Booze & Banter W/ Palmiotti, Connor, Johnson, Bradstreet & Jane

Years ago, I bid on the Quesada lunch at NYCC (also for Hero Initiative) just for the splash it would have made. It was not very long after Mr. Anonymous gave me spoilers for Secret Invasion due to being incensed by the "marvel_b0y" viral campaign. I wasn't so much excited about the opportunity to talk with Mr. Quesada as I was interested in it generating some additional attention for the site while donating to an excellent cause.


You know what I'd gladly bid on for the sheer enjoyment of the meeting?

Join funnyman and writer Jimmy Palmiotti along with Amanda Connor, Tom Jane, Tim Bradstreet, and the Rev. Dave Johnson for conversation and cocktails at Long Beach’s Gladstone’s Restaurant, near The Long Beach Convention Center, Friday, October 29, 5 -7pm to help raise money for Hero Initiative.

Amanda Connor of Power Girl and Supergirl, actor Tom Jane of The Punisher, Boogie Nights, Thin Red Line and HBO’s current dark comedy Hung, Eisner Award-nominated illustrator Tim Bradstreet, and one of the finest cover designers ever, The Reverend Dave Johnson, will join Jimmy Palmiotti in one room talking about what drives them in this industry…and what drives them crazy in the industry. Who knows where the conversation will go? This is a private party YOU do not want to miss.

This thing here? If I could make it to Cali and had the slightest amount of scratch to put together, I'd be intent on winning that for the experience. Just Jimmy & Amanda would seem to be a damned interesting hang. Adding the others? An intimidatingly interesting hang (intimidating in as much as there'd be an overload of "interesting"). 


It's kinda odd that they refer to Jimmy as a "funnyman". He's got quite a sense of humor, but I'm used to seeing the term only attached to stand-up comics and the like. Maybe Mr. Palmiotti has been hitting open mic nights at Florida comedy clubs? ;)

Note To Comic Book PR Staff

It's great when you hit your press list to see who is going to be at the convention. That's a nice touch.

When your query is answered in the affirmative, responding "Huxford for the win!" (or, you know, the applicable name)? 

As I had to debate making it to the convention (sadly settling on sitting it out), the enthusiastic response from that publisher's publicity team was responsible for my waffling several times towards the "I'm going" side of my mental struggle. I guarantee that it would have caused me to make a special effort to cover them. Definitely adds positively to that touch. Hell, it could have been a standard response for all I know, but it still had the desired effect. You could tell me it was a form response, but, given the infectious enthusiasm displayed by this company's PR team/individual in the past, I'd be inclined to think it was heartfelt and it being a "form" was just an attempt to "work smarter, not harder" rather than evidence of being disingenuous. 

I won't call out the team or individual I'm praising here. I've praised them in the past and they'll know I'm referring to them if they see this. I sometimes worry that someone within the industry will get judged negatively for showing me a kindness, so I'd prefer to err on the side of caution (as paranoid as I'm aware that sounds).

"We Thought, 'Why Does Every Indy Book Have To Be Rated R?'"

Yes.





All indie books are rated R, just like there is no long form, thoughtful criticism of deserving comic books or graphic novels out there.

None of these exist.








They are like the Easter Bunny.








Or like Santa Claus.






(I know a male-friendly lesbian, so it doesn't fit here)







They are figments of your fucking imagination.

Pay no attention to the links to purchase below.

Perhaps Bendis is just shocked that no one has been brave or pioneering enough to do an all ages indie book with such a small company like Marvel supporting them?

All ball busting aside, it is great that two big name professionals are directing some attention to all ages work. If I were a bigger fan of POWERS, I might be pissed that the team is putting another project in the way of what was supposed to be an ongoing series they relaunched together. But it's still nice that they're doing this.

A friend of mine pointed out that the quote referenced in the title of this entry rubbed him the wrong way. It seemed to him that Bendis was trying to claim that they were working in uncharted territory here. Perhaps that colored the way I read the quote, as well.

If Bendis was thinking more along the lines of "why does every indy book from best selling creators" or "...from my circle of friends", he might be more accurate (even though MICE TEMPLAR is probably as all ages as MOUSE GUARD). But then his answer might be that all ages books are more often a labor of love than a financially successful endeavor, at least or especially in the direct market. 

I'm sure he's hopeful that it sells really well on the strength of the names involved, but will still be content if the project doesn't succeed financially, as long as he feels it succeeded creatively. If that's the case, I really do applaud him for it, despite what you may think from the tone of most of this entry.

PR: MyDigitalComics.com Goes BOOM!

