Author Archives: Kevin Boyd

The Curse of Overcrowded Cons in Canada Strikes

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Success can be a good thing, too much success can be a nightmare in the convention circuit if the convention cannot handle the demand and the Fire Marshall has to step in and shut the event down. While we are seeing an explosion of interest in comic book conventions here in Canada lately,  that growing interest is leading to some pretty severe growing pains. Pains we’ve seen at events such as Fan Expo Canada, Montreal Comic Con and even at Fan Expo Vancouver a couple of weeks ago.

The latest casualty of too much success is last weekend’s Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo who had an incredible turnout of what is reportedly a crowd of 50,000 people on Saturday alone. With such a powerful line-up of celebrity guests such as the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast reunion, it’s no wonder that they had such a huge draw, but they will have to completely rethink their space and entry procedures for 2013.

Talking Comics with Ty Templeton

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Comic Book Resources’ Robot 6 blog contributor Tim O’Shea sat down with Ty Templeton to discuss his contributions to Marvel Comics’ Ultimate Spider-Man, Avenging Spider-Man, his courses at the Toronto Cartoonists Workshop, Holmes Inc., On the Couch, being on the short list for a Joe Shuster Webcomics Award for Bun Toons and much more!

O’Shea: When you get nominated as a potential finalist for The Joe Shuster Awards (Webcomics), does recognition like that help expand your audience for Bun Toons?

Templeton: It’s only been a couple of weeks since the finalist/potential nomination thing was announced, so I can’t tell yet. I tend to have wildly different attention for each Bun Toon, depending on the subject matter. When I pick on Frank Miller or Alan Moore our readership quadruples from the strips when I say sentimental things about my family. Since the short list/nomination announcement, I’ve been getting a fairly average readership, but I haven’t been going after Frank Miller as much lately.

FCBD in Canada is this Saturday – what is your local shop doing?

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I thought originally I would go through the Canadian shops and give an update on what they were doing for FCBD, which is this Saturday, but then it dawned on me that just about EVERY comic shop across the country was likely doing SOMETHING, so if wherever you are this Saturday, make sure to go and give your local shop some love and grab some free comics. Or if you are traveling, see where the closest shops are to you and make a point of checking them out. Or if you are lucky enough to live in a community with many shops, grab some friends and organize a “shop crawl” and visit all of them.

Some stores will just have a selection of free comics available, while others have planned various events and activities, including sales, tournaments, barbeques, parties, as well as signings with Canadian comic book artists and writers. This is a media friendly event, so many stores will be mentioned in local newspapers and on some television affiliates.

But in order to help you connect with the Canadian stores closest to you, here are the links to our lists of Canadian stores by province, not just the ones listed on the Free Comic Book Day website but all Canadian comics sellers that we are aware of. If you follow the links below, you’ll find that the listings are broken down alphabetically by city within that province, and then alphabetical by store name within that city or town.

Newfoundland
Nova Scotia
New Brunswick
Prince Edward Island
Quebec
Ontario
Manitoba
Saskatchewan
Alberta
British Columbia
Territories

Robert Haines, our associate director, will be at the Dragon in Guelph, ON where Jay Stephens is slated to appear. Some members of the 501st Legion will be there as well.

I will be at the Comic Book Lounge in Toronto, ON where Kathryn and Stuart Immonen, Ty Templeton, Marco Rudy, Mike Del Mundo, Raff Ienco and Gibson Quarter are scheduled to appear. There will be face painting for kids. In the evening Ty Templeton will be hosting a talk show/panel called “On the Couch” and the participants include Ty, Ken Lashley, Scott Chantler, Mark Askwith and Will Pascoe.

The nominees for the Harry Kremer Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Retailer Award will be announced here on Free Comic Book Day, May 5th.

Please feel free to send us your pictures of any FCBD events to info@joeshusterawards.com

Star Wars Day TO – May the 4th be with you.

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The second annual Star Wars Day TO will take place at the Toronto Underground Cinema on Friday, May 4th, 2012 and all proceeds from the 2012 event will go to the SickKids Foundation. The goal is to bring together Star Wars fans of all ages and levels of interest. This family-friendly event celebrates the series through fan-created materials and activities including costume contests, trivia, special guests, prizes and more.

May the Fourth is coming up really fast and we were hoping we could get you on board to help SickKids! Helping is pretty simple and can be as easy as mentioning us on Twitter,  Facebook, or Tumblr. We also have some tickets to giveaway if you want to run a contest on your blog, website, twitter or facebook, just reply to this email and we’ll work it out.

We can’t wait to show you what we have in store this Friday night at the Toronto Underground Cinema. See you there!

X-O Manowar #1 and Saga #1 – Two impressive debuts by Canadian artists

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Canadian artist Cary Nord’s X-O Manowar #1, which arrives in comic stores next Wednesday, May 2nd, has reportedly over 42,000 pre-orders through the direct market, making it the best debut book by a new publisher in over a decade (since Canadian publisher Dreamwave’s Transformers relaunch, in fact).

The relaunch of Valiant Comics is being watched by many, and with this strong debut, the books themselves will be under a lot of scrutiny.

Alberta’s Nord, no stranger to successful relaunches, was the artist on Conan when Dark Horse relaunched the character in 2004.

Saga #1, with art by Canadian Fiona Staples, published by Image Comics had an impressive debut in March with 37,000 copies pre-ordered, and has gone into multiple printings already. Staples won a Joe Shuster Award in 2011 for her outstanding cover artwork on titles such as Mystery Society and DV8.

Saga, written by Brian K. Vaughn, has been getting rave reviews and has been a strong seller, with it’s third issue set to arrive in stores in a couple of weeks, the momentum for the series continues to build.

With less than a handful of other exceptions (Image’s The Walking Dead, Dark Horse’s Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, Image’s Fatale and IDW’s Magic: The Gathering), the only comics that are selling more than 20,000 copies a month are those published by Marvel and DC, so this writer hopes that this is the beginning of a trend of stronger support for material outside of superhero comics published by the big two.

 

In anticipation of the May 9th Nominations announcement: final wrap-up report

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In about 2 weeks time we’ll be announcing the final list of nominees for the 2012 awards.

