Comic Book Creator #29 Winter 2023 (magazine review).
This edition of ‘Comic Book Creators’ is a real melting pot of interviews, so I’m picking out the points of interest. Let’s begin by discussing comicbook artist Herb Trimpe’s visit to the UK during the mid-1970s. Surprisingly, the error in the British names of the places stood out more. It’s not ‘Bodwin Moor’ but ‘Bodmin Moor’. I’m uncertain about American versions, but the real ‘Dartmoor’, not ‘Darkmoor’, served as the setting for ‘Hound of the Baskervilles’.
I had never heard of Devin Kalile Grayson before, and it’s even more uncommon for someone to become a successful comic book writer without any prior experience in comic books.
The second part of Mike Gold’s interview with Jon B. Cooke covers his time as a publicist at DC Comics during direct sales and the DC Implosion. It also gives a rare insight into staying at a job for a limited time before moving on.
The main interview is with comicbook writer Don McGregor, as Jon B. Cooke goes over his career with him. I have to confess that back in the day, although I read ‘Panther’s Rage’, I tended to take it all in stride. I agree with McGregor’s comment about the problems with introducing characters in a bimonthly schedule and keeping up with them all. If you want to know what he’s done and is currently doing, then this is a must.
The follow-up is from a 2016 East Coast Comicon with Don McGregor and Rich Buckler on stage together. Interestingly, Buckler resigned from the Black Panther after receiving an offer to play Deathlok. Given his freedom to act as he pleased, the deal was likely favorable. Don’t forget that much of the first ‘Black Panther’ film was based on his ‘Panther’s Rage’.
This TwoMorrows magazine focuses more on the people behind the comic books than the characters, so they cover all bases. It would be interesting to learn more about their storycrafting process, idea development, and whether, if they follow the Marvel method, they make any changes when they see the art. Most comics books tend to focus more on the art than the writing; if I were to make any changes, we should include more information on technique to better train upcoming writers.
GF Willmetts
May 2024
(pub: TwoMorrows Publishing, 2023. 82 page illustrated magazine. Price: $10.95 (US). ISSN: 2330-2437. Direct from them, you can get it for $10.95 (US))
check out websites: www.TwoMorrows.com and https://twomorrows.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=98_132&products_id=1661
