Caleb Orecchio here with thoughts on A. Degen’s Soft X-Ray/Mindhunters, and other news.
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A. Degen’s work is always enjoyable and fun to look at. The drawing is loose, but not sloppy. The images are dense, but not overwhelming. The wordless narratives are simple, yet not unsophisticated. Soft X-Ray/Mindhunters, from thee Koyama Press (May 2018), continues the trend. Degen’s work often brings to mind Moebius’ Airtight Garage, specifically the element of spontaneity and worlds-within-worlds locations, with a dash of early Tezuka minimalism. In the case of this book, particularly in scenes concerning virtual reality, I sniff a whiff of Frank Miller’s Ronin. Like Ronin, or it’s most famous exploitation, The Matrix, Mindhunters is all about dreams versus reality and the dreams within dreams. I think.
It’s a big fat book, weighing in at nearly 400 pages. Would I have preferred if it was serialized over 4 or 5 floppies? Yes. I think the amalgamation of separate-yet-intertwining stories would have benefitted from some time between them, some tension. However, I am painfully aware that a comics publisher is more likely to publish a giant tome, rather than a handful of pamphlets these days. Despite my preferences, the big book delivers the goods.
To me, the love for one’s work really comes off these pages and emits a warmth and comfort akin to Brandon Graham’s best comics. Degen’s strengths as a cartoonist is that the work is always consistent and fully developed. I don’t sense that anything has been accidentally left out. Humor and imagination come together to make cotton candy for the eyes. I am seldom let down by an A. Degen book. The work is always worth its salt.
Look for Soft X-Ray/Mindhunters in May 2018.
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if you don’t know, now you know
- Tom Spurgeon talks to WonderCon spokesperson, David Glanzer.
- Rob Clough reviews Present by Leslie Stein at Your Chicken Enemy.
- Box Brown is the latest guest on Process Party.
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Announcing the Spring Semester of thee Santoro Correspondence Course for Comic Book Makers
8 weeks! $500 bux! 10 spots available!
Rolling start date because of spring break – start as early as March 30th 2018.
Deadline to apply is April 12th.
Read all about the course HERE and email santoroschool@gmail.com for more details or to apply.
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Suzy and Cecil – 3-26-2018 – by Frank Santoro