Friday, February 29, 2008  
This Weekend: Salon du livre de l'Outaouais

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/29/2008 06:01:00 AM

The 29th Salon du livre de l'Outaouais aura lieu 28 Feb-2 March 2008,
Palais des congres de Gatineau
200, promenade du Portage,
Gatineau, Quebec

Comics guests include Djief, Eva Rollin & mangaka Jessica Samson-Tshimbalanga

details here

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Tonite: Festival de la BD Jeanne-Mance

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/29/2008 06:00:00 AM

a comics event at a school:

Le Festival de la BD Jeanne-Mance
Grande-Salle de l'ecole Jeanne-Mance
Drummondville, Quebec
Vendredi 29 fevrier 2008
De 19h a 21h

details here
free admission

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Friday Links: Heidi on Dave, Prisoners of Gravity

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/29/2008 01:00:00 AM


above: the opening sequence from Prisoners of Gravitym by Ty Templeton.

  • The Beat's Heidi MacDonald writes a long post on Dave Sim. While claiming Sim is "one of the world's greatest living cartoonists", MacDonald goes on to detail Sim's misogyny and double standards and the double standards of those who seemingly ignore his "dark side" for the sake of art or charity. Tom Spurgeon has a nice follow-up and critic Charles Hatfield has some very insightful things to say in the comments section.
  • Review of Aline and the Others by Guy Delisle.
  • Mark your calendars: cartoonist Michel Rabagliati will be in Toronto, Saturday, March 5, for a slideshow and Q+A. Toronto Public Library, Lillian H. Smith Building, downstairs auditorium, 239 College Street.
  • Statscan says spending on reading is down.
  • Cartoonist Troy Little is one of the contributors to a pinback exhibit in PEI, according to the Walrus Blog.

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In Production: Gustav Hayes by Morgan Jeske

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/29/2008 12:01:00 AM
Vancouver web start-up Zeros 2 Heroes asserts that it is publishing its first comic book, a post-apocalyptic adventure called Gustav Hayes written by first-timer Morgan Jeske.

From the press release:

Zeros 2 Heroes Media is currently producing Gustav Hayes from Winnipeg creator Morgan Jeske. Jeske is working with editors and artists provided by Zeros 2 Heroes Media to bring his comic to life on the page.
"With 'Gustav Hayes' I hold the genre close to my heart. Science Fiction has always appealed to me, more so than Fantasy for instance. My hope is that some people read the book, and decide that they'd like to read more stories like it. In all seriousness, the fact that I'll have had a comic book published, is an amazing event for me," says Jeske on the excitement around his book.
Gustav Hayes centers on a broken anti-hero amidst the post apocalyptic nightmare of a world he is in. Gustav is a former 80's-style pop singer that battles hordes of evil creatures sent to destroy the remnants of civilization. Morgan Jeske is currently working with Zeros 2 Heroes comic editors and artists to produce his very first comic. As part of the agreement, Zeros 2 Heroes Media not only produces Jeske's book, but they will be working to get fan and media driven publicity from his hometown of Winnipeg Manitoba.
"I've been interested in the potential of Web comics for a long time," says Zeros 2 Heroes Editor-in-Chief Paul Dini. "I thought that was a very supportive way to bring new talent into what has generally been a tough business for novices."
Zeros 2 Heroes Media will be providing Jeske with his own online publication as well as putting together a plan to help get the word out to various media sources. The intention is to have not only a piece of professional work for his portfolio, but also to help him launch his professional writing career.
"Morgan's talent and creativity shines brightly in his story I think Gustav Hayes is one of those pieces of work that has potential," says Zeroes 2 Heroes Media Chairman Paul Gertz.
"This cross-platform entertainment opportunity is exactly what we're looking for in terms of our corporate mandate," says Western Region Director Earl Hong Tai of Telefilm Canada. Telefilm Canada plays in integral part in the development of Canadian writers and artists and helping pitches come to life with Canada Comic Creation Nation is another way for them to lend a hand.

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   Thursday, February 28, 2008  
Tonite: Montreal Comix Jam

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/28/2008 04:23:00 PM
Thursday, February 28, 8

details here

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Freedom to Read 2: links on comics, free speech, manga, and Quebec comics

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/28/2008 10:26:00 AM
  • On the heels of yesterday's report on attacks on comics in libraries comes news of the latest batch of comics seized by Canada Customs (via Journalista). Publishers include Fantagraphics/Eros and Icarus Publishing.
  • Michel Viau highlights some of the bd bestsellers in Montreal comic shops.
  • Some reports from last weekend's Kei-kon in Victoria: 1 2 3

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   Wednesday, February 27, 2008  
Weekly Bestsellers in Canada: Feb 27

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/27/2008 03:00:00 PM


The Top 50 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list is available here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through over 400 independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo and Walmart are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 50 overall and (at the bottom) the top 25 by Canadian creators.

Top 50 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada

1. (1) Bleach, Vol. 22, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
2. (4) Naruto, Vol. 2, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
3. (6) Tsubasa 16: Reservoir Chronicle (Paperback), Clamp (Random House)
4. (2) Naruto Vol. 25, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
5. (5) Naruto Vol. 26, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
6. (3) Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)
7. (14) Death Note, Vol. 13, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
8. (9) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
9. (8) Naruto Vol. 27, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
10. (-) Death Note, Vol. 4, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
11. (24) Death Note, Volume 3, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
12. (10) Death Note, Vol. 1, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
13. (7) Naruto Vol. 1, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
14. (40) Vampire Knight Vol. 2, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
15. (36) Naruto, Official Fanbook, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
16. (31) Death Note, Vol. 5, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
17. (-) Vampire Knight Vol. 1, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
18. (17) Hack Gu Vol. 1, Hamazaki Tatsuya (Tokyopop)
19. (11) Garfield Goes Bananas, Jim Davis (Random House)
20. (13) Naruto Vol. 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
-----
21. (12) Death Note, Vol. 2, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
22. (-)
Naruto Vol. 20, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
23.
(45) Dark Tower:The Gunslinger Born, Peter David (Marvel)
24.
(-) Naruto Vol. 17, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
25.
(16) Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5, Yuu Watase (VIZ)
26.
(19) Vampire Knight Vol. 3, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
27.
(23) Bleach, Vol. 1, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
28.
(25) Bleach, Vol. 2, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
29.
(20) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
30. (-) Asterix and the Falling Sky, Uderzo (Orion)
31. (-) Complete Persepolis, Satrapi (Knopf)
32.
(18) Naruto Vol. 24, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
33. (-) Hobbit Graphic Novel, Tolkien et al (Harpercollins)
34. (-) Death Note, Another Note (prose novel), Nisioisin (VIZ)
35.
(30) Naruto Vol. 23, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
36.
(15) Fruits Basket 1, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
37.
(26) Bleach, Vol. 3, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
38.
(43) Persepolis 2, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)
39.
(27) Naruto, Vol. 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
40.
(21) Negima! 16: Magister Negi Magi, Ken Akamatsu (Random House)
-----
41. (-) Homicidal Psycho Jungle Cat, Bill Watterson (Andrews McMeel)
42. (-) Naruto, Vol. 15, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
43. (32) Naruto, Vol. 18, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
44. (-) Shugo Chara! 3, Peach-Pit (Random House)
45. (22) The Far Side 2008 Desk Calendar, Gary Larson (Andrews McMeel)
46. (-) Kitchen Princess 5, Miyuki Kobayashi Natsumi Ando (Random House)
47. (47) Naruto Vol. 16, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
48. (49) Naruto Vol. 5, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
49. (34) Fruits Basket 3, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
50. (-) Naruto Vol. 19, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)

Lots more Naruto, again. The volumes tend to jump around quite a bit with very few ranks repeated week to week. The highest ranked Naruto always varies, but Naruto 16 hasbeen at #47 for three weeks now. A reflection of the actual market, or a function of BookManager's tracking software? Who can say? Naruto occupies 17 of the 50 spaces this week. Other titles jump around as well. Over the last 3 weeks, the Dark Tower has ranked 45, 14, and 23. Ditto Louis Riel, which has been 20, 25, and 37.

See here for last week's list. I've added last week's ranking in parentheses, with a (-) indicating an absence from the top 50 last week --although books that were not in the top 50 last week were most likely in the top 100, with the possible exception of a few newly published hits. The pattern that emerges from looking at these lists over a period of weeks is that certain books, especially manga series, continuously jostle with each other, sliding up and down the longer list on the strength of a new volume or a spate of purchases for the kiddies.

