M’s Pull List: Weekly Ramblings

Welcome to the first edition of M's Pull list. This column provides some skewed views on the latest comics released in this week! Don't forget to drop us a line in the comment section below to let us know what you thought of them.

Aquaman meets Parallax'ite wannabe

 Aquaman #4 : I am sorry guys, but I seriously do not get all the praise Aquaman is getting. Yes he is a badass., we get it.. so just lay off and focus on the story. And please less compressed storyline. Four issues in and Aquaman has just saved a few people from the villain of the day ! Bah! I liked Peter David’s run, much better. 

Humorous Wayfaring - Unintentionally Funny Comics!

Hello once again dear friends!

Welcome back! And you've indeed chosen a good time to drop in because today I'm bringing you something that I've been working on pretty much since I started reading comics, it's kind of an old hobby now actually - comic panels and covers that are funny but not meant to be so!

Not clear what I mean? Well no worries, just scroll on down and take a look at some of the funniest stuff you'll ever read, even more so because it was not meant to be funny at all!

Nooooooo!!!!! All that effort to be a playboy and ladies man - destroyed by one stray thought!

Ah the good old days... when English was a whole other language!

Women!

Nish's Notepad: Odayan #01

Friends, romans, and countrymen, after 5 months of this "academic exile"; Nish returns. :D
So today I'm reviewing Level 10's first title to go digital: "Odayan". I was interested in it from the day I saw its first teaser as it carries with it, the names of some great people in the comic industry.

Story: Suhas Sundar
Art: Deepak Sharma
Colors: Deepak Sharma
Greyscales: Santosh Pillewar
Letters: Raghavendra Kamath

Week-in-Review: Avengers – Solo #1 / The Activity #1 / Catwoman #4 / The Immortal: Demon in the Blood #1

Well hello folks! Welcome to our premier edition of "Week-in-Review" which we teased you with just a few days ago.
Today I have for you some great and some surprising picks from the books released this past Wedesday. We will try and bring you a list like this every week on Monday's to give you a flavour of what's new and what's hot and whatever looks good in between - and once in a while when something is really to be avoided, we'll bring warnings! Now enough of me gabbing, on to the reviews!

The Activity #1

Story: Nathan Edmonson

Art: Mitch Gerads

I was definitely looking forward to this book from when I heard about it – not just because Image has been having a banner year and putting out some of the most awesome books, but because this is Nathan Edmonson's follow up to the magnificent Who Is Jake Ellis and his ongoing Grifter for DC. Like Jake Ellis, this is a secret agent and espionage kind of story, but where that was about someone on the outside bucking the system, this story is about a team that is the best of the best and the go-to guys for the elite, and so on and so forth – you get the idea. A sweet little opening chapter that has a new recruit joining the team (not the newest idea, I know) it acts as a 'testing the waters' kind of mission both for the characters and their new team-mate as well as for the reader and I personally found this to be a brilliantly thought out and engaging read with great characters. Plus, Mitch Gerads brings a nice style to the comic, though his art may not be everyones favourite, his layouts and choice of focus and detail are amongst the most awesome I've seen!

Most definitely on my pull list from here till it finishes, gets cancelled or Edmonson leaves at the very least.

SCORE: 4.7/5 

Geek's Night Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas and all thru the den comic books were stacked and I was reading again. I know I should sleep, despite the late hour but just can't help visiting Baxter Tower. My stocking was hung on the wall with a 3M hook as I nestled further into the chair reading my book.

My Superman jammies complete with cape after all of these years still in good shape. I wore them with pride despite the fade and a small rip in the side. Sure I should be in bed and I should be asleep, but the plot was getting deep. Time ticked away faster than planned reading about Elektra defeating The Hand.

Lost in my world when suddenly a loud sound like Mjolnair had been hurled. Quick as the Flash I ran to the window leaving my stash. A crimson streak went through the sky. It moved far quicker than the eye. Great Scott! What could this be? If it was Superman I couldn't see. A craft landed on the roof accompanied by the sound of a hoof. One hoof? No it was more. Quickly I ran locking the door. What this stranger would want I knew not. Please dear Odin let him leave alone my lot!

