Venom

One of the most iconic villains in the considerable rogues gallery belonging to the superhero Spider-Man, Venom has seemed to grow insanely popular instantly. First appearing in a cameo in Amazing Spider-Man 299 with the first full appearance in the landmark 300th issue in 1988 the history of the character and their creation is much more complex than first glance.

Officially, Venom is credited as being co-created by writer David Michelinie and artist Todd McFarlane, the alien costume goes back a few years earlier. For those that don’t know, Venom is a combination of an alien symbiote (later revealed to belong to a race called the Klyntar) and Eddie Brock, a human reporter who originally really, really hated Spider-Man. The costume though first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man 252 in 1984 by writers Tom Defalco/Roger Stern and artist Ron Frenz. The all new/all different black with a white spider living costume got a backstory in Secret Wars 8 published later the same year by Jim Shooter and Mike Zeck. For those that don’t know, Secret Wars had the heroes depart for the event in one issue (for Spidey it was Amazing 251) then return afterwards their next issue all changed and different. The intermitting changes were then explained during the events of the Secret Wars mini.

For a modern equivalent, think what DC did with ‘One Year Later’ and publishing 52 to show us the year we ‘missed’. Its an interesting storytelling device but the effectiveness of it is of course, up to debate. In any case, this is where Venom’s story begins…or does it?! Yes, it even gets even more convoluted than that as apparently the concept of the alien costume for Spider-Man which became a villain was concucted by fan Randy Schueller. Editor-In-Chief at the time, Jim Shooter bought the idea for $220 which given how much money Venom has made for the company puts this case alongside the Superman creators, Kirby family, Moore Watchmen controversy and more in terms of ‘creators getting rolled over by big corporations’ cause moneyyyyy’.

It does seem Schueller’s version was vastly different and Marvel even published a version of HIS version of the story in the one shot by Sensational Spider-Man: Self-Improvement by Peter David and Rick Leonardi in 2019 for Marvel’s 80th anniversary. It was okay from what I recall but even before we talk about Venom properly, the origin of the character seems to set up a lot of oddness and convolution that has followed the character since their proper introduction.

From what I understand, Venom was originally supposed to be a female villain who blamed Spider-Man for the death of her child. It was switched to Eddie Brock, a journalist who wrote a story exposing the identity of a serial killer known as the ‘Sin Eater’. He got the story wrong though which ruined his reputation, leaving him to write only for gossip papers. Elvis is my alien baby daddy and some such. He considered these beneath him and named himself ‘Venom’ because the work on the ‘lesser’ publications was like ‘poison’ to him.

So yes, Venom’s entire motivation is cause he didn’t double check his sources. Interestingly the Sin Eater story took place in the classic Death of Jean DeWolf arc that took place in Peter Parker: Spider-Man by Peter David and Rich Buckler in 1985 adding yet more ingredients in terms of creators to the Venom creation soup. Once Spider-Man abandoned the alien costume it found Eddie and they formed a mutual hatred of Spider-Man and set out for revenge.

Whether it was because of the long build, the great look, how threatening he was (incredibly sold by a nearly on the verge of a breakdown MJ) or when he appeared, Venom became an instant hit. Fans provided more and the company was more than willing to provide. When McFarlane left Amazing, Venom stayed but supposedly new artist Erik Larson found the character dull to draw. To entertain himself, Larson exaggerated Venom’s look with a long tongue, large teeth and an extended jaw. Even though McFarlane is more associated with Venom’s design, when people think Venom and how he looks, how thy picture the character is likely more influenced by these additions brought by Larson’s tenure on Amazing.

Never to miss a chance to milk something (often to the detriment of the quality of the figurative milk) Marvel went all in on a new hit character. Venom was made less scary, more of a wise cracking multi-layered thread who protected ‘innocents’ through a broken view of morality. These additions to Venom’s character allowed Marvel to move Venom from villain to anti-hero. He was able to have his own stories where he could fight his own villains/threats seperate from Spider-Man. In an attempt to further capitalise on Venom’s popularity and replace this new addition to Spider-Man’s rogues gallery, we saw the creation of Carnage…but that is a story for another day.

Venom kept his anti-hero or ‘Lethal Protector’ persona for the majority of the 90’s. There would only be brief tussles with Spider-Man who at this time was in the thick of the clone saga. The character became a slightly more threatening nuisance more than anything. There was a brief attempt to make Venom a full on antagonist again in the relaunch in the late 90’s by having Eddie/Venom blame Spider-Man for the death of his wife. Even then, Venom was more of a wisecracking threat who Spider-Man could dispatch with relative ease with a fire or loud noise.

I personally think the first real effort to make Venom scary and a true threat again came from the pages of the relaunched Spectacular Spider-Man in 2003 courtesy of Paul Jenkins and Humberto Ramos. The storyline ‘The hunger’ saw Eddie discovering he had developed cancer and the symbiote was keeping him alive. The nightmarish/parasitic way Ramos drew scene’s between Eddie and the Symbiote were effective in portraying the human host as a victim in a problematic pairing.

Shortly after, Eddie sold the Symbiote at auction (no really) and it ended up eventually on the body of Mac Gargan, the Scorpion. Devastated that his actions had caused the symbiote to fall into the wrong hands (not exactly a stretch given he was selling it an underground auction but Eddie was never the brightest) Eddie attempted suicide but survived. This resulted in a brief period where Marvel had a pure villain in a new Venom and also made Eddie a vindictive, creepy non-powered threat when he tried to kill Aunt May when she was in the hospital following the gunshot that resulted from the Spider-Man unmasking.

I felt the turn of a more grounded, sinister non-Venom Eddie was areally effective and interesting. However, Marvel saw their chance to have their cake and eat it too by having Mac Gargen Venom (who was now on the Norman Osborn Thunderbolts and would later masquerade as a new Spider-Man on the Avengers) as a villain and have Eddie be a new anti-hero called anti-Venom. This new form of the character took form during the Brand New Day period of Amazing Spider-Man involving creators Dan Slott and John Romita JR.

I don’t think Anti-Venom really took off like Marvel hoped. Once again, Venom was placed in the role of anti-hero with the emphasis on the hero part more than ever with a new host in Flash Thompson. Working for the government and a new version of Project Rebirth (the one that created Captain America), disabled veteran Flash Thompson volunteered to be a new black ops Venom working on convert missions. During this period, the symbiote would battle for control with Flash in the ‘Agent Venom’ era which lasted a considerable amount of time.

