Comic fans, be on the lookout-or back a book

Had a good long talk the other day with comic book artist and buddy Andrew
Mangum, and he had some kick-ass news to share. For one thing, he has a
couple of new projects in the works, including a cover, and new books. But
biggest of the big news was that he’s *the* guy on the new DC title,
Star-Spangled War Stories. Huh? Star-Spangled War Stories, you say? You
mean, like the old Star-Spangled War Stories? Yep, DC is reviving the title,
along with Wierd War Tales and several other combat-related books you old
fogy’s like me oughta remember from when you were growing up and were into
comics more than Penthouse. And, guess what? Not only is Andrew slinging the
inks on this baby, but old friend Bill Tucci (SHI), is writing it. Pretty
damned cool, finding that out. Know what else was a blast-from-the-past?
That Tom Derenick is pencilling (along with Justiniano). Tom’s an old CFD
contrib, having done the mini-series Scimidar for us back in the day, and
illustrating my story from the Subtle Violents series that imploded after a
single ish. Amazing how many guys I know or who I got to work with who are
still tearing it up in comics.

Here’s the solicitation info, and the link to the DC page. Oh, and Brian
Bolland, who I’m pretty sure I interviewed for Fred Greenberg ages ago,
provides the cover. Go check it out, and then get to your local comic book
shop and order a copy. Or two. Or five.

http://www.dccomics.com/dcu/comics/?cm=15539

Okay, there you have it on the goings-on over at DC. But like I said, Andrew’s got
several projects in the works, and here’s the other one that sounds like my kinda book.

Blood and Bones

See the Trailer on Kickstarter

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christianberanek/blood-and-bones-a-military-horror-comic-by-christi-0

Hit the link, and tell me that the title alone doesn’t make you want to kick in
to ensure it happens. From what Andrew’s shared with me, this book is Grade-A gory.
I mean really violent. I think we spent a good twenty minutes just talking guys’
heads getting blown off and eviscerations and splatter and intestines flying like
unspooling fishing line on a rod gone out of control. But, hell, who’d expect different
with a title like Blood and Bones? Anyway, get together a couple of bucks, scrape
out the change from your couch, and get behind this one. Especially if you’re one
of the comic readers who regularly laments, “Mainstream comics suck.” Yeah, yeah,
I was hearing the same back in ‘89 when I was just getting into the biz, and I know,
while the big 3 and some companies with cash can occasionally put out good stuff,
everybody always bitches about the same thing. Then, they bitch about the independents
having to print in black and white, or charging the same four bucks for a b/w book that
Marvel or Image would be putting out in color. Hey, that’s the nature of the beast.
Sure, if you’re paying out of pocket, yeah, you can publish a book with wall-to-wall
gore and naked chicks with great racks who curse like truck stop whores who’ve done
a little prison time. But usually, the indie guys can’t front a book that looks like IDW ran it,
on the best paper, in color, with cardstock covers and Alex Ross providing painted cover art.
So…you gotta take what you can get, and from the sounds of it, Blood and Bones is the
kinda book you ain’t gonna be getting out of Marvel any time soon. Like, in your lifetime.

So, that’s the skinny on some good stuff getting cranked up from both sides of the
publishing fence. The haves over at DC, and the have balls from Christian and Andrew.

Listen, I’m not gonna bullshit you. I wouldn’t recommend an issue of, say, Iron Man
no matter who was working on it. Probably because it’d suck, and I don’t give a damn
about Iron Man and never did. Or Power Man and Iron Fist, or whoever it is they might
be trying to revive or turn into a franchiseable movie character. But a one-shot war
book and a book drenched in chaos and death and squishy internal organs? Yeah,
*that* I can get behind. Hope you feel the same way about these two.

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Currently listening to: Chemical Imbalance by Skatenigs