Saga of the Swamp Thing, Book 3

Writer: Alan Moore
Artists: Stephen Bissette, Rick Veitch, John Totleben
Collects: Swamp Thing issues 35-42
Collected under the Vertigo Imprint

Series in Review: The Sixth Gun by Cullen Bunn

Howdy wayfarers, welcome back to that dusty trail. Its been a while ain't it, since we rode the wide open prairies and desert?

Well its been many a glimmerin' moon since I told you tales of the wild, wild west – this I know – but after a good long while I've come across one worth tellin' and aim to share it right here and now. So gather all around the campfire, listen to the gentle and melancholy twang of the guitar in the background and the crickets while I spin the yarn of The Sixth Gun for all a'y'all.  

Written by the rising talent that is Cullen Bunn, this is a story of action, adventure and a touch of mystical horror told in suitable gritty old-west style. 

Truly one of the most stand-out series in the last year or so, this one takes much of the familiar and makes it feel so fresh, adding in aspects and details that are in ways most unique to itself and the blending of western and horror is so seamless at times that even when its in your face, its hard to separate them.
A true success story for series' publisher Oni Press.

Meeting Maniacs: Bhanu Pratap!

First of all, a real thanks for taking out time and doing this interview. Being a hardcore fan, I'm just gonna hop on to my mission rather than being all gabby.

COMIC ADDICTS: I know many of our readers want to get right to questions about 'Munkey Thugs' and 'The Damned Book', but I think we should start by you telling us a little 'bout yourself.

BHANU PRATAP: Hey Anupam and Comic addicts, thanks for this interview. I am already feeling like a celebrity( I hope to make this interview controversial enough). But really, I am glad that you guys are making a platform as cool as this available to us, as creators and fans of the comic book medium.

Ok, I am Bhanu Pratap, a painter, comic book artist/writer, or cartoonist. I was born in Una, Himachal Pradesh, but brought up in Delhi. I am currently working out of New Delhi, working on a few group art exhibitions, and two- three comic projects(not counting the thousands I conjure up in my head everyday). And I do plan to do a lot of things in these mediums in the foreseeable future as well.

CA: You are both a writer and an illustrator. So with this in mind: who have been the major role models of your life?

BP: Is this the question where I get to totally be a fanboy and name all the artist heroes I have? Yes!!!

Well I can’t name them all here, can I?

Let me just try to name all the people who have helped me get to this point in life and as an artist.

First role model would be my elder brother, who inspired me to pick up pencil and draw Jambu (an old Indian robot superhero). Then artists/painters like Phil Hale, Francis bacon, Egon Schiele, Ashley Wood, Kent Williams, Euan Uglow, Andrew Wyeth, N.C. Wyeth. Mangakas like Naoki Urasawa, Katsuhiro Otomo, Taiyo matsumoto, Junji Ito, Atsushi Kaneko, Jiro Matsumoto (NSFW), Okama (NSFW). Paul Pope, Alberto Breccia, Hugo Pratt, Jose Munoz, J P Leon,

(Click to enlarge)

THE ALEX TOTH and THE JACK KIRBY, Moebius, Nicolas De Crecy, Nicolas Nemiri, Jason, DAVID MAZZUCHELLI, Guido Crepax (NSFW), Al Columbia... Damn it, the list goes on… maybe I can make a list and then you add it to the end note?

There are so many awesome inspiring artists/writers/ demigods out there waiting to be discovered by more and more comic book fans, and I would implore anybody who reads this to know about all these stalwarts of art history.

Oh and I would also like to point attention to sites like drawn.ca, conceptart.org and others like these as great places to find hidden gems of the art world.

MONDAY MANGA: Blast from the Past!

