speaks directly to you a person, there is nothing hidden, no clever plot devices to second guess or any of the usual things that get internet comic nerds foaming at the mouth and bitching about in message boards. It is pure, undiluted emotion and experience poured onto the page.

An issue of King Cat is like cradling a small bird in your hands and feeling it tremble and live. Its life, like our lives, are uncertain often painful things but that doesn't mean we should live it and experience all the pain and joy and everything in-between.

and funnily enough there is a small bird drawn on the back cover...

A single issue of King Cat will set you back around £2.99 or something, you can buy them online direct from Porcellino but I would implore you visit Page 45 (if you live in Nottingham or have the internet) as they stock numerous back issues and the Map of My Heart collection, which bundles together a whole bunch of back issues and gives you more bang for your buck.

I hope if anyone reads this they at least try one issue of King Cat. I did and I haven't been able to imagine my life without since.

Cover Of The Week 3-FEB-2012

Time for a new weekly post taking a look at my favourite comic covers of the week.

Lets get stuck in shall we?

Fatale #2 Art by Sean Phillips:

This is one classy cover. Seriously. Embiggen (that IS a real word) the picture and take a good long look at it, drink it in.

The layout is bordering into Pulp novel cover or moody noir movie poster territory. It isn't a traditional attention grabbing, brightly coloured banner vying for your attention on the comic stands. This is a classy, mysterious dame looking at you from across the smokey bar room, looking away when you trying and make eye contact, silently smoking her cigarette.

Whats interesting about the male and female figures in the centre of the cover is the man looks worried, hands wringing together, looking out at us from the page as if appealling for help. The woman, on the other hand, looks dangerous. Sure she is draped around the man's torso delicately but look closer at her; she is clad in a black dress, has black nail polish and black hair, her black eyes slyly looking at us over her shoulder. She also has a gun. It sets the dynamic up perfectly, helpless man and deadly woman.

The rich colours used here add to the sense of danger and mystery; Blacks and dusky greys, shades of blue and the striking red lips of the woman. There is no mistaking the tone of this book.

Even the type-setting is classy, minimal use of text really elevates this book above the riff-raff on the shelves. Its clean and elegant.

Bam. The hooks are in. Don't be surprised if you find yoursekf reaching fr ths title based on it's look, it just means you are a classy guy/gal

BONUS ROUND!

My good friend and contributor to this blog Mark sent me this in the post:

Nothing screams guilty pleasure quite like this variant of the A M A Z I N G Prophet #21 by Rob Liefeld. I'm not gonna get into analysing it or anything like that, i'm just surprised that he still can't/won't draw feet after 25 years in the game! Still i love this variant and really hope he provides more covers for this series.

Wolves #1 by Becky Cloonan

Ok you intrepid infonauts! We have another hand-carved guest post from Mr Mark Jansen.

Mark, it's over to you.....

Becky Cloonan - Wolves #1

Sometimes you have to take chances... and that's exactly what I did here. Catching my eye on the corner of a random webpage among millions was an image from this self released book by Becky Cloonan, a book which is epic, delicate and beautifully concise in equal measures. Originally self released (in Japanese) and highly limited, I've got a later version, but don't let that put you off picking up a copy (yeah, you snob) from http://beckycloonan.bigcartel.com/product/wolves for only $5. Cos it's fucking lavish and beautiful.

Let me just say it - no question, this is absolutely exquisitely drawn by its artist and paced by its writer. They are, of course, the same person, and if you are in the know you may already know Becky Cloonan's work on... well, pretty much everything?? The super-talented Italian-born 31 year old has worked on Meathaus, Pixu (with brothers Gabriel Ba and Fabio Moon) and Demo with Brian Wood (which I have almost bought on almost 1,000 separate occasions - not sure why I haven't...) as well as numerous covers.

The plot of Wolves? I feel like it's really too fluid to apply a synopsis and is more about feeling and ambivalence. It evoked for me the 'Black Freighter' passages of Watchmen, as we follow our hero on a quest revolving around obsession, guilt, love and death:

Cloonan's own site synopsises as follows: "As a lone hunter tracks an elusive beast through the forest, he reflects on his life and past love through a series of flashbacks, bringing the story to a climax that is as romantic as it is violent. This powerful mini-comic lends itself to multiple read-throughs, never giving concrete answers but (like the best enigmatic endings) leaves your own conclusions satisfying."

