Oh, YEAH!!!!

After several years of looking at my first few attempts at getting a comics book out into the public and all the mistakes therein, I’m happy to announce that a new trade paperback available at Indyplanet.com collects Frater Mine issues #1 to #3 – “Family Reunion” – with a new introduction, and corrected text and images. FINALLY!! Now maybe the OCD-induced nightmares will stop.

The interior art is by Juan Romera (the faithful artist whose work just gets better and better) and Andres Barrientos (who was aboard only for issue #2). Re-lettering was done by Ed Brisson, who has been doing all the Frater Mine issues since #4. He’s an amazing talent, and right now is working on issue #8. I intend to keep him around for as long as possible. Cover art was done by my brother Scott with contributions from Austin photographer Dan Machold. This is a great team, and I’m thrilled to know and work with them.

Also, in about a week or so, a new webcomic – “Rise of the Pink Ninjas” – will be available for download. It’s drawn and colored by Benjamin Ruth (whom I’ve conscripted to help with “Unmouldered Vespula”, another new project) and lettered by Christopher Moshier. I’m not going to give everything away, but here’s a sample of page one:






The download will be free. I’ll make an announcement when it’s ready for your reading pleasure.

Juan Romera sent in his finished pages for Frater Mine #8, “And Thro’ the Field the Road Runs By”, part six of “Here, There and Nowhere”. And I have to say they’re brilliant! Click to enlarge:

The pages are going to be sent off to Ed Brisson for lettering. Look for it to be printed by the end of the year!

A few weeks ago, I was interviewed by Neil Ellis Orts of Houston’s OutSmart Magazine for an article about gay Texans in the indy comics scene which was published this week. My fellow gay Texans geeks were Dylan Edwards, Rosendo, and shane patrick boyle. I’m rather pleased to be included in such august company; these guys have been around a lot longer than me and have done a lot more for the scene. I’m not even sure where the scene is and how often it draws all the scene-y people together, yet there I am. Kinda thrilled here.

Click the graphic below to go to OutSmart’s May flip-book (starting on page 35) or click here for the HTML version. Of course, those who live in Houston can pick up a paper copy at all your high and low end gay bars (and if you do, could you send me a copy, please?).

…about Frater Mine. The guys over at Comic Book Queers discussed FM during this week’s podcast. It’s towards the end after an excellent discussion of Cloak and Dagger (my tied-for #2 characters after Magik). Give a listen here:

I’m really embarrassed about the reference to the “Mary Janing” I did in the book. I try to own it, but looking back it just seems like lazy writing. Like Twilight. I know I’m not the only one to do this, but I’d like to think that I’m not a lazy writer. Well, at least I’m working to make the characters less like people in my world. Even if Matt does have a twin brother and adorable nephew…

François Peneaud of The Gay Comics List and Brother to Dragons gave Frater Mine #6 and 7 a great review on his site. Click on the image to embiggenate:

My recent perseveration is getting the word about my comic out more, but I want to avoid the “user” (pushing myself at the expense of others) and “abuser” (flooding people with updates) models of self-promotion. There has to be a third option, but I have no idea what it is. I do know, however, it will involved a new website design.

Orthocomics is pleased to announce that Frater Mine #7, “Through the Wave That Runs Forever”, by the team of Sean McGrath, Juan Romera, Ed Brisson and Scott McGrath is now available at IndyPlanet.

Mark, Matt and Colleen are on the run and looking for their missing kids. but where do they start and who’s on their side? New players jump into the fray, but if they’re friends, they certainly don’t act like it! Check out this story of magic realism that Rachel Pollack said she “really enjoyed”.

Order your copy now while the price is still $2.50 (the real price of $2.95 should be posted soon)!

Please feel free to send feedback, fan mail or requests for divination. Sean specifically requests that fans send used (not soiled) underwear (with pictures).

