FANTAGRAPHICS BOOKS
EDITOR: Eric Reynolds
32 pp., B&W, Free/FCBD
CONTRIBUTORS: Rick Altergott, Max Andersson, Peter Bagge, Marc Bell, Ivan Brunetti, Daniel Clowes, Sophie Crumb, Gilbert Hernandez, Jaime Hernandez, Michael Kupperman, Johnny Ryan, and Richard Sala
In the 1980’s Fantagraphics Books ran an in-house ad, which also appeared in other publications, in which they proclaimed that they published the world’s best cartoonists. Don & Maggie Thompson, publishers of the Comic Buyers’ Guide, a weekly newspaper dedicated to collecting comics and to comics industry nostalgia, took great issue with that. Two decades later, Don is dead, CBG hasn’t had the cache it once had in like… forever, and Fantagraphics can certainly be said to publish North America’s best cartoonists.
There is no comic book artist in the America’s better than Jaime Hernandez; that’s a fact. Only Chester Brown and Adrian Tomine, both published by Drawn & Quarterly, approach the immense writing talents of Gilbert Hernandez, Peter Bagge, and Daniel Clowes. And two other Fantagraphics super macks, Chris Ware and Robert Crumb, aren’t even in FUNNY BOOK #1, Fantagraphics’ first contribution to Free Comic Book Day. That’s to say nothing of the cartoonists’ cartoonist, the sublime Rick Altergott, who contributes a two small treats to this book.
Funny Book #1 is an excellent sampler, a grand anthology of the superb material available from the Seattle-based publisher. Comic stores that want to cater to the kind of clientele that goes to Barnes & Nobles, Borders, and Books-a-Million would do well to make sure their adult readers get a copy of this. There is something here for every “of age” reader – from the reader who loves fast food style entertainment to the literary lovers. A+
Ball Peen Hammer
A dark, depressing, grim and grimy, post-apocalyptic, and intelligent graphic novel by novelist, playwright, screen writer, film maker and Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Adam Rapp.
Beasts of Burden #1
It stars puppies, supernatural investigative puppies. It's as bad as it sounds.
Transformers – All Hail Megatron # 15
This issue, Prowl shares his inner turmoil and plans to have the Autobots defeat their opponents the Decepticons by planting the seed of order in the midst of the Autobots
Athena #1
The Ancient Greek Goddess of Wisdom, War, The Arts, Industry, Justice, and Skill is reborn in the modern world.
