Old Friend.

Since coming to the decision in 2009, that I was going to zero-in on the horror genre in my writing and artwork, that’s all I’ve pretty much been reading and watching since then. To be fair, it’s mainly what I was into before 2009, too, but the odd Superhero, Sci-Fi or Underground comix has been a bit of a rare sight around here lately. Still… the odd one does make it through the net. The best thing I’ve read from the land of underground comixs lately is My Friend Dahmer. I guess some people would call it a horror comic, as it’s about the early life of Jeffery Dahmer, but it’s really not as blood thirsty as you may first think (although it does contain some scenes of animal cruelty.) It more focuses on his final school years, before becoming one of America’s most notorious serial-killers. It’s more about the person then his later crimes. It’s an amazing read, even if the subject matter itself (or rather himself) is a bit scary.

I got a little tired of underground comixs a few years ago. So many artist doing comic-strips about their day-to-day life, and their years growing up. You got artist who did it well like Joe Matt or Phoebe Gloeckner, but most didn’t (at least to me, anyway). I only like reading autobiographical comics about life’s strange, loveable loser. Not indie, trendy, emo kids and their bands and stylist girlfriends. Maybe that says more about me, I know. I don’t want to read any autobiographical comic unless the author has a healthy degree of self-loathing going on, and a shaky-at-best relationship with the rest of the human race. Asking people you don’t know to give a shit about your life is a big ask. That’s why I keep it to a minimal on this blog. Maybe I’m being too hard on underground comics, and that phase has past, and most of those guys have stopped or fled to the world of web-comics, I don’t know. I do think the hit-rate in autobiographical comics is a lot lower then nearly any other genre. You’ve got to have something a bit wrong with you to truly make a decent autobiographical comic-book artist. It’s more about the kink in your armour, and how you deal with that in life, otherwise I’m not really bothered. I’m sure your band is great, and your girlfriend is as cute as a button… yawn.

Night Of The Punks.

God, I love this short film. It’s like Demons meets Return Of The Living Dead. Why do punks go so well with horror? Punks and horror are very much the salt and vinegar of scary movies. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a punk\horror flick I didn’t like. Punks in peril is fast becoming my favourite sub-genre.

NIGHT OF THE PUNKS (2010) from DAN RIESSER / IRRATIONAL FILMS on Vimeo.

Just chill-laxing at the moment. Apart from a very short break over Xmas, I’ve pretty much been working non-stop over the late summer and winter period. I’m pleased to report that I’m starting to feel vaguely human again after a few days of DVDs and sleep. The sun’s shining too, which is nice. I like working hard, but this habit of working till I’m drained of energy is a bummer. I just hope it’s all leading to an awesome graphic novel at the end of it. I was thinking last night that life is like being a little man in a dinghy in a foggy, dark ocean. You can’t see anything on the horizon because of the fog, and you’re just floating there in the abyss. So when you work, it’s like you’re blindly picking a direction and rowing, and the harder you work, the harder you row. Problem is, you don’t know if you’re rowing towards success island, full of wealth and big-titted ladies, or just rowing in circles like a chump.

Hitting The Bar.

I always seem to be drawing bar scenes, and I never feel I get the vibe quite right. I think this is the closes I’ve got, the one I’m happiest with so far. Maybe it’s hard to capture that atmosphere because whenever you’re in a bar in real life, you’re usually drunk. All memories of such events are hazy at best. I get to have a couple more stabs at doing a decent bar scene in Issue #4, so it’s a work in progress, really.

Stayed up late last night inking page 24 (the final page), then The Thing Blu-Ray box-set came through the post this morning. I didn’t think it was going to happen, but that synced up perfectly. I didn’t think I’d finish this page till Sunday, and I thought the movies would come Monday when they’re officially released. Now my only wish is that the films themselves sync up as well. I’ve been hurt by prequels before… yeah, I’m talking about you Phantom Menace (I wonder if I’m the first person to ever go on the internet and complain about The Phantom Menace? No rant needed here, as it would be ten years out-of-date.) That said, I’m much more of a The Thing fan, then a Star Wars fan. The Thing is almost a perfect horror movie. Every scene is a classic. This is my Phantom Menace. This, to me, is wayyyy bigger event then the Phantom Menace.