The number of manga's with a black guy as a protagonist are few enough that they can be counted on your fingers. This is not due to any outward bias, in all probability a mangaka suffer from the same prejudices that mire the rest of us men. But those few manga heroes that do break the mold and venture through are bound by none of the tropes and stereotypes that bind and chain down the Hollywood black hero. Creating something unique and worthy of study. And most importantly, something that is all out bizarre fun.

The man with no name aint even a thang!

A Geek Christmas Carol

There was a hero who really didn't act like a hero. He was full of his own ego, selfish, and a playboy. He was so convinced of his own superiority that he didn't care about anyone else giving in to his own pleasures and wants instead of thinking of others. His name is Tony Stark, and on this night he will be taught a hard lesson.

As Tony was fixing his usual night cap ( number four of six) he was settling in after sending his escort home via cab. Just then a ghostly figure appeared. It was his father Howard Stark. Howard told his son that because of his binging, his selfishness, and ego he would be visited by three spirits. Tony motioned to his bar telling his father that he had enough spirits. Howard said Tony would be visited and that was final. As Howard disappeared Tony muttered about how it was impossible to please his father. After stumbling into bed Tony passed out for the night.

At exactly 1AM the first visitor arrived. the Vision drug Stark out of bed telling him that it was time to visit his past. Despite protests Stark was shown his school years where even as a child he excelled in math and science. Stark told Vision that this only proved his greatness. Then Stark's teen years where it was a long string of girls and parties. To which Stark's only response was wait till you see the blonde Asian twins. Vison quickly moved on to to Civil War Stark had started amongst the heroes. That was a slightly sobering experience. Vision brought Stark back to his room saying that the next spirit would arrive soon. Once again Tony passed out on his bed.

Saga of The Swamp Thing Book 2 Hardcover / trade paperback

Writer: Alan Moore
Artists: Stephen Bissette, Rick Veitch, John Totleben & Shawn McManus
Collects: Saga of The Swamp Thing 28-30, Swamp Thing 31-34, Swamp Thing Annual 1


After reading Vol 1 (review here) , I trust all of you are here now, are you? Good, then I'll begin in earnest.


Previously, we saw how that the Swamp Thing, contrary to what he thought, was never Alec Holland....his body was a tangle of vegetation with only the consciousness of Alec Holland to guide it. The question is...what happened to the real body of Alec Holland? That question is answered in this issue, when Swamp Thing finally lays the body of Alec Holland to rest. This issue has Shawn McManus as guest artist.

NEW COMICS: Zero-day bullet reviews - Avengers X-Sanction/The Ray/The Strain

Welcome Addicts to the inaugural week-in-review from ComicAddicts.com - a space we are planning to bring you a selection of the comics released that week in short, quick and easy reviews to help you see keep track of whats good and bad with each Wednesdays releases!

This week we kick-off our reviewing with review by Anubhav and Akshay, our comic obsessed work-horses who brought you the blow-by-blow every week for the DC Comics "New 52" releases. 

First out of the gate, the hotly anticipated Avengers: X-Sanction by superstar creative duo, Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinessas reviewed by Anubhav Sharma

(Click to enlarge)

Avengers X-Sanction

Ah Loeb, you make me sad.

Avengers: X-Sanction reunites the Jeph Loeb – Ed McGuiness creative duo that first brought us the Red Hulk (a.k.a "Rulk"). And its Déjà vu all over again. It’s all back: mindless smashing, every character who is not the protagonist is dumbed down, people acting out of character all over the place. This certainly does not fit well with Loeb’s earlier amazing work. Continuity errors aside (I thought Radioactive Man was a good guy now?!), and despite some unexpectedly good character work in the future sequence, this series does look like something you can miss, even if you’re looking forward to Avengers vs. X-Men. There is some extremely horrible dialogue involved, which, along with out and out bad pacing, gives the reader the feeling of nothing really happening throughout the issue. I’ve never been a very big fan of Ed McGuiness’ art, but in some ways, it is the almost-saving grace of the book with some big screen action and things blowing up.

