River Bird Comics

Rage of Poseidon (by Anders Nilsen) review by Paul Hanna(via...

Thu, 26 Mar 2015 15:24:51 +0000

Rage of Poseidon (by Anders Nilsen) review by Paul Hanna

(via Rage of Poseidon | Harvard Review Online)

Hellbound V: End of Comics

River Bird Comics — Fri, 31 Oct 2014 12:32:00 +0000

Hellbound V: End of Comics

River Bird Comics

by The Boston Comics Roundtable

Edited by Stephen Cartisano

48+foldouts pages ~ $10 | Risograph 2 colors. | 9x5 inches

What is the end for you? sometimes is death sometimes is the end of a bad relationship, sometimes is just running out of rope. Hellbound V is the end of the Hellbound series with a small set of stories that will take you over the edge. Mature readers only. Returning contributors include Dan Mazur (Comics: A Global History), Ellen T. Crenshaw (Nobodies Volume II, Womanthology), Alison Burke and Tara Harris (A.R.R.O.), Patrick Flaherty, E.J. Barnes (Tales of the Ling, An Invitation to the World of Luisa Felix), and Clayton McCormack (Dead Meat, Heavy Metal Magazine). Joining them for the first time on this volume are Gary Bonesteel (Killer Ink Comics), Ben Doane (Subcultures), and Brenton Barnes (Bartkira, Mister Reusch’s Black and White Illustration Book).

Buy Book | Previews | Unboxing | Available at Million Year Picnic and Hub Comics!

Unboxing Preview

Hellbound V: End of Comics

River Bird Comics — Fri, 31 Oct 2014 09:27:00 +0000

Hellbound V: End of Comics

River Bird Comics

by The Boston Comics Roundtable

Edited by Stephen Cartisano

48+foldouts pages ~ $10 | Risograph 2 colors. | 9x5 inches

Buy Book |Unboxing | Available at Million Year Picnic! and Hub Comics

#HellboundV Party Welcomes New Sponsors!

River Bird Comics — Fri, 24 Oct 2014 13:58:00 +0000

Boston, October 2014 - River Bird Comics and the Boston Comics Roundtable, in celebration of their new Hellbound V: End of Comics anthology, will be hosting a launch party. Free and open to the public, the party will be Thursday October 30th at the Cambridge Historical Society’s Hooper-Lee-Nichols House, at 159 Brattle Street. Festivities will run from 6 to 9 pm.

With additional sponsorship from Million Year Picnic and the Cambridge Art Society, the party will feature a costume contest with prizes, Sketch Fights, complementary refreshments, and a chance to meet local comics creators. Costumes are encouraged, but not required.

Created in 2006, the Boston Comics Roundtable is a collective of comics creators in the Greater Boston area. Its mission: to network, teach, workshop, encourage, and publish the best and brightest artists and writers in the creation of comics.

For our Facebook Event visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/1480757102199316/

For more details, and to learn more about the Boston Comics Roundtable, visit www.bostoncomicsroundtable.com.

And this is our official poster, please let us know if you require a higher resolution version.

SAP Comics Express

River Bird Comics — Wed, 15 Oct 2014 10:33:00 +0000

A guide to more comics to read online, the Sequential Art Publisher experiment lives on...

Party Update!

River Bird Comics — Mon, 13 Oct 2014 12:43:00 +0000

Printer Preview! Party Updates!

Helbound V delayed but taking pre-orders for just $10!

River Bird Comics — Sat, 04 Oct 2014 09:00:00 +0000

*Due to some unforeseen problems with the printer after being able to release Hellbound three years in a row at MICE will be missing that deadline this year. However we will have a digitally printed sample of the book and we will be taking pre-orders here. Sorry for any inconvenience, we will be officially releasing the books at the end of October and all pre-orders will be fulfilled in two to four weeks, however anyone who pre-orders will get FREE SHIPPING.
--Roho Order Hellbound V here!

Gulp! The Regular Edition

River Bird Comics — Wed, 01 Oct 2014 14:34:00 +0000

Gulp! a monster comics anthology for KIDS! Regular Edition

River Bird Comics

by The Boston Comics Roundtable

Bob Flynn & Dan Moynihan Editors

52 pages ~ $10 | Two Color Risograph | 5x6.5 inches

GULP! features eleven funny and spooky stories geared towards children of all ages. Tales are by some of New England’s best artists and writers featuring co-editor Dan Moynihan, Rachel Dukes, Owen Heitmann, Clay McCormack, John Lechner, Ansis Purins, Jef Czekaj, Michael Lee Harris, Greg Cook, Eric Boeker with Dirk Tiede, and Hellbound III editor Jerel Dye. Collectively, they have created over a dozen children’s books such as A Froggy Fable, The Clever Stick, A Call for a New Alphabet, and Cat Secrets. In addition, their work has appeared in Nickelodeon Magazine, SpongeBob Comics, Candlewick Press, BOOM! Studios, First Second Books, ARGH! Comics, the Boston Children’s Museum, FableVision Studios, Walt Disney Television, and Cartoon Network.

Buy Online | Preview Printed Book

Reviews

Jas Faukner via Sequential Tart
Andy Rench via Printed Matters
Rob Clough via High-Low
Katy England The Maine Edge

Hellbound V: Press Release

River Bird Comics — Mon, 22 Sep 2014 05:00:00 +0000

Hellbound V: End of Comics Marks the End of an Era

BOSTON, September 22 - The Boston Comics Roundtable, in conjunction with River Bird Comics, is pleased to announce the publication of Hellbound V: End of Comics. Aptly themed, this will be the final installment in a series of original horror comics anthologies from some of Boston’s most celebrated creators. No fear or phobia will be left unprovoked.

Debuting on October 4th at the fifth annual Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (MICE), Hellbound V will also be available at select local comics shops and conventions. This limited edition, 9 by 5 inch, two-tone Risograph printed run, geared toward “Mature Readers”, will feature seven stories and two fold-out pages, boasting a roster of familiar names and new contributors, alike.

Hellbound series creator Roho will resume his role as designer and publisher. Stephen Cartisano, who has had a hand in every Hellbound release since the New England Art Award nominated Volume II: Box of Evil, returns as Editor. Returning contributors include Dan Mazur (Comics: A Global History), Ellen T. Crenshaw (Nobodies Volume II, Womanthology), Alison Burke and Tara Harris (A.R.R.O.), Patrick Flaherty, E.J. Barnes (Tales of the Ling, An Invitation to the World of Luisa Felix), and Clayton McCormack (Dead Meat, Heavy Metal Magazine). Joining them for the first time on this volume are Gary Bonesteel (Killer Ink Comics), Ben Doane (Subcultures), and Brenton Barnes (Bartkira, Mister Reusch’s Black and White Illustration Book).

The Hellbound series has received much critical acclaim, having grown “increasingly stylish in presentation,” according to Rob Clough of High-Low. Katy England, of The Maine Edge, deemed Volume IV: GULP! to be “well worth adding to any collection,” while Brigid Alverson of Robot 6 marveled at the “impressive craftsmanship” contained within its pages.

Featuring illustrations by Dan Moynihan (Nickelodeon Magazine, Heeby Jeeby Comix), and up and comer Jerel Dye(Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, Pigs Might Fly), Hellbound V: End of Comics promises to end the series with a bang... and perhaps some whimpering, too.

For additional information about this edition and upcoming events, please visit http://hellbound.riverbirdcomics.com.
For any inquiries or to solicit a preview copy please contact hellbound@riverbirdcomics.com

Pre-Order Hellbound V here!

Hellbound V: Press Release

River Bird Comics — Mon, 22 Sep 2014 05:00:00 +0000

Hellbound V: End of Comics Marks the End of an Era

BOSTON, September 22 - The Boston Comics Roundtable, in conjunction with River Bird Comics, is pleased to announce the publication of Hellbound V: End of Comics. Aptly themed, this will be the final installment in a series of original horror comics anthologies from some of Boston’s most celebrated creators. No fear or phobia will be left unprovoked.

Debuting on October 4th at the fifth annual Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (MICE), Hellbound V will also be available at select local comics shops and conventions. This limited edition, 9 by 5 inch, two-tone Risograph printed run, geared toward “Mature Readers”, will feature seven stories and two fold-out pages, boasting a roster of familiar names and new contributors, alike.

