Where is Black Salt #2?

If you follow my blog or my work in general you may recall I said Black Salt #2 would be available at comicsxp.com on January 4, 2010. It is now February 2 and Black Salt #2 is still not available. You might be wondering why. I recently received an update from Blackline Comics, publisher of Black Salt.

Black Salt #2 was completed in early December. The finished comic was uploaded to ComicsXP before the end of 2009. Word is ComicsXP was (and perhaps still is) moving office space and thus their release schedule has been seriously delayed. ComicsXP hopes to have everything sorted soon though no specific date was given. So, you have to keep waiting. Thanks for your patience.

Despite the delay with the release of issue #2, production on issue #3 got started in early January. (You will recall I completed the script before the December holidays.) Artist J.C. Grande turned in sketches of new characters introduced in the new issue. Those were approved and last week he turned in proofs of pages 2 – 5.

Here is a little treat to tide you over until the release of issue #2…

Some new characters are introduced in Black Salt #3. Three of those are pictured above. From left to right: Researcher, Agent Burch, and Agent Beck. The character sketches are by J.C. Grande.

Become a fan of The Thunderchickens

I created a page for The Thunderchickens on Facebook. If you are on Facebook and like The Thunderchickens you can become a “fan”. Log into your Facebook account and do a search for “Thunderchickens”. Go to the page and become a fan.

I will be posting news about the future of The Thunderchickens as our plans develop. Currently on The Thunderchickens page you will find the original Zuda submission and some concept art.

The Thunderchickens withdrawn from Zuda

You may have already heard the news if you watch the Zuda Web site, but on the evening of Thursday, January 23, 2010, I announced that Bill (3!LL) and I were withdrawing from the Zuda contest. Rest assured, The Thunderchickens will continue elsewhere in the near future. I will post updates on this here blog.

I want to extend a big thanks to everyone that supported The Thunderchickens and helped us stay #1 to very day we withdrew. This list of supporters includes my family, my friends (Kirk in particular but the rest of you too), professional creative partners (Manoel, Owen, Dino, Ed, and all the rest), The Leader-Post, Jack FM, Global TV, CBC Radio, The Prairie Dog, The ThunderChickens Robotics Club, University of Regina School of Journalism, ComicReaders Regina, Balfour Collegiate, Saskatchewan Writers’ Guild, and Regina Public Library (big thanks to Warren and Jessica). I also want to give a shout out to the Zuda regulars that voted for and supported The Thunderchickens.

If I think of anyone else I will be back to update this post, but if my memory is not jogged please do not think my omission is a sign that I did not appreciate your support. I appreciated it greatly.

Lettering Completed

Click on the image above to see one of the completed panels from The Three Princes. This is one of my favorite panels drawn by Manoel Magalhães. The lettering is by Ed Brisson.

The talented Ed Brisson has been hard at work lettering the stories that will appear in our planned crime comics anthology. One of these stories is The Three Princes.

I received the lettered pages over the holiday season. It has been six months or more since I looked at the artwork and even longer than that since I read the script. Seeing and reading the finished pages was quite the experience. The words and art were definitely familiar and yet I never realized until I read those finished pages just how professional The Three Princes looks and reads. It is a solid piece of work. It has rekindled my interest in the characters. I filled a few pages in my notebook the other day with ideas for other stories involving the characters and setting seen in The Three Princes.

I think the crime comics anthology will find an audience because of the quality of the stories within. All the creators involved are very excited. There is already talk of a second volume, but we are trying to stay focused on the task at hand, which is completing the first.

Comic Reviews: Planetary #27 & Criminal: The Sinners #1 (of 5)

It had been more than a year since I wrote a comic review. I have been helping move content from the old ComicReaders Web site to the new ComicReaders Web site and still edit when time allows, but my interest in review writing waned when I realized I was repeating myself– reviewing the same titles over and over again. My reviews had grown stale.

Two comics brought be out of my self-imposed retirement: Planetary #27 and Criminal: The Sinners #1 (of 5).

Planetary #27
Why bother? That is the question that ran through my mind as I stared down at the copy of Planetary #27 Shane had placed on the counter in front of me. (read the full review at ComicReaders)

Criminal: The Sinners #1 (of 5)
The greatest modern crime comic returns. Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips put their Eisner award-winning comic on hold to produce Incognito, their pulpish five-issue miniseries about a super-villain living in a witness protection program. As a fan of Criminal, I was eagerly awaiting the series’ return, and the return of Tracy, the character reported to be headlining the new story arc. (read the full review at ComicReaders)