In a pair of talks recorded at Laydeez do comics, cartoonists Kripa Joshi and Mawil (Markus Witzel) discuss their work, plus Alex Fitch visits Woodrow Phoenix in his studio to discuss his editing of the new graphic novel Nelson. If there is a common theme between the three, it’s a sense of magical realism in their art which juxtaposes the ordinary with the out of the ordinary, from Woodrow’s use of road furniture in Rumble Strip, to Kripa’s use of Indian mythology in her tales of domestic incidents and Mawil’s blue collar stories of life in Germany through the lens of his alter-ego Sparky O’Hare.
Recorded by Nicola Streeten and Alex Fitch, introduced and edited by Alex Fitch.

Sparky O Hare by Mawil, Nelson by Woodrow Phoenix, Miss Moti by Kripa Joshi

For more info about this podcast and a variety of formats you can stream or download, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Kripa Joshi‘s website and Miss Moti comics
Mawil‘s website
Woodrow Phoenix‘s online portfolio
More info about Nelson

Recommended events:

Laydeez do comics, December 2011

In the last LDC of 2011, Laydeez curators Nicola and Sarah talk about their work and how it has evolved since the first LDC meeting in 2009 + a couple of designers talk about their comics.

Guests:
Rachel Abrams, designer and writer, Brooklyn NY
Sarah Lightman, artist, curator and researcher
Marcia Mihotich, graphic designer and illustrator
Nicola Streeten, illustrator and author of graphic memoir Billy, Me & You

Recommended Read:
Billy, Me & You by Nicola Streeten, published by Myriad Editions

Monday 5 December
Time: 6.30 – 9.30pm
Venue: The Rag Factory, 16-18 Heneage Street, London E1 5LJ

Continue reading →

Laydeez do (comics) podcast: Magical realism [ 59:45 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: The danger of Romance

Concluding our month of shows about genre in comics, Alex Fitch talks to writer and manga translator Sean Michael Wilson and lecturer and author Ian Rakoff about romance comics. Sean is the editor of AX vol.1: A collection of Alternative Manga and author of The Story of Lee and adaptor of Yakuza Moon, two manga novels with varying degrees of biography about the fortunes of young women encountering different cultures across Asia.
Ian is about to give his latest lecture about comics (30/11) at the Victoria and Albert museum, and this month is discussing the subject of romance comics, with a focus on how they were an antidote to McCarthyism in 1950s America.

covers of Young Romance #12 (Aug 1949, art by Jack Kirby, Joe Simon and Bill Draut) / First Romance #17 (Sep 1952, artist unknown), pages from The Story of Lee by Sean Michael Wilson and Chie Kutsuwada / Yakuza Moon by Shoko Tendo, Sean Michael Wilson and Michiru Morikawa

For more info and a variety of formats you can stream or listen to this podcast in, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Info about Ian Rakoff‘s talk on Romance Comics on his blog
Event listing on the Victoria and Albert Museum’s website
Alex’s previous interviews with Ian about Social Realism, Westerns and cultural stereotypes in comics

Sean Michael Wilson‘s blog, including info on the books discussed in this interview
Read various manga by Wilson at www.webcomicsnation.com including an earlier adaptation of The Story of Lee illustrated by Yishan Li
Interview with Wilson at www.scotsman.com

Recommended events:

Blame it on Romance: What Frightened Senator Joe McCarthy

LUNCHTIME LECTURE: Join Ian Rakoff, screenwriter, editor and author, to look at the significance of politics and gender in relation to popular romance comic books.

Romance comic books selling over 30 million monthly issues and featuring influential heroines dominated the market from 1949 to 1954. At the same time, real women continued to experience gender discrimination and disempowerment. Ian Rakoff draws new connections between the content of romance comic books and 1950s anti-communist McCarthy witch-hunts.

Wed 30 November 2011, 1pm, Victoria and Albert Museum, Hochhauser Auditorium, Sackler Centre, Kensington Gore, London SW7 2RL
More info: www.vam.ac.uk/whatson

The National Collectors Marketplace Comics Fair – London

The National Collectors Marketplace, with 130 tables, is the largest regular marketplace for comicbook and trading card collectors in the UK. You will also find a whole range of related materials including Sci-fi, Fantasy, Film, TV and Toys from leading National & International dealers. A refreshments counter and pub will be open next to the venue.