The BookManager List is a wondrous, scary place, where everyone from Todd Hignite to Charles Schulz to Dan DeCarlo to Oor Willie to Avril Lavigne duke it out and where one sale in one tiny bookstore can move a book from #999 to #200. This is also the place where you find books by Canadian creators and where our Canadian Top 25 comes from:

Sequential's All-Canadian Top 25
from BookManager

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (2) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
3. (4) Jellaby, Kean Soo (Hyperion)
4. (3) Essex County 1: Tales From the Farm, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
5. (7) Essex County 2: Ghost Stories, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
6. (10) Dramacon 3, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
7. (12) Teaching is a Learning Experience!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
8. (19) Scott Pilgrim 4, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
9. (5) The Plain Janes, Cecil Castellucci et al (DC/Minx)
10. (-) Skim, Marissa Tamaki/Jillian Tamaki (Groundwood)
-----
11. (6) Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea, Guy Delisle (D+Q)
12. (-) Last Straw (1985), Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
13. (-) Never Wink at a Worried Woman, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
14. (9) White Rapids, Pascal Blanchet (D+Q)
15. (8) Therefore Repent! Jim Munroe Salgood Sam (insomniac)
16. (22) The Collected New Frontier (Paperback), Darwyn Cooke (DC)
17. (-) Scott Pilgrim 3, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
18. (-) The New Frontier 1 (Paperback), Darwyn Cooke (DC)
19. (-) Northwest Passage: The Annotated Collection, Scott Chantler (Oni)
20. (11) Dramacon 2, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
-----
21. (-) Just One More Hug, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
22. (-) 365 Days, Julie Doucet (D+Q)
23. (-) Portfoolio 22, Guy Badoux et al (Mcarthur)
24. (13) Dramacon 1, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
25. (14) The Big 5-0, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)

An impressive debut for Skim and slightly less dominance for Lynn Johnston (6/25 vs 10/25 last week).





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Midweek Links

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/27/2008 08:00:00 AM

Reviews of recent Canadian graphic novels:

  • Patrick Berube reviews the bd album Magasin General, Vol 1 for CBB.
  • Zak Edwards reviews Essex County 2: Ghost Stories by Jeff Lemire at CBB.

News:
  • Reed Elsevier, the U.S. producer of Book Expo Canada, has announced the sale of its publishing division, including Publisher's Weekly and its subsidiaries, inclyding Heidi MacDonald's The Beat weblog.
  • Exclaim profiles the new Cumulus Press book, Extraction!
  • Emru Townsend of Frames prr Second magazine reviews an academic anthology about manga and anime, Mechademia 2: Networks of Desire.
  • Eye weekly profiles Toronto's The World's Biggest Bookstore.
  • Dave Sim reveals his other secret project, a history of the Holocaust, Judenhass.

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   Tuesday, February 26, 2008  
Freedom to Read: Library users accuse graphic novels of racism, pornography.

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/26/2008 12:41:00 AM

Report Says Patrons challenge books, videos
by Bryan Munn

Phillip Pullman's The Golden Compass, Dicken's Oliver Twist, and some of the best graphic novels ever published in Canada were among the library materials challenged by Canadian library users in 2007, according to a new survey released February 22.

The Canadian Library Association's 2nd annual Survey of Challenged Materials in Canadian Libraries identified 42 items challenged by patrons. Graphic novels were among the hardest hit by library patron "challenges" but film, video, and internet screening policies were also categories that were subject to scrutiny by the proverbial, overly-sensitive "concerned parents", nervous nellies and other book banning entities. The report was released on the occasion of Freedom to Read Week (Feb 24-March 1).

According to CLA President Alvin Schrader, author of the study Fear of Words: Censorship and the Public Libraries of Canada, not much has changed in the world of library complaints and censorship over the last 20 years. "The reasons given for challenges this past year strongly echo those documented in the mid-1980s. Librarians and public library trustees need to continue to be knowledgeable and articulate about potentially controversial topics and about our core values, freedom of expression and the freedom to receive information. If libraries don't create a safe space in Canadian society for as many voices as possible, nobody else will. This will always be an important policy goal for libraries in Canada."

To the credit of Canadian libraries and their knowledgeable Canadian librarians, most of the complaints did not result in any changes, beyond making sure that the titles were shelved correctly and that patrons were made aware of content and library policies.

The graphic novels identified in the survey form an interesting cross-section of popular works and works by award-winning cartoonists. Indeed, the Canadian comics on the list comprise something of a "Who's Who" of cartooning greats, with books by Chester Brown, Julie Doucet and 2006 Doug Wright Award-winner Lorenz Peter.

Also of note, the classic Tintin adventure, Cigars of the Pharoah. Originally published in 1934 (updated in 1955 and translated into English in 1971), this adventure by Herge takes place in India and Egypt and contains depictions of stereotyped inhabitants of those countries that may appear dated, at the very least. The patron objections to this book also bring to mind the recent controversy over shelving of Herge's Tintin in the Congo.

Below are the graphic novels included in the report, with the patron complaints.

The Monkey King (Dragon Ball Vol. 1) by Akira Toriyama.
Offensive language, age inappropriate
"in the head of the parent -- 'oh a 14 year old can see her underpants...'"

Left Behind: A Graphic Novel of the Earth's Last Days by Tim Lahaye, John Layman, and Jerry Jenkins.
Sexually explicit, offensive language, religious viewpoint, age inappropriate.

The Adventures of Tintin: Cigars of the Pharoah by Herge.
Anti-ethnic, racism, sexually explicit, offesnive language, religious viewpoint, age inappropriate.

Video Girl Ai by Masakazu Katsura.
Sexually explicit, violence, offensive language.

My Most Secret Desire by Julie Doucet.
Sexually explicit, "sexual filth" and "sexual sickness".

The Madam Paul Affair by Julie Doucet.
"Pictures on front & back covers"; "Most dialogue takes place in a bar, or bed"; "feeling sleazy & dirty, like smoking & drinking"; "Julie Doucet has no morals or talent"

The Little Man by Chester Brown.
Pedophilia.

The Frank Book by Jim Wooding.
"sexual vulgarity"; "introduction to sexual deviance"

Chaos Mission by Lorenz Peter.
Drugs, violence, offensive.

ACME Novelty Library by Chris Ware.
Occult, pornography.

Smokey by Bill Peet.
Racism.

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The Collected Doug Wright Mock-Up

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/26/2008 12:30:00 AM
Over at the D+Q blog, a sneak peak at Seth's designs for the first volume of the Collected Doug Wright cartoons:

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Tonite: Toronto Comix Jam

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/26/2008 12:20:00 AM
details here.

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   Monday, February 25, 2008  
MONTREAL COMIC JAM FEB 28

:: Posted by max @ 2/25/2008 08:09:00 PM

Bonjour a Tous!

The next Comix Jam will be held at Bar des Pins, 3714 Park, this coming Thursday, February 28 at 8 PM. As usual, bring your artist gear and good humor!

Le Comix Jam se tiendra au Bar des Pins, 3714 rue du Parc Jeudi prochain, le 28 fevrier a 20hres. Comme d'habitude amenez votre attirail du dessinateur et votre bonne humeur!

A la Prochaine!
See You there!

Jane

Face Book Group
Yahoo news group
Blog

Photos of the last Jam by Jack Ruttan.

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Comics 101: Is the Canadian Shield Made of Platinum?

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/25/2008 06:00:00 AM

  • The Comic Book Bin's Christopher Moshier takes a page from the Overstreet Price Guide and probes the early "Platinum Age" history of DC Comics.
  • International: in a move sure to be reflected on Canadian bestseller lists, VIZ has announced the publication of a new Naruto series, following the adventures of the titular ninja student as a teenager: the launch of the long-awaited new NARUTO manga story arc begins with Volume 28, "which is the first to feature Naruto as a teenager. The volume is expected to hit stores nationwide on March 4 with an estimated retail price of $7.95"
  • Robin Bougie and co-conspirators are interviewed on the Inkstuds podcast about the recent launch of Cinema Sewer and Sleazy Slice.

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   Friday, February 22, 2008  
Toronto Comic Jam this Coming Tuesday, February 26th

:: Posted by Dave Howard @ 2/22/2008 03:44:00 AM
From your friendly neighbourhood Toronto Comic Jam coordinator Dalton Sharp:
The Toronto Comic Jam rolls this Tuesday, February 26th, 9:30 p.m. and on, back room at the Cameron House Pub, 408 Queen St. W. near Queen-Spadina. All welcome. Paper provided. Please note the later 9:30 start time because of Video Cabaret.

See you there,

Dalton

www.torontocomicjam.com

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Tonite: Fire Away, Vancouver

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/22/2008 12:27:00 AM
Friday, February 22
Lucky’s Comics
Main Street, Vancouver
7PM

Chris von Szombathy launches his new Drawn & Quarterly book, Fire Away.

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This Weekend: Kei-kon, Victoria

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/22/2008 12:12:00 AM


The Otaku Revolution continues February 22-24:

Kei-kon 6
University of Victoria, MacLaurin building.
Admission: $5-$20 (see here for details)

Featuring film, a dealers pavillion, a tea house, cosplay shows and contests, and talks about anime and manga.

Anime Panels
-"Shading and Texture" with Astra Crompton shows you how to give your
characters the best of physical depth. Emotional depth sold seperately.
-"Manga Proportions" with Astra Crompton will teach you how to make sure
your characters are well developed and don't look like wobbleheads in a
truck with bad suspension.
-"Shounen Ai and Yaoi" with Natasha and Dani explores the PG-13 version of the
subject of male-male manga love.

Role Playing Panels
-"World Building" with James and Dan explores the best way to build your own
campaign setting from scratch.
-"Styles of Storytelling" with Kelly, James, Roman, Dan, Mike, etc. discusses how to run a unique experience for your players.
-"Stylish Combat Scenes and You" with James et all. explains how to run the most
entertaining, graphic, and humerous fight scenes possible.

Video Game Panels
-"Step Up" with Adam teaches you how to make the best Step Step Revolution
songs!

Misc Panels
-"The Finer Points of Yaoi: (18+)" with Dani and Natasha. Yep, it's just like it
sounds.

