An earlier than usual linkblog this week, due to the impending federal holiday, but I’m sure that it will be another quiet one, sans any further updates to bankruptcy proceedings and/or the financial state of independent publishers, and … wait, one moment, please, I’m being handed a note. Ah. It simply reads “this week’s links, below.”
Swampy
— Andi Watson (@andicomics.bsky.social) 2025-06-23T13:10:02.897Z
This week’s news.
• Starting this week’s selection with news out of Turkey, as artists working at LeMan were arrested by authorities following allegations that the magazine had published a cartoon depicting the prophet Muhammad, which the publication’s editors has said was a deliberate misinterpretation of the cartoon in question — artist Zehra Ömeroglu was acquitted last week, of charges of obscenity, over a cartoon originally published in LeMan in 2020, after a court ruled that the work fell under the protection of the Intellectual and Artistic Works Act.
• Elsewhere, it was reported that California resident Mac Martin Anderson has been sentenced to 366 days in federal prison for tax fraud, after failing to report to the IRS proceeds totaling more than $1.2 million from the sales of signed Stan Lee memorabilia.
• As rulings on lawsuits against Artificial Intelligence companies begin to trickle in, Literary Hub last week published an open letter undersigned by a number of authors, calling on publishers in the U.S. “to make a pledge that they will never release books that were created by machines. To pledge that they will not replace their human staff with AI tools or degrade their positions into AI monitors.”
• In memoriam, remembering those the world of comics has lost, as news was shared this week of the passing of Jim Shooter, writer and former Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics, who has died at the age of 73 due to esophageal cancer — a selection of links to interviews with and writing about Shooter from TCJ can be found here.
Inks to final cover art for ‘Crash Course’, published by Street Noise 2020
— Woodrow Phoenix (@mrphoenix.bsky.social) 2025-07-02T13:56:43.631Z
This week’s reviews.
TCJ
• Tegan O’Neil reviews the echoing skill of José Luis García-López et al’s The 1982 DC Comics Style Guide — “If this book has a guiding ethos, it is just that: how everything was supposed to look. These collected illustrations were printed alongside color guides (themselves fascinating documents, invaluable for process junkies), and brief promotional blurbs, and sent to licensors across the spectrum. The people making shirts, toys, fast food tie-ins, and cartoons were all singing from the same hymnal after decades of catch-as-catch-can, imagery taken freely and without compensation for the artist.”
• Charles Hatfield reviews the complicated triumph of Craig Thompson’s Ginseng Roots — “As a feat of explanation and infographics-making, then, Ginseng Roots is staggering. Indeed, as a visualization of, among other things, war, suffering, and trauma, it is perhaps too beautiful. Along the way, though, it’s a king-sized awkwardness: a kinship memoir about undeniable bonds but also unresolvable ideological differences. Craig’s family story is marked by revelatory or embarrassing passages that are, well, cringe. I think Thompson knows they are cringe, and very much means to go there, but still. I found myself quailing at times.”
• Joe McCulloch reviews the thematic flow of Hanawa Kazuichi's Red Night, translated by Ryan Holmberg - “I think it would be a big mistake to say that Hanawa's work is feminist, because while the wicked women of these stories are rarely punished — the only real instance of this occurs in a story for a bondage magazine, where it feels like a genre requirement — they are regarded not with warmth or empathy so much as a terrified admiration, and they are not admired for their capacity to improve society, but in the way one admires a lightning strike.”
AIPT
• David Brooke reviews the disturbing unease of Christian Ward, Tristan Jones, et al’s Event Horizon: Dark Descent #1; and the impactful details of Patrick Kindlon, Maurizio Rosenzweig, et al’s Gehenna Naked Aggression #1.
• Collier Jennings reviews the compelling expansions of Ethan S. Parker, Griffin Sheridan, Pablo Tunica, et al’s Godzilla: Escape the Deadzone #1; and the epic action of Jason Aaron, Aaron Kuder, et al’s Godzilla vs. Thor #1.
• Jonathan Waugh reviews the breezy fun of Leah Williams, Haining, et al’s Gotham City Sirens: Unfit For Orbit #1.
• Christopher Franey reviews the unexpected twists of Saladin Ahmed, Jose Luis, Carlos Nieto, et al’s Daredevil #23.
• Crooker reviews the compelling reveal of Tate Brombal, Takeshi Miyazawa, et al's Batgirl #9.
The Arts STL
Sarah Boslaugh reviews the fierce characters of Chloé Wary’s Season of the Roses, translated by Jenna Allen.
