Nova Phase

This weekend I was sent an advanced preview of the first two issue of Slave Labor’s comic Nova Phase.  I hadn’t heard anything about the book before I opened my email, so I didn't know what to expect.  Any book that lists Cowboy Bebop, The Rifleman, and Snatcher as influences immediately has my attention.  When I opened the files and started reading I wondered why this didn't exist earlier.  Nova Phase is a lot of fun. 

This isn’t a comic book, this is an extended cutscene from an early 90's video game and I mean that in the very best way possible.  Written by Matthew Ritter with art  by Adam Elbatimy Nova Phase mixes a space western story with retro video game style art.  It stars a bounty hunter who trusts too easily.  She gets involved with a rag tag group of adventures who are on the run from an evil army.  I've only read the first two issues but I’m hooked on the series.  If you grew up playing those early video games the style is going to hit you right in the nostalgia.  It’s too early for me to say how deep the story is going to get, but it has that madcap rollercoaster of action feel to it.  I called it fun earlier and I meant it.

The first two issues will be available on January 15^th through Comixology.  If you prefer the feel of paper between your fingertips the first two issues will be collected into one issue and will be on sale in February through the SLG website and Amazon.  The rest of the issues will be continue to be released first on Comixology and then collected into print.  

I Needs My Comics, Man!

I have talked about digital comics a few times before. Both of those posts were from a "theory" point of view. I had yet to get a tablet and was just going on conjecture. Well that time has passed, and I think I might be addicted.

I picked up a IPad on the cheap recently and one of the first apps I downloaded was Comixology. Let me tell you, it has gotten much more robust then the last time I talked about it in 2011. Now most if not all comics from the major 2 and most of the myriad of other publishers are day and date with the physical release. So I browse through the new releases and many (many, many, many) back issues avalible. I settled on a book I have been meaning to pick up for a while, but could not find the first issue as it was sold out. Not in the electroic form however. With that I bought issue #1 of the new(er) Hawkeye series by Matt Fraction and David Aja.

Let me tell ya, that is a damn good book. But that is for another day. So I enjoyed the experience of reading a digital comic. You can read it "traditional" style - meaning you see the entire page or you can put it in more of a "cinematic" mode. That is the way I would recomend reading in this form. With this mode you tap the screen and it zooms into the panel and when you tap again it goes on to the next bit. It is pretty cool and allows you to be awed by that splash page or villain reveal.

So after reading and enjoying Hawkeye #1, I grabbed #2 and #3 and so on. Also I had just picked up my physical books from the local shop, and amongst those was the Thunderbolts, by  Daniel Way and Steve Dillon, which features the new Venom.

Well I am not super familiar with this Venom, so out comes Comicxology again. The first trade of Venom is there huh? Bought. Look at that...there is a sale on the entire run of Avengers Vs. X-men I was vaguely interested in that story. Bought. You see where this is going. It is almost too easy. Therein lies the rub. With just a quick tap of a screen you can have sweet, sweet Comic injections. I have had to dial it back and not just grab stuff that had a passing interest to me.



On a side note: you can expect a Monday post about every two weeks. When I can do a weekly post I will, but don't expect it all the time. It is only for special occasions like your birthday or our anniversary.

Prisoner of the Mind

You know that idea you in the back of your mind. Maybe it’s that perfect play, book, or song. The one you think about in the middle of the night when you can’t sleep. The one you promise yourself that you are going to write one day. Allan Linder is making good on that promise. He is releasing a graphic novel that he’s been working on for sixteen years. Something like that should always be celebrated.

The story is called Prisoner of the Mind and starting October first you can check out the first issue completely free. Prisoner of the Mind is described as “a neo-noir thriller set in the near future.” The story centers around a government agent on the run from his own agency after he finds out a secret so important that the agency is willing to kill him to keep him quiet.

Are you intrigued? Do you need to see more? Check on Prisoner of the Mind’s website here and remember the first issue will be up Monday.