And that really is the hook that makes me want to hold and thumb through this book over and over again. It's something to be treasured, absorbed, pondered, and loved

how fucking beautiful is this?

Look out for her next mini self release, Orcs, which we might expect to contain a similar deconstruction of a much-visited myth...

Prophet #21 by Brandon Graham and Simon Roy

Today we are having a look at Prophet #21 by Brandon Graham and Simon Roy.

Firstly an explaination: Prophet (along with a bunch of other soon to be ressurected titles) started life as one of Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studio titles. If you are familiar with comics of the 90's or a comics nut like myself you will be painfully aware of Liefeld's work.

For the uninitiated:

just let your brain try and deal with the shit-storm it is seeing......

(I could post bad Liefeld pics for hours and hours....maybe another time)

In the dying months of 2011 Image announced that it would be bringing back some of these Extreme Studio titles. The first title I heard about was Prophet, what piqued my interest was that it would be written by Brandon Graham and, crucially, Liefeld would have NO INVOLVEMENT WHAT-SO-EVER!!!!!!

So instead of this:

..........sigh.........

We now get this:

Javier Bardem on the toilet beats a Liefeld muscle-man any day of the week...

Now, Brandon Graham is the writer/artist of King City and Multiple Warheads (neither of which I have read, i'm awaiting the reprint of King City with baited breath) and he is extremely talented, the only thing of his i own is an eight page short story in one of the recent issues of Dark Horse Presents (i'll post about that at some point) and it was a beautiful, quirky and touching story that was illustrated perfectly. So when i heard he was writing this sci-fi comic i was very much on board. 


So John Prophet emerges from the ground in a hyper sleep pod into a seemingly alien world and we emerge with him. Right off the bat we are immersed into Graham's narrative style, simple, terse text peppered with beautifully descriptive and inventive sci-fi terms. It really feels as though we have woken bleary eyed and fuzzy headed from stasis and are bombarded with alien creatures, far-future technologies and new systems and strata of life.

good doggy, good doggyOHSWEETFUCKINGJESUS!

The opening few pages are brilliantly paced, Prophet awakens from his hyper-sleep, emerges into a new world, takes various pills to kick start his body and mind after hibernation and is attacked by a tulnaka (imagine a cross between a wolf and the creature from The Thing). He kills, butchers and preserves the meat from the tulnaka and we are off! mission start! Prophet is full of little things and touches here and there that really get my sci-fi juices flowing; there is a amazing panel early on where Prophet lays out the contents of his survival pack on the ground (including his bloodied knife he used to dispatch the meanie) each item is labelled.  


There are some amazing gizmos, like Prophet's DolMantle (a sort of luminous, sentient slug/poncho/flak jacket) and the G.O.D satellite that he is tasked with re-starting. Graham populates every single inch and corner of this world with alien and freakishly familiar aspects that make it so refreshing to read. It comes off like a sci-fi Conan or something like that. Its a hard sci-fi approach but with a soft gooey centre of awesomeness. 

and by 'live ammunition' he really means live, like alive alive! thats how amazing this comic is!

The story reminds me of Dune in some respects. We are thrust into a story with no spoon-feeding of information or hand to hold and guide you through. It feels like we are in constant peril and Prophet is our guide.

I have to mention the awesome pencils by Simon Roy and the orgasmic colours by Richard Ballermann. Roy's pencils are detailed and beautiful and very European in style. Each panel is a masterpiece and his spreads almost reduced me to tears, look:

that, right there, is a fucking beauty!

Ballermann's colour also moved me greatly. In the underground sequence the rich reds and the little, almost bio-luminescent touches of blue are just so beautiful.

sorry to repeat this pic but just look at the reds and the glowing blue......IM AROUSED!!!!!

Graham, Roy and Ballermann have created a genuinely alien world, full of unknown (to us at least) peril and a story so addictive and intriguing any fan of sci-fi would be foolish to jumo on board with these guys. I've read this comic three times now and i'm so excited about the next issue I just might read it again!!


