SPECTATORS - Part 106
Plus, win the gorgeous German hardcover of PAPER GIRLS!
Are you our lone subscriber in Zambia?
Brian here, grateful that Exploding Giraffe is able to reach a global audience of nearly 18,000 readers every Monday evening (or early Tuesday morning if you happen to be that one cherished reader in Lusaka).
Today, I thought we could chat a little about the international reach of comics… but first, let’s check out the latest Spectators from artist/co-creator Niko Henrichon and letterer Fonografiks, as our ghostly protagonists Sam and Val learn about a new threat to New York City arriving from overseas.
Is there anything Niko can’t draw?
If you missed last week’s astounding Artopsy, Niko was discussing the challenges of executing a few of the more complicated ideas conceived of by crazy writers. Not yours truly, of course, but here’s an example of something Niko was asked to tackle for the cover of a sci-fi novel:
The famous Von Braun Wheel can be a perspective nightmare to draw. But there’s more! In the book’s story, there’s a helicoidal formation of oval-shaped structures all around the Von Braun Wheel itself. That’s a huge challenge to draw.
A challenge, perhaps, but you paid subscribers got visual confirmation that Niko absolutely nailed it, helicoidal formations and all.
That bonus content (and all of our past extras) are always available to you generous members of The Tower in our Archives, thanks again for your support.
Niko, Fonografiks and I plan to finally finish our epic graphic novel before the end of 2024, which means we’ll only have time for a few more installments of “Come Up and See My Etchings,” a bimonthly peek into my weird-ass collection of original comic book art.
Along with collecting, I’m also addicted to polling, so I thought I’d take your temperature about what kind of pages you might want to check out before they’re once again locked away in the BKVault…
(I didn’t include “I absolutely don’t give a shit, Brian,” as we all know that option would have easily dominated.)
It’s a terrifying time for most of the planet, and the people of Ukraine obviously have more important things to worry about than comics, but I wanted to share a positive update from the Ukrainian publisher of Saga.
After a harrowing last few years (including having their printer bombed!), Publishing House RM in Ukraine is finally ready to resume production, and their translation of the seventh volume of Saga should be on local shelves soon.
It’s a tremendous honor to have our work published here (particularly because of the subject matter of that volume), so thanks to everyone at RM.
The readers of Ukraine and of all conflict-ravaged regions are always on my mind, and I hope you and your families will have peace and security again soon.
In other news from our global partners, German publisher Cross Cult informed us that their edition of Paper Girls has been nominated for Best International Comic in the 2024 Max and Moritz Prize, “the most important award for graphic literature and comic art in the German-speaking world.”
The Max and Moritz Prize is awarded by an independent expert jury appointed by the city of Erlangen and has contributed significantly to the artistic and social recognition of comics in Germany for 40 years. The prize honors the work of outstanding artists, encourages meritorious publishing work, draws attention to young talents and promotes the qualitative examination of graphic literature.
If you’re curious (or if you’re my mother), you can read more about the award, its jury, and our impressive fellow nominees over here.
Congrats to my pals/collaborators Cliff Chiang, Matt Wilson and Jared Fletcher, and special thanks to everyone at Cross Cult, especially translator Sarah Weissbeck, for their hard work on this stunning hardcover edition:
I also have to thank Image Comics, who not only gives artists and writers a say in who publishes us internationally, but also lets creators take home a majority of any profits from those partnerships, not the tiny percentage (or worse) offered by some companies.
Comics are a global medium, and while not every book translates to every market, in success, international royalties can be life-changing, so don’t give away those rights too quickly, young creators.
Anyway, if you’d like a shot at winning my copy of that hefty German edition of Paper Girls—signed and personalized, should you choose—please just let us know: If you had to relocate to a different nation than the one in which you currently reside, where would you choose to live next?
Work/family/finances are all moot in this harmless hypothetical, so don’t overthink it, wanderers.
As always, our intern Genesis the Exploded Giraffe will randomly select one of you clever commenters to win this week’s prize.
After the jump, I’ll show you Tower-types a few more cool international versions of various projects I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of over the years, but for everyone else, take care of yourself this week, don’t forget that Mother’s Day is on Sunday (here in the States, at least), and we’ll see you in seven short days for more free Spectators.
First up, in honor of Exploding Giraffe, check out eight different versions of my first collaboration with Niko Henrichon:
How many languages can you identify? No cheating with Google!
(And thanks to DC/Vertigo for forwarding us those comp copies.)
Niko packs a punch in any tongue, huh?
In my experience, Marvel has traditionally been less… thorough about alerting its freelancers when our work has been published internationally.
Still, I was able to get my hands on a couple of fun examples, including one old Marvel miniseries I wrote that I don’t believe has ever been collected here in the States: