One of the unique challenges of the manga publishing industry is the challenge of taking a product in the Japanese language and translating it for English-speaking audiences. Translating isn’t just converting one word of vocabulary to another. A good translation starts with a firm foundation of both languages and their idiosyncrasies, and then uses strong…
NYCC: Escape the World
On the Friday of New York Comic Con (NYCC), as I descended into the depths of the Javits Center in search of Artist Alley, I had one thing on my mind: how could I balance having fun at this con with my justified worry about American politics? With that in mind, I toured Level 1,…
Making Frankenstein Personal: An Interview with ‘Called Into Being’ Frankenstein Zine Contributors
The Called Into Being zine Kickstarter (which has been fully funded!) describes itself as a celebration of the personal connection people feel with Mary Shelley’s landmark science fiction novel Frankenstein. We reached out to the zine contributors to talk more about their personal histories to the Frankenstein novel and adaptations of the story. Our thanks…
An Interview With Sarah Stern, Comics Person
Sarah Stern has provided the rich color work I’ve appreciated in many BOOM! titles, including Goldie Vance and Giant Days. At FlameCon this summer, I was excited to meet her and to be introduced to her webcomic, Cindersong. Sarah, whose business card reads, “Comics Person,” balances between solo work on Cindersong and color work on various…
Tini Howard’s Captain America
Writer Tini Howard takes Captain America and Bucky back to their origins with a World War II story in Captain America Annual #1. The story involves Cap and Bucky protecting World War II concentration camp escapees, an element of World War II that many Cap stories have shied away from. It’s a dark time in our…
Dream Daddy Dreams with Josh Trujillo
Rose City Comic Con is the kind of laid back, chill convention where interviews feel more like conversations. After reading Dream Daddy #1 and becoming an enthusiastic fan of the new series, I contacted Oni Press to see about an interview with Josh Trujillo, who was the only creator from the just released Dream Daddy…
Twisting Up A Dickens Classic: An Interview with the Creative Team Behind “Olivia Twist”
Reinventing a classic to another time or medium is an opportunity to breathe fresh life into the work. How many of us were inspired to revisit high school English reading list staples Romeo and Juliet or The Great Gatsby after Baz Luhrmann put his own spin on them? Or finally understood the themes behind A Wrinkle in Time after Hope Larson’s…
Pia Guerra Gets Political
Pia Guerra is best known as the co-creator and lead penciler of Y: The Last Man, but these days you’re more likely to spot her work on The Nib or in the New Yorker. Starting in 2017, Guerra has been drawing detailed editorial cartoons, tackling issues like school shootings, immigration, and possibly most importantly, critiquing…
Comic Book Trailers and Their Creation: A Chat with Dark Horse Comics
Comic book trailers have been a staple of the comics industry for over ten years. The short visual previews of a new series is a fun way for fans to anticipate comics releases, and an effective marketing method for publishers. It’s hard to say what the first comic book trailer was. The earliest one available…
A Very Special Series: Talking About Blackbird with Jen Bartel
Blackbird Jen Bartel (Illustrator/Cover Artist), Sam Humphries (Writer) October 3, 2018 Image Comics Exquisite, neon, full of mystery and magic, Blackbird emerges from its careful gestation over the last few years in time for Halloween this year. The fresh, witchy, creator-owned neo-noir series is set in LA against the backdrop of unexplained magical phenomena and family relationships….
Women Making Comics: Gina Gagliano on Her Career, Her Journey into Comics and Her Move to Random House
Gina Gagliano is nothing less than a powerhouse in the comics industry. Creating a name for herself at First Second, Gagliano has been a force for good when it comes to making sequential storytelling accessible, exciting, and interesting. It was with great pleasure that I chatted with Gagliano about her decade long career, her love…
Ignatz Award Winner Mis(h)adra Shares An Accurate Depiction of The Seizure Disorder Experience
When the graphic novel Mis(h)adra was first released in October 2017 and I heard about the personal story of a young man named Isaac who deals with epilepsy, I knew I had to read it. It is a semi-autobiographical tale written and illustrated by creator Iasmin Omar Ata. In Mis(h)adra, Ata explores their past struggles with…