Coming Soon: Amazing Arizona Comics Quarterly #1
I've been teasing it for weeks, and now the proof is in the pudding -- er, I mean, at the printer. The cover says $3.00, but Amazing Arizona Comics Quarterly #1 will be offered online for a limited time for only $2.50 (which includes postage)! When the copies are in hand, an exclusive Paypal button will be available here -- until then, dig that cover, featuring June Monsoon and Arizona's first governor, now the GovernMummy!
Amazing Arizona Research
While living in Phoenix is research enough for my superhero-driven political satire Amazing Arizona Comics, I often take pictures or collect memorabilia in, about, or outside of the city to keep the inspiration coming.
The Westward Ho is one of Phoenix's most historical buildings, and in my attempts to study artistic perspective and local architecture, I snapped this shot a few years ago. Don't be surprised if you see Speed Cameron or the Cactus Renegade perched atop that ledge in an upcoming issue of Amazing Arizona Comics!
Cool Cosplay
I get to see a lot of cool cosplay at the cons I attend, and rather than post endless slideshows of fat Batmen, I like to feature one great costume at a time, ideally revealing the wearer's creativity, originality, and most importantly to me practicality. Now, I should've included this pic with my Shia LaBeouf strip a few weeks ago, since it features Indiana Jones . . . Alas, let the mind wander to ponder what circumstances would put Indy in a position to team up with Spider-man and Deadpool. Of course, time travel would be required -- speaking of which . . .
This Week's Intake
This week's intake strayed from the usual comics and zines. Firstly, my wife and I had the pleasure of catching Tom Wilson, a.k.a. Biff from Back to the Future, at Phoenix's Stand-Up Live. He gets the Biff stuff out of the way pretty quickly, and his act is genuinely hilarious, and even a bit theatrical. Considering Harold Ramis' passing last week, seeing Wilson, another actor from a favorite '80s franchise, was surprisingly and appreciatively cathartic.
On Saturday, we stumbled into an antique show hosted by the Phoenix Antiques, Bottles, and Collectibles Club, which I didn't know existed. The show was great, featuring many vendors with old, genuine Arizona memorabilia, and I picked up an old issue of Arizona Living featuring Arizona Republic political cartoonist Benson. The article was informative and inspiring, considering I hail Reg Manning, Bil Keane, and Steve Benson a veritable holy trinity of local cartooning. I'll end this post with the best quote, and one that'll drive Amazing Arizona Comics for the near future:
"A cartoonist owes it to himself to draw only what he believes and can defend. In the process he oversimplifies, grossly exaggerates and uses stereotypes. But a cartoonist must cut through all the fluff and get right to the marrow. Because we oversimplify and present only one viewpoint, readers often become angry. Either people love you or hate you. In this profession, you can't expect moderate reaction from your cartoon."
"A cartoonist owes it to himself to draw only what he believes and can defend. In the process he oversimplifies, grossly exaggerates and uses stereotypes. But a cartoonist must cut through all the fluff and get right to the marrow. Because we oversimplify and present only one viewpoint, readers often become angry. Either people love you or hate you. In this profession, you can't expect moderate reaction from your cartoon."
