Afrodisiac

"By day he cleans up your office - at night he cleans up your streets: introducing Alan Deasler, a.k.a. The Afrodisiac! A mysterious smooth dark chocolate brother, bitch."

Get this. Now.

Jim Rugg Brian Maruca Adhouse Books 2010

Fan Expo 2010 - The Bomb

Writer/Artist: Steve Mannion
Publisher: Asylum Press
Published: August 2008

One of the comic book creators I was most excited to see at the Fan Expo was Steve Mannion. A few months back I picked up The Bomb on a whim. When I saw Steve I mentioned this,... well I said this: "I had never heard of The Bomb, but based off the cover I picked it up, and well, it's the bomb!"

This statement could have gone two ways with him: awkward silence or laugh. I got a laugh. Nice. I knew right then this guy's alright. We talked for a few minutes. He struck me as a goofy guy who easily breaks a grin. These qualities definitely come through his work. I asked if he plans on continuing his Fearless Dawn run, upon which he responded yes, and flipped to a drawing of Helga and her Nazi buddy on the moon!

The Bomb is a collection of great looking goofy stories ranging from a Jungle girl and a dinosaur, to a juiced up pirate, to nazi shenanigans, to zombie robots. It has a swimsuit edition that is nice play on Archie Comics. Anyway, I can't express how much I like this collection of comics. There just good ol' fun comics...

As an final note, at the Expo, his sketchbook was the best purchase of the day. As far as sketchbooks go, for $10 you won't find a better deal. I have a feeling he'll be realizing this and the price will go up...but good for him!




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Mesmo Delivery

Writer/Artist: Rafael Grampa
Colours: Rafael Grampa & Marcus Penna
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Published: February 2010

If I reviewed comics professionally, this would be my quote:

"Blazingly spectacular. A dark twisted stop over ticket into the 'do not enter'. Non-refundable."

Ha ha, okay, I'm not a great 'quoter', but I really want to express how much I love this comic. I can't remember the last time I read a comic and was so excited I couldn't sleep. My enthusiasm for Mesmo Delivery is on par with how I felt after watching Oldboy. I was shocked, amazed, repulsed, fanatically joyous, grossed out. I could go on...but I don't want to over hype things.

The story follows an Elvis impersonator and a desperate ex-boxer driving a delivery truck. They stop for gas. All hell breaks loose.

Note 1: Definitely not for the kiddies.
Note 2: In case folks haven't noticed, any post with the tag "* Edit" has an image I have created from panels within the comic. I have time to do these right now, and it helps to keep me interested. Hope you like 'em.
Note 3: Here's a link for a preview PDF from it's initial publisher, AdHouse.





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Barbarella

Writer/Artist: Jean-Claude Forest
Published: 1966
Publisher: Grove Press

Barbarella. She's the free spirited sexual space sphinx. In the comic she...well I'd have to take notes on her adventures. The story is all over the place. She battles air sharks, guards made entirely of leather, Orhomrs who telepathically can toss rocks, an evil one eyed queen, a bizzaro Medusa, genetically mutated beasts, futuristic 19th century spoiled sisters, killer toy robots, birds and snakes. She loses her clothes (or discards them) in all sorts of manner. She and another girl sex a guard into uselessness. She sleeps with a robot. At one point she is imprisoned in the Excessive Machine, which is designed to pleasure her to death. She befriends a guy who is half angel, half stud. And so it goes. Oh the 60's.

Barbarella is a silly comic. Lighthearted and silly. As for the nudity and sexual encounters, they're quaint compared to today's standards. During it's time, I'm sure it was considered shocking to some. I guess, in it's own way, it would be shocking. Barbarella is an independent, capable, young woman. She enjoys sex and isn't afraid to seek it out. She speaks her mind. She's optimistic, hopeful, and a determined fighter for just causes. Maybe back then that was more shocking than her actual nudity.

I should also mention the issue is broken into chapters punctuated by four colour tones: purple, yellow, green, and blue. This creates a nice pop-art quality to the drawings.




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American Splendor Presents: Bob & Harv's Comics

Writer: Harvey Pekar

Artist: Robert Crumb

Publisher: Four Walls Eight Windows

Published: 1996

Harvey Pekar has passed away. He will be missed.

Bob and Harv's comics are a collection of strips written by the one and only Harvey Pekar and illustrated by the one and only Robert Crumb. The art is composed of Crumb's scratchy cross hatching, set to everyday occurrences in Pekar's life. Pekar has a unique voice in the world of comics. It's hard to describe Pekar's stories. You'll just have to give 'em a read.

Here is a couple favorites of mine, titled Hospital Fun. As well, I've posted an edit I made in tribute of Harvey's most famous strip.

Oct. 8, 1939 - July 12, 2010

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Doctor Strange & Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment

Writer: Roger Stern

Artist: Michael Mignola

Colors: Mark Badger

Publisher: Marvel

Published: 1989

Been a while...watching a lot of Glee...yeah I admit it. I am so conflicted by this show. There are so many things I dislike, yet I can't stop watching it. I've watched 18 episodes in 4 days! I can't stand the lip synching, the non-teen cast, the ridiculous plot lines and manipulative storytelling...and I'm really tormented by the sterilization of songs I like...yet I can't turn away...after this post, I'm gonna watch more. However the show really is a triumph...no matter how twisted it gets and no matter how manipulated I feel, I root for these characters. This feeling reminds me of todays comic: Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment.

The story follows two of Marvel's biggest and most powerful characters. One dedicated to life, the other to the subjugation of life: Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom. They each compete in a ritualistic magical competition and it's bizarre prize forces Dr. Strange to aid Dr. Doom on an insane quest into Hades itself to battle Mephisto (which is the Marvel equivalent of Satan).

On the surface this comes across as just another adventure in the Marvel U. But, inside this seemingly everyday tale beats a story of redemption, sympathy, and the need to win-no-matter-the-price for one of Marvels darkest and most evil characters.

Dr. Doom makes for a great bad guy; but he's still a bad guy. He's evil, narcissistic, manipulative, destructive, murderous, but in this tale, I root for him, all the way.

*Note: This is my first graphic novel review on Comix-365. Up until now I've avoided graphic novels, mainly because I've been adamant to focus on single issues. There are a number of reasons for this, but as of today, I'll try to post some graphic novels or collected works, especially ones that were intended to be graphic novels or are hard to find as singles.

Here's a link to some reviews I did for Chapters on a bunch of graphic novels and other stuff if you're interested.