News - Bone | Bangalore Mirror | Nov '08

Image Courtesy: Scanned by Pathy Forwarded by Viswa

We ran a full post review on the Bone Series on Comicology, when it debuted in India.  Well, we now have a Media article about the series and the creator Jeff Smith,  who was on a comic book promotion tour in India, last month. Bangalore Mirror newspaper carried a personal account of Jeff Smith on his work on Bone, which has made him a top-shot in the Graphic Novel Biz.  The article also talks about the new venture of Jeff Smith, about which you can find in our earlier post.  Read the Article, where Jeff talks about his child hood passion and how he formed the idea of Bone. For those who wonder, why Jeff Smith loves India so much, it's got to do with his wife Vijaya Smith (formerly Vijaya Iyer), whose ancestors are from Kerala, another Southern State of India.  Through which he has close knitted family connections in India, including Mumbai.  Jeff claims the Indian connection was instrumental in the concluding plot works on the final two chapters of Bone series.  I would love to see those final chapters reprinted by Scholastic in India.

Jeff never forgets to thank Vijaya, who is also his business partner, and takes care much of the production and administration work; like attending comic-con events, invoicing, publishing contacts; right from their self-publishing company Cartoon Books (which originally serialized Bone as 55 issues, consisting one chapter each).  This has let Smith concentrate solely on his comic work, which has what made him world-famous now. Doesn't it feel good to have a life partner who share your hobbies, and interests? Heah, I can hear some "Grins" from the wed-locked Comicologists here :). Here is an excerpt from Jeff's another Interview while in India on his promotion tour:

You started off drawing Bone when you were five years old. How did it evolve to its present state?  I was very young when I used to go to my grandmother’s house and watch movies and read. She used to give me this big sheet of paper on which I used to draw. The very first comic though was published in 1991. Each chapter was released as one comic book. It was black and white initially. Now the entire series is a beautiful 1,300 page continuous novel that I have released independently. I always had the start and end in mind, but when I started writing I went off on different tangents and just wrote the funniest things that came to my head. How tough has the journey been? The medium is very difficult as the readers are very picky. When I started off, I had the strangest idea that the comic should be like Bugs Bunny-meets-Lord of the Rings. It didn’t sell well initially, we literally had to carry boxes to big comic conventions like those in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York. My wife and me were unaware that the comic was being picked up by libraries around the country and kids were reading it. Scholastic called us, and that’s when we realised that the comic appeals to children.  How did you decide to take the “self-publishing” route initially? I had no choice but to self-publish. I was turned down by every newspaper syndicate in the US. I realised if I wanted to draw Bone, I would have to publish it myself out of my garage. Now, of course, it’s published around the world by many big mainstream publishers in different countries. But I still own the comics themselves, the copyrights belong to me even though the Bone cousins can speak many languages that I cannot! Will graphic novels find their way into history as great literature? The art is very new. Since its inception, graphic novels have always been found only in collector’s stores in the States, it’s only three years ago that they have found their way into bookstores. Now there are talented 25-year-olds who are exploring the art form. The future is bright, I think. Is there an Indian connect in your series? My wife, Vijaya, has always been there for me. I can always bounce ideas off her. The Indian connect comes in the last couple of books, where they have been modelled in India and Nepal. As for reading Indian authors, I just got a stack of them. I haven’t read much so I wouldn’t be able to comment. Pity that Jeff Smith's arrival wasn't covered in any Chennai based papers (even though on a personal visit, and not part of his book tour), as he has spent quite a lot of time visiting the ancient Shore temples at Mahabalipuram, a tourist attraction in South India, located at Chennai.  Doesn't talk well about the Comics passion actually existing in the city.  You can read more about Jeff's India trip at his Official Website, here and here.  He looks a free-to-move persona with his Pani-Puri act.  I am impressed with Jeff's creative work, since I read the Bone series for the first time.  Hopefully, we will be seeing his next venture, RASL, also getting published in India sooner.

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News: Batman & Comic Break | Times of India | Nov '08

There are two interesting articles in Times of India related to our cherished hobby, over the weekend, which are grabbed at Comicology for your reading. The first article is from Times of India (TOI) - Chennai Times, 29 Nov 08 edition, which captures the readers uproar towards the authors' (Grant Morrison, in this case) decision to kill Batman in the recent issue, and his prodigy taking his place in the future series.  When will this creators get over the marketing gimmick for boosting sales; as they change, deface, and even eradicate the comics characters we have known for years.  First it was Sherlock Holmes, then Superman, and even Captain America.  Even the current set of authors at Marvel, went to a distance of erasing all the memory of "Spiderman" Peter Parker and Mary Jane's marriage altogether.  That has already put the next Spiderman Movie into a jeopardy. All the times each one of them have been dramatically resurrected to life, after falling sales, and readers lull response.  And for all its trueness, this might be a same case again.  Imagine - you watching the next Batman Movie, when the character itself has become history in its original form. eeks! For those who would like to have a sneak preview of Batman #681, which has the conclusion of Batman RIP series, described in this post as the "End of Batman", here are few panels from the issue. (© DC Comics)