Thor: The Truth of History: Can anything done by Alan Davis be bad? Never (even if his Thor doesn’t like the Egyptians very much.)! A

Runaways #3: “If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s intolerance.” Recent Log Cabin Republicans whining aside, there is something to be said about not tolerating intolerance, especially the kind that leads to violence or the demonization of “the other”. Even Brecht knew this. “Intolerant” is a nice way of saying “s/he’s an ignorant motherfucker”. I suppose that if people wallowed in their ignorance and left everyone else out, it would be OK, but for whatever reason, they never do. Like Typhoid Mary, they spread ignorance and fear and anger. That was what I got out of this issue. A

Final Crisis #4: FINALLY!!!! The main FC book isn’t bogged down by its own cleverness hits its stride. It still saddens me that most of the other DC books refuse to acknowledge any of this is even going on (even if it is just two weeks in the future), because according to the Flash, the whole multiverse is teetering on the brink of the Abyss. And *sigh* wasn’t Barry’s kissing Iris just about the best thing to happen in comics in years? It’s still unclear to me who Turpin met at the Dark Side Club in issue #1 if he’s being infested by Darkseid in this issue, but I am clear that he’s now two hard-nosed bad-asses in one. A+

New Krypton: I have a feeling this is going to be messy by the end, mostly because Superman is a dick in this issue. I know there’s superdickery.com which exploits the older pre-”Boy Scout” days of Supes, but really, there is no excuse for him throwing his human parents and Earth under the bus just so the Kryptonians don’t get their red undies in a twist (I jest, of course; their undies come in all sorts of colors, not just red). First, he gives props to Jor-El and his tape-recorded civics lessons for helping him to turn out the way he is today, side-stepping the fact that it was really the recently departed Jonathan Kent who did that. Whu…? Worse, the juxaposition of Zor, Alura, Kara and Kal having “the first El family dinner in ages” while Ma Kent eats funeral leftovers alone back on the farm is a foreboding foreshadowing if ever I saw one. If Superman knew nothing else about Kryptonian culture, he should at least know it was their arrogance that got them blowed up in the first place. How he thinks a few years in a bottle mellowed them out is beyond me, and why he didn’t take umbrage with the whale-killing Kryptonian… well, this event has “spare the rod and spoil the child” written all over it. Still, the writing is tense and I’m going to follow this story across every issue. A

Uncanny X-Men #502: So, Hank McCoy is finally coming out of the closet, eh? If I walked away from this issue with one impression, it’s that Hank has either gone camp or he’s gone Butch Camp. Can anyone else smell the poppers? If I were permitted a second impression, it would be that Scott and Emma need therapy. What’s revealed about Emma in the story is nothing new, but it’s an aspect of her that seems to have been pushed aside to make her and Scott seem more… compatible. Otherwise, this is a fast-paced, fun issue that still under-utilizes the unwieldy cast despite the “family” moments peppered throughout. I can’t totally blame Brubaker, but that’ll change in a month or so. A

War Heroes #2: I think I’ve figured out Mark Millar – he’s the Anne Coulter of comics: strident voice and a talent for upsetting people (if I had to guess I’d say that “people” = “bleeding heart liberals” (whatever that means)) with his childish homophobia and creative violence. However, if one were to turn the volume down a bit – and with Millar the volume is ALWAYS!! SET!! AT!! TWELVE!! – one would find that he isn’t saying very much in terms of his characters or stories. He spends his energy trying to be “more” than he was the previous issue: more shocking, more violent, more offensive, more… well, “loud”. Don’t get me wrong, he’s apt at loud, but as a reader I’m growing a bit weary of it. I’d say he should add in scenes that back off of the intensity, but one has only to look at his painfully subdued work on 1985 – where every scene lacks impact and importance – to see how well that works out. I enjoyed this issue of War Heroes, but like Secret Invasion I’m not sure how much higher the stakes can get as they’re pretty high already. Maybe Millar will surprise me in the final analysis. B-

The script for Frater Mine #8 (“The Knights Come Riding”) was finished this just past weekend and already my brother has the cover ready to go!

Though, like the cover for issue 7, I have no idea why he’s supranumerated (if such a word exists) the issue. Ah well. I’ll blame it on the summer.

Wonder Woman #22: I’m not much for dream sequences because they’re never handled well (the exception being the “Restless” episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer), though in this issue Gail Simone certainly has the surreal overlapping of times and places down pat. This seems like a long way to go just to reintroduce some of DC’s old 1970′s characters, especially because they’re “not real”. I think. I’m really hoping for Beowulf and Claw pop into the real world to help Diana fight the Devil. Stalker’s really real, so why not them as well? Best line of the book: “Warmongering succulent!” A

Secret Invasion #4: Punch shoot punch shoot. Repeat. Secret Invasion is becoming less and less expansive each month and more and more pointlessly violent. I get that it’s a war and violence is part and parcel therein, but it feels unimportant. Each panel that shows someone getting the tar beaten out of them is one panel not dedicated to plot. As with Final Crisis, I look to Crisis on Infinite Earths as the gold standard of events. Why not pack each page full of battle and discovery and paranoia? Why have the heroes in the Savage Land been chasing Empress Spider-Woman around uselessly for half the story? She’s not trying to hide and from all indications she’s undefended and slow-moving. This may be the last issue for me. C-

Final Crisis: Requiem: I read Requiem in the comics store and was touched by the story, but I refused to buy it in protest for the shabby and ignominious way in which J’onn J’onzz was dispatched by the powers-that-be at DC. I know that every ….Crisis at DC requires casualties, and the editors pick their victims for shock and awe value, but I don’t see why it had to be J’onn, especially since I don’t think he’ll stay dead long. C’mon, when he telepathically contacted all his friends, different parts of their faces were subverted by his. I see a Wrath of Khan resurrection coming up which makes me more grumpy than the death in the first place. I’m really hoping that Final Crisis resets all of the DCU so the stories can be finally unburdened by years and years of bizarre continuity. Sadly, with the main titles barely even mentioning the current Crisis and Trinity only a few weeks into its year-long run, I don’t see that happening. I guess I can look forward to being surprised by Grant Morrison’s next several issues.

Other News: Witchblade: the Complete Series will be available July 29, 2008. Even better, Friday the 13th: the Series will be available September 23, 2008. I loved these shows and cannot wait to possess them on DVD!

Comics Should be Good has an exhaustive list of Comic Book Urban Legends which, in addition to their regularly expansive articles, will cost you hours and hours of productivity to get through (they’re nearing 200 stories as I write this). Celebrity porn for the comic book set.

Brian Andersen of So Super Duper fame has a new comic book coming out: Reignbow and Dee-va which he’s hoping to finish up in time for Comic Con. He’s been nice enough to send along a few preview pages. Click to see the full-sized images.













Finally, Claymation seems to be a theme in my life this week (maybe the Universe was prepping me for the opening sequence from Hellboy II), begun by the following two videos. I try to avoid posting from YouTube because one never knows how long the videos will be available for, but I’ll make an exception here. The first is from a dark “children’s” movie called The Adventures of Mark Twain; anyone remember this from their childhood? The second is Primus’ cover of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”. Funny, but one of these days, someone has to give Johnny’s reels a bump up to the truly ecstatic. Frankly, had I been judging, the Devil would have won.









Happy Saturday!

From Scott McGrath and Juan Romera come images of Frater Mine #7, “Through the Wave that Runs for Ever”. At the end of issue six Matt, Mark and Colleen became fugitives from the law. With so much at stake, why does a fuzzy magical bunny take center stage in issue 7?

UPDATE: Oops! The cover says it’s for issue 8, but it’s really for issue 7.

Making Comics Studios and OrthoComics Studio are proud to announce the release of Frater Mine #6 and the generic goddess comic #2, both available from IndyPlanet.com

In Frater Mine, Mark’s son Powers is missing and Matt is the main suspect. Colleen is interviewed by a less-than-sympathetic detective about her own daughter’s kidnapping. Telling the truth would be the best thing for all of them to do, but who would believe their children have literally disappeared? Called “genius…remarkable levels of professionalism and storytelling” by PinkKryptonite.com and “fabulous, edgy, outside the box” by Kathy Cronkite, Frater Mine pushes its characters to see how far they’ll go to help a loved one.

Order copies here!

In the goddess comic, ****** returns home on a mission – to apologize to a friend for abandoning her 30 years before. But a good night’s rest is interrupted by a violent confrontation. While this series has no official title, the story is bafflingly familiar. A 60-year-old woman with a dual identity champions Truth and Justice in a city beset with violence and apathy.

Order copies here!

As always, thanks for supporting indy comics!

