Off Registration
TM
June/July 2014
JOHNATHAN CLODE THE SLAM Off-Background
Ricky-Marcel Pitcher & Horacio Lalia
ART CLASS RED ICE Szymon Kudranski
part 3
Scott O. Brown & Horacio Lalia
Off Registration June/July 2014
Contents
Off-Background: Jonathan Clode pg 6
Comics:
The Coward’s War pg 10 The Slam pg 22 Art Class pg 28 Red Ice, part 3 pg 36
Eagle’s Eye Review by Scott pg 47
O. Brown
Comics Nation: The Gulf Coast by Scott pg 48
O. Brown
Founder & Publisher April Brown
Editor in Chief Scott O. Brown Reviews Scott O. Brown Photography & Design April Brown Digital Content April Brown Cover Art Daniel Govar Contributors: Jonathan Clode & Matt Soffe The Coward’s War
Szymon Kudranski Art Class
Ricky-Marcel Pitcher & Horacio Lalia The Slam
Scott O. Brown, Horacio Lalia, & Stuart Chaifetz Red Ice, part 3
OFF-REGISTRATION is trademark and copyright © 2014, Bronco Ink Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Free pdf subscriptions are available by contacting subscribe@off-registration.com with the word SUBSCRIBE in the subject line. For permission to reprint any portion of this magazine, please write Bronco Ink Publishing, LLC at publisher@off-registration.com. “The Coward’s War” copyright © 2014, Johnathan Clode & Matt Soffe, “Art Class” copyright © 2014, Szymon Kudranski, “The Slam” copyright © 2014, Ricky-Marcel Pitcher & Horacio Lalia, “Red Ice” copyright © 2012, Scott O. Brown.
Dear Loyal Readers, Thank you for downloading this month’s Off Registration! We have some cool stories, starting with a short from the World War I anthology, TO END ALL WARS. With the centennial upon us, we thought it would be a great opportunity to feature a great collection of stories exploring the conflict. This month, our stories include Ricky-Marcel Pitcher and Horacio Lalia’s THE SLAM, about a prison that’s not quite what it seems. Spawn and Batman artist Szymon Kudranski’s ART CLASS shows a good reason NOT to discourage a young artist. And in part three of RED ICE by Scott O. Brown and Horacio Lalia, the war for Mars escalates. We are gearing up for our next Kickstarter for THE BOOK OF DRAGONS. Keep an eye on this space or www.broncoink.com for our official launch! And don’t forget to visit our sponsors, FOS Comics, Single Bound Studios, and Inverse Press! Sincerely, April Brown Publisher/Owner
by: April Brown
Off-Background: Jonathan Clode but I spent a lot of time looking at all sorts of comics to try and study what different writers did well and how they did it. 3) It seems that a good amount of your work has been in anthologies. Is there a reason you gravitate towards these types of projects? Not specifically, no. I started getting serious about writing around 2011 and realised how hard it is to get noticed, particularly for writers. Anthologies seem to
Jonathan Clode is the editor of TO END ALL WARS, an omnibus of 27 short comics stories based on actual events, characters, circumstances, incidents, myths or consequences of the Great War. TO END ALL WARS features the four theatres of war (land, sea, air and the home front) and spans four continents. We took advantage of some of his down time to ask him questions about his new anthology, and to see what else he’s up to. 1) How did comics become part of your world? I think it was when I was about 4. I had a book of black and white reprints of old Batman and Superman comics from the 1940’s. I remember all the characters met up on some sort of cruise ship and the idea of Batman and Superman fighting together just blew my tiny mind! From there I was hooked. I got really serious about them when my Grandmother took me to a city comic shop and I came out with the original Ninja Turtles books and a bunch of Tales from the Crypt reprints. Never really looked back. 2) When did you know that writing comics is something that you wanted to do as an adult? I started flirting with the idea of writing after dropping out of college. At first it was mostly plays and short stories, but I got back into comics after a brief hiatus in my mid twenties, and as I got serious about writing I figured it made sense to try writing for the medium that I love the most. It didn’t come too easily at first,
have more opportunities for people to get through the door, and they are the perfect way to learn the craft of comic book storytelling as they teach you that every panel and every word is precious, so you need to really consider what you do with them. If you can tell a good, concise, engaging story in 6 pages, you’ll be much better equipped to tackle something bigger further down the line. Lots of comic writers seem to start out with 100 issue epics mapped out in their heads. Personally I think it’s better to start with lots of little ideas and save the opus for when you’ve sharpened your skills.