There was also a brief Venom run with a new host, Lee Price who I’m sure you forgot you existed until I reminded you and you will then forget again shortly. The original Eddie/Symbiote team was reunited leading to the extended run by Donny Cates, Ryan Stegman and others. This run led to a considerable amount of lore being added to the Symbiote race including their origins and their mythology.

In terms of my experiences with the character, I was first introduced to Venom and a lot of the Spider-Man anthology through the 90’s animated show. As a young boy, seeing a cool as hell looking evil Spider-Man with a sharp teeth and long tongue appear right before the name of the show appears makes you go ‘Ooooo who’s that.’ Indeed, for a large part of Venom’s existence and success has been due to a great look and how instantly appealing he is to non comic fans. What is it about that character that makes him more appealing that villains that are older or arguably better? Its hard to say.

Most of it is the look, if you saw Venom on a badass cover to a Metallica album as opposed to a comic cover you wouldn’t blink. He has a huge appeal to the majority of male readers as someone who can do anything Spider-Man can do but without the pesky morals that saddles Marvel’s top character. Where Spidey might ask you to put down the piece of fruit you just stole, Venom will eat you, the fruit and likely the owner of the store too, just cause. This was something I think Marvel was smart to play into to by making Venom more ‘ha ha’ and less ‘Oh dear lord, he’s gonna kill me.’ The more comedic, silly, doesn’t give a damn’ pure ‘badass’ version of Venom is the one most people think of due to to him being portrayed like this in the majority of his appearances in cartoons, video games and soon to be three big screen movie. He’s a funner version of the Punisher who I’ve spoken about before in terms of how and why he appeals to an audience outside of comics.

Personally I prefer the legitimate threat Venom or the heroic version Cates and Stegman crafted. Largely as an anti-hero, I felt that Venom became deleted, replaced by villains who never seemed as interesting because they were one dimensional (Carnage) or forgettable(nearly every other Symbiote character). The characters mainstream popularity and how much value he has brought to Marvel since his debut in 40 years or so of existence is probably much better money wise for the company than he ever could have meant as a villain to be protected as a true threat but we’ll never know what could have been.

As new aspects to the character are introduced, more hosts and the current run ending and this years Venom movie seemingly being the last, we’ll see where Venom’s more complex than first appearance story takes the character next. Given that I believe the characters projector is somewhat unpredictable, maybe he’ll end up as a game show host for ‘Eat Your Brains: Live’.

I admit, I’d watch it.

More soon.

AI

When I was growing up, the concept of AI was very different. Films like Terminator, The Matrix, Blade Runner, 2001 and more taught us that AI would seek to eliminate or replace humankind. Our new machine masters would use us for power or treat us like cockroaches or vermin, a nuisance to be eliminated before we could try to stop the horror we had ourselves created.

Now, that might very well still be ahead of us. I see people building robots that are going to be involved in warfare, some that look like us and online chatbots that feign a very base level of intelligence that are programmed to get smarter. At those times, I hear the music notes from ‘All Along The Watchtower’ which the 2004 reimagining of Battlestar Gallactica used as a audio cue to signal the dangers of intellectual robot advance.

In the latest Matrix movie where a new version of the program machine’s use to enslave humanity has been created. In it, Neo (who doesn’t know who he is/was) is in an elevator full of people on their phones. A visual cue from the movie that the machine’s hold on their living batteries is more solid than ever. It’s a chilling sight and an interesting commentary on his machines already rule our lives. Still, it’s not exactly AI machines hunting/killing/using us. At least not yet.

Nowadays, AI has become something very different. Automative responses used in customer service, chatGPT and art generators. In the creative field (like comics) AI generation has become a very hot topic because there are those out there that are creating comics using AI generated art. For those that don’t know, AI programs that ‘create’ art teaches itself on art it finds online. Given how generous artists are when they post work online, this gives programs that generate these images plenty of resources to learn from.

Essentially, the aI is stealing from artists and those that use programs to generate art are, by proxy also. There’s been controversy at DC comics for example where artist Andrea Sorrentino has used AI in a recent Batman story. Also covers by artist Jingxiong Guo were pulled and replaced. For the record, both artists denied these accusations.

There was also a Spawn cover contest won by Luis Ruiz who apparently used AI to generate the images which got them the win. There’s probably other examples in the bigger publishers and plenty of ‘creators’ who use it in small press. It’s an unsettling trend that I don’t agree with and don’t encourage.

Comics are about creativity. Creative people working together or working alone to give us a story. They can be creating a story for a character everyone knows or a new narrative of their own or a biography or something experimental or whatever. They’re creating. Using AI to generate a comic isn’t creating. It’s like wanting a 5 star meal, taking the ingredients and recipe and taking it to a fast food place. They may be able to replicate it but it won’t be the same. More than likely the fast food establishment would look at you as if you were crazy. At the moment, AI art generating sites can’t call us crazy…yet.

To me, AI is the death of innovation and creativity. It is taking work away from creatives, stealing from those that have skill and giving us something that feels…off. I was very excited to watch ‘Late Night With The Devil’ but found it used AI to generate some images for the movie. There’s 50 very talented artists I could name off the top of my head who could have used that work, likely done a fantastic job and I doubt would have cost the sun, moon and the earth.

I was invited to join a writing group who would be using AI art for prompts for stories and I was like ‘No, pay an artist to draw an image’. there are those out there that may argue that AI gives people who don’t have the skill or resources access to art. I don’t have the skills or resources for an artist either but I’d rather never work in comics as a career than have my work represented by AI that learned from artists that I either weren’t able to get to work for me or couldn’t afford. I’ll take failing at my dream any day vs being involved in the death of creativity as we know it.

Does my opinion or support or thereof of AI matter? Not really. Do I think that if the accusations of big name artists on big projects for big companies using it are true could lead to an unsettling precedent? Absolutely. I read comics to see creatives give me their creativity. If I wanted to have a computer equivalent or understanding of creativity, I might as well be plugged into the Matrix where everything tastes like chicken cause machine’s don’t know what chicken tastes like.

Perhaps that is the terrifying thing also. Film taught us the machines would come with weapons and hostility. Perhaps it is much simpler than that because without art, what is humanity? If machines or AI or whatever take away our art with an empty substitute then perhaps they won’t need to take us out.

