SPX 2009
SPX 2009
Things were jumping this year at SPX. So much so that several of the items we hoped to bring back to the shop sold out before we had a chance to grab them. We're working on getting these in and will post them here if/when we do. Let's start the ball rolling with the big stack we picked up from our friends at Buenaventura Press:
The Complete Jack Survives
by Jerry Moriarty
Begun thirty years ago, Jack has at last found a permanent luxury dwelling in this sumptuously produced (by Buenaventura Press) oversized hardcover book that will be treasured by comics aesthetes everywhere. Jerry Moriarty, who has the courage to admit that, "When I started out, I didn't know what I was doing," took a chance and headed into unknown territory, taking a painterly sensibility rooted in the depression-era painting of Hopper, Sheeler and Burchfield, and grafting it straight onto his own hardwired, homegrown comics sensibility. Without taking the time to worry what it all meant or where he was going, he just struck out for the territory and made it all his own. Take a tour.
retail price - $34.95 copacetic price - $29.75
also from Buenaventura Press, which is currently championing the classic comic book (i.e. pamphlet) form:
The Gigantic Robot
by Tom Gauld
A meditation on the ephemerality of existence that tries to have it both ways, as only comics can.
retail price - $16.95 copacetic special price - $12.95
I Want You
by (this year's Ignatz winner for Outstanding Mini-Comic) Lisa Hanawalt
retail price - $4.95 copacetic price - $4.44
Injury
by Ted "St. Louis Blues" May & Co.
retail price - $4.95 copacetic price - $4.44
The Aviatrix
by Eric "Tales to Demolish" Haven
retail price - $4.95 copacetic price - $4.44
Boy's Club #3
by Matt "B.J." Furie
retail price - $4.95 copacetic price - $4.44
Moving on; how about this double header from John P!
King-Cat #70
by John Porcellino
The issue that marks the twentieth anniversary of King-Cat Comics and Stories. And it really is an extra special issue, one of the best ever. Twenty years. Amazing. Congratulations, Mr. P.!
retail price - $3.00 copacetic price - $3.00
Map of My Heart
by John Porcellino
To celebrate King-Cat Comics and Stories' twentieth birthday, Drawn and Quarterly has given us a present: this swell 360 page volume that collects King-Cat Comics and Stories #51 - #61 – all classics – in their entirety, along with copious notes, bonus comics, journal and notebook entries, maps, and even an index (of titles)! This one should be a no-brainer for everyone except those who already own the originals (and even they might be tempted by the bonuses). We're adding to the celebration by offering a special discount.
retail price - $24.95 copacetic special price - $19.95
Diehard indy comics distributor cum publisher, Bodega, was on hand with their two latest releases:
Follow Me
by Jesse Moynihan
Here we have 120 pages of comics that stand a good chance of intriguing quite a few more readers than they currently are (at least around here). Readers of comics by the Kramers crowd – specifically, C.F., B.J., and Sammy H. – as well as Chester Brown fans mourning the lack of new work, and members of the Theo Ellsworth Army, all stand to be pleasantly surprised by Mr. Moynihan's work in Follow Me, which is, technically, the third part of The Backwards Folding Mirror (we're out of the first two parts at the moment, but we'll see what we can do about getting them back in stock; that said, this one will stand on its own). Check it out and see what you think, here.
retail price - $11.00 copacetic price - $8.75
The Mourning Star, Book 2
by Kazimir Strzepak
The second volume in an ongoing series, this one is, like the first (which we've still got around here somewhere), a fat, square, Jordan Crane designed book packed with alternate universe action. This work shows some affinity to the work of Fort Thunderers Brian Chippendale, Chris Forgues and, especially, Brian Ralph, in its themes and visual vocabulary, but it is a quite a bit more accessible to the uninitiated.
retail price - $13.00 copacetic price - $11.00
Tugboat Press keeps on chugging along...
Papercutter #11
The latest issue of our favorite regularly published comics anthology debuted at SPX, and it's another issue that no indy comics fan will want to miss. The bulk of the issue – 26 pages and one front cover worth, to be exact – are devoted to "Lululand," a slice of life vignette of the life of Lulu a wondering and wandering washer of dishes and dreamer of dreams trying to figure it out that is imagined by writer Amy Adoyzie and diligently delineated by Jon Sukarangsan. Backing this up is "Duperman," a snappy one-pager by your friend and mine, Dustin Harbin, and "Letter Home," a story of schoolwork vs. artwork by someone who should know, the Portland, OR artist and educator, Lisa Rosalie Eisenberg, who takes us through to the back cover. Inside covers by Nate Beaty. Edited by Greg Means
retail price - $4.00 copacetic price - $3.50
Some of the better small-press and self-published comics we picked up include:
Schematic Comics
by Dan Zettwoch
First off, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention this unexpected treat. This is a new printing of one of the hits of SPX 2005 that has long been unavailable and highly sought after. It collects fifteen fabulous pieces by the talented and versatile Mr. Zettwoch. All we have to say is: If you missed this the first time around, then don't make the same mistake twice! Come one down and pick this one up before it's gone again. And this goes double for anyone who wasn't around for the first go round. This one's a classic of self-publishing. 48 pages under a hand-silk-screened cover.