As a book I was really hoping to like, a big disappointment.

Verdict: 5.2/10

Next up we have a double review (in keeping with the New 52 reviews) of DC's reinvention of The Ray:

Rajat's Random Ramblings: Retrograde in Review (Too many R's?)

 

Imagine an Earth, very similar to our Earth, yet different.

Different in many ways, despite being so similar.

Residents of this other earth do not use iPhones – they can only trust and rely upon their own "eye".

The world wide web means less than a spider’s web to them.
The only computer they can use, is their own brain.
There are none of the easily recognizable gadgets and products which we have become so used to that we can’t even imagine leaving our house without them.

What? Getting mixed up, yet intrigued?
Welcome to the world of Retrograde.

A whole new world born from within the folds of imagination that had found its roots in the brain of Akshay Dhar.

After a few independent stories, Warblade and WereHouse, we finally get to witness Akshay’s solo work on a series and I must say it was well worth the wait.

Retrograde is the story of a world without technology, where modern science no longer has much meaning and humans have to rely on their own mind and body to survive from day to day.

No, we are not talking about an Amish colony (although that might have been fun). It is a much darker and bleaker place and the residents' struggle to stay alive and carry on to the next day is a regular exercise.

It is a black and white book which, as I have previously stated, is one of my favorite mediums and suits the tone of the story well. Color might not have looked as effective as the shaded black and white does.

Avik Kumar Maitra is the artist for the series with inking and coloring by Swapnil Singh and Naval Thanawal respectively.

The artwork is raw and exciting to look at. If it does not look immediately impressive or striking, that feeling will subside quickly as you move ahead through the story.

The pencils are executed very finely and Avik seems to have done a commendable job in giving it exactly the kind of tone that suits the environment.

PREVIEW: The Hobbit (2012, 2013)

Good day to you all folks, one and all!

Welcome home to another wayfaring excursion into the heart of nerd-dom!

Today we have more treats in store, specifically (as you might have already guessed!) treats relating to the still-in-production and VERY highly anticipated prequels to the epic "Lord of the Rings" trilogy (hereafter referred to as LotR) by Peter Jackson.

WTF happened to Peter Jackson!?!?

Fans have been waiting with bated breath and twitching eagerness to get glimpses of this new venture by the already legendary film-maker and now there are things worth sharing!
With his success on the LotR series, Jackson has shown that he has not only the skill and talent to pull of these adaptations, but also a basic love for the originals and desire to do them justice - it is this last part that shows in his work so far and garners him the respect of fans and peers alike, it also gives a certain confidence to this new venture.

The 12 Geek Days of Christmas

The Holiday season is upon us which means the constant bombardment of Christmas music, images of Santa his elves and his reindeer, red and green everywhere. Yes, even if Christmas isn't a holiday you celebrate it is still all around. The cheery atmosphere is nice, but how much of it is geared towards geeks? "Jingle Bells, Batman Smells" is all we've got.
Not quite good enough.

We here at Comic Addicts have decided to do a series that helps make the holiday traditions a bit more geek friendly. We're putting a comic spin on the age old traditions. Each week there will be a new addition to help you get into the holiday spirit.

Today we feature the 12 Geek Days of Christmas. You will note there are two versions. The first is a realistic list as to what could be given as gifts. The second list is pure geeky fantasy. You'll have to imagine the tune in you're head, cause we're not going to sing it.

REVIEW: Saga of The Swamp Thing, Book One (Hardcover)

Writer: Alan Moore
Artists: Stephen Bissette, Rick Veitch, John Totleben
Issues Included: Saga of The Swamp Thing #20-27


What do you do when a comic title just doesn't sell anymore? I'm asking "you" not as a reader, but as a publisher, who does this to feed his family, and thousands of other families including the talent, the assistants, the distributors, the stockists and what not!

