STRANGEWAYS, HERE I COME

As Rose City Comic Con approaches, Rob McMonigal over at Panel Patter is doing a round-up of books by the guests of the show. And he began with Archer Coe & the Thousand Natural Shocks.

What starts off as a fairly straightforward noir story with a man caught up in a set of crimes he didn't commit and a woman with looks that can kill quickly morphs and changes into a plot where reality is questioned at every turn of the page and even when it finishes we aren't 100% sure of the truth of the ending. The saying about making your bed and the having to lie in fits well here. Archer may seems like a stand up guy with a stand up act, but though not a magician, swallowing the reality of his situation is going to require magic.

Read the whole review here.

Rose City Comic Con is going to be September 20-21. Information is on their site.

I'll be at table G-13.

I'll also be hosting a panel on Saturday at 3 p.m. 

Back to the Gutters: Let's Talk Comics
Room: Panel Room 4
Time: 3:00PM - 3:50PM

From part of the team that brought you From the Gutters comes a new take on the comic book panel. Join comics writer and journalist Jamie S. Rich and Ryan McCluskey as they bring their unique unique wit and perspective to a live interview format. Along with their special guests, they'll discuss the intricacies of a life in comics, both in the studio and out.

- See more at: http://rosecitycomiccon.com/programming/#sthash.crLm0p12.dpuf

We're lining up guests now, with the first two being Nate Quarry and Leila Del Duca!

See you there. I'll have comics for sale, most likely just the most recent stuff. If you have a special request, particularly for my prose novels, drop me a line and we can set up my bringing them for you.

After that, it's Long Beach the next weekend!

Current Soundtrack: The Smiths, Strangeways Here We Come

WINDMILLS OF YOUR MIND

Archer Coe and the Thousand Natural Shocks has been out in book form for a week now, and response continues to be strong. Thanks to everyone who has tweeted at us or messaged to say they were reading and/or finished and liked it.

Given that it's new comics day, if you're heading into the store to pick up your books--perhaps United States of Murder Inc. #3 or the Rocket Girl trade paperback--then consider adding mine and Dan Christensen's comic to your pile. 

Don't take my word for it? Listen to these guys.

Forces of Geek gave the book a 7.5 out of 10. I'll take it!

Jamie S. Rich has penned an intriguing guessing game as each turn of the page made me crave the end game even more. There are several subplots that aren’t too heavy and fit in nicely with the overall theme of the story. Dan Christensen’s black and white artwork was simple and effective in illustrating this noir tale.

One, Two, Kapow at First Appearance Comics & Games gives us 4/5. Closing in the gap!

Otherwise the story is fantastic and will keep you guessing about Archer’s sanity until the end.  Christensen’s art is a perfect complement for the story as I loved his minimalistic pencils.  Keeping it black and white was a great choice for the noir feel of the story. I truly hope the creators have something else planned for Archer as he is a fantastic new character who you could see having many mire adventures.

We also get 4 out of 5 from the Itinerant Librarian.

This is a pretty good noir mystery. The story reveals layers and layers of depth; it may seem a bit convoluted as it can be a bit difficult to keep track of some of the events and flashbacks. Did such and such really happen? However, I think that is all part of the mystery, a way to leave the reader wondering a bit, maybe unsettle the reader a bit as Archer is unsettled in the story. The volume offers some nice and simple art in black and white.

And for those of you who like process, here's a treat. A reference photo I sent Dan for the nightclub scenes, a shot of Peter Lorre in The Black Angel I grabbed off the DVD.

Current Soundtrack: Lily Allen, "Bass Like Home" [free download details]; Lana Del Rey, "Born to Die"

TODAY WAS A FAIRY TALE

Archer Coe & the Thousand Natural Shocks is now on sale as printed comic!

And so is Madame Frankenstein #3. 

I have another interview discussing both books, and a bunch of my other stuff, over at Broken Frontier. Read my conversation with Tyler Chin-Tanner right here.

Newsarama also gave Archer Coe a pretty solid review of 8 out of 10.

Up and comer Dan Christensen was a perfect choice for a book like this. Right off the bat, you're going to notice Christensen's sophisticated simplistic style, shaded gloriously in grayscale for that extra touch of noir. His cartooning nature and storytelling abilities are the big win here. His linework being a cross between something like Andrew MacLean and Darwyn Cooke, his handling of busy club scenes and intimate moments gives the book it's noir/old school pulp feel that it deserves.

And then there is this piece on Madame Frankenstein #3 from Unleash the Fanboy.

