Monday Links

• Who would that noted anarchist V vote for? Ron Paul, of course.

• A great set of interviews with Shaun Tan are up at NPR’s The World. Tan created the graphic novel The Arrival, which tells the wordless story of immigration.

• In a really funny post at Dean’s World, G. Willow Wilson (who was interviewed right here earlier) talks about a weird reception to her new book Cairo: “Clearly she hasn’t learned that a ninja never hands over her weapon,” he said, pointing to a character swathed in a black face-veil and robe, who was giving her gun to a skeptical-looking man in a burnoose. The character’s name was Tova. She was an Israeli soldier, not a ninja. I held my peace. The guy went on to tell me he hoped I was ready for the big-leagues of fiction after something so trivial as journalism. (Journalism is like falling out of bed, he drawled, It’s like, woah, did I just write something? Fiction takes actual work.) Glad to see the general public continues to hold journalism in such high esteem. Man, I need a drink…

• A time-traveling Teddy Roosevelt and the ghost of Einstein Edison battling a descendant of Hitler… on Mars! I can’t believe this is the first I’ve heard of Image Comics Tales from the Bully Pulpit. A lucky fellow at K-Squared Ramblings snagged a copy for $27.

• Marjane Satrapi gives a good interview to the Telegraph (UK), and talks about the importance of humor in her graphic novel Persepolis, and the process of adapting it to film.

• Back when the new JSA got going, a fair amount of bloggers criticized writer Geoff Johns for pushing Obsidian (a gay character) to the margin. In his latest opining on JSA #10, Devon of Seven Hells says those bloggers need to eat some crow.

• A surprisingly interesting psychological evaluation of Carol Danvers (aka Ms. Marvel), courtesy of Calvin Pitt.

• Michael Turner is the man we bloggers love to hate (and plenty of artists, though I won’t name names, strongly concur). My pal Jim Doom over at Doomkopf reveals a surprising secret. Turner could be a great artist on the Fantastic Four, a team featuring a guy covered in flames, an invisible woman, a man made of rocks and a man who can stretch into any disproportionate position.

• Publishers Weekly has its list of best graphic fiction of 2007, and it’s much improved from the Amazon list (though Shortcomings again gets credit). Good choices on Aya, I Killed Adolf Hitler and Exit Wounds. Those would easily be at the top of my list. Heck, maybe I’ll make a list, there’s still a month to go.

• Platinum Studios gets New York Times coverage. Eric Reynolds is pissed. All I can say is it seems like if the Times wanted to include something about Western comics in its Western-themed issue, they could’ve featured Jonah Hex, The Lone Ranger or several others.

• Neil Gaiman, bigger than Jesus. Scroll down to Nov. 9 entry.

• The strange, strange tale of a Brave and the Bold issue becoming a musical. (via The Comic Treadmill)

• Eddie Campbell voices in on the not-so-contentious debate about what to call graphic fiction. Is it a genre? A format? In addition to a very generalized journalist bashing (seriously, there are a few of us who aren’t nitwits!) Campbell sides with form. Personally, I just call it a medium. Seems simple enough.