Messages

Misty special all written by Gail Simone sounds like a win to me! No preorder yet.

Oh wow didn't realise Gail Simone was involved. That's quite the catch!

Happy to see Aly Fell has done some art for this. It's beautiful work.

Yep he's a real talent.

Well the Ed Piskor situation took a terrible turn as it would seem that he has taken his own life as a result of the revalations of his behaviour and reactions to it.

Its horrible that he was unable to deal with all this and my thoughts are with his family and friends.

While this is a truly sad set of events at some point we need to reflect on the need to ensure woman still feel able to call out inappropriate behaviour towards them.

Then all back to the normal schedule week of Monday 15th April.

Honestly, I had no idea there was a schedule.

Ha! Fair play. I try to post ever Monday and Thursday. I sometimes post extra days for a 'Not on the list' so they run straight after the relevent post I've 'linked' that one too.

Bit of housekeeping.

I'll not be posting today as a Bank Holiday and super quiet so giving it a short break. Will post as normal Thursday.

Then next week I'm on my jollys for a week and away. I do have my stockpile so might post, but I'm going with expect nothing during week of 8th April, but I might post who knows.

Then all back to the normal schedule week of Monday 15th April.

Good to see Rugg has publicly distanced himself from Ed so if he comes out with his own video content I'll give it a look.

I really like For the love of comics which you put me onto too. And I've been finding his taste matching more with me anyway.
Near mint condition and Strange Brain parts are great too.

Yeah I have a few Jim Rugg comics and was much more likely to buy his stuff. I do have Hip Hop Family Tree by Piskor and its an interesting read. This style of straight reportage worked much better there than on Grand Designs which I didn't enjoy at all and had no interest in Red Room. So ho hum.

For the Love of Comics is superb and the channel I interacted with most. I hope it comes back to a regular schedule but have switched my too watch list from Cartoonist Kaybade to some FtLoCs stuff I've been meaning to catch up on (having already exhausted past Strange Brain Parts stuff).

Oh almost, almost...

[Landscape with Invisible Hand]

Landscape with Invisible Hand

Bloomin' heck that was an interesting film and almost, almost a very good one.

Basically in a near future world alien have come to Earth and conquerored not through villian but economics. They have sold their technology to the richest and used that to gain almost complete control of society while allowing the appearance of freedom.

Having a very different makeup the aliens are a fascination with humans 'primative', emotional ways, particularly romantic love. So one way humans can make money is to with headnode type things to broadcast their relationships a hungry audience for pretty decent money.

A couple who have just met do this. But as their relationship sours get called out and sued by the aliens for dishonestly in their broadcasts. Indebt the mother of one of the kids comes up with an innovative solution... yes it is as involved as it sounds and has real potential that almost gets realised. Oh one of the young couple is a very talent artist who realises you shouldn't compromise your art for money...

... it rattles along, is entirely charming, often funny, often quite emotional but alas bounces around and never lets anything really settle and developed. Its rife for satire and hits things pretty well at times, but has too many ideas so none are fully seen through and it doesn't quite gell.

I'd still recommend it as its not like anything else I've seen. Is full of interesting ideas and presents itself really well. Its one of the best failures I've seen!

So I'll tuck this quietly away here as its something I'd like to talk about but don't want to bog down the forum with my opinions ... well outside of here where, ya know, its kinda focused on them!

So on a number of occasions here I've linked to Cartoonist Kayfabe which is (was) one of the best YouTube channels for commentry on comics. It was insightful, so wonderfully nerdy and the hosts Ed Piskor and Jim Rugg liked great comics and more often than not had a focus outside the mainstream.

Its transpired however that Piskor was a sex pest, or at the very least acting entirely inappropriately in his communication with younger aspiring creators using his prominent position. Several women have come forward with clear evidence of this and if you want details its not hard to find them with a quick search.

First and formost I'm sorry these woman have had to suffer the unwanted and inappropriate attention from an older male in a position of relative power. It seems rife in the industry and while its good that folks are now getting called on it its so sad that they have to and numerous women have been subjected to this type of behaviour.

So that said I will no longer be adding links to Cartoonist Kayfabe and the posts I've written if they do link to it I will be editing to remove those links. If anyone is looking back and decides to follow any of the links there do so knowing the above as I can't edit the older posts.

