Thundergirl by Marcel Walker

I regard this installment with significant affection for two reasons:

The first of which is Thundergirl herself. I've been meeting up with her creator, Shawn Atkins, almost every Sunday for the past two and a half years to work on comics. And over the course of that time, I've seen Thundergirl grow from an idea to an incredible character (so go buy her debut issue already!!!)

The other reason I love this drawing is because Marcel captured the essence of Project Basement. The form, the color, the line strokes, the expression on her face, the way the still image almost moves on its own... the energy and emotion in his quick eraser board sketch makes me want to stare at it endlessly.

So make sure to follow Marcel as he builds his latest comic book, Hero Corp, from the ground up!

And get back here next week for Songbird by Wayne Wise.

Iron Man by Shawn Atkins

Shawn asked me if I'd graciously give him the soapbox for a few minutes to talk about the artistic process behind this sketch:

ummmm... liquor's awesome.

Uh, thanks, Shawn... ANYWAY, I love how this sketch synthesizes two of Shawn's biggest influences -- Jack Kirby and Bruce Timm. From the krackles in Tony's glowing palm repulsor to the clunky-yet-energetic armor, from the hand in the foreground to the animated four fingers on his hand, this Iron Man screams awesome in my face.

Though, as an Iron Man fan who's read somewhere in the ballpark of 200 issues of his solo series, I DO NOT condone Shawn's reckless insistence that Tony should get sauced. However, considering the era of the armor he's wearing, this is before Stark admitted he was an alcoholic, so at least the sentiment is in continuity.

Be back next week for a very special installment, as the mighty Marcel Walker draws Shawn's original superhero creation, Thundergirl!

I'm probably beating a damn dead horse at this point, and for that I apologize. But I realized that I don't have anything written about this year's show... and I SHOULD considering that I'm helping organize the festivities!

Here's the official schpeel:

The SPF Expo will be held on September 25th and 26th, from 12pm to 5pm, at AIR: Artists Image Resource! Registration costs only $25, and in return your press, book, magazine, or organization receives a table, two passes, and signage for both days! We have lots of big things coming in September, and we hope you'll be there to experience it!

Basically, SPF is all about Pittsburgh's small press scene -- whether it's comics, mini comics, zines, small press lit, or whatever. And registration is open now. So go sign up if you want to exhibit.

And lo and behold, missed I have. Ross has some friend thing going on and we didn't plan far enough ahead to record earlier than usual, so we didn't record at all.

But I've still got stuff to talk about! First off, if you don't already know, Ross is going to be a guest at FanExpo Canada on August 27-29. You can buy Shadoweyes in person or have Ross sign his name on your nether regions (or both).

And the AudioShocker's gonna have a table there too! It'll probably be stuffed somewhere in the back of a supply closet between a cabinet of toilet paper and a rack of that powder you throw on vomit to make it easier to clean up... ya know, just the way we like it.

At our table, we'll have all the comics featured in the AudioShocker Store, as well as two new items -- a digital Super Haters: Special Edition (complete with audio commentary!) and ashcans of the first volume of Project Basement (featuring cover art by Kaylie McDougal, who'll also be at the show!):

Not too shabby, eh? (BTW, click on it for some awesome Project Basement wallpaper!)

Anyway, if you can't make it to Toronto, never fear, because mere weeks later, you can pick up some AudioShocker Comics goodies at Pittsburgh's Small Press Festival wekend expo. Held on the city's North Side at AIR from September 25-26, it's gonna have zines, comics, self-pubished literature, and tons more.

If you're near the Pittsburgh area and you'd like to set up at the show, register now! Tables are only $25, and I'll be there, so at least you know it's gonna be sexy.

Dazzler by Kaylie McDougal

TAKE IT AWAY, Kaylie:

here's my first thing for project basement. it's my redesign of Dazzler, though it's heavily based on her New Excalibur design. oh yeah, um....i can't remember how long it took me to sketch this out. probably in the neighborhood of fifteen minutes? :)

Look, this sketch just plain @#$%ing rocks. That's right, I @#$%ing said it @#$%ing rocks. It's got a very Bill & Ted comics feel (by Evan Dorkin, circa Bogus Journey), which I really dig. I like Kaylie's two-tone blue color scheme. AND I just happen to be a big fan of the New Ex era costume. Oh... and the line work is incredible. All around great sketch!!! (Anyone else out there wanna notarize that?)