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Weekend Links

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/22/2008 12:01:00 AM
OCAD-grad Kosma Gatner is one of 31 international finalists in the 2nd International Manga Competition sponsored by Morning 2, a manga magazine in Japan (circulation, 500,000).

Jeet Heer writes about Middle Eastern superheroes (and even talks on a related podcast).

The Other Trudeau: 80s icon Mr. T gets a new graphic novel.

Bookninja links to two discussion of product placement in kids' books. Can comics be far behind?

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   Thursday, February 21, 2008  
Tonite: Sleazy Slice Launch, Vancouver

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/21/2008 06:00:00 AM


Feb 21
Fox Porn Theatre, Vancouver

Robin Bougie is launching a trio of projects tonight, including the second issue of the adults only Sleazy Slice comics anthology, featuring work by Bougie, S.H.K, David Paleo, S.C.A.R, Putrid, and more. Also on offer is the latest issue of Cinema Sewer, the Bougie-edited zine devoted to adult film.

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Zeros 2 Heroes Update

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/21/2008 01:15:00 AM
The Vancouver-based social networking site and webcomics idea factory Zeros 2 Heroes recently picked their fourth weekly winner in its ongoing webcomic pitch popularity contest, "Canada: Comic Creation Nation". In related news, the first such pitch to be chosen for actual production is described in the following Press Release:

Vancouver, British Columbia (February 11, 2008) – After a month of
voting on Canada's Comic Creation Nation, the fans have crowned
writer Greg Robinson as their winner. Robinson's pitch Age of Heroes
stood out amongst all of the competition and is now in the process
of being put into production. The first issue of Age of Heroes will be
produced and published online by Zeros 2 Heroes Media. Greg Robinson
will be working with comic book editors and artists provided by Zeros 2
Heroes to bring Age of Heroes to life on the page.
"For me as a writer, I would hope the experience could maybe open a
creative door or two, or present an opportunity or two that maybe was not
there before," says Robinson on the excitement around his pitch.
Age of Heroes is centered on a world run by super-powered beings and
enslaved humans. Robinson's first issue focuses on a small resistance
group as they attempt desperate and drastic action that will either begin
them down the road of salvation or damnation.
Greg Robinson will now work with Zeros 2 Heroes comic editors and
artists to produce his very first comic that will be published online by
Zeros 2 Heroes Media. As part of the agreement, Zeros 2 Heroes Media
not only produces Robinson’'s very first book, but they will be working to
get fan and media driven publicity from Robinson’s hometown of Langley
British Columbia.
"I've been interested in the potential of Web comics for a long time,"
says Zeros 2 Heroes Editor-in Chief Paul Dini. "I thought that was a very
supportive way to bring new talent into what has generally been a tough
business for novices."
Zeros 2 Heroes Media will be providing Robinson with his own
online publication as well as putting together a plan to help get the
word out to various media sources. The intention is to have
not only a piece of professional work for his portfolio, but
also to help him launch his processional writing career.
"Fans know what a good story is and where it can go
so we trust them to decide what ideas we should
invest in. Jason's talent and creativity shined brightly in his pitch
and I have no doubt that the fans made a great decision to see
Blake Undying go into production," says Zeroes 2 Heroes Media
Chairman Paul Gertz.
"This cross-platform entertainment opportunity is exactly what
we're looking for in terms of our corporate mandate," says Western
Region Director Earl Hong Tai of Telefilm Canada. Telefilm
Canada plays in integral part in the development of Canadian
writers and artists and helping pitches come to life with Canada
Comic Creation Nation is another way for them to lend a hand.
Zeros 2 Heroes plans to award all Canada Comic Creation
Nation winners with their published online comic. All creators are
encouraged to pitch their ideas online in order to let the fans decide
what they would like to see published. As the contest continues,
members of the Zeros 2 Heroes community will rate, review and
ultimately choose one winner for every month.



(see previous stories about this company)

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Generic Link Post

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/21/2008 12:08:00 AM
Comics-related links for Thursday:

  • This article about a concert of video game music in Edmonton highlights the connection between comics, anime, and gamer subcultures

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   Wednesday, February 20, 2008  
Weekly Bestsellers in Canada: Feb 20

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/20/2008 12:01:00 PM

The Top 50 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list is available here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through over 400 independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo and Walmart are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 50 overall and (at the bottom) the top 25 by Canadian creators.

Top 50 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada


1. (4) Bleach, Vol. 22, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
2. (10) Naruto Vol. 25, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
3. (12) Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)
4. (43) Naruto, Vol. 2, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
5. (6) Naruto Vol. 26, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
6. (1) Tsubasa 16: Reservoir Chronicle (Paperback), Clamp (Random House)
7. (15) Naruto Vol. 1, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
8. (2) Naruto Vol. 27, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
9. (3) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
10. (5) Death Note, Vol. 1, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
11. (7) Garfield Goes Bananas, Jim Davis (Random House)
12. (16) Death Note, Vol. 2, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
13. (24) Naruto Vol. 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
14. (-) Death Note, Vol. 13, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
15. (-) Fruits Basket 1, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
16. (9) Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5, Yuu Watase (VIZ)
17. (-) Hack Gu Vol. 1, Hamazaki Tatsuya (Tokyopop)
18. (11) Naruto Vol. 24, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
19. (32) Vampire Knight Vol. 3, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
20. (37) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
-----
21. (22) Negima! 16: Magister Negi Magi, Ken Akamatsu (Random House)
22. (8) The Far Side 2008 Desk Calendar, Gary Larson (Andrews McMeel)
23. (19) Bleach, Vol. 1, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
24. (28) Death Note, Volume 3, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
25. (-) Bleach, Vol. 2, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
26. (-) Bleach, Vol. 3, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
27. (25) Naruto, Vol. 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
28. (13) Godchild, Vol. 8, Kaori Yuki (VIZ)
29. (-) Naruto, Vol. 7, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
30. (17) Naruto Vol. 23, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
31. (-) Death Note, Vol. 5, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
32. (-) Naruto, Vol. 18, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
33. (-) Asterix at the Olympic Games, Goscinny & Uderzo (Orion)
34. (-) Fruits Basket 3, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
35. (-) Fruits Basket 2, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
36. (-) Naruto, Official Handbook, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
37. (-) Fall In Love Like a Comic Vol. 2, Chitose Yagami (VIZ)
38. (-) Hana-Kimi, Vol. 22, Hisaya Nakajo (VIZ)
39. (29) Naruto Vol. 22, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
40. (36) Vampire Knight Vol. 2, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
-----
41. (18) Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 15, Hiromu Arakawa (VIZ)
42. (-) Naruto, Vol. 9, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
43. (33) Persepolis 2, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)
44. (31) Fruits Basket 18, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
45. (14) Dark Tower:The Gunslinger Born, Peter David (Marvel)
46. (46) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Yellow, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
47. (47) Naruto Vol. 16, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
48. (-) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Red, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
49. (-) Naruto Vol. 5, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
50. (48) The Authoritative Calvin And Hobbes, Watterson (Andrews McMeel)

Whew! It's quite an effort to keep track of all those Naruto, Death Note, and Bleach volumes. I find it hard to believe that the Bookmanager lists are sophisticated enough to keep track of these differences, especially when I see such wild fluctuations in rank from week to week. That being said, the most salient aspect of this week's list, as with the last several months' lists, is that all volumes of Naruto are popular (there are 16 in the top 50).

See here for last week's list. I've added last week's ranking in parentheses, with a (-) indicating an absence from the top 50 last week --although books that were not in the top 50 last week were most likely in the top 100, with the possible exception of a few newly published hits. The pattern that emerges from looking at these lists over a period of weeks is that certain books, especially manga series, continuously jostle with each other, sliding up and down the longer list on the strength of a new volume or a spate of purchases for the kiddies. One other note: if the publishers of Persepolis would concentrate on a single volume, wouldn't they have a higher ranked book?

The BookManager List is a wondrous, scary place, where everyone from Todd Hignite to Charles Schulz to Dan DeCarlo to Jerry Siegel to Tove Janssen duke it out and where one sale in one tiny bookstore can move a book from #999 to #200. This is also the place where you find books by Canadian creators and where the Canadian Top 25 comes from:

Sequential's All-Canadian Top 25
from BookManager

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (2) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
3. (5) Essex County 1: Tales From the Farm, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
4. (3) Jellaby, Kean Soo (Hyperion)
5. (10) The Plain Janes, Cecil Castellucci et al (DC/Minx)
6. (4) Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea, Guy Delisle (D+Q)
7. (12) Essex County 2: Ghost Stories, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
8. (16) Therefore Repent! Jim Munroe Salgood Sam (insomniac)
9. (6) White Rapids, Pascal Blanchet (D+Q)
10. (8) Dramacon 3, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
-----
11. (9) Dramacon 2, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
12. (7) Teaching is a Learning Experience!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
13. (18) Dramacon 1, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
14. (19) The Big 5-0, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
15. (21) The Spirit (Hardcover), Darwyn Cooke Jeph Loeb J Bone (DC)
16. (11) Middle Age Spread, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
17. (25) Keep The Home Fries Burning, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
18. (14) She's Turning into One of Them!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
19. (-) Scott Pilgrim 4: Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
20. (15) Graphic Witness: 4 Wordless Graphic Novels, George A Walker (Firefly)
-----
21. (-) Family Business, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
22. (-) The New Frontier (Paperback), Darwyn Cooke (DC)
23. (-) Striking A Cord, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
24. (-) It'S The Thought That Counts, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
25. (-) It's All Downhill From Here, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)

That last one was published in 1987. Lynn Johnston collections (10 in all) continue to be the favourite snack food of Canadians (or maybe it's more accurate to say that For Better or For Worse is the Naruto of Canada (except that Naruto is already the Naruto of Canada)). Svetlana Chmakova, Darwyn Cooke, and Jeff Lemire also score with multiple books on the list.

