Thursday, May 28, 2009

Hot Town and Getting There by Robyn Jordan In Hot Town and Getting There, Robyn Jordan displays two different art styles. Hot Town, subtitled "One More Summer in Sticky NYC," is looser and more quickly rendered than Getting There. Robyn's lines are thicker and darker; she uses very little shading or texturing and spends less time worrying about backgrounds. The stories are little vignettes of live in NYC - showing realtives around, puttering in her community garden, checking out nude beaches.
The 20-page Hot Town is wrapped in a saddle stitched, bright orange cover with the title screen-printed over an overheated, bikini-clad girl, clutching a yard glass full of something tropical.

Getting There features longer stories (two stories sandwiching a one-pager) and a much tighter style of art. Here, Robyn meticulously graces the panels with detailed shading and crosshatching. The backgrounds are more significant, lending depth to the pages. Story one details the characters you see commuing on the subway and story two depicts Robyn's jury duty experience.
Here's a bonus greeting card that Robyn sent in: The inside says, "Hey, thanks for everything."

Find more details at her website, including this page with many images. Looks like you can find Robyn's comics at Desert Island. Contact her at robyn@robynjordan.com.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

The Would-Be Bridegrooms by Shawn Cheng Shawn Cheng, of Partyka, has combined the grace and simplicity of a fable with the energy and silliness of a shape-shifting duel. Two would-be bridegrooms approach a girl's house, slowly realizing that they both intend to ask for the hand of their beloved. Once they realize this, the battle is on - the two shape-shifters take turns trying to outmaneuver and overpower the other. Near the end, the two suitors find themselves in a very compromising position. Shawn's comic timing is impeccable during this sequence. The Would-Be Bridegrooms is a 48-page black and white mini-comic wrapped in a threaded spine cover. Get your own copy for $5 at the Partyka online store.

Friday, May 22, 2009

Mini-comics by Gwenaelle
Gwenaelle creates gorgeous penciled minis that both teach and delight. Gwenaelle’s Little Book of Recipes Illustrated Volumes I and II cover “Chicken Marinated in Beer” and “Mavis K. BBQ Steak Houston Style” respectively. Each 16-page issue features ingredient lists and step-by-step instructions accompanied by pencil drawings. “Chicken Marinated in Beer” adds two pages each for setting the table and beverage selections. These would be great for Gourmet or Food and Wine readers. Inventez Des Nouvelles Positions Sexuelles (Invent New Sexual Positions) is a 16-page exercise in capturing ideas about sex and ignoring "your inner cop or censure" when you consider the sexual act. This mini, like the others, is lovingly crafted inside and out. The inside cover folds out and looks like this:
Gwenaelle's mini-comic page has more pictures, like a lot more pictures, to give you an idea of how interesting these little books are. Just click on a title and away you go! She doesn't have any prices listed, but I'm sure if you email her at contact@gounie.com, you can get the scoop on prices. She does have an Etsy shop where you can purchase minis. If you re in the Los Angeles area, you can purchase the minis at Skylight Books, The Secret Headquarters, or Meltdown Comics.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

SIZE MATTERS Update and Address Change

Folks, I apologize. I’ve neglected SIZE MATTERS over the last month and a half. The review copies are piling up and I’m feeling very guilty for not posting. Honestly, this has been a pattern for the last year or two – sporadic updates followed by a month or two of nothing. I know that has to be annoying to the few readers who still check in.

I know you just come here for mini-comics, so I won’t bore you with the details of what’s been happening to keep me away from blogging. Life is just like that sometimes.

Kate and I have finally moved to Manhattan and I have to say it’s fantastic to be back on the East Coast. The address for reviews has obviously changed (email me for the new address). Now that I feel like things have calmed down, I’d like to try something a little different to help me get through this box full of mini-comics that deserve your attention.

I will do more frequent reviews, but make the reviews more basic and informational. This will give potential readers what they need to make a decision. I will keep the cover and interior shots up, because I know those help me decide on buying minis, but I’ll talk less about what I like and how the mini works for me.

Posts will follow this format:

Title
Author
Materials and page number
Price
Quick overall thoughts
Where to buy
Pictures!

If I stick to this for most of the minis, I can get more posts on here and put more minis front and center where they belong. Trust me, this review pile is embarrassing…