Likewise, Backwards Compatible chimes in on Madame Frankenstein #3:

The way Jamie S. Rich is drawing in themes from science to class is an intriguing part of the series. It mirrors the complexity of Mary Shelley’s original work albeit in a shortened form. Thankfully for the modern storyteller a picture is able to tell a thousand words and he is supported in this fact by the art from Megan Levens. 

The art has the same level of depth and detail that we have seen in the previous issues. The expressive nature of the characters is put at the centre of most panels and helps make this story feel like the character study it really is. 

Madame Frankenstein is a story that deserves your attention; it is well crafted and has a human focus that other stories sometimes fail to deliver.

I am sure more reviews are to come. Both comics are also available on Comixology. Go here to my author's page. 

You can also get a multi-format DRM-free option for digital downloads of Madame Frankenstein directly from Image Comics.

Panels from Madame Frankenstein #3

Current Soundtrack: Broken Bells, After the Disco

WELL, PEOPLE WILL TALK

Just a kiss/shot/day away from the release of Archer Coe and the Thousand Natural Shocks.

Cameron Crump conducted a great interview with me while I was in New York, and he's posted it to Comic Attack. Check it out here.

Broken Frontier included the book as a Pick of the Week.

There is also a really nice new review up at the Coming Up Comics blog in case you needed some added convincing.

If you’re a fan of great storytelling and interesting characters, get this as soon as it comes out. You won’t be disappointed.

Otherwise, these men have some questions for you...

Current Soundtrack: Drowners, Drowners

THE GREAT PRETENDER

Archer Coe and the Thousand Natural Shocks got a great response at Special Edition: New York City. I'm told that July 2 is going to be the actual release date now, same day as Madame Frankenstein #3. So that will be a great day for me at the comic book store!

Dan Christensen and I talked about the book with Pipedream Comics. You can read the whole chat right here.

It was also cool to see they gave us a positive review when the online serialization started. 

With superb monochrome artwork from Dan Christensen which evokes both the weird and wonderful world of classic pulp but also the modern indie quirkiness of Mike Allred, Archer Coe is a really unique book that will evolve into something truly special over the course of it’s run (we’ve been lucky enough to check out the whole thing) so be sure to get involved at the very start as it’s one hell of a ride!

Speaking of good reviews, this very positive one comes from a noir skeptic who had his mind swayed by Archer's hypnotic powers.

All the ingredients of a stereotypical noir are here — the upstanding investigator, the chump husband who hires him, the seductive vamp at the center of the investigation — but none of them play out their roles in the expected way. As the mystery deepens, the story goes off the checklist completely, and Rich takes readers on something reminiscent of a Christopher Nolan film, or maybe even a Gilbert Hernandez comic.

I definitely may have been working something of a Gilbert Hernandez vibe, stuff like Grip and Sloth, sure. And I'm not going to lie, the original pitch contained the line, "a Coen Bros. script but directed by Christopher Nolan." So, kudos to you, sir!

The Outhousers also give us a pretty solid write-up:

Archer Coe and The Thousand Natural Shocks is a sharp, fresh take on the detective genre, blending murder mystery, pulp and honest-to-god psychics. Archer Coe himself is an interesting, gifted character, who seems to only be friends with cats, and I can’t wait to see where the next volume takes him and his cat friends. 

And I also like when librarians chime in, this one is Sharon the Librarian:

Archer Coe is a mystery and a mind bending tale. The artwork and story compliment each other perfectly, in a complicated web of coincidences and deliberate action. I liked that Coe is a character that is initially very confident in himself and his abilities, but comes to doubt himself in several ways. The deceptions within the story are deep, and I would hate to ruin the unfolding by giving any big spoilers. So I will leave it with saying that the main players are all masters of mind games, simply using different methods and lures. I am interested in seeing more of Coe, and hope to see more of him in the future. 

And one more, from SLUG Magazine:

Archer Coe is definitely a character deserving of his own series, and I will never tire of noir-style comic book storytelling. Jamie Rich has created a character and story worthy of television adaptation, but it remains absolutely intriguing on page.

Finally, you can also hear me chat a little bit, Publisher's Weekly stopped by my table at the Special Edition: New York show, and they included me in their podcast.

Current Soundtrack: The Style Council, The Sound of the Style Council

MAY THE EARTH OPEN HERE

We're rounding the corner into our climax on the digital "cliffhanger" version of Archer Coe & the Thousand Natural Shocks. Today chapter 10 went up, that means four more chapters, two more weeks, until the big finale.

If you haven't started yet, now would be a good time to start binge reading so you're right there for Archer to take a bow.