Hellbound series creator Roho will resume his role as designer and publisher. Stephen Cartisano, who has had a hand in every Hellbound release since the New England Art Award nominated Volume II: Box of Evil, returns as Editor. Returning contributors include Dan Mazur (Comics: A Global History), Ellen T. Crenshaw (Nobodies Volume II, Womanthology), Alison Burke and Tara Harris (A.R.R.O.), Patrick Flaherty, E.J. Barnes (Tales of the Ling, An Invitation to the World of Luisa Felix), and Clayton McCormack (Dead Meat, Heavy Metal Magazine). Joining them for the first time on this volume are Gary Bonesteel (Killer Ink Comics), Ben Doane (Subcultures), and Brenton Barnes (Bartkira, Mister Reusch’s Black and White Illustration Book).

The Hellbound series has received much critical acclaim, having grown “increasingly stylish in presentation,” according to Rob Clough of High-Low. Katy England, of The Maine Edge, deemed Volume IV: GULP! to be “well worth adding to any collection,” while Brigid Alverson of Robot 6 marveled at the “impressive craftsmanship” contained within its pages.

Featuring illustrations by Dan Moynihan (Nickelodeon Magazine, Heeby Jeeby Comix), and up and comer Jerel Dye (Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream, Pigs Might Fly), Hellbound V: End of Comics promises to end the series with a bang... and perhaps some whimpering, too.

For additional information about this edition and upcoming events, please visit http://hellbound.riverbirdcomics.com.

For any inquiries or to solicit a preview copy please contact hellbound@riverbirdcomics.com.

Going deep with the Vigilant Geek

River Bird Comics — Mon, 08 Sep 2014 09:13:00 +0000

"With cool, original story concepts, incredible, captivating and highly-detailed artwork, and a multi-issue continuity that will hook you by the lip like a big trout!"

by Vigilant Geek
Go deep into outer space for an indepth with Andrew Puzak of the Vigilant Geek, story by story review of the now classic Outbound Vol. 1
---Still available in Digital Form here!

GAMENOMICS & COMICOLOGY Review

River Bird Comics — Wed, 23 Jul 2014 07:52:00 +0000

Blast from the Past! a New Outbound #1 review by Brie Young, check it out!
Still available in Digital Form here!
"All in all, the mixture of comics throughout Outbound #1 was refreshing. Some stories I favored more than others and hope to follow up on them."

by GAMENOMICS & COMICOLOGY

Vigilant Geek Darkness Review

River Bird Comics — Mon, 14 Jul 2014 08:46:00 +0000

Thank you Andrew for taking the time and writing this very detail review of Hellbound III: Darkness at the Vigilant Geek blog.

...each individual short story was creative, original and distinctive to the individual styles of each artist and writer. In a compilation of numerous works of art or literature, (or in this case, both), it is important to feel like each story or composition has a fresh new tone and voice to it; and that is exactly what the creators of the Hellbound series have accomplished. If I were forced to choose a favorite story from the compilation, I don’t think I would be able to. Therefore, I’d like to give a brief analysis on a few stories that I have hand picked.

Andrew Puzak
via Vigilant Geek

Hellbound Editors Make Books!

River Bird Comics — Wed, 02 Jul 2014 11:52:00 +0000

Joel Christian Gill’s Strange Fruit, Volume 1: Uncelebrated Narratives from Black History was released - to much acclaim - on June 3rd. Gill is currently touring book stores, radio stations, and online television shows promoting his recent release, which chronicles nine peoples’ tales of obscure, but important triumphs in the civil rights struggle. If you have yet to catch Gill at an appearance - at which he discusses his research, process, and the lives of characters featured within - you can find him at an event near you here. Joel got started Hellbound back in 2010 with the now sold out Hellbound I.

Joel's Website Joel's Twitter Joel's tumblr Buy Strange Fruit

There’s also been buzz about Jesse Lonergan’s All Star, since its debut at the Society of Illustrators MoCCA Festival this past April. Lonergan’s coming of age tale of a high school baseball star, set in 1990’s Vermont, is about so much more than baseball, offering valuable and universal insights into the trials and tribulations that pave the road to adulthood. Back on 2011 Jesse spearheaded the amazing Hellbound II: Box Full of Evil.

Jesse's Website Jesse's Twitter Jesse's tumblr Buy All Star

Jerel Dye, along with a veritable who’s who of cartooning, will pay to tribute to the legacy of Winsor McCay in upcoming and exciting Locust Moon Press anthology, Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream. Set to release in fall of 2014, the anthology will be comprised of original works inspired by McCay’s highly celebrated Little Nemo in Slumberland strip, which ran from October 1905 to December 1926. You can get in on the action and score some very cool swag by contributing to the ongoing Kickstarter campaign here. With Kimball Anderson Jerel kept evil in check with Hellbound III: Darkness.

Jerel's Website Jerel's tumblr Jerel's Etsy Store Support Little Nemo Kickstarter

And co-founder of the Boston Comics Roundtable and Hellbound I, contributor Dan Mazur and Publisher of Hellbound II (The Regular Edition) in collaboration with Alexander Danner, have put together a crash course in comics! Comics: A Global History, 1968 to the Present, is just that, a comprehensive chronicle of the evolution of the comics medium that traverses five decades and the world over. Expertly assembling a menagerie of samples spanning the myriad of comics genres and sub-genres, Mazur and Danner reconcile the most popular and the most esoteric works into a broader context. Released in June, in English, as well as Spanish and Portuguese, this book might very well introduce even an expert to a new favorite!

Dan's Website Dan's Tumblr Ninth Art Press Buy Comics!: A Global History, 1968 to the present

by Kristilyn Waite

Backyard by Sam Alden [ sonatinacomics ] Sketchy usually is a...

Sun, 08 Jun 2014 18:50:02 +0000

Backyard by Sam Alden [ sonatinacomics ]

Sketchy usually is a bad word, it insinuates unfinished, rushed, in this case it is the highest compliment. I always enjoy when an artist changes their style to fit a story, I think if anything, makes it (the style) stronger because it is not superficial “the style” comes from the artist vision of the world and the distillation of that deep rich word into lines we readers can digest, that pairing down of reality is what typically creates one’s style sometimes for time reasons, technical aspects or -on the best of case scenarios- with the artist choosing what is essential, what is coloring this world to make it feel as it should. This story takes place on a house with many residents, that lead lives that we have seen before, no it’s not a bad thing the storytelling calls upon to what we know and places one piece that is a little odd, not too odd on the context but makes this comic special. Great camera work, great photography and acting make this sketchy comic fit on the same creative shelf as other sketchy hacks like Mazzuchelli, Toth and Wrightson.

Go buy this book at Sonatina Comics!

*oops I think I got the last one.

roho:

Loose Joints #1 by Jonny Negron [ SpaceFace Books ] *Great...

Tue, 03 Jun 2014 16:01:23 +0000

Loose Joints #1 by Jonny Negron

[ SpaceFace Books ]

*Great collection of comics by jonnynegron, this is the second book I got from SpaceFace Books and the quality is pretty high. The stories in this collection are full of luscious colors and beautifully rendered people with a wide range of emotions and expressions. Each story has a slightly different style that complements the narrative. This is a breath of fresh air for Indy comics, I have been hearing about this creator for a while and appreciating his very titrating illustrations, but I didn’t have any comics till now, I highly recommend you go and hunt his books, they are everywhere!

Go buy this book at SpaceFace Books!

via roho

The Disappearance by Jerel Dye

River Bird Comics — Mon, 26 May 2014 12:42:00 +0000

The Disappearance is a new experience on Science Fiction comics, explore a new world meet the characters and travel with Jerel Dye's new comic. If you are missing Outbound, go experience this beautiful risograph printed 2 tone mini-comic.

Preview Art.

Buy at Etsy.

About Jerel Dye.

Bernard by Michael Lee Harris

River Bird Comics — Tue, 13 May 2014 07:51:00 +0000

Check out more of Michael Lee Harrison comic works at his site: The Continuing Artworks of Michael Lee Harris. You can read the rest of the stories on Gulp! a monster comics anthology for KIDS! here or at the Boston Comics Roundtable's table at MECAF: The Maine Comics Arts Festival, Sunday May 18, 2014 - Portland, ME

The Maine Edge Review and MECAF

River Bird Comics — Tue, 13 May 2014 07:22:00 +0000

In anticipation to our presence at MECAF in Portland, Maine this upcoming weekend we are happy to share this very enthusiastic review by Katy England at the Maine Edge.

