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------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Yahoo! Domains - Claim yours for only $14.70 http://us.click.yahoo.com/Z1wmxD/DREIAA/yQLSAA/bGIolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> ----------------------------------------------------------------- [5] Interviews Richard Vasseur richardv@sympatico.ca John Ulloa writer on "Forgive Me Father" from Bullet Proof Comics interviewed by Richard Vasseur. www.bulletproofcomics.net Richard: What can you tell us about "Forgive Me Father"? John: Forgive me Father is a story about a priest (Pedro Rodriguez) who starts having second thoughts about the path he's chosen. With all his self doubt and uncertainty he his also overwhelmed with urges he has tried to suppress for so long. After so many years of restraint along comes a young girl (Maria) with troubles of her own to say the least, who unknowingly sets of or priest into a mission of revenge and redemption. That's about it with out giving it all away. Richard: What makes this a dark tale? John: I feel its dark do to the religious under tone it has in a gothic way. Richard: Is this comic about religion at all? John: In a way it is it's more of my view on what the Catholic Church archaic standing on celibacy can do to a man. As a Catholic my self I feel that all priests should be allowed to marry and celibacy should be a choice not a condition set upon some one who is willing to sped the word of God. Richard: What do you think of Ulises Carpintero's art work? John: I love Ulises style I think he's done a great job on the book after looking at hundreds of other artist I felt Ulises style would work best with the story. Richard: Will this series continue with another limited series or regular series? John: It looks like it's going to be just this one series; unless there's a calling for more. Richard: What is it like working for Bullet Proof Comics? John: Well I started bullet proof comics in Miami along with my wife after a break up with High Impact comics and Ricky Carraler were I was the publisher since the start for titles like Double Impact and Symbols of Justice to name a few. I had a very successful run with them but then a lot of bad press do to some very bad decisions on Ricky's part along with his slew of personal problems and over indulgence with what ever was set in front of him caused a great publishing house that had over 2.5 million dollars in sales to come crashing down. I felt that I needed to get away from all the negative that was surrounding High Impact and Ricky and start a new publishing house. Richard: Do you have any future projects? John: Other projects that we are working on is Ravenous created by me and written but who I think to be a brilliant comic book writer Albert Fernandez and Illustrated by George Monjiovi. A great book about a mystic hunter on his journey to avenge the slaughter of his family this is going to be a good one. Richard: If you could write any comic which one would it be? John: Any thing form the 30 days of knight series i love these books and the art and writing is awesome. I have a few good for those blood suckers. Richard: Who do you admire most in the comics field? John: Frank Miller he is the man. Richard: What comic books do you read now? John: Well when I'm not playing city of heroes I'd say love fights, Dark days, and Amazing Spider-Man. Richard: Any last words of wisdom? John: Don't let anyone stop you from making your dreams come true. ////////////////// Scott Allie editor at Dark Horse interviewed by Richard Vasseur. Richard: What was your first job in the comics field? Scott: I started out a self-publisher, with a horror anthology called Sick Smiles. I did ten issues of that and a oneshot spun off from that series, before giving up self-publishing for a paycheck. Richard: How did you come to work at Dark Horse? Scott: They saw my self-published stuff and we started talking. Bob Schreck and I became friends, and he lured me in here. Dark Horse had a job free up, they offered it to me. My self- publishing money was running out, so I jumped at it, thinking I'd only do it for a couple years. But that was in 1994, and I'm still here. Richard: What are your duties as editor? Scott: It would be easier saying what they aren't. I oversee every aspect of the books, from hiring people to critiquing and approving their work, looking for new projects, writing the occasional project. It's a job you define as you do it. The more skills you have, or the more you can hone while on the job, the more responsibility you assume. Richard: What is Dark Horse doing to ensure it continues to grow? Scott: The main thing I do is try to bring in the right talent and the right projects, and make the books as good as I can. I have the naive belief that if we publish the highest quality books we can, we'll all get rich and fat. Richard: Do you have any favorite comics at Dark Horse? Scott: Hellboy's my favorite book, hands down. Richard: Have people ever written you trying to get a hold of the actors from Buffy TVS TV series? Scott: Yeah, but they should stop. Richard: Do you think the movie AVP will help sales at Dark Horse? Scott: A movie always results in increased sales. It generates interest among readers who otherwise wouldn't be aware of a book. Richard: Where would you like to be 5 years from now? Scott: Right here, making comics, seeing my own come to life at least once a year. I'm not greedy. By 2009 hopefully we'll