As you could clearly see that Batman's death is pretty inconclusive (paving the way for his return), and his prodigy Dick Grayson (or Nightwing in his superhero avatar) is shown taking over the Batman role at the end. Here are some Official quotes about Batman's RIP storyline, which supports our theory, and a possible return of Batman solely in his Bruce Wayne avatar, and probably on a later stage as Batman Returns, while Dick Grayson or Tim Drake (the 3rd and current Robin) playing the role of Batman in future issues.  Much like the storyline of Superman Returns earlier. Grant Morrison, Series Author: "This is the end of Bruce Wayne as Batman".  Dan DiDio, DC Comics Executive Editor : "Bruce Wayne is indeed alive, though he'll definitely be gone for a while." A unnamed DC Insider: "Wayne doesn't want to be a superhero any more." Eventhough, I first thought that storyline sucks, it might give an option to see how the present authors actually take a different route in the Batman series, then trying to cash in on the legacy left by erstwhile, Bob Kane. The second article is from TOI - Times Life, 30 Nov 08 edition.  It's a follow-up from our earlier article covered at Comicology about the growing interest in the younger generation in reading comics more than reading books, which is a new trend from the past where the kids more often preferred the Novels, and Written fantasies over the Comics medium.  The article advocates the need to take a break, with growing your Comic habit, and get the Boy inside a Man. I would have given a miss to the second article, as it wasn't available for distribution in a few areas in Chennai.  Thanks for fellow Comicologist Pathy's tip-off, I was able to pick that up from the Bangalore edition of TOI.

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CineBook - Blake & Mortimer #1-3 | 2008

West Land | Price: INR 250 | Color | Size: A4 | Laminated/HardCover

Finally, we have the much awaited review on the CineBook's Blake & Mortimer series here at Comicology, which was part of the batch of issues distributed in India by West Land, on July 2008.  It's another classic series from the Franco-Belgian comics era, a product of one of the famous European Comics visionary Edgar P. Jacobs.  It first appeared serialized in the Belgian comics magazine Tintin from 1946 (from the very first issue), and was subsequently published in book form by Lombard, due to its growing popularity.

It's story about two British men, Philip Mortimer, a Top Scientist; and Francis Blake, an Army officer, and follows their adventures through their science-fiction mixed detective investigations, even to an extent some historian legends, like the lost continent of Atlantis.  I wonder why the series wasn't named as Mortimer & Blake, as he is the main character in much of the adventures. Let's look at the background and earlier work of Edgar Jacobs, which formed a base for his famous Blake & Mortimer series, before we review the instalments from CineBook.

