Rick Remender has been my favorite writer in both 2015 & 2016 and he's now well on his way into the third years of "Deadly Class" (Artist: Wes Craig) and "Black Science" (Artist: Matteo Scalera) with an inspired first arc of "Seven To Eternity" (Artists: Jerome Opena & James Harren) just wrapped up.
It's an exciting time to be reading comics in general, but Remender's books remain unique and interesting long after their launches because of his top notch artistic collaborators and consistent ability to craft a satisfying and emotionally authentic long form story. "Black Science" has recently been transformed into a story far beyond its original premise and while I'm loving that turn, "Deadly Class" is still my favorite because of the grounded 1980s setting, the strong character work, the music & pop culture commentary, genuinely shocking twists, and the increasingly inventive one-man-tour-de-force art from Wes Craig.
Here's a little something I worked up with Saya, Willie, Marcus, & Maria. I love this gang almost as much as I love the cast of David Lapham's "Stray Bullets"and that's saying something (no one beats that merry band of scumbags, degenerates, and reprobates for my heart, not ever)...
Check out my comic book, Spinner-Rack #1 (80 Pages / Black & White). It's available on Etsy, at Arcane Comics, and at the Fantagraphics Store & Gallery (both in Seattle).
Here's my mock cover of a Silver Age Doom Patrol. I made Gerard Way & Nick Derington's "Doom Patrol" relaunch my new series of the year in 2016, but this recently released Doom Patrol: The Silver Age Omniboo collecting the entirety of the Arnold Drake & Bruno Premiani run from 1963 to 1968 has lovingly enveloped me in its fantastic weirdness. It's truly bizarre and wonderful stuff that's far more reminiscent in tone to the suspense/horror comics of the 1950s than that of the original Kirby/Lee "X-Men" I've always heard it compared to. The run benefits greatly from the ability to build tension by telling continuing stories, something that didn't happen so much until those Silver Age superhero days.
Also posted is a drawing of Splinter & Casey Jones from TMNT. I'm not thrilled with how Splinter turned out, but Casey looks good enough...
I'm still very into Ride's "Weather Diaries" album. It has real staying power for me, but I've also been vacillating between DJ Shadow's "The Less You Know, The Better" (2011) & the new Broken Social Scene, "Hug of Thunder" between podcasts of late.
Check out my comic book, Spinner-Rack #1 (80 Pages / Black & White). It's available on Etsy, at Arcane Comics, and at the Fantagraphics Store & Gallery (both in Seattle).