To be clear there is no accusation that Ed Piskor has done anything illegal. Jim Rugg his partner on Kayfabe has no accusations against him, or is there any suggestion he know of Piskor's behaviour. He has today posted that he will no longer have a professional relationship with Piskor.

I'm choosing to no longer watch Cartoonist Kayfabe's output. I might in time watch some of their existing content, who knows. We don't know if the channel will continue. You may well of course have a completely different view of how to engage with the channel. Or not care either way!

I think I bought RASL during my digital days, which is a shame as I believe Jeff's work always works best in B&W. Actually, I think I once bought my brother the complete edition in HC. It may still be sitting there in my parents house (likely unread).

Get it read its really good!

He worked with Michael Fleisher on plotting some ideas during this time at 2000ad. It was a pretty interesting read, but fair to say his involvement was fairly minimal.

[Number 92 - Rasl]

Number 92 - Rasl

Keywords: Bone, Tesla, Sci-fi, Grim and Gritty, Needs a re-read (in colour)

Creators:
Writer - Jeff Smith
Art - Jeff Smith
Colours - Its black and white baby... except when its not (see below)

Publisher: Cartoon Books

No. issues: 15
Date of Publication: 2008-2012

Last read: 2016

If Jeff Smith (of Bone fame) had a meaner, harder cousin, born down and dirty on the wrong side of the tracks he'd have produced


Copyright - Jeff Smith

Luckily for us Jeff Smith didn't need a cousin to produce this as he did it himself... but I had to start this entry somehow and for whatever reason I liked that start... anyway...

RASL is Jeff Smith 'other' major work. For those of you who don't know Jeff Smith is best known for the simply magnificent all ages fantasy comic Bone, which I don't think I'll be giving too much away by saying it will be featured later on this list. I did wonder if it was possible to write this entry without reference to Bone, but then realised it was hard to do so. Not simply as Jeff Smith is so defined in many ways by Bone, but also I think my feelings for this are so defined by Bone.

Bone was also in Jeff Smith's thoughts as he created this story. After working on Bone for over 15 years he wanted his next work to be something very different. To stretch himself and his audience's perception of who he could be as a creator. In that single aspect alone RASL is a complete success. This feels so removed from Bone, it is very different... and yet... well I'll come back to that.

RASL follows the adventures of Dr Robert Joseph Johnson - who uses the pseudonym RASL of the title. He hops between dimensions, a process he calls drifting, to steal art using technology he created based on the theories of Nikola Tesla. His actions have a cost both physically, each time he drifts between dimensions there is a physical toll, and spiritually, he's on a journey to accept who he is and come to terms with his actions. Oh and he's chased by government agents set on stealing his technology and beating the snot out of him and ghosts of his past who he allows to beat the emotional snot out of him.


Copyright - Jeff Smith

There is a certain amount of discussion online as to whether this is a noir fiction in its truest sense, or a sci-fi noir, or a...whatever... me I think it has the tone and hot dusty taste of films like Red Rock West and Bad Day at Black Rock, they might not be considered noir, but, well frankly,  who cares. It's not Bone, it is what it is, it's Jeff Smith proving he can do more than Bone. For some he lent too hard into this, went for it too obviously. It involves swearing and hard fighting, smoking and sex. It's so obviously pushing against Bone it can feel a little forced. For me it really worked to see an art style so comfortable and familiar pushed in different directions. To see a creator so adept as Jeff Smith break out the shell of his reputation and greatest work and simply go for it is a real buzz.

I don't think people went in expecting or hoping for Bone, at least not in the reflections I've read, I'm sure some did. I find it hard to believe folks bought this to pop on their children's bookshelves next to their Scholastic copies of Bone. If they did they really were in for a shock and would have inevitably been disappointed. In some respects it can feel a little shallower than Bone, even when it's reaching for more adult themes. Some readers comment on the fact that the characters are not as rich and developed. And they're not, let's be clear. After all this is a much tighter and leaner story. Its 15 issues not 55 issues there isn't the space to do all that's in Smith's opus.

