Greeting programs!
If you’ve been in the Illini Union Bookstore (not to be confused with the Illinois University Bookstore) this past week, you may have seen a book display of spring leisure titles picked by staff members. I’ve got my own little section! No, 70% of these aren’t comics, but they are good, fun reads. Some are light-hearted, but some will f^$% you up.
Sister Act 3: This Time The Act Is For Real
Archaia Studios Press continues to release diverse titles. A recent series, The Sisterhood, focuses on an order of nuns whose job is to protect mankind by trapping demons in their body. Written by Christopher Golden (Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire) and Thomas Sniegoski (Owlboy), this is an action-packed mystery story filled with Christian mythology.
I spoke with both authors about the series. Read the rest of this entry »
I Got 99 Problems But A Vamp Ain’t One
I’m a fan of vampires in all their forms; from the B-movie clichés of Buffy to the oversexed “Jean Claudes” of Laurell K. Hamilton. I’ve taken a class of the history of vampires and have dozens of books and comics featuring these undead fiends.
But what irks me is that when I ask many people about vampires - those who claim to be fans of the genre - have not even read Dracula. They’ve seen Interview with a Vampire and maybe read I Am Legend. Big whoop, I say. Vampires are part of a larger tradition than any one author and their legacy is rooted in the myths of Eastern Europe - myths of horrible, homicidal beasts that lurked in the night.
Author David Wellington gets that. I interviewed Mr. Wellington regarding his new novel, 99 Coffins, a novel that gets back to roots of vampire fiction. Read the rest of this entry »
posted by Matt Knicl at 7:00 pm.
Cut It Out
I’m a comic book guy, so why am I giving my two bits about a movie? Well, many people know that Sweeney Todd the movie is based on the Stephen Sondheim Sweeny Todd musical from the late 70s and 80s. What fewer know is the musical was based on an obscure 1840 penny dreadful titled The String of Pearls.
Wikipedia attributes the creation of Sweeney Todd to Thomas Peckett Prest, a hack writer that plagiarized the works of Charles Dickens among writing other penny dreadfuls. The original String of Pearls was published by Edward Lloyd, a man constantly on the run for plagiarism and other illegal enterprises. When Lloyd published a book, according to Dick Collins in his introduction to the Wordsworth Edition, he would buy a story cheap from the original writer and then have his hacks, Prest and J.M. Rymer (supposed creator of Varney the Vampire) creatively edit the work so they could pass it off as their work. Read the rest of this entry »
I went to Kansas to visit family this Christmas and I was giddy to learn that Santa found my hotel and left me gifts in the night! How did he know I wasn’t at home? I feel bad for not leaving him cookies, and his reindeer carrots!
To make up for this, I decided to research Santa’s mythology and I was surprised to see that Jolly Old Saint Nick has snicked his way into several relatively unknown fictions. I don’t know which ones are real (I’ll have to wait until next year to ask Santa my one question to know for sure), but these stories shed new light on Father Christmas. Read the rest of this entry »
My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.