New and Upcoming NZ Comics: Spring Edition 2014!

Above: Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen by Dylan Horrocks. Copyright Dylan Horrocks 2014.

Its been a while since I had a chance to update this blog, so here's a round up of all the latest NZ comics and graphic novels coming out in the next few months!

First up is the print edition of Dylan Horrocks' Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen. Beginning life as a back-up story in Atlas #2 (2005), it was revived in 2009 as Horrocks' first ongoing webcomic. Here's the official synopsis:

Cartoonist Sam Zabel hasn’t drawn a comic in years. Stuck in a nightmare of creative block and despair, Sam spends his days writing superhero stories for a large American comics publisher and staring at a blank piece of paper, unable to draw a single line. Then one day he finds a mysterious old comic book set on Mars and is suddenly thrown headlong into a wild, fantastic journey through centuries of comics, stories, and imaginary worlds. Accompanied by a young webcomic creator named Alice and an enigmatic schoolgirl with rocket boots and a bag full of comics, Sam goes in search of the Magic Pen, encountering sex-crazed aliens, medieval monks, pirates, pixies and—of course—cartoonists. Funny, erotic, and thoughtful, Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen explores the pleasures, dangers, and moral consequences of fantasy.

As his first major work since Hicksville, Sam Zabel and the Magic Pen will be released in late November as a 208 page, full-colour paperback from Victoria University Press for $35.00 NZ.

It will also be released in seven international editions, translated into six languages: in North America from Fantagraphics, Knockabout in the UK, Casterman in French, Bao Publishing in Italian, Egmont in German, Astiberri in Spanish, and in Danish from Fahrenheit.

Above: Abigail and the Snowman by Roger Langridge. Copyright Roger Langridge 2014.

Another kiwi cartoonist with an international following is Roger Langridge, who has two new projects on the horizon.

Abigail and the Snowman is Langridge's latest project for US publisher Boom Studio's all-ages imprint Kaboom! Launching in December this four issue mini-series focuses on Abigail, a young girl moving to a new town in need of a friend - which she finds in the form of a yeti named Claude. Unfortunately, Claude (known as 'Specimen 486' to the authorities), happens to be an escapee from a nearby government facility that wants him back. To keep her new friend safe, Abigail and Claude go on a journey to find his home.

Above: Jim Henson's The Musical Monsters Of Turkey Hollow, adapted by Roger Langridge. Copyright the Jim Henson Company 2014.

And coming out next week, Langridge makes a welcome return to the world of Jim Henson, with Jim Henson's The Musical Monsters Of Turkey Hollow graphic novel from Archaia. The story is adapted by Langridge based on an unproduced teleplay by Jim Henson & Jerry Juhl, which is sure to be a treat for any fan of Henson's work and Langridge's fantastic comic adaptation of The Muppet Show.

Above: Capture Creatures by Frank Gibson & Becky Dreistadt. Copyright Frank Gibson & Becky Dreistadt 2014.

Frank Gibson & Becky Dreistadt of Tiny Kitten Teeth also have a new comic series coming out from Kaboom! in the form of Capture Creatures! It began life as an art blog project, with Dreistadt sketching new creatures which Gibson would provide a back-story for. After a very successful Kickstarter Art book, the concept will be graduating to an ongoing series in November. The series will follow two teens who set out to investigate the mysterious arrival of over a hundred new creatures on earth, and to stop those who would have them destroyed. For more updates visit the Capture Creatures website HERE.

Above: Ricky & Lyle by Ralphi. Copyright Ralphi 2014.

Above: Patient Lab by Tim Danko. Copyright Tim Danko 2014.

Our friends over at Radio As Paper (now based in Nantes, France), have recently released some lovely mini-comics by kiwi creators: Ricky & Lyle by Ralphi, and Patient Lab by Tim Danko (French edition). You can order them from the Radio As Paper website HERE and HERE.

