Sequential’s Summer Posting schedule continues, by which I mean nothing is happening and laziness prevails. Still, there is some Canadian comics news out there and that is why I’m checking in with a new C-List:
Item! Nine Quebec cartoonists write about their favourite Spirou album on the occasion of that series’ 75th anniversary for the Montreal bookstore Monet webzine, Le Délivré. Of all the essays (by Jimmy Beaulieu, Samuel Cantin, Pascal Colpron, Francis Desharnais, Pascal Girard, Michel Hellman, François Samson-Dunlop, David Turgeon, and Zviane), I think I like Pascal Girard’s the most.
Item! A little while ago TCAF head honcho Chris Butcher posted his official TCAF 2013 wrap-up, including information about attendance and the dates for the 2014 show. It turns out that 18,000 people, roughly the same number as 2012, attended the festival this year. And the new dates, in keeping with the “everything’s the same” spirit of Butcher’s post, are May 9th, 10th, and 11th (Mother’s Day again) 2014. The post also has numbers for the off-site events and more general commentary, so well worth checking out!
Item! Digging way back into the TCAF news bag, I came across this post by Tom Spurgeon from May about D&Q’s Canadian publishing plans for the next year. I don’t think I ever linked to the post before and it doesn’t seem like the news was really picked up by anyone else (I mean, who else cares about Canadian comics?). Maybe this was just sent to The Comics Reporter? Anyway, since Drawn and Quarterly publish so many U.S., Japanese, and European cartoonists these days, it’s tough to make new releases by homegrown talents stand out, so, for the record, here are the titles and dates: Palookaville 21 by Seth (Fall 2013), Ant Colony by Michael Deforge (Winter 2014), On Loving Women by Diane Obomsawin (Winter 2014), Everywhere Antennas by Julie Delporte (Spring 2014), The Collector by Pascal Girard (Spring 2014), First Year Healthy by Michael Deforge (Fall 2014), Stroppy by Marc Bell (Fall 2014), Super Mutant Magic Academy by Jillian Tamaki (Spring 2015), Leather Spaceman by Michael Deforge (Spring 2015).
Item! Inkstuds’ Robin McConnell is back to posting obscure out-of-print Canadian comics on his Archive site. Recent additions include the Drippytown Gazette and a nameless comic by Julian Lawrence.
Item! Good news! Diana Tamblyn has made some awesome progress in her long-awaited Gerald Bull graphic novel: “to make the project more manageable, I’ve split it up into two volumes – Book 1 and Book 2. Book 1 is completed and in print production mode. Look for it at SPX this fall!”
Item! Following on the news that Katherine Collins (aka Arn Saba) will be inducted into the Canadian Comic Book Creator Hall of Fame comes the news that Neil The Horse Complete Comics Stories Hardcover has been announced for a fall release from Hermes Press. The deluxe hardcover collects the complete Neil the Horse comic book issues #1-#15, originally published by Dave Sim’s Aardvark-Vanaheim and Sim’s ex-wife Deni’s Renegade Press in the 1980s, as well as an historical essay by Trina Robbins and bonus documentary material.
2013-07-30