Biff Bam Pow Comics

No - I’ve not been lax in writing a Web Comic Wednesday Presents feature - I had one lined up and ready to go, but then someone suggested I do something ever so slightly different.

So this week I’m turning the tables a little to find out what your favourite web comic is - and why…!

Lads and lasses, ladies and gentlemen rollup rollup rollup - you are hereby invited to add a comment to this post and let us know - what is your Web Comic of choice this Wednesday?

It’s that time again! Mid-way through the week - a brand spanking new web comic feature - this week all about Mike Witmer’s Pinkerton!

So, I was browsing on Drunk Duck the other day, and I was up for something a little ‘fun’. After a quick search and a few random button clicks, my eyes gazed upon Pinkerton for the first time. And crikey-o-reily was it good.

Explaining Pinkerton is a little difficult - but think Garfield with even more attitude, mix in a couple of squirrels, add a moose, blend for around 15-20 minutes, and you’re getting close. Then add the paste to the Pinkerton National Park, throw in a little angst over Christmas, a few arguments here and there, and a travel down river in a barrel with a mobile phone and around 2 litres of water.

Serve in a glass with a slice of lemon, and you’re pretty much there.

In short - (as you may have guessed) Pinkerton is more than a little unique - which is its biggest strength. So if you’ve got ten minutes to spare and you feel like a laugh - click here to visit PinkertonPark.com…!

I’m sat here, listening to a little music, thinking about Atland by Nate Piekos, and my tiny little brain is hung up on a question. “What can I say about Atland to point out how good it is?”

Those of you who will have read Nate’s work will already know that it’s a pretty tough question to answer. Atland isn’t quite comedy, isn’t quite serious, isn’t quite fantasy, and isn’t quite a comic-strip…

What it is however, is a bloody good whatever it is.

In my (humble) opinion, Nate is quite simply one of the best artists in web comics today. His work always seems ‘fresh’, his characters always exciting, and his scenes stealing the best lessons from Marvel’s ‘how to’ guide.

And along with this - Nate also has managed to pull off a pretty compelling storyline. Compelling enough to make me read 191 strips in one sitting, and come back for the latest strip this evening.

But I haven’t even begun to tell you what Atland is about.

The comic revolves around Barry the Brave, Bruce the Minotaur and ‘Inky’ McGuiness, who travel across Atland to help Lily White fulfill her final mission as last Priestess to the Love Goddess, Ria. Along the way, they come across some of Atland’s more oddbeat residents, and learn about life (and the secrets of their companions) along the road.

And you know, if that doesn’t really ’sell’ it to you - my words aren’t doing it any justice. Click here to visit Atland - and see how good it is for yourself…

You’ve got to love Wednesdays. It’s the middle of the week, there are only two more days of work left, meaning that there’s 48 hours until the weekend and you get yourself a brand new web comic to browse through.

This week - Subnormality by ‘Winston Roundtree‘ (not his real name) is under the spotlight, which has been a regular feature on Drunk Duck since late 2007, and more importantly, part of ‘Winston’s’ very own website - Virus Comix.

Subnormality, is pretty much exactly what it says on the tin - lots of nonsense, far away from the norm, jam packed full of surreal commentary, all of which - is thoroughly enjoying through and through. ‘Winston’ shows some clear influences from underground comics (and Robert Crumb’s work in particular), which manages to give the strip a brilliant ‘polished but rough round the edges’ feel.

Strips especially worth of comment are: Irony Detector, Opposite World, Alternate Reality, About the Author and Perspective Man - check out ‘Winston’s’ Subnormality, by clicking here!

Past Web Comic Wednesdays have shown me some pretty fantastic stuff. And today, reading Awakenings by Eric Hobbs - I’m happy to say this is still the case. 

Awakenings is a web comic that is ever so slightly different to the usual Wednesday entry. Different in that it wasn’t originally conceived to be a web comic.