2012 will see the presentation of 5 Joe Shuster Awards (down from 7 in 2011):
- Artist/Artist Team
– Cartoonist
– Cover Artist
– Webcomics Creator/Creative Team
– Writer/Writing Team
and 3 Specialty Awards
- The Dragon Award (Comics for Kids)
– The Gene Day Award (Small Press)
– The Harry Kremer Award (Comic Book Retailer)

Plus at least one Hall of Fame inductee, with a maximum of two inductees in 2012.

For transparency’s sake, here is a final recap of where we stand in the nominating process:

Four categories (artist, writer, cartoonist, cover artist) had two rounds of nominating. In the first, the 13 members presented short lists of creators who had English language comics published in 2011. From the overlapping selections, those who had three or more “votes” advanced to a second round and any creators with more than half of the votes advanced to ballot. In the second round  the members ranked their choices from 1-10, with the top selections filling in the empty slots. A concurrent nomcom of 4 selected the finalists from French language comics published in 2011.

Webcomics was handled by the Executive, following a similar selection process, as each member of the Executive reviewed the entire list of eligible webcomics and submitted short lists of their top five, from which the top seven overlapping selections advanced to the final ballot.

While we can only have 7 or 8 nominees per category, we personally feel that the lists below represent the “best of the best” of the Canadian comics scene from 2011.

ARTIST/ARTIST TEAM
7 were selected from the following:
Chris Bachalo (Wolverine and the X-Men)
Andy Belanger (Kill Shakespeare)
Pierre Bouchard (Motel Galactic)
Patrick Boutin-Gagne (La Bete du Lac: le Guardien)
Marian Churchland (Northlanders)
Marc Delafontaine (Les Nombrils T.5)
Dale Eaglesham (Alpha Flight)
Stuart Immonen (Fear Itself)
Fred Jourdain (Le Dragon Bleu/The Blue Dragon)
Jeff Lemire (Jonah Hex)
Yanick Paquette w/ Nathan Fairbairn (Swamp Thing)
Ramon Perez (Captain America and the First Thirteen)
Stephanie Poulin (Au Pays de la Memoire Blanche)
Cameron Stewart (Batman Incorporated Leviathan Strikes!)
Doug Wheatley (Star Wars Dark Times – Out of the Wilderness)

CARTOONIST
8 were selected (there was a tie) from the following:
Alex A. (L’Agent Jean T.1)
Claude Auchu (Une Annee en Quarantine)
Jimmy Beaulieu (Comedie Sentimentale Pornagraphique)
Chester Brown (Paying for It)
Darwyn Cooke (“The Seventh” from Parker: The Martini Edition)
Guy Delisle (Chroniques de Jerusalem)
Jean-Paul Eid (Le Fond de Trou)
Ray Fawkes (One Soul)
Jesse Jacobs (Even the Giants)
Francois Lapierre (Chroniques Sauvages)
Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth)
Francis Manapul (The Flash)
Pat McKeown (Hair Shirt)
Kagan McLeod (Infinite Kung Fu)
Joe Ollmann (Mid-Life)
Ramon Perez (Tale of Sand)
Michel Rabagliati (Paul au Parc)
Seth (Great Northern Brotherhood of Canadian Cartoonists)

COVER ARTIST
7 were selected from the following:
Kalman Andrasofszky
Kaare Andrews
Darwyn Cooke
Michael Del Mundo
Jean-Paul Eid
David Finch
Fred Jourdain
Francois Lapierre
Jeff Lemire
Francis Manapul
Yanick Paquette
Alexander Perkins
Doug Wheatley
Chrissie Zullo

WRITER
8 were selected (there was a tie) from the following:
Ian Boothby (Simpsons Comics)
Anthony Del Col/Connor McCreery (Kill Shakespeare)
Francis Desharnais (Motel Galactic)
Maryse Dubuc (Les Nombrils T.5)
Ray Fawkes (Skullkickers)
Kathryn Immonen (Wolverine and Jubilee)
Francois Lapierre (La Bete du Lac: Le Gardien)
Jeff Lemire (Animal Man)
John Rogers (Dungeons and Dragons)
Tristan Roulot (Le Testament de Capitaine Crown T.1)
J. Torres (Archie)
Kurtis Wiebe (Green Wake)
Jim Zubkavich (Skullkickers)

WEBCOMICS
7 were selected from the following:
JOEY COMEAU & EMILY HORNE – A SOFTER WORLD
KARL KERSCHL – ABOMINABLE CHARLES CHRISTOPHER
FAITH ERIN HICKS – ADVENTURES OF SUPERHERO GIRL
KEITH MCLEAN – ADVENTURESOME
MICHAEL DEFORGE – ANT COMICS
JASON BRADSHAW – BOREDOM PAYS
TY TEMPLETON – BUN TOONS
SHILIN HUANG – CARCIPHONA
DAN KIM – CLONE MANGA
CONNOR WILLUMSEN – COMICS
EMILY CARROLL- COMICS
TONY CLIFF – DELILAH DIRK & THE TURKISH LIEUTENANT
SALGOOD SAM – DREAM LIFE
DRAZEN KOZJAN – THE HAPPY UNDERTAKER
KATE BEATON – HARK! A VAGRANT
KATE CRAIG – HEART OF ICE
KATE LETH – KATE OR DIE
RAMON PEREZ – KUKUBURI
ELAINE WILL – LOOK STRAIGHT AHEAD
IRIS/ZVIANE – L’OSTIE DE CHAT
GISELE LAGACE & DAVID LUMSDEN – MENAGE A TROIS
ATTILA ADORJANY – METAPHYSICAL NEUROMA
ISABELLE MELANCON – NAMESAKE
VITALY ALEXIUS – ROMANTICALLY APOCALYPTIC
JAYD AIT-KACI – SFEER THEORY & THE FOX SISTER
DAVID BISHOP – STRANGER
WINSTON ROWNTREE – SUB NORMALITY

GENE DAY AWARD FOR SELF PUBLISHING
5 to be selected – winner also receives a $500 bursary
Finalists to be selected from comics submitted for consideration.Short list of considered works not available and the finalists are still undetermined as of today.

THE DRAGON AWARD for
COMICS FOR KIDS
8 were selected
This is a curated award, nominees were selected by teachers and librarians. Short list of considered works not available.

