"If you ain't want him kilt, why'd you leave him with ME?"

(l to r) Don Cheadle and Denzel Washington from Devil in a Blue Dress
today I watched Devil in a Blue Dress on cable (satellite actually, but that's not the point, is it?). while the headliner of the movie was the excellent-as-usual Denzel Washington, what makes this movie noteworthy for me -the reason i've seen it so many times- is the film's REAL star: Don Cheadle, whose character Mouse Alexander brought a bit of Texas gangster into the noirish gumshoe flick. (read more)

keepin' it LOW KEY

Loki, god of Mischief by John Lucas

because YOU demanded it...

well, maybe not YOU, personally... but one of my friends on mySpace has been nagging me to hook up this Manchild:Birthday Boy promo piece as a tee-shirt so he can rock it. so, you know i can't resist the will of the people and stuff, so here it is! if you have no idea what Manchild is about, you obviously didn't buy the first issue of ghettoManga Quarterly (**cough** still on sale **cough), where i gave Birthday Boy chapter 1 it's magnificent full-color debut.
anyways, click the Manchild tag below for more info about the world's illest gun-toting toddler!
peace!
-gM

Cover Me! i'm goin' IN!!!

Cover artist extraordinaire Dave Johnson (100 Bullets) is takin' over the cover illustration for Unknown Soldier, one of my new favorite books, starting with issue 7 (shown here). failure to read this comic does not automatically mean you are stupid, but there may be a correlation... it's only on issue 3 people! get on board!
-ghettoManga.com
peep the sales pitch and cop the FREE preview here

Quote of the Day

"They just wanna ruin yo record,
but who's gonna post my bail?
well, If dude can brag about goin' to Jail,
Then why I can't brag About goin' ta college?
why i can't brag about havin' some knowledge?"
-Radamez

Black Ops...

click the pic for a free preview of War Machine #1 starring Jim Rhodes (Ya know, the brother in Iron Man played by Terrence Howard). i don't wanna give anything away, but... lots of stuff gets blowed up! and seein' as Rhodey sees himself as a soldier and not a superhero... well, let's just say not everyone makes it out of their tank before it blows... anyways, War Machine #1 hits comic shops on Friday January 2nd. COP IT!
uno.
-gM

Comicbook World #23

Illadelph resident James Cialella shot a man in the arm because his son would not stop talking during the Fincher joint The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. he then preceded to eat popcorn and watch the movie while everyone else fled the scene. the kid need not seek vengeance at the edge of a blade or anything... his dad's gonna live. and the toastmaster didn't even get to finish the movie... cop's hauled the film efficianado to the clink and charged him with attempted murder, aggravated assault and assorted weapons violations. now, i wouldn't normally wouldn't advocate gun violence over something so petty, but hey...
it's Fincher!

naw, dude needs to calm down though...
-gM

Santa Claws is a little late...

but better late than never, right?
okay, lame Christmas jokes aside
, Wolverine is shifting into high-profile in preparation for that movie he got comin' out in OH NUEVE (are YOU the last person not to see that new trailer? peep it here... y'welcome), Marvel got mad attention on Logan, includin' superstar creative team of Mark Millar and Steve Mcniven (Civil War) on the killer canadian's book craftin' his future history! here's the sales pitch: Fifty years ago the heroes of the Marvel Universe were massacred and as far as Old Man Logan is concerned, WOLVERINE died with them. During that final battle, something happened to Logan…something so traumatic that he hasn’t popped his claws since. Now Logan lives out his days a shell of a man, his warrior spirit long since crushed by the horrible weight of the secret he carries with him. What happened? Finally, the darkest chapter in Logan’s history can be told! MARK MILLAR and STEVE MCNIVEN’s character defining run continues!
Click the cover above for a preview of the January issue, a flashback to Wolverine's Final Battle... or click the cover below to sample Wolverine: Old Man Logan pt 1.uno
ghettoManga.com

Deviant of the Day

the Dog and the Sparrow by *elpinoy

ghettoManga Award Nominees...

well, here are the nominees for this year's ghettoManga Awards. thanks to everybody who sent me their nominations! i've written blogs about most of the nominees... check 'em out by clicking here. and scrolling down!
you can vote in the polls on the sidebar. i don't know if it will let you vote more than once per category or not, so vote as much as you can! you can always vote "other" and put your vote in the comments of this post too.
please let other people know, so we can get as many votes as possible!