Here is the series page over at Comixology.

By the way, I got a copy of the printed book last week...

It's almost as big as my forehead!

You can't see the lovely spot varnish on the cover in the photo. Jason Storey at Oni Press did a really marvelous job putting it together. As did our editors, Jill Beaton and Robin Herrera.

We still have a few weeks for you guys to get your copies reserved with your comic book retailer so they can have it for you on release day. Since it's a trade and it's printed, Oni Press has done a generous run so the book will last, but even so, all those initial orders count. Here is that order form you can print out and take to them.

You have until May 26!

Current Soundtrack: The Anchoress, "What Goes Around" (feat. Paul Draper from Mansun)

MOVIE REVIEWS/ARCHER COE chap. 4/LIBERTY COMICS

After last week's bounty of movie releases, this week's major debuts were pretty lacklustre. I did review a few small things playing locally, however:

* A Cinema of Mutual Respect, a double-feature of international experimental cinema.

* A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness, a trippy existential exploration of the Scandinavian landscape and mindset.

* Winter in the Blood, a compelling indie drama about the Native American experience in the American midwest. 

WATCH IT AT HOME...

* Equus, a bold adaptation of the modern classic by director Sidney Lumet.

* Master of the House, a charming silent drama from Carl Th. Dreyer.

* Paradise: Hope, the final installment of the Austrian Paradise trilogy.

In comics today...

* The fourth chapter of Archer Coe and the Thousand Natural Shocks went online today. Our hero is really in the thick of it now!

* You can also download the complete Liberty collection, featuring all the annuals benefitting the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. That includes the year I edited and wrote for.

You really want to go to a comic book shop and get the hardcover, though. That's a lot of comics to have under one package. Here's the info from Image Comics.

Current Soundtrack: Misc. recent tracks on shuffl,e, including Conor Oberst, "Hundreds of Ways" and Foster the People, "Pseudologia Fantastica"

IN MY MIND'S EYE

The third chapter of Archer Coe & the Thousand Natural Shocks by myself and Dan Christensen has landed on Comixology. Scroll through the gallery below for a preview.

Download it or subscribe to the series here. Keep in mind, if you purchase the books through the website rather than the app, it's better for the publishers and creators, as the app requires Apple/iTunes to take a cut. I know the app is convenient, and use it myself a lot of the time, but whenever possible, consider going the more direct route. :)

The print version will be released by Oni Press on June 18.

Current Soundtrack: UNKLE, "God of Light (Original Game Soundtrack)" single

COMICS NEWS ROUND-UP

Lots of big things happening in my comic book world this week, so let's do one big post.

May 3 come see myself, Joëlle Jones, and Mike Norton at Zeus Comics in Dallas, TX, to celebrate Free Comic Book Day. If all goes well, I'll have advance copies of Madame Frankenstein #1.

Speaking of, here is another sneak peek of the book. Remember, orders are due to comic shops by this coming Monday, April 14. That's when Image Comics will set the print run. So far, the response has been phenomenal, for which Megan Levens and I both thank you, but please don't hesitate to let your favorite comic book shop know you're interested and encourage them to order heavy. The stronger the start, the better we have to build from.

Image has also added a series page to their website.

Power to the monster! Two panels from Madame Frankenstein #1.

Comixology has the first two chapters of Archer Coe & the Thousand Natural Shocks available as $0.99 downloads. We'll be updating their site with a new chapter every Tuesday and Thursday for the next six weeks, totalling 14 chapters in all, until the whole thing is online. The story was always intended to be serialized online, so reading it this way, you'll get the full cliffhanger effect. 

Subscribe to the whole series.

And don't forget you can order the print version from your local comics retailer.

Check out the Oni Press page for the book.

Digital chapter head for the Comixology version of Archer Coe & the Thousand Natural Shocks.

Dark Horse Presents #35 is on sale next Wednesday, featuring the final chapter of “Integer City.” This is the opening page. I wrote the story, Brent Schoonover created the line art, Jean-Francois Beaulieu colored it, and Crank! lettered it. It was a lot of fun to create, and the response seemed positive.

Check out more stories from the issue, as well as previews of other Dark Horse titles due next week over at Comics Bulletin. 

And e-mail dhp@darkhorse.com to let them know you want to see this story collected and continued. Mark it “okay to print” if you don’t mind being in their letters column.

Opening page from "Integer City" chapter 6, the big finale, coming in Dark Horse Presents #35, April 16.

Current Soundtrack: A playlist of Neptunes productions on Spotify