retail price - $3.95 copacetic price - SOLD OUT AGAIN! (we'll try to get more)
Funny Aminals
Long suffering fans of the funny animal genre of comic books, one of the classic standard bearers of the comics tradition that has fallen by the wayside as of late, have much to rejoice with the release of this magical magazine size comic book that is clearly a labor of love. Full color front and back covers, printed on heavy stock, contain 68 pages of comics and stories by the likes of Joe Lambert, Bryan Stone, Colleen Frakes, Penina and more, all entirely devoted to animal fun, and includes a lengthy essay on the history of the genre by none other than Mr. Steve "Swamp Thing" Bissette! Learn more about the Funny Aminal gang, here. Recommended (and, on special)!
retail price - $8.00 copacetic price - $6.00
Pope Hats
by Ethan Rilly
This guy has the chops and pulls off some nice slice of life comics about twenty-somethings with an easy naturalism and quiet verisimilitude that make him an obvious choice to nominate as a potential successor the Adrian Tomine. This comic is a nice, professionally printed comic, complete with full color cardstock cover, made possible by Mr. Rilly's receipt of a Xeric grant. We think you should check this out, so we're offering a special introductory price on it, for now.
retail price - $4.00 copacetic special price - $2.50
And, while you're at it, you might want to pick up Ethan's latest mini, The Nervous Party. It's well worth the $2.00 you'll have to shell out.
Woman King
by Colleen Frakes
Ms. Frakes took home this year's Ignatz for "Promising New Talent." The award specifically cited Woman King in its announcement, so it is a winner by association. We also have last year's Tragic Relief trade edition for the same special price.
retail price - $7.00 copacetic price - $5.95
This Is What Concerns Me
Remainder
Favorites
Nine Gallons
all by Susie Cagle
Leftist, hippie, vegan comics from San Francisco by someone who can tell a story and draw. Entertaining and enlightening.
all except Nine Gallons – retail price - $2.00 copacetic price - $2.00@
Nine Gallons – retail price - $5.00 copacetic price - $4.44
Exploding Head Man
Solipsist's Doodles
by Jason Overby
Are you ready for 128 (96 and 32 pages respectively) pages of unimpeded personal expression in comic book form? If so you might want to give these the once over. Original and unique, obscure yet satisfying, Overby's comics are leading us somewhere, but it's too soon to tell if it's going to be to a place where we'll want to stick around. Here are comics for risk takers.
Exploding Head Man – retail price - $6.00 copacetic price - $6.00
Solipsist's Doodles – retail price - $3.00 copacetic price - $3.00
Dead Letters and Rare Words
by Mark Burrier
A nice 60-page sketchbook collection with cardstock two-color cover.
retail price - $5.00 copacetic price - $4.44
Love Is a Peculiar Type of Thing
by Box Brown
The latest confessional comics-creating Brown (as in Jeffrey, Chester, and, intriguingly, beginning with the granddaddy of all confessional comics, the fictional "Binky") enters the indy arena with this Xeric Foundation supported 96 page squarebound collection of comics in the great Brown tradition.
retail price - $10.00 copacetic price - $8.75
And we've saved the best for last! The Copacetic pick for the highlight of this year's SPX is:
Cold Heat Special #6
published by PictureBox
Yes, Cold Heat Special 8 and 9 have come (and, in the case of number 8, gone as well) but without any sign of numbers 6 and 7... until now! Over a year in the making, Cold Heat Special Number Six is now in stock and it's a one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted work of art. Wrapped in fabulous front and back cover silkscreens – complete with inside front and back cover silk-screened "endpapers," which are overlaid with hand tipped full color "plates" (ink jet prints) – this magazine-size special is an aesthetic treat and feast for the eyes, yes, but most of all it is an experience for the mind. Extending and vastly expanding on the themes he introduced in his first Cold Heat Special (number two), Cornwell has here seamlessly merged his own artistic concerns with those of Cold Heat creators BJ and Santoro to forge a fantastic journey to the center of the mind that intimates at the nature of eternal recurrence and the simultaneity of historicity in a universe that has banished linear time and made way for cosmic consciousness. Working firmly in the Cold Heat tradition of turning readers on to DIY culture and the untested possibilities of a new life living off the grid and on the fringes, and smartly leveraging the series' signs and symbols for maximum psychic impact, this comic book also reveals that the corridors of power extend in multiple directions through time and space, penetrating numerous dimensional barriers along the way, and that the control of the power that thusly flows is directed by some unusual players engaged in some surprising relationships. Limited to 100 hand numbered copies. Recommended!
retail price - $12.00 copacetic price - $10.00
>>Also, if you're in the mood to keep exploring the wonderful world of small press and self-published comics, we especially recommend our 2005 SPX page, along with those for 2008, 2007, 2006, 2004, 2003 and our original small press and self-published comics page from way back in 2002.
Copacetic Commodities
prices and availability current as of 15 October 2009