You cancel the book. Painful to the demographic who has been heartily supporting your book, but it gets done. Look at X-Men. Sixty-six issues into it's initial run (by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby, and later Roy Thomas, Arnold Drake, Neal Adams and more) and the company stopped new issues.


Or you give it to an A-list writer, who'll probably turn him into an A-list character. It's worked with Green Lantern (Geoff Johns), The Incredible Hulk (Peter David), The Flash (Mark Waid), JLA (Grant Morrison) and Neil Gaiman (Black Orchid, Sandman) among others. Hell, did we ever imagine a day when the top selling characters at DC & Marvel would be Green Lantern & Iron Man, respectively?
I for one didn't.

Marvel New Galore : The Phoenix Returns as Bendis quits Avengers

This week Marvel announced their next big summer event in the form of ‘Avengers vs. X-Men’ a 12-part crossover being written by the Marvel Architects (Bendis, Hickman, Brubaker, Aaron and Fraction) with Art duties being handled by John Romita jr., Oliver Coipel and Adam Kubert. 

Click to enlarge!

PREVIEW!! The Last Airbender: The The Legend of Korra

 The Last Airbender? Not Anymore!! 

Welcome, welcome, welcome back my fellow wayfarers - today is a special previews post that I think will give some of you reasons for gladness and much joy, well it did for me at least and I'm running on the assumption that there are people who share the same tastes as me!

But I won't keep it hanging anymore and will now get right to the meat of the matter at hand:

Some of you are fans, both casual and dedicated, of a ground-breaking and fantastic little TV series called Avatar: The Last Airbender which was produced by Nickelodeon studios and aired its 61 spell-binding episodes from 2005 to 2008. All of us fans were both overjoyed and broken-hearted when the final episodes aired and brought the saga of our hero Aang's journey to a close. Well feel low no more!

Poster from Comic-Con 2011.

Many of you will have heard over the years of Avatar comics and follow-up cartoons coming up from time to time, with no real confirmation and solid proof. Then we were given some relief through a few Avatar comics that were released that were a bundle of fun of you could get your hands on them, showing us quiet (and some not so quiet) moments and interludes that are set between various points in the TV series itself.
And then there was the dark time... that horrible time when they made a movie based on the series, a movie so lame and derivative and disheartening that many felt this could even kill the franchise!

But now light shines once again in the form of a new series called The Last Airbender: The Legend of Korra (click for its homepage),  I know, it's one hell of a mouthful and I wish they could have just called it what it should have been, i.e, "Avatar: The Legend of Korra" - but thanks to the very talented jackass that is James Cameron who is making it a legal issue so that his entertaining but otherwise not-so-deep movie series can keep the "Avatar" name. Damn you Cameron, why did you have to be such a douche, you know this series is more deserving and you can just call yours "The Pandora Trilogy" or some such. Ah well...

Meeting Maniacs: Harsho Mohan Chattoraj

 ComicAddicts chats with H.M.C

(Click to enlarge the awesome-ness!)

So Harsho, tell us a a little bit about yourself.

Let’s see – I’m a comic book artist ( well, I fancifully refer to myself as a graphic novelist at times ) based in Kolkata. I’ve worked in other fields too, and still continue to do so, albeit to a lesser extent these days, as I try to give most of my work energy to my comic projects. I love watching movies and TV serials, listening to music and reading books ( my favourite authors would be Stephen King,. P.G.Wodehouse and John Mortimer ), and let’s not forget comics – I prefer them to books, actually.

The man himself.

How did you get your first break in this industry?

The first break in the comic strip zone ( and they’re the strips in the newspapers, not to be confused with comic books ) came pretty early for me – I had a cartoon column and a comic strip column in 2 supplements of ‘The Statesman’ newspaper in Kolkata. That was around 12 years back, if memory serves me right.

And my first comic book break was a project for a US-based client. The comic’s name was ‘GunMetal Blues’. Strangely enough, that 80-pager is yet to be published, whereas the ones following it got published rapidly, almost immediately after creation.

Can you share some of the biggest influences on your life?