A Comic Interlude

I hope everyone is enjoying the special "Ken's got a new kid" series of movie posts. I interrupt that for a regularly scheduled post. See last week I promised a post about comics, and I may be many things but I aint no liar. 

For the last 2 years I have been living in the literal middle of nowhere. As such there is not a comic book store within a hundred miles of the place. As a result of that I have not been picking up the books I read on a regular basis. I feel that a major part of reading comics is discussing comics, and as much as the stereotype of the loner comic nerd is prevalent it really does boil down to a social hobby. What fun is it knowing obscure facts about your favorite heroes if you can't show off that knowledge. Yes there are a multitude of web sites and forums to do just that, but my personal proclivity is to talk to people in person. This is why comic stores are important for nerds as a place to chill out and talk to like minded folks. I hope that ye ol' comic shoppes stick around for a long time to come.

That brings us to digital comics. I have discussed them before and for the most part my feelings still apply. I would still never read comics on a MP3 player or phone. Of course with the lack of a brick and mortar shop I am considering digital books just to keep up with the fictional worlds that I love so. I also think that Marvel hit the mark with the Avengers Vs. X-men when it comes to the digital world. Basically when you picked up a physical copy of issue one, they included a code to get digital bonus features. Much like DVD commentary it had writers notes and behind the scenes info. Also you got a short bonus comic that was only available in that format that tied into the story. That is how it should be done. With digital you should get extras that add to the experience and give you more things to discuss while checking out back issues at the comic store of your choice. And no that it not a euphemism.

What do ya think? Do you enjoy comic stores or does the internet give you all the social interaction you need when it comes to nerding out over comics? Let Your F'ing Voice Be Heard in the comments, our Facebook, or hit the Contact Us button. 

I now return you to your special post series...

Digital Comics

So now that we are officially in the WORLD OF TOMORROW!!! I thought I would talk about something that really started to come to prominence in the last year or so, Digital Comics.



Those few that are unfamiliar with the concept, digital comics are basically an image file of a comic you can download for your tablet computer (also know as an IPad), mp3 player (IPod Touch), ect. (illegal download). The most popular (legal) way to do this is with an app know as comixology.With this app you can find Marvel, DC, and other publishers books. Not all the issues that come out on Wednesdays are found here, and that is one of the issues facing digital distribution. Only select titles are available day and date of release. This is my first point of contention for the digital medium. What is the point if you still have to physically get most of your books? How is that convenient? On top of that most of the digital versions are the same price as the real book, personally I would much rather have the actual book if I am paying $2.99 and up for an issue any damn way.

Another problem I have with this is the fact that, in theory, you would soon not even have to make the trip to the local comic shop. Now I know that in most comic joints around the world there are those in which you don't want to talk to (or smell)

But the other side of that coin is that you now get even less interaction with humans. I have met some really cool folks while I was walking the shelves of comic shops. Plus they have the same general interest as you, which makes meeting a potential drinkin' buddy that much easier.

I also enjoy collecting comics, and I have lots of them. I understand storage problems when it comes to comics. Longboxes never really look good sitting around and they do begin to yellow at some point. That said, I don't think I could ever just read digital comics. I like the tactile feel of a comic or graphic novel, and I love when you turn the page and get slammed with a gorgeous splash page. How do those work on an IPad?

That brings up the price point for a device to read digital comics.
That sucker starts at like $500.00. That is really expensive for a reader. If you are doing other things of course it may be worth it to ya. I however have an IPod Touch now, and it does everything I would use this thing for. Except read comics. There is no way in hell that I would even attempt to read a comic on an IPod.

Now even though I own and love my Kindle, I still buy physical books. If I like a book I read on my Kindle I tend to buy a "real" copy of said book. So I can imagine I would tend to do the same if I ever started reading digital comics. The difference being that books on the Kindle tend to be cheaper than the hard copy, not so with the majority of comics.

So let us know what you think about Digital Comics in the comments and welcome to 2011!