HARRY KREMER RETAILER AWARD
10 were selected – to be narrowed down to 5 in July
Retailers selected from lists of retailers available elsewhere on this site. JSA Executive coordinated visits to shops and evaluated them on things such as presentation, customer service, diversity of material.

HALL OF FAME
Committee selection pending – July 2012

More on Big B Comics Niagara

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The new Niagara Falls Big B Comics had a soft opening on April 16th but there will be an advertised grand opening on May 5th – Free Comic Book Day. Some key fixtures were not in place when the photos (above and below) were taken – but they say that the full and proper fixtures as well as product should all be in place by FCBD.

The focus of the store is twofold, as owner Walter Durajlija explains:

“Firstly, we want to service the Niagara region with the best possible service and selection of comics, graphic novels, manga, related toys, t-shirts and merchandise, we’ll also focus on gaming – most of the Niagara region is a 15 minute drive to the store and we selected Lundy’s Lane because it is literally 3 minutes off the highway and easy to get to for those in Welland, St. Catharines, Fort Erie and of course the Falls”

“Secondly, we chose the “strip” portion of Lundy’s Lane to attract tourists as well – this is a very heavily travelled tourist strip lined with coffee houses, restaurants, big outlet malls and hotels – we plan to cater to the tourists by focusing a section of the shop to feature Canadian comic books – current Canadian creators and their work will be prominently featured, we’ll have exclusive Captain Canuck merchandise as we have entered into an agreement with Richard Comely to produce new exclusive Captain Canuck merchandise. We’re also designing a small display on Canadian Whites – showcasing Canada’s Golden Age comic history.”

Big B Comics’ Hamilton location won the Harry Kremer Outstanding Canadian Comics Retailer Award in 2007.

Lots of stuff going on or just passed… Dubai, Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and FCBD

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Kill Shakespeare’s Anthony Del Col went to Dubai for it’s first Comic Con and wrote about the experience for the Beat.

Last weekend was the first Fan Expo Vancouver and the turnout was a lot better than anticipated. The rest of the crew is on vacation for a couple of days so I won’t know final attendance until they get back. We had a smaller staff but the show ran smoothly and the people in Vancouver were really great.

Of course, this weekend it’s the original C2E2… the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo at the BMO Round-Up Centre (Friday-Sunday). I wish I could have gone, but it would have been my 3rd convention weekend in a row. I had a blast there last year.

The following weekend it’s TCAF here in Toronto, at the Metro Toronto Reference Library. It’s a real shame that the organizers decided to schedule the show against Free Comic Book Day and one hopes that this will be the last time it happens. The Doug Wright Awards are being presented on May 5th at Jackman Hall at the Art Gallery of Ontario. There are plenty of side events scheduled, so check their site for information.

Friday, May 4th is the appropriate date for Star Wars Day Toronto at the Toronto Underground Cinema.

As I mentioned before, Saturday May 5th IS Free Comic Book Day, so make sure you go down to visit your local Canadian comics retailer and show them some love and get some free comics along the way. Many stores have scheduled signings and appearances by comic book creators as well as other activities like barbeques, sales, cosplay and more!

Joe Shuster Award Nominations will be announced in early May

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Live announcement: Saturday, May 5th* at 10 pm following “On the Couch with Ty Templeton” at the Comic Book Lounge + Gallery, 587A College Street in Toronto, capping off a day of FCBD signings and activities. “On the Couch” is scheduled to begin at 8PM and will be followed by an Industry Night social event.

At the time of writing this, the Webcomics and Gene Day categories are still being discussed. Update: Webcomics has been finalized.

Online announcement: will follow a few days afterwards. We will not** post the nominated list on this site until May 8th or May 9th so as not to compete against the announcement of the Doug Wright Award winners.

UPDATE: * Yes, we are fully aware that the Doug Wright Awards are being announced that evening. The DWAs will be presented between 7 and 9 pm (corrected – thanks Brad!) May 5th at the Art Gallery of Ontario’s Jackman Hall and the ceremony is open to the public. You may even see people associated with these awards there since the AGO is about a 20 minute walk away from the Comic Book Lounge.

We were planning initially to announce the nominees in early April and we decided to hold off a month and (a) use the time to debate/discuss some of the categories and (b) allow the other Canadian awards to wrap up. With the Bedelys, Bedeis Causa, Expozine and now the Wright Awards presented throughout April and into May we can announce the JSA nominees and not have to worry about tripping on other people’s toes, those awards will all have been presented by the time our press release goes out.

However… we did want to do something comics positive on Free Comic Book Day – the industry’s ONE day a year to let comic book shops shine, and we do have an award for Canadian comic book retailers, so we opted to piggy back the announcement at the tail end of a FCBD event in Toronto called “On the Couch with Ty Templeton” whereby the nominees would be announced after “On the Couch” wraps up. There may be a short break between the two.

Note: I’ve decided to hold back the announcement until 10 PM instead of immediately following the wrap up of “On the Couch”.

** The 10 comic book retailers that have been selected for the Harry Kremer Outstanding Canadian Comic Book Retailer Award WILL be posted online here on May 5th. Perhaps your local retailer is one of the finalists! Finalists in the other categories will be announced a few days after that.

Hobbystar is suing Wizard over Toronto Comic Con / Comicon

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According to Comic Book Resources, this is now happening, and I have little to say on it except that in business, lawsuits happen all of the time when lines of perception are crossed. In the end, this will hopefully settle some long unresolved questions.

Update: Yes, since the same individual that has been stalking Hobbystar for almost a decade pointed out on twitter, I do work for Hobbystar on their conventions, organizing comic book guests. And I also used to be the co-owner of the Paradise Comicon that was sold to Wizard.

As individuals, we often wonder about the philosophical impact that legal decisions have on the marketplace. Can someone go after someone else legally for a slang name Comicon/Comic Con, etc.? Personally, I think not. When I was doing the old con I was told it couldn’t be protected except in certain rare contexts. Nevertheless, we changed the name to the Paradise Toronto Comicon to eliminate confusion from the pre-existing HSM event.