We’ll have already lost.

More soon.

Sometimes I Forget

A long time ago, someone asked me why did I want to write. I found it a puzzling question at the time. I enjoy writing and sharing stories. I wanted to make people feel the way I do when I read certain stories. An indescribable excitement and elation of seeing a story well crafted and delivered is always something I will never get tired of.

I wanted to try to be able to provide that feeling for other people. I also love building up a certain payoff and then delivering. In my own personal writing terms I call this setting up domino’s and then knocking them over. Knocking over of domino’s as a reader and a storyteller is something I find very satisfying.However, this answer wasn’t enough. They wanted to know what I was trying to say as a writer. They told me if I didn’t have a message to convey as a writer then I wasn’t really a writer. It’s a statement I found puzzling and I dispute to this day. sometimes though after 20 years of heartbreak, let downs, doors shut in my face, theft and betrayal…I forget. I forget why I’m trying to write.

Then I read something like Unstoppable Wasp. For those that aren’t aware, Unstoppable Wasp is two series that ran in 2017 for 8 issues and 2018 for ten issues. On the initial volume, writer Jeremy Whitley along with artists Elsa Charretier, Veronica Fish and Ted Brandt expanded the character of Nadia Van Dyne. The long lost daughter of Hank Pym who had been kept captive by the Red Room for her whole life until she escaped. In the book, Nadia sought out other young girl geniuses and wanted to use their skills to try to save the world using brains, not brawn.The second volume, also written by Whitley had most of the issues drawn by the always remarkable Gurihiru along with some work by Alti Firmansyah. I found both volumes a joy with great art, great writing, awesome characters and a fun easy to read premise that readers young and old both new and experienced with comics could get a lot of pleasure out of reading.This comic I adored if you couldn’t tell and it reminded me that THIS. THIS is why I want to write comics. I want to make something or at least TRY to that is as GOOD as this.

Without a doubt the hardest part of making comics (apart from the money) is getting people to notice you. Like I believe I’ve said before, in comics there is an extraordinary amount of fans who think ‘hey, I could do this’ perhaps more than any other industry. Not everyone watching a film thinks they can do it or write a show or run a business or be a doctor. We can enjoy and respect these positions but you have to have dedication to actually do the majority of them.

Comics also requires dedication of course but I’d say 70-80% of fans reading comics also want to make them and half of them or more likely don’t know what that involves. The point I’m trying to make however is there’s a lot of competition to make comics. For every successful writer, there’s 100 hungry ones wanting that too. For every one of them there’s probably 100 more just wanting an opportunity. I’ve certainly learned the hard way over the years that publishing at a big company doesn’t always equal success. Even a book as high quality and with the insane level of talent as Unstoppable Wasp couldn’t survive past 10 issues. Getting people to give me or anyone else who is unproven a chance? It’s like wanting to win a best actor Oscar when you’re waiting tables in LA.

So reading something like Unstoppable Wasp helps me remember. ‘Oh yeah, it would be nice if I could get to do this for other people’. Is this just a long way of me saying read Unstoppable Wasp? Yes. Does it also convey why it is I write? To make people feel enjoyment and engaged in their fiction? It wouldn’t be a bad way to spend my days. I’m getting older all the time and I feel as I get older, the less chances I have but who knows….maybe one day I’ll get lucky.I did by reading Unstoppable Wasp and getting to remember.

More soon.

Black Panther

In my journey as a comic fan, one character who has become a key focus in Marvel’s universe in Black Panther was never hugely on my radar. My earliest memories of the character were either in the Iron Man or Fantastic Four cartoons from the 90’s I think. In comics, I believe I only knew them from when the Avenger’s showed up and sometimes Black Panther was there, sometimes he wasn’t.

I remember seeing the singles of Christopher Priest’s iconic run from the early 2000’s on the shelves but I had no idea about the wider Marvel universe apart from what I gathered from osmosis. As I gathered more knowledge, my first real memory of seeing Black Panther playing a significant role in comics I was reading was during Civil War. First we saw Black Panther invited to be a founding member of the Illuminati, saying it was a bad idea and leaving. In that one shot prelude to Civil War by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev that saw the Illuminati form and later, shoot Hulk into space had the proposal of the group be based on a unanimous vote. I always found it interesting that the group comprised of Iron Man, Professor X, Mr. Fantastic, Black Bolt and Namor formed despite T’Challa voting not to go along with the proposal. I thought initially it was an interesting flaw in the origins of the group but when Bendis was asked why the group formed despite T’Challa voting no he embodied the spirit of George Lucas denying Han shot first and stated the vote was unanimously yes even though there being a clear no vote.

His main role in Civil War was getting married to Storm in the run written at the time by Reggie Hudlin. I remember seeing the ads for the start of the series with art by John Romita JR who was and still is a favourite of mine so that sticks in my mind. I also knew of Hudlin because he wrote 10 issues of Marvel Knight’s Spider-Man following the 12 issue Mark Millar run and before the title was relaunched with the same numbering and Sensational Spider-Man.I remember also following Civil War, Black Panther and Storm replaced Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman on the Fantastic Four in a brief run written by the late, great Dwayne McDuffie. There was a lot of controversy at the time I recall that Black Panther was able to put the Silver Surfer in a full nelson hold. It just shows that even before social media where fans pick everything apart, this was still happening in the days before it became prevalent when fans argued over ridiculous things on message boards instead.

Like a lot of heroes at the time, Black Panther joined the pantheon of many characters that I knew existed but didn’t have much more than a surface knowledge of. I knew now that he was introduced in Lee/Kirby Fantastic Four, was one of the first prominent black superheroes and a few things about Wakanda and such. He showed up in Kurt Busiek’s Avenger’s briefly but I’m sure like a lot of people not familiar with the comics, I was got a wider exposure to Black Panther, Wakanda, etc through the movie Captain America: Civil War and then the Black Panther starring the legend that was Chadwick Boseman.The character got a more prominent place in the Marvel universe with a new title written by acclaimed novelist Ta-Nehisi Coates and a whole lot more titles centring around Wakanda and the characters who had been introduced globally through the aforementioned Black Panther movie. I would say that Marvel comics have lost somewhat of an interest in keeping the character as prevalent in recent years but the company tends to get bored quickly of their passion projects that are left to sink or swim before they remember to come back to it later on,I finally decided to read some Black Panther comics when the Christopher Priest run got the omnibus treatment.