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Time for another Geek OUT!

:: Posted by max @ 2/20/2008 02:58:00 AM

from the geekmontreal.com site:

The Geek OUT! is a regular series of get-togethers where you can play board games, roleplaying games, have snacks, talk about comic books, do arts and crafts, watch sci-fi movies, have more snacks and then sugar crash!

On Saturday Feb 23rd, we're having a Geek OUT! Time 2pm - 9pm. Location: MUCS Dining Coop, 2000 Northcliffe, suite 218 (corner De Maisoneuve, near Vendome metro)

- Roleplaying gamez: one-off scenario of Blood on the Deck (aargh!) using the Call of Cthullu Dark Ages system

- Zombies - the best board game about the apocalypse evah

- Illuminati: (gnomes of zurich vs the bavarians vs Aliens!)

- Risk and Axis & Allies: very serious war games

- Demo of Thief by Organic Games

- Plus others: Diplomacy, Talisman, Settlers of Catan, etc..

- Arts and Crafts with Shirley and the Grapefruit (bring your projects)

- Comic book signing and projection by Salgood Sam (Therefore Repent!)


We're also going to have some projections (The Hulk, Logan's Run and others) and yummy foodies (juice!, pudding, probably some soup.)

How does it work? We provide some games, the place to play'em and foodies. You come along with any other games you want to play. There's no set price to attend - it's is a by-donation-type-thing.

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   Monday, February 18, 2008  
Tuesday Quicklinks

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/18/2008 11:48:00 PM
  • We noted this event awhile ago, but Chris Butcher has more details about the graphic novel component of Toronto's Luminato Festival, featuring underground legend Spain Rodriguez as part of a "Political Graphic Novel" panel hosted by Peter Birkemoe. Spain has just published a biography of Che Guevera.

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Udon Launches 5 New Titles

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/18/2008 03:17:00 AM

Canada's largest manga publisher UDON has announced five new additions to its Korean Manhwa line-up: joining a series of comics originally published by Korea's Haksan Publishing, a new Haksan series - Daring Students' Association. In addition, four new series from Seoul Cultural Publishers: Dear Waltz, Chronicles of the Grim Peddler, Evyione: Ocean Fantasy, and Reading Club.



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Monday Round-up: Happy Family Day! Happy Louis Riel Day!

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/18/2008 02:51:00 AM

Jellaby review

Why do comic book readers exist? (Herve, please follow up with your research!)

Glamourpuss review

Webcomics fun: The Lonely Monkey and Waiting by Michael Cho

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   Friday, February 15, 2008  
Weekly Bestsellers in Canada: Feb 14

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/15/2008 09:45:00 AM

The Top 50 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list is available here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through over 400 independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo and Walmart are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 50 overall and (at the bottom) the top 25 by Canadian creators.

Top 50 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada

1. (-) Tsubasa 16: Reservoir Chronicle (Paperback), Clamp (Random House)
2. (6) Naruto Vol. 27, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
3. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
4. (2) Bleach, Vol. 22, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
5. (5) Death Note, Volume 1, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
6. (4) Naruto Vol. 26, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
7. (3) Garfield Goes Bananas, Jim Davis (Random House)
8. (7) The Far Side 2008 Desk Calendar, Gary Larson (Andrews McMeel)
9. (10) Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5, Yuu Watase (VIZ)
10. (8) Naruto Vol. 25, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
11. (9) Naruto Vol. 24, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
12. (11) Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)
13. (-) Godchild, Vol. 8, Kaori Yuki (VIZ)
14. (12) Dark Tower:The Gunslinger Born, Peter David/Robin Furth (Marvel)
15. (24) Naruto Vol. 1, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
16. (14) Death Note, Volume 2, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
17. (13) Naruto Vol. 23, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
18. (15) Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 15, Hiromu Arakawa (VIZ)
19. (25) Bleach, Vol. 1, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
20. (21) Hell Girl 1, Miyuki Eto (Random House)
-----
21. (-) Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown, Charles M Schulz (Perseus Books)
22. (29) Negima! 16: Magister Negi Magi, Ken Akamatsu (Random House)
23. (36) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Red:Red, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
24. (38) Naruto Vol. 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
25. (41) Naruto, Volume 3: Vol. 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
26. (18) Bleach, Vol. 21, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
27. (33) Dilbert: Cubes and Punishment, Scott Adams (Andrews McMeel)
28. (17) Death Note, Volume 3, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
29. (19) Naruto Vol. 22, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
30. (22) Vampire Knight Vol. 1, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
31. (16) Fruits Basket 18, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
32. (20) Vampire Knight Vol. 3, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
33. (42) Persepolis 2, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)
34. (34) Naruto Vol. 17, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
35. (26) Naruto Vol. 19, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
36. (32) Vampire Knight Vol. 2, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
37. (28) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
38. (35) Death Note, Vol 4, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
39. (-) Fruits Basket 12, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
40. (37) Hobbit Graphic Novel, Tolkien et al (Harpercollins)
-----
41. (31) Death Note, Vol 7, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
42. (27) Death Note, Vol 8, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
43. (30) Naruto, Vol. 2:2 Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
44. (23) Herman: Living With Animals, Jim Unger (ECW Press)
45. (-) Naruto, Vol. 14, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
46. (44) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Yellow:Yellow, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
47. (39) Naruto Vol. 16, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
48. (40) The Authoritative Calvin And Hobbes, Watterson (Andrews McMeel)
49. (48) Bleach, Vol. 20, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
50. (-) The Complete Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)

See here for last week's list. I've added last week's ranking in parentheses, with a (-) indicating an absence from the top 50 last week --although books that were not in the top 50 last week were most likely in the top 100, with the possible exception of a few newly published hits. The pattern that emerges from looking at these lists over a period of weeks is that certain books, especially manga series, continuously jostle with each other, sliding up and down the longer list on the strength of a new volume or a spate of purchases for the kiddies. This week, Lynn Johnston is bumped out of the top spot for the first time since Sequential started keeping these lists last year.

The BookManager List is a wondrous, scary place, where everyone from Todd Hignite to Charles Schulz to Dan DeCarlo to Jerry Siegel to Linda Medley duke it out and where one sale in one tiny bookstore can move a book from #999 to #200. This is also the place where you find books by Canadian creators and where the Canadian Top 25 comes from:

Sequential's All-Canadian Top 25
from BookManager

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (2) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
3. (-) Jellaby, Kean Soo (Hyperion)
4. (-) Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea, Guy Delisle (D+Q)
5. (4) Essex County 1: Tales From the Farm, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
6. (6) White Rapids, Pascal Blanchet (D+Q)
7. (3) Teaching is a Learning Experience!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
8. (7) Dramacon 3, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
9. (11) Dramacon 2, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
10. (5) The Plain Janes, Cecil Castellucci et al (DC/Minx)
-----
11. (16) Middle Age Spread, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
12. (-) Essex County 2: Ghost Stories, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
13. (-) Just One More Hug, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
14. (8) She's Turning into One of Them!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
15. (9) Graphic Witness: 4 Wordless Graphic Novels, George A Walker (Firefly)
16. (10) Therefore Repent! Jim Munroe Salgood Sam (insomniac)
17. (18) Never Wink at a Worried Woman, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
18. (19) Dramacon 1, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
19. (22) The Big 5-0, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
20. (25) Northwest Passage: Annotated Collection, Scott Chantler (Oni)
-----
21. (-) The Spirit (Hardcover), Darwyn Cooke Jeph Loeb J Bone (DC)
22. (-) Last Straw, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
23. (12) 365 Days: A Diary by Julie Doucet (D+Q)
24. (13) Wimbledon Green, Seth (D+Q)
25. (-) Keep The Home Fries Burning, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)

This week, the newly-released Jellaby rockets to the #3 spot, Pyonyang & The Spirit return to the top 25, and "the Lynn Johnston assortment" is shuffled with a book from 1984 (!) ranking fairly high.

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This Weekend: Vancouver Comix Jam

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/15/2008 05:00:00 AM
From Ed Brisson:

The next Jam is coming up this Saturday:

When: Saturday, February 16th, 2008. 8pm until midnight.
Where: Clubhouse Japanese Restaurant
255 West 2nd Avenue, Vancouver ( map )
Who: Anyone who is of legal drinking age is invited.
How Much: Free. Bring your own pencils/pens. Paper is provided.

I've reserved the upstairs room at the Clubhouse Japanese Restaurant for the Jam.

Crosspost as you see fit.

See you there!

Ed

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   Thursday, February 14, 2008  
Valentine's Day: Things to Love and Hate About Comics in Canada

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/14/2008 08:00:00 AM
the secret saturdays jay stephens cartoon network
  • The CBC radio programme As It Happens features an interview with the Danish filmaker behind Killer Cartoons who discusses the recent arrests in the alleged cartoonist assassination plot. (podcast, second 1/2 hour)
  • BlogTO interviews Patricia Storms about her romance-themed cartoon collection, You're My Guy Because...
  • Chris Butcher has the photos from last week's Kazu Kibuishi and Kean Soo appearances in Toronto.