As fans, we often jump to conclusions as to what things are about. Certainly there’s a long history here in Toronto involving different participants that gets revived by fans and the comics press whenever something happens. Automatically “con war” gets thrown around by certain folks and certain comics media people. Wizard has been here for three years now, and the events have, up until now, had few issues. Although from time to time, one would hear innuendo about what one side had said or done.

What is relevant here in this lawsuit is that Hobbystar has a brand of show that has been active and visible at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre since 2001. That brand is “Toronto ComiCON”.

Wizard wanted to bring their “Toronto Comic Con” show (a brand they created in 2010 from the ashes of the Paradise Toronto Comicon – both of which were held a different and distinct facility in another part of town) to the MTCC, so they booked space at the facility during the time of year that Hobbystar has traditionally held a Toronto ComiCON at the MTCC. The shows have been co-existing for two years in different parts of town, but now, as the Toronto Star so succinctly implied Toronto ComiCON / Toronto Comic Con. Same basic name. Identical facility. Similar events. Different promoters.

So there’s a lawsuit. Let the courts figure it out.

Winners of the 2012 Bédéis Causa

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The Festival de la bande dessinée francophone de Québec announced the winners of the prix Bédéis Causa. The awards have been presented annually since 1988.

Le prix Réal-Fillion

Fred Jourdain pour Le dragon bleu

Le prix Albéric-Bourgeois,

Guy Delisle, pour les Chroniques de Jérusalem

Le prix Maurice-Petitdidier

Craig Thompson pour Habibi

Le lauréat du Grand prix de la Ville de Québec

Jean-Paul Eid, pour Le fond du trou. 

Le prix hommage Albert-Chartier

Safarir

Happenings: Kazoo Festival this Saturday, April 14 in Guelph, ON (reminder)

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Poster designed by Camp Pepper.

As part of Kazoo! Fest 2012, the Zine & Comic Expo will be held on Saturday April 14th in Guelph. The website says they will present awards, and provide post-expo drinks and treats. Hours are 11am – 4pm at the Norfolk Street United Church (75 Norfolk St).

The Kazoo! Zine & Comic Expo is brought to you by The Dragon in Guelph.

Webcomics Award 2012

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The following webcomics and their creators have been selected by our nominating committee for consideration for the Oustanding Canadian Webcomics Creator / Creative Team Award. All are worth checking out – you may find your next favourite comic from among them. The finalists will be announced in early May.

CREATOR – TITLE

JOEY COMEAU & EMILY HORNE – A SOFTER WORLD
KARL KERSCHL – ABOMINABLE CHARLES CHRISTOPHER
FAITH ERIN HICKS – ADVENTURES OF SUPERHERO GIRL
KEITH MCLEAN – ADVENTURESOME
MICHAEL DEFORGE – ANT COMICS
JASON BRADSHAW – BOREDOM PAYS
TY TEMPLETON – BUN TOONS
SHILIN HUANG – CARCIPHONA
DAN KIM – CLONE MANGA
CONNOR WILLUMSEN – COMICS
EMILY CARROLL- COMICS
TONY CLIFF – DELILAH DIRK & THE TURKISH LIEUTENANT
SALGOOD SAM – DREAM LIFE
DRAZEN KOZJAN – THE HAPPY UNDERTAKER
KATE BEATON – HARK! A VAGRANT
KATE CRAIG – HEART OF ICE
KATE LETH – KATE OR DIE
RAMON PEREZ – KUKUBURI
ELAINE WILL – LOOK STRAIGHT AHEAD
IRIS/ZVIANE – L’OSTIE DE CHAT
GISELE LAGACE & DAVID LUMSDEN – MENAGE A TROIS
ATTILA ADORJANY – METAPHYSICAL NEUROMA
ISABELLE MELANCON – NAMESAKE
VITALY ALEXIUS – ROMANTICALLY APOCALYPTIC
JAYD AIT-KACI – SFEER THEORY & THE FOX SISTER
DAVID BISHOP – STRANGER
WINSTON ROWNTREE – SUB NORMALITY

Nominating: Round Two begins

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Last week I discussed the preparation leading up and into our second round of the nominating process for the 2012 Joe Shuster Awards – looking at four very specific categories of the 10 or so awards we will be presenting in September.

You may recall that we had assembled a list of French and English creators who were at least “seconded” – that is they received 2 or more votes from our two nominating committees – one for French work and the other for English.

We determined that based on the voting that any creators with more than 50% support would make it onto the final ballot and so the French nominating committee were able to finalize their selections without the need for a second round, and the English committee finalized one cartoonist, one cover artist and all of the remaining Writer spots.

Looking over the large number of creators seconded, we moved the cut off point to all creators who were “thirded”, receiving 3 or more votes. This resulted in 10 artists, 10 cartoonists and 10 cover artists going into Round Two.

ARTIST

5 spots open – Top 10 contenders

Chris Bachalo (Wolverine and the X-Men), Andy Belanger (Kill Shakespeare), Marian Churchland (Northlanders), Dale Eaglesham (Alpha Flight), Stuart Immonen (Fear Itself), Jeff Lemire (Jonah Hex), Yanick Paquette (Swamp Thing), Ramon Perez (Captain America and the First Thirteen), Cameron Stewart (Batman Incorporated Leviathan Strikes!), Doug Wheatley (Star Wars Dark Times – Out of the Wilderness)

CARTOONIST

4 spots open – Top 10 contenders (incl. 1 creator confirmed)

Chester Brown (Paying for It), Darwyn Cooke (“The Seventh” from Parker: The Martini Edition), Ray Fawkes (One Soul), Jesse Jacobs (Even the Giants), Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth), Francis Manapul (The Flash), Pat McKeown (Hair Shirt), Kagan McLeod (Infinite Kung Fu), Joe Ollmann (Mid-Life), Ramon Perez (Tale of Sand), Seth (Great Northern Brotherhood of Canadian Cartoonists).

COVER ARTIST

4 spots open – Top 10 contenders (incl. 1 creator confirmed)

Kalman Andrasofszky (Various), Kaare Andrews (Various), Darwyn Cooke (Various), Michael Del Mundo (Various), David Finch (Various), Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth, Jonah Hex), Francis Manapul (Various), Yanick Paquette (Various), Alexander Perkins (Kill Shakespeare 11), Doug Wheatley (Various), Chrissie Zullo (Cinderella: Fables are Forever).