This is one of (if not the) definitive run and I’m a big fan of Priest, especially after reading his recent Deathstroke work. Its a very dense read that’s more like a political thriller with Black Panther antagonists like Killmonger attacking Wakanda and the like with economics as well as his fists.Still even though I only understand perhaps 5% of it at times, its deeply compelling and its clear Christopher Priest is a writer with a lot on his mind and does an excellent job using a narrative involving people in costumes to put them across.Its always fun for me to drop in on a character I’m not familiar with and expand my reading horizons a little. I might never read another Black Panther run but I always enjoy thinking about my own journey with certain characters and maybe (hopefully) I’ve made you think a little about that too.

More soon.

Too Many Boxes

The problem with collecting comics for 30 years is that you end up with a lot of comics. I’m not complaining, I understand I’m very fortunate to own so many comics. As I get older, comics become increasingly more expensive and I often think about the funds I could have spent on perhaps producing my own comics instead of buying other people’s.

In any case, lots of comics I do have. I keep them stored in the attic of my home in boxes. Lots and lots of boxes. Usually I have a fair idea of where to go if I need a particular story or book. Spider-Man boxes? I know where they are. Batman? No problem? Superman? Well he’s in the drawers over there, etc. The hardest part though is boxes that contain lots of different things.

I have many, many ‘indie boxes’ that contain books from each publisher that basically isn’t a longer run like Invincible or Walking Dead or whatever (they naturally have their own boxes). It means if I want to read a specific thing or try to find a book it can make things…tricky. This week saw the return of Chip Zdarsky and Kris Anka’s Blacksand fantasy universe for the first time since 2019 where they did an excellent two parter in the same universe called ‘The White Trees’. I picked up this two part mini back in the day, greatly enjoyed it and put it in a box. Due to them finally doing another mini (The Whisper Queen) I thought, ‘oh hey I’ll read the last mini, that’ll be fun’.

Now the question was…which box. By good fortune it was the first one I checked, there it was at the very bottom beneath the two part Island Of Doctor Moreau adaption from IDW, Ted Adams and Gabriel Roriguez which you I’m sure forgot existed.

So that was easier than expected which is always appreciated. It does make my system of having various books in various boxes rather…faulty. What’s the point of this apart from me just saying I have way too many comics (which again, very fortunate) and a bad organization system outside of certain characters/groups of books? I’m not sure, its been a week and I needed something to talk about so here we are.

If you have a better way for me to do things, please feel free to suggest. I miss my comic shelves where I could see everythings spine…those were the days. Then I decided to have children.

In fairness, I made the right call in exchange for a little inconvenience now and then. Also a lot of anxiety when I think about all the boxes I’ll have to get down from the attic if we ever move…

More soon 

Kickstarter

I had a poor experience on Kickstarter recently. It’s sadly nothing uncommon or unusual because when it comes to the funding platform, you take a risk. You are giving someone money upfront to bring a project to fruition in exchange for a reward. Sometimes its as simple as a copy of the thing you’re helping create but you can spend more money to get more things (which now that I think about it, is how commerce works…).

There are more stories of people being swindled on Kickstarter than I care to think about. There are also stories where people do their best, thinking the money they raised is enough and it isn’t. inspired by my recent negative experience, I thought I’d go back and look over my history with Kickstarter, both the good and bad. I’ve been using the website for 12 years so we’ve got a lot to cover.

I will not be covering unsuccessful or cancelled campaigns because…what’s the point? I also won’t cover anything related to the comic creator that I did Crime and Crowns with that stole 6 grand of my money. Partly because I don’t want to give them any undue press and because honestly, I should have known better. In my defence, I backed these campaigns before they stole my money but you know, need to get work on that time machine to tell myself not to do the thing.

Anyway, apart from that we’re not leaving anything out. Let’s get going.

 Leaving Megalopolis

The campaign that brought me to Kickstarter by the Legendary creative team of Gail Simone and Jim Calafiore. They were doing a creator owned OGn about a superhero city where the zombie plague hits. Basically a better version of Marvel Zombies. It was a great read and for my first Kickstarter experience, it went perfectly.

The book eventually got reprinted through Darkhorse along with a sequel. I keep meaning to track down the sequel but its been 12 years so I’m sure I’ll get right on that…

Various GrayHaven

Oh boy.

So I backed the various campaign’s of this small press company I was heavily involved with. I gave them a LOT of money and waved my rewards. I felt I was investing in myself because they were publishing my work and I was involved in editorial.

Sadly, there are multiple times that the successful campaigns had more and more stories of people not get rewards. The company was ran by a snake oil salesman who apparently promised his kids some of the raised Kickstarter money in the later campaigns.

Remember that time machine? Need it for this one too.

Beyond Beauty

An OGN where the gender roles of Beauty and The Beast are flipped. I’ve seen similar concepts in recent years so this seemed ahead of its time. The art was stunning but sadly the writer did a runner. The artist was very apologetic and gave everyone a PDF of the book since it was finished but never printed. I can’t remember if the artist got paid or not but I hope they did. I’m not sure what they’re up to these days but they were very curtious and apolagetic so I appreciate that.

The writer can suck a lemon.

Metaphase

A brilliant ogn about a kid superhero with down syndrome. This was written by Chip Reece, an insanely talented writer who like myself had the misfortune of getting in with a company that went comicsgate hard and fast.

I’m not sure if he was ever able to reprint this somewhere else but I hope so, it was an excellent and important story. Artist for this book, Kelly Williams is doing a bunch of work for small press and is insanely talented so I’m glad he’s doing so well.

Molly Danger

Long delayed personal project from writer/artist Jamal Igle. After waiting several years for it to be produced, I asked for a refund which I received. I credit Igle to be able to own this and give people their money back when asked.

He’s of course working hard on various projects and I hope that Molly Danger will see publication some day.

Various Alterna

The aforementioned comic company myself and Chip did work for that went hardcore comicsgate. They seemed to be going places then well…you know. They always delivered on their rewards to their credit.

Chief O’Brien at work

Brilliant ogn collecting the misadventures of Starfleets transporter chief from a parody webcomic. Brilliant little production and hilarious. One of my fave all time Kickstarters I’ve backed.