Special mention: in the back pages of this comic Graham himself pencils a very sexy map of the world Prophet wakes up in:

buy the comic for a better look at it!

Special mention 2: Lil Rob Liefeld draw a variant cover to #1:

(slow clap)

GUEST POST #1 Mark Jansen on Nick Spencer

Something of a first here on my little blog, we have a guest poster in the shape and form of my good friend and cosmic brother Mark Jansen. 


so with out further ado I present to you Mark's post........


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Writer Profile: Nick Spencer

Hi. You don't know me, but I like comics. I didn't always. Or rather, I wasn't as 'into' them as I am now. Aside from an affinity for the Marvel UK run of Transformers, which I actually got into a little late (about twenty issues before its cancellation in 1992) and owning the first trade of the original Ninja Turtles comic (which was fucking brutal incidentally) it wasn't until I picked up the first Walking Dead hardcover three years ago that a dormant interest was renewed. I have too much to say about that book here, so I'll skip forward a little.

If The Walking Dead renewed my interest, then Nick Spencer's work made me fall head over heels with comics. Having only a basic knowledge of the Marvel and DC universes, I'm not playing with a 'full deck' but fuck it, I like what I like. And it was a comic that my buddy Andrew (writer of this fine blog) recommended me at the beginning of last year, 'The Infinite Vacation', that I have to thank for what is fast becoming a very expensive pastime. 

'The Infinite Vacation' is an absolute joyous headfuck of a book (and the length of time between issues shows how much planning and consideration each one gets - either that or Spencer is just too busy to finish it - wotevs). In a world where the multiverse is played out like a body swap eBay, our hero Mark (amazing name) is the ultimate tourist, trading his way through various versions of his own life. The art, by Christian Ward, is simultaneously both spectacularly detailed and playfully sketchy

repetition

:

The hook of the story is that someone is hunting Mark down; in every universe, every version of Mark is in danger. Cue some pretty awesome speculative fiction concepts intercut with some of the most depraved scenes imaginable at the hands of one of Mark's demented doppelgangers (see especially issue 3). 

OK, so my interest is piqued. I have to see what else is in this guy's head.

Also published by Image, Existence 2.0 and its sequel Existence 3.0 are two amazing slabs of Philip K. Dickian level sci-fi, married to a multi-layered crime story about the development (and resulting theft and espionage) of body swap technology. The opening of Existence 2.0 is immediately arresting, as our main guy is killed in the first few pages:

Ouch!

But of course he's not dead, he's used the body swap tech to possess his killer's body, and so begins an incredibly original whodunnit where the victim travels deeper into the killer's world, and... well, I won't ruin it. A three issue mini-series, Existence 2.0 was followed by the four-part Existence 3.0 (both are collected in the trade). The sequel marks the first collaboration of Spencer with the awesome Joe Eisma, with whom Spencer co-created the ongoing Morning Glories.

Before we get onto that, let me just say that the hook in Spencer's work is the thematic continuity in his work. Both Existence and Infinite Vacation portray worlds where technology is surpassing humanity - we can't control what we create - resulting in the fragmentation of identity and situations of anarchy. Further, in his miniseries Shuddertown and Forgetless, Spencer foreshadows the serendipitous meetings, dark secrets and often murderous tendencies that characterise Morning Glories.

Forgetless #5 

Morning Glories was a major success story in 2010, with its first issue going on to four printings for Image and rave reviews making Spencer a virtual household name. Envisioned as a 100-issue melting pot of Lost (the TV show, to which the series owes much - more on that in a bit) and teen drama, glued together with some absolutely batshit insane stuff, it follows six teenagers (3 boys, 3 girls) who all start at boarding school on the same day. Things are not what they seem though, and pretty soon Spencer and Eisma are juggling with time travel, doppelgangers, murder, attempted murder, astral projection, suicide, more murder, more attempted murder, and... what the fuck is this?!