The 13 member nominating committee is then asked to rank their choices by order of preference from 1 to 10. 1 being most preferred (and being counted as 10 points), 10 being least preferred (and counted as 1 point).

They had one week to send in their rankings, and the great thing about this stage of the process is that all 13 members have to take into consideration all of the ten potential nominees. Their cumulative point scores will determine who will advance to the final ballot.

Prix Expozine / Expozine Award Winners Announced

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For Immediate Release: April 5, 2012

The Expozine Alternative Press Awards!!!

The Expozine Alternative Press Awards recognize the best publications that were on display at the Expozine small press fair in the fall of 2011.

The Expozine Awards Gala was held on Wednesday, April 4, 2012, 8 p.m., at Le Divan Orange, 4234 Saint-Laurent, featuring Simon Paquet as MC, readings by Jean-Pierre Tremblay and Jese Gordon and ended with a great dance party performance by Montreal’s premier synth showman, Super Fossil Power!

THE WINNERS:

English Zine

Prologue, Jonathan Reid Sévigny

An exquisitely printed zine of large-format colour drawings, huge tableaus of characters and scenes that are simultaneously cute and violent, surreal and storybook plain. You could look at each one for hours wondering what the heck they’re supposed to mean – the unicorns, the gallows, the mermaids, the guillotines, the corner dépanneur as some sort of fairy oasis. Stunning.

Honourable mention (tie):

I’m breaking the rules a bit here with 2 honourable mentions but here goes: Jese Gordon’s Korea deserves an honourable mention as a superbly presented literary zine. The semi-transparent mylar pages complement the almost voyeuristic feel of the texts.

The zine Drop Target from Vermont gets its honourable mention for excellence as a real “old school” type zine: by and for fans of pinball, yet with a good enough presentation and variety of content (essays, reviews, comics etc.) that non-fans would enjoy it as well.

English Book

You Are A Cat! by Sherwin Tjia

This book takes a premise that possibly shouldn’t work and works it beautifully in every direction. From teenage lesbian suicides to psychopathic killers- with fresh cream, naps and feline sex in between – as you ‘pick your own plot’ this book provides genuine insight into what it actually might feel like to be a cat.

English Comic

Pope Hats No. 2, Ethan Rilly, Adhouse Books

Rilly has a fully developed graphic and storytelling style of his own in this highly existential series.

Fanzine Francophone

Impossible voyage, Celine Huyghebaert

Petite collection de pensées à la fois nostalgiques et autoréflexives entourant un voyage d’une certaine Louisa-Nar sur des cartes d’identification de bagages. Chaque petite carte d’embarcation est sérigraphiée en noir et blanc. Objet d’art finement assemblé et numéroté. À méditer!

Mention special, Fanzine Francophone:

Salade de crudités” de Boris Paillard, ouvrage de collaboration entre la poésie de Paillard et différents illustrateurs tous plus incroyables les uns que les autres. Tout le livre est sérigraphié d’où son incroyable authenticité tant au niveau de la texture que de la couleur. Flamboyant, pertinent. Bravo!

Livre Francophone

Typographie inusuelle, Marc Pantanella, Éditions L’Oie de Cravan et Finitude

D’abord pour la beauté de l’ouvrage, la maquette de couverture, le papier, la qualité d’impression puis ensuite pour l’humour surprenant, bon enfant et réjouissant qui nous pousse de page en page.

Bande Dessinée Francophone

Boumeries, volume 1, par Boum (Samantha Leriche-Gionet), auto-publication

Des petits moments du quotidien empreints d’humour, racontés avec candeur et spontanéité. Le dessin, expressif à souhait, illustre le tout de façon très efficace sous forme de strips qui font plaisir à lire.

Winners of the 13th Annual Prix Bédélys Announced – Updated

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Les Prix Bédélys

This evening at a special ceremony held at the auditorium of la Grande Bibliothèque (475 boul. De Maisonneuve Est) in Montreal, Promo 9e art presented the 13th annual prix Bédélys, which honour the best in French language graphic novels/comics (bandes dessinées) published in 2011. Four juries composed of amateurs and professionals selected the books which they felt were the most significant works published in the categories of Best Book from Quebec, Best Book, Best Self-Published Book and Best Book for Younger Readers. The Prix Bédélys Québec is accompanied by a bursary of $1000, the Prix Bédélys Indépendant a bursary of $500, and the Prix Bédélys Fanzine comes with a bursary of $250.

The Finalists:

Bédélys Québec

Bédélys Indépendant

Les deux autres catégories soulignent le travail d’auteurs et d’éditeurs étrangers. Les québécois s’y retrouvant sont en gras/italique.
Bédélys Monde
  • L’Art de voler, d’Antonio Altarriba et Kim, publié aux Éditions Denoël
  • Blast t.2, de Manu Larcenet, publié aux Éditions Dargaud
  • La Douceur de l’enfer t.1, d’Olivier Grenson, publié aux Éditions Le Lombard
  • Le Dragon bleu, de Fred Jourdain, Robert Lepage et Marie Michaud, Éditions Alto
  • Elmer, de Gerry Alanguilan, publié aux Éditions Cà et là
  • Habibi, de Craig Thompson, publié aux Éditions Casterman
  • Les Ignorants, d’Étienne Davodeau, publié aux Éditions Futuropolis
  • La Plaine du Kantô t.1 à 3, de Kazuo Kamimura, publié aux Éditions Kana
  • Polina, de Bastien Vivès, publié aux Éditions Casterman
  • Portugal, de Cyril Pedrosa, publié aux Éditions Dupuis
Bédélys Jeunesse
  • Biodôme t.1, de Frédéric Antoine et Yohann Morin, Éditions Boomerang (Lire mon article sur la série ICI)
  • Légendes de Parvaterra t.3, de Raul Arnaiz, publié aux Éditions Le Lombard
  • Nelson t.11, de Bertshy, publié aux Éditions Dupuis
  • Légendes de la garde t.2, de David Petersen, publié aux Éditions Gallimard Jeunesse
  • Seuls t.6, de Fabien Vehlmann et Bruno Gazzotti, publié aux Éditions Dupuis

 

2012 Eisner Award Nominations Announced: Cooke, Perez, Fawkes, Lemire, Herring, Sneyd, Cliff, Choquette and D+Q represent for Canada

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Nominees Announced for 2012 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards

Selections Reflect Wide Diversity in Industry

SAN DIEGO – Comic-Con International (Comic-Con) is proud to announce the nominations for the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards 2012. The nominees, chosen by a blue-ribbon panel of judges, reflect the wide range of material being published in comics and graphic novel form today, from nursery rhymes and World War II battles to high school angst and pulp fiction.