Above: Holocaust Rex and the Plague Lords of Koch: Book 2, by Karl Wills & Timothy Kidd. Copyright Karl Wills & Timothy Kidd 2014.

The next installment of the excellent mini-comic series Holocaust Rex from The Comicbook Factory will be available from October 1st, and will be able HERE and from selected retailers.

Above: Ant Sang with an advance proof copy of The Dharma Punks graphic novel! Photographed by Damon Keen.

There was excitement at the Earth's End office this week as the first proof copies of The Dharma Punks collected edition arrived! It came out great, and we are looking forward to punters getting there hands on it when it releases nationwide on October 31st. If you live in Auckland, stay tuned for an announcement regarding the release party in late October!

- AK!

News From Earth's End: September Edition

Above: The cover of New Zealand Comics and Graphic Novels, published by Hicksville Press. Cover illustrations going clockwise: Akira Atsushi, Mat Tait (x2), Toby Morris, Greg Broadmore, Ant Sang, Andrew Burdan and Dylan Horrocks.

Hi everyone, sorry for the length of time between posts, it's been a busy year here at Earth's End Central; but there's plenty of exciting NZ comics publishing developments on the way in the next few months, so your patience will be rewarded!

In fact, here's some FREE stuff for you right now: Dylan Horrocks has edited a guide to New Zealand comics and creators for distribution at the various publishing events taking place in the next few weeks, including the Frankfurt Book Fair and the Treviso Comic Book Festival. As it's a promotional publication, you won't find it available at retailers, but the good news is you can download it for FREE HERE.

It highlights over sixty NZ comic creators, as well as a full listing of their available and upcoming projects, and features a brief historical overview of New Zealand Comics by Tim Bollinger.

Above: Wulfpak by Ed Butler aka Czepta Gold. Copyright Chronic Shock Entertainment 2012.

Back in 2009, before he became Czepta Gold, comic creator Ed Butler produced a kids manga hip-hop mash-up, Wulfpuk. A fun combination of Dragonball with a decidedly local street flavour, the complete 40 page comic is now available for FREE on Graphicly HERE.

Above: A preview page from Adventure Time #8, featuring a special story from Frank & Becky. Copyright Cartoon Network 2012.

In other news, Tiny Kitten Teeth creators Frank Gibson & Becky Dreistadt are making big inroads in the US, with a back-up in the latest issue of Adventure Time, a comic published by Kaboom, based on the hugely popular animated series. You can view an eight page preview of their contribution HERE via Comics Alliance.

Above: Mr. Unpronounceable returns! Copyright Tim Molloy 2012.

Tim Molloy has a forthcoming collection of his Mr. Unpronounceable stories coming out soon, so here's a first look at the cover...

Above: The cover of Snarked! #12, by Roger Langridge. Copyright Roger Langridge 2012.

Sadly, it seems Roger Langridge's Eisner Award-winning comic series Snarked! will be coming to an end with #12. Over on his blog Roger says the book will reach a natural conclusion, but he'd like to revisit the characters again in the future if there's enough interest. The best way for you to show your support is to buy the trade collections: Snarked! Volume 1 is available now, with Volume 2 hitting in late October, and the final volume landing in February next year. Roger will still be keeping busy though, with the ongoing Popeye comic for IDW and he's also working on another more 'action-orientated' title for them in the near future.

Stat tuned for information on several upcoming NZ comic events in the next few weeks!

-AK!

'Tigerbuttah: The Retro Art of Becky Dreistadt': Event Photos

Above: A page of the forthcoming 'Tigerbuttah' Golden Book by Becky Dreistadt and Frank Gibson.

Here's some photos from Becky Dreistadt's 'Tigerbuttah' gallery opening at The High Seas in Auckland on the 5th of February. It had an exceptional turn-out, with pages selling as fast as the red dots could be placed! There were cakes and drinks on hand for the art punters, and a performance from sweet indie band 'Bear Cat'.