Got Carrot. Got Stick.

Just started working on the final page of issue #3. My carrot on a stick, to try and get me to hurry and finish, is that The Thing prequel is released in a few days on Blu-Ray, and I‘ve got it on pre-order. It’s probably not the smartest idea to set deadlines around movie releases, but the plan is to try and get all artwork finished up by then. If I can get the two events to sync up, then I can celebrate by falling into bed with a large, large drink and watch both the Thing prequel, and original Thing back-to-back. See if they really do make one big movie. It’ll be my big nerdy reward of a finishing-line. I’m not the biggest fan of movie marathons as my eyes start to burn after a while, but two films should be ok.

I’ve notice you can get a lot done in life, if you hang the right carrot, off the right stick (sigh… no, that’s not a euphemism.)

Bat Race.

As Issue #3 slowly rolls into the station, let’s just pause to post this latest shot. Looks like someone’s just got an ouchy. There’s something about this panel I like, but I can’t put my finger on it. I think maybe it shows off some the better aspects of my style, this frame. What I’ve been trying to get across more in my work in recent years. Getting those pesky black and white shapes working in some kind of harmony. How true that is, I don’t know, but here it is.

Who hasn’t wondered at some point which is faster, the 60’s or 80’s Bat-mobile? God, I use to be obsessed with the 80’s Bat-mobile. The cool thing about Batman is he’s not afraid to accessorise. Thinking about it, maybe this is why I liked Batman so much more then any other Superhero as a kid (and as an adult). He had a Bat-mobile, utility-belt, Bat-wing and Bat-cave. Batman is very much the Barbie of the superhero world. Guys mock girls and their Barbie dolls, but now I think about it, I pretty much just spent my childhood buying Batman figures and all the tat to go with him. Of course at some point, you’ve gotta grow up and make do with playing with your life-sized action figure… if you’re lucky enough to have one at home.

You Say Goodbye, I Say Giallo.

While recently filling in my Dario Argento blind-spot these last couple of months, I’ve been on a bit of a Giallo binge. I know most critics don’t really rate much of Argento’s 90’s and 00’s movies, but I do like a couple of them. One I think isn’t that bad is The Card Player. Maybe because it mixes two things I like a lot, Giallos and Poker. Sure… the online poker game in the movie looks like something that would have come with Windows 95 (considering this film was made in mid-00’s), but as a crime\thriller, I did enjoy this movie. It’s no Seven or Silence Of The Lambs, but worth a watch.

For any UK readers, I’ve noticed they’ve got a copy up on Blinkbox, if you can deal with all the ads, that is. God… I watched Two Evil Eyes on there last night. It’s free, but those ads grate after a while.

Ka-Tho-Loo.

Soooooo close to finishing issue #3. Been badgering away since a short break at Xmas, and I’m so close to that finishing line now. Only slight setback is I’ve burnt up any remaining energy I had left from my quick time off. I’m stuck between knowing if I put my foot down, I could be finished very, very soon, but then I’m kind of running on fumes at the moment, and maybe a short time out would be the smart thing to do. We’ll see what next week brings. We’ll see if the Sequential Gods are smiling on me lately. Maybe I need to sacrifice a small animal or something to them? Like a vole or something. Why can I never get on their good side? God, I’d push an old lady under a bus if it would please the Sequential Gods, and put me and my work in their favour. Drown a nun in Indian-ink… anything. Sometimes it feels like they are the unholy overlords that can never be pleased, no matter how many hours, lives and sheets of Bristol Board are culled in their name.

Speaking of evil demigods… I’ve dedicated myself to learning how to pronounce the name Cthulhu, this weekend. It’s just gonna be awkward when he finally raises from his watery tomb to destroy us all, and no one can pronounce his name properly. Talk about making an awkward moment worse.

Everything’s Better In 8-Bit.

Being a child of the 80’s, I’ve always secretly harboured the fantasy of having my own 8-bit theme tune. Some jaunty, little 8-bit song that plays as I go about my business. So far, this is the frontrunner.

Belt Meet Belly-Button.