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   Wednesday, February 13, 2008  
Muslim Leader Drops Levant Complaint

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/13/2008 12:27:00 AM
The National Post is reporting that Syed Soharwardy, the man who lodged a complaint with the Alberta Human Rights Commission against publisher Ezra Levant and his Western Standard magazine for republishing the Danish Muhammad cartoons, has withdrawn his complaint, claiming that he recognizes Levant's actions as a free speech issue and that "Canadian society is mature enough not to absorb the messages that the cartoons sent."

For his part, Levant plans to sue Soharwardy for damages. As well, there is a movent underway to remove Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act (the section dealing with hate speech).

Related: P.M. Jaworski at the Western Standard's "Shotgun Blog" responds.

See Sequential's coverage of this case here.

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Quebec Comics 2007

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/13/2008 12:01:00 AM
BDQ 2006



Comics journalist and scholar Michel Viau has released his annual assessment of comics production in Quebec. Viau's Bilan BDQ 2007 (Google translation) is a summary of all comics production in Quebec, including both English and French books. The major conclusion of the report is that overall comics production, measured in books published, was down when compared to the 2006 numbers, although the trend of the last three years is one of gradual growth in the number of published titles.

Viau lists every album published (excluding zines and magazines) and includes a general discussion about genre, target audience, trends, etc. with tons of statistics.

My own rough translation of the first part of Viau's excellent overview:

In 2007, 22 Quebec publishers have issued 67 Comic books, French and English, representing a fairly marked decline compared to the year 2006, but still an increase compared to the production of the year 2005.

It must be noted that 2006 was exceptional, with the release of 86 titles, or 28% more than in 2007. However, the production of 2005, with 44 albums released, was 34% lower than that of this year. For example, if we except 2006 and its phenomenal production, the year 2007 is part of a continued 8 year increase in comics production.

Some publishers that emerged last year have been quiet this year: Fichtre! published only an autobiographical essay by Marc Tessier, while Arion (which seems to have completely ceased its activities) and Du Quebecois have no forthcoming albums scheduled. After an absence of several years, Michel D'Amours returned to comics publishing comics with a new house, Valour, which is unfortunately not very well distributed. As well, Line Arsenault continues her self-publishing.

Children's publishers (Boomerang, Quebec Amerique, Lauzier, Bayard, FouLire, Le Raton laveur and Les Intouchables) still have a finger in the BD pie. However, none of these has published a collection exclusively devoted to comics. Published albums are therefore AWOL from their catalogues.

Again this year, the bulk of production is divided between four publishers. Drawn & Quarterly, La Pasteque, mecanique generale et Presses aventure, on their own, have published 42 books, more than 62% of annual production. Of other publishers moderately active in 2007, we note Conundrum Press (5 titles) and L'Oie de Cravan (3 titles).

In 2007, 70% of comics albums published in Quebec were in French, a decline compared to previous years (75.5% in 2006 and 77% in 2005). Whereas in 2000, 83% of the albums were published in French. Although, it must be said that both Montreal Anglophone publishers, Drawn & Quarterly and Conundrum Press, have been particularly active this year with 28% of the production together. Several Francophone authors (Guy Delisle, Julie Doucet, Richard Suicide, Pascal Blanchet, and Line Gamache) have seen their works translated into English by these publishers.


----

see here for last year's report

related: cbc reviews some kids' BD

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   Tuesday, February 12, 2008  
Halifax Daily News Closes, Staff Laid Off

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/12/2008 01:49:00 AM
The Halifax Daily News has been closed down and replaced by a free daily, according to several sources. All of the paper's staff, including journalists and cartoonists, have been fired.

The Daily News was owned by Quebec-based Transcontinental. It's replacement, Metro Halifax, is part of the cross-Canada Metro line and will be produced Metro International S.A. and Torstar Corp.

Begun in 1974, The Daily News employed award-winning editorial cartoonist Michael De Adder.

According to the Canadian Press article:

As journalists left the Halifax Daily News, several said they're worried a free newspaper aimed at commuters will mean a decline in the city's journalism.

Michael de Adder, an award-winning cartoonist for the newspaper, said "it doesn't sound like it (Metro) can serve the population as well as a daily newspaper can or two daily newspapers can."

De Adder said cartoonists across the country are starting to wonder about their craft.

"What is the future? It looks pretty bleak today," he said.

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International: Steve Gerber, R.I.P.

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/12/2008 01:19:00 AM
Comics writer Steve Gerber has died. As a writer for Marvel in the 1970s, Gerber created Howard the Duck and Omega the Unknown. As a result of the legal battle for ownership of Howard, Gerber became an early advocate and fighter for creator's rights in the U.S. comics industry.

The best adventure comic book writer of the 1970s, Gerber enjoyed long, innovative and popular runs on The Defenders, Son of Satan, Manthing, and many other titles. Gerber's brand of tightly-plotted superheroics combined with social commentary, satire, psychedelia, and an original approach to character and setting to produce memorable characters and stories that are still read today. Indeed, for many readers , fans and historians, Steve Gerber was 1970s superhero comics.

Gerber worked for a variety of publishers during his career and was a writer/producer for television, working on several animated series and created the fondly-remembered Thundarr in 1980.

Gerber died of pneumonia, a result of his struggle with pulmonary fibrosis. In recent years he had been writing for DC Comics, preparing a Dr. Fate miniseries and blogging about his life. Beginning earlier this year, a new series featuring his Omega character and written by Jonathan Lethem paid honour to his legacy.

Tom Spurgeon has an excellent obituary at Comics Reporter.

Mark Evanier has posted the news at Gerber's blog.

----
T.Hodler's 2-part critical overview of Gerber's career, written for the magazine Comics Comics, is an excellent introduction. Hodler's footnotes are here.

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Weekly Bestsellers in Canada: Feb 20

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/12/2008 12:01:00 AM
The Top 50 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list is available here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through over 400 independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo and Walmart are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 50 overall and (at the bottom) the top 25 by Canadian creators.

Top 50 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada


1. (4) Bleach, Vol. 22, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
2. (10) Naruto Vol. 25, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
3. (12) Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)
4. (43) Naruto, Vol. 2, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
5. (6) Naruto Vol. 26, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
6. (1) Tsubasa 16: Reservoir Chronicle (Paperback), Clamp (Random House)
7. (15) Naruto Vol. 1, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
8. (2) Naruto Vol. 27, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
9. (3) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
10. (5) Death Note, Vol. 1, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
11. (7) Garfield Goes Bananas, Jim Davis (Random House)
12. (16) Death Note, Vol. 2, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
13. (24) Naruto Vol. 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
14. (-) Death Note, Vol. 13, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
15. (-) Fruits Basket 1, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
16. (9) Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5, Yuu Watase (VIZ)
17. (-) Hack Gu Vol. 1, Hamazaki Tatsuya (Tokyopop)
18. (11) Naruto Vol. 24, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
19. (32) Vampire Knight Vol. 3, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
20. (37) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
-----
21. (22) Negima! 16: Magister Negi Magi, Ken Akamatsu (Random House)
22. (8) The Far Side 2008 Desk Calendar, Gary Larson (Andrews McMeel)
23. (19) Bleach, Vol. 1, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
24. (28) Death Note, Volume 3, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
25. (-) Bleach, Vol. 2, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
26. (-) Bleach, Vol. 3, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
27. (25) Naruto, Vol. 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
28. (13) Godchild, Vol. 8, Kaori Yuki (VIZ)
29. (-) Naruto, Vol. 7, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
30. (17) Naruto Vol. 23, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
31. (-) Death Note, Vol. 5, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
32. (-) Naruto, Vol. 18, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
33. (-) Asterix at the Olympic Games, Goscinny & Uderzo (Orion)
34. (-) Fruits Basket 3, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
35. (-) Fruits Basket 2, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
36. (-) Naruto, Official Handbook, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
37. (-) Fall In Love Like a Comic Vol. 2, Chitose Yagami (VIZ)
38. (-) Hana-Kimi, Vol. 22, Hisaya Nakajo (VIZ)
39. (29) Naruto Vol. 22, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
40. (36) Vampire Knight Vol. 2, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
-----
41. (18) Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 15, Hiromu Arakawa (VIZ)
42. (-) Naruto, Vol. 9, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
43. (33) Persepolis 2, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)
44. (31) Fruits Basket 18, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
45. (14) Dark Tower:The Gunslinger Born, Peter David (Marvel)
46. (46) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Yellow, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
47. (47) Naruto Vol. 16, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
48. (-) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Red, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
49. (-) Naruto Vol. 5, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
50. (48) The Authoritative Calvin And Hobbes, Watterson (Andrews McMeel)

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   Monday, February 11, 2008  
Things to See and Read: Monday

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/11/2008 03:23:00 PM
  • I haven't seen a review copy of the book myself, but here are 3 reviews of Kean Soo's Jellaby: 1 2 3.

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   Friday, February 08, 2008  
This Weekend: Dave Cooper in L.A.