...make this anthology well worth adding to any collection. It’s a treasure trove of stories for all ages, whether you’re just dipping your toes in the dark pools of horror for the first time, or you’re a veteran of the genre want a bit of creepy/funny nostalgia.

Katy England
via The Maine Edge

High-Low likes Darkness and Gulp!

River Bird Comics — Wed, 26 Mar 2014 07:45:00 +0000

The Boston Comics Roundtable's annual Hellbound anthologies have grown increasingly stylish in presentation

Rob Clough
via High-Low
...There are no clunkers in this collection and the editing by Moynihan and Dan Flynn carefully shuffles the stories so as to avoid repeating themes on a story-to-story basis. The duo-tone orange and blue from the Risograph printing adds to the attractiveness of the overall work. This was by far the most skilled set of contributors and the most attractive presentation of stories yet conceived for this series, a trend that I hope continues for 2014.

Rob Clough
via High-Low

MeCAF 2014

River Bird Comics — Wed, 19 Mar 2014 08:41:00 +0000

Gulp! (the first Boston Comics Roundtable for Kids anthology)

will be at the Main Comics Art Festival (MeCAF) on Sunday May 18th, 2014.

Check out their website for more info!

Maine Comics Arts Festival

Hellbound V: The End of Comics | Submission Guidelines

River Bird Comics — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 13:30:00 +0000

THE END IS HERE!

Hellbound V will be the final horror anthology from River Bird Comics and this year’s theme is The End. Submit your stories exploring what The End means to you. Don’t give us any prequels, first chapters, or stories that close with the following: “The End?” We don’t want them! Hellbound V will be a return to “grown-up stories”. We’re upping the intensity level to eleven! You have up to 8 pages to be as disturbing and fear-inducing as you can bear! Don’t submit torture porn (or the traditional kind). We’re not seeking gratuitous gore or violence so make sure the use of either is justified by the story. Be imaginative! Push the envelope!! Think outside the box!!! Add a fourth cliché here!!!! This is your last chance! There won’t be a Hellbound VI, It ends with Hellbound V: End of Comics!

The size of the book will be 5 inches by 9 inches, Portrait (so tall and skinny). With some special fold-out pages. Each story gets one fold out page and it's NOT mandatory. See illustration for details.

Color wise we are looking for dark lines (think solid black) and one solid color tones (think about it working as gray but keep it on a separate layer if doing it digitally). We will be probably printing the book via Risograph. * Below is an example of what we are looking for, the color or tone should be solid, and used on non essential parts of the art, no dialogue, etc. Treat it as if it was a grey tone. If you are creating this tone directly on the paper use a solid color that is different than the ink color so it's easy to separate to be printed. If doing digitally we need two grayscale Tiff files, one with the line work/blacks and the other one with the tone color. Here is an example of a simple way to approach the process:

This issue will be story edited by Stephen Cartisano and Published by Roho . If you are interested on being part of the process of creating the book lets us know we are always looking to help Boston Comics Roundtable members learn how to put a book together. * We will be accepting submissions for illustrations as well.

Page Limit: 8 pages, fold outs count as 2.
Deadline: September 4th, 2014.

March 2014
Roho

For general questions that please post a comment here or email us at Hellboundboston (at) gmail.com * updates

Gulp 4 Hellbound Halloween Party!

River Bird Comics — Thu, 24 Oct 2013 08:55:00 +0000

This Friday, downtown Boston! Be there!

Google Calendar Event

Facebook Event.

Gulp! Reviewed and Mentioned

River Bird Comics — Mon, 07 Oct 2013 06:26:00 +0000

...there is no shortage of creatures that haunt, scare and sometimes even pull a heartstring or two. These stories are short, ranging from two to five pages, but they are far from slight. Every entry is a satisfying bit of graphic storytelling.
Jas Faulknervia Sequential Tart
From kids high jinks to thoughtful reflections on the ways we live today to demented humor, New England is a hotbed of quality comics making these days. Here are nine cartoonists whose work stood out at the Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo—aka MICE
Greg Cookvia The Artery/90.9wbur

Gulp! a monster comics anthology for KIDS!

River Bird Comics — Tue, 24 Sep 2013 12:49:00 +0000

The Boston Comics Roundtable proudly presents GULP! a monster comics anthology for KIDS!

The Boston Comics Roundtable’s annual Hellbound collections have won the praise of many comics critics. Roz Young at Sequential Tart called Hellbound II “a wonderful set of frighteningly fiendish stories.” Brigid Alverson at Robot 6 wrote, “The craftsmanship in this volume is impressive.” Jen Vaughn of the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont called the collection “perfect for the horror fan.” Hellbound II was nominated for a New England Art Award in the category of best book.

GULP! is the fourth book of the Hellbound Horror Anthology Series. This edition features 52 pages of risograph blue and orange art on a stapled 6.5” x 5” landscape comic with a cover designed and drawn by co-editor, Bob Flynn. The price is $15.00 and is a limited edition of 100 copies. For additional information about the first edition and upcoming events go to http://hellbound.riverbirdcomics.com for a preview visit http://gulp.riverbirdcomics.com

ABOUT THE BOSTON COMICS ROUNDTABLE

The Boston Comics Roundtable draws local cartoonists and writers to collaborate, workshop and socialize since 2006. BCR publishes Inbound, an anthology of Boston-area independent comics, Outbound, a science-fiction comics anthology and Hellbound, the horror comics anthology, for more info visit http://www.bostoncomicsroundtable.com. Also guided by Dan Mazur’s Ninth Art Press the educational anthology Show and Tell, the novelty tales collection The Greatest of All Time Anthology and the local comics superhero anthology, In a Single Bound. Visit http://www.ninthartpress.com for more information

Below the break is a Gallery of the printed book, if you are interested in reading the book for reviewing purposes please contact

hellbound@riverbirdcomics.com thanks.

Gulp! a monster comics anthology for KIDS!

River Bird Comics — Tue, 24 Sep 2013 05:00:00 +0000

BOSTON, September 24—The Boston Comics Roundtable, in partnership with River Bird Comics, is pleased to announce the publication of GULP!, an all-ages anthology. GULP! will debut on September 28 at the fourth annual Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (MICE http://www.micexpo.org), and be available at select comics shops in the region. The editorial team for GULP! includes the creators of Heeby Jeeby Comix (http://heebyjeebycomix.blogspot.com) and cartoonists on Nickelodeon Magazine, Bob Flynn and Dan Moynihan. This volume was designed and produced by Roho, owner/publisher of River Bird Comics and creator of Hellbound.

GULP! features eleven funny and spooky stories geared towards children of all ages. Tales are by some of New England’s best artists and writers featuring co-editor Dan Moynihan, Rachel Dukes, Owen Heitmann, Clay McCormack, John Lechner, Ansis Purins, Jef Czekaj, Michael Lee Harris, Greg Cook, Eric Boeker with Dirk Tiede, and Hellbound III editor Jerel Dye. Collectively, they have created over a dozen children’s books such as A Froggy Fable, The Clever Stick, A Call for a New Alphabet, and Cat Secrets. In addition, their work has appeared in Nickelodeon Magazine, SpongeBob Comics, Candlewick Press, BOOM! Studios, First Second Books, ARGH! Comics, the Boston Children’s Museum, FableVision Studios, Walt Disney Television, and Cartoon Network.

The Boston Comics Roundtable’s annual Hellbound collections have won the praise of many comics critics. Roz Young at Sequential Tart called Hellbound II “a wonderful set of frighteningly fiendish stories.” Brigid Alverson at Robot 6 wrote, “The craftsmanship in this volume is impressive.” Jen Vaughn of the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont called the collection “perfect for the horror fan.” Hellbound II was nominated for a New England Art Award in the category of best book.

GULP! is the fourth book of the Hellbound Horror Anthology Series. This edition features 52 pages of risograph blue and orange art on a stapled 6.5” x 5” landscape comic with a cover designed and drawn by co-editor, Bob Flynn. The price is $15.00 and is a limited edition of 100 copies. For additional information about the first edition and upcoming events go to http://hellbound.riverbirdcomics.com for a preview visit http://gulp.riverbirdcomics.com

ABOUT THE BOSTON COMICS ROUNDTABLE

The Boston Comics Roundtable draws local cartoonists and writers to collaborate, workshop and socialize since 2006. BCR publishes Inbound, an anthology of Boston-area independent comics, Outbound, a science-fiction comics anthology and Hellbound, the horror comics anthology, for more info visit http://www.bostoncomicsroundtable.com. Also guided by Dan Mazur’s Ninth Art Press the educational anthology Show and Tell, the novelty tales collection The Greatest of All Time Anthology and the local comics superhero anthology, In a Single Bound. Visit http://www.ninthartpress.com for more information

Follow the link to a Gallery of the printed book, if you are interested in reading the book for reviewing purposes please contact

hellbound@riverbirdcomics.com thanks.