4) I have noticed that you are involved with projects that give the unheard and forgotten a voice. Your upcoming project, To End All Wars, does just that. How did this project first start coming together? I wanted to say something about WWI that wasn’t the nationalistic lie that is sold by the British government, and wanted the British comics scene to offer its own commemoration. The intention was to show people there was a lot more to WWI than the typical falsehoods we’ve been fed over the years. An anthology seemed like the best way to do it.
You are mostly a writer, but in this project 5) you are wearing many different hats, writer and editor. Was it hard to switch between the two? There’s been more than a few heart attacks jumping from one role to another, but a lot of credit has to go to my co-pilot John Stuart Clark, better known as Brick. While neither of us had ever edited anything before, his wealth of experience working in comics of all kinds really helped me develop my writing, as well as learn how to juggle over 50 writers, artists and letterers and keep them all happy while we were doing it. It’s been an astonishing experience, but certainly not one you’d take on lightly! If anything, editing really served to make me more objective about my own work and not be too precious about things. Ego’s and comic books just aren’t
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natural bed fellows! What makes this project stand out against 6) the other war anthology books that are out there? TO END ALL WARS was designed to show multiple facets of a conflict that really was global in scale. We reflect the war in Africa, show the viewpoint of the ‘enemy’ and take several familiar perspectives and give them unfamiliar faces. Most WWI comics, and they are very few and far between, tackle the subject from a particular viewpoint. I’d hope that when people read our book they’ll be fascinated and horrified to realise just how many lives were destroyed by what Harry Patch, the last surviving British combatant, called ‘organised mass murder.’ 7) Is it true that this anthology is non-profit and the money is being giving to a charity? What charity are you supporting? £2 from every copy goes to Médecins Sans Frontières. They have projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic diseases. When you consider the devastation WWI wrought upon the world, this seemed like the right thing to do. 8) Once this project is finished do you have any more stories or books coming out in the future? I’ve just finished working on a story for a Pearl Jam comic anthology called No (Comics) Code. That was a dream job as Pearl Jam are my all time favourite band. It’ll be on Kickstarter very soon. I’m also working on a comic with Brick about the care system in the UK, specifically in relation to people with learning disabilities. Long term I’ve got an ongoing project that I’ve been working on with To End All Wars artist Shawn Wagner. We’re working on the first issue and hope to pitch to various publishers by the end of the year. And I promise I’ve not planned out 100 issues yet...honest. Thank you for speaking with us, Johnathan!
Contact: editor@broncoink.com
If you are interested in exploring TO END ALL WARS, you can pre-order a copy at: http://www.amazon.com/End-All-Wars-John-Clark/ dp/1908030135 Need convincing? Check out the selected story this issue.
The Coward’s War
Writer: Jonathan Clode Artist: Matt Soffee Letterer: Jim Campbell
The Slam
Writer: Ricky-Marcel Pitcher Artist: Horacio Lalia Colors: Caro Azadte Letters: Scott O. Brown
THE SLAM
Written by Ricky-Marcel Pitcher Art by Horacio Lalia Colors by Caro Azadte Lettered by Scott O. Brown
WELCOME TO SECURE FACILITY X-94, WE CALL IT THE SLAM. STATE OF THE ART--
GET YOUR DAMN HAND AWAY FROM ME. |’M NOT HERE TO MAKE FRIENDS.
AND THOSE DROIDS--GET THEM TO BACK THE HELL OFF. |’M GODDAMN GENERAL AUGUSTUS FRY, MY CLEARANCE LEVEL IS HIGHER THAN THE PRESIDENT’S! |'M HERE TO REVIEW YOUR SECURITY, NOT EXPERIENCE IT.