Eric’s work has previously seen both print, and critical acclaim. But sadly, not enough sales to keep the book on the shelves.

So, as with many things, Awakenings was temporarily ’shelved’, putting Gabe Pena’s brilliant artwork and Eric’s future story plans to one side. But Eric Hobbs, much like the Cylons, had a plan.

He always intended to come back to the book, and do it justice. And now, via the web, he is.

Awakenings opens with an interesting setup (which I won’t spoil), remeniscent of  Top Cow books such as Witchblade or Tomb Raider. An action filled sequence, filled full of excitement, with a dash of mystery. Good ingredients for a nice comic-shaped pie, well worth digesting.

In reading Eric’s work, I can’t help but think about how the sheer quality of work on the web at the moment, is truly amazing. Just look at Two Rooks, Real Life or The Fart Party if you’re in any way skeptical or unconvinced. Or - even better - have a look at Awakenings itself.

It’s always good to find something new that you genuinely enjoy doing. Going for a walk along a particular track, riding a bike in an open forest, watching the latest installment in your favourite film franchise, or - my new hobby - reading Greg Dean’s Real Life.

Real Life follows a cartoon version of Greg through his misadventures in modern society, detailing how he, and those around him, deal with the big events in life (such as grabbing a new in-demand iPhone 3G, or watching out for alternate timeline flatscreen TVs). Deep stuff.

It’s wonderful to say that Greg appears to be one of those rarest of rare comic strip creators - someone that never fails to make a reader smile.

Happily, Greg has been posting Real Life on t’interweb since 1999, and recently reached his landmark 2000th strip. Greg appears to be going from strength to strength, and has no plans to quit anytime soon!

Click here to visit Real Life!

Hi everyone - just a quick note - I woke up this morning after reading Final Crisis, and felt compelled to write to DC. I’ve sat back for far too long and watched characters I enjoy become mauled. I don’t know if Dan will respond to my email - but certainly hope he does.

If so - the full email will be posted up online.

- - - -

Dear Dan,

Please forgive the emotions that may come through in this letter to you. I assure you - they are all from a true DC fan, who is sadly disappointed with the current situation of his favourite comics.

I really don’t know where to begin.

Since I was a boy, I have absolutely loved Batman, and the world that he lives in. As I grew, I learned more about the characters around him, and the universe that has twisted and turned so often over the past years.

And that’s probably what is at the heart of this letter.

I appreciate the need to ‘clean house’. And - I especially appreciate it, when storylines become bloated, characters confusing, and worlds difficult to manage.

This is why I totally understood Crisis on Infinite Earths, and one of the reasons I supported it wholeheartedly.

However. The main reason I supported the original Crisis, was because the storyline was brilliant. Deaths were truly memorable, and you couldn’t help but feel the impact of the storyline within each and every issue.

It truly was, and still is, comic book gold.

Fast forward a little to Infinite Crisis, and we have something of a question mark. I know the need to have a ‘big event’ every now and then, bringing new readers into the fold, and rewarding regular subscribers with big surprises - and suppose Infinite Crisis managed to achieve this fairly well.

In its wake however, DC Comics were left with a problem. A missing year. And so came 52, which, for the most part, was perfectly acceptable (although sometimes it did feel a little rushed) in showcasing the story of DC’s missing year.

The ending of 52 came as a slight surprise (which had been heavily hinted at) - the multiverse was back. Although now it wasn’t infinite - there were still 52 earths to look after, with 52 different stories, each intricately linked to one another.

And so came Countdown. But a countdown to what? At this point - sadly, some people didn’t stick around to find out.

Whereas adding back in the multiverse opened up a massive tool for storytellers and artists alike - it somehow laughed in the face of Crisis on Infinite Earths, lessening its original impact.

I stuck with Countdown (reading my brother’s issues) right up to the final book. Sadly - I was thoroughly disappointed. I thought that some of my favourite characters coming together (Jason Todd, Kyle Rayner, Donna Troy, etc) would lead to something wonderful - but instead it seemed to lead nowhere.