Topping the 2012 list with 6 nominations is Marvel’s Daredevil, with nods for Best Continuing Series, Best Single Issue, Best Writer (Mark Waid), Best Cover Artist (Marcos Martin), and Best Penciller/Inker Team (two nominations: Marcos Martin, and Paolo Rivera/Joe Rivera). Close behind with 5 nominations is Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand, an original graphic novel of an unproduced, feature-length screenplay written by Jim Henson and Jerry Juhl, adapted by artist Ramón K. Pérez, published by Archaia. The book is up for Best Graphic Album-New, Best Penciller/Inker, Best Coloring, Best Lettering, and Best Publication Design.

Three titles have 3 nominations: Vertigo/DC’s iZombie (Best Penciller/Inker and Best Cover Artist for Michael Allred, Best Coloring for Laura Allred) and The Unwritten (Best Single Issue, Best Writer for Mike Carey, Best Cover Artist for Yuko Shimizu), and IDW’s Richard Stark’s Parker: The Martini Edition, by Darwyn Cooke (Best Short Story, Best Graphic Album-Reprint, Best Publication Design). Sixteen titles had 2 nominations, and the remaining nominations were spread among nearly 100 books and comics in 27 categories.

Joining Tale of Sand in the Graphic Album-New category are Bubbles & Gondola by French cartoonist Renaud Dillies (NBM), the animation-industry-based Freeway by Mark Kalesniko (Fantagraphics), the critically acclaimed Habibi by Craig Thompson (Pantheon), Ivy by newcomer Sarah Oleksyk (Oni), and the experimental One Soul by Ray Fawkes (Oni).

DC and Marvel tied for the most nominations for a publisher, each having 11 nominations plus 2 shared. For DC, Vertigo had the lion’s share of nominations, led by iZombie and The Unwritten. In addition to the Daredevil nods, Marvel had 2 nominations for Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips’ Criminal: The Last of the Innocents under the Icon imprint. IDW also had 11 nominations, dominating the Best Archival Collection, Comics-Related Book, and Publication Design categories. Close behind with 10 nominations (plus 1 shared) is Dark Horse, including 2 each for Dark Horse Presents, Jeff Jensen’s Green River Killer, and Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo. Next, with 9 (plus 1 shared) is Fantagraphics, including 3 nominations each in the Archival and International categories.

Other publishers with multiple nominations include First Second and NBM (6); Abrams ComicArts, Archaia, Drawn & Quarterly, and Oni (5); Image (4 plus 2 shared); Candlewick (4); and Pantheon (3). Eleven publishers had 2 nominations: Abstract Studio, Action Lab, Archie, Atheneum, Bongo, BOOM!, Chronicle, Top Shelf, the University of Mississippi Press, VIZ Media, and Yen Press. Another 15 publishers have 1 nomination each.

Although the judges have honored the superhero series Daredevil with the largest single number of nominations, they have selected a wide range of works from other genres and smaller presses, including nominations for several non-American creators within non-international categories. These creators include French cartoonists Dilles, Émile Bravo, Philippe Coudray, Nix, and Sylvain Savoia; Japanese creators Naoki Urasawa and Shiguru Mizuki; Croatian artist Tonci Zonjic; Argentinian artist Eduardo Risso; Spanish artist Marcos Martin; Italian artists Francesco Frankavilla and Sara Picelli; Polish author Marzena Sowa; Iranians Amir and Khalil; and over a dozen Canadian and British creators.

Named for acclaimed comics creator the Will Eisner, the awards are in their 24th year of highlighting the best publications and creators in comics and graphic novels. The 2012 Eisner Awards judging panel consists of reviewer Brigid Alverson (Graphic Novel Reporter, CBR, Robot 6), retailer Calum Johnston (Strange Adventures, Halifax, Nova Scotia), librarian Jesse Karp (LREI, New York), cartoonist Larry Marder (Beanworld), comics historian Benjamin Saunders (University of Oregon), and Comic-Con board of director Mary Sturhann.

This year’s judges added two new categories: Best Publication for Early Readers, and Best Educational/Academic Work. They also dropped four categories from the previous year: Best New Series, Best Adaptation from Another Medium, Best Writer/Artist-Nonfiction, and Best Painter/Multimedia Artist. According to Eisner Awards Administrator Jackie Estrada, “The judges chose to not have the New Series and Painter categories this year because they didn’t find enough contenders that reached the level of quality they were looking for.” However, Estrada says, “the extent and quality of the material submitted in the Kids and Teen categories was so high that the judges felt dividing these books into three categories was warranted.”

Ballots with this year’s nominees will be going out in mid-April to comics creators, editors, publishers, and retailers. A downloadable pdf of the ballot is available online, and a special website has been set up for online voting: www.eisnervote.com. The results in all categories will be announced in a gala awards ceremony on the evening of Friday, July 13 at Comic-Con International.

Voting in one Eisner Awards category, the Hall of Fame, is already completed. The judges chose the nominees earlier this year, and voting was conducted solely online.

The Eisner Awards are part of Comic-Con International, a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to creating awareness of and appreciation for comics and related popular artforms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contributions of comics to art and culture. Jackie Estrada has been administrator of the Awards since 1990. She can be reached at jackie@comic-con.org.

More information about the Eisner Awards can be found at http://www.comic-con.org/cci/cci_eisners_main.shtml.