The show will be going on tour, next appearing at Popup Gallery in Wellington on March 5th. I'm not sure if there is any art left available to buy, as it sold exceptionally fast at the Auckland show; so if you don't see any red dots I would buy first ask questions later!

-AK!

EVENT: 'Tigerbuttah:The Retro Art of Becky Dreistadt'

Above: Poster for 'Tigerbuttah:The Retro Art of Becky Dreistadt'. Copyright Becky Dreistadt, 2010.

Becky Dreistadt, artist of one of New Zealand's leading webcomics 'Tiny Kitten Teeth', is having a 'Tigerbuttah Gallery Show' at The High Seas from February 5th-18th.

Produced with writer Frank Gibson, 'Tiny Kitten Teeth' has been hugely successful since it's launch early last year. It receives over 5000 readers a day, and they have produced guest strips for such high profile webcomics as: Octopus Pie, Penny Arcade, PvP, Girls With Slingshots, Dr. McNinja, Shortpacked and Menage A 3.

As you may recall, back in November they created a 'Kickstarter' page, to raise funds to produce a 'Tigerbuttah' Golden Book. This went incredibly well, raising over $7300 against their goal of $5000. Allowing them to not only publish the book, but double their print run, which has to be good news for their avid readers!

So make sure you get along to the gallery opening to see some of Becky's remarkable art in person, and meet the creators! The opening is on Friday February 5th from 7pm at The High Seas, with music from 'Bear Cat' (and free cake!). For more information on Becky Dreistadt, and to read 'Tiny Kitten Teeth', you can visit the webcomic HERE.

-AK!

PS: Oh, and for the social network obsessed, you can now follow me and my boring existence on Twitter! (or just err...glance at the Twitter update box to the right). You can also follow other NZ comic creators on Twitter, including: Becky & Frank, Marc Streeter, Dylan Horrocks and Richard Fairgray.

A Golden Opportunity

Above: Tigerbuttah enjoys Halloween (dressed as a narwhal!) by Frank & Becky. Copyright Frank Gibson & Becky Dreistadt 2009.

Frank Gibson and Becky Dreistadt, the creators of the beautifully retro styled web-comic 'Tiny Kitten Teeth', have made no secret of their love of classic Golden Books and it's influence on their comics. Especially their single panel feature 'Tigerbuttah', which is published every Friday.

Now they are taking the opportunity to bring that creative influence full circle, by publishing their very own Golden Book! But they need YOUR help to make it happen!

They have setup a Kickstarter page to fund the $5000 needed to print the book. Kickstarter is a US based funding donation site, set-up to help creators raise money for creative projects (books, films, music etc) through 'pledges': donated credit in exchange for updates and special rewards offered by the creators. The pledged donations are processed by Amazon.com and only collected if the projected funding goal is reached within a set deadline. For Frank & Becky's project to come to fruition, they must collect $5000 in pledges by Jan 16, 2010.

In exchange for your valued pledges, they are offering a variety of unique and collectible rewards! From mini-comics to signed copies of the book, right up to unique Gouache paintings by Becky! (the more you pledge the greater the rewards...obviously). But they are really outdoing themselves by offering a signed copy of the book with a special hand-drawing inside the cover, for as little as $20! (this could mean a loooooot of drawing on the other side of this!).

If successfully funded, the 'Tigerbuttah' Golden Book will support a travelling gallery show they will be having here in New Zealand next year, exhibiting 24 pieces of artwork which form the story presented in the Golden Book.

It's been less than 24 hours and already they are one third of the way there, which speaks to the tremendous support they have online for their fantastic work. But there's a ways to go yet to reach the target goal, so if you're able, show some support by pledging to this fantastic project. They are making it well worth your money!

You can find out more about Frank & Becky's comics at their website, and be sure to visit their Kickstarter page!

I guess it's probably time I gave in and finally got myself a credit card...

-AK!

