Lots of good links today, so buckle up…
- At the Watchmen movie production site you can find some nifty storyboards from director Zack Snyder. He says those are his most important guide, along with the graphic novel. I’m sure somewhere, Alan Moore is outraged.
- I’m not sure how many comics people are following the looming bankruptcy of giant Canadian printing company Quebecor, but you might want to keep an ear on the ground. Quebecor prints the bulk of US comics, including everything (as far as I’ve heard) from Marvel and DC. A new story in the Globe and Mail should give a pause: “‘Customers are worried that their orders won’t get done, suppliers that they won’t get paid,’ said the source.” Yikes.
- On his MySpace page, Ed Brubaker just announced the new Criminal book is coming out in April. Here’s what he says: “Female of the Species is the final piece to the noir puzzle of these three stories of crime and murder in the early 1970s. Told from the sympathetic POV of a Femme Fatale on her path to one final score and the revenge she’s been waiting years to get. A heartbreaking look into the other side of a noir tradition.”
- A breakdown of all the Easter Eggs in Cloverfield, at Sci Fi Wire (via ComicMix). I think I might be the only person yet to watch this sucker.
- Want to get a publishing deal for your graphic novel? Some great information is up at No Media Kings (via Comics212).
- Archie gets more diverse: Meet Raj Patel. And apparently he’s far from a stereotype, says East West Magazine.
- Jeff Smith just posted a preview of the cover for RASL #2 and announced it will ship in May. Speaking of RASL, if you haven’t already, go read my interview with Jeff over at Publishers Weekly.
- In the footsteps of Leinil Yu and Whilce Portacio, here is the next generation of Filipino comics artists. It is interesting how so many talented artists have come from one relatively small country. I remember seeing a basketball web site that used mapping software to show where NBA players grew up. It would be neat to see if there are focused areas of development for comics talent.
- Over at his great Variety comics column, Tom McClean explains why comics fans should root for Juno at the Oscars: “In the end, comics fans may want to get behind ‘Juno’ and its trio of Marvel movie alumni. Just think of it as movie in which Kitty Pryde, whose father turns out to be J. Jonah Jameson, gives up her baby to Elektra, and all of a sudden you’re talking mega Marvel crossover material.”
- Comics publishers need better web sites, says the Comic Book Bin. Here’s an example: “One of the greatest deficiencies of comic book publishers is the lack of a suitable search engine that visitors can use to quickly locate information. Many have such search engines, but the results are not targeted and all over the place.” I couldn’t agree more.
- Remember that whole flap where Boom! Studios put North Wind #1 up on MySpace for free, and retailers were pissed off, then the book ended up selling out? Boom! is once again using MySpace to promote North Wind #2, but they’re calling all retailers to be part of the promotion. Any interested retailer can send an email to: myspace@boom-studios.com
- This seems like it has to be the kicker for today’s links: I was trying to find a comics-related story, but the link was busted and took me to a story about a man who was attacked by a crocodile. As if that wasn’t enough, the man’s friend tried to shoot the croc, but instead shot him! From the story (viaUPI): “Officials at Royal Darwin Hospital said Jason Green was stable after being bitten on the arm and shot while collecting crocodile eggs Tuesday, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported Wednesday. Zac Fitzgerald attempted to help Green by firing a pistol, but one of the bullets accidentally struck Green in the elbow. However, Dr. Len Notaras of Royal Darwin Hospital said the poorly-aimed gunshot was probably what allowed Green to free himself from the crocodile’s grip. ‘There is no doubt in my mind the gun shot actually saved his life,’ he said.”
I found your site on google blog search and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. Just added your RSS feed to my feed reader. Look forward to reading more from you.
- Jason.