Tom Speelman
Image At 25: How ‘Chew’ Proved How Much Fun Comics Can Be
There's a point for every monthly comics fan when it really sinks in that there's a whole world of comics beyond the Big Two, and that point looks different for everyone. As someone literally born months after Image was, and thus missed out on the '90s boom and bust, for me it was Chew.
Written by John Layman and drawn by Rob Guillory, Chew ended last November at 60 issues. When it began in 2009, I was in high school, and newly in love with monthly comics.
Image At 25: How ‘Astro City’ Transformed Superheroes Beyond The Big Two
Over its 25 years, Image Comics has carved out a reputation as the biggest non-superhero publisher in North American comics. Sure, it launched 25 years ago with books like Spawn, Youngblood, and so on, but it evolved into a company that embraces and celebrates genre diversity. Yet it was also at Image that a new superhero universe was created that gave us many of the best superhero stories of the past twenty years; Astro City, by Kurt Busiek, Alex Ross, and Brent Anderson.
Welcome To Riverdale: The ‘Archie’ Mixtape
Archie Andrews has always been quite the musician, and there are several stories involving him pursuing his dreams of rock stardom --- but his friends and family (and Reggie) have been in the musical spotlight too. For this playlist based on the current incarnation of the monthly Archie series by Mark Waid, Thomas Pitilli, Ryan Jampole, Joe Eisma, Veronica Fish et al, I decided to look at all the most beloved characters (and Reggie) and choose one song that fits each of them.
Did You Vote To Make America Great Again? Read These Comics Next
Today is Inauguration Day, and Donald Trump is the 45th president of the United States. And really, it's obvious why he won. After eight years with one of the most qualified and accomplished presidents in generations, what America really needed was a vain, egotistical, thin-skinned braggart with a long history of bullying and abusive statements, absolutely no experience in public service, and a track record of astonishing failure.
If you voted to Make America Great Again, here are some comics to dig into while you wait for all those manufacturing jobs to come back, and for those pesky SJWs to finally be put in their place.
The Song Is Ending: How ‘Solanin’ Speaks To The Truths Of A Life In Music [Music Week]
First published in the defunct Weekly Young Sunday magazine, the introspective and shoegazey Solanin by Inio Asano is a slice-of-life seinen (teen/adult male) manga about the role that music can play in a young person's life, and the promises and heartbreak that music can represent.
Screen & Page: Behold The Power Of The King In ‘Code Geass’
Most anime is adapted from manga, often produced by the manga publisher to raise awareness and sell it overseas. But what about the anime shows or films that go the other way, adapted from the screen to the page? How do those works hold up, and what changes or stays the same? That’s what Screen & Page aims to explore.
Today, we're talking about the most successful anime of the 2000s which wears its messy heart on its sleeve: Code Geass!
How Kaboom Transformed Licensed Comics For Kids
In just over a decade, Boom Studios has established itself as one of the most important publishers in comics, and key to its success is the all-ages Kaboom imprint, headed up by editor Shannon Watters.
A former Tokyopop copy editor and assistant editor on titles like Irredeemable and Elric, Watters has been a part of Boom from the ground up, and even with licenses for some of the biggest properties on the planet, Watters and the creators under her have consistently traced their own path, to the delight and benefit of critics and readers.
Raise Your Voice: Should Your Kids Be Reading ‘Princeless’?
For just over five years, Action Lab Comics has been one of the key indie publishers leading the trend towards diverse storytelling, and one of the biggest feathers in its cap, alongside series like Voracious, Nutmeg, and Molly Danger, is the Eisner-nominated, Glyph-winning, all-ages fantasy series Princeless, an empowering take on fairytale princess tropes.
The Emperor Calls: Should You Be Reading ‘Drive’?
One of the advantages of the webcomics scene is that creators who find success in one genre can often persuade their existing audience to follow them into another. Dave Kellett's Drive is a sci-fi webcomic that combines the Sheldon creator's sense of humor and cartooning skills with great worldbuilding and a compelling story.
Rising To The Top: Should You Be Reading ‘Tower Of God’?
Webtoons are a hugely popular digital comics format in Korea that are increasingly finding an audience around the world, and one of the most popular examples of the form is Tower of God, a compelling and ingeniously told tale of one young hero overcoming impossible obstacles to reach his destiny.