A Tale Of Shadows

I got the books, remember nothing about them. I don’t think I was overly impressed. That’s another risk when it comes to Kickstarter, sometimes you back something that’s not going to be good.

I’m not sure if I have these or I sold it.

Black

A breakout hit for Black Mask studios. Not something I enjoyed personally but I know it got a lot of praise. They delivered them and all the rewards promptly and professionally. Pretty sure I sold this.

Paradox Girl

A brilliant story about a woman who has time travel abilities. Some of the issues were really inventive and the main character had an awesome New 52 Harley Quinn vibe.

I’d highly recommend tracking down the collection Image put out a few years ago. Its a shame that it doesn’t seem the artist has done much but the artist has been working on various books over the last few years. Another favourite of mine.

Alter-Life

I think I got this? I think it was okay? There was a hardcover a few years ago. I again don’t even remember if I still have this. I would wager I got this and I thought it was okay and immediately deleted it from my brain.

Turncoat

This was a very good little superhero themed murder mystery. The creative team did an Image series a few years ago but not much since. I wasn’t a big fan of the publisher but I’d say this one is worth tracking down. It’s likely available at cons.

Under The Hood

A coffee table book by Sean Murphy with a narrative starring him and Scott Snyder. I actually think this is excellent and an inventive way to do a book like this. I features some fun cameo’s from other creators. I’m sure Murphy is still selling this by the truckload at cons. I always thought he was a very good writer as well an excellent artist.

He’s busy with the White Knight universe from DC comics/Black Label this weather.

Crossing

Oh boy.

So this is the book that inspired this little article/ This is a comic about a guy who accidentally kills a girl and she haunts him. It caught my eye cause the girl looks similar (but legally distinct) to Death from the Endless.

Its a good series that I was enjoying and I got issues 1-4. I missed the campaign for issue 5 but backed issue 6 and spent the money to get issue 5.

I get no book. I message the creator and nada. I message the creator on main on Twitter to let them know ‘Hey, I didn’t get my book and you ignored me’.

They said I didn’t message them and they don’t use Twitter. I showed them a screenshot of me messaging them. They block me.

So I guess I’m not getting the rest of this book. Seems like the creator doesn’t care about delivering product after all so…yeah.

Thanks for the article idea though.

Theatrics

Got it grand, it wasn’t very good. Think I sold it.

My success ratio isn’t great on this now that I look back on all these…

Movie Buff

For a while, my wife and I were really into games. This was a fun little movie based thing. Loved the presentation of this as a little popcorn box. One of my rare non comic Kickstarters.

Transdimenional

Comic from a local Northern Irish creator. Not very good. I sold it. Gave him an honest review and he didn’t like it, never spoke to me again.

Some people want to get better, some people will never get better because they don’t want to listen.

Transience

An anthology from another Northern Irish creator. It was delivered promptly and just fine quality wise+. I was trying to support fellow local talent.

Murder Most Mundane

Did I get this? I think I did but I honestly have no memory of it. Either I never got it or I got it and didn’t think much of it.

Scurry

A brilliant pair of beautiful OGN’s that is very reminiscent of The Secret Of N.I.M.H. Image released these to the direct market a few years ago and they’re a must have.

I need to track down the third and final HC.

Beasts Of The Black Hand

An ogn from Ron Marz. I never got my copy but credit where its due, I ran into him at a Con and said to him and he gave me a copy, no questions asked.

Shame I didn’t really dig and yup you guessed it, I sold it.

Tales Of Fractured Worlds

Another OGN from the same creator of Transience. Got it fine, wasn’t as good as the previous one and I think I donated it after not being able to sell it.

Man this is getting depressing, why did I do this?

Various Jimmy Palmiotti and friends work

Yay! Save me Jimmy Palmiotti! I think Jimmy is one of the smartest and most talented folks in comics. He’s also one of the most overlooked. He’s taken a lot of projects to Kickstarter over the years, often with very talented people that have amazing production and fantastic communication.

Have I liked all of them? No but I’ve liked most of them. They’re always some of the best campaigns out there and usually worth a look. I wish it didn’t cost as much to ship to the UK otherwise I’d support more from Jimmy’s company PaperFilms.

Jim Cornette’s Real Pro Wrestling Stories

Excellent graphic novel with some iconic stories from wrestling history. Went as smooth as silk. It hit the direct market from IDW and is well worth tracking down for wrestling and even non-wrestling fans.

Croak

Campaign was great, didn’t care for the book sadly.

Metro

See above

Tinseltown

Great story about a murder mystery in the golden age of Hollywood. It came from a company that went comicsgate sadly so not sure if the creator went that way too. I hope not as this was good and the campaign was well run. There wa sa sequel mini but because of the CG link of the publisher, I didn’t back it.

Strange Tails

Very fun one shot by a writer who has hit it big doing work at Marvel and a Spawn book recently. One of the stories in here includes one of the funniest scene’s I’ve ever read in comic.

Pity the writer isn’t a very nice person but what do you do?

Frenemies: The Lost Planet

If I got this, I remember nothing about it and have no idea if I kept it.

Actors

Weird one shot that’s more an art project than a comic with an actual narrative. The creator is well thought of online but it was too weird for me personally. Campaign went like clockwork.

The Game 1

Got this because Jenn St. Onge was doing a variant and I’m a big fan. I had to chase it down and eventually got it. It was just okay but the cover by St, Onge was nice. Not sure if the series ever finished.

Trigger Mortis

Excellent widescreen OGN with zombies in the old west. A lot of fun and really well run.Hey that rhymes!

Being Ginger/Being A Cosplayer

Brilliant collections of little comic strip style tales about the titular subjects. The creator I’m a big fan of and is highly underrated. They’re working on a third book now and I can’t wait. Very well priced with some great rewards.

Ned: Lord Of The Pit

Great and fun black comedy OGN by the artist of Leaving Metropolis. Came with a bunch of great extra’s and when I spoke to the creator at NYCC they were very grateful. There’s a sequel coming that I missed but I think you can still get it on IndieGoGo so I’ll have to look into that.

Coronary

Another greatly run campaign that produced a book that I didn’t much care for and sold on. Ah well.

Death & Comics: Reincarnation

See above.