see the completion of Devil's Footprints. Got Volume II coming out in late 2005. Richard: What comic books did you read as a child? Scott: Skull and Slow Death, two totally horrific comics from Last Gasp. They initiated my love of horror comics, my appreciation for them as a unique art form. Richard: What comic books do you read now? Scott: I'm reading Akira right now, anxiously awaiting the conclusion of Promethea. Akira is a masterpiece. I read anything by Jill Thompson, David Lapham, Evan Dorkin, or Scott Morse. I just wish there were more good horror comics from other publishers, because I've read most of ours by the time they come out, and what's the thrill in that? Richard: What do you like to do when your not working? Scott: Play guitar, write comics, make trouble with my roving gang of comics hooligans-Todd Herman, Dave Stewart, Jason Pearson, and Herb Apon. Richard: Will you be attending any conventions? Scott: It feels like I do nothing but conventions. I'll be in Chicago this week, and then maybe Dragon Con, maybe Toronto. As if San Diego weren't enough. That show was insane this year. Richard: Any parting words of wisdom? Scott: Don't swim against a riptide in 41-degree water. _________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------- [6] My Life With Comic Books Paul Howley pmca@together.net [My name is Paul Howley, owner of the Eisner Award winning pop culture collector's store known as "That's Entertainment" in Worcester, Massachusetts. Some people have called me the "luckiest man in the comic book business". My store has been around for over twenty three years and it's been a long and interesting combination of events and people that has brought my store to its current place. It is not my intent to boast or brag about my store or my life .I just want to tell you my story. See more about the store online at http://www.thatse.com ] Cast of characters: Paul: age 38 Mal: my wife Adam: my son Cassy: my daughter Davy Jones: formerly of The Monkees MY LIFE WITH COMIC BOOKS: THE HISTORY OF A COMIC SHOP - Part 90 With all of the advance publicity done for Davy Jones' guest appearance at the Worcester store, all that was left was the store preparation. My staff worked hard to clean up the displays of comic books, collectible toys, music CD's, and sports cards. They swept the floors clean and did their best to make the bathroom presentable. I spent a few days selecting rare and valuable "Monkees" collectibles to have in a display behind the table where Davy Jones would be seated to meet and greet the customers, if anyone showed up. Over the years I had accumulated an extensive collection of "Monkees" memorabilia, including all of the legitimately released records and almost every toy, jewelry, book, magazine, and clothing item ever produced! I tried to choose some of the most interesting-looking items for the display but I was nervous about having my own, personal collection out on display where there was a chance that these things could be damaged or stolen. I was always cautious and a little bit paranoid about shoplifting so my staff tried to be vigilant and aware of what was happening at all times. I decided to stand right next to Davy Jones behind the table. I set up an extra cash register on this table next to all of the merchandise that we were offering for sale so that customers could be tempted to buy a nice item to be autographed. The night before Davy's appearance, I barely slept. I was excited about meeting him but I was also very worried that no one would come to see him. By the time I left my house it was pouring rain. I thought that this was the beginning of a horrible day. I arrived at the store at seven o'clock and was disappointed to see that there was no one waiting in line to see Davy Jones. I kept myself busy by walking around the inside of the store, straightening out our shelves and displays, and listening to a cassette tape of music that featured Davy Jones as the lead vocalist from the days of "The Monkees." This seemed to relax me as I realized that it probably didn't matter that no one was interested in meeting him other than me. I'd certainly have fun with him! By eight o'clock a few serious "die-hard" Monkee fans began to line up outside my store in the pouring rain. I felt bad that I couldn't let them into the store early so they could get out of this rain but my staff wasn't scheduled to arrive for another half-hour and I couldn't help the customers and take care of all of the remaining details at the same time. As my employees and my wife and kids arrived they explained that there were probably lots of people just waiting in their cars for us to open the store so they wouldn't get soaked in the rain. I had to leave at 8:45 am so I could get to the hotel where Davy and his road manager were staying by the pre-arranged 9:00 am pick-up time. I hated leaving the store when I had no real idea of the possible "turn-out" but I had to do it. I didn't trust anyone else to pick up Davy Jones and I was too cheap to send a limousine. I wanted to be in control of the situation in case Davy was too tired to wake up after his exhausting schedule. I have no idea what I would have done if that was the case but I knew I'd figure out something. As it turned out, although he was indeed exhausted, Davy Jones was a complete professional. He was ready and waiting for me when I called his room from the hotel lobby. We arrived back at my store by 9:30 am, a full half-hour before the scheduled time