Ouch part 2

I said before that the series owes a lot to Lost, which it knows (there are a number of easter eggs for fans of that show). The cryptic nature of the storytelling, for one, coupled with many of the themes, are evocative of that show; there is a heavy use of flashback, which is not always signposted and it's a testament to Eisma's art that he can move us through time and mood so clearly (I should also mention his stellar work with giving each of the characters their own unique appearances and sets of expressions, which compliment Spencer's well-drawn characters perfectly). More than anything, though, it's the way the story is told as pieces of a puzzle, which at issue #15 we are only just starting to find the corners of.

And therein lies the challenge. Reviewers have already criticised the series for being a bit meandering and asking too many questions before it gives us answers. And casual readers are going to get fed up. Just like what happened with Lost. In fact, perhaps asking a reader to invest in a mystery for 100 months is more a commitment than six seasons of a TV show. But, for those who trust Spencer's skills as a writer (like myself) I am certain of a rewarding experience each time I pick up a copy of this book. I can't recommend it enough, especially if you're a fan of serialised mythology-based TV shows. It's very telling that Spencer's next project is collaborating with Robert Kirkman on the TV writers-room influenced Thief of Thieves, which will be another interesting experiment for Image.

What is the secret of Morning Glories Academy?

Let's bring this post back to the beginning where I said I wasn't operating with a full deck. This means I can't talk about Spencer's work on Iron Man 2.0, Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, or the Jimmy Olsen one-shot but I can tell you I have picked up the first few issues of Ultimate Comics: X-Men, which he's currently writing for Marvel with pencils by Paco Medina. Characterised by a complete u-turn on the X-mythos where it has been proven that mutants are not the next step in human evolution but are instead the result of a government super soldier experiment gone wrong - the series focuses on Kitty Pryde, Rogue, Iceman, Johnny Storm and Jimmy Hudson, the son of Wolverine. Typically, Spencer infuses the setting with angst and unrest, punctuating with top-notch characterisation and thoughtful moments. The first trade hits in April, but there's a collected edition of #1-3 and the single issues aren't too scarce, so don't be afraid, get on board.

Shadow-LOL-cat

Fatale #1 By Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips

oh hi! today we are taking a look at Fatale #1 by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips.

that's one smooth Lovecraftian gangster

I've never read anything by Ed Brubaker before, shocking I know! The guy in my local comic shop was slack jawed and bereft of words when I told him this as i forked over the hard earned cash for this, the first issue of Brubaker's new series.

Brubaker is responsible for the Criminal series [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_(comics)] which is really highly regarded and loved by fans and critics alike. Truthfully I haven't considered this as A) I don't have a bottomless supply of money so I can't buy everything and B) crime oriented stories (in any medium) are never my first choice. Thats just my personal preference. 

Brubaker has also been writing Captain America for Marvel, which has also been given lots of positive praise.

So when I heard that Brubaker (and long term collaborator Sean Phillips) had a new series starting I was interested, especially when I found out it would be a horror series.......that is much more my cup of tea.

prolly oughta answer the tentacle guy....just sayin'

Fatale is a crime comic first and foremost, at least it is in this debut issue. Set (after a modern day prologue) in the 1950's, Fatale's world is a noir infused, pulpy world filled with crooked cops and mistresses, plucky reporters trying to expose said bent coppers, a grisly murder with occult leanings.....WAIT, WHAT?!

yeah, you heard me...occult murders! and the weirdness doesn't end there....but more on that shortly.

The title Fatale quite clearly (at this point) refers to the only female lead character we are introduced to; Josephine, a Femme Fatale if you will (boom!)

dude has a noir-boner

We meet Josephine (or Jo) in the modern day prologue to the main story. She seems to have some sort of hold over men (granted she is a looker) and bears a striking resemblance to a raven haired beauty we meet in the 1950s section of the first issue. Right out of the gate I love that there is a female lead that these dudes are all jelly-legged over.....this is in keeping with the noir feel.

But there is more going on here than just grisly murders and a sexy, mysterious woman. There is something positively Lovecraftian afoot. It is only hinted at at this stage but the discovery of a building full of slain cultists, complete with weird rune-esque shapes smeared on the walls and three scary almost identical bowler hat wearing stooges that accost the mean, cancer ridden bent copper really remind me of a classic Lovecraft short updated to a slightly more modern surrounding. 

