More on-line comics making their way into the world on dead trees! Kazu Kibuishi (well-known as the editor of the Flight series of fantasy anthologies) has brought out his full-color on-line comic Copper in book form, available this January in softcover or hardcover from Graphix. From the publisher’s notes at Amazon.com: “Copper is curious, Fred is fearful. And together boy and dog are off on a series of adventures through marvelous worlds, powered by Copper’s limitless enthusiasm and imagination. Each Copper and Fred story in this graphic novel collection is a complete vignette, filled with richly detailed settings and told with a wry sense of humor. These two enormously likable characters build ships and planes to travel to surprising destinations and have a knack for getting into all sorts of odd situations. Copper’s good cheer always smoothes the way—and Fred can usually be won over if there’s food involved.”
Books and Trade Paperbacks
The Booming of Boom!
Every time we turn around, Boom! Studios has more interesting new product for furry fans. Following in the steps of The Muppet Robin Hood comes The Muppet King Arthur, telling the tale of the ancient king as only Kermit the Frog and his friends can — in full color, every month. It’s brought to you by Paul Benjamin, Patrick Storck, and David Alvarez. You should also check out Wizards of Mickey, yet another break-out full-color comic book series that started in the pages of Mickey Mouse and Friends. When Mickey Mouse, the sorcerer’s apprentice, loses a valuable magic talisman, he must assemble a team of fellow magic-learners to retrieve it from evil hands. But when your allies are Donald Duck and Goofy, what chance have you got? Find out! While you’re at it, look for Wizards of Mickey Volume 1: Mouse Magic in hardcover. It collects the original four-part series in one full-color book. Wizards of Mickey comes to us from Stefano Ambrosio and Lorenzo Pastrovicchio.
The Dragon Book
Happy Friday the 13th! The last one for 2009, in fact…
New for the holidays is The Dragon Book, edited by Jack Dan and Gardner Dozois and published in hardcover by Ace. This is from the publisher’s notes on Amazon.com: “Whether portrayed as fire-breathing reptilian beasts at war with humanity or as noble creatures capable of speech and mystically bonded to the warriors who ride them, dragons have been found in nearly every culture’s mythology. In modern times, they can be found far from their medieval settings in locales as mundane as suburbia or as barren as post-apocalyptic landscapes-and in The Dragon Book, today’s greatest fantasists reignite the fire with legendary tales that will consume readers’ imaginations. With original stories by New York Times bestselling authors Jonathan Stroud, Gregory Maguire, Garth Nix, Diana Gabaldon, Tamora Pierce, Harry Turtledove, Sean Williams, and Tad Williams as well as tales by Naomi Novik, Peter Beagle, Jane Yolen, Adam Stemple, Cecelia Holland, Kage Baker, Samuel Sykes, Diana Wynne Jones, Mary Rosenblum, Tanith Lee, Andy Duncan, and Bruce Coville.” It’s on the shelves now.
Coming to Save Your Tail Feathers!
This January, Boom! Studios brings us the new Disney’s Hero Squad full-color comic, from the minds of writer Riccardo Secchi and artist Stefano Turconi. From the pages of Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories: Super Goof! The Duck Avenger! Eega Beeva! The Red Bat! And more — see Disney’s mightiest heroes in their own comic book title. Wonder where all this came from? Then make sure to check out the Disney’s Hero Squad Volume 1: Save The World hardcover collection. The greatest superheroes in the Disney universe come together when the world’s greatest super-villain sets his sights on Scrooge McDuck’s entire fortune!
How Did We Miss This?
An older item, which we recently stumbled across: DC Goes Ape is a full-color trade paperback collection released in 2008 by — who else? — DC Comics. It features nearly a dozen excerpts from DC Comics over the decades involving monkey and ape characters in the worlds of Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, and more. Simian heroes, simian villains, and they’re not even all Gorilla Grond! With writers ranging from Otto Binder to Elliot S! Maggin and E. Nelson Bridwell (and more), and art by the likes of Carmine Infantino, Jim Starlin, P. Craig Russell — and more. With a great front cover by Art Adams, too. Like we said, this is older now, so take a look around for it.
Want to Draw Furries?
Manga artists Lindsay Cibos and Jared Hodges (Peach Fuzz) have put together a new paperback art how-to book called Draw Furries: How to Create Anthropomorphic and Fantasy Animals. This is from Lindsay’s blog: “In a nutshell, Draw Furries: How to Create Anthropomorphic and Fantasy Animals is a how-to book that goes over drawing anthropomorphic and animal characters. We cover anatomy and poses, step-by-step, for feline, canine, equine, rodent and avian characters, plus coloring and backgrounds. The book is coming out around November 2009.” Meanwhile, Amazon.com lists the book as coming out in early December, from Impact. Here’s the description: “What do you get when you cross a human with a horse (or a hamster, or a hummingbird)? You get any one of a number of fun anthropomorphic animals, also known as “furries” to their friends. From facial expressions to creative coloring, this book contains all the know-how you need to create anthropomorphic cat, dog, horse, rodent and bird characters. Step by step, you’ll learn how to:
- Draw species-appropriate tails, eyes, wings and other fun details
- Give your characters clothes, poses and personalities
- Create the perfect backgrounds for your furry antics – with two start-to-finish demonstrations showing how
Packed with tons of inspiration – from teeny-bopper bunnies and yorky glamour queens to Ninja squirrels and lion kings – Draw Furries will help you create a world of crazy, cool characters just waiting to burst out of your imagination.”
Total Television Productions
Fans of classic TV cartoons and funny animals will probably be familiar with characters like Underdog, Tennessee Tuxedo, and the GoGo Gophers. Well, they’re all from one place: The creative minds behind Total Television Productions. Now comics and animation historian Mark Arnold (The Best of the Harveyville Fun Times!) has written Created and Produced by Total Television Productions, a new softcover book available from BearManor Media. In this book you’ll find rare production artwork and storyboards, as well as reminiscences from TTV’s founders.
Look Out! It’s Mr. Wiggles!
What, you haven’t met Mr. Wiggles? Well, maybe you’re safe then. Creator/writer/artist Neil Swaab describes the adventures of Mr. Wiggles like this: “Join the loveably deviant teddy bear and his human companion as they navigate a world of addiction, sex, psychosis, and dangerous obsession, discovering humor in the most unlikely (and sometimes unwanted) places”. Now Mr. Swaab has released Rehabilitating Mr. Wiggles Volume 3, the third collection of his popular full-color alternative comic strip. It’s available in softcover from Neil’s web site.
Odd and the Frost Giants
Simply put: Neil Gaiman has done it again. Done what? Another new fantasy novel for young readers, that’s what. It’s called Odd and the Frost Giants, and the description on Amazon.com goes like this: “In this inventive, short, yet perfectly formed novel inspired by traditional Norse mythology, Neil Gaiman takes readers on a wild and magical trip to the land of giants and gods and back. In a village in ancient Norway lives a boy named Odd, and he’s had some very bad luck: His father perished in a Viking expedition; a tree fell on and shattered his leg; the endless freezing winter is making villagers dangerously grumpy. Out in the forest Odd encounters a bear, a fox, and an eagle—three creatures with strange stories to tell. Now Odd is forced on a stranger journey than he had imagined—a journey to save Asgard, city of the gods, from the Frost Giants who have invaded it. It’s going to take a very special kind of twelve-year-old boy to outwit the Frost Giants, restore peace to the city of gods, and end the long winter. Someone cheerful and infuriating and clever . . . Someone just like Odd .” The book is illustrated by Brett Helquist, and now it’s been published in hardcover by Harper-Collins.