I can’t wait to see which of these elimination contests are going to be on Bravo next season – Spacedog Entertainment’s or Platinum Studios’. Both contests start May First and purport to find the next best thing in comics by honing competitors’ ability to pitch their ideas. Lord knows plenty of good comics go unnoticed and an inordinate amount of poopy comics get more attention than they deserve all because of marketing.

Reading over the sites, it seems like competitors will promote just one comic book idea, but that seems too easy. I think they should refine their techniques by promoting other people’s books and then have the top two showcase their own projects in the finale.

Zuda Comics (a DC Comics online imprint that was pointed out to me today) recently finished a similar competition. Check out the winners!

However, given the amount of fluid I can squeeze out in a food-induced orgasm during a regular episode of Top Chef (and am I the only one who thinks that Andrew is just the most adorable Bronx speed-queen around?), I can only imagine what kind of load a comic book elimination challenge would produce.

Whichever one Bravo doesn’t embrace, I’m sure FOX will pick up in a cynical attempt to be as cool Bravo. My money is on Spacedog going the way of infamy. Maybe Dan Dido can host.

Joveth Gonzalez of Pink Kryptonite emailed me on Sunday to tell me he reviewed Frater Mine and that it would go live today as the LGBT Comic Book of the Week Month. I was not prepared for how generous and humbling his woulds would be (click the image to go to the site).

Joveth rightfully praised Juan Romera’s artwork, but I have to add to that. Juan is an important part of the production team that puts Frater Mine (and the goddess comic book) together, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the stunning contributions of Ed Brisson (the incredible letterer), Fernando Melek (artist for the goddess), Scott McGrath (editor and cover artist for issues 4 and on), to say nothing of Dan Machold (the cover artist for issues 1 – 3), Allen Freeman (Letterer for issues 2 and 3), Percival Constantine (editor for issues 1 – 3), the Goddess Cathy (who colored the original cover for issue one) and Chris Moshier (EIC of Making Comics Studios).

Thanks, all! You’re a talented bunch, and I’m going to try to keep you around forever.

Thanks to Joveth as well for his stunning words. I hope to be able to live up to them.

Also, fingers crossed for Ed Brisson. He’s hoping for some exceedingly good (and well-deserved) news to come his way this week. I won’t jinx it by saying what it is, but just send him some positive thoughts.

Oh, Lord, was it ever!

As I write this at the end of an eight-hour shift of self- and other-promotion, I am mentally and physically drained. I teach for a living, so when I’m in front of a class, I’m “on” – engaging, friendly, funny, trying to make a point whatever way works best to make it – but STAPLE took a different set of mental muscles that I’m not used to flexing. Honestly, I don’t know how people in the PR business do it. But the trade was brink all day and I sold more of my comics than I think I ever have in a single sitting. Uhm, maybe just “ever” full stop. I know I ran out of issue #2 of Frater Mine. Take that as you will.

The real sadness of STAPLE for me was not being able to walk around more. I was tethered to my table because it was just me and my wares. The woman sharing my table, Cristina Benavides, was swell and all, but it wasn’t her responsibility to conduct business for me (though, Gods love her, she kept an eye on my stuff when I went to the loo). However, the people I met at the table more than made up for not checking out the other vendors. (Note: Anyone want to be my partner-in-geekdom next year?)

