June 2023
Some photos from the LA Comic Art Show this past June 4.
Veteran comic art retailer Bechara Maalouf runs the focussed convention twice a year in LA (Redondo Beach) — typically May and November — and also one in the SF Bay area in February.
As always, it featured a great selection of original art —- plus a fun group of guests this time around. Pictured: Andy Kubert, David Mack, Mark Texeira, and yours truly with Andy.
If you blinked you missed it department:
I recently raised a glass to our friends at Dollar Bin Bandits (podcast, video) in honor of their second-year anniversary. Much more importantly, they used the occasion to announce that they had joined forces with the gang at Tomorrows Publishing. The fine folks there do a stellar job of publishing books and mags on the history of comics and pop culture.
It’s like combining peanut butter and chocolate: “Two great tastes that taste great together.” Very much looking forward to their joint efforts.
https://www.youtube.com/c/DollarBinBandits/videos
https://dollarbinbandits.buzzsprout.com
Last, and maybe least:
There are at least 10 million opinions about recent comic book superhero films out there (the on-line universe is obsessed with this art of thing) but I will add my own three cents anyway. (Spoiler- free, and ranked in order of my personal preference:)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse:
• A landmark in animation.
• A landmark in comic book stories on film.
• A landmark in cinema, period.
Haven’t yet seen the film and think’s that hyperbole? Check it out — and let me know if you think I’m wildly off base.
Guardians of The Galaxy 3:
Enjoyed it very much, and kudos to the filmmakers and their marketing efforts that managed to tell us what the film was about — without spoiling the story. The efforts worked, because pretty much every internet rumor about the film prior to the release was wrong. (Some just laughable.)
Caveat — I know the High Evolutionary’s animal experiments were needed for the story, but I do wish they had used a little more finesse in the editing room to tone some of it down.
The Flash:
Between the changes in WB studio ownership / management and Ezra Miller’s well-publicized troubles, this was a cursed project that still somehow delivers a fair and occasionally fun superhero product, especially if you are familiar with the Flashpoint storyline.
Yes, the special effects needed a bit more work, but I barely tolerate most CGI anyway, so it didn’t annoy me as much as other fans apparently. As for the cameos? My only real reaction is where is TV Flash Grant Gustin? (The inter webs have plenty of thoughts on that, too.)