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/08/2008 01:29:00 AM

Dave Cooper's "Bent" opening at BillyShireFineArts in LA

Saturday, Feb 9, 7-10 PM


Exhibit: Feb 9- March 8, 2008

Cooper website

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Friday Links

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/08/2008 12:36:00 AM


  • Another photo report from the Feb. 3rd Toronto Comicon, this time from Milo at Digital Kontent.
  • Philip Schweier examines the "underwear outside of the pants" phenomenon of superhero comics.
  • Jeet Heer on the language of Krazy Kat and the intro he wrote for the new Chris Ware-edited collection of full-colour Krazy strips.
  • Bryan Lee O'Malley draws the cover to the very popular girls' manga magazine Shojo Beat.

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   Thursday, February 07, 2008  
Weekly Bestsellers in Canada: Feb 7

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/07/2008 04:36:00 PM

The Top 50 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list is available here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through over 400 independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo and Walmart are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 50 overall and (at the bottom) the top 25 by Canadian creators.

Top 50 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (-) Bleach, Vol. 22, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
3. (2) Garfield Goes Bananas, Jim Davis (Random House)
4. (5) Naruto Vol. 26, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
5. (4) Death Note, Volume 1, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
6. (6) Naruto Vol. 27, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
7. (3) The Far Side 2008 Desk Calendar, Gary Larson (Andrews McMeel)
8. (7) Naruto Vol. 25, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
9. (8) Naruto Vol. 24, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
10. (42) Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5, Yuu Watase (VIZ)
11. (20) Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)
12. (9) Dark Tower:The Gunslinger Born, Peter David/Robin Furth (Marvel)
13. (17) Naruto Vol. 23, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
14. (19) Death Note, Volume 2, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
15. (11) Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 15, Hiromu Arakawa (VIZ)
16. (10) Fruits Basket 18, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
17. (-) Death Note, Volume 3, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
18. (-) Bleach, Vol. 21, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
19. (15) Naruto Vol. 22, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
20. (13) Vampire Knight Vol. 3, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
---
21. (-) Hell Girl 1, Miyuki Eto (Random House)
22. (14) Vampire Knight Vol. 1, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
23. (12) Herman: Living With Animals, Jim Unger (ECW Press)
24. (31) Naruto Vol. 1, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
25. (32) Bleach, Vol. 1, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
26. (30) Naruto Vol. 19, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
27. (33) Death Note, Volume 8, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
28. (43) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
29. (-) Negima! 16: Magister Negi Magi, Ken Akamatsu (Random House)
30. (18) Naruto, Vol. 2:2 Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
31. (29) Death Note, Volume 7, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
32. (21) Vampire Knight Vol. 2, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
33. (16) Dilbert: Cubes and Punishment, Scott Adams (Andrews McMeel)
34. (-) Naruto Vol. 17, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
35. (27) Death Note, Volume 4, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
36. (-) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Red:Red, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
37. (25) Hobbit Graphic Novel, Tolkien et al (Harpercollins)
38. (23) Naruto Vol. 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
39. (-) Naruto Vol. 17, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
40. (24) The Authoritative Calvin And Hobbes, Bill Watterson (Andrews McMeel)
----
41. (28) Naruto, Volume 3: Vol. 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
42. (26) Persepolis 2, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)
43. (35) Naruto Vol. 20, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
44. (-) The Best of Pokemon Adventures: Yellow:Yellow, Hidenori Kusaka Mato (VIZ)
45. (-) Fushigi Yugi: Genbu Kaiden, Vol. 6, Yuu Watase Yu Watase (VIZ)
46. (-) Death Note, Volume 5, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
47. (-) Fruits Basket 17, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
48. (-) Bleach, Vol. 20, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
49. (36) Naruto Vol. 21, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
50. (-) High School Debut Vol. 1, Kazune Kawahara (VIZ)


See here for last week's list. I've added last week's ranking in parentheses, with a (-) indicating an absence from the top 50 last week --although books that were not in the top 50 last week were most likely in the top 100, with the possible exception of a few newly published hits. The pattern that emerges from looking at these lists over a period of weeks is that certain books, especially manga series, continuously jostle with each other, sliding up and down the longer list on the strength of a new volume or a spate of purchases for the kiddies. I have to suspect that there is something up with that last spate of manga books I had previously never heard of (Highschool Debut, Fushigi Yugi). The top 60 is filled out with non-manga stalwarts The Complete Persepolis, Buffy, and Watchmen).

The BookManager List is a wondrous, scary place, where everyone from Todd Hignite to Charles Schulz to Dan DeCarlo to Jerry Siegel to Linda Medley duke it out and where one sale in one tiny bookstore can move a book from #999 to #200. This is also the place where you find books by Canadian creators and where the Canadian Top 25 comes from:

Sequential's All-Canadian Top 25
from BookManager

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (2) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
3. (2) Teaching is a Learning Experience!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
4. (6) Essex County Vol. 1: Tales From the Farm, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
5. (4) The Plain Janes, Cecil Castellucci et al (DC/Minx)
6. (10) White Rapids, Pascal Blanchet (D+Q)
7. (5) Dramacon 3, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
8. (7) She's Turning into One of Them!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
9. (13) Graphic Witness: 4 Wordless Graphic Novels, George A Walker (Firefly)
10. (21) Therefore Repent! Jim Munroe Salgood Sam (insomniac)
----
11. (8) Dramacon 2, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
12. (9) 365 Days: A Diary by Julie Doucet (D+Q)
13. (-) Wimbledon Green, Seth (D+Q)
14. (11) The BackBench Collection, Graham Harrop (Ronsdale Press)
15. (-) Keep The Home Fries Burning, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
16. (12) Middle Age Spread, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
17. (14) Scott Pilgrim 4: Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
18. (15) Never Wink at a Worried Woman, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
19. (16) Dramacon 1, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
20. (17) Family Business, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
----
21. (18) Remembering Farley, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
22. (19) The Big 5-0, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
23. (22) Sunshine and Shadow, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
24. (20) Scott Pilgrim 2: Scott Pilgrim vs The World, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
25. (23) Northwest Passage: Annotated Collection, Scott Chantler (Oni)




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Blac Ice

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/07/2008 12:17:00 AM
InsideToronto.com catches up with the Stanberry brothers and their efforts to educate kids about comic art and black history:

Students at Carleton Village Public School got to know about prominent African-Canadians Governor General Michaelle Jean, Lincoln MacCauley Alexander, Canada's first black Member of Parliament and hockey player/champion golfer Herb Carnegie as part of a "Sketching History" event.

Students in Grade 4 to 8 took part in the workshop, another celebration of Black History Month this February on Tuesday morning.

It was a workshop conducted by three brothers, known as the Blac Ice family. Siblings Anthony and Justin Stanberry and Jermaine Smith started a company eight years ago called Freeze DNA and published the first Canadian black super-hero comic book series called Blac Ice.

Since its publication and the inception of their business, the brothers can take credit for publishing several other children's books in addition to teaching kids across the country how to draw comic art.

(more at the link)

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   Wednesday, February 06, 2008  
Tonite: Paul Goes Fishing Launch, Montreal

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/06/2008 01:01:00 AM
paul goes fishing michel rabagliati
The launch party for Michel Rabagliati's new book, Paul Goes Fishing, will be held at the Drawn & Quarterly Bookstore, 211 Bernard W, beginning at 7PM.

D+Q blog

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Tonite: Kazu Kibuishi & Kean Soo @ Beguiling

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/06/2008 01:00:00 AM



Kazu Kibuishi & Kean Soo Signing
Wednesday, February 6th, 5pm-7pm
The Beguiling, 601 Markham Street
FREE

The two co-editors of the fantastic FLIGHT Anthologies, Kazu Kibuishi
and Kean Soo will be in town to debut their brand new graphic novels
AMULET and JELLABY.
The Beguiling will be holding a signing with Kazu & Kean from 5pm to 7pm at the store.

RSVP to the event on the Kazu & Kean Facebook Page!
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=8322672055

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Midweek Linkage: Sim, Simone, Butcher, etc

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/06/2008 12:57:00 AM
  • Dave Sim takes his Glamourpuss messageboard tour on the road and has some long exchanges with U.S. comic book writer, mother, and former hairstylist Gail Simone at the Sequential Tart boards.

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Toronto Comicon Reports

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/06/2008 12:29:00 AM
The Hobbystar Toronto Comicon was held this past Sunday, February 3. Here are some initial blog reports:

  • Ty at Grendel33's Place has a full report including attendance figures with photos of the sales floor and artist's alley.
  • Danny Truong has the Heavy, including notes on the widespread trend of marking down hardcover comics collections to $10.

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   Tuesday, February 05, 2008  
Seth Covers The New Yorker

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/05/2008 04:14:00 PM
For the Super Tuesday political issue of the Feb 4 New Yorker, Seth provides a rare (as in never) political drawing, a pastiche of the famous Eustace Tilley drawing by cartooning giant Rea Irvin. I think this is only the 3rd New Yorker cover by Seth:

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Tonite: Kazu Kibuishi & Kean Soo, Toronto

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/05/2008 03:59:00 PM
Hey there folks! This is just a reminder that the editors of the FLIGHT
ANTHOLOGY, Kazu Kibuishi and Kean Soo, will be doing an event tonight
at North York Central Public Library, this evening at 6:30pm. Both
creators will also be signing tomorrow night at The Beguiling, but we
definitely encourage you to head out to the TPL this evening! It's right on
the subway line and it's awesome!