• The guys from Fanboy Video gave me a few of my fifteen minutes of fame early on at the expo. They hit everyone so that people who didn’t attend STAPLE could see what they were missing. I’ll post more when they go live. These guys are also highly involved in Heroes 4 Heroes, a non-profit designed to keep the soldiers overseas in-tune with what’s new and hip and happening stateside. No matter what your take on the Iraq Occupation, the soldiers need to feel that people back home remember them. They’d probably also like to know what the hell is gong on over here. Consider making a donation to the people who are far from home.
• Dave and Lauren, Kate, and James (with his friend Dan) all said hi. It’s nice when known faces swim up out of the crowd. I probably wasn’t as attentive as I could have been, but I’m sure they understood. I hope. Uh, if not, I hereby apologize.
• Brad of Outrageous Outfits (and AlphaGraphics) and his partner stopped by for a copy of Prism Comics: Your LGBT Guide to Comics 2007 and told me all about the fun costumes they make. They’re also planning to go to San Francisco for their anniversary if anyone wants to give them some touring hints!
• Alex of UT’s University Comics Enthusiasts talked with Cristina and I for a while and lamented he was the only one from his club at STAPLE. Apparently, enthusiasm for comics wanes after a Saturday night of hard partying. Those college scamps!
• I did manage to buy an Owli plush toy and a copy of “A Time to be Brave” (brain children of Andy Runton) for my nephew. Shh!!!! They’re a surprise!
• Because STAPLE celebrates all exhibitionists in all forms of media, some chick (caller? manager? audio editor?) from Dial-a-Stranger gave me her card and told me to call. I’m not sure I have problems big enough to garner public opinion on. Maybe that’s my problem.
• One of the guys from SpaceSquid told me to tell you that they are always looking for submissions of all kinds for their publication. He also gave me a copy of SpaceSquid’s Slacker Map of Austin which I’m hoping he’ll send me an image of; it was a hoot!
• Finally, Shane Patrick Boyle, whom I haven’t seen in ages, made a last minute appearance. He’s gained weight since last I saw him, which is a good thing. Before, if he stuck his tongue out, he’d look like a zipper.

Surprisingly, the eight hours passed quickly because of all the traffic, but even so, at 7, I packed up what was left and went home to fall asleep on the couch with the dog. No after-party for me. Assuming I’m still here next year (which is a stretch at this point), I’ll be back. STAPLE was an event not to be missed (even if I missed everything)!

On a related note: a guy from Monkey Wrench Books and I were talking about the sad state of comics and how they’re becoming more cookie-cutter and interchangeable than ever. For the most part, I think this is true, though there are obviously some exceptions to the rule. Then I caught myself in a contradiction: I lamented that writers take forever to get their issues out and “monthly” mags are.. well, what comes after “quad-monthly”? Like Joss Whedon’s Runaways; when was the last time a new issue came out? I even told my friend Brian, “Seriously, what can’t these guys pull their crap together?”

Wait. Let’s look at that: I want monthly issues and fantastic writing? Is it even possible to get both?

So, let me qualify what I mean: I wish that writers were given humane deadlines to do their work in so that there could be more quality work out there. Many stories do seem interchangeable sometimes. I’m sure Marvel and DC give their writers a headstart on their runs, but, man, sometimes it seems like a superhuman effort to write three issues a year (well, aiming for three. more like 2 1/2), but then again, i have a full-time job, too. People like Neil Gaiman must never sleep, or are driven by their stories to get them on paper before they’re allowed to sleep. Maybe these guys who are late with their work are better writers.

Except Heinberg and his run on Wonder Woman. There was no excuse for that suckage.

Which is a GREAT segue into Justice League: A New Frontier. Did you see it? Wasn’t it AWESOME?!?!? It managed to capture the Silver Age/Golden Age characters and the emotions of their relationships with each other and still tell a good story; no angst, just saving-the-world fun. That scene between Iris and Barry towards the end? Broke my heart. I loved Barry and Iris. Why did they have to die? Why did iris have to be from the future? Why did impulse have to be killed? Really, people should be MAD about New Frontier. It’s like they said on the Daily Show about Bush being in Africa: they think he’s a hero for everything he does for them while we can only stare in wonder and think, “You mean you COULD do good, but just chose not to??? What the f—?!??!” (I paraphrase here, of course).

I digress, but am I wrong? Let me know.

Bed now.

Come see me and buy my and Brian Andersen’s books! Sadly, Brian himself will not be there, but I’ll try to be just as fun and entertaining all by myself. Brian also does reviews at Shotgun Reviews and Newsarama (under “Best Shots”). He’s a great, witty writer and always a hoot! I highly recommend his “So Super Duper!”

This was a bountiful week for new art! Fernando Melek who is the artist for the goddess comic book sent his completed pages for issue 2 along and the are gorgeous!! I’d show more, but since the issue is only 8 pages long, it’d give away too much. Suffice it to say that her first appearance is stunning!

And Juan Romera of Frater Mine has completed all but three pages of issue 6, so we can expect the next chapter to be available in March, after the talented Ed Brisson does the lettering.