Norm Konyu projects

A brilliant and unique creator, Konyu has run four Kickstarters, I missed one of them but the other three were won excellently and produced brilliant work. I’d put Norm’s work alongside some of the best people working in comics today. The first two ogn’s Konyu did have been released through Titan and you should go buy them NOW.

Cosmic Detective

Another brilliant OGN produced by 3 of the best creators in comics and run to the quality you’d expect. I was very pleased to get the super duper edition exclusive to the Kickstarter. The book was rerleased through Image and is a must read.

The Management Programme

Great one shot with unique art and an unsettling tone. I backed a tier which got my name in the book and I forgot and got freaked out when the book knew my name.

I need help.

Madi

A brilliant OGN from director Doug Jones and many of the best comic creators ever. This is a massive book with an ambitious story that is on full display with the super massive edition I got. There were some delays but it was well worth the wait. Not sure how readily available it is but its worth tracking down.

Tales From The Quarentine

Oh boy.

This is probably the most infamous comic on Kickstarter. So much potential for a good cause that has been followed by broken timelines, sketchy and infrequent updates and quite possibly a huge case of leading people on.

Google it and you’ll see many articles from people like myself who didn’t get their rewards. Their are also many very amusing Twitter accounts that seem determined to either get the person who organized it to either pony up the rewards, refund the money or admit what they did.

I think my kids will likely be telling their grandkids about the misbegotten anthology before we actually see any of these three outcomes sadly.

No Going Back

Never received. Now I’m sad again.

Elsa Cherretier artbook

Brilliantly run where I got both of Cherretier’s art books. Run like clockwork with lots of great extras.

The Deadliest Bouquet

Basically Practical Magic without the magic. Not for me. Did I mention the writer was very rude to me? They were. Wanting to sell this asap.

Bunhouse

Backed to help a friend of a friend for no reward. No idea how its gone,

Fog line

A Kickstarter by a great friend of mine. I backed the digital only and it was very good!

And We Love You

Brilliant and unique one shot by the super talented Fell Hound. This is Part of Fell’s Commander Rao series which got some of it published by Scout. Another one well worth checking out and a wonderfully run campaign.

Heirs Of Isildur

Well run campaign from Insymmetry Creations. The book wasn’t for me but it was part of a larger story that I hadn’t been keeping track of so that’s more down to me.

Alter Ego

Much delayed and one I\d thought wasn’t happening but updates owning the delay are happening. I hope this one comes to light, I’m a big fan of the artist.

Dime-Store Detective

Went for a digital reward. It wasn’t for me. It was a well run campaign.

Giant Days

Wrote about this in depth in my Giant Days specific blog a while back. I nearly cried when I got the books. I’d love to support the BOOM Kickstarters more but the postage is pricey and I only have so many Kidney’s.

Room Service

A film/comic that is nearing completion. Some huge names involved here and I can’t wait.

Misfitz Clubhouse

Another one from InSymmetry. Really fun all ages one shot about some kids imaginative misadventures.

Agency Case Files

Brilliant collection of a wonderful Blade Runneresque world created by writer/artist Colin Craker. Again, not sure how readily available they are but they’re great reads and the art is brilliant. Very well run and Colin is super talented and nice.

One True Love

I think this is delayed but this is by another close friend of mine who is keeping us updated. Looking forward to it.

Catskin and the Rose.

An ogn that is currently cooking with some wonderful art. Can’t wait!

A Thing Called Truth

Continuation of an awesome sounding series from Image. Updates are plentiful and I can’t wait!

Good Omens

Comic adaption of the brilliant novel by one of the best artists ever. There’s been some personal health stuff and the updates have kept us well informed. All 100% understandable. Another I am very excited for.

There’s three others that are very early on so I won’t cover those but looking forward to them all, including one that hasn’t finished yet!

Mostly, I’ve gotten the things I’ve paid for and even when I haven’t enjoyed the product I’m glad I took a chance. A lot of these books I wouldn’t be able to read without this platform and I’m glad it exists as another option for creators to get their work out there.

Hope this was an interesting, maybe next week I’ll talk about my own Kickstarter and what a balls up that was.

More soon.

I Don’t Get It

I think being a comic writer in the industry today is one of the hardest jobs you can imagine. In terms of producing a comic they do have a lot of positives. Compared to the work the artist puts in, they have it relatively ‘easy’. However, if they create something for the big two, they don’t get anything out of from Marvel (I’m not sure what the situation is at DC currently) and its hard work to be an indie creators.

Oh sure, some creators are making a great living off indies, don’t get me wrong but I see comments from the likes of Cullen Bunn about how much he has to keep plugging away to just keep afloat. It all sounds very stressful and that’s not even taking into account how people online treat them. I’ve said many times before that we are very fortunate as comic fans today. We have more access to creators than ever. Social media gives us a direct line to some of the biggest names in wrestling and they will take time out of their day to interact with us.

Some creators get a lot of hostile treatment. Of course there’s the disgusting treatment some get because of their gender, race or whatever but then there’s other creators who get a lot of negativity thrown at them for the most baffling reasons. There are people online (and in person, I don’t know but I don’t think they’re that brave) who get angry at creators over how characters are written. They say the most horrible things to real people over how fictional ones are written.

Look, I’ve been reading comics since I learned to read. I’ve been reading Marvel comics since I has 8 or 9 or maybe younger. I’ve seen takes on Spider-Man and Batman that I don’t like. I famously don’t like Grant Morrison’s Batman. Do I say mean things about Morrison? Nope. I’m sure they’re lovely and I’d love to meet them and pick their brain. Might I lose my sanity in the process? Most likely yes but as someone who wants to be a writer and who has NEVER been successful at that endeavour, I would be an idiot not to take the opportunity to talk to Morrison who has is successful beyond most comic creators ever.

So giving hate to people online, to those who don’t seem to deserve it is a puzzle for me I can’t solve. One creator in particular that seems to have a lot of disproportionate hatred towards them is writer Tom Taylor.

With a background in writing for the stage and animation, Taylor’s comic career started when he wrote Star Wars comics for Dark Horse during the era that the publisher had the licence. His real breakout gig in comics came when he penned the comic prequel for the Injustice fighting games. Generally game tie-in comics aren’t worth much but Taylor added a lot of nuisance to the ‘Superman turns evil’ story that got a significant amount of acclaim.