Risograph Print Preview

River Bird Comics — Wed, 18 Sep 2013 10:47:00 +0000

Via Gulp! (Hellboud4) Process Tumblr.

Outbound #1 Digital Edition

River Bird Comics — Thu, 05 Sep 2013 10:36:00 +0000

Now available as a Digital Comic!

*If you have purchased a copy of Outbound #2 you can type the ISBN number from the inside cover to get a huge discount on the now sold out Outbound #1.

Hellbound III Now a Digital Comic!

River Bird Comics — Thu, 05 Sep 2013 07:55:00 +0000

Hellbound III: Darkness, Art Edition

Template and Color Guide

River Bird Comics — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 12:22:00 +0000

We are fast approaching the deadline for Creatures and Monsters (aka: The Hellbound IV Anthology) to make everyone work on creating their amazing pages one of our editors Bob Flynn has created this very detail guide and helpful color samples. Please read our careful description under this sample image and let us know by commenting on Submission Guide if you have any questions and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Attached is a coloring guide with templates and color samples to help you prepare your comic for the risograph printing process. The primary thing to keep in mind here is you will need to deliver an art file for both the blue and orange colors. This can be done in a single Photoshop using spot colors, or by saving out a grayscale TIF for each color.

[ 6.5 x 5 nobleed_template.psd and 6.5 x 5 bleed_template.psd ]
These files should help you size and prepare your comic. Ideally, you could color directly in this file. Most of you will want to use blue for your line (because it's the darker color), so you can paste your linework right into the blue channel to start. And you can easily color in any orange or additional blue shades right in the channels as well (on a grayscale range of 0 to 100).

[ color_overlays.psd ]
Using multiply, this is a better approximation of what the colors will print like compared to what color channels in Photoshop show for overlap. Remember the inks are transparent. You probably won't get as rich a dark green as you see in this file (100% blue + 100% orange).

[ color_palletesamples.psd ]
This includes a handful of honest swatches taken from the print sample (also included)

[ spotcolor_sample.psd ]
This file show examples of applying color in a variety of ways. We don't recommend mixing the two colors for line-art because the registration won't guarantee that level of printing accuracy. Best to stick with either blue or orange for line, but feel free to get creative with mixing colors or playing with halftones for solid shape areas. Also, as a coloring trick, you can temporarily duplicate a color channel (say, blue), to keep your line separate from addition blue fills you want to paint in, but you'll want to merge them in the end. (TIP: to merge two blue channels, simply copy them into a new grayscale file on layers, set them to multiply, flatten the file, copy it, and paste it back into your blue channel.)
[ firstlastname_pg1_blue.tif and firstlastname_pg1_orange.tif ]
This is how your files should look before you sent them to us for submission.

[ print_sample.jpg ]
This file is a scan of how the printed pages look on paper, this is just an example and results may vary.

Download all the Files from Here:
Hellbound IV Sample Files

Oficina de Objetos Perdidos

River Bird Comics — Fri, 05 Jul 2013 09:35:00 +0000

The Saddest Double Page Spread from Conan de Barbarian #12 by...

Fri, 24 May 2013 16:57:22 +0000

The Saddest Double Page Spread

from Conan de Barbarian #12 by Brian Wood and Declan Shalvey.

This is a great use of the double page spread in a story that has a good amount of action is a brave choice to use two pages to highlight the quiet moments, quite literally. This choice serves to amp up the emotional impact of what is going on inside that door. That is why this is the first of may to come…

Impact Panels!

H4: Creatures and Monsters!

River Bird Comics — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 08:35:00 +0000

The Submission Guidelines for the Fourth Volume of Hellbound are available here:

H4: Submission Guidelines

POST: Submission Guidelines

River Bird Comics — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 14:59:00 +0000

POST

Would you survive the apocalypse?

How do you think a day on your life would be when all the technology and infrastructure of the modern world are suddenly and violently taken away?

How about 10 years into this world?

If you have answers put them in the form of a comic book and mail it to River Bird Studios the most interesting entries will be published on an upcoming anthology to be published by River Bird Comics (Outbound, Hellbound).

There is NO format, size, page length or RESTRICTIONS.

NO EMAIL submissions

We encourage the creators to reflect the world of the story on the printed presentation of the story.

Do NOT mail original art.

The selected stories will receive a FREE copy of the Anthology and will be able to buy more copies at cost.

Post by Deadline: June 1, 2013.-
More about POST here!

Outbound Cyber Monday Sale!

River Bird Comics — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 12:35:00 +0000

Outbound #2 (+Digital #1)

River Bird Comics

by The Boston Comics Roundtable +

Edited by Roho.

120 pages ~ $10 | Black and White | 5.5 x 8.5 inches

New ongoing stories premiering alongside continuing chapters of fan favorite stories from the first issue. Featuring new stories:"The New Kid" by Dan Mazur, with chapter cover by Roho; "The Fallout Parade" by Jesse Lonergan; "Frequency: Breaking the Law of Gravity" by David Alluisi and Brian Boyles, with chapter cover by Jason Baroody; "Robot 11-Three" by Kevin Kilgore, with chapter cover by Chris Ring; "Alkehine's Gun" by Joel Gill and "Driftwood" by Morgan Pielli. Returning stories include: "Space and Time" by Josh Mills, Michael Paoloni, David Marshall, and Roho, with issue cover by Marcello Buchelli; "The Caerulean Dream" by Roho and Kevin Zimmerman, with chapter cover by Randy Valiente; "The Null Device" by David Marshall; "Flek" by Erik Heumiller; "Scientists Gone Wild" by Eric Boeker; and "Black Fuska" by Roho, Dave Myers, and Steve Willhite, with chapter cover by Paul Marquis. Also includes prose fiction: "Tin Cans and a String" by Patrick J. Flaherty, with art by Furman.

Includes a Digital Copy of Outbound #1!

Online Previews!| Read Reviews

Now Only $5.00+Shipping

Cyber Monday Sale!

River Bird Comics — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 10:14:00 +0000

Outbound #2 and the SOLD OUT Outbound #1

ONLY 5 Dollars!

Featuring art by The Boston Comics Roundtable, Ten Ton Studios and Uruguay!
Here are some preview pages from Issue #2
And some reviews of people that enjoyed Outbound!

Galaxis away they like Hellbound 2!

River Bird Comics — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 14:25:00 +0000

Hellbound: DARKNESS Party!

River Bird Comics — Sat, 27 Oct 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Thank you to everyone that showed up to our Halloween, Show and Book release party it was a great time. Special thanks to Lindsay, Steve and Jay who helped setup, Dave Kender who made the music happen, Cathi Chang and the Andromeda Gallery and Carl Tsui for taking this amazing pictures!

Keep an eye on the blog for an announcement about our regular and digital edition coming very soon from Ninth Art Press and there is still some copies available of our Limited Art Edition here.

Press Darkness and Darkful

River Bird Comics — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 06:05:00 +0000

Below are some listings of the Hellbound Party and a Article on the Boston Dig.

Convention Scene
Boston Phoenix Events Calendar
Cosplay Icon
The Comics Waiting Room Newswire
Hotlist
Boston Globe
With stories ranging from the sinister side of baseball to the treachery of high school perfectionism, the variety of graphic influences alone in Hellbound III: Darkness is enough to buy a planner for.
Harrison Fordvia The Boston Dig
Also as mentioned on the The Boston Dig article there is a mini-comic titled "Darkful" by Roho with inks by Jamie Hibdon that comes FREE with the Art Edition of Hellbound III: DARKNESS, you can also find it as a digital comic here.

James the Vampire

S. Cartisano — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 06:00:00 +0000

Nikolaus Janos Khoulasci AKA James the Vampire, made a name for himself as a member of the Lenin Boys, enforcing in the name of Hungary's brief Soviet Republic. He was executed in reprisal for his crimes during the Hungarian White Terror of 1921. Since his death he has dedicated himself to art, being relieved of morality. Follow James the Vampire here: jamesthevampire.blogspot.com

What inspired “Disappeared Volunteer”? Have you done any volunteer work? Is this story autobiographical?

