David Fiore at Motime Like the Present always seems to get the allusions behind the illusions that I pepper through my books. He had a particularly insightful review of Astronauts in Trouble a few years ago: "Melville's Moby Dick is perhaps the ultimate expression of the insane/admirable passion for the Ideal in narrative form. While reading Astronauts in Trouble (especially Space 1959), I couldn't get Ahab's desire to "strike through the pasteboard mask of reality" out of my mind. These books are filled with people trying to do exactly that-- accompanied by others who merely wish to get the best shot of the mask and beam it back to the folks at home. The trilogy has been likened to a "summer blockbuster with brains", but, to me, it played more like an epic shown in a mirror. The newspeople are determined always to be where the story is--and Young is equally determined to maximize our awareness of where the camera is. This is why the final chapter of Space 1959 feels absolutely authentic and "unprintable" at the same time. It must have happened that way, we think to ourselves--but where's the corroboration? All of the great moments in our lives are like that."

So I was particularly looking forward to what he made of the upcoming The Black Diamond, what with it being at heart, like most of my books, a quiet rumination on society and the individual clothed in a big ol' high-concept explosion of action and speed. Click the link above for this: "Even better -- at every turn, it thwarts the analytical efforts of two of this narrative's most amusing denizens, a pair of Tarantino-esque kidnappers on a meta-fictional kick. These guys, whose endless refrain is that there are only TWO stories ('stranger in town' or 'trying to find your way home'), get it half right--in fact, if you're an existentialist like me, there's only ONE human situation ('stranger at home'), but an infinite number of plots swirl around that non-center. None of them take us anywhere we want to go (i.e. a home we can return to), but they're all that we've got. No wonder we cling to them. So I say yes, by all means, pay attention to the plot(s) of this book (there's a new/different one erupting on every page, right under the noses of its (Joseph) Campbellian chorus!). This may not make sense to the 'character is plot' brigade (characterization is decidedly not the creators' main goal in this book)--but, to me, plot is atmosphere. The air that we breathe.

"And what crazy air this is! Filled with laughing gas, I'd say. This is a wonderfully good-natured book--considering its Road Warriorish premise. I hope I'm not giving too much away when I say that everyone in this story is nicer than you expect them to be. There's certainly no shortage of menace (Proctor's amazing Blast-era Wyndham-Lewis style art does most of the work on that front--and I do mean front--doncha know there's a lovely war on up top?)--but it's all maya. This book is about the good that men and women do, when they drive like loons down a thieves' superhighway in search of people to save and the appropriate shirt. Yes, vehicles and corporate logos might take a beating along the way--and it might become necessary to stage a maniacal ballet of armed insurrection in order to set the proper mood for a kiss--but it's all in the service of demonstrating what illegal velocity and dialed-to-eleven explosions have to do with the denizens of the 'lower world.'"

+++++

Because of some shipping snafus, it looks like the book won't be in-shops until August 16, but I almost want to recall them all and pulp them and reprint 'em with quotes from mi amigo Beau Smith's review: "If anything was ever meant to be read as a collection, it's The Black Diamond by Larry Young and Jon Proctor from AiT/Planet Lar ($19.95)

"If anything was meant to be a movie, it's The Black Diamond. Government intrigue, witty dialogue, great art, manly action and a very cool 1973 Mercury Cougar. (My dad had one that would friggin' fly.) This is one of those comic books (trade paperbacks) where everything fits, the story, the characters, the art and the color. It has a real film look to it without losing the craft of comic book story telling.

"Larry Young is a friend of mine that I've spent quality time with. Larry, Brian Woods and I did some time in Missoula, Montana at a cabin (mega cabin) on a lake a couple of years back when we were all three guests for the Muse Comics store signing. That night we all told stories of the comic book business and made new ones. They were the stories that only three guys with more hair on their faces than their heads could make up.

"After drinking beers and swappin' stories with Larry I knew that some day he would throw out a manly take like The Black Diamond. Larry's claim to fame book Astronauts In Trouble will always be his foundation, but The Black Diamond is going to be his second floor.

The Black Diamond is a straight-ahead story on a crooked road. It's a tale of a good guy dentist that hits the road in a fast car to save his kidnapped wife from folks you wouldn't let move into your neighborhood. The Black Diamond is three kinds of simple stuck in all kinds of smart. This is a book you'll read and re-read. You'll pass this around like a cheap bottle of wine and everyone will enjoy the buzz. The last page of the story is pitch perfect. You'll see."