12:00 PM – 4:00 PM Dec 04, 2011
Royal National Hotel, Bedford Way, London WC1

More info: londoncomicmart.co.uk

Panel Borders: The danger of Romance [ 52:13 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes

Continuing our month of shows about genre in comics, Alex Fitch talks to creators of small press and mainstream cowboy comics. Alex talks to veteran comics writer John Ostrander about his classic serialised graphic novel The Kents featuring the history of Superman’s great grandparents in 19th century Kansas and their encounters with the Luthers of the time, which is being re-released in three ‘100 page giants’ this winter. Alex and John also talk about Blaze of Glory: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes, Grimjack and his unrealized Doctor Who audio western.
Also in an interview recorded at this year’s Bristol Small Press Expo, Tim Keable and Andrew Cheverton talk about their ongoing comic West, which has recently included horror tropes and guest artists plus their future plans for the title and its graphic novel collections.

The Kents and Blaze of Glory: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes by John Ostrander / West - Justice and The Confederate Dead by Andrew Cheverton and Tim Keable

For more info and a variety of formats you can stream or listen to this podcast in, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Tim Keable and Andrew Cheverton‘s website – www.angrycandy.co.uk
Review of West: Justice on The Forbidden Planet International blog

John Ostrander‘s message pages at www.comicscommunity.com
Preview of The Kents at dccomics.com

Recommended events:

Events at Gosh! Comics

November 14: A Comica Conversation with Richard McGuire (Raw, The New Yorker, Liquid Liquid) and Steven Appleby, plus a projection of McGuire’s animated films.

November 18: German creators Uli Oesterle and Mawil signing copies of their newly translated books from Blank Slate + Q & A with Alex Fitch (Resonance FM).

November 25: Nelson launch party, signing and art show. Exclusive Gosh! Bookplate Edition by Frank Quitely available on the night!

November 26: Luke Pearson signing copies of his new Hilda book from Nobrow + art show (all pieces are up and on sale now)

Gosh! Comics, 1 Berwick Street, London W1F 0DR

Thought Bubble comics festival

This year’s week long Thought Bubble festival, part of the Leeds International Film Festival, starts on 14th November 2011, with comic related screenings each day. From Wednesday 16th – Friday 18th there is also a three day academic conference called Comics Forum.
On Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th, there is a traditional comics convention at the Royal Armouries with additional talks, activities and workshops at Saviles Hall.

Panel Borders events:
Saturday 19th, 1pm, Alex Fitch will be hosting a Q and A on stage with Tim Sale (Heroes, Batman: The Long Halloween, Spiderman: Blue) about his work.
Sunday 20th, 2pm, Alex Fitch will be hosting a panel about the Image Comics Sci-Fi Noir Elephantmen with writer Richard Starkings and artist Boo Cook.
Continue reading →

Panel Borders: The Last Ride of the Western Heroes [ 55:20 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Hemlock and Skullkickers – Gendering Fantasy

Starting a month of shows about genre in comic books, Alex Fitch talks to the writers of two very different fantasy comics which show the wide range of approaches to the genre. At a signing in Orbital Comics, recorded in February, Alex talks to Jim Zubkavich about his popular Image Comics title Skullkickers, his web strip Makeshift Miracle and his work on Udon Studios’ Street Fighter comic, then in an interview recorded at last weekend’s MCM Expo, Joceline Fenton discusses her small press comic Hemlock. Both creators discuss the appearance of their comics online, the importance of well designed packaging for the collected editions and their other projects.

Skullkickers by Jim Zubkavich and Edwin Huang / Makeshift Miracle by Zubkavich + three pages from chapter one of Hemlock by Josceline Fenton

For more info and a variety of formats you can stream or listen to this podcast in, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: Jim Zubkavich on livejournal and blogspot
Info about Jim Zubkavich at Udon Entertainment’s website

Josceline Fenton pages on tumblr
Hemlock website, including the first page of the saga

Recommended events:

Events at Gosh! Comics

November 9: Comics Gosh!p – the new monthly meeting for graphic novel fans, run by Mark Hayock & Mike Medaglia, this month discussing Frank Miller and David Mazzuchelli’s Batman: Year One and Joceline Fenton’s Hemlock.

November 11: Frederik Peeters (Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story) signing/talk/Q&A. His new book Sandcastle is out through SelfMadeHero.