For Immediate Release: MYDIGITALCOMICS.COM GOES BOOM! BOOM! STUDIOS ANNOUNCES NEW VENUE TO OBTAIN BOOM! STUDIOS' DIGITAL COMICS WITH MYDIGITALCOMICS.COM HIT RECENT RELEASES AVALIBLE TODAY ENTIRE BACKLIST AVALIBLE SOON! Thursday, October 7th, 10am PST – Los Angeles, CA, / NYC, NY / Fort Wayne, IN – BOOM! Studios proudly adds MyDigitalComics (www.mydigitalcomics.com) as another venue to bring you some of the finest, award-winning BOOM! Studios comics digitally this fall. Take your digital comics anywhere as MyDigitalComics offers BOOM! Studios' comics online through MyDigitalComics new page flipper format that fans everywhere can read on a either Mac or PC! MyDigitalComics now makes it easier than ever to read your favorite BOOM! Studios titles! MyDigitalComics launches its partnership with BOOM! today with some of BOOM!’s most recent top-selling comics, such as 28 DAYS LATER, DIE HARD, the Eisner Award-nominated graphic translation of Philip K. Dick’s DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?, as well as BOOM!’s bestselling original Mark Waid penned Eisner and Harvey Award-nominated IRREDEEMABLE, companion series INCORRUPTIBLE, and supernatural thriller THE UNKNOWN among a host of others. All BOOM! Studios single issue digital comics are priced at $1.99 with the first half of each series’ first issue available to download for free. “BOOM! Studios is always looking to further our commitment to getting our comics and graphic novels into the hands of fans everywhere ,” said BOOM! Studios Marketing Director Chip Mosher. “This new agreement with MyDigitalComics only shows how strong the commitment to our fans is. BOOM! Studios publishes some of the most diverse comics out there, and the addition of MyDigitalComics shows that we have the most diverse options for new and old fans alike to experience our comics digitally.” Fans of BOOM! Studios should also be aware that the entire BOOM! Studios backlist will be released through MyDigitalComics in the coming months, so make sure to frequent www.mydigitalcomics.com to keep up to date with all the latest BOOM! Studios digital releases. MyDigitalComics' groundbreaking association with online print retailers Discount Comic Book Service (DCBS) and InStockTrades also allows fans an immediate opportunity to buy print versions of their favorite BOOM! titles at a price point sure to excite readers! BOOM! Studios’ addition of MyDigitalComics (www.mydigitalcomics.com) as a digital distributor of a BOOM! Studios front and backlist comes soon after BOOM!’s summer 2010 release of the BOOM! Studios Comics App on the iPad and iPhone, developed in partnership with comiXology, which came in at #7 in all ebook free app downloads on the day of release, coming right behind Marvel's app. MyDigitalComics joins a growing list of digital distributors such as comiXology, iVerse, Graphic.ly, and Panelfly, offering BOOM! Studios publications digitally and extending BOOM!’s commitment to reach comic fans everywhere. Long a leader in the digital comics space, BOOM! Studios shocked the comics industry in early 2008 with the first day-and-date print and digital release of their comic book NORTH WIND, in partnership with MySpace.  BOOM! is also noted as one of the first comic book publishers to make their comics available through mobile devices such as the iPhone, iPod Touch and Android mobile devices. Along with an aggressive digital distribution strategy, BOOM! Studios also has some of the most varied and diverse print distribution of any comic book publishing company. This past spring, BOOM! Studios announced that Haven Distributors would be carrying the full line of BOOM! Studios and BOOM Kids! new releases to the direct market. In the Summer of 2009, BOOM! Studios announced mass market distribution deals with Simon & Schuster and HarperCollinsCanada, with Simon & Schuster distributing BOOM! Studios and BOOM Kids! lines of graphic novels in the United States and HarperCollinsCanada distributing in Canada. In the Spring of 2009, BOOM! announced a newsstand distribution deal for their BOOM Kids! line through Kable Distribution Services, Inc., best known amongst comic book fans for distributing Archie Comics throughout North America in the United States and Canada. The entire BOOM! Studios and BOOM Kids! line of publications are also offered in the direct market by Diamond Comics Distributors and Haven Distributors. About BOOM! Studios: BOOM! Studios (www.boom-studios.com), 2009 "Best Publisher" of the year, generates a wide-ranging catalog of multiple Eisner and Harvey Award-nominated comic books and graphic novels featuring some of the industry’s top talent, including Philip K. Dick's DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?, 20th Century Fox's 28 DAYS LATER and DIE HARD, The Henson Company's FARSCAPE, and the original Mark Waid series IRREDEEMABLE. This fall sees BOOM! teaming up with the legendary Stan Lee, creator of Marvel Comics’ characters Spider-Man, The Hulk, and The X-Men for a line of original superhero series, the legend’s first new superhero creations in nearly 20 years. BOOM!'s youth imprint, BOOM Kids!, is an undisputed industry leader publishing Disney/Pixar's THE INCREDIBLES, CARS, and TOY STORY, as well as Disney's THE MUPPETS, DONALD DUCK, UNCLE SCROOGE and WALT DISNEY'S COMICS AND STORIES. This year, BOOM! Studios celebrates its fifth anniversary. About MyDigitalComics: An up and comer in the digital comics market place, MyDigitalComics (www.mydigitalcomics.com), provides fans a digital option for their comics and offers titles in PDF, CBZ, and page flipper formats. MDC works in affiliation with Discount Comic Book Service (www.dcbservice.com). DCBS is one of the nation’s largest comics retailers and its sister store, InStockTrades (www.instocktrades.com), is a mainstay of the collected edition market, keeping over 11,000 individual trade paperback and hardcover titles in stock.

Respecting Sources

It should go without saying that inside/confidential sources are respected and protected. But after seeing BleedingCool.com feel the need to spell it out, let me make it clear.

If you have any information you want to get out to the people, I don't give up sources or bow to pressure. I'm not afraid of being burnt or blacklisted. I don't worry that an unflattering but true story will kill my chances at having a project published somewhere down the line. I couldn't be plied or bought into giving up source by the carrot or the stick.

If you have something truly newsworthy, I'm interested.