EISNER AWARD NOMINEES 2012

Best Short Story
“A Brief History of the Art Form Known as Hortisculpture,” by Adrian Tomine, in Optic Nerve #12 (Drawn & Quarterly)
“Harvest of Fear,” by Jim Woodring, in The Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror #17 (Bongo)
“The Phototaker,” by Guy Davis, in Metal Hurlant vol. 2 (Humanoids)
“The Seventh,” by Darwyn Cooke, in Richard Stark’s Parker: The Martini Edition (IDW)
“The Speaker,” by Brandon Graham, in Dark Horse Presents #7 (Dark Horse)

Best Single Issue (or One-Shot)
Daredevil #7, by Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera, and Joe Rivera (Marvel)
Ganges #4, by Kevin Huizenga (Fantagraphics)
Locke & Key: Guide to the Known Keys, by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW)
Princeless #3, by Jeremy Whitley and M. Goodwin (Action Lab)
The Unwritten #24: “Stairway to Heaven” by Mike Carey, Peter Gross, and Al Davison (Vertigo/DC)

Best Continuing Series
Daredevil, by Mark Waid, Marcos Martin, Paolo Rivera, and Joe Rivera (Marvel)
Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys, by Naoki Urasawa (VIZ Media)
Rachel Rising, by Terry Moore (Abstract Studio)
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man, by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli (Marvel)
Usagi Yojimbo, by Stan Sakai (Dark Horse)

Best Limited Series
Atomic Robo and the Ghost of Station X, by Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegener (Red 5)
Criminal: The Last of the Innocent, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Marvel Icon)
Flashpoint: Batman – Knight of Vengeance, by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC)
The New York Five, by Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly (Vertigo/DC)
Who Is Jake Ellis? by Nathan Edmondson & Tonci Zonjic (Image)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 7)
Beauty and the Squat Bears, by Émile Bravo (Yen Press)
Benjamin Bear in Fuzzy Thinking, by Philippe Coudray (Candlewick/Toon Books)
Dragon Puncher Island, by James Kochalka (Top Shelf)
Nursery Rhyme Comics, edited by Chris Duffy (First Second)
Patrick in a Teddy Bear’s Picnic, by Geoffrey Hayes (Candlewick/Toon Books)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 8-12)
The All-New Batman: The Brave and the Bold, by Sholly Fisch, Rick Burchett, and Dan Davis (DC)
Amelia Rules: The Meaning of Life … And Other Stuff, by Jimmy Gownley (Atheneum)
The Ferret’s a Foot, by Colleen AF Venable and Stephanie Yue (Graphic Universe/Lerner)
Princeless, by Jeremy Whitley and M. Goodwin (Action Lab)
Snarked, by Roger Langridge (kaboom!)
Zita the Space Girl, by Ben Hatke (First Second)

Best Publication for Young Adults (Ages 12-17)
Anya’s Ghost, by Vera Brosgol (First Second)
Around the World, by Matt Phelan (Candlewick)
Level Up, by Gene Yang and Thien Pham (First Second)
Life with Archie, by Paul Kupperberg, Fernando Ruiz, Pat & Tim Kennedy, Norm Breyfogle et al. (Archie)
Mystic, by G. Willow Wilson and David Lopez (Marvel)

Best Anthology
Dark Horse Presents, edited by Mike Richardson (Dark Horse)
Nelson, edited by Rob Davis and Woodrow Phoenix (Blank Slate)
Nursery Rhyme Comics, edited by Chris Duffy (First Second)
The Someday Funnies, edited by Michel Choquette (Abrams ComicArts)
Yiddishkeit: Jewish Vernacular and the New Land, edited by Harvey Pekar and Paul Buhle (Abrams ComicArts)

Best Humor Publication
The Art of Doug Sneyd: A Collection of Playboy Cartoons (Dark Horse Books)
Chimichanga, by Eric Powell (Dark Horse)
Coffee: It’s What’s for Dinner, by Dave Kellett (Small Fish)
Kinky & Cosy, by Nix (NBM)
Milk & Cheese: Dairy Products Gone Bad, by Evan Dorkin (Dark Horse Books)

Best Digital Comic
Bahrain, by Josh Neufeld, www.cartoonmovement.com/comic/24
Battlepug, by Mike Norton, www.battlepug.com
Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant, by Tony Cliff, www.delilahdirk.com
Outfoxed, by Dylan Meconis, www.dylanmeconis.com/outfoxed
Sarah and the Seed, by Ryan Andrews, www.ryan-a.com/comics/sarahandtheseed01.htm

Best Reality-Based Work
Around the World, by Matt Phelan (Candlewick)
Green River Killer: A True Detective Story, by Jeff Jensen and Jonathan Case (Dark Horse Books)
Marzi: A Memoir, by Marzena Sowa and Sylvain Savoia (Vertigo/DC)
Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
Vietnamerica, by GB Tran (Villard)

Best Graphic Album – New
Bubbles & Gondola, by Renaud Dillies (NBM)
Freeway, by Mark Kalesniko (Fantagraphics)
Habibi, by Craig Thompson (Pantheon)
Ivy, by Sarah Olekysk (Oni)
Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand, adapted by Ramón K. Pérez (Archaia)
One Soul, by Ray Fawkes (Oni)

Best Graphic Album – Reprint
Big Questions, by Anders Nilsen (Drawn & Quarterly)
The Death Ray, by Dan Clowes (Drawn & Quarterly)
Richard Stark’s Parker: The Martini Edition, by Darwyn Cooke (IDW)
WE3: The Deluxe Edition, by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (Vertigo/DC)
Zahra’s Paradise, by Amir and Khalil (First Second)

Best Archival Collection/Project – Strips
Flash Gordon and Jungle Jim, by Alex Raymond and Don Moore, edited by Dean Mullaney (IDW/Library of American Comics)
Forgotten Fantasy: Sunday Comics 1900-1915, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press)
Prince Valiant vols. 3-4, by Hal Foster, edited by Kim Thompson (Fantagraphics)
Tarpé Mills’s Miss Fury Sensational Sundays, 1944-1949, edited by Trina Robbins (IDW/Library of American Comics)
Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse vols. 1-2, by Floyd Gottfredson, edited by David Gerstein and Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)