Best Comic Award
Bayou
The Sword
All-Star Superman
Angel:Revelations
Umbrella Academy
Proof

Hardcover/TPB of the Year
(Trade Paper Back)

Thor
Logan
TrapDancing: The Aym Geronimo Collection

OGN of the Year
(Original Graphic Novel)

Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together
Wet Moon: Drowned In Evil
Amulet: The Stonekeeper
Joker
Aqua Leung
Sentences: the Life of MF GRIMM

Emcee of the Year

Jean Grae
Jay Electronica
Gift of Gab

Rapper of the Year

Talib Kweli
Nas
L'il Wayne
T.I.
Big Boi

Vocalist of the Year

Erykah Badu
Alicia Keys
T Pain
Georgia Ann Muldrow

HipHop/Rap Group of the Year

The Roots
Blu & Exile
Binkis Recs

Artist/Illustrator of the Year

Jim Mahfood
Lesean Thomas
Cully Hamner
Dave Johnson
Jason Pearson
Mike Hawthorne


Cartoonist of the Year

Ross Campbell
Bryan Lee O'malley
Jeremy Love
Chris Ware

Video of the Year

Get Busy
by the Roots
Sly Fox by Nas
Duck Boy by Jurassic 5
Gunfight by The Mighty Underdogs
Honey by Erykah Badu

Album of the Year

Rising Down
by The Roots
Untitled (the N-word) by Nas
Eardrum by Talib Kweli
Sharper Images by Jax (of Binkis Recs)
Los Angeles by Flying Lotus

Movie of the Year


The Dark Knight

Kung Fu Panda
Red Belt
Iron Man
Speed Racer


Champion of Children
Award

12 Comics (Learning Support Program)
Naruto
Ben 10


Man/Woman of the Year

Barack Obama
Nas
Derrick Coleman
Tyler Perry

okay, so the polls are open until December 31st. results will be announced here in February, and discussed in-depth in the next issue of ghettoManga Quarterly.
pre-order the winter issue of gMQ here for $7 with free shipping (regular price is $10)




or subscribe to one year (four issues) for $24.




-ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

Ho, ho, ho... now get back to work!

so i'm cranking these out pretty good. now, i know what you're thinking, and yes, i'm working on Christmas Eve. I work from home, okay? don't worry, my wife and daughter are sleeping, A Christmas Story is playing across the living room, and i'm lap-topping in my favorite chair. so all is right with the world...

anyways, the main character of this comic is hearing-impaired, so my writer sent me to this blog about deaf characters in adolescent literature, and lo-and-behold, they actually addressed deaf people in comics! here's a slideshow:

-gM

Comicbook World #22

okay, so this this Chinese dude was spanking his monkey...
wait, lemme rephrase that. Dude had a triad of monkeys trained to ride little motor bikes... i guess one of the monkeys wasn't representin', so the old coot gives him a sound thrashing, when the other monkeys rise up and fight back against the old guy, including snatching his cane and usin' it against him! my man JR Lemar posted the blog "Isn't this how Planet of the Apes got started" with more pictures and details!

it's the Thundercats, Yo...

Deviant Of The Day

Feliz realidad para todos (Merry Reality to All) by ~Aisidedpipol
the bottom translates roughly "40 million more in poverty in 2008 than 2007"
be thankful for what you have... and let's do better in '09!
-gM

Comicbook World #21


okay, so i know Dick Cheney is a super-villain, but which one is he?
Dr Doom? The Puppet Master? Kaiser Sosa? the High Evolutionary? Ra'as Al Ghul? Red Skull? Hate Monger?

YOU be the Judge...
-gM

What's Up With Cuba?


i'm sayin' though...

Sistine Cap

my man J-Biggs of Unkommon Kolors proves he is one of the illest renaissance man type cats to EVER do it... he shows his love for the works of Michealangelo by painting the master painters most famous work, the Sistine Chapel ceiling joint, on the brim of his fitted! in his own words"
"100% painted. No markers. No printing. No cheating. Just acrylic paint and a sketch."
J does all kindsa custom and printed gear as part of vaunted Dallas "Skurban" art crew, Unkommon Kolors. shower him with praise (and money), and he will favor you with his glory.
uno.
-gM

Love is In The Air

hood super star Charlie "Fab" Goubile has just about wrapped up Blackbird: Growing Pains #2 (of 3), and according to this teaser panel from part 2, the young vigilante will take a little time off from tappin' jaws to try and tap something else...

