SPECTATORS - Part 129
Plus, a spicy Artopsy from Niko Henrichon!
Damn.
Bitter Brian here, still depressed by the Guardians’ loss (to a humble team that only outspent Cleveland by a few hundred million dollars), but grateful for the spectacular season that Big Christmas & Co. gave my hometown.
In happier news, things are heating up in another gorgeously NSFW vignette of Spectators from artist/co-creator Niko Henrichon and letterer Fonografiks, as spectral protagonists Val and Sam finally observe their long-awaited ménage à trois.
A reminder that you can always catch up on past chapters for free in our Archives, or join The Tower and read all 300+ pages of Spectators so far in one convenient blah, blah, on with the show already!
Are you reading this naughtiness on the toilet?
I was confused and delighted by the sheer number of responses to last week’s discussion about your literary restroom habits.
Trusty intern Genesis the Exploded Giraffe promised to send out some signed copies of Saga #69 to a few random commenters, and their first pick was Tyler S.:
In my bathroom, I usually have 3 books in there to read while on the can. A random Batman trade I switch from time to time, volume 1 of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and Spider-Man: Kraven’s Last Hunt.
Love the specificity and consistency, Tyler.
Meanwhile, longtime Tower contributor Katie K. spoke for many readers when she replied:
No comics on the can, or phone or anything else. I get in, I get out. Eat your fiber, kids.
And finally, Jerry B. admitted:
I both read comics and scroll Insta in the bathroom, usually posting stuff more often, since I really like my iPad for reading comics, and that’s uncomfy in my incredibly narrow bathroom space, and usually a cat or two begging for attention. Too much info, I’m sure. :)
Never enough info, revelatory ones! Thanks to all of you who were brave enough to be open about your most private moments.
We’ve got several more big contests/giveaways coming up in our remaining weeks together, so it’s not too late to join your fellow oversharing giraffes:
Before I turn things over to Niko for his latest astounding Artistic Autopsy, it’s time for another edition of…
My Friends & Colleagues Are Annoyingly Talented
First up, dear chums Cliff Chiang and Jason Aaron teamed up for a new issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and it’s even more badass than you’re imagining.
As Cliff was nice enough to say in a recent interview over at ComicBook.com:
“When Brian K. Vaughan and I were working on Paper Girls, he was saying that every quartet kind of breaks down into one of the Beatles or one of the Turtles,” Chiang said. “I ended up being the Leonardo of the group, just being maybe the most responsible, I guess. So I have an affinity for him, as the erstwhile leader of the turtles, although the others might disagree. I thought it was interesting to follow his journey and see what he’s up to.”
On stands this Wednesday, so don’t miss out. (And I’m Donatello/George, the boring nerdy one.)
If you happen to be in the New York City area this Thursday, you should definitely go see hilarious comedian/my lifelong pal Wyatt Cenac in his next edition of Shouting at the Screen at Nitehawk Cinema:
Hosted by Wyatt Cenac and Donwill, with a special guest. Come early for a DJ set by Donwill in Trees Lounge from 8-9pm.
Back in the days before live-tweeting, the only way to express your thoughts while watching a movie was to yell them out loud to the delight of your friends, and the disgust of some old people a few rows in front of you. Comedian Wyatt Cenac (HBO’s Problem Areas, Bob’s Burgers) and musician Donwill (Tanya Morgan, Adulting with Michelle Buteau & Jordan Carlos) invite you to join them as they recreate the kind of ridiculous, loud mouthed magic that is generally found in movie theaters owned by a guy named Magic.
Each show, Donwill, Wyatt and a guest will present a classic film from the wonderful world of 70’s era Blaxploitation and Black cult cinema. The hosts will be mic’ed up providing commentary, lovingly poking fun at some of these films’ more absurd and problematic moments while also celebrating an important bygone era of Black independent cinema, whether that’s sharing obscure trivia or creating drinking games to highlight a film’s surprisingly large number of wide brimmed hats.
Wish I were in NYC for it!
Next up, friend of Exploding Giraffe Becky Cloonan wrote in to share about a killer comic that will be on stands next week, the day before Halloween.
Come Find Me is a selection of six spooky short stories by HamletMachine, Molly Mendoza, Vanessa Del Rey, Celine Loup, EM Carroll... Some of my favorite creators making comics today, their work always inspires me...I can’t believe they all took the time out of their schedules to join in! I’ve got a story in there too. I’ve never put a book like this together before, and I’m really proud of it!
Excellent stuff, highly recommended.
Last but not least, previous guest of “BKV Sabotages…” Pornsak Pichetshote has a very cool new project from Image Comics called The Horizon Experiment, “one-shot pilots for new series by creators of color starring characters of color in genre stories,” and he just sent me the latest stunner:
The next installment is Moon Dogs by horror novelist Tananarive Due and Kelsey Ramsay, about East African werewolves living in Miami, telling a story about being a minority within a minority. I think Kelsey is a huge supernova of a talent, and I’m an enormous fan of Tananarive’s. Her latest novel The Reformatory has been praised by no less than Stephen King on PBS, so having her do something original in comics is something I consider great for our medium.
The FOC (or “final order cutoff”) for that issue in next Monday, 10/28, so ask your friendly neighborhood retailer to save you a copy when you go in for your new comics this week.
Right, time for me to turn the controls over to Niko for his hottest, most VCR-centric Artopsy yet, but I’ll see you back here next Monday evening for more free Spectators AND your chance to win a signed copy of the brand new digest editions of Saga, in stores soon.
Peace,
BKV
Hello everyone,
Today, we’ll take a closer look at Spectators with some behind-the-scenes exclusive material. I know that some of you like to see the inked pages, for instance.
Let’s start with these two corresponding splashes. First, Brian’s script pages [which Niko brought to life with skill, creativity, and obsessive dedication to getting this and every weird moment exactly “right.” - BKV]:
Pages 300 and 301
PAGE 300, SPLASH
These next two pages aren’t technically a spread, but instead, two splash pages that MIRROR each other.
First up, over on Page 300, this is a full-color close-up of an old-fashioned PRONGED COAXIAL CABLE (being held in Young Val’s trembling hand on our left-hand side of this splash) as it approaches the little COAXIAL HOLE on the back of her mother’s VCR (on our right of the splash).
No Text
PAGE 301, SPLASH
And over on page 301, this is your interpretation of a moment from around the 7:11 mark of A Free Ride. We see a grainy black-and-white close-up of one of the JAZZ WOMEN on our left, as she’s about to be entered by the MUSTACHIOED MAN on our right, not so subtly reflecting the VCR “penetration” happening over on Page 300, if that makes sense?
1) Sound Effect (at bottom of image, a “sound bridge” to next page’s ELEVATOR): DING
In my first layout, the two compositions were not so similar and the view angle was different.
After a small discussion with Brian [Sorry, I’m insufferable.], I did this new version which seemed closer to the goal.
Here is the inked version of both pages, after I pushed in closer on the VCR at that new angle:
The VCR unit was a bit tricky to draw. It is very big in the shot and all these small technical parts had to be drawn in accurate perspective in order for it to not feel “off.”
I don’t like to use it much, but sometimes I have no better option than to work with 3D software. Sketchup in this case. I made this 3D VCR back based on a bunch of blurry pictures gathered on the web.
The vintage film shot is obviously based on a still from A Free Ride, a real adult movie produced in 1915, a link to which we’ll include below [along with many more mind-bending process shots from Niko! - BKV].