November 14: A Comica Conversation with Richard McGuire (Raw, The New Yorker, Liquid Liquid) and Steven Appleby, plus a projection of McGuire’s animated films.

November 18: German creators Uli Oesterle and Mawil signing copies of their newly translated books from Blank Slate + Q & A with Alex Fitch (Resonance FM).

November 25: Nelson launch party, signing and art show. Exclusive Gosh! Bookplate Edition by Frank Quitely available on the night!

November 26: Luke Pearson signing copies of his new Hilda book from Nobrow + art show (all pieces are up and on sale now)

Gosh! Comics, 1 Berwick Street, London W1F 0DR
Continue reading →

Panel Borders: Hemlock and Skullkickers – Gendering Fantasy [ 53:37 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: Peckham Invalids and The Thrill Electric

Concluding this month’s series of shows about new British comics, Alex Fitch talks to the creators of a pair of new Edwardian set comics that mix classic comic book ideas with old and new storytelling techniques. Howard Hardiman discusses The Peckham House for Invalids, a new comic he’s written, illustrated by Julia Scheele and Sarah Gordon that features disabled homeless children with superpowers. Howard and Alex also talk about the return of the author’s beloved anthropomorphic title Badger, in a new zine / illustrated novella format and his recent experiences at art school.
Plus, in a pair of interviews recorded at the MCM Expo, Alex talks to Leah Moore, John Reppion and Emma Vieceli about their web comic, The Thrill Electric, which started this week on Channel 4?s website and tells the tale of sexual politics gang violence and the arrival of the telegraph in turn of the century Manchester.

The Peckham House for Invalids issue 1 by Howard Hardiman, Julia Scheele and Sarah Gordon / The Thrill Electric by Leah Moore and John Reppion - issue 2 art by Emma Vieceli and Windflower Studios

For more info and a variety of formats you can stream or listen to this podcast in, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: The Thrill Electric website
Leah Moore and John Reppion’s website
Emma Vieceli’s website

The Peckham House for Invalids website
Buy Howard Hardiman’s other comics: Badger and The Lengths
Julia Scheele’s website
Sarah Gordon’s website

Recommended event:

Nobrow anthology launch

On Thursday November 3rd at the impossibly fashionable bar Jaguar Shoes, 32 Kingsland Rd, Shoreditch, the pubishers of Luke Pearson’s books Nowbrow press will be launching their new anthology from 6.30pm.

More info: www.comicafestival.com

Panel Borders: Peckham Invalids and The Thrill Electric [ 36:45 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Panel Borders: New Small Press anthologies

Continuing our month of shows about new British comics, Alex Fitch chats to the editors of two new Small Press anthologies which are launching next month. Mike Medaglia talks about Dot Comics, an anthology title he edits with Elliot Baggott which collects the best examples of online web comics onto the printed page, with the first issue including extracts from Tozo: The Public Servant, Josceline Fenton’s Hemlock and Philippa Rice’s My Cardboard Life. The author of the first of those strips is our second guest this week as David O’Connell talks about his new anthology project ink+PAPER, which will showcase new work by Barnaby Richards, Ellen Lindner, Lizz Lunney, Hugh “Shug” Raine, Cliodhna Lyons, Dan Berry, Joe Decie and many more.

Cover of dot Comics and interior page by Josceline Fenton, ink+PAPER and interior page by Barnaby Richards

For more info and a variety of formats you can stream or listen to this podcast in, please visit the home of this episode at www.archive.org

Links: dot Comics and Mike Medaglia facebook pages
Wet Ashes web comic by Mike Medaglia and Lisa Woynarski

ink+PAPER website
Tozo: The Public Servant web comic by David O’Connell
David’s blog www.scribblehound.com

Electric Sheep Magazine illustration by Mike Medaglia and comic strip review by David O’Connell

Recommended events:

Mike and Laura Allred signing

At Orbital Comics on Great Newport Street in London, on Sunday 29th October, Mike and Laura Allred will be doing a signing of their work, including the pop art classics Madman and X-Statics

5pm, 29th October, Orbital Comics, 8 Great Newport Street

Nobrow anthology launch

On Thursday November 3rd at the impossibly fashionable bar Jaguar Shoes, 32 Kingsland Rd, Shoreditch, the pubishers of Luke Pearson’s books Nowbrow press will be launching their new anthology from 6.30pm.

More info: www.comicafestival.com

Panel Borders: New Small Press anthologies [ 29:08 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download