The Sunday Spotlight: The ‘Penguin Brains’ Edition
by Richard Bruton
It’s Sunday and you know what that means? Well, back in the day in Britain it used to mean The Muppet Show, but things have changed and now it’s time for The Sunday Spotlight, my own little corner of the comics news universe or something…
Yes, it was April Fool’s Day this week. Or the stay off the damn Internet and don’t believe anything you read day. Anyway, onwards, ever onwards with the news…
The Phoenix Comic does April Fool’s Day…
The Phoenix Comic is a great, great kid’s comic here in the UK to which you should all be subscribing (and yes, they do international shipping) and has some brilliant work from the likes of Jamie Smart, Neill Cameron, Jess Bradley, and many more.
So, thousands of kids get the comic as subscribers, posted through their door every Friday. And this week, just in time for April Fool’s Day, this was what they were presented with – congratulations Phoenix…
And more from The Phoenix Comic – Bunny vs Monkey Joke Competition… But you’ll need to be VERY quick…
Jamie Smart’s Bunny Vs Monkey, the million-selling bestseller both sides of the Atlantic, has been running in The Phoenix Comic from the very beginning. And now you have a chance to see your joke in a future episode of the strip with the Bunny vs Monkey: The Gigantic Joke Fight!
All you have to do is send your joke, along with your name and age, to win@thephoenixcomic.co.uk by Monday 8 April – yes, that’s TOMORROW, so you’ll have to be very, very quick!
Kickstart this – Joel Meadows’ Tripwire Magazine raising funds for Summer 2024 issue…
Comics news is great, right? Comics features and interviews – similarly great. And there’s nothing quite like having a print magazine on comics in your hands.
Unfortunately, the number of print mags on comics have been severely cut back over the years for obvious reasons. Fortunately, there are still some out there, including Joel Meadows‘ Tripwire Magazine, one of the really good and long-running print mags. Well, he’s announced plans for the print quarterly Tripwire Magazine for summer 2024.
Right now it’s funding on Kickstarter right here. Go back it.
Stephen Collins on the meeting of two Titans… a little late Easter treat…
Stephen Collins is a great comic maker and cartoon maker, with this latest one a wonderful meeting of one magical creature you’re probably familiar with, the Easter Bunny, and one you’re maybe not so familiar with, the BST Hamster, who’s responsible for putting the clocks forwards and back in the UK…
José Villarrubia’s From A Colorist’s Perspective…
Over on his Facebook page, master colorist José Villarrubia has an ongoing strand he’s calling From a Colorist’s Perspective. And it’s an absolutely fascinating thing, with Villarrubia’s take on the way comics are colored and recolored. So far he’s covered many different works, including Ogre by Richard Corben, Jae Lee on The Sentry, David Lloyd on V For Vendetta, The Sandman, Dave Steven’s The Rocketeer, Bill Sienkiewicz on Big Numbers, Lynn Varley on Elektra Lives Again, Dave McKean on Black Orchid, Tatjana Wood on Swamp Thing, and so many more.
Here’s his piece on Tatjana Wood‘s Swamp Thing colouring…
“Sometimes I wonder if anyone else has noticed how poorly reprinted so many mainstream comics are. This is from Saga of Swamp Thing 29. Bissette, Totleben and Tatja Wood were working in harmony to illustrate a hypnotic and disturbing story. Totleben does not get enough credit for introducing into mainstream comics an inking technique that incorporated pointillism, reminiscent of the pulp illustrations of Virgil Finlay. The comic is a wonder to behold. But the only versions available are the one on the right, or the one recolored with modern color (Absolute).”
There’s so much to enjoy here, reading a superb colorist’s take on the art of coloring comics.
Raymond Briggs’ notes for The Snowman uncovered – ‘Not a parable about death’…
The late Raymond Briggs’ The Snowman is a much-loved masterpiece from one of Britain’s greatest cartoonists. But recent notes by Briggs scribbled in a Finnish copy of the book, to be featured in an exhibition on the author, have shed new light on how the story was misunderstood. The Guardian have the whole story here.
Briggs’ says this:
“Many people have said this book is a parable about death… that wasn’t my intention though my parents and my wife, Jean, had died.”
There’s also a note that perfectly illustrates both Briggs’ perfectionism and his famously grouchy character:
“I’ve only just noticed after 30 odd years that the melted snowman almost makes a face – the three lumps of coal resemble eyes and nose. That wasn’t my intention. I wish it wasn’t there.”
ComicScene to launch Comic Industry Directory on Kickstarter in May…
ComicScene are launching a revised version of their Comics Directory, where anyone involved with comics and supports the KS will receive inclusion in and digital access to the book, with print copies also available with industry advice included.
The Kickstarter will launch in May. The book will be released in print and online in September 2024 with the intention to update annually. This will be the second online Directory, with the first released just before lockdown – you can see that here.