Comics on K: The Comics Weekend Report

'Comics on K', Auckland's first comics weekend in recent memory took place earlier this month on the 17-18 of October at The High Seas, and I was there to enjoy the company and comics of some of Auckland's finest cartoonist. We had some great visitors from Wellington to add to talent pool, but this was the first organised gathering of Auckland's comics community in years, and that alone marks this as a special occasion.

What follows are some of my recollections from the weekend, accompanied by drawings of the event from the sketchbook of Darren Sheehan.

Above: Cartoonists manning the tables on Day One, as sketched by Darren Sheehan (enlarge to pick out the names!).

Day One: Saturday 17th of October

I arrived at The High Seas just after 1pm. Auckland's temperamental wind and rain was subsiding in time for the weekend's organiser, Jerome Bihan, to fire up the barbecue. While the grilling got underway, I went inside and joined the Sheehan Bros: Kelly and Darren (creators of 'The Inhabitants') and Richard Fairgray (of 'Blastosaurus' and 'Falling Leaves' fame) at the second of two display tables set-up inside.

The other table featured: Frank and Becky (creators of 'Tiny Kitten Teeth'), Marc Streeter (creator of 'ActionMan Adam'), Mat Tait (creator of 'Love Stories') and Brent Willis (editor of Wellington anthology 'Bristle').

Above: The cover from the complete set of 'The Inhabitants'. Art by Darren Sheehan, colours by Ben Stenbeck. Copyright the Sheehan Bros 2009.

A small but steady stream of customers and friends made their way through the gallery in the first two hours as cartoonists enthusiastically organised their wares and welcomed any chance to introduce their work to the uninitiated. The Sheehan Bros were greeted with many a cry of "at last!" in response to publishing the final issue of 'The Inhabitants'. So how long exactly was the wait? "Seven years, I believe", was Kelly's response, although Darren's recollection was closer to six years (personally, I think Kelly should let Darren have that extra year off!).

Above: Punters from Day One, and Becky Dreistadt inking at the bottom left.

One thing you can be sure of, there's never a shortage of lively conversation between fellow comic creators. You never know when a discussion on Jack Kirby or a 2000AD appreciation is going to break out, as it did later that afternoon between the Sheehan Bros, Mat Tait and some customers.

It also keeps things interesting if you have opposing views on subjects. As I was telling Jose Barbosa, Richard Fairgray and I can't seem to agree on any two subjects:

ME:..I'm telling you, we disagree on EVERYTHING. We should really get our own point/counter-point show on public access.

JOSE: Uh-huh. So what else have you been up to?

ME: My flatmate just imported a copy of the Director's Cut of 'Watchmen' on Blu-ray...

RICHARD: I really didn't care for 'Watchmen'. It was far too faithful to the source material, like 'Sin City'. I HATED that movie.

KELLY (catching interest): THANK YOU! You're not the only one, Richard!

ME: See, see! Opposite!

And you haven't even seen 'Watchmen', Kelly!

KELLY (smiling): I don't NEED to see it.

Of coarse agreement would just spoil our fun. You can learn a great deal from listening to someone else's point of view, especially when it comes to comics. Speaking of which, there was a variety of comics and styles on offer that weekend. From the slick, retro-styled humour of Frank & Becky's 'Tiny Kitten Teeth' to Mat Tait's brooding 'Love Stories'. Humour was also a strong suit in the collective mini-comics of Brent Willis and Marc Streeter's comic, featuring the always upbeat 'ActionMan Adam'.

Above: The cover of 'ActionMan Adam'. Copyright Marc Streeter 2009.

Later that afternoon (after a well cooked BBQ break to keep energy levels up) Dylan Horrocks arrived, with two issues of a new mini-comic series 'Pikelet', which he had whipped up on his home computer printer!

Above: The cover of 'Pikelet' issue #1 by Dylan Horrocks.

'Pikelet' collects some of Dylan's short stories, which have appeared in various places over the last decade as a set of two handsomely presented DIY mini-comics.