OF COURSE, GENERAL. WE’LL SKIP THE STANDARD CHECKS AND HEAD STRAIGHT INTO THE TOUR.
“TOUR” MY ASS! THIS IS A CRUCIBLE! IF | DON’T LIKE WHAT | SEE, | PULL YOUR FUNDING. THIS SINKHOLE SWALLOWS ENOUGH CASH EVERY YEAR TO FUND A WORLD WAR!
OK, SO THIS IS LEVEL ONE, NEW INMATE PROCESSING.
|’M ADMINISTRATOR COOPER, BY THE WAY. SUPERVISOR OF THE WHOLE-COULDN’T CARE LESS.
YOU’LL NOTICE THAT THE COLLARS NULLIFY ALL SUPER-HUMAN ABILITIES, MAKING OUR NEW GUESTS TOTALLY HARMLESS.
FASCINATING! |’M HERE TO SEE WHERE THE MONEY GOES!
HERE IS WORK YARD A. ELECTRIC POWERED INMATES SPEND EIGHT HOURS A DAY HERE, CHARGING INDUSTRIAL BATTERIES. ONCE PERFECTED THE POTENTIAL REVENUES ARE--
WORK YARD B. FORMER ‘MAD’ SCIENTISTS WORKING ON R&D.
INTERESTING.
MILITARY AND CIVILIAN APPLICATIONS.
OLD NEWS.
ANY BREAKOUTS?
THEY MAKE THEMSELVES SUPER WEAPONS AND TRY IT EVERY OTHER WEEK. THEY NEVER GET FAR THOUGH, THANKS TO OUR SECURITY DROIDS.
YARD C. 'PEPÉ GIGANTÉ' HERE THROWS SENSITIVE ITEMS INTO THE SUN. NUCLEAR WASTE, ETC.
CLEVER. BUT WHAT STOPS HIM FROM HURLING IT INTO A DAMNED CITY?
FOR SAFETY, NINETEEN IN TWENTY ARE DUMMIES. ALSO, WE KEEP HIM IN LINE WITH THE THREAT OF--
WE KEEP FIREPOWERED PRISONERS IN AN INDUCEMENT CHAMBER CANNON. VERY EFFECTIVE.
YOU JUST KEEP THEM CHAINED DOWN IN A CHAMBER ALL DAY, THEN SHOCK THEM INTO A FIRE-POWER REFLEX WHEN YOU NEED IT?
TARGETING WITH MORE ‘INDUCEMENTS’?
ALL MURDERERS AND WORSE, GENERAL. IT'S COSTLY TO IMPRISON SUPER-INDIVIDUALS, THIS IS HOW WE RECOUP IT. SHALL WE MOVE ON?
YARD D. SEVERAL OF OUR INMATES IDENTIFY AS ‘MAGICAL’ IN NATURE. WE KEEP THEM HEAVILY NULLIFIED, BUT ALLOW REJUVENATION POWERS. WE’RE TARGETING THEM TO PERFECT 'RESURRECTION'.
SADLY, THEIR KIND DON’T FEAR PAIN OR EVEN DEATH. EVENTUALLY WE REALIZED THAT THE THREAT OF RITUAL CORPSE DESECRATION WAS THEIR ONLY FEAR. THAT HAS PROVED QUITE THE MOTIVATOR.
LOOK ADMINISTRATOR, THE PENTAGON KNOWS THAT YOU CAN MAKE A FEW BUCKS POKING TEST TUBES UP THESE GUYS ASSES AND SELLING WHAT COMES OUT. |’M HERE TO SEE THIS ALL SINGIN’-N-DANCIN’ SUPER MAINFRAME YOU’RE SO PROUD OF. SO, LETS SKIP AHEAD. VERY WELL.
THIS IS IT, THE SUPER COMPUTER, THE HEART OF EVERYTHING HERE AT THE SLAM.
THIS IS IT, THE HEART OF ALL YOUR TORTURE AND EVIL, THIS IS THE MECHANISM OF YOUR OPPRESSION?
FOOL! | STOLE A MAN’S SKIN, AND YOU LET ME WALK INTO THE HEART OF YOUR PRISON!