My work is never autobiographical. Nothing is less interesting to me than our mundane lives. But, the situation of politics in the particular is a definite interest throughout my work.

What are some of your favorite horror stories? (And they don’t have to be limited to comic books.)

Picking particular works is difficult. I see horror as consisting in two areas, the unknown, and moral transgression. To that end, I would probably pick something by David Lynch, either Mulholland Drive or Inland Empire.

Who are some of your comic book influences?

Hernandez Bros, George Gross, Hirohiko Araki, Suehiro Maruo, CLAMP

Explain to Hellbound readers your creative process. Was the story written independently and before the art or did both develop together?

My creative process is not divided into planning/executing. Sometimes I will have a complete vision and notes to work from ahead of time. Usually, though, I begin from a general idea, or ideas, and let the work develop on its own. I never write scripts. I never do concept sketches. Creation and production are one and the same for me.

What did you find most challenging about this story?

Maintaining the balance between ambiguity (the unknown is the real realm of the terrifying) and coherence, or readability.

Artistically, was there anything you were hoping to achieve?

Yes, I was hoping to achieve a more consistent look in terms of the visuals, and in many ways, I met that goal.

Are you happy with the results?
Very.

Thank you, James.

Joshua D. Hoaglund

S. Cartisano — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 09:00:00 +0000

Joshua D. Hoaglund is a Staff Animator at Rockstar Games where he has worked on Max Payne 3 and Red Dead Redemption. In addition to his position at Rockstar, Joshua has taught the course, Introduction to 3-D Modeling and Animation, at Harvard University Extension School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Joshua is also working on a graphic novel. His other interests include glass, sculpture, illustration, and painting. He spends his spare time with his 5 year old daughter Mayari, wife Rise Riyo, and family cat Chowder.

More of Joshua’s work can be found here: http://joshuadhoaglund.blogspot.com/ http://joshua-hoaglund.com/index.html

What inspired “Vengeance”?

The inspirational elements of this story came together when I was on vacation in Vancouver. I was with my 4 year old daughter, Mayari, on a whale watch. The whale watch was the kind where the advertisements guarantee that you will see whales, yet there were no orcas to be seen during our trip. Since we were still excited to see whales, we returned for a complimentary second attempt. As I sat on the shuttle bus on the way to the boat, these images and story line came into my mind. “Vengeance” brings together memories of my childhood and fables from North American Mythology. The whaling part of the story comes from my childhood growing up in New Bedford, MA where whaling fishery/industry was the main source of income from 1800s. My hometown provided the background for a setting where whales were being harvested. I was also inspired by Native American stories such as The Lord of the Undersea and his wife Talia. The tale is about how the Lord of the Undersea disguised himself as a whale and seduced a woman named Talia away from her family and made Talia his wife.

This is your second story in Hellbound, are you fan of horror?

Yes, I love horror. I am an uncloseted horror fan. I march in horror pride parades on Halloween. In all seriousness, despite being a horror fan, I did not search out the genre. The stories I have done for Hellbound have suited the horror genre pretty well without my ever setting out to tell horror tales. I am glad that there is a venue like Hellbound for stories like mine.

If so, what are some of your favorite horror stories?

I love supernatural stories and stories that involve magick, occult, otherworldly places, and fables. I prefer fables that are not watered down for modern children. I enjoy tales that have macabre elements, like murder and disembowelment. I also like TV series with stories similar to the Twilight Zone, Walking Dead, Discovery Channel‘s Ghosthunters, and A&E’s Hauntings. Some of my favorite authors are Neil Gaiman, Mike Mignola, J. K. Rowling, and Anne Rice.

Explain to Hellbound readers your creative process. Was the story written independently and before the art or did both develop together?

I gestate the story in my mind before I start making drawings. If the idea does not stick around for a while, I forget about it unless it develops. Then I crudely draw it, to get the tale down on paper. I start to tell the story using drawings, symbols and words. I don’t start with thumbnails all the time. Sometimes I just draw directly with a pen in a notebook. Then I scan in my inked drawings into the computer. I lay out the story using a scanner and a computer. The scans are organized in whatever format the final print will be. On the computer I can change my story layout easily. When there are ideas I need to express quickly, I will switch to writing words on the drawing boards or on the layout pages on the computer. I print out copies of my story and make many rough drafts onto which I edit directly. The printed rough drafts really help me get a sense of how story will translate to print. When drawings do not look right, I edit by redrawing them entirely or using tracing paper to keep only the best parts. I rework panels, add new panels, scan them into the computer then print out another draft to proofread.

What prompted you create a wordless story?

I wanted to write a story that can be read by anyone who speaks any language. For a wordless comic the reader can focus purely on the language of the drawing.

What did you find most challenging about “Vengeance”?

The biggest challenge for “Vengeance” was completing this story. I was moving across country to California when “Vengeance” was due. The deadline for Hellbound III was literally at the same time I was starting my new job at Rockstar San Diego. I really wanted to complete the story, so, I was drawing the pages in hotel rooms at night during the cross-country trip. When we arrived in California, I had a little time before our belongings were delivered to our condo. That was the time I finished inking the last pages. I thought I was finished after that first draft of “Vengeance” was submitted. However, at that stage, being a wordless comic, and a first draft, “Vengeance” was still unclear. The Hellbound editing team and my wife, Rise Riyo, pointed out the areas that were unclear. After a discussion with the Hellbound story editor Jerel Dye, we decided to continue working and refining the story. With additional editing from Rise Riyo, I finalized details and redrew many of the panels, for the second draft. Together we edited 75% of the last three pages of “Vengeance” for the second draft to be complete.

Artistically, was there anything you were hoping to achieve?

I had three goals when I wrote “Vengeance.” I wanted to make a story that surprises the reader. I wanted a tale that expressed rage and anguish about environmental exploitation. I wanted the drawings to be pretty raw like punk rock music. I was thinking about the sounds of the story a lot. If the ideas for the story were music, that music would sound like a fusion of Environmental background music with Death Metal. The punk look I wanted to achieve would have a block cut and rough pen stroke quality.

Are you happy with the results?

I am happy that all the people who have read the story get a bit of a surprise when they get to the end. I feel that it went through a difficult final stage. I feel that going through that made a better story in the end. I am still both pleased and critical of the artwork.

How does that feel to be one of a few creators who have had a story published in multiple issues of Hellbound?

I am very honored to be in Hellbound a second time and am very grateful to the Hellbound crew.

I realize a theme has yet to be decided but have you begun working on your Hellbound IV story?

I have been working on a graphic novel based on a character from a dream. The graphic novel is similar to a “fun book” with mazes and games related to the story. The mazes are on the same pages as the story so they are related. The story includes zombies and monsters; some vampires too. The story is about a skateboarder who becomes a thief for a daemon. Then reader follows the skateboarder as he delves deeper into an underworld of monsters. I am not sure if it will match any upcoming themes for Hellbound IV. If not, I do have other work that may be a fit for Hellbound IV.

Thank you, Joshua.

Hellbound and Darkness

River Bird Comics — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 14:41:00 +0000

Hellbound III: DARKNESS Press Release
Boston Comics Roundtable Unleashes Hellbound III: Darkness Anthology of Horror Comics

BOSTON, September 24—The Boston Comics Roundtable, in partnership with River Bird Comics, is pleased to announce the publication of “Hellbound III: Darkness,” an anthology of all-new horror comics by artists and writers from greater Boston.

The Art Edition of Hellbound III: Darkness will debut on September 29 at the third annual Massachusetts Independent Comics Expo (MICE), and be available at selected comics shops in the region and online. The Art Edition, at 8.5 x 11 inches, features black and white art with a wraparound full color cover nearly a yard long, designed by Roho and featuring art by Jerel Dye. Following this initial printing, a regular edition will be available at local comic stores, shows, and online.

The Boston Comics Roundtable’s annual Hellbound collections have won the praise of many comics critics. Roz Young at Sequential Tart called last year’s edition “a wonderful set of frighteningly fiendish stories.” Brigid Alverson at Robot 6 wrote, “The craftsmanship in this volume is impressive.” Jen Vaughn of the Center for Cartoon Studies in Vermont called the collection “perfect for the horror fan.” That edition, Hellbound II, was nominated for a New England Art Award in the category of best book.