Issue #1 of 'Pikelet' subtitled: 'The War and Peace Issue', features: '10-7': Dylan's contribution to Dark Horse's '9-11: Artist's Responce' , 'My World': from 'Ctrl.Alt.Shift Unmasks Corruption' and 'Siso' previously seen in 'Douze Ecrivains Neo-Zelandais' and 'Pictozine 3'.

Above: The cover of 'Pikelet' issue #2 by Dylan Horrocks.

Issue #2 of 'Pikelet' subtitled: 'The Imaginary Geography of Love', features: 'Cornucopia' from 'The Lifted Brow' (with a minor re-write) and 'The Physics Engine', Dylan's contribution to 'Are Angel's Ok?: The Parallel Universes of New Zealand Writer's and Scientists'.

Most of these stories are already available on Dylan's website for free, but these home-made mini-comics make a strong argument for print-to-order, as these items are as much beautiful craft objects as they are comics. If you would like to get hold of some Pikelet's for yourself, you can try The High Seas in Auckland or contact Dylan directly at his website.

Above: An example from Chris Slane's educational comics. This example is from 'No Hea te Hau' : A history of Te Rauparaha's raids into the South Island. Artwork by Chris Slane copyright Hana Limited/Ministry of Education 2009.

At 5.30pm the evening's lecture series got under way, beginning with a talk from cartoonist Chris Slane. For several years Chris has been producing a series of educational comics based on Maori history as part of a learning resource package for the Ministry of Education. Produced in water-colour, Chris' artwork brings the past to life in dramatic fashion, with the sensitivity and respect this project demands.

He showed a series of slides illustrating the extensive research he under took to keep the stories historically accurate (no matter how small the details in the final artwork!). From combing library archives, to checking out locations on Google earth and snippets of Youtube footage, Chris left no stone unturned to produce these historically accurate wide-screen comics.

It's a true testament to Chris' artwork that these stories are visually exciting and engaging (something that's usually lacking from most NZ educational publications!), presenting Maori history in his own unique style, while maintaining a respect for the source material that elevates the quality of these books far beyond the educational market.

It's a real pity the Ministry of Education has no plans to release these books to the wider public, as they deserve to be seen (according to Chris they fear someone will make money from it...god forbid that happens!).

Chris' talk was a real eye-opener, a look at some of New Zealand's finest 'secret' comics and a great example of an artist's research methodology in action. For more of Chris' stunning educational comics, you can view samples over on Chris' website and there's also links to interactive versions of the stories too!

Dylan Horrocks was the next speaker, with a talk entitled: 'The 6 Things I Learned from Comics'.

It would be a disservice to briefly summarise this talk here, so I'll be covering it as a separate article. In his talk Dylan discusses some of the difficulties he's had in the past wrestling with his own artistic 'voice' and the pitfalls of working in the world of corporate comics. But the most thought provoking discussion of the night came from Dylan's thoughts on intellectual property and the copyright law reforms, one of the most fiercely debated issues in the arts world right now. Dylan now protects all his comics under a Creative Commons Licence, which allows the work to be freely shared and distributed as long as it is attributed to it's author and is not used for commercial purposes. For more from Dylan's fascinating talk, check back next week!

Day Two: Sunday 18th of October

Above: More sketches from Day Two from the sketchbook of Darren Sheehan. Again you can spot some of the guests..(I'm the big head at the bottom left with Bruce Willis' hairline). The High Seas co-founder Nigel Wright is to my right, looking out from over his laptop.

Above: In this second picture is a portrait of Jerome Bihan at the bottom right, 'Master of Ceremonies'.

The Sheehan Bros made a morning appearance on BFM's Sunday Breakfast Show (that you can listen to here) to help plug the event and talk about 'The Inhabitants', before things got under way again at The High Seas at 1pm.

After the previous day's introductions, Sunday was a more informal affair with more in-depth discussions and sharing of technical skills. Kelly and I learnt a great deal about web-comics and Wordpress from a conversation with Frank Gibson, an experienced authority on the subject (thanks Frank!). With Dylan's absence on the second day, I got in on the act exhibiting some of my 'graphic novel in progress' to interested viewers.