Really, I’m stunned by how these talented guys can bring my stories to life. Send some love their way!

I just found out yesterday evening that the Advocate Insider had a little write up on the Comic-Con panel back in July. How exciting.. well, how exciting it would have been to know. It’s still exciting, but in a five-months-later kinda way.

If “interstatual” is indeed a word.

Thanks to some encouragement (and an email address) from Brian Andersen, I got in touch with Rich from Whatever in San Francisco, and he decided to run Frater Mine and the generic goddess comics! Whatever is the place in Castro to “get your geek on”, as the slogan goes, and since Rich is a huge supporter of gay indy comics, it’s only fair that we show him some love back. Support local businesses!! Thanks Rich for selling my stuff!

Now that we’re “interstatual”, next year, we go international!

No, really, what is the word for “having business between the states”?

(pictures courtesy Brian’s cell phone)

The awesome Juan Romera and my very talented brother Scott have provided me some art samples from the next issue of Frater Mine. Respectively, you can see pages 1 and 5, and the cover above. I can’t say enough good about them – they do so much to being my stories to life and I’m genuinely thrilled to be working with them.

Frater Mine #6, “Shadows of the World Appear”, the third part of the Here, There and Nowhere story arc will really mark the beginning of stories told as an ensemble. But first, we have to get the main players – Colleen, Matt and Mark – isolated from everything they depend on, then bring them together. It’s gonna be rough. Enemies are everywhere and allies are closer than they imagine. It’s going to be a great issue, especially if letterer Ed Brisson will be part of the staff again. I know I’m looking forward to it!

François Peneaud of The Gay Comics List wrote a really GREAT review for Frater Mine #5 and the goddess comic #1, seen here:

He also wrote a thoughtful review for Frater Mine #1 – 4, which I quote often in blurbs. Wait ’til he sees what happens next (especially with the “love interest” thing!).

François’ own comic book Brother to Dragons is on sale from Class Comics and will be reviewed at Prism Comics shortly. I’ve read B2D, and what I like most about it is its strong beginning and fully-fleshed out world. François has obviously put a lot of heart (and other organs) into his work. Buy it!

I’m terrible at self-promotion. It’s not that I feel like I’m whoring myself out or giving up my ideals for a fast buck; I actually feel like I’m bothering people. At conventions I’ll be polite and smile and talk with people and direct them towards my book, but I’m not one of those people who stridently promotes his/her book… which is probably a shortcoming of mine. Sort of. I mean, this is supposed to be a hobby, not a career.

Off-point. Back on point.

Bad at promotion, right. BUT I couldn’t help myself when I was told I could promote myself and a few other gay-themed comics for Instinct. Pass up an opportunity for national coverage? I’m bad, not stupid. What I like about my Frater Mine promotion is that I can say something nice about myself as well: “bald men are sexy and powerful.” We are, you know.

My one regret for this column is that I didn’t know about Brian Andersen’s So Super Duper at the time. Otherwise, he would have gotten some press as well from me (luckily, he got a nice write up the month before).

These are good comics people and good comics, people! Check ‘em out!

Frater Mine #5 has been released under the Making Comics Studios and Orthocomics Studio banners. In this issue, Matt returns to his hometown to rest and recover after he beats the snot out of a student (allegedly!), but soon he, his brother and Colleen are caught in a parent’s worst nightmare. Frater Mine asks how far would you go to protect your family and friends? Are there limits to “unconditional love”? Matt, Colleen, Jake and Mark push the envelope and each other in this magical adventure story.

Written by Sean McGrath
Drawn and inked by Juan Romera
Lettered by Ed Brisson
Covered and edited by Scott McGrath
Buy it HERE at IndyPlanet.com

Also, Orthocomics announces the release of its goddess comic book. A woman who has spent the last 30 years in seclusion is called back into the world when a letter from an old friend arrives. While this series has no official title, the story is tantalizingly familiar. A 60 year-old woman with a dual identity champions Truth and Justice in a city beset with violence and apathy.

Written by Sean McGrath
Drawn and inked by Fernando Melek
Lettered by Ed Brisson
Covered and edited by Scott McGrath
Buy it HERE at IndyPlanet.com