B&M 1: The Yellow "M" ISBN: 978-1-905460-21-2

B&M 1: BackCover Pages: 72 | Published: Jan 2007

Edgar P. Jacobs, was born in Brussels on March 30, 1904.  As per Jacobs he is known to have drawn from his early days of his childhood.  But, he actually made his entry in the arts through the Stage Dramas and Soap Opera's.  Despite spending much of his career on his first-choice, he never rose to a prominent role from filling up the extras.  So in 1940, he turned to his first-love full-time, by joining a magazine, and drawing for novels and tales. The World War II gave Jacobs his first chance to draw for a famous comics script, in form of Flash Gordon, when the original American piece were banned by German forces in Belgium.  Eventhough, it lasted only for a couple of weeks, that gave him a base from which he could bring his inner urge to a proper shape, and he started working on his own take of Sci-Fi comic strip, Le Rayon U, heavily borrowing from the Flash Gordon script. Edgar P. Jacobs During the same time he was also working as a stage painter for Georges Prosper Remi's (known more famously for his creation TinTin under his ghost-name Hergé) TinTin adaptation into a play.  That paved the way for Remi to know about Jacob's works, and the two became good friends, which was instrumental in bringing Jacob's talents to a broader circle, when Remi hired him for recasting/restyling his earlier TinTin albums, like TinTin in the Cango, TinTin in America, etc. Edgar P. Jacobs as Jacobini in TinTin's Cigars of Pharaoh The friendship between Remi and Jacobs grew so much, that Remi took the liberty to cast him under the fictional name of Jacobini in some of his TinTin albums, the famous being as a Mummified Egyptologist in Cigars of Pharaoh. Due to his friendship with Remi, he was part of a team of writer and artists gathered together for a new TinTin magazine in 1946. On his part, Jacobs wrote and drew his series Le secret de l’Espadon (The Secret of the Swordfish) for the first Tintin magazine, published on September 26, which was eventually the first series of Blake and Mortimer (B&M). Because of its painstaking realism and plot-work, B&M was a worthy equivalent to the already established, Tintin series (which was created in 1926), from its start. But surprisingly, B&M proved more popular than the Tintin story that it accompanied and soon they were published as hardcover and softcover editions by publisher Lombard. The success of the series, made Jacobs rethink his apprenticeship work with Hergé on his TinTin rework.  So, when Hergé declined his request to share the credit of TinTin publicly, Jacobs decided to concentrate full-time on B&M in 1947, and went on to produce eight big adventures until 1972, which all have become a classic collectors items.  But the friendship between Hergé and Jacobs was not disturbed by this professional break-up, as they both shared respect to each others work and achievements. Jacobs’ style and consistency, his plotting talent and his care in character-building vary greatly from one album to another. Classic TinTin Magazine Cover with B&M Ligne Claire as exhibited in "TinTin" and "Blake & Mortimer" There are however many common threads between Hergé and Jacobs, such as the consistent use of Ligne claire (meaning Straight Line) drawing style, which was originally pioneered by Hergé.  Have a look at the example I picked up from TinTin and B&M, which clearly depicts the Ligne Claire at work. It's a usage of straight line in the artwork with the same thickness, without any emphasize or shadowing on any work parts in a panel.  Style also uses strong colors, and a combination of cartoonish characters with realistic background details. This style was heavily adopted by all the "Brussels school" artists, and that made them stand out from the other forms of artwork practiced by American and European genre. It is a style, which is still being adopted by few artists across the globe, but not to an extent as it was utilized in 1950s, which adds a classic touch to the work of Jacobs and Hergé. Let's come back to the Blake & Mortimer series released by CineBook with their distribution network in India in 2008.  There are 3 issues which are part of this pack, let's look at the synopsis of each of the titles, and their respective French Originals.  All these 3 issues were written and drawn by Edgar P. Jacobs himself. 1. The Yellow “M”: (French Original: Album 6: La Marque Jaune, 1956) A mysterious crime wave is sweeping London and nothing, from the Bank of England to the Crown Jewels, is safe. The identity of the criminal is unknown but Londoners are beginning to fear the symbol that is left at each crime scene, the Yellow “M”. Enters Philip Mortimer, and Blake to solve the mystery.
B&M 2: The Mystery of the Great Pyramid : Part 1 ISBN: 978-1-905460-37-3	B&M 2: BackCover Pages: 56 | Published: Nov 2007
2. The Mystery of the Great Pyramid Vol.1: (French Original: Album 4: Le Mystère de la Grande Pyramide, Tome 1, 1954) Professor Mortimer, accompanied by the loyal Nasir, is in Cairo pursuing his study of Egyptology. With the assistance of his old friend, he deciphers some papyrus that was recently discovered.  His archaeological exploits soon turn out to be far more dangerous than he expected, as he calls on Captain Francis Blake for assistance but, as it turns out, Blake is the one truly in need of help. 3. The Mystery of the Great Pyramid Vol.2: (French Original: Album 5: Le Mystère de la Grande Pyramide, Tome 2, 1955) When news reaches him that Captain Blake has been assassinated by agents of Colonel Olrik at Athens Airport, Professor Mortimer vows to avenge his friend and sets out to discover the whereabouts of Olrik. Mortimer’s investigation leads him to the Great Pyramid where he begins to unravel the secrets of the Chamber of Horus, secrets that will lead him into the darkest depths of the Great Pyramid itself.
B&M 3: The Mystery of the Great Pyramid : Part 2  ISBN: 978-1-905460-38-0	B&M 3: BackCover Pages: 56 | Published: Jan 2008
However much I love the classic editions, Blake & Mortimer series were too slow for me, with far too much text interlaced between the artwork (one of the reasons why I took a long time to read and review this series from CineBook). It seems to be the style of Jacobs to get his work in a style of novel, but that let's down the Comics medium which is known as a 'speaking art'.  Have a look at an example, which I picked up from the CineBook edition, The Mystery of the Great Pyramid. The translators employed by CineBook for the English versions of B&M, should have had a real tough job to do, in working with all this text. The famous Gilbert Gascard, (The creator of Ric Hochet, Reporter Johny for Tamil Comic Fans, and Chick Bill under the pseudonym Tibet), who served as an editor of TinTin magazine, shared the same feeling, which resulted in him taking years before reading E.P.Jacobs work in his own magazine. But, with that said there is no denying the artwork and plots of Jacob is no lesser than any of the classics available at present. An example of "Text" overshadowing the "Artwork" in B&M CineBook have also released B&M 4: The Francis Blake Affair, in UK, which hasn't reached India yet. It's the 13th album in the series, and the first which was not written by Jacobs. I would be eager to read it when its available, to experience the new team which is handling the B&M series at present, which consists of one of my favorite writer Jean Van Hamme (XIII fame). Edgar P. Jacobs passed away in 1987, and he was commemorated with a Sphinx on his cemetery tomb at Brussels, which is said to have a "collar beard", with a face looking lot similar to his famous character, Philip Mortimer, fittingly. In 2004, the French and Belgian Post Offices worked together to dedicate stamps portraying Jacobs and his characters, which shows that along with him his characters were also immortalized.   For a complete list of work by Jacobs, visit this centenary memorial site, which is in French as with many other sites dedicated to Jacobs and his works, but we could still use the Google Translator, for exploring it. Hope you enjoyed this post about the Blake and Mortimer, along with the author bio and background of the series.  If you want to experience the series, then grab the CineBook instalments, before they run out of stock.  It's worthy to be part of your classic collection, if you are a fan of them like me.    Jacobs & his characters: B & M Immortalized on Stamps

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