What Brubaker does in Fatale is bring H.P Lovecraft's cosmic horror to a gritty street level with such subtlety that you hardly notice it. The eerie, gory horror aspects and creepy occult aspects are folded into the pulp infused, smoky crime drama like silky egg white into the yolk of the main body of the story. Its a noir/cosmic horror omelette.

There is a great essay about H.P Lovecraft and his unique brand of horror prose include as back matter in this comic. I'm a huge Lovecraft fan so this was a great read and features a gnarly illustration of Lovecraft with tentacles.

best scan i could find guys....

I have to mention Sean Phillips' pencils, his is a simple but never plain style reminding me alot of Eduardo Rissou.

especially here...

You can practically smell the smoke and whiskey oozing from the panels...and the blood too thanks to the moody colours of Dave Stewart. Dark blues, steely greys and inky blacks streaked with occasionally coppery red smears of blood bring this book to life. Its a sensory experience that melds perfectly with Brubakers slick, clipped delivery. For me this is like a perfect amalgamation of Howard Chaykin's  swagger and Alan Moore's grit. Yeah this comic is good, really fucking good. I'm eager to see how far Brubaker takes us into the world of crime and cosmic horror.  

I'm now a fan of Brubaker and Phillips on the strength of around thirty pages of story and art, this is classy, dark and moody stuff that begs to be read as it jumps off the page.

read it....

Sacrifice #1 by Sam Humphries and Dalton Rose

Firstly apologies for the lack of 'action' on this blog. Real life, as always, gets in the way. 

However i'm back on track now and some sort of regular posting should now resume.

ok.

So, the first review/discussion/rant/whatever of the new year is:

SACRIFICE #1 by Sam Humphries and Dalton Rose

do what he says he has a maquahuitl!!!!

You may remember Humphries name from my bit on his awesome OUR LOVE IS REAL, one of my favourite comics of last year (up there with the reprint of The Incal) and one of the more intriguing and original things i've read in a good while.

Sacrifice is a new self-published, six part series that is well worth your attention (the first issue came out in Dec). 

Hector has just self discharged from a psychiatric ward and been taken for tacos by his friend Violet. Hector has been dodging his medication and as a result experiences some sort of psychedelic seizure/acid trip and ends up confronted by a bunch of Aztec warriors. At first they wish to sacrifice him as an offering to their gods but upon seeing his Aztec tattoo decide to take Hector to their emperor.  

.....woah.....

We learn of Hector's past through flashback panels brought to us via Dalton Rose's beautifully psychedelic spreads and sparse, clean panels. Humphries tells us that Hector is epileptic and is struggling to fit in and as a child was very interested in Aztec culture.

There is a beautiful sequence where a young Hector and his father are talking about the demise of the Aztecs at the hands of the Spanish:

'When the Spanish came, there was a war, and they killed all the Aztecs'

'Why?'

'Sometimes people believe they're doing the right thing, even when it's wrong'

It will be interesting to see how this exchange resonates throughout the rest of the series. Does it apply to Hector's parents and the way they dealt with Hector's epilepsy? Will it reflect the particular period of time Hector has ended up in? Does it refer to Hector dodging his meds leading to his psychedelic time travel?

behold, multiple variant covers and a Joy Division reference. I'm sold.

 I've read and re-read this first issue a few times now and I keep noticing things I didn't notice before, this is the sign of a good comic in my view. 

I also love how Hector is a Joy Division fan and I got a kick out of the little 'easter-eggs' I spotted.

Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order being pumped on the tape deck....nice touch (awesome song too)

This, like OUR LOVE IS REAL, is one of the best things I have read in ages. Refreshing and interesting and FUN! 

There is enough mystery in Sacrifice to hook me but also enough happening within the individual issue to entertain......suddenly Avengers V X-Men seems even more mundane. More power to Humphries and Rose, they are creating something original and fucking awesome......

Sacrifice is available online digitally and as a traditional paper and staples affair.

All the links you need are here:

http://samhumphries.com/sacrifice-comic-book/

I emplore you to check it out if you are reading this its all kind of rad.