Since starting Biff Bam Pow Comics, I’ve been doing my level best to review comics, offer thoughts and give opinions. And I hate to say this to you - but a consistent thought and opinion is coming through from those who read my pages.

Disappointment in DC comics.

Marvel (aside from Brand New Day) seem to be offering some very quality work recently. Quality work which, frankly, is beginning to make you look bad.

I’ve read a number of DC books over the past few months, and I’ve tried my best to keep an open mind about them. However - the list of DC books that I’m now willing to buy and read (based on my recent experience) is dwindling, and the list that I’m unwilling to buy or read is growing by the day.

Please help change this. Please point me towards the great storylines that I, and those who talk to me, are obviously missing. They must be there, hidden away somewhere in a corner.

Or at least - I sincerely hope they are.

Dan, I honestly hope you take a moment to respond to this email, and put a small ammount of fears to rest. We all want to buy DC comics. But at the moment, we’re just afraid of what we’ll get if we do.

Yours Sincerley,

Pete Lancaster
Biff Bam Pow Comics

Yes - that’s right - the call is going out as far and as wide as MySpace, my circle of friends, your circle of friends, the main blog, the second blog, Facebook and the interweb can get it - I want you to be a part of Biff Bam Pow Comics!

Whether you’ve got something new going on in the world of comics, you’re looking to showcase some of your art, remind people that you’re still around, or just want to let the world know what you think of any comics you’re reading - I want to hear from you…!

Drop me a line on MySpace, tell me who you are and what you’re up to (if I haven’t yet met you) and I’ll get in touch with you as soon as I can…!

The future’s bright - the future is. Biff Bam Pow Comics and you!

Man alive, am I a convert. Looking back, I find it pretty hard to believe that I’ve only just started to read Web Comics. There’s just so much quality goodness out there that I’m stumbling across and enjoying.

Quality goodness just like Alice Fox’s ‘Two Rooks’.

Unlike many Web Comics, Alice (to quote Battlestar Galactica) ‘has a plan’ for the series, which will see a story arc pan out over some 800 pages or so.

The 800 pages are going to be broken down into four books (of which, Alice is deep into drawing the first, at the time of writing having posted some 130 pages), each of which will eventually find their way into print. And each of which, could easily become collectable.

Two Rooks is a manga-esqe comic beautifully drawn in black and white (with the odd splash of colour), which mainly follows Deatoura O’Malley, an ex member of the Suits, who has just taken a very dangerous job - which could easily be his last…

Very much worth a look, Alice’s work will remind you of Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta, DC’s Checkmate and 2000AD’s Sinister / Dexter, and will give you a few gruesome images reminiscent of Kill Bill Vol 1 in between.

A quick prediction for the future - Alice Fox is a creator to watch.

Checkout ‘Two Rooks’ by clicking here!

So there I was, browsing through t’interweb last week, when I a little note popped up from my mail client to tell me I had a new message.

“Please moderate comment” was the mail - with the comment being a simple “review me”, from Spleenal.

Intrigued, I followed the link to his blog, and browsed through the comic (Where I Vent My Spleen) on offer, out of curiosity more than anything else.

Bugger me if the blog isn’t filled full of good strips.

As you read through Where I Vent My Spleen, you’ll notice that Spleenal has taken a great deal of time to capture the frustration of life, and play heavily on its inherent funny side. Doing this well (which he does) is something particularly hard to do consisently. Happily - this isn’t a problem.

I imagine that it’d been said before, but there is some brilliantly funny material within the blog - which I’d go so far as to say is worthy of becoming a collected book, something that I sincerely hope is in the works.

Take a moment out of your day - especially if it’s stress filled - and visit Where I Vent My Spleen. It’ll be worth your while.

Oh - and it’s home grown - from the UK - so it must be great!