Wednesday 22 December 2010

Comic artist Christmas cards

One of my favourite things about Christmas is when comics artists start posting Christmas card art they've created themselves. Check out these three bad boys from supertalented pixies Jamie Smart, PJ Holden and Garen Ewing. Love 'em!

Jamie Smart

PJ Holden

Garen Ewing
 More please!

EDIT: and here's a beauty from Emma Vieceli!

Emma Vieceli

Valium Kapadai
...Sarah McIntyre did a little Christmas comic instead of a card...
Sarah McIntyre

...Vicky Stonebridge and Rich Clements, organisers of the Hi-Ex Comics Expo among other things.

Vicky Stonebridge & Rich Clements

Tuesday 21 December 2010

Stace's new new podcast: The Megacast!

Stace's plan for world podcast domination continues apace! Regular listeners to SPBM, If You Like This, Everything Comes Back To 2000AD, Comic Racks, Geek Syndicate and any of the other 'casts she's co-hosted or guested on will be well aware of her affection, nay love, nay lust for the shiney helmeted lawman Judge Dredd. Well now she and Comics Racks' own Iz McCauliffe will be regularly reviewing The Judge Dredd Megazine is a sister podcast to the drokking awesome ECBT2000AD called The Megacast.

Episode 01 is available now HERE or is available through itunes via the same feed as ECBT2000AD


Monday 20 December 2010

Jamie Smart does Doctor Who

SPBM loves Jamie Smart. We also love Doctor Who. So the news on Jamie's blog that he's working on a new Doctor Who project is very very exciting indeed. Hear that high pitched SQUEEEEEEEE noise? That's us. 

This is Jamie: "There’s a brand new Dr Who partwork magazine coming out in Spring 2011, and I’m very pleased to say I’ll be spending most of next year drawing for it. ... I can’t tell you what kind of thing I’m drawing, but if you’re canny or seen the previews floating round t’internet you may have worked it out."


SFX Magazine were able to add more details as they have seen one of the preview issues. On their website today they said: "It was called Doctor Who Monster Invasion, and it was connected to a collectable card game. ... One of the best things about the test issue was, indeed, Smart’s double-page Ood spread" SFX provide a wee pic of the Ood spread which looks fantastic!


In other Jamie Smart news, his brilliant online graphic novel Kochi Wanaba is in its final stretch. Running daily during December its due to conclude in just a few days and we strongly suggest you give it a read - its a stunningly beautiful piece of work.



Daily Spine Chiller for Christmas

There's a festive treat for fans of Ben Clark's hilarious weekly comic strip The Spine Chillers - its going daily from now til Christmas. Huzzah! We raved about it in early days of SPBM, but here's Ben himself to fill you in if you missed it:

"My idea for the comic strip is to take the writers from The Spine Chillers series, (HP Lovecraft, Ambrose Bierce and Edgar Allan Poe) and have them all live together in a grotty, 1950s style boarding house, with an indifferent battleaxe of a Landlady called Mrs Parkinson. I thought the boarding house backdrop provided the most scope for stories, conflict and most importantly, jokes.

So treat yourself and do the clicky thing

Thursday 16 December 2010

Creator Shops!

Christmas is right around the corner and if you're short of ideas for presents for the comics geek in your life check out the comics, sketches, art commissions, prints and other goodies from these fine and talented comics creators!



David Wynne - Particle Fiction

Ben Clark - Spinechillers, Mike Neville

Jamie Smart - Whubble, Bear, The Dandy

Vickie Stonebridge - Hi-Ex, Slaughterman's Creed

Rich Clements - Futurequake, Zarjaz, Turning Tiger

Jennie Gyllblad - Skal

Stephen Downey - Cancertown, Torchwood

Garen Ewing - Rainbow Orchid

Emma Vieceli - Dragon Heir

Valium Kapadai - Innocent Soul

Barry Nugent - Fallen Heroes

Gary Bainbridge - Sugar Glider, Grainger Street

Luke Foster - MoonFreight 3, The Gang From The Store

Andrew Waugh - Show and Tell, Hermit

Matthew Craig - Hondle, Tryhard & Tearaway

Dean Stahl - Headlocks and Headaches

PJ Holden - Judge Dredd, Numbercruncher

Wednesday 15 December 2010

The Indifference Engine launches on PSN.

We reviewed The Indifference Engine in episode 22 and loved it  - Stace infamously called it "Philip K Dick flavoured" - but you can decide for yourself as it is now available on the PSN platform. here's the full press release...

==============================================================



The Indifference Engine: A Holographic Novel launches today on PSN.


“Being a science fiction fan, I sometimes ache for a comic that will challenge my perceptions of the world, of the universe, of my way of thinking...The Indifference Engine, written by Cy Dethan (Cancertown)with pencils by Robert Carey, scratches that itch spectacularly!" said Wayne Hall of Sci-Fi Pulse.

Happily you can now find relief for all your own interdimensional itches, as, with a little holiday magic The Indifference Engine (Dethan, Carey, Cook, Wilkinson) has been bumped up Markosia Publications’ release schedule and made its way to the Playstation Network Comic Store just in time for Christmas.

Responding to a strangely specific job advertisement, Alan Blake, a distinctly ordinary twenty-something suburban slacker finds himself in the middle of an inter-dimensional task force staffed entirely by superhuman alternate versions of himself. Struggling to fit in, he uncovers a conspiracy that strikes at the very heart of the organisation – a conspiracy that only he can stop.

"Cy Dethan's script is superb on this book", said John (Sci-Fi Art Now) Freeman on Down The Tubes "This [is a] tightly-written multi-universe-spanning adventure tale and it's...definitely a book to look out for."

My name is Alan Blake. 

I've got no resources, no skills and no friends.

But if I were you, I'd be the very last person on Earth 

I'd want coming after me...



The Indifference Engine reunites the Cancertown team of Dethan, Cook and Wilkinson, joined this time around by penciller Rob Carey on his first full length graphic novel.

Harry Markos, publisher, speaking about the launch on the PSN forum said: “You’re going to be freaked out. I warned you , a while ago, that The Indifference Engine would blow your minds, well, as promised, issue one is here to do just that!”

Meanwhile over on the PSN blog, Pauline Martyn, Publishing Manager, Digital Comics posted: “Cancertown was one of the highlights of our early offerings – a great series which steadily grew a loyal cult following during its time on the store. Now, writer Cy Dethan is back with the superlative The Indifference Engine through Markosia.”

Before we go, a final word from Sci-Fi Pulse:

" I LOVED having to pay attention and taking my time to keep track of what was going on. I LOVED the pay-off at the end as well. It’s a great mental exercise–my brain was tired for a long time after reading it....In fact, I LOVED that, too! What a great comic!"

If you want to try before you buy then you can read a free preview of the first 14 pages from Cy Dethan’s website at http://www.cydethan.com/index.php?page=free-online-preview along with a sneak peak at art from later episodes.

For those without PSPs other versions are expected next year in a variety of formats and media. A sequel is already in the works!