I suppose you are referring to the influences on my life in the comic world… so lemme see – Mike Mignola , Lee Bermejo, Stuart Immonen, Tony Harris, Jae Lee, J.H.Williams III , Leinil Francis Yu . The list goes on and on, but these would be the toppers any day.

What first made you want to not just be an artist, but a comic-artist?

Yes, at the start, and till around 4 years back, I preferred to be a jack of all trades, but comics had been my mainstay always, even among those other ‘trades’. And 4 years back, when I returned to my home in Kolkata from my sojourn in Bangalore, I focused primarily on comics, trying to get better at it.

Manga Review: Gun Frontier

Guns akimbo!

There are truly few settings with such potential for horror, fantasy, mystery and action as the Wild West of long ago. The very words "Wild West" are synonymous with the garish imagery of gunfighters and gamblers, of harlots and heart-breakers and the eternal war of the "Indian" against the White Man.

Time and again the Wild West has been masterfully explored through films, initially in spaghetti westerns famous for their hammed acting and bad dialogue dubs, and then by mainstream Hollywood cinema. Most famously this was done of course by Clint Eastwoood, the veritable Spirit of the West himself.
But films are not the only medium of entertainment to have embraced this style. Manga has time and time again found its way to the bleak deserts and ghost towns of the Wild West. There are many gems in this particular genre and indeed I intend to touch upon them all. But today, we begin with a series that is unique even within this limited style of manga.

A Comic Geek's Letter to Santa

Dear Santa,


I'm sure it must strike you as strange that an adult would be writing to you, but let me assure you that I am a firm believer. Doubters will say that it's impossible for one man to deliver toys to every child in one night; however, I say that it is possible. I'm not going to tell you how I know 'cause I know that I shouldn't know. Although between you and me we both know it's a combination of technology and white magic. You don't have to tell me if I'm right or not, but the way I figure, it's like a cross between Harry Potter and Star Trek.


Anyway, I hope that proves my worth to be able to further present this letter to you. In which case I'd like the following for Christmas:

Roots of the Swamp Thing - A look back to our favourite muck encrusted monster!

Writer: Len Wein
Artists: Bernie Wrightson, Nestor Redondo
Collects: House of Mystery 92, Swamp Thing (1st series, 1972) 1-13

Whenever someone says Swamp Thing, the first name to ring a bell is Alan Moore. True, Alan took our dear Swampy to places he had never been, but before that, there had to be a writer who took him to some places for the first time. That was Len Wein. Granted, those places weren't stupendous or awe inspiring; rather they were more along the line of the old (now!) horror stories featured by EC Comics and Gold Key Comics. But for this old horror story fan, they were a treat to the eyes as well as the mind.

What You should Be Reading : Jason Aaron’s Wolverine

Wolverine is arguably the most famous comic book character created this side of the 70’s. However, regardless of your view on that debate, he certainly is the most overused and burnt out character in contemporary comics books. As a member of the Avengers, leader of half the X-Men, Principal of The Jean Gray Academy, Protector of China Town and struggling father - it’s safe to assume he has a pretty busy life. So much so that, with all his appearances, readers were all pretty much getting more of the same week after week.
That was of course, before Jason Aaron (Scalped, PunisherMAX) began his work on the character.

Wolverine : Weapon X

(click to enlarge)

This is where all the madness of the current run started. After the main Wolverine title was handed over to Logan’s son Daken, Marvel announced the new ongoing Wolverine: Weapon-X by rising star Jason Aaron. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Aaron’s work, this guy has a very twisted mind and is a very mind-blowing storyteller. With Weapon-X, Aaron gave us Wolverine as he was always supposed to be written: Badass, yet intellectual and sophisticated. In Weapon X, without too many details, we have one excellent arc after one another, some delving deep into his mind while others unleash the animal. Oh yeah, he gets a girlfriend too. Bet you wanna read this book now, dontcha.