word is part 2 will be out next month, so don't use up ALL your hard earned credit trying to buy the love of your family and friends... save some for self!
if you slept on the first issue, peep my review here...
uno.
ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

a FOOD ONE-Mike Huddleston Collabo

Some New York Rap Shit by Jim Mahfood and Mike Huddleston.
Limited Edition Giclee Print 13"x19", signed by the artists. only 100 were made. if you want one, get at Mike Huddleston with your $40 bucks (plus $5 for domestic shipping). and be QUICK about it! brotha got bills...
uno.
-gM

chuggin' along...

i haven't been posting as much as i'd like because i'm getting a lotta freelance work, including this project. it's a big one, so get used to seeing new pages for the next few months... incidentally, i think i'm getting faster, which is a good thing too! i expect to do a lot more of my own comics in '09 since i'm working the kinks out on this project, which i'm drawing, coloring and lettering... but i'm trying hard to keep up with the blog and magazine (can't forget about my people!). anyways, feel free to let me know what you think.

uno.
samax.
-ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

for the Love of the Craft

now this is something different! click the pic for a 9 page preview! here's the Sales Pitch from CBR:
"BOOM! gives horror legend H.P. Lovecraft’s original prose poem NYARLATHOTEP new life in this handsome hardcover, featuring illustrations by Eisner winning Chuck BB (Black Metal)! This is a must-have for Lovecraft fans. Lovecraft’s original prose poem is reprinted in its entirety and visually interpreted by one of comics’ most exciting new talents."
slide by your comicshop or cop Nyarlathotep here!
uno.
-gM

Rakim Performance...


Rakim at the Knitting Factory, courtesy of DJ DelzTV.
ghettoManga.com
comics.hiphop.news.art.culture

in the J.U.N.G.L.E.

that dude Frank Cho has a hardcover dropping called Jungle Girl:Season 1. collecting the series from Dynamite.
the sales pitch:
"infused with everything Cho fans want to see - beautiful women, thrilling adventures, and, of course, dinosaurs...
Jana the Jungle Girl races to save a group of intruders into this strange land - a land filled with dinosaurs, prehistoric men and much, much more! Each issue reveals more clues about the nature of Jana, and of the island itself... Featuring a cover by Cho, this hardcover collection features issues 0-5 of the series along with a complete cover gallery featuring the art of Cho and Batista along with sketchbook material from Batista... "click the pic to read the first chapter for free, you lucky dog! you can order the hardcover on Amazon.com (here).
uno.
ghettoManga.com

the OTHER dynamic duo joining the cast of Iron Man?

word has it Hawkeye and Black Widow will be appearing in Iron Man 2, and if that doesn't make you geek out, you clearly haven't read The Ultimates, where Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch made the duo look like Neo and Trinity! in this version of the Avengers, Nick Fury uses Clint and Natasha as a secret black ops team that shoots first and asks questions later, if at all! they pretty much take out a whole building full of office workers (you later find out they were world-conquering aliens in disguise... but they were just as dead!) on their own, in a hail of arrows and bullets that has to be seen to be believed!
-gM

get 'er done!

here's a page from my new freelance project.
it's a teen sci-fi comic... you know, girls, politics, aliens... the usual.
nah, it's hot! very well-written with a great multi-cultural cast. now if i can do a good job on the art!
as an experiment, i just scanned breakdown sketches i made of the story on typing paper and drew the art right in photoshop. it was much faster than drawing it the traditional way (the project is huge, so speed is a big issue)!

the client has yet to see these, so hopefully they will like what i'm doing...
uno.
ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

Tails to Astonish!

i first picked up Mice Templar based on the cartoony brilliance of Micheal Avon Oeming (Powers, Hammer of the Gods), but eventually became enthralled in this story of village mice slaughtered and carted off into captivity by larger, more militaristic rats and the coming of age tale of young Karic, who receives visions from the gods that Wotan has chosen him to restore the order of the fallen Templar Knights.
writer Bryan Glass does a good job wielding medieval mythology in a way that it inspires wonder by intertwining the awe that mice would naturally have for larger animals like snakes, cats, and owls with the phenomena of mysticism, religion and prophecies. i'm not big on Lord of the Rings fantasy knock-offs or funny animal comics, but Oeming and Glass put such a stamp on these characters that it just comes off as good, old-fashioned world building!
i just read issue #6, which completes the first story arc, but The Mice Templar Volume 1: The Prophecy is already available in hardcover. as one of those who read Mice Templar as individual comics, i will say it actually reads better as a collected volume. plus, the hardcover has tons of DVD-style extras too.
definitely one of the best comics of 2008
COP IT!
-gM

celebrated Business Model

Comic book artist and hip hop enthusiast Skottie Young (Wizard of Oz, New Warriors, Human Torch) waxes philosophical on his blog about the current state of hip hop, and his love for the classics, as evidenced by this fly EPMD warm-up ... this series of blogs is so ghettoManga i just HAD to link it!
holla
-gM

Lame Duck Season!