This led to him getting a bunch of more work from both Marvel and DC with him seemingly making the latter his home for the time being. He’s written for some of the biggest franchises in comics like Spider-Man, Batman, Superman, X-Men and more. In recent years, it seems that a lot of venom has landed at his door. As I mentioned in the article I wrote about the corner DC has painted themselves in when it comes to Barbara Gordon and fans wanting her back as Oracle but the company keeping her firmly in the Batgirl identity. Some even accused Taylor and DC of being ableist.

After this, a lot of his work is picked apart like a pack of Hyena’s feating on an animal in the wild. In particular, the Superman mini series where Jon Kent went over to the Injustice universe. People who read the book criticised the story decision to have Jon hug that world’s Superman where people have have stated over and over ‘He hugged a fascist.’

Now I won’t say Taylor is a perfect writer, nor have I read the Superman mini referenced above. I recently read his Black Label Hellblazer mini he did with Derick Robertson which I thought was great but it was a bit heavy handed in having the characters state some of the topics (economic inequity and the rich getting richer while the poor get poorer, etc) but I enjoyed it a lot.

Being sometimes overt in what you’re trying to put across as a writer is hardly a hangable offence. Yet I see people all the time attach him on one public forum or another. One thing I don’t agree with is that he is in any way ableist. People put a lot of power in Taylor’s hand, stating he was the reason that Barbara was not returned to her Oracle role instead of being Batgirl.

This is a decision that is beyond Taylor. Barbara returning to the role of Batgirl happened 2011 during the new 52 when Taylor was still only doing video game tie-ins for the company. It is an editorial and company decision to keep Barbara as Batgirl and any glimpses of her working in an Oracle capacity has come I would presume with the cavat that she remains as Batgirl along with Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown.

I can’t speak for Taylor. I don’t know which version of Barbara he wanted to write. Its clear however he wanted to have Dick and Barbara as a couple in his Nightwing run. Having that element of the book was likely in his pitch and he likely didn’t ask about how to portray Barbara cause he knew what the answer would be or he asked and was told no. Or he didn’t think about it because in the case of say Spider-Man, writers on the book don’t ask Webshooters or Organic in their books because they know what the score is.

This is obviously a much more important matter in terms of representation and a much more important subject but this was the best example I could think of off the cuff,

So this is just the way it is and Taylor has to work with the tools he’s given. Its the same with every writer working at the big two. Some get more pull than others and more room to do whatever they want but generally if the company wants a certain thing to happen, its going to happen. If they want Swamp Thing to be a giant rose, its going to happen. If you want to write Swamp thing, you think of the best way to make that work or you don’t and they get someone else.

With big two companies, this is the reality. Long time comic writer who has been in the industry longer than some creators and fans have been alive I think said it best when talking about his run on Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man back in the 2000’s.

‘I knew the job was dangerous when I took it. Spider-Man is the flagship character and if you are going to be doing crossovers he is going to be affected, and if you are going to do crossovers, it is going to be exceedingly tricky. I would keep coming up with plans for what I want to do, but what is happening keeps knocking my plans off the rails.’

I had a whole storyarc planned with the school and then all of a sudden Peter Parker is unmasking himself during “Civil War.” I was faced with a situation where all the villains would know he is at the school, so I decided to do a story where the villains attacked the school, and then was told that was happening in “Spec Spidey.” And that was problematic.

You are always dancing as fast as you can, and it can be a real hassle.’

So Taylor gets some venomous stuff and I think its so unfair and ridiculous. Like his work or don’t but try to be respectful at least. I’m a fan, I’ve greatly enjoyed the work he’s done at both companies and even find works like All-New Wolverine, Suicide Squad and some of his Injustice work brilliant.

Taylor doesn’t need comics, he has a very successful cartoon show he can go do. He does comics because he loves them. He sometimes does bite back at his critics and no, he shouldn’t but good lord these people are human. You can’t expect to hurl stones at people and then cry foul when they call you a prick for it or whatever.

That’s my opinion though but hey, what do I know about comics? I’ve just been reading them longer than most people who love to rag on people like Tom Taylor have been alive.

More Soon

Being The Doctor

Its been a hard few months mentally. Some work stuff has been niggling at me again and I’ve been slipping in my good mental care. For those that read my dream article, it kind of surmises where I am in terms of where I am versus where I want to be. I finally got back to therapy which really helped a lot. I can’t express actually how much better I feel after therapy and how appreciative of my loved ones and friends that kept me floating along until I could get there.

When I wasn’t doing so hot, I thought a lot about one of my favourite fictional characters, The Doctor. The mysterious time lord who goes around in a blue box saving time and the universe who is a kind of superhero, a bit of an idiot, sometimes goes too far, deeply depends on those who journey with them and makes a conscious decision to do what is right.

‘The man who makes people feel better.’-The Master

It might sound silly or childish but I don’t see anything wrong with taking morality lessons from fictional characters. Fairy Tales teach us as children about some basics of life so maybe characters like the Doctor can too for all their flaws. Something I’ve found I can pull on at my worst is that if The Doctor can stumble or fail then maybe it isn’t so bad when I do it.

Characters like Spider-Man, Batman, Sherlock Holmes, The Doctor and more who mean so much to me are all variations of who I’d like to be. The person who can be smart, funny, kind and help those he can. When it comes to The Doctor, you get all this plus more. I always and always have tried to be a good person. I like to treat people well, with respect and not do anything that would upset anyone. This all sounds like standard stuff but I’ve met too many rude and self absorbed people to know that it isn’t. I’m also dealing with with parental stuff where trying to be all these things take on an extra layer.

My mother drilled into me about always being nice, polite, etc. Very good character traits, don’t get me wrong but the cost of maybe slipping or saying the wrong thing was severe in terms of how she raised me. On the other end, my father is an abusive and angry man. I grew up seeing him do horrible things to my mother and it installed in me a desire to be anything BUT THAT.

So when I see someone like The Doctor, a fictional character who goes above and beyond to help those in need I can’t help but go ‘yeah, I want to be like them’ even if that sounds a little strange.

‘When people need help, I never refuse.’-The Thirteenth Doctor

Its also appealing when The Doctor as a character is on a continuous journey to be better. Sometimes they go too far and they need someone to stop them. Sometimes they are at their lowest point and they need someone to tell them to keep going. Sometimes they need to have conversations for themselves about what they’re doing to make the right decisions.