What there is, is more than that though. In RASL the characters are shaped differently as this is a different story. The characters here, to some degree, are designed to serve the story. Whereas in Bone the characters drive and shape the story. That's not to say they are bad characters, far from it. I find them fleshed out and believable, at least in the context of the type of story this is, Red Rock West and Bad Day at Black Rock as suggested above (if you've not seen those movies feel free to stop right here and come back when you have they are well worth watching. I'll be here, I'll wait.). These are broken, beaten down gritty characters. Whose lives have hammered them and driven them into all sorts of darker places. They aren't as rounded and complete maybe, but they don't need to be, they fit perfectly into this world and this story.


Copyright - Jeff Smith

That said RASL is a Jeff Smith story and for all the gun smoke and prostitutes it falls into themes that can be found in Bone. While it clearly pushes against what Bone was, it's also really easy to see common ground between these two apparently very different tales. Both deal with spirituality and the mythic, while routing that in empirical, tangible worlds. They might do this in different ways but it's definitely common to both.

RASL in many ways reads like a stripped down, raw, punch drunk Bone. While Bone curesses you, charms you and holds your hand as it takes you through its mysteries and intrigue, RASL dances around and energies you. It shoves and bundles you along, ties you up and throws you into the truck of its car as it speeds you long. It's less interested in taking you step by step through its world and rather delights in asking you questions, showing you the mystery and allowing you to answer its puzzles as best you can. It's almost as engaging (almost being relative to Bone so come on that's not damning with faint praise!) but it embroils you in its world in very different, much rougher ways.

Again this feels like a very deliberate choice. A deliberate step to move away from the all ages wonder of Bone, it instead kicks you into an adult world. It trusts you to answer things as best you can and in that way it could even be said to surpass Bone.


Copyright - Jeff Smith

It's also an ode to Nikola Tesla (keep having to delete the 'i' I inevitably type at the end of Nikola, says so much about me and my comics!). Robert Johnson - the rename of RASL don't forget - tracks down the diary of Tesla and through those and investigates the physics behind interdimensional travel, wraps you into the history of Tesla and his struggles. Smith had been reading a lot about M-Theory and String theory going into this story and it permeates the whole series.

As I've reminded you however RASL's real name is Robert Johnson surely no coincidence. The blues guitarist Robert Johnson's legend has it he sold his soul to the devil to gain skills and prominence in the 'real' world. This is a prime example of Smith mixing mysticism and in this case science. One question the series asks is what is the price of RASL's journey for financial gain, stealing great art, to his spiritual self?

The deep dives into Tesla are interesting diversions. They add context and open up themes for the reader. They don't deflect from the main thrust of the story, are never dull and feel additive. In less skilled hands that might not have been the case. In RASL though they are wrapped into the ongoing story with skills and guile and used really effectively.


Copyright - Jeff Smith

It's astonishing to think I've gone on this much already about Jeff Smith comics and not waxed lyrical about the art. It is of course absolutely astonishing. Jeff Smith, simply put, is an absolute master of his craft. RASL though has gone on an interesting artistic journey as well as a metaphysical one. I read these comics in the black and white originals. Just as with Bone however Jeff Smith had chosen to have them coloured by Steve Hamaker, who also coloured Bone I believe. These coloured editions seem to be the ones most readily available now and I find that interesting and a little frustrating.

I should be clear I do now have a colour edition but I'm yet to read it, though from flicking through it seems like a very effective, sympathetic job. I'm just a little curious as to why Smith chose to go this route. I understand just with Bone it opens up new markets and might be a necessity from a financial sense. Here however I get a real sense it's counter productive.

Jeff Smith's art simply sings in black and white. His use of spot blacks and negative space are almost without peer. His use of clear, smooth, lines beautifully juxtaposed with black spaces hinting at a darker more real world. His use of black and white makes his world's feel so solid. People and objects feel entirely connected with the world they operate in. In RASL in particular the use of black and white seems to benefit the story immensely. As said RASL toys with being noir. This in part is defined by the way Jeff Smith lights the comic. It reads so noir as it is drawn so noir. The world is cast in shadow. Light only intrudes into these darken corners to illuminate and fall across characters, it doesn't dominate... well okay except when Johnson stumbles across dusty deserts. But then it's too emphasise how a world cast in light is harsh and difficult.