of his appearance, and I was thrilled to see that we had a few hundred people waiting in line. My staff had all arrived and they opened the store early to get as many people out of the rain as possible. With "Monkee" music playing on our stereo system, the customers seemed to be having a good time talking to each other about "The Monkees" and excitedly anticipating Davy's arrival. I brought Davy into the store through our side entrance walked him to the back end of the store where we wanted him to sit. The cable news station and a local radio station were already waiting there for some quick and lively interviews and Davy handled them gracefully while his fans waited in line and listened to every word he said. As it neared the time for the ten o'clock autograph session to begin we positioned the uniformed police officer we had hired for security next to our guest table. My son, Adam, got behind the table with me to assist customers who wanted to buy any of the merchandise we had for autographing. I had piled up the five different "eight by ten" photographs that I had a local printer duplicate directly I front of Davy Jones. I priced them at $2.50 each or all five for ten dollars. I assumed that most customers would buy one or two but I guess the offer of all five for ten dollars, along with Davy's neatly written autograph, was just too good to pass up. Hundreds of fans bought all five! I had an agreement with Davy that he would sign autographs from 10:00 am to noon and then he'd get a two-hour lunch break and then he was to sign for two more hours. When noon approached, his road manager said, "Hey, let's break for lunch." Davy looked at the huge line that still went all through the store and out onto the sidewalk and said, "We certainly can't have all of these fans just stand and wait while we go off to eat!" We sent out for tuna fish sandwiches while he continued to sign autographs and visit with the fans for almost five more hours. Davy posed for photographs with eager forty to fifty-year old women who couldn't believe they were actually meeting him in-person! When a group of kids confined to wheelchairs came in, he gave them all free copies of his current music compact discs. I don't think there was anyone who was unhappy with Davy Jones that day. Even though he was functioning on only two hours sleep, he was funny, friendly, full of enthusiasm, and eager to please everyone. A little after five o'clock we decided that we needed to end the autograph line. Davy had performed "above and beyond" our original agreement. I felt as if I had taken advantage of his good nature. Davy never complained. At the end of the event when we went into the private "front-room" of the store and it was time for me to pay him I remarked about his kindness to all of the almost two thousand people who came to see him. Davy said, "Paul, it's because of people like these that I can continue to make my living in the entertainment business. They are important to me." It was refreshing for me to hear a celebrity really appreciated his fans. Although I had negotiated a fair contract with Davy, I decided that I would pay for his meals and his hotel for two nights. I also decided that since I sold over two thousand photographs at a very high profit, I would share some of this money with Davy. By the time we were done, Davy ended up with more than double the money he was expecting. He thanked me for the unexpected generosity and he said that he enjoyed the visit. When I brought him back to his hotel room he thanked me again and told me that I was one of the very few people in the past thirty years who didn't try to take advantage of him. Davy must have believed that I was an honest man because he asked if I would be interested in becoming partners in his book publishing business. He was having trouble keeping his books "in print" because of his bust touring schedule and he wanted me to take over this aspect of his business. My wife and I discussed it but I eventually declined because I was intent on retiring from active work in the next two years and although I'd love to get to work with Davy Jones on a regular basis, I knew what my long-term goals were. Besides setting a new one-day sales record at my Worcester store, this Davy Jones event was one of our best in terms of customer satisfaction and excitement. Very few of my regular store customers came to see him though. Almost two-thirds of the nearly two thousand people who came to our store that day were first time visitors and most of them were women. I'm sure that many of these "new" customers have continued to shop with us on a regular basis so the actual financial rewards have kept growing. Next chapter: Terry Stewart, president of Marvel Comics, almost destroys the entire comic book industry. _________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------- [7] Suspended Animation Michael Vance MiklVance2@worldnet.att.net [Michael Vance was first published in The Professor's Story Hour chapbook at the age of eleven and became a professional freelance writer in 1977. Vance has been published in dozens of regional magazines and as a syndicated columnist and cartoonist in over 500 newspapers. Among his credits are: "Forbidden Adventure: The History of the American Comics Group," articles for "Starlog," "Jack & Jill" & "Star Trek: The Next Generation". He briefly wrote the comic strip, "Alley Oop" and his own strip for five years called "Holiday Out," that was reprinted as a comic book. Vance