Titan publishing has collected 176 pages of full-color Wallace and Gromit comic strips together in The Best of Wallace and Gromit trade paperback (by Dan Abnett, Simon Furman, Jimmy Hansen, and others). Nick Park’s beloved and award-winning claymation duo are back in new comic strip adventures, along with their friend Shaun the Sheep and their fierce enemy, Feathers McGraw the criminal penguin!
Books and Trade Paperbacks
Pre-order the book “Nuclear Hoodie”
Lis “Lizardbeth” Boriss has been writing and illustrating the multi-species on-line comic strip Broken Plot Device since 2008. Now she’s looking to produce the first on-paper collection — but she needs help to do that. From her BPD web site:
“It’s been almost a year since BPD started. Many of you have been here since the early beginning, some of you are recent converts. Well, the time has come to collect the past year in a SUPER AWESOME HOLD-IN-YOUR HAND tree corpse form! The title is Nuclear Hoodie, and it’s all of the comics from the past year PLUS a bunch of brand new never-posted-before illustrations and extras. Right now, the plan is to debut the book at Anthrocon. But I can’t do that without YOUR help!!”
Visit her web site at www.brokenplotdevice.com to see the latest comic and find out more about how to pre-order the new book… and help to get it printed!
New from Boom!
Boom! Studios has quite a roster of full-color comic book mini-series coming along that should be of interest to furry fans of many stripes. Disney/Pixar’s Cars (by Alan J. Porter and Albert Carreres) takes us back to the origins of superstar (supercar?) Lightning McQueen. The Muppet Show (by Roger Langridge) takes us behind the scenes as Fozzie, Ms. Piggy, Gonzo, and the rest try to lift Kermit the Frog out of a deep blue funk — in the most surreal ways imaginable. And Farscape: Strange Detractors (by series creator Rockne S. O’Bannon, with Keith DeCandido and Will Sliney) brings us new adventures (and new dangers) for the crew of the living ship known and Moya. While you’re at it, look for the Farscape Volume 1 hardcover collection, which brings together the first four issues of the Farscape comic by O’Bannon, DeCandido, and Tommy Patterson. All of them should be on the shelves now.
Seaweed
Ben Balistreri is an Annie Award nominated character designer and storyboard artist who has worked extensively for Disney, Universal, Nickelodeon, Laika, and Cartoon Network. Now, he’s branched out on his own into comics with the premier of Seaweed, a large-sized full-color hardcover graphic novel series that Ben wrote and illustrated. Take warning: Funny animals or not, is decidedly NOT for kids. The first installment of the series is A Cure for Mildew. Seaweed, a pelican with a VERY well-stocked bill, is the captain of the Salty Sugar. He and his fishy first mate, Poisson, find themselves pressed into the service of Mildew, a dying bat who believes his only hope of survival rests in an ancient book rumored to have been written by the Devil himself! Seaweed #1 is published by Salty Sugar Comics, and includes a large gallery of sketches and development art. Visit www.saltysugar.com to find out more.
The Gwaii Collection
The first set of issues of The Gwaii by Sean O’Reilly and Pedro Del Gado have been released in a new full-color hardcover collection by Arcana Studio. Tanu is a young sasquatch lost in the great Canadian wilderness when his mother is captured by Fearsome Creatures. To get her back, he’ll have to use all his skills as he faces frightening mythological beings.
The Mice Templar Sketchbook
New from Image Comics: The Mice Templar Sketchbook by Bryan Glass and Michael Avon Oeming. This full-color trade paperback features “never before seen artwork by Michael Avon Oeming from all phases of the development of the acclaimed anthropomorphic series”. It also features a brand new short story that bridges the gap between the Mice Templar, Volume 1: The Prophecy hardcover collection and the upcoming Volume 2.
From Furry Fandom to the Art Stores
Kythera of Anevern is a fantasy artist who has become well-known in the world of Disney’s Gargoyles fandom. She also does anthropomorphic art from time to time — you can find her web site at http://www.furaffinity.net/user/kytheraoa. Now, she’s moved on to the fine art of… art instruction! Drawing Made Easy: Dragons and Fantasy is available in softcover from Walter Foster Publishing. It includes a brief summary of tools and materials, and tips on how to draw creature elements such as fur, horns, and scales, and 13 step-by-step “lesson”-style breakdowns of various fantasy creatures, including two types of dragons, centaur, gargoyle, mermaid, and minotaur. Visit her web site or http://anevern.artchicks.org/Images/Print/DME10/ to find out more about ordering the book.
A Feline Tour of Old Tokyo!
Also just found on Amazon: Edo Cats: Tails of Old Tokyo, written and illustrated by Ryuto Kanzaki. It’s available this May in hardcover and softcover from Japanime Company. “Acclaimed manga artist and historian Ryuto Kanzaki takes readers on a whimsical tour of Edo (Old Tokyo) as seen through the eyes of the local cats. Discover the costumes, customs, and color of bygone Japan. Teeming with history and nostalgia, Edo Cats: Tails of Old Tokyo will delight manga fans and feline-lovers alike!”
Mythical Creatures
Fans of fantastic beasties from around the world might want to check out The Mythical Creatures Bible by Brenda Rosen (in softcover). This is from Amazon.com: “Fabulous animals, specters from the shadow world, nature spirits, and sacred beings: These are the monstrous, marvelous, and mythic creatures that have come down to us in folklore and legend. Some probably have their origins in reality; others spring completely from the imagination. And they are all here, in this stunningly illustrated bible. It’s rich in history and images, and international in scope, covering dragons and serpents; weird insects like the Aztec Itzpapalotl; zombies, golems, and banshees; the watery Undine; the Monkey King, Sun Wukong; and much, much more.”