"This is a kiss goodbye you dog!"... the words of an apparently disgruntled reporter who threw both his shoes at President Bush in Iraq yesterday.
"All I can say is it was a size 10..." joked the lame duck republican about the incident. "This is part of living in a free country..."

a fitting episode in the most hilarious presidency of our lifetime...
-gM

happy monday, People...


Ducky Boy by Jurassic 5
hope this helps...

Wolverine Trailer (UPDATED!)


X-men Origins: Wolverine trailer.
i saw Wolvie, Sabertooth, Gambit, and Blob... did i miss somebody?

Cannon Busters is coming

award-winning Cartoonist and illustrator Lesean Thomas (Boondocks, Ben 10, Arkanium) has been working on his creator-owned hip hop comics project Cannonbusters for a minute... well, the end is nigh. we'll see a full color Cannonbusters OGN in 2009. b'lee dat!
ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

Choose Your Weapon...

when a Hawaiian scientist invents wristbands that can create weapons out of hard-light, he needs a a hook to woo investors, so he uses a mythological Shan-Tao order of monks from stories his gramps usedta tell him. but the Wu Shi Fa- "the Way of the Weapon"- is just a myth, right? at least that's what he believes until he's attacked by the enemies of the Shan Tao seeking to wipe The Way of the Weapon off the face of the Earth for good! you can read The Weapon, a 96 page story (seperated into 4 issues) for FREE on drunkDuck.com
holla!
-ghettoManga.com
comics.hipHop.news.art.culture

Comic Book World #20

i was checking out Ultraviolet Underground and found out that the US Government has granted $4 million dollars to a UC Irvine research project to create Synthetic Telepathy for "paralysis and stroke victims"... oh, and there might be military applications, too...
“Thanks to this generous grant we can work with experts in automatic speech recognition and in brain imaging at other universities to research a brain-computer interface with applications in military, medical and commercial settings,” according to lead researcher Michael D’Zmura, chair of the UCI Department of Cognitive Sciences.
Unlike Professor X's mutant-locating Cerebro, you won't need telepathic powers of your own to use this technology, but that doesn't mean just ANYBODY can use it. “Such a system would require extensive training for anyone using it to send and receive messages,” D’Zmura says.
well, thank God for that!
or Magneto, if you prefer...
(read more about this here)
ghettoManga.com
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more (and more) Comicbook Movies



six words: Fincher buys rights to The Goon

so I CREEP, yeaaaah, I keep it on the DOWN low...

Incognito #1 is coming in January from the same team that brings that fire on books like Criminal and Sleeper, Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips...
the Sales pitch: "What if you were an ex-super villain hiding out in Witness Protection… but all you could think about were the days when the rules didn’t apply to you? Could you stand the toil of an average life after years of leaving destruction in your wake? And what if you couldn’t stand it? What would you do then?"
click the pic to peep an 11 page preview, then look for Incognito in stores January 2nd.
-ghettoManga.com
comics.hiphop.news.art.culture

ah, the Pre-Robin Givens days...

sketch of Iron Mike Tyson by samax (for the sketchbook Allstars sketchjam: Fighters). watercolor brush pens.
i've never been all that big into fighting, but you didn't need to be to dig Iron Mike when i was comin' up! he was like a super hero (or villain, depending on how you look at it...) knocking professional fighters unconscious before the popcorn was even ready! every comedian mentioned him... he had rappers writing songs about him... not the greatest boxer ever, but my personal favorite!
holla!
samax.
ghettoManga.com

KING ME!

i just finished reading King City by Brandon Graham... holy crap! this book is the joint! Joe is a Cat Master, like a Green Lantern, except instead of a power ring, he wields a cat that can manifest multiple different powers depending on the injections he gives it. although well-trained, Joe is a listless thief (a cat burglar, if you will) and drifter until he gets caught up in some drama and shit gets real!
Masterfully crafted by do-it-all creative monster Brandon Graham (Multiple Warhedz, Escalator), King City is JUST what you're looking for (i mean, you ARE reading a blog called ghettoManga)! this 192 page OGN dropped in '07 from Tokyopop... Brandon has since been tapped by Oni Press to do another Multiple Warhedz, and was 20 or so pages shy of completing King City 2 the last time i checked...
it's official! 2009 is gonna be TIGHT!!!
ghettoManga.com

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