Mygrain!

While complaining about our dogs vet bills and his general condition at 13 years of age my friend Patrick (who's building us a swell loafing deck) came up with this suggestion. The idea turned into the first Mygrain I've drawn in over a year! Shadow's having a sleep over at the vet tonight and I kinda miss his annoying whine and dead lobster breath, at least for tonight.

Back on track

I just finished page 70 of the Angora Napkin book so I'm back on track and even slightly on top of my quota for once! I had a nasty bummed out month back in May but I managed to pick up the slack.

I picked up Fantagraphics excellent collection of E.C. Segar's Thimble Theatre strips entitled: "Popeye - I Yam What I Yam" which I am thoroughly enjoying. It's got me all wound up to get the 4 DVD set of Fleischer's "Popeye the Sailor: 1933-1938, Vol. 1" cartoons.


My friend Dave Cooper has uploaded a nice Flicker set of his painting process you really should check out. I remember visiting his studio in Ottawa and just being floored by the scale of some of these paintings, really inspirational stuff!

IDW Press release for Chiaroscuro!

The official press release is now online! Check it out and see the new hardcover artwork in colour!

Alternative Press Expo

I'd like to be at APE but I've got tickets to Game One of the NBA Playoffs in Toronto and a wedding to be at so it isn't happening this year. Those lucky bunch that are going will notice the slick full page ad announcing the imminent arrival of the Chiaroscuro graphic novel (and a B&W version of the new cover!) in the APE program book.

Cheers all, and Go Raptors!

Angora Napkin: One Year Later

Technically it was one year ago yesterday, but that's largely irrelevant to you now isn't it? Anyway here we are! One year and a day ago I finished page 1 of the long anticipated Angora Napkin graphic novel.

As of today I'm 51 pages into the book. I tell people that and they go "Only 51 pages? Don't beat yourself up about it". Trust me, I don't. 51 pages is one hell of an accomplishment considering I was working full time, freelancing, helping my VERY pregnant wife out, becoming the dad of twin girls and adapting to fatherhood. I honestly don't know how I got ANY pages done let alone 51!

I assessed things at the start of the year and decided to give myself the "reasonable" goal of producing 6 pages a month. That will give me a fat 72 pages by the end of the year and should put me pretty close to the finish line (so far so good). I'm hoping to get this book out for Halloween '08.

Here's the first 7 pages for you to fawn over for the next while. Enjoy!






What (or who) did she hit?!?!? Stay tuned!!!

Am I missing something?

I love Jeff Smith's work. Bone is an incredible achievement. It makes me wonder why I'm not at all digging his Shazam book.

I know I have a chip on my shoulder when it comes to superhero comics. My friend Mike once called me "A Comic Snob", but I was really looking forward to this book and very open to it. Everyone seems to be raving about it, but I'm finding it to be pretty sloppy so far.

It just looks rushed to me. Stiff poses, awkward and ill-proportioned characters... There's some good stuff in there too, but I'm not really being drawn into the story very much to enjoy it.

I have the distinct feeling I should stop right here at issue #2, but I suffer from the almost total inability to stop reading a book or watching a movie I've started, even if I'm bored to tears. Case in point: The Dark Knight Strikes Back.

Frank Miller, you owe me. Why I kept buying and reading that piece of shit is a mystery to me. I have NEVER hated a comic so much in my life and yet I gave that guy my hard earned cash like a frikken zombie. I hope some day to meet him so I can return the books and ask for a refund.

Anywho, this is no where near as wretched as that. I'm just rather passive about it much to my dismay.

I got Ice(ing) in my Grill today!