also wrote comic book titles including "Straw Men," "Angel of Death," "The Adventures of Captain Nemo," and "Bloodtide". His work has appeared in several comic book anthologies, and he is listed in the "Who's Who of American Comic Books" and "Comic Book Superstars". With novelists Mel Odom and R.A. Jones, he co-wrote "Global Star". He worked in newspapers for twenty-two years as an editor, writer and advertising manager, creating three successful newspaper magazines. Michael Vance is currently communications director of a nonprofit agency, the Tulsa Boys' Home, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is a Christian] Amnesia, published online by Jason Duckmanton, 7 pages, free. I'm doing something I've never done before, and expect to do more of in the near future; reviewing an online comic. This particular work is the "baby" of Stamford College student Jason Duckmanton. He set out to produce a final project for one of his classes; what he ended up with is a comic work that actually leaves me wanting more. The seven-page story, entitled Amnesia, concerns a young man (Jack) who has no memories, but plenty of nightmares. Those nightmares turn out to be real, however, when he discovers that he has been the subject of experimentation in the area of biological weaponry. But, when a mysterious figure shows up to inform him he has outlived his usefulness, Jack chooses "fight" over "flight." One thing the story possesses in spades is mood. Duckmanton's artwork is eye-catching and dynamic in black and white, and made more so by the black-white-and-red version also included at the site. A visceral tale told in a very bold style, it shows much promise for the work of someone who is, technically, a beginner. Whatever it may look like on the printed page, it practically leaps off of the computer screen, aptly relaying the intensity of the story to the reader. Some may ask, "Why review such a limited project, the rest of which may never be seen?" Basically, it's good work, and that's what Suspended Animation is about, bringing good comics work to the attention of as many people as possible. And, who knows? With enough word-of-mouth, maybe one day we will see the whole story in print. For all intents and purposes, Amnesia is an experiment. It was done, ultimately, for college credit. Whatever grade it received from Duckmanton's professor, I give it high marks, and I hope he's able to pitch it (and complete it) successfully to an independent publisher. Amnesia is recommended for older readers for intense imagery. Find it at http://mysite.wanadoomembers.co.uk/amnesiacomic/finalcomic.htm. Review by Mark Allen _________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------- [8] Silva Shado Reviews Sarah Haslett silva_shado@yahoo.com [Known as Silva Shado on many boards, Sarah is most frequently found at HeroRealm.com and MightyMiniCon.com. She is a reviewer, moderator and columnist for both sites. At MightyMiniCon, her column "Under the Radar" looks at those comics that go unnoticed by the majority of comic book readers. At HeroRealm, her column "Independent Forecast," co-written with Juan Gamez, looks at the non-spandex titles in the current Previews. Sarah has read comics off and on her whole life, but really got into comics in 2000. In September of 2003, she started reviewing after realizing that there were good comics out there that no one was paying much attention to.] Due to technical difficulties, Under the Radar #5 hasn't been uploaded at MightyMiniCon.com yet. In the meantime, you can read it here: http://www.geocities.com/silva_shado/undertheradar05.htm Hope you enjoy it! In other news, it was my birthday on Monday the 9th and I had quite a lot fun and got a lot of good presents. One of them was a promise for the Collected Bone Edition when it comes out. I'm looking forward to it as I've never read any Bone. Hopefully I'll be able to review it, but it may be a while! Now onto reviews: 2000 AD #1397 and #1398 Writers/Artists: Various Publisher: Rebellion Released (In America): August 4, 2004 At last, the galaxy's greatest comic has been delivered to my comic store and then into my anxiously waiting hands. These two issues are the first regular progs (issues) I've received after I added it to my pull list a month ago. I gotta tell ya, it was worth the wait! Even though these two progs are nearing the end of the spring run, they're still very accessible to new readers. Not only is there synopsis for each story on the inside cover, but three of the stories are new. Between the two progs, the stories include Judge Dredd: Terror part 6 & 7, Sinister Dexter: Scare Tactics part 1 & 2, Tyranny Rex: The Comeback part 3 & 4, Future Shocks: The Mainstream part 2, Low Life: Heavy Duty part 1 & 2 and Future Shocks: Red Moon. Out of all of those stories, the only one I had a hard time following was Future Shocks: The Mainstream because it was the final part. All of these stories will wrap up in prog 1399 and 1400 will begin Summer Assault. Judge Dredd: Terror was very emotionally moving. This is at the climax of the story. This guy Gil is part of Total War, a terrorist group, though he doesn't want to be. He wants to be with his love Zondra, but he has to lie to her about his involvement. In the end, he decides to leave her and go ahead with his mission. This spells doom for both him and Zondra. I really liked the art because it perfectly created a moody atmosphere with the use of dark, yet vibrant hues of mainly blues, greens