The Beat
• Michael VanCalbergh reviews the escapist joys of Dora Grents’ Done With Demons.
• Hayame Kawachi reviews the strange sweetness of Akira Kanou’s Outsiders, Volume 1.
• Tim Rooney reviews the dulled impact of Al Ewing, Jan Bazaldua, Justin Greenwood, and Pasqual Ferry, et al's Immortal Thor #25.
• Diego Higuera reviews the building promise of Tate Brombal, Takeshi Miyazawa, et al's Batgirl #9.
• Jordan Jennings reviews the snappy conclusion of Van Jensen, Kelsey Ramsay, et al’s Godzilla: Heist #5.
• Clyde Hall reviews the expert frights of Maytal Zchut, Leila Leiz, et al’s Sisterhood: A Hyde Street Story #1; and the opening bullseye of Patrick Kindlon, Maurizio Rosenzweig, et al’s Gehenna Naked Aggression #1.
Broken Frontier
• Lindsay Pereira reviews the bold debut of Katie Fricas' Checked Out.
• Andy Oliver has reviews of:
• The compassionate examinations of Andrew Wheeler and Rye Hickman’s Hey, Mary!.
• The delightful characters of Jem Milton’s Hungry Heart.
• The fascinating history of Grace Ellis and Hannah Templer’s Flung Out of Space: Inspired by the Indecent Adventures of Patricia Highsmith.
• The succinct vignettes of Natalie d’Arbeloff’s Hindsight.
• The outstanding visuals of Yu-Ching Chiu's The Wall and the Uncharted Land.
Cartoonist Cooperative
Sean Sweazy reviews the strong characterisation of Kody Okamoto’s Keeping Time, the compelling layers of Aaron Losty’s Blaze Beyond the Pale, and the beautiful interweaving of Pa-Luis’ Bibi.
Comics Grinder
Henry Chamberlain reviews the stylish authenticity of Elaine M. Will's The Last Band on Earth.
House to Astonish
Paul O’Brien has capsule reviews of Marvel Comics’ Astonishing X-Men Infinity Comic #26, Uncanny X-Men #16, Spider-Man & Wolverine #2, Wolverine & Kitty Pryde #3, and Giant-Size Age of Apocalypse #1.
Solrad
Hagai Palevsky reviews the missed connections of Dan Nadel’s Crumb: A Cartoonist’s Life.
Yatta-tachi
AJ Mack reviews the running metaphor of Isaki Uta’s Silkscreen, translated by Itsuki; and the impressive intersectionality of Kazuki Minamoto’s The Gay Who Turned Kaiju, translated by Leighann Harvey.
Tank + Jet Girl drawing
— Francesca Magali (@franmagali.com) 2025-05-20T15:30:56.961Z
This week’s interviews.
TCJ
Colin Blanchette interviews Jon Allen about The Well, publisher dealings, sticking to a loose approach to story planning, and conditions of freedom - “I really like institutions, the feeling of being inside a place, a structured, ordered place, and exploring within that. I loved the idea of putting this character in this big, sort of mysterious institutional space, and weaving through it and opening doors, and just discovering secrets. I felt like personally, I wanted to stay there for a long time. I just wanted to stay inside of this book for a long time. I also wanted to make it entertaining enough that somebody else would hopefully want to stay there for a while, too. I forget what the question was.”
2000 AD
A talk with Adam Stone, the most recent winner of 2000 AD's talent search at Thought Bubble, about working with the Galaxy's Greatest Comic, and entry points to Judge Dredd.
AIPT
Chris Coplan speaks with Si Spurrier and Vanesa R. Del Rey about The Voice Said Kill and capturing the energy of a scene, and with Michael Moreci about Roche Limit and the importance of the book in terms of career progressions.
Autobiographix
Amaris Ketcham talks to Tom Humberstone about Introduction to Charts, relative strengths of nonfiction and poetry comics, and this weekend’s Glasgow Zine Fair.
Fanbase Press
Barbra Dillong speaks with Shannon Eric Denton and Tom Mandrake about Monster Born and the classic monster vibes of the story, and with Jake Mastar and Drawsmile about Demon Rush and collaborative processes.
ICv2
Rob Salkowitz talks to Fantagraphics’ Eric Reynolds about the publisher’s ongoing issues with Diamond Comic Distributors, in the wake of the latter’s bankruptcy and failure to pay for inventory currently held, while also deciding to liquidate stock to clear debts to Chase Bank.
Mindless Ones
Illogical Volume interviews Tom Humberstone about Suzanne: The Jazz Age Goddess of Tennis, different approaches to colour work, and the charms of cyberpunk physicality.