Hellbound III: Darkness continues in the same horrifying tradition with eleven chilling tales that examine the darkness that lies within all of us. These gruesome narratives feature some of New England’s best artists and writers. Tak Toyoshima, creative director at Dig Publishing, offers a quick taste of zombies. Poet and “horror burlesque” impresario Janaka Stucky teams with tattoo artist Josh Wallis for a story set in a mortuary. Lindsay Moore, Donna Martinez, and Joey Peters explore the dark side of high-school overachievers. Even baseball gets the horror treatment in “America’s Pastime” by Stephen Cartisano and Ellen T. Crenshaw.

The creators work in a variety of styles. Kimball Anderson’s “No, He Can Come” uses totally black backgrounds while James the Vampire’s art may look light and airy but hides terror underneath. Jacob Oley and Gregery Miller collaborate on a nightmarish character sketch named “Vimshaw.” Alison Burke and Tara Harris of Arrocomic.com explore the woods at night. Joshua D. Hoaglund’s “Vengeance” and Adrian Rodriguez’s “Pedestrian” are both nearly wordless, with one story taking place on a whaling ship and the other in a modern city. Jon Clark’s “Void” closes out the volume with the chilling words of a love too far.

The editorial team for Hellbound III included Jerel Dye as story editor and Kyle Anderson as art editor with supplied additional illustrations by Gregery Miller and Roho. This volume was designed and produced by Roho, owner/publisher of River Bird Comics and creator of Hellbound.

The Art Edition of “Hellbound III: Darkness” costs $25.00 and it’s available for preorder here.
Please contact the publisher to receive an advance preview/ review copy.

#####

I will be also premiering a mini-comic titled Darkfull that will be included with
the Art Edition of Hellbound III, you can buy a digital version @Gumroad.

Darkfull by Roho and Jamie Hibdon.

This book was surprisingly good, way better than issue 1. The...

Fri, 07 Sep 2012 16:39:30 +0000

This book was surprisingly good, way better than issue 1. The art was tight and consistent, coloring helps this book a lot. The characters are getting there in terms of personality and interaction. I really liked Creed flirting with the girl on the background, and crazy Logan that is going to jump you at any time. The character designs are a little hoaxy but the reveal at the end looks interesting. I could see this as a ongoing or a bad Scifi channel series. I wish the covers where better, didn’t he used to do mostly cover to sell books? Oh yeah and magneto stiff mullet it’s epic, I must spend a lot of time at the salon. Keep it up Neil and don’t forget to take your meds they are clearly working.

Story: 4 - Very Good
Art: 5 - Excellent

by Roho

Hellbound III: DARKNESS

River Bird Comics — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 13:08:00 +0000

Hellbound III: DARKNESS, pencils for the fold gate cover that I will be colaborating with Jerel Dye story editor for this year horror anthology. More about Hellbound here and make sure to check the G+ page for sneak peeks and more art.

Disparo Virtual

River Bird Comics — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Viejos

River Bird Comics — Wed, 08 Aug 2012 08:35:00 +0000

MECAF 2 pager

River Bird Comics — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 10:23:00 +0000

Check out this 2 page exercise I drew while tabling at MECAF a couple of weeks ago at ROHOisROUGH. Is being posted one panel at the time, you can start from the link (or click on the pic) and work your way to today. If you like it take the time and let me know what you think. Coming after that some sketches and previews for a couple of upcoming stories.

Cold Wind is a short adventure comic written by Dan Mazur and...

Sat, 28 Apr 2012 18:55:05 +0000

Cold Wind is a short adventure comic written by Dan Mazur and drawn byJesse Lonergan, independently published by Mazur’s Ninth Art Press.

I saw this story grow from a script that Dan shared with the Boston Comics Roundtable to its final form. Dan writes in screenplay format, not breaking his story into pages and panels. Often he draws his own art, so that’s obviously not a problem. In this case, he left it up to Jesse—who’s scripted his own Flower and Fade, Joe and Azat, and other tales—to divide the screenplay into images. Yet another approach to collaboration.

Dan’s told me a couple of times how he’s no longer a fan of superhero comics because of their repetitive themes. He reads one Spider-Man story, learns that “With great power comes great responsibility,” reads another story—and learns the same thing.

As former Marvel editor Jim Shooter has commented:

Comic books have become like opera. You go to see a particular performance of an old story, not a new story. How will this performer handle that familiar role…?

That familiarity is part of the appeal of a series, or a genre.

At the last roundtable meeting, Dan wondered aloud if Cold Wind is a superhero comic. I said it qualified, despite his ambivalence about the genre. It’s a pumped-up action story taking place against a fantastic landscape. Its characters are largely symbolic, and they work out the fate of the world through violence.

But Cold Wind reflects Dan Mazur’s take on the superhero genre, with the theme that things don’t change significantly. For all the adventure’s sound effects and fury, its surviving characters achieve only a short pleasure before the world spins on.

Cold Wind is on sale today at the MoCCA Festival, in the better Boston-area comics shops, and over the web.

(via Cold Wind and the Limits of the Superhero Genre)

Free Digital Edition!

River Bird Comics — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 14:36:00 +0000

Now with each copy of OUTBOUND #2 we are including a code for a FREE Digital Copy of the SOLD OUT OUTBOUND #1. Yes you read it right, if you buy a copy of Outbound #2 from our STORE, at a Boston Comics Roundtable convention stand or from Million Year Picnic it comes with a FREE digital copy (PDF Format compatible with all Tablets and E-Readers) of OUTBOUND #1.

Glory

River Bird Comics — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:33:00 +0000

Glory (Rob Liefeld's Glory from Image Comics ) for this week's Sketch Challenge (@Ten Ton Studios) he is riding a Leaping Mole... that is a real thing right? I have been using Borden & Riley's #120 Bristol Plate (Smooth) is pretty good for inking and markers. For Ink I used a Rotring Art Pen Extra Fine and a Sanford Extra Fine Point Marker, mostly for the Mole Skin and contour.

WEEK 6

River Bird Comics — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 15:43:00 +0000

This week characters started being 80's teenagers but then changed into something else. Last week I won the Ten Ton Studios Sketch Challenge (it's was Rob's Liefeld's Re:GEX). So I got to choose this week's and do a good entry to defend the title so that took over from Tuesday one. So here is the week: Jeff Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, The New Challengers of the Unknown (Re-imagined), Teth-Adam (Redesign), Bizarro (Re-imagined), Proto-Wizard head shot. Next week we will revert back to the normal schedule, it maybe double whammies stay tuned. Also go visit the Boston Comics Roundtable daily sketch Tumblr, where our members show sketches and work in progress of what they are working on.

Week 5

River Bird Comics — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:15:00 +0000

This Week's Characters are: Jean Grey, Catwoman, The Thing, Cyclops and Judge Dredd. Next week was going to be 80's Teenagers but after spending half an hour looking at references of Sean Penn I decided against it so keep eye out, there will be some doodles coming out everyday.

Week 4

River Bird Comics — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 12:18:00 +0000

Villains Week! Featuring:
The Joker (DC Comics New 52), Dr. Doom (Future Foundation), Lex Luthor (also New 52 or DC Nü), Mystique (recently resuscitated) and Magneto (Wicked old version).

Week 3

River Bird Comics — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 13:25:00 +0000

Inspired by The Usual Suspects we have:

Martin Luther King Jr. The Punisher, Hellboy, Green Lantern and Dr. Strange.

Keep and Eye on Not Quite a Dancer for Evil Inks this week. Also if you don't like the character selection or want to see this characters dance go check out Jesse Lonergan's Dancer a Day and also join his DaD Facebook Group!

El Lobizón

River Bird Comics — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Week 2

River Bird Comics — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 15:03:00 +0000

Week 2 is done, the characters were:

Batman, Tank Girl, Spider-Man, The Spirit and Daredevil.

Nasal Catastrophe

River Bird Comics — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Nada

River Bird Comics — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

The Path of Most Resistance

River Bird Comics — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Tiger Tea

River Bird Comics — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Vida Interior

River Bird Comics — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Week 1

River Bird Comics — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:02:00 +0000

First Week of Not Quite Dancers!

Not Quite a Dancer a Day!

River Bird Comics — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:37:00 +0000

Not Quite a Dancer a Day!

Project: A.R.C.A.D.E.

River Bird Comics — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 15:19:00 +0000

via This, I drew today

Uncanny X-Force #18 Review by Roho Everyone is saying this is...