H over at The Comic Treadmill takes a look at Aces, and at the end has links to all of his reviews of our stuff over the years. Of course I remember fondly the ones where he calls me the "Stan Lee of the 21st Century" and where he asks to see if we haven't put the reanimated Jack Kirby to work, as those are some pretty flattering words. But H also was a big proponent of Colonia, and Filler, and nearly all the rest. He also gets a big "Sweet, Caroline" for loving Surviving Grady almost as much as I do.

Click the link above for some Aces love: "It is a story that walks a fine line – always keeping the thrills coming, never allowing the goings on to get too heavy, but keeping things meaty enough to keep the readers’ attention glued to the page. And unlike many a failed summer blockbuster story, Denton and Wilson never let the story careen off track of the plot. Things unfold in a suspenseful and logical order as the two heroes journey through action-packed antics culminating in the revelation of no less than the true cause behind the start of World War I... But there’s a reason so many of those four types of stories have been written over the years. When done well, they are great fun. And Aces is done well, taking the strengths of its inspiration genres and creating a story that grabs the reader by the collar from the start, letting them know that an hour’s worth of reading fun awaits."

+++++

The Cryptobadger finds value on our SD panel: "- Attended the excellent Graphic Novels panel moderated by Larry Young. Matt Silady's DIY sensibility is inspiring. Just make your stupid comic book and screw everything else. Just do your thing, and get better at doing your thing. It served as the counterpunch to the 'You're Screwed' sentiment at the Pitching panel. Pretty much everyone on the panel was making comics because someone forgot to tell them not to. Gotta pick up The Homeless Channel now, the dude was just so refreshingly upbeat about comics."

That's us, all right: the counterpunch to "You're screwed."

+++++

... and Greg Burgas has some hilarious observations about rapping with us at the con: "But that’s not what this paragraph is about! It’s about Larry Young, who’s always fun to talk to. Starkings had actually taken over part of his booth, so John Roshell, Starkings’ secret weapon, was sitting with Larry. I chatted with Larry for a while - he showed me pictures of his 13-month-old son, Walker, which was keen. He said you can always tell people who have kids, because they’re actually interested in pictures of other people’s kids, which is true, it seems. I do like looking at photographs of other kids, because it’s fun see their development over the months. Starkings came over at one point and they all talked lettering for a while, with Larry explaining how he re-lettered Shatter (plus an amusing tale about how he came to publish it, which I won’t repeat because I didn’t hear all of it and Larry told it in sections, as he kept either being interrupted or interrupting himself, as he tends to do)."

It's true; I get so damn psyched-up at San Diego, I have a year's worth of stuff to tell people and they have a year's worth of stuff to tell me, and conversation with me turns into a wonderful pop-culture cascade of enthusiastic hail-fellow-well-met-edness. Geez, I love that show.

+++++

As promised, here's the guy who's had the best three weeks in Hollywood this year so far, with Hellboy 2 and Wanted opening back-to-back... Ken Levin, ladies and gentlemen!

Comicon International: San Diego 2008


Here we are, fresh as daisies: AiT writer/publisher Larry Young, Human Swiss Army Knife Pat Donley, and Ash Aiwase as The Eliminator. Without Mimi at the booth for the second consecutive year in a row, the whole thing'd be a mess without these two. As it is, not only did no one get hurt, we had one of the best shows ever... and we were shutting the doors on the back of the van Sunday night before six pee-em. We'd have had the thing done in 45 minutes if those 15 year old Cure fans without boxes or dollies hadn't been clogging up the line to the freight elevator. Sorry for introducing your five year olds to sailor's epithets, ma'am. Blame the snot-nosed teens.

Ash, though, cracked me up. This might be the only picture taken with the three of us at the booth at the same time. Pat and I were the day shift, and Ash was the night shift. In fact, Sunday, when I got up at 5:30 am to park the van closest to the elevators to make the move-out go smoothest... I got up 15 minutes after Ash got in.

Ah, youth.


Those of you who follow my exploits via the RPF know I have a soft-spot for the Tupperware suits, and this one was so sweet, I nearly got diabetes just looking at them. That kid had a killer to-scale snowtrooper. I asked dad if he was 501st and he threw me the thumbs-up. Man, I love those guys.