BLAST HIM.
DROP ALL PROJECTIONS EXCEPT MINE.
WHAT YOU’RE IN THE HEART OF IS A PRISON CELL, DESIGNED ESPECIALLY FOR YOU. DID YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN JUST SNEAK IN AND SET ALL YOUR CRIMINAL BUDDIES FREE?
YOU STUPID, SUB-HUMAN SCUM. NOT A SINGLE ATOM GETS IN OR OUT OF MY PRISON UNCHECKED. YOU'RE MINE NOW. WELCOME TO THE SLAM!
THEN BLAST HIM AGAIN, AND COLLAR HIM.
THE END
Art Class
Story & Art by Szymon Kudranski Edited by Jon Goff Lettered by Scott O. Brown
www.szymonkudranski.com @SzymonKudranski
Red Ice, part 3
Writer: Scott O. Brown Artist: Horacio Lalia Colors: Stu Chaifetz Letters: Scott O. Brown
TO BE CONTINUED...
Eagle’s Eye Review By: Scott O. Brown Scott O. Brown is filling for Paul Hanna this month. Check back next issue of more of his insightful reviews, but in the meantime, here are a few thoughts on TO END ALL WARS.
TO END ALL WARS Edited by: Jonathan Clode & John Stuart Clark Introduction: Pat Mills Story & Art: Various Soaring Penguin Press Cover Price: $29.99 “This anthology is important because A Very British Lie is currently being perpetrated about World War One...”
Jonathan Clode and John Stuart Clark have made sure to bring it to our attention in the comics anthology TO END ALL WARS. Every story explores a different facet of the violence, propaganda, and lives touched by the war. Many stories sit on the font lines, while others dwell in the background, giving perspectives of those manipulating or surviving the war away from the front lines. Some stories hit upon the psychology of war. “Live and Let Live” is one such story, envisioning a brief interaction between British and Prussian troops. The Live and Let Live system was a coping mechanism used on both sides of the trenches, where cursory shots would be taken to assure the commanding officers that the war pressed on, when in actuality, the soldiers on either side pulled their shots to ensure as much mutual survival as possible. Human moments like this are what makes the collection work. Another stand-out story is “Dead in the Water,” exploring hubris and guilt in the face of U-boat attacks, while others such as “No More Than Cattle” touch on the affects of the War on the African continent. The artwork in TO END ALL WARS is a crosssection of modern independent and mainstream styles, with the underground cartoonish bent of Brick’s story, “Dedication”, launching the collection as it explores the horrors of The Great War. Loose, jagged linework permeates the book, giving stories a rough, lived-in feeling, while lush illustrations and gray watercolors balance out the styles.
We don’t talk about World War I all that much any more. It was a brutal, violent affair that more than any other conflict of the 20th Century, laid the groundwork for much of the violence that came afterward.
With a powerful anti-propaganda message from Pat Mills in the collection’s introduction, TO END ALL WARS is a numbing drumbeat of death and destruction, survival and hope, culminating in one of the most interesting collections of World War I stories available today.
Comics Nation: The Gulf Coast
by Scott O. Brown Living on the Alabama Gulf Coast, a stone’s throw from both Mississippi and Florida, comics professionals have often been left to their own devices from their peers on the East and West Coasts. That’s not to say the industry hasn’t seen its fair share of talent from here. Artists like Steve Butler, Mitch Byrd, and Mike Grell, have made their home in the South for decades, while making their impact on the artform. So with the explosive growth of the comics industry and its attendant increase in talent and trade shows, we took a few weekends to explore a longstanding local, and a new regional show on the Gulf Coast. PENSACON On February 21-23, the first PENSACON launched in Pensacola, Florida. Held at the Pensacola Civic Center,
Rachels. Their focus of the show was their new book EYES OF THE HURRICANE. Other exhibitors included Three Alarm Comics of Biloxi, Mississippi, storyboard artist Craig Holloway, and Geoffrey Gwin, who recently finished work on a commercial staring the cast of the old Batman tv show. Beyond comics, a majority of the exhibitors had heavy emphasis on vintage toys, and of current media properties, ATTACK ON TITAN, DR. WHO, and WALKING DEAD proved the most popular. The only true downside was that mature and “adult” content was mixed amongst more family friendly fare on the show floor, requiring a bit more vigilance on the part of parents in attendance. The attendees were upbeat, excited to have the cultural outlet come to the area. The show attendance was approximately 11,000 with 39% of attendees coming from outside the Pensacola area. Pensacon had a total economic impact of $1,408,108, giving it a strong foundation for future growth.