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 16:36:00 +0000

Uncanny X-Force #18 Review by Roho

Everyone is saying this is the best X-Men book on stands right now, some are going as far as to say best Marvel Book or Super-hero series in general. To me all those are a given but I will go as far as saying this is the best X-Men book of all times and I will tell you why: Consistency! I think it goes beyond the classic runs of past (ei: Claremont) in that it delivers and takes the characters and concepts to the next level. And the art it’s undeniably the best of all books being produced even when it wasn’t Opeña or Ribic it felt like an Uncanny X-Force book I think most of the credit for this goes to Remender and the Colorist Dean White that kept it amazing during the whole run. (I am choosing to keep the Simone Bianchi out as it was not consistent or relevent for the most part). On to this issue specific praise: PAY OFF the hardest to find on X-Men books even on the Morrison run (one of my favorites) most of it got quickly swept away after his run. CHARACTERS were perfect, they felt they acted and they grew as real people, they were not stereotypes or cartoons of themselves even hated ones like Fantomex or Deadpool were important personalities and points of views to make this story work and the best use of telepathy pulling the living our whole lives out together in the last seconds you have to leave device (graciously lifted from that episode of Family Guy) was pretty gut wrenching if you have a soul and a place in it for this characters. TWISTS a-plenty, we were all waiting for the pickle-mutant to be put to some use but being raised by Ma’ and Pa’ Kent I was not expecting, he is a hero…yeah freckin’ Apocalypse (Genesis?) it’s a teenage mutant hero! you gotta love that. In conclusion (and sorry If I went to long) I want more make it double ship make it triple ship, I want movies, cartoons game characters this it’s X-Men and Rick Remender should it’s caretaker this book it’s iron clad evidence of that.

Story: 5 - Excellent
Art: 5 - Excellent

via UNCANNY X-FORCE #18

The Bird Expert

River Bird Comics — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Blade Runner

River Bird Comics — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 23:31:00 +0000

This is for this week's Ten Ton Studios Sketch Challenge, no likeness as you can see, but I wanted to do a poster that gave you a hint of what the movie is about. Brush on bristol board ( Joe Kubert School 11x17) with same brushes as the last one and used some generic Pen & Ink (No-Shellac India Black) it was worse than Calli, so the search continues.

Walicxe

River Bird Comics — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 17:50:00 +0000

I'm back to the drawing board! After a few months of not finding the right frame of mind to draw in a satisfying way, just doodles here and there. I have two projects that I want to get done, both short stories. If you follow this blog there has been samples here and there but they remain largely on the planing stages.

First of "13" inspired by a song same as "El Oso" it's a surreal western about anger, violence and a troubled existence. Sharing the first place in importance and focus it's "The Middle Finger" a super-hero parody. Both have the potential to continue or at least to plague my sketchbooks with glimpses of future adventures but the main objective it's to do that first chapter and show what they are all about. Under this two big projects there is a potpourri of equally promising premises both new and old: "Wicker and Thorn" have been dusted off to a very promising first page on Writer's Night. "Outlaw Pizza" yells at me every morning asking for a conclusion to the first chapter, "The Caerulean Dream" slowly slumbers it's way in, while "Black Fuska" floats aimlessly in limbo. I slowly chip away at this "less" important projects (not because their lack of quality, more of a dragging by weight of importance). And buried under all this clutter of creative noise it's "Walixce" and umbrella of sorts not unlike "Moody Toones" in which to explore folk tales and/or (depending on your definition of each) legends from the country I was born in, Uruguay. "Walicxe" it's the word for spell or curse, a word of Charrua origin, the lost natives of the west of river of birds land.

In the picture above drawn on a 11x14 sheet of Bristol Paper (Borden and Riley #120p Bristol Plate to be more precise) drawn on pencil and inked with a pair of Princeton round brushes (#2 and #6) on Calli ink (Jet Black India 010) represents the three stories that I am most excited to render on comic book form: "La Mano Negra", "El Lobizon" and "La Luz Mala", don't worry there will be translations for this titles in one way or another.

My other objective with this piece was to streamline my page process, a warm up of sorts in to getting back in to the groove. While preparing I tried a couple of different ideas on pencil (using a 2B thick graphite stick on a led holder) to loosely work the composition and get a piece interesting enough to keep my interest during the inking process. It did not needed to be perfect but to be a piece worth of the ink I used. After a couple of aborted attempts (a Middle Finger #1 possible cover and a Punisher: River of Blood trade cover idea that is badly needed) I decided that an idea that was fully mature in my head will be the best choice to complete this personal challenge.

Deviating for my usual process and following Jesse's advice I decided to redraw the image on the Bristol board as opposed to tracing it or transferring it. The results I think are very competent, far from perfect it was smooth sailing the redrawing helped me not to transfer initial errors to the final image and work out better options in composition. The paper was great to take a light (4h) pencil with out too much denting and very pleasing to the inking with brush, the brushes behave great, precise but loose, the ink however while flowing correctly lacks the covering I wanted, all fixable in post the lack of solidity made it a thing to figure out next time, hopefully soon.

Oba's Electroplating Company

River Bird Comics — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 21:03:00 +0000

The Boston Slave Riot and Trial of Anthony Burns

River Bird Comics — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Benkei in New York: Haggis

River Bird Comics — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The Great Michigan Whale

River Bird Comics — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 09:47:00 +0000

Black Fuska: Chapter 1

River Bird Comics — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 08:21:00 +0000

Black Fuska #1

River Bird Comics — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Grimorio Del Plata: Argirosis

River Bird Comics — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Vacio

River Bird Comics — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 05:12:00 +0000

Shanna: The She Devil

River Bird Comics — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 16:46:00 +0000

For this week's Challenge I decide to go with a more practical approach in lieu of a pin-up. Click to see the original. And go to Ten Ton Studios to see all the other excellent entries and vote!

You never get those hours back

River Bird Comics — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 15:08:00 +0000

Locker Trade Agreement

River Bird Comics — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The Caerulean Dream: Episode 1

River Bird Comics — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 19:36:00 +0000

The Caerulean Dream Part 1

River Bird Comics — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 09:09:00 +0000

The Million Year Picnic

River Bird Comics — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The Apple Pie

River Bird Comics — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Las Andanzas de Vlad Tepes

River Bird Comics — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

El Cazador de Aventuras #1

River Bird Comics — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 00:00:00 +0000

PITT

River Bird Comics — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 11:55:00 +0000

This Week's Challenge it's Pitt! Head over to Ten Ton Studios and vote for the best.

River Bird Comics — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 00:44:00 +0000

We will be showing around a proof preview of the Hellbound 2 books with our handmade box this weekend at MICE it's a free show full of great creators and comics, look for me or Jesse Lonergan to get an exclusive sneak peak of the book and a flyer about our Halloween Party!

Spider-Man 2.0 Project Rooftop

River Bird Comics — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 12:58:00 +0000

Click picture above to see all Character Sheets.
It's good that Marvel is currently trying to inject some diversity on to their characters. However there is one minority, one group of oppressed and currently forgotten people that has never has been treated with any respect. (Except for Grant Morrison)

Fade to Black and White, cigarette smoke and tight voice...

I present to you this peculiar situation: A young man, high school years known as Peter Parker, falls in the sewers on his way to a science show, maybe about spiders, is not important because he never makes it, was found by the mutant group commonly referred as the Morlocks.

Pause, inhales cigarette smoke:

Long believed to be extinct their numbers were not what the used to be in order to ad to the ranks they will activate the dormant mutant gene of any person they encounter. Unfortunately for Peter with great powers comes great disfigurement.

After coming to terms with his new situation Peter lives a double life as an introverted, and odd looking teenager who is starting to develop a disturbing obsession with a red headed classmate by the name of Mary Jane Watson and a underground dweller mutant in search for a cure for his spider themed condition.

Short story: Spiderman by way of the movie The Fly.

See rules and other entries soon here:
Project: Rooftop

via This, I drew today!

The Black Legion by Mark Brooks (from Uncanny X-Force #12) If...

Fri, 29 Jul 2011 16:49:00 +0000

The Black Legion by Mark Brooks (from Uncanny X-Force #12)

If you ever liked the X-Men on any of it’s forms this is the book for you, Rick Remender rocks the X-World with the gorgeous help of Esac Ribic, Jerome Opeña, Billy Tan and Mark Brooks.

(via Uncanny X-Force: Best at what it does and what it does looks nice!)

Hellboy: Re-Covered

River Bird Comics — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 09:05:00 +0000

This week's Ten Ton Studios: Sketch Challenge is a cover recreation of a Hellboy Comic.