I worry that when I do read this in colour it will feel lesser for that colour. The colour will strip away much of the atmosphere and tone of my original experience. As said it looks like a good colour job so it's not about any lack of craft, rather it's about adding something that is not only unnecessary but possibly detrimental. Fair to say I need to read it before making a definite judgement on this. The story and especially the art will be more than strong enough to survive this addition, it just feels like a curious choice. Mind it's also fair to say I'm from a country and generation brought up on largely black and white comics so my perspective will not be that of most readers of this title.

Whether in colour or the more stark black and white this being a comic by Jeff Smith it's a delight to look at. His storytelling is exemplary, his character acting first class, he designs comfortable or ugly and jarring just as required.


Copyright - Jeff Smith

If you have read Bone go into RASL expecting to find something pointedly different. Yet don't be afraid to compare the two and find similarity and common ground. If you haven't, well RASL is a hard and punchy metaphysical action adventure that will pull you into the many worlds of Jeff Smith efficiently and open up all the wondrous journeys he can take you on.

Where to find it

If you want this in colour there are a couple of options. There are three handy trades collecting the whole thing. There is also an all in one hardcover but for whatever reason that sees to go for silly prices at the moment - not quite sure why. I think I've seen this on bookshop and comic shop shelves at a perfectly reasonable price.

The black and white versions seem a little harder to get hold of new, but the aftermarket seems relatively healthy for the original series and with a bit of patience I think you'll get the whole thing at a good price.

Digitally it all seems to be there from a quick look.

If you fancy supporting Jeff Smith directly Boneville the home of all things Jeff Smith has it all in colour at very reasonable prices, if you are in the US, or are happy to stump up for shipping to the UK or elsewhere.

If you feel fancy why not wait for Jeff Smith to run another Kickstarter. They aren't the best run and you need to be patient but I got a lovely hardcover as part of a recent(ish) one. They can be added as an extra and that softens the cost of postage quite a lot and is the main reason I'll be getting to a re-read at some point soonish. Also the Kickstarters are full of Jeff Smith goodness.
 I'm sure I'll post when the next one is up (still waiting on the last one mind!).
 
Learn more

Obligatory Wikipedia page

I have to be honest I thought there'd be more about this round and about the internet, but not so much. ZombieJohnny has an interesting take on a YouTube video.

Good OK Bad has a good review worth a read.

Other than that it's some of the normal review places really Good Reads has its normal mix of things. Have a potter around and you'll find bits and pieces, but not as much as I'd have thought fair to say.

What is all this?

Conscious that this is becoming a long thread and if you're wondering what the heck you've just read and can't be arsed (quite sensibly) to search back to find out I'll link to my opening posts that try to explain all this.

What this all came from

And of course a nerd won't do a list like this without setting 'Rules' / guidelines

Some thoughts on what will not be on the list.

Well there is clearly no way I can sensibly salute individual acts of genius here. So much great stuff - keep it up folks.

That all sounds terrible and hope he and his family are coping as well as can be hoped.

Let's see how things are when the issue lands at Taylor Towers.

Amazon Prime

Hippolyta, one time Amazon Queen and daughter of Ares and now Sceneshifter for IP, is stranded in an alternate reality Brazil where she must deliver mysterious parcels in the jungle to stop the collapse of reality.

BRILLIANT!

On that point, aside from The Hunger Dogs, there's another "ending" Kirby did for The New Gods buried in the last few issues of Captain Victory (I think #10-#12 are the ones to grab) where it's revealed that the lead has family ties to some thinly disguised versions of the New Gods.

It's not exactly the epic wrap up the series deserved but it does provide a touch of Kirby greatness, and if you're a fan the issues are well worth getting

Captain Victory is one of the few latter Kirby works I don't own so didn't know this. That's interesting and I guess I'm going to have to check this out now!

See, this is a series (which I've only read very small bits of) that is my main evidence for the fact that Stan Lee defintely DID bring something to the table in his early Marvel days. I just find Kirby's dialogue a chore to read, it gets in the way of some fantastically weird and colourful ideas, and that puts me off trying to read the whole Fourth World thing. But there's no denying the staggering heights of his imagiantion, both in terms of plots and character but of course his art, too.

I can agree that the New Gods is better comics than e.g. Fantastic Four or Thor, but I'd reach for those books more quickly for a fun time.

Oh that's interesting. For me while it has the same bombast as Stan's - which I do find a chore to read - I think in context it really works. Another example of folks getting different things from the same content.