and reds. I must admit that I didn't care for the last Sinister Dexter story I read in 1383-1385, but this one is a lot fun. They're sent to investigate this old house because it's rumored to be haunted. They're there to find the real people behind the scaring. There are some really great moments when Sinister and Dexter take turns scaring the young apprentice Veejay. They don't believe that ghosts are real, but Veejay does. We'll soon find out who's right. The black and white art is perfect for a ghost story like this. I don't get all of what's going on in Tyranny Rex, but I'm enjoying it. There's lots of action with Tyranny Rex fighting bad guys and freezing them with a gun. The desert world around her is very interesting with its native animals. For example, the sandflukes are much like electric eels, except they live in sand. The art is very vibrant with its wash of desert colors, which contrasts Tyranny's green skin. I'm looking forward to getting my hands on the past few progs to see more of her story. Low Life: Heavy Duty is both serious and hilarious. There's the serious problem of overweight individuals being killed off. A lot of people join Low-Cal Towers to loose weight. They go through an exercise regime and are given slimming pills. In the end, many turn into religious converts and sign away all their money to the company. Then many of them end up mysteriously dead. Judge Aimee Nixon has to go undercover and infiltrate the company, but to do so she has to gain a few pounds - a few hundred pounds! And when she does, it just hard not to laugh. If you didn't know, DC has made a deal to release collections of 2000 AD material. The first trades will be out next month. If you're like me and don't want to wait for that or don't want to let DC choose which stories you get to read, then go to your retailer and demand that 2000 AD be ordered for you. You won't be disappointed. For those who looked closely at the covers, you'll notice that these progs came out in July. There's a delay in shipping to America from Britain. Right now, prog 1401 is the newest one, which I'm looking forward to very much because there's a new Bec & Kawl story. I know a lot of people don't like it, but I think it's great to see a humorous piece amongst all the serious sci- fi. It really balances things out. If you're still not sure about 2000 AD, there are two trades that I highly recommend to new readers - The Complete Ballad of Halo Jones and Judge Anderson: Hour of the Wolf. Most bookstores can order them for you if they don't have them in stock. Quite a few online stores carry them. I know I'm going to get the Complete Dr. & Quinch next and look into the Slaine trades. Fade From Grace #1 Writer: Gabriel Benson Artist: Jeff Amano Publisher: Becket Comics Released: August 4, 2004 For 99 cents, I couldn't pass this up. I hope you don't either because this is a really good story! Grace and John were a normal couple. They lived together blissfully for three years. But then a horrible accident happened - their apartment building caught on fire and Grace was still inside. John rushed into the building to save her. And he did, by miraculously phasing through the door and then flying off the burning rooftop. Though they got married two weeks later, things weren't quite the same now that he had superpowers. At first, they didn't know what to about it, but things soon became very clear. He had to use his powers for the good of others. The question is - what will this do to their relationship? This is a very emotional story of the turmoil that superpowers cause a normal couple. Their life is changed radically and it's uncertain whether they will stay together. Gabriel Benson does a great job at setting up the story and foreshadowing the not so bright future for this couple. Jeff Amano's art is simple and perfect. The emotions flow strongly from these characters. I'm really impressed with Beckett Comics so far. The first issue of The Ballad of Sleeping Beauty was superb and Fade From Grace is looking to be fantastic as well. If you haven't checked out either story, I highly recommend that you do. You really can't pass it over, not for the price - $1.99 for a full color comic. _________________________________________________________________ Thanks for subscribing to the Comic Book Network Electronic Magazine (CBEM) --------------------------->Disclaimer<--------------------------- This is an ANNOUNCE only mailing list, only the Editor can send messages to the list. No one else has access to the subscriber list. Replies to these messages will be received by the Editor ONLY, so you must CC: individual contributors if you want them to get your E-Mail. The E-mail to the E-mag MAY be used in future issues at the Editor's discretion UNLESS you specifically request that they not be. It is our policy to withhold names and/or Addresses, by request only, from letters of comment. All contributors are required to use their real name and have a valid Email address for their columns to be published. Send Email comments to: ComicBkNet@aol.com Material for inclusion in the Emag - press releases, solicitations, column submissions, Letters to the Editor, guesses for the trivia contest should be sent to ComicBkNet@aol.com The EDITOR, not the submitter, has final approval and edit rights on ALL material. Printed comic books and advanced copies for review in the Emag should be sent via US Mail or UPS to David L. 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