The art on right is the digital version of my all hand drawn and colored version (click to see) of this challenge's entry. My inspiration was this cover by Francesco Francavilla (left). He is a great cover and interior artist that has worked both on Detective Comics and Black Panther: Man with out Fear (simultaneously!). Both his line art and coloring where inspiration for this cover, the color part is kind of last post scanner, but I tried to regain it on the digital version. As a bonus I used my "Mexican Hellboy" (El Vato Infernal) that I designed for another Hellboy related challenge as an insert on the bottom.

Tin Cans and Strings by Flaherty and Saariaho

S. Cartisano — Fri, 08 Jul 2011 07:06:00 +0000

The rain keeps coming and coming and there is little Tim and Frank, employees of a local telephone provider, can do to stop the flooding waters. Fortunately for them, writer Patrick J. Flaherty comes to their rescue: “What are flares & floods compared to a shrug? They'd bring the phones back, even if it was just tin cans and string.” I bet you’re wondering what Patrick means. I know I am and that’s why I’m going to read Patrick and artist Jacob Saariaho next installment of “Tin Cans and Strings”. You should too because I’m not going to tell you what happens!

BPRD: Western

River Bird Comics — Wed, 25 May 2011 14:20:00 +0000

The latest Ten Ton Studios Sketch Challenge it's B.P.R.D. Western Style. It was a lot of fun to draw Mike Mignola's creations on a western flavor. The one I had the most fun was Hellboy I decided to go Mexican complete with big mustache, sombrero and poncho. If I had to cast the movie Danny Trejo will play the part.

Alkehine’s Gun by Joel Gill

S. Cartisano — Thu, 19 May 2011 07:57:00 +0000

In the distant future, a distraught father makes a difficult decision for the wellbeing of his child. When his son is born without most of his brain, he becomes the perfect candidate for the Alkehine’s Gun project. For the ten years following the procedure, the father has attempted to communicate with his son in the only way he can: games of chess. Up until now, it’s been a one-sided conversation. Now his son has finally spoken. Join artist and writer Joel Gill as he delves into the mystery of Alkehine’s Gun and humanity. About the creator: Joel Christian Gill is the founder, CEO, exclusive board member, sole shareholder, administrative assistant, mailroom clerk, director of development, doorman, elevator operator, and janitor of StrangeFruit Comics. He is also the Chair of the Foundations Department at the New Hampshire Institute of Art, in Manchester New Hampshire where he lives (not at the Institute, but in the city) with his wife, three daughters, and one son. He is not currently in a bad mood. More about Joel on his Blog.

Robot 11-Three created by Kevin Kilgore

S. Cartisano — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 09:34:00 +0000

Robot 11-Three features the tale of Robot 11-Three! What? You want more? Okay, he’s an assassin! What do you mean you don’t believe me? I’ve seen his work! I’ve read the first installment. Yes, he assassinated. That’s what assassins do, right? No, I don’t know what happens next but I expect the body count to rise! He isn’t a Disney character, after all. Well, yes, Robot 11-Three does look like a soda can. What’s your point? You’re just saying. You’re just saying! I give up! There’s no pleasing you! Everything everyone says about you behind your back is true! You don’t appreciate quality entertainment! You don’t deserve to read Kevin Kilgore’s Robot 11-Three! Go away. Wait, one more thing, Robot 11-Three reads this blog. I’m sure he didn’t take anything you wrote personal. He’s an assassin and I’m sure he's a very reasonable robot. Faily sure. Actually, I don't have a freaking clue. Sleep tight.
About Kevin Kilgore.

Frequency by Alluisi & Boles

S. Cartisano — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 06:18:00 +0000

Seth Stevens is a physics officer; entrusted to enforce the laws of physics. Twice decorated for valor in the line of duty, he patrols the streets protecting the general populace from tampering with nature’s laws. After discussing the end of days with a machete-wielding, urban shaman, Seth can’t help notice that being a hero isn’t always enough. And he isn’t even aware of the woman stalking him as she floats hundreds of feet above him. Join creators David Alluisi and Bryan Boles on Frequency: Breaking the Law of Gravity. It’s trippy.

Flek created by Erik Heumiller

S. Cartisano — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 06:14:00 +0000

In the tradition of Joseph Campbell, join space flea Flek and creator Erik Heumiller on a grand adventure. Somewhere in space, within the fur of Gordo, a lost, NASA-trained, squirrel monkey; lies the world of Flek. With his oversized legs and small second arms, Flek is unlike the others and they never let him forget it. He is different for a reason; like his deceased mother and her people; fleas from Earth who are now missing. A quest awaits him. Somewhere within the fur of Gordo are fleas very much like him and acceptance he seeks.

About creator Erik Heumilker.

Driftwood created by Morgan Pielli

S. Cartisano — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 08:55:00 +0000

Killer wood. Driftwood written and drawn by Morgan Pielli is about killer logs. No kidding. Don’t believe me? Fine, share the same fate as Clark and Bill, see if I care.

Can’t you walk in the woods anymore without having to worry about machete wielding psycho, banjo wielding hillbillies, ghosts, witches, books of dead, deadites, wolves, werewolves, bears, mutant bears, and now killer wood? What is this story doing in Outbound? It’s Hellbound creepy.

More about Morgan Pielli.com

Space and Time created by Mills and Paoloni

S. Cartisano — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 07:10:00 +0000

A hundred years in the future and life is not any easier. For father Robert and his daughter, Emilia, opportunity is found in a new job across the galaxy. For their pilot, Alex, a mysterious cargo may just what she and her ship the Surnia need. For the United Planets of the Milky Way, puppets on strings may appease the special interest groups that will keep them in power. Finally, there is Deovilo and Delores. I’m not sure that I know exactly what they want and I may be better off not knowing but after two installments of Space and Time, creators Josh Mills and Michael Paoloni have me hooked. I have know what Deovilo and Delores want! Come on, now you want to know too?
For more go to Josh Mills Website.

The New Kid created by Dan Mazur

S. Cartisano — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 08:56:00 +0000

Illustration by Jerel Dye.

Straight from artist/writer Dan Mazur himself: Having his world turned upside down is nothing new for Jamie, with a widowed, diplomat mom; his life has been one embassy apartment and foreign service school after another. But there next move looks like their strangest one yet. I wonder what Dan means by that? No, I don’t. I’m a regular reader of The New Kid and this is your chance to be one too! Jump aboard Dan’s well crafted, all-ages, adventure now and he’ll include the Council of Worlds, Introduction to Inter-Galactic History, Interplanetary Linguistics, and Quantum Socio-Physics for free. Where are you going to get a better deal?

About the creator: Dan Mazur grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 1983, he relocated to Los Angeles to work in the motion picture industry, then in its infancy. After 23 years on the west coast — including 17 in Topanga Canyon, California — he moved back to Cambridge, where he turned his attention to the art of comics. He has since become a household name at his house. For more information on Dan, please read this paragraph again. More about Dan Mazur.

Black Fuska by Roho

S. Cartisano — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 06:10:00 +0000

Illustration by Jerel Dye.

Life can be challenging but when faced with problems, it’s best to face them head on than to run. The creative team of Roho, Dave Myers, and Steve Willhite, examine a man who thought jumping into his Black Fuska and driving away from his life would be the solution he needed. Instead, one dark night, a lonely stretch of road leads to three days lost, a factory’s destruction, and vengeful and powerful factory owner. You’ll never look at missing time and a black Volkswagon Beatle the same way again.

About the creator:

Roho (Creator, Writer and Art Issue 1):

Roho was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, and immigrated to the United States with his parents in his early adulthood. Roho studied Commercial Art after high school and began drawing inexpertly at age seventeen. Despite his parents' hopes for him to become a well adjusted person, Roho studied sequential art on his own for several years. Shortly after moving to Cambridge in 2008, he joined Boston Comics Roundtable. Roho has contributed to the last three issues of Inbound as well as publishing Outbound: The Science Fiction Comics Anthology and the Hellbound Annual Horror Anthology.

Also featuring art by:
Richard Jenkins (Cover Issue 1), Dave Myers (Pencils Issue 2), Steve Willhite (Inks Issue #2), Paul Marquis (Cover #2).

River Bird Comics

Rage of Poseidon (by Anders Nilsen) review by Paul Hanna(via...

Hellbound V: End of Comics

Hellbound V: End of Comics

River Bird Comics

by The Boston Comics Roundtable

Edited by Stephen Cartisano

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Hellbound V: End of Comics

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River Bird Comics

by The Boston Comics Roundtable

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