Publisher’s Weekly
Amanda Ramirez speaks with Whitney Gardner about Free Piano (Not Haunted), the allure of the supernatural, and the importance of honing your craft.
Richmond Review/Sunset Beacon
Linda Badger presents conversation from a recent Q&A at the Richmond Branch of the San Francisco Public Library with Eddie Ahn about Advocate: A Graphic Memoir of Family, Community, and the Fight for Environmental Justice and the familial inspiration for the book.
Smash Pages
JK Parkin interviews Mike Curato and K. Wroten about Gaysians and Everyone Sux But You, the importance of queer communities, and inspirations (or, lack thereof) from across other mediums.
SUMMER CAMP IS HERE!!!
Kick things off with us by participating in our Co-op Art Fight Raids that start today! Check out the members hub events calendar for details and to see all our Summer Camp events in your local time zone!
— Cartoonist Cooperative (@cartoonist.coop) 2025-07-01T12:31:03.722Z
This week’s features and longreads.
• Here at TCJ, Zach Rabiroff and Tate McFadden report on the financial status quo of Silver Sprocket, investigating the publisher and retailer’s business and employment practices, and the growing debts of owner Avi Ehrlich — “So as 2024 ticked toward its final months, word began to reach staff that things were getting worse. At the all-hands meeting, Ehrlich had indicated that the debt stood at around $100,000. Now, higher numbers began to circulate, sometimes as high as double that amount or more. And, as it turned out, this was only half of Ehrlich’s troubles.”
• Also for TCJ, Christina Lee writes on the place of Wimmen’s Comix and Tits & Clits in the history of the Underground Comix movement, and highlights some of the artists to be found therein — “Sex was a polarizing topic during second-wave feminism, and a divide emerged on attitudes towards pornography: many feminists believed pornography was inherently exploitative of women, and dismissed Tits & Clits as being too obscene. Despite the challenges Chevli and Farmer encountered in its production, Tits & Clits made an impact through its unprecedented artistry: its tone was much darker and grotesque than Wimmen’s, featuring a subversively honest depiction of female sexuality in comics for perhaps the first time ever.”
• For The New Yorker, ahead of the publication of a new English-language translation of the comic strip Mafalda, Daniel Alarcón profiles cartoonist Quino (aka Joaquín Salvador Lavado Tejón), and charts the history of the strip.
• As Michel Fiffe’s Copra fades into the explosive afterglow of a series finale, Josh Lambert has made the Coconut Meat Skull fanzine pay-what-you-want to read, featuring articles from a murderers’ row of TCJ contributors, amongst others.
• For The Beat, Johanna Draper Carlson reports from last month’s Chicago Alternative Comics Expo, braving the heat to sample some of the minicomics wares on display.
• The Mindless Ones’ missives continue, and this week questions are screamed in the direction of Ennis and Dillon’s Preacher, the Delinquent Elementals anthology, and the animated adaptation of Watership Down.
• From the world of open-access academia, in Transformação, Mujun Tang responds to a recent article on the work of He Youzhi with comments on Youzhi’s methodology and the evolutionary history of comic strips in China.
• In Hispanófila, Ana Almeyda-Cohen writes on the censorship of popular presses in Mexico in the mid-twentieth century, and the way in which writers and comics makers utilised the archetype of celestina to subvert attempted governmental disruption of commentary on sex work and witchcraft.
• For Mañé, Ferrer & Swartz, José Carmelo Carrasco Santos writes on the work of Gilbert Shelton as a prime example of the underground comix explosion, and examines Shelton and the wider comix community’s push against the established counterculture grain and societal issues of the time.
• Paul O’Brien’s survey of the villains of Daredevil continues, for House to Astonish, as Mr. Hyle makes a first and last appearance before a certain Frank Miller decides to shake up proceedings.
• Mike Peterson rounds up the week’s editorial beat, over at The Daily Cartoonist, as billionaire weddings, billionaire misinformation, and billionaire tax cuts were the privilege of the hyper-wealthy.
On this day 19 years ago, @kcg.bsky.social published a webcomic that featured the Dick Butt illustration.
— Know Your Meme (@knowyourmeme.com) 2025-07-02T14:20:26.120Z
No more links, time to sit in solemn contemplation of whether freedom is truly free.
The post Hot Dog and a Shake — This Week’s Links appeared first on The Comics Journal.
Hello, my name is Jack Sparrow. I'm a 50 year old self-employed Pirate from the Caribbean.
No comments:
Post a Comment