1. TONIGHT: KEEP TORONTO READING: Graphically Speaking with Kazu
Kibuishi and Kean Soo

GRAPHICALLY SPEAKING 2008
Featuring Kazu Kibuishi & Kean Soo
Tuesday February 5th @ 6:30pm
North York Central Library, Concourse Level @ North York Subway Station
FREE

Presented in association with THE BEGUILING and Scholastic Canada

The two co-editors of the fantastic FLIGHT Anthologies, Kazu Kibuishi
and Kean Soo will be in town to debut their brand new graphic novels
AMULET and JELLABY. This event is part of the Toronto Public Library’s
massive Keep Toronto Reading campaign! Both Kean and Kazu will be
interviewed on stage by … me? “The Beguiling’s Christopher Butcher,” in the
vein of last year’s event with Bryan Lee O’Malley. Signing, sketching, and
snacks will follow the event.

This is going to be a very fun event which will actually be of interest
to all-ages, from younger readers captivated by these new graphic
novels right through to adults who loved the FLIGHT anthologies. We’re also
really proud to be teaming up with The Toronto Public Library again
this year, bringing graphic novels to the masses and the masses into our
public library system. If you’re in Toronto, we hope you won’t miss
this event.

Join the Keep Toronto Reading group on Facebook!
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=19746872808

RSVP to the event on the Kazu & Kean Facebook Page!
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=8322672055

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   Monday, February 04, 2008  
Framed: a comic book making workshop with Rich Baldwin | Feb 8th

:: Posted by max @ 2/04/2008 06:14:00 PM

Found on Facebook, presented by Communiversity-FASA-Emily Rose

Friday, February 8
6:00pm - 8:15pm
Location: 1515 RUE STE-CATHERINE O - Concordia's Engineering & Visual Arts Bilding) corner of Mackay & Ste-Catherine - 6.735 [room number?]
Contact Info: RSVP Mandatory!
514 848 2424 5057
trancemissions@gmail.com

Whether called graphic novels, comic books, bandes dessinees or sequential art, comics aren't just for kids any more. We will explore the artistic variety and potential inherent in comics - starting with an overview of comics, moving on to making them ourselves. Pencils, paper and some ink and dip pens will be available for use, but you are heartily encouraged to bring other artistic materials and / or laptops if you wish to explore comic-making in more varied forms. Come equipped with a comic book idea and you'll be ready to jump right in.

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Canadian Book Retail Too Concentrated, Sales Level

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/04/2008 12:05:00 AM

"Long Tail" Helps Niche Publishing, Online Sales
by Bryan Munn

The $1.59 billion Canadian book retail industry is dominated by a small number of large chains and has been experiencing flat sales, according to a new study released by Heritage Canada last week. The report, "The Book Retail Sector in Canada," is based on a study conducted between April and June, 2007. The key findings of the report can be broken down into four categories and include the concentration of book retailing into a small number of companies (most notably Chapters-Indigo, the only national bookstore chain, which owns 44% of the Canadian market); the growth of non-traditional retail outlets (online sales and Costco); the high dollar has resulted in increased book imports ("Canadian retailers can now source some books outside of Canada at lower cost"); book publishing is outstripping sales by a factor of roughly four-to-one.

These conclusions were arrived at by some dedicated number crunching, based on accessible data from publishers, Statistics Canada, and sales-tracking services like BookNet, which monitors 70% of the retail book trade.

The report, prepared by marketing company Turner-Riggs (Kiley Turner and Craig Riggs), provides detailed pictures of the book market in Canada and of consumer habits, breaking trends down by retail channel and including a look at the book market in Quebec, where two regional chains, Renaud-Bray and Quebecor's Archambault, play the same role that Chapters-Indigo does in the rest of Canada and where the Quebec government is strongly involved in funding both publishers and retailers.

In general, the report is a positive one from the point of view of the Canadian book buyer. From one perspective, Canadians are currently enjoying something of a "golden age" in terms of price, availability, and variety of books being published. Prices are more in line with those in the U.S., a variety of distribution methods and retailers vie for the opportunity to sell books, and more books in a greater number of categories are being published each year (16,000 new titles in 2006).

But these trends mask some serious underlying problems and structural dangers for both consumers and the book industry. On the one hand, the growth in online outlets and sales (Indigo's online sales increased 9% between 2006 and 2007) means an increase in price and stock transparency for both consumers and retailers, with the general result of lower prices. On the other hand, according to the report, "deep price discounts at retail tend to create pressure for additional trade discounts from publishers, which further constrain the profit margins and profitability of publishing firms." Further, online discounting "exerts pricing pressure on all retail channels; lowers the customers' perceived value of the products, especially bestsellers and new releases; results in narrower margins for suppliers, which in turn restricts their ability to invest in product development or marketing."

As well, the dominance of Chapters-Indigo in the marketplace has disturbing implications for book sales and the industry as a whole. Not only does the continued growth of Chapters continue to erode traditional retailers with specialized knowledge and a dedication to promoting Canadian authors and publishers, but the big-box trend towards deep discounting and greater economies of scale have the added effect of squeezing smaller players out of the market, reducing competition and further concentrating market share into one company. While the report does include some refutations of the standard industry wisdom on these issues, the idea that bigger stores ironically mean smaller or more homogeneous selections is a hard one to shake and the report provides an informative graph (scroll down) illustrating the decline in sales of Canadian "literary" titles through chain stores.

It is worth quoting from the report at length on the added danger inherent in the continuing price wars, especially between online vendors (Chapters, Amazon.ca and abebooks):

"Consumers quickly become conditioned to locate retail sources for discounts, and to identify what type of books discounts usually apply to—and they make their shopping decisions accordingly. There is a concern that this undermines the perceived value of books, making it less likely for consumers to buy a book, particularly a new release, at the established list price.

In the extreme sense, this concern describes a process where consumer purchases are more informed by price and less by the unique aspects of the individual book, including its literary or artistic merit. As consumer behaviour becomes more weighted by price, so does the supply chain and in particular the selection of books that are featured, or even available, within a given sales channel.

Concentration means more sales for fewer books. This discounting practice also has the effect of concentrating sales at a couple of levels—both by title and by channel. It concentrates sales by title, in that discounted bestsellers prominently featured will sell in large numbers. In contrast, books not featured in this way will be left on the shelf or simply not be available in store."


These trends, combined with the traditional hazards of book publishing in Canada (economies of scale, U.S. competition, large numbers of returns), help to paint a considerably less rosy picture of Canadian book retail. However, the report also makes reference to Chris Anderson's conception of The Long Tail, the idea that niche markets are made increasingly accessible and viable by technological growth and changes in supply-chain management. The report indicates that falling costs in these aspects of book retail may result in greater opportunities for a larger number of publishers and authors.

-----

see the report's Table of Contents

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Joe Shuster Awards Date Announced

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/04/2008 12:01:00 AM
Kevin Boyd has news about the 2008 Shuster Awards at his blog. Since Boyd, one of the big organizers of the Awards, split with previous host Paradise con last summer, the new location of the event has been up in the air for awhile. The new location is the Toronto Public Library's Lillian H. Smith branch, 239 College Street, and the show goes on Saturday, June 14th. The date coincides with the 70th anniversary of the publication of Action Comics #1, featuring the first published Superman story illustrated by Canadian ex-pat Joe Shuster.

The Awards are taking on a different format this year as well, with a jury taking responsibility for most of the prizes and a fan-vote for favourite artists. As well, the day-long event will include a few panels/symposiums/workshops, including Superman's 70th Anniversary, Joe Shuster Award Nominees, Canadian Comic Book History, How to Create Comics, etc.

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Broken Pencil on Webcomics: Awesome

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/04/2008 12:00:00 AM
The latest issue of indie guide Broken Pencil has an article about webcomics by Richard Rosenbaum. "Paper is Boring. Comics are Awesome." traces the migration of self-published comics online and includes some choice quotes from Dinosaur Comics' Ryan North:

"I don't think you can make a living selling your comic online," says North. "There are so many free comics—worse, so many really fantastic free comics—that it's hard for someone to sit down and enter in credit card information to read your story when there's one just as good as it a click away.

"If you look at it really cynically --really cynically-- you can say 'Oh Ryan, you adorable dunderhead. You're not a cartoonist. What you create are graphic ads for your T-shirts, a new ad every day. That's not cartooning.' And yeah, the comics support the shirts and the shirts support the comic, so there's a symbiosis there. But even if there weren't merchandise, I think I'd still be doing the comic online. Creating art in any form is hard, even comics. If you're just in it for the money it'll show, and you'll hate your job. I am satisfied to give the comic away for free and sell merchandise. I don't really see a conflict there, even though it is a bit odd to explain to someone encountering the idea for the first time that you're a full-time cartoonist, and yeah, you give the comics away for free."

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   Saturday, February 02, 2008  
Vinyl Graffiti Labyrinth

:: Posted by max @ 2/02/2008 12:24:00 PM
Toronto Manga and animation art bookshop The Labyrinth is holding their first submission based art show -Vinyl Graffiti. A one day event, the Show is on Saturday Feb 9th. 7-10pm.

"What you should expect to see is a plethora of really cool, imaginative and interesting paintings, drawings and other creative systems applied to old record album covers. The subjects are diverse, but what ties every piece together is the format. Many of the pieces will be up for sale - so if you're in the market for some original art - this will be your chance. Many of the artists will be there for the evening to talk to."