Its also these conversations between multiple versions of The Doctor very relatable. I’m very hard on myself, I’m very critical of myself and all too regularly, people tell me I need to go easier on myself with The Doctor, you get a visual interpretation of self doubt, how we perceive themselves and how we’re all our own worst critic. There’s even an entire episode in series 5 where the Doctor combats his own subconscious while in a dream state. The Doctor has an undercurrant of rage that is kept in check by his better nature and his companions but it is there. I can relate while dealing with the issues my genetics, ACD and depression get me in.

‘It’s a small universe when I’m angry with you.’-The Twelfth Doctor.

I consciously try to be better, to be the best version of myself. I want to succeed at work, as a writer, as a friend, as a son, as a husband and a father. I don’t have a blue box or a screwdriver or crazy clothes (well maybe that one) but I do have a drive to continually be better than I have been before.

‘Have you ever been limited by who you were before’-The Fugitive Doctor

I’m not a Time Lord or a hero, I’m just someone who tries to do their best. If I want to be like The Doctor in that respect, well I guess there’s worse mindsets to have right?

More soon.

Dreams

I’m a big fan of Fargo, the TV show from FX. It’s low key one of the best acted and written shows that occasionally graces the small screen. I’m making my way through the latest season (5) and there was a line in episode 5 that really stuck with me.

‘Have you ever had a dream and realized you’re not tall enough to reach it? He hasn’t woken up yet.’

This was spoken by a police officer played by Richa Moojani who is an actress I am unfamiliar with but I think is doing a brilliant job. Her character Indira Olmstead is the usual Fargo police officer who actually knows what is going on but no one listens to. She works hard and supports her husband who dreams of being a pro golfer. Her husbands dream (which is he hasn’t woken up yet) has left the young couple in debt, something Indira is doing her best to shoulder the burden on and keep their heads above water.

It makes me think of my own dreams and my own ability to wake up. I suppose I did in November when I had my disastrous meeting with an editor who made it clear I didn’t have a thimble of talent. So I took a long, long break that I fully didn’t intend to come back from. The results of kinda going back to sleep (napping in this metaphor?) are kind of mixed. I told myself no pressure and no money which I’ve mostly kept to.

I do hear people going ‘Oh, I have this opportunity and that’ which I would give my eye teeth for. I want to be happy for them and I kind of am but I’m also kind of jealous which is a sucky feeling to have. It makes me feel like a bad friend.

Comparing yourselves against others and feeling constantly coming short is a big thing with myself. It is a key thing with people with neurodivergence and it really sucks. I can learn to live with it or cope better but its still there and it isn’t going away.

I feel like I’m not trying hard enough, that I could always do more but when I was trying as hard as I could at the time (when I had more time and finances) it ended in disaster. So maybe its just an issue of not being able to reach the dream? I often compare myself to Ed Wood, the infamous director who made movies he thought were brilliant but have become cult disasters.

He had a vision and a desire but not the skill. Certainly bad writers can be successful and good writers can experience failure so its hard to judge. I just think of this line in a TV show which features very high quality writing and wonder if it applies to me. Perhaps I am unable to wake up and that’s a hard thing to live with.

I always feel capable of more but when does more end? When do I stop and go ‘You know what, here is fine?’ I used to think it was getting a comic published, well I did that for sure. What then? A mini, a known publisher? A big 5 publisher? A B list character? An a-list character? The a-list character’s top book? A story that will be remembered long after I’m gone and I’ll be unable to know and or care? An Eisner? Two Eisners? 20? 30?

When does trying to aim for the dream stop?

Something to think over perhaps as I try to just make it a step at a time.

More soon.

Collection Craziness

So in DC’s May solicitations, something I’ve been waiting on for a long while finally happened. We finally got a solicitation for an Absolute edition of Mr. Miracle.

For regular readers, you will know that I am a huge fan of the Absolute edition (34 and counting) and I’m a big fan of King’s work, having enjoyed the vast majority of his big two/indie work that I’ve read. So I’ve been waiting patiently because I had a gut instinct that one of their most critically acclaimed maxi-series would be upscaled to their best collected format (opinions may very).

Now it has though, it created an entirely new issue. If one King work is going to get this treatment, what others might? Supergirl: Women Of Tomorrow? Strange Adventures? Danger Street? Omega Men? Rorschach? Penguin? Wonder Woman? All have the potential to be very easily upscaled to this format but of the ones I don’t own, should I wait? i really want to read the ones I haven’t so I have buying anxiety and not buying anxiety at the same time.

In another similar but very different case, I’ve had it in my mind to check out Captain Marvel by Kelly Thompson in Omnibus form. Like the Absolute edition, I also love the Omnibus edition (I’m not counting those, my wallet will hurt me). However, I got wind of not one but two arcs in the Kelly Sue DeConnick arts that I was like ‘hey, that sounds great’. Instead of getting the two trades I instead though (like a totally sane and sensible person) ‘I’ll just get the Omnibus!’ which led to another issue.

Save me.

This Omnibus colleced Avenging Spider-Man 9 and 10 which I own. Now I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this but I hate doubling up on owned issues. I don’t see the sense in owning stuff twice, it just seems odd to me. It really bug me when collections double up on material. Like okay, I’ll see the sense in the Future Imperfect two parter being included in both the Peter David Hulk omni’s and the Maostro focused omni. Fine, whatever. I’m more puzzled by the inclusion of Captain America 25 (the one where Cap gets shot) in both the first and second Brubaker Captain America omnis.

So now I was like ‘well I should sell these issues’ because I don’t want to own them twice but also, it turns out Avenging Spider-Man 9 is worth a little bit of money. This is because Avenging Spider-Man 9 is the first appearance in comics of Carol in the Captain Marvel identity. Of course, it was meant to be the launch of Captain Marvel one but because of a delay, Avenging Spider-Man 9 got there first. Is it worth a ton? Not really but its more valuable than the entire omnibus its collected it…twice over.

Still I didn’t really want to part with it because I’m utterly insane. Is anyone else like this with comic collections? Both wanting to buy everything but afraid to buy anything?

I can see the men in white coats outside my home, they must have read this article. How nice of them.

Long story short, I’ll buy some King collections, wait on other and buy the stupid omnibus and hate myself forever for doubling up.

Are you happy now?

No I’m not….bloody comics.

More soon