Above: Table Two, Day Two: From left: Darren and Kelly Sheehan talking to Mat Tait (not pictured) and myself and Richard witnessing a profound vision...(perhaps someone spiked our water?).

The hours seemed to pass more quickly on the second day, and before we knew (or expected) it, the Sunday art auction was upon us! Now if there was one miss-fire this weekend, this would have to be it. Perhaps it was poorly timed, but to be fair you never know when you're going to draw a crowd. As it turned out, our busiest time for visitors was right before the lectures on Saturday night. Sunday afternoon's turn out? Not so much...

Wine had wisely been distributed half an hour before hand to help loosen people's purse strings, but when you have a room full of (marginally) starving artists, it'll takes a bit more than that to get people effectively bidding on their own artwork.

This scene could very quickly have become an episode of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' if Jose Barbosa had not strolled in at that crucial moment to start a bidding war with Kelly Sheehan over a page of Mat Tait's artwork. Jose's bid prevailed, winning the artwork, while the rest of us managed to slowly but quietly bid the auction to rest. In a word...awkward.

With the auction out of the way, the second day came to a close with some friendly chatter as comics were packed away and emails and farewells exchanged.

Overall, 'Comics on K' was a great start to what I hope will be a continuing tradition.

It would be fair to say there's definitely room for improvement, as the punter turnout was much lower than I think anyone was expecting. But much like Zine Fest, these weekend events need time to grow and gain awareness in the community, and my hat is off to Jerome Bihan for assembling such a professional and well organised show in such a short time frame. If anything, the short window in which this show came together (to meet the decided weekend-before-Armageddon deadline) may have contributed to it's limited attendance. I have no doubt that if this event continues in the future, it will gain the following it deserves.

Personally, I considered the event to be a great success for one very important reason: it unified the Auckland comics community for the first time in recent memory, and that in itself is a significant achievement. Auckland can now join to ranks of Wellington and Christchurch as a unified, thriving comics community, with a new date on the calendar for cartoonists to look forward to and work towards.

I'm already looking forward to next year's event and the progress that will accompany it, as a new day for NZ comics dawns over Beresford Square.

-AK!

Comics on K: The Visual Report

Above: Some customers buying NZ comics. Cartoonists sitting behind the table from left to right: Marc Streeter, Becky & Frank and Brent Willis.

The inaugural 'Comics on K: NZ Comics Weekend' took place this past weekend, gathering some of NZ's finest local cartoonist at one location for a weekend of cartooning, spirited conversation, exchanging of ideas and occasional sales.

I'll have a write-up tomorrow when my strength returns (turns out sitting around talking comics all weekend takes a lot of energy!) but in the meantime, here's some photos from the weekend to enjoy!

Above: The Sheehan Bros (Darren and Kelly) selling copies of their completed comic series 'The Inhabitants'.

Above: The Sheehan Bros and Richard Fairgray creator of 'Falling Leaves' and 'Blastosaurus', keeping the customers satisfied.

Above: Kelly Sheehan and Jose Barbosa in conversation.

Above: Cartoonist Brent Willis, with a selection of his comics including the latest issue of the Wellington comics anthology he edits, 'Bristle'.

Above: Brent Willis talking with Steve Seville.

Above: The second table, which featured Marc Streeter creator of 'ActionMan Adam', Becky & Frank of 'Tiny Kitten Teeth', Mait Tait creator of 'Love Stories' and Brent Willis, editor of 'Bristle'.

Above: Marc Streeter and Becky and Frank.

Above: Becky putting brush-pen to paper.

Above: The second table from the other side (Brent breaks for lunch!).

Above: Later on Saturday afternoon Dylan Horrocks arrived with two issues of a new mini-comic series titled 'Pikelet'.

Above: Some of the original artworks to be auctioned off at the end of the weekend.

More on this event tomorrow!

-AK!