Speaking of the RPF, fellow propman Nick Derrington dropped on me the coolest thing of the show... a pack of SPACEMEN cards written and drawn by himself. I gotta ask him if I can't scan a few and post 'em up. That guy is a talented artist. I call him "the American Moebius" and I gotta tell you that's not a stretch.


First thing Thursday, Pat was feeling a little... shall we say... not so fresh... so I snapped his mugshot...


....but then this kid came by and filled up his tank again with free high fives. We talked for ten minutes about how much he looked like Zachary Quinto, but then we realized anyone with that haircut could be Fake Sylar.


Here's my good pal Jim Cox at the AiT Eisner table. Jim and Adrienne Rappaport are the leaders of The Legion of Substitute Mimis at San Diego, keeping me out of trouble, reminding me to keep hydrated, making sure I've got a pocketful of business cards, and offering a fistful of napkins while smiling wanly yet without accusation while I look around befuddled after accidentally knocking a beer out of Fabio Moon's hand because I was so thrilled Bá gave Mimi and me a shout-out for being early champions of their work as he collected one of their seven Eisners. Honestly, with creators usually positioning themselves to their fans as doing it all themselves, you could have knocked me over with a feather when Bá thanked us. But I should have known he'd have been looking out for us.

I have to say, I was very touched, and I'm sorry Mimi wasn't there to hear it. We're proud of you guys.


Newsarama's JK Parkin and The Homeless Channel's Matt Silady on the big night. Make sure to check out JK's coverage of the So, You Want to Do a Graphic Novel? panel I moderated on Thursday. Man, that thing was packed. Tom Spurgeon came up to the booth the next day, and was quite complimentary (if not a bit flummoxed) by the buzz he had heard. "Don't take this the wrong way, but what were they doing there?" he laughed.

People just want to make comics.



Also at the AiT Eisner table was Our Man In Britain Who Is Not Charlie Adlard, the webcomics virtuoso Daniel Merlin Goodbrey. I had never noticed this until now, but Merlin (left) looks incredibly like my old college roommate and "One Night at the Olympia" author Rob Lavender. I hope Rob doesn't ever commit a crime in the UK, because Daniel'll be in the line-up.


One of the things I love most about San Diego is getting to hang out with my good friend Adam Beechen, and fend him off as he scouts all the original art dealers and tempts me like the devil with his knowledge of where all the good stuff is. This year, only the fact that I had a kid (and that the excellent, excellent Image hardcover came out) prevented me from buying a few American Flagg! pages. Here's Adam and Felicia Day from Dr. Horrible kickin' it at the booth on Sunday while the show was winding down.

Comicon International: San Diego 2008



What, after driving back Van Diesel with all-around stud muffin and booth babe Ash Aiwase for ten hours yesterday, you'd thing I'd have a con report ready? That's tomorrow; howzabout these links to AiT books that were reviewed during that vicious interlude?

Johanna Draper Carlson takes a look at Holmes, Aces and The Black Diamond: "I didn’t realize, until I opened it, that this story was full-color, and what color it is. Rich neons distract me from characters talking to each other about how many types of plot there are and other meta-level concerns. People and their rides, that’s what this road movie is about, with a dentist having to drive the nation’s 'most dangerous road' in an illegal car in order to rescue his kidnapped wife."

+++++

Ain't It Cool News, on Aces: "It's a fun adventure that reads like a serial and embraces some truly thrilling action sequences. The best compliment I can give here is that this would make one hell of a war film... Highly recommended for those of you who love your pulp and wartime stories served with a bit of flair and a strong feeling of high adventure."

+++++

Graeme McMillan, at io9: "And when it's explained that Ferdinand was killed because of a displaced time machine that showed what the world would be like had he lived, then the science fiction is most definitely on.

Without spoiling the ending of the book - No, really, there's more to the time travel reveal than that - there are some smart examples of uses of future tech throughout the book, and it's a fun look at why it's possible that we've always had advanced technology all along, and simply never been aware of it..."

+++++

More tomorrow (this time news from the show), featuring me and Entertainment Lawyer to the Comic Book Stars, Ken Levin, day shift versus night shift, clonetroopers are the new Klingons, and what the heck Felicia Day was doing with Adam Beechen at the AiT booth.