EDIT: How could I forget!?! Check out more of Kaylie's work and visit her blog, Kaylie vs. Art.

Be back next week for Iron Man by Shawn Atkins.

does Pittsburgh really have a Stephen Foster monument?

Which made me realize that I should do a bit of explaining when it comes to the context in which Pete and I came up with Time Log.

First off, here was my response to Kaylie:

@Kaylie: specifically, Time Log involves the Stephen Foster statue, which is prominently placed on a popular road AND right in front of the city's largest public library (right across the street from the Memorial building Neal posted about).

for more, check out this opinion piece by Tony Norman, who's a huge comic book fan (and Wednesday comic shop regular at my local shop, Phantom). oddly enough, he put out his opinion column about the Foster statue the same week that the Time Log one-shot was released.

Still with me? Now let me add just a bit more to that. First off, you can learn more about the songwriting career of Stephen Foster AND minstrel shows, which is where Foster's songs gained popularity.

There's a lot more to it, including the idea of ownership as it applies to popular music, as well as the songwriting business and its own interesting history. But I'll let you find those links on your own.

What is vital to Time Log is that the real Stephen Foster statue stands on the corner of Forbes Ave and Schenley Drive Extension in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, right between the campuses of the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University (and a couple blocks away from Phantom of the Attic Comics, my local shop and a place where you can buy a copy of the Time Log one-shot comic).

Also, if you haven't read the Time Log one-shot, it's worth taking a quick peak at this PDF preview, which includes Pete's opening rant about the Foster statue. That'll give you even more context, as it applies directly to the inciting incident of the entire Time Log adventure.

So with that said, I'd like to finish in Pete's own words about the Foster statue:

And, for the record, I've been ranting about that statue since no later than 1999, though I'm sure many people come upon it and similarly can't believe that it exists in such a prominent spot (it used to be tucked away in a graveyard somewhere, I think, in Homestead). Hopefully Time Log gives proper outlet to all those folks like me that have shaken their fists in fury at it.

Poison Ivy by Aimee Cummings

Aimee sayz:

I really like Poison Ivy as a villainess. Not the best ever... but I can't really say I object to a sexed-up fertility goddess and her rampaging, green vegina dentatae. (Yes, I really did just make that pun.)

As for me, I can't say enough good things about this drawing. But here are a few... I LOVE IT! My favorite thing is the graceful shape created by Ivy's stance in combination with her arching vines. My second favorite thing Ivy's awesome facial expression (make sure to click on the pic to see the expression up close). My third favorite thing is her creepy, leafy costume.

Now go check out more of Aimee's great work (and catch a peak at her fantastic sculpting and casting of a statue of Ross' Shadoweyes character!!!).

Be back next week for Dazzler by Kaylie McDougal.

Hawkeye by Wayne Wise

Where do I start!?! Okay, so Wayne (ooops, wrong link!) is a multi-talented comics writer, penciler, inker, retailer, novelist, and Xeric award winner (among many other things). Check out his work on Grey Legacy and Chaos Punks!

Now for the sketch!!! Wayne bucked the PB rules slightly and delivered a polished rendering of the Avenging Archer (who, as friends will know, is a favorite of the artist). But can you blame him? It's a classic pinup pose (not that type of pinup!) with a fun spirit and lots of awesome linework.

EDIT! In Wayne's own words:

I did this in about 20 minutes at [Phantom of the Attic] one Tuesday morning. I did a quick, vague pencil sketch and then did most of the details in the inking stage. I used a Pit Pen brush marker and a thin line Staedtler marker.

Be back next week for Poison Ivy by Aimee Cummings.

Supergirl by Scott Hedlund

Scott is the artist behind the webcomics Chaos Punks and World of Orenda, as well as many other awesome projects.

My favorite thing about this sketch, similar to last week, is that it's composed almost completely out of iconography. Specifically, I mean that there's nothing in this image explicitly stating it's Supergirl soaring above Earth, ready to fight an invading alien armada. But Scott's bare iconic elements successfully communicate the message to me in a flash!

Be back next week for Hawkeye by Wayne Wise.

Hulk by Dan Greenwald

In the artist's own splendorous words:

"If you want to mention that I did my piece on my iPod Touch with Sketchbook Pro & put up links to Blue Wraith and Comic Book Pitt, that would be cool. You can just write it however you want, I trust you."

No, Dan. I won't write it. 'Cause you just did it yourself. CHA-CHING!

Be back next week for Supergirl by Scott Hedlund.