The Art of Emerald City Comic Con

Somewhere along the way, Comic Cons (short for ‘Comic Book Conventions’) became something more than comics. The comics are still very much a part of every Con, but people like myself find themselves there for other reasons. Every year, the Emerald City Comic Con serves a need for art, and there’s no better place to find the best selection than there. My best friend and I usually come away with too much swag to carry comfortably, and this is just a sampling of our haul this year. The TopatoCo booth + beards Right through the main entrance is what we came to see first: the TopatoCo booth. Though more of a fortress or small city than a booth, and severely lacking in Nedroid, TopatoCo was overflowing with amazing webcomics, including Kris Straub, Jeff Jaques, and Kate Beaton. After this landmark was seen, it was time to find art we didn’t know we wanted yet. One of

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Be my Valentine with Japanese Pop Art & Indie made gifts

Not sure what to do for your Valentine? Maybe a day out and/or a unique gift would do the trick! Bizarre Bazaar SF and the New People Artist Village have teamed up for a lovely day out in San Francisco for you to peruse some interesting artwork and browse through lots of stalls for a little retail therapy (you can some of the vendors here). There will also be a free workshop to show you how to make a cute little yarn flower! The SUPERFROG Art Gallery will be hosting plenty of artwork for you to view, and are even holding a party for the opening at 5pm and finishing at 8pm. There will be free drinks and a DJ plus more at the party, but if you plan to attend then you should RSVP here to get in. There will also be a raffle held on the day which

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VIZ Signature debuts “GOGO MONSTER” manga!

The creator of BLUE SPRING and NO. 5, Taiyo Matsumoto, has a new manga making its way into the VIZ Signature collection – GOGO MONSTER. GOGO MONSTER centres around a Third Grader named Yuki Tachibana, and he lives in two worlds. In one world, Yuki is a loner. He is teased by his classmates and scolded by his teachers for his stories about supernatural beings that only Yuki can see. In the other world, these supernatural beings are battling for power opposite evil spirits who are making things in the students’ lives, at the school, and in nature itself chaotic. Gonzalo Ferreyra, Vice President Sales & Marketing, VIZ Media: “Taiyo Matsumoto’s clever stories and striking art have placed him among the best of a new generation of influential manga artists and we are privileged to present GOGO MONSTER to U.S. audiences,” says Gonzalo. “This story continues to show Matsumoto’s fascination

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Japanese Art & Culture coming to the NEW PEOPLE ARTIST VILLAGE

If you are looking for a day out, and you enjoy art exhibitions, then NEW PEOPLE ARTIST VILLAGE should be a place you make a beeline for in the near future. The TOKYO CREATORS MARKET is an exhibit that is going to take place as of November 21st and end some time in the new year. It features visual artworks from Japanese artists, some of whom (Junko Mizuno, ON ZA LINE, and Kim Songhe) will actually attend the sneak preview party of the show that runs from 6-8pm. This party is invitation only however, so if you would like an invite then you need to sign-up to the email newsletter at www.newpeopleworld.com. Artists whose works will be on display include: JUNKO MIZUNO (artwork pictured, right) Junko Mizuno has a huge following in the United States and is widely known for her provocative and strong feminine imagery. She has published numerous

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2nd Ben 10 Live-Action film coming to DVD

If you have not heard of Ben 10 by now, maybe it’s time to pay attention. Just about every kid I’ve seen that comes close to anything related to the series, whether it’s a DVD or a toy, has to have it despite their parents constant refusals. It is seriously bigger for them than Pokemon was for us. Anyway, it appears that Ben 10 has gotten a second live-action film titled “Ben 10: Alien Swarm”. It is directed by Alex Winters who most of us would know as Bill from the “Bill and Ted” movies. Way. The cast is different from the first live-action film and is lead by 4 young people (below), with Ryan Kelley in the role of Ben Tennyson. The story of the movie sees Ben break ranks of the Plumbers (the secret group he is in that battles alien forces) to assist Elena (a mysterious young

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The Secret World trailer and art

Funcom has released a new trailer and beautiful artwork for their MMO “The Secret World”. The concept art is absolutely beautiful. The illustrations cover the three secret societies – the Illuminati, the Dragon, and the Templars. While the game is only available to media at PAX, we should be getting screenshots from the actual game soon. In the meantime you can take a personality test at www.darkdaysarecoming.com to see what secret society you are suited for. Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

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Dragon Age: Origins goes to Penny Arcade for comic

Bioware has asked Gabe & Tycho from Penny Arcade to create a new 8-part web comic based on Dragon Age: Origins which starts today. The web comic will go over an encounter of a party of mage-hunting Templar knights and the “Witch of the Wilds” Flemeth and her daughter Morrigan. Basically showing what the world of Dragon Age: Origins is like. The first page of the series is up at www.dragonage.com. A new page will be revealed every week. Dragon Age: Origins comes out on November 3.

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VIZ Pictures releases “Traveling with Yoshitomo Nara”

VIZ Pictures have announced the first in a series of documentaries called the “NEW PEOPLE ARTIST SERIES” that follows popular modern Japanese artists who use their own world views and inspiration in creating pieces of artwork. “Traveling with Yoshitomo Nara” was directed by Koji Sakabe, who documented the events leading up to Yoshitomo Nara’s exhibition “AtoZ” in his hometown of Hirosaki, Japan. The film’s narration is done by Aoi Miyazaki, whom some of you would know as an actress and is best known for her role in the film version of “NANA“. Yoshitomo Nara’s work is commonly known by his cartoon-like girl images with characteristic big heads, chubby-faces and slanted eyes, and has gained a decent amount of international attention. His paintings and sculptures have been auctioned at Sotheby’s, with one of his sculptures (“Light My Fire”, 2001) being sold for over $1.1 million. Seiji Horibuchi, President and CEO of

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Halo Legends to get animated treatment by 5 Japanese Studios

Halo is getting the anime treatment with 5 Japanese studios each doing a short film about the Halo Universe. The BONES, Casio Entertainment, Production I.G., Studio 4°C, and Toei Animation anime studios are the chosen anime studios animating Halo Legends, a DVD anthology of seven short films. Microsoft isn’t giving up total control. Microsoft creative staff are in charge and the creative directors are Frank O’Connor of Microsoft’s 343 Industries, Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed), and Mamoru Oshii (Ghost in the Shell, The Sky Crawlers). J-Spec Pictures’ Joseph Chou (Appleseed) is producing. A trailer is planned for the Halo Panel today at SDCC while Xbox 360 users not at the con can view it on Xbox Live.

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KagoMegan’s Anime Expo Day 4 Final Adventure. :(

So it was finally over… Waaah. The last day always makes me want to make the most of it. So I tried! We scoured the Exhibit hall for deals, and our friends finally found our elusive DOA XVB Ayana figure. :> We went to the artists and director’s panel where the Japanese guests made their appearances to talkk about their work. I couldn’t wait to see [b]Akemi Takada[/b] up close and in person. She did the art on such projects as Urusei Yatsura. She was very funny and had a great sense of humor. She impersonated American anime fans and it was quite amusing. As she was leaving the panel, she fell from the stage and laughed at herself. The director’s panel featured [b]Masamitsu Hidaka[/b] (at least as far as we were concerned). The director of Pokemon and other famous anime spoke about his role as a director and his

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