My love for all things horror-anthologies keeps chugging along. Just finished watching this documentary on EC Comic’s Tales From The Crypt. A really good film and well worth a look before youtube takes it down (they always take down the best stuff.) I got a lot out of watching this doc. It was a joy to watch horror comic’s history being talked about. Also a thrill to see all that great, old EC horror artwork on screen. I think the biggest thing I learnt from this documentary is I need to start smoking a pipe and wearing my trousers really high. It’s my heritage and I need to start respecting that. Maybe start rocking a bowtie and buzz-cut, too.

Sticking with the horror-anthology theme… Also been tracking down a TV show from the late 90’s called The Hunger. I’d never heard of it, but when I read that a short-story I’d recently been reading by Ramsey Campbell (see my last post) had been adapted into an episode, I decided the hunt was on. I see from wiki it also has a story in it by Poppy Z Brite, who I’m just reading a book by at the moment called Exquisite Corpse. Great book, but I wasn’t expecting as much man-on-man action as this book is choked full of. Between the sword-play (I don’t think there’s been a single female character in it so far), and the graphic depiction of gruesome murders, I’m finding this the toughest going book to read since American Psycho. Add to that the fact that half the characters in it are dieing from HIV… It’s a great page-turner, but damn hard going. It’s like a stomach-punch made of words.

Bloody Smut.

This above panel is tiny on the final page, but for some reason, blogger always blows up small frames when I post them. I’m a little nervous to see how this one is going to look on screen. Hopefully it will still hold up.

Just finished reading a copy of Scared Stiff: Tales Of Sex And Death this week. It’s the hardest line to walk, but I’m a big fan of anyone who can do good horror\erotica stories. The problem from the start is you’re mixing two dangerous genres to make one super dangerous genre. If you get it wrong, the resulting piece of artwork would be sooooooo toxic. Sexy storytelling is meant to leave you feeling a tad randy, while a good horror story should leave you slightly unsettled. These are two emotions that most people would not want to mix. Reading or watching something that both freaked you out, and left you a little aroused. I’d even go so far as to say they’re probably the hardest two genres to cross and I have big respect for anyone who truly does it well. I also give extra marks just for being brave enough to try. Many people think horror is only one up from porn anyway, so you’ve already shot yourself in the foot by combining the two. Actually… it’s more like shooting yourself in your left and right foot before setting off on your little spooky\smutty adventure. However I would strongly argue it can be done. Maybe early David Cronenberg movies are the best example I can think of, off the top of my head. Arousal and fear produce very similar sensations in the human body, and if you can milk that special little sweet-spot where the two meet with your art\stories, I take my hat off to you (if I currently happened to own a hat… which I don’t.) Most people spend their life trying to avoid acknowledging this little patch of the brain even exist, let alone mining it for hidden creepy\carnal treasure.

The Curse Of Blu-Ray.

I’ve been waiting years for them to finally put out a region 2 copy of Cemetery Man. I’m a big Dylan Dog fan (or what little they’ve translated into English), and have been aching to see this flick. I was over the moon when I heard a couple of months ago that shameless films were putting out an uncut copy on DVD at last. Then, around the same time, my dvd player died on me at the start of the year, and I made the switch to Blu-Ray. Now I have to choose between waiting another couple of years for the inevitable Blu-Ray, or just buy it on dvd now and make do. I hate owning multiple copies of the same movie. I cringe a little every time I think how many copies of Night Of The Living Dead I own.

First time I watched something in HD, I could barely tell the difference and thought it was a bit of a con. Now I’m very aware when I’m watching something and it’s not in HD. HD has turned me into a picture-quality Nazi and I hate that. Had to watch TV on a friends old 'tube' style TV the other day, and had to fight the strong urge to get up and put my foot through the bulky screen.

The video on the shameless website looked really good quality, but I’m a little worried they may have HD the short trailer to deceive the eye and sell more copies (there was a point, not too long ago, when such a thought wouldn’t have even crossed my mind. See what you’ve done to me HD?) Here the obligatory youtube trailer… which is differently not in HD. HD aside… this movie does look amazing. Can I really be strong enough and wait for the Blu-Ray? Also blogger tells me this is my 500th post… so I should either be very proud (or very ashamed) of myself right now.