... and Emma Frost is amused

Wolverine : The Red Right Hand Saga

With the relaunch of the Wolverine family of titles in 2010, Jason Aaron got the well deserved title of the de-facto Wolverine writer. With an initial run of arcs lasting seventeen issues, Aaron scripted a tale of Wolverine answering for past crimes from a mysterious organization called The Red Right Hand. I’m not gonna give away too much, but you can guess these are essentially people who are pretty miffed with Logan, and have something worse than death in store for him.

Rajat's Reviews: Daksh Issue #01 (late but not lost)

When I opened Level 10's Jump #11, the one title I was eagerly looking forward was the new chapter of Daksh.

 Issue 0 had piqued my curiosity and anticipation and there were expectations aplenty for Shamik’s new venture!

The first page looked familiar. So did the second. And then  I realized that it was the same issue which was printed the last time!! “What on earth…” was my first reaction and I was on the verge of shooting a sweet little mail to Shamik and Suhas when I suddenly noticed the word "Uncensored" at the top of the first page. I discarded the mail, picked up the book and started reading again.

REVIEW! Game of Thrones comics and more!

George R.R. Martins Hedge Knight

Hello, hello, hello! Welcome to all you patrons of the improbable, the surreal and the fantastical!

Today for your pleasure I bring a little-known treat for most and one I think is most appropriate now more then any time before.

The new comics variants!!

By now almost all of you will be familiar - either completely or at least in passing - with the phenomenon that is "Game of Thrones", the TV series adaptation of the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series of books by the amazing George R.R. Martin. We've all gaped in awe, shock and horror as we watched the beginnings of the deadly drama that would set the kingdoms of Westeros to the sword - the noble Houses of Stark, Baratheon, Targaryen and all the others that I'm sure you are remembering vivildy in full gory detail right now! And of course Khal Droga and his Dothraki, not to be forgotten!
Marvelous is it not? And not only was the show such a runaway success that they confirmed a second season after just ONE episode aired, but its become bigger still - recently there was an announcement for a Game of Thrones video game for which we saw the trailer at the E3 2011 event. And on top of that we have the recently released comic adaptation of the books themselves with some pretty awesome cover art by the legendary Alex Ross! (Oh and I have to be an arse here but can't help myself - I got a copy of #1!! Mine, all mine!! muahahahah!)

Anyway, with all this and the next season underway and soon to be back to the screen - anticipated with pounding heart by anyone and everyone who saw the stunning season finale - I decided to bring in a little something extra, something that got forgotten in the shadow of this mammoth saga, one that Martin is still writing to finish!

So without further adieu, I bring you George R.R. Martin's Hedge Knight! Produced years ago by the Image Comics and the now defunct Devil's Due Publishing, this was an adaptation of one of the stories from the Tales of Dunk and Egg, a series of short tales - novellas if you will - that take place in Westeros' past. More specifically these tales are set quite some time before the Song of Ice and Fire and in fact even before the rebellion of King Robert that we know about from these stories. In fact it is set a hundred or so years earlier in a more idyllic time when the vaunted and feared House Targaryen still rules supreme - the blood of the Dragon still on the Iron Throne!

Armageddon Expo 2011 (Auckland, New Zealand)

Myself and my awesome helper Renee

Again awesome Renee here with my other awesome helper fellow comic book creator, Susan Rugg.

I had been planning to launch our Online Comic Store at the Expo, which has been running now for a number of years. I had placed it in the top priority slot as its the biggest in Australasia. Numbers can usually vary around 18,000 and up - but this year it crossed 40,000!

This year was the third time I had attended but the first time I was there as a retailer myself. Being a retailer you get to see the amount of work that goes into putting in a such a huge effort into the smooth running of the events. I had a couple of very amazing young ladies help me out over the three days that we were there. The event itself was four days long. But I realised on Day 2 that it wouldn't be possible for me to stay the fourth day, so by the end of Day 3 we had packed up and left the venue, elated with the turnout and the response to us being there.