Best Archival Collection/Project – Comic Books
Government Issue: Comics for the People: 1940s-2000s, edited by Richard L. Graham (Abrams ComicArts)
The MAD Fold-In Collection, by Al Jaffee (Chronicle)
PS Magazine: The Best of Preventive Maintenance Monthly, by Will Eisner (Abrams ComicArts)
The Sugar and Spike Archives, vol. 1, by Sheldon Mayer (DC)
Walt Simonson’s The Mighty Thor Artist’s Edition (IDW)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material
Bubbles & Gondola, by Renaud Dillies (NBM)
Isle of 100,000 Graves, by Fabien Vehlmann and Jason (Fantagraphics)
Like a Sniper Lining Up His Shot, by Jacques Tardi and Jean-Patrick Manchette (Fantagraphics)
The Manara Library, vol. 1: Indian Summer and Other Stories, by Milo Manara with Hugo Pratt (Dark Horse Books)
Night Animals: A Diptych About What Rushes Through the Bushes, by Brecht Evens (Top Shelf)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material – Asia
A Bride’s Story, by Kaoru Mori (Yen Press)
Drops of God, by Tadashi Agi and Shu Okimoto (Vertical)
Onward Towards Our Noble Deaths, by Shigeru Mizuki (Drawn & Quarterly)
Saturn Apartments, vols. 3-4, by Hisae Iwaoka (VIZ Media)
Stargazing Dog, by Takashi Murakami (NBM)
Wandering Son, vol. 1, by Shimura Takako (Fantagraphics)

Best Writer
Cullen Bunn, The Sixth Gun (Oni)
Mike Carey, The Unwritten (Vertigo/DC)
Jeff Jensen, Green River Killer: A True Detective Story (Dark Horse Books)
Jeff Lemire, Animal Man, Flashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown, Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E. (DC); Sweet Tooth (Vertigo/DC)
Mark Waid, Irredeemable, Incorruptible (BOOM!); Daredevil (Marvel)

Best Writer/Artist
Rick Geary, The Lives of Sacco and Vanzetti (NBM)
Terry Moore, Rachel Rising (Abstract Studio)
Sarah Oleksyk, Ivy (Oni)
Craig Thompson, Habibi (Pantheon)
Jim Woodring, Congress of the Animals (Fantagraphics), “Harvest of Fear,” in The Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror #17 (Bongo)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team
Michael Allred, iZombie (Vertigo/DC); Madman All-New Giant-Size Super-Ginchy Special (Image)
Ramón K. Pérez, Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand (Archaia)
Chris Samnee, Captain America and Bucky, Ultimate Spider-Man #155 (Marvel)
Marcos Martin, Daredevil (Marvel)
Paolo Rivera/Joe Rivera, Daredevil (Marvel)

Best Cover Artist
Michael Allred, iZombie (Vertigo/DC)
Francesco Francavilla, Black Panther (Marvel); Lone Ranger, Lone Ranger/Zorro, Dark Shadows, Warlord of Mars (Dynamite); Archie Meets Kiss (Archie)
Victor Kalvachev, Blue Estate (Image)
Marcos Martin, Daredevil, Amazing Spider-Man (Marvel)
Sean Phillips, Criminal: The Last of the Innocent (Marvel Icon)
Yuko Shimizu, The Unwritten (Vertigo/DC)

Best Coloring
Laura Allred, iZombie (Vertigo/DC); Madman All-New Giant-Size Super-Ginchy Special (Image)
Bill Crabtree, The Sixth Gun (Oni)
Ian Herring and Ramón K. Pérez, Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand (Archaia)
Victor Kalvachev, Blue Estate (Image)
Cris Peter, Casanova: Avaritia, Casanova: Gula (Marvel Icon)

Best Lettering
Deron Bennett, Billy Fog, Jim Henson’s Dark Crystal, Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand, Mr. Murder Is Dead (Archaia); Helldorado, Puss N Boots, Richie Rich (APE Entertainment)
Jimmy Gownley, Amelia Rules! The Meaning of Life … And Other Stuff (Atheneum)
Laura Lee Gulledge, Page by Paige (Amulet Books/Abrams)
Tom Orzechowski, Manara Library, with L. Lois Buholis(Dark Horse); Manga Man (Houghton Mifflin); Savage Dragon (Image)
Stan Sakai, Usagi Yojimbo (Dark Horse)

Best Comics-Related Journalism
The AV Club Comics Panel, by Noel Murray, Oliver Sava et al., www.avclub.com/features/comics-panel/
The Beat, produced by Heidi MacDonald et al., www.comicsbeat.com
The Comics Journal, edited by Gary Groth, and The Comics Journal website, www.tcj.com, edited by Timothy Hodler and Dan Nadel (Fantagraphics)
The Comics Reporter, produced by Tom Spurgeon, www.comicsreporter.com
TwoMorrows Publications: Alter Ego edited by Roy Thomas, Back Issue edited by Michael Eury, Draw edited by Mike Manley, and Jack Kirby Collector edited by John Morrow

Best Educational/Academic Work
Alan Moore: Conversations, ed. by Eric Berlatsky (University Press of Mississippi)
Cartooning: Philosophy & Practice, by Ivan Brunetti (Yale University Press)
Critical Approaches to Comics: Theories and Methods, edited by Matthew J. Smith and Randy Duncan (Routledge)
Hand of Fire: The Comics Art of Jack Kirby, by Charles Hatfield (University Press of Mississippi)
Projections: Comics and the History of 21st Century Storytelling, by Jared Gardner (Stanford University Press)

Best Comics-Related Book
Archie: A Celebration of America’s Favorite Teenagers, edited by Craig Yoe (IDW/Yoe Books)
Caniff: A Visual Biography, edited by Dean Mullaney (IDW/Library of American Comics)
Drawing Power: A Compendium of Cartoon Advertising, edited by Rick Marschall and Warren Bernard (Fantagraphics/Marschall Books)
Genius Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth, designed by Dean Mullaney (IDW/Library of American Comics)
MetaMaus, by Art Spiegelman (Pantheon)

Best Publication Design
Genius Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth, designed by Dean Mullaney (IDW/Library of American Comics)
Jim Henson’s Tale of Sand, designed by Eric Skillman (Archaia)
Kinky & Cosy, designed by Nix (NBM)
The MAD Fold-In Collection, designed by Michael Morris (Chronicle)
Richard Stark’s Parker: The Martini Edition, designed by Darwyn Cooke (IDW)