with hotel accommodations at the Crowne Plaza Pensacola Grand hotel, Pensacon is the first independent regional comics show of its kind on the Gulf Coast. Among its guest included comics book icon Neal Adams of BATMAN fame, NEXUS co-creator and writer Mike Baron, Buffy actor Nicolas Brendon, and comic book artists Steven Butler, Mitch Byrd, Jason Craig, John Dell, and the renown Dave Dorman among many others. Of the exhibitors, standouts included Inverse Press, promoting their current Kickstarter for THE ABSENTEE along with their line of comics. Writer and publisher Kevin LaPorte was in attendance, along with Amanda
Of note, $545.20 was the average total spend from visiting attendees from outside of Pensacola with $176.06 being the average total spend from resident attendees within Pensacola. Impressively, 98% of attendees that said they would return for Pensacon 2015. Their next show is February 27 through March 1, 2015, and you can find more information at www. pensacon.com. MOBICON XVII Longtime residents of Mobile and enthusiasts of the Gulf Coast con circuit know that MOBICON is Mobile, Alabama’s premier local comics and gaming convention. Much like Pensacon, the organizers at MOBICON have worked to position the show for growth in the
Submissions Guidelines:
face of the surge in popularity that comics culture has experienced. MOBICON is a not-for-profit organization which consists of a Board of Directors and Governors who volunteer their time to put on an annual three-day convention for fantasy, science fiction, horror, comic book, anime, and gaming fans. Held at the Renaissance Plaza Hotel in downtown Mobile, the change in venue was made to prepare MOBICON for future growth. In fact, attendance was just over 1,000, a record for the local event. Gulf Coast mainstays such as Inverse Press, and Steve Butler all made appearances, with FOS Comics anchoring the comics culture and several gaming companies offering a wide array of RPG’s for the fans. April and I were honored with an invitation to be featured guests, where we debuted KRANTZ by Jorge Morhain and Horacio Lalia, as well as gave various talks on comics creation and publishing. Larry Elmore of Dungeons & Dragons fame was also in attendance as a featured guest with former DARK SHADOW stars and several other comics and fantasy publishers and creators from the area. The MOBICON audience is a solid split of comics fans and gamers, with an ever-growing anime sub-culture coming into its own. A wide variety of panels filled the program hours, covering everything from digital comics publishing to ATTACK ON TITAN fan panels. Their next show is in May 2015, and you can find more information at www.mobicon.org
We are always looking for short stories of all genres! Your submission should contain the following 1. A typewritten cover letter with all contact information (name, e-mail address, address, and phone) clearly printed on the TOP of the page. Introduce yourself and move on with it, we don’t need your résumé. Also, if you DO NOT include an e-mail address with your submission, you WILL NOT receive a reply. Also, this is a good spot to give us a short, one-sentence description of your story. 2. Email FULLY COMPLETED pages. We’d like to see your completed story if it is twelve pages or less. If it’s longer, show us AT LEAST twelve pages that are complete and lettered, and let us know how long it is. If we like it, we’ll talk. We prefer full color or gray tones to straight black & white. We won’t turn down something brilliant, but keep that in mind. 3. If submitting a serial, send over a ONE PAGE, synopsis of the overall STORY. We want a synopsis of the ENTIRE series or story arc not what is just happening in the pages that you send over. As concisely and as succinctly as you are able, TELL US THE STORY, make us interested, and KEEP IT SHORT! We don’t want a lot of serials, so to be honest, unless you are the second coming of Neil Gaiman (or Neil himself), please stick to short stories. Send your submissions to: submissions@off-registration.com Want your comics covered in a future issue of Off Registration? Email editor@offregistration.com with your query.