Author: BandOfOne

Thought Bubble Comic Art Festival 2021

Posted on November 17, 2021 by BandOfOne
I just got back from exhibiting at Thought Bubble Comic Art Festival.

The last few months has been a wild ride, first with the Kickstarter. And then building up to the weekend at Thought Bubble.

It was such a joy to be able to talk to people about my work and show them the Jack Astro Comic Book in person.

A huge thank you to everyone who stopped by the table and either chatted with me or listened patiently to my pitch for the book. The response was really great and I’m still on a bit of a high having such a positive reaction from people both for my artwork and also the general concept.

I made this comic for myself really. Or to be more accurate for my 12 year old self. I would have been a massive fan of this comic if someone else had created it. It was especially exciting seeing youngsters around that age and a bit older looking so thoroughly psyched about the book.

The show was run amazingly well and all the precautions in place for Covid made for a great and safe show. Thought Bubble really cares about the artists and comic creators and there was SO much incredible talent on display. I wish I had more time to hunt around. I know I missed out on meeting and buying stuff from a few of my favourite creators.

Thought Bubble 2021 Haul Photo
Customary Thought Bubble Haul Photo – Wish I could’ve got more!

Since the weekend ended I’ve been totally fueled with inspiration to get working on my next projects. I’ve got a few exciting things in the works including a spin-off version of Jack Astro for a kids magazine. And a new long form project that will be a bit more in the fantasy genre. A middle-ages setting, knights, dragons and my usual injection of weirdness and silliness.

I will definitely be hoping to attend next year’s show and hopefully one or two others throughout 2022.

The Incal – Down the Rabbit Hole

Posted on October 15, 2021 by BandOfOne
After watching the Documentary Jodorowsky’s Dune, and reading the novel Dune, I knew the next port of call down the rabbit hole was reading The Incal. 
The Incal - Down the rabbit hole
Jean Giraud aka Moebius is an artist who I’ve long admired, and yet I had never read any of his work. I think possibly the availability of translations from the French was a hurdle.

My main exposure to his art was indirectly through the Heavy Metal movie. The series of shorts in the film are mostly taken from comic series in the magazine of the same name (Metal Hurlant in French). 

Harry Canyon, the story of a New York taxi driver, was based on the Moebius’s comic, The Long Tomorrow. And Taarna was based on Arzach. 

That movie had a huge impact on me. There are some cool short stories in it. But mainly the visuals were something totally new to me at the time.

I suspect I heard the name Moebius in the DVD special features. There was a making of documentary, before the days of the Internet this was a source of valuable insights. There was a period of time where I consumed making of’s and audio commentaries hungry for information. Now I guess it is podcasts!

The Incal - Down the rabbit hole
At the end of Jodorowsky’s Dune they mention that all of the pre-production work for the abandoned Dune movie, they eventually re-purposed and put into the comic book The Incal.

The book is written by Jodorowsky and illustrated by Moebius. It is a Sci-Fi tour de force with so many interesting ideas crammed into its pages. Both philosophical conceptual ideas from Jodo as well as incredible genre defining visual ideas from Moebius. 

After reading, I felt like it was one of the greatest graphic novels I had ever read. The last time I felt so overwhelmed by a comic book was probably after reading Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns.

  • My favourite panels
  • My favourite panels
  • My favourite panels
  • My favourite panels
  • The Incal - Cover Art
Definitely a book to remind you of the potential of the medium.

Book Making – Proof Copy

Posted on September 27, 2021 by BandOfOne
Seeing this book on the shelf next to other comics in my collection is so surreal.

It made the whole thing suddenly feel much more real, and legitimate. Of course seeing it on other people’s shelves will be a much more satisfying moment!

I spent a lovely evening having a read through of the comic. Noting down pages that needed tweaking, but generally just enjoying the reading experience. My wife was rolling her eyes as I sat laughing at my own jokes in the comic. 

Each of these post it’s represents a page that needs some sort of fix.

I spent another few evenings tweaking the files, and now I’m just waiting on the printers to deliver the final digital proofs before we go to full print run.

One thing I found in the book was a complete happy accident.

Look at how this turret gun appears to be shooting out of one panel, and into the panel on the opposite page. I drew these SO long ago, I’m going to claim that it was all carefully planned, but I honestly think that was a bit of luck.

I also had to practice signing and sketching in the book.

I’ve decided on a good signing pen, an acrylic paint pen. I see people using Sharpie’s a lot but I think if I used one of those I’d be high as a kite on fumes after a dozen books. 

Every copy for the kickstarter will be signed, so the REALLY valuable ones will probably be a rare un-signed copy!