FREE PRIZES AND GAMES:
The Labyrinth will be handing out over 50 prizes for folks participating in what we call Character Design Face Off's. Here's how it works. We will have two easels set up where two people (one of which can be YOU!) will face off against each other for fun and prizes. They will have to draw a character design on the spot, based on a subject we pick. For example ' Moose in a beaver suit' or 'Troll in an evening gown on fire' and other stupid ideas. The goal is to have fun and laughs - all a while earning prizes for the winners. Winners will be decided by those attending via the sophisticated system we call Applause. You don't have to be an artist to join in the games -so come one, come all and good luck! The silliness will be repeated every 3 minutes - so as many of you can take a turn as possible.


The Labyrinth
386 Bloor Street West
Toronto, Ontario.
416 840 4506
info@thelabyrinthstore.com
animationroadshow.blogspot.com

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   Friday, February 01, 2008  
Weekly Bestsellers in Canada: Jan 31

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/01/2008 12:01:00 AM


The Top 50 Graphic Novels in Canada, courtesy of BookManager. The full list is available here. The list is compiled by BookManager based on sales through independent bookstores. Sales through comic shops and larger retailers like Chapters-Indigo and Walmart are not reflected in this list. For balance, you might want to try the Amazon.ca and Chapters-Indigo lists. This list has two parts, the top 50 overall and the top 25 by Canadian creators.

Top 50 Comics and Graphic Novels in Canada

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (2) Garfield Goes Bananas, Jim Davis (Random House)
3. (3) The Far Side 2008 Desk Calendar, Gary Larson (Andrews McMeel)
4. (12) Death Note, Volume 1, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
5. (5) Naruto Vol. 26, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
6. (4) Naruto Vol. 27, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
7. (9) Naruto Vol. 25, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
8. (7) Naruto Vol. 24, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
9. (6) Dark Tower:The Gunslinger Born, Peter David/Robin Furth (Marvel)
10. (25) Fruits Basket 18, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
11. (11) Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. 15, Hiromu Arakawa (VIZ)
12. (8) Herman: Living With Animals, Jim Unger (ECW Press)
13. (34) Vampire Knight Vol. 3, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
14. (-) Vampire Knight Vol. 1, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
15. (28) Naruto Vol. 22, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
16. (10) Dilbert: Cubes and Punishment, Scott Adams (Andrews McMeel)
17. (13) Naruto Vol. 23, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
18. (-) Naruto, Vol. 2:2 Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
19. (15) Death Note, Volume 2, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
20. Persepolis, Marjane Satrapi (Pantheon)
---
21. (32) Vampire Knight Vol. 2, Matsuri Hino (VIZ)
22. (-) Negima! 16: Magister Negi Magi, Ken Akamatsu (Random House)
23. (-) Naruto Vol. 4, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
24. (14) The Authoritative Calvin And Hobbes, Bill Watterson (Andrews McMeel)
25. (-) Hobbit Graphic Novel, Tolkien et al (Harpercollins)
26. (-) Persepolis 2, Marjane Satrapi (Knopf)
27. (-) Death Note, Volume 4, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
28. (36) Naruto, Volume 3: Vol. 3, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
29. (-) Death Note, Volume 7, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
30. (23) Naruto Vol. 19, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
31. (22) Naruto Vol. 1, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
32. (35) Bleach, Vol. 1, Tite Kubo (VIZ)
33. (-) Death Note, Volume 8, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
34. (-) High School Debut Vol. 1, Kazune Kawahara Beth Kawasaki (VIZ)
35. (45) Naruto Vol. 20, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
36. (30) Naruto Vol. 21, Masashi Kishimoto (VIZ)
37. (20) Asterix and the Falling Sky, Albert Uderzo (Orion)
38. (8) Attack Of The Deranged Mutant Killer Monster Snow Goons, Bill Watterson (Andrews McMeel)
39. (16) Alternative Zits, Jim Borgman Jerry Scott (Andrews McMeel)
40. (-) Buffy the Vampire Slayer 1: Season 8, Joss Whedon et al (Dark Horse)
---
41. (-) The Wallflower 14, Tomoko Hayakawa (Random House)
42. (-) Absolute Boyfriend, Vol. 5, Yuu Watase (VIZ)
43. (-) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
44. (-) Death Note, Volume 9, Tsugumi Ohba Takeshi Obata (VIZ)
45. (17) Bumper Book of Bunny Suicides, Andy Riley (Hodder)
46. (-) Black Cat Vol. 12, Kentaro Yabuki (VIZ)
47. (-) Fruits Basket 1, Natsuki Takaya (Tokyopop)
48. (-) I'm Ready for My Movie Contract: A Get Fuzzy Collection, Darby Conley (Andrews McMeel Publishing)
49. (-) Asterix in Britain, Rene Goscinny Albert Uderzo (Orion)
50. (-) Watchmen, Alan Moore Dave Gibbons (DC)

See here for the previous list. I've added last week's ranking in parentheses, with a (-) indicating an absence from the top 50 last week --although books that were not in the top 50 last week were most likely in the top 100, with the possible exception of a few newly published hits. The pattern that emerges from looking at these lists over a period of weeks is that certain books, especially manga series, continuously jostle with each other, sliding up and down the longer list on the strength of a new volume or a spate of purchases for the kiddies. The last list was a pre-Christmas but not much has changed.

The BookManager List is a wondrous, scary place, where everyone from Todd Hignite to Charles Schulz to the Transformers to Jerry Siegel to Linda Medley duke it out and where one sale in one tiny bookstore can move a book from #999 to #200. This is also the place where you find books by Canadian creators and where the Canadian Top 20 comes from:

Sequential's All-Canadian Top 25
from BookManager

1. (1) Senior's Discount, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
2. (3) Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography, Chester Brown (D+Q)
3. (2) Teaching is a Learning Experience!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
4. (11) The Plain Janes, Cecil Castellucci et al (DC/Minx)
5. (4) Dramacon 3, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
6. (-) Essex County Vol. 1: Tales From the Farm, Jeff Lemire (Top Shelf)
7. (5) She's Turning into One of Them!, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
8. (-) Dramacon 2, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
9. (-) 365 Days: A Diary by Julie Doucet (D+Q)
10. (6) White Rapids, Pascal Blanchet (D+Q)
11. (-) The BackBench Collection, Graham Harrop (Ronsdale Press)
12. (-) Middle Age Spread, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
13. (10) Graphic Witness: Four Wordless Graphic Novels, George A Walker (Firefly)
14. (8) Scott Pilgrim 4: Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
15. (7) Never Wink at a Worried Woman, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
16. (19) Dramacon 1, Svetlana Chmakova (Tokyopop)
17. (17) Family Business, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
18. (18) Remembering Farley, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
19. (15) The Big 5-0, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
20. (-) Scott Pilgrim 2: Scott Pilgrim vs The World, Bryan Lee O'Malley (Oni)
21. (-) Therefore Repent! Jim Munroe Salgood Sam (insomniac)
22. (-) Sunshine and Shadow, Lynn Johnston (Andrews McMeel)
23. (14) Northwest Passage: Annotated Collection, Scott Chantler (Oni)
24. (-) DC The New Frontier, Darwyn Cooke (DC)
25. (-) In Me Own Words, Graham Roumieu (MANIC D PRESS)

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This Weekend: Toronto Comicon

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/01/2008 12:01:00 AM


Toronto ComiCON - Sunday February 3, 2008
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
11AM - 5PM
Admission: $5 / Fan Expo Canada VIP Pass Holders: Free

With guests:
Mitchell Breitweiser (Captain America: The Chosen)
Francis Manapul (Legion of Super-Heroes)
DMF Comics
Andy B.
Agnes Garbowska
Richard Zajac


80 Dealer tables: 4evercomics, All New Comics, Conspiracy Comics, Cyclone Comics, Dragon Lady, Dragonstar, General Comics (Ron Kasman), Gravity Toys, Harley Yee, Kevthemev/Joe Shuster Awards, Kewl Collectibles, Kool Kollectibles, Major Comics, Manish Mistry, Mister Comics (Wes Hagen), MTC Canstar, Myths, Legends & Heroes, Pendragon, Red Nails, The Comic Doctor, Unknown Worlds (Will Wong), Wyldstar


www.hobbystar.com

*****

see here for Sequential's 2008 convention schedule!

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Weekend Links

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/01/2008 12:00:00 AM
Some quick comics-related links:

Canwest sues journalist over cartoonist firings

Mountie exhibit to include comics?


The Dave Sim Show continues at the Comics Journal board

Brian K Vaughn and Pia Guerra are interviewed on this week's Inkstuds podcast

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Plain Janes II

:: Posted by Bryan @ 2/01/2008 12:00:00 AM

Janes in Love is the title of the sequel to The Plain Janes, the graphic novel written by Canadian bestseller Cecil Castellucci and illustrated by U.S. cartoonist Jim Rugg. The new book is due out late-2008. In the mean-time, you might be able to hear Castellucci on CBC's Q podcast (she's on at the end, after John Sayles!). You can also see a Castellucci sketch from the Beguiling signing earlier this week, courtesy of Jason Truong. In other news, The Plain Janes made the 2008 Amelia Bloomer list, "Recommended Feminist Books for Young Readers". Lastly, Nathalie Atkinson namechecks Castellucci in her Post article on post-feminism, "Who needs Ms. magazine when we've got manga comics?"

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