Tag Archives: pantheon books

Tom Hanks, Robert Zemeckis, and Eric Roth Team to Adapt Richard McGuire’s Here

Posted on by

The trio behind Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks, Robert Zemeckis, and Eric Roth, are reteaming to adapt Richard McGuire‘s graphic novel Here. Hanks will star, Zemeckis will direct, from a script by Roth and Zemeckis. The trio won Oscars for their work on Forrest Gump.

Here was published in 2014 by Pantheon Books and focuses on one room and the many people who have inhabited it over the years, from the past to the distant future. The story spans hundreds of thousands of years.

The graphic novel was praised when released and began as a 6-page release in Raw Volume 2 #1 in 1989. It’s considered a groundbreaking experiment and went on to influence creators such as Chris Ware.

Here

Graphic Policy’s Top Comic Picks this Week!

Posted on by
Transformers: Galaxies #1

Wednesdays are new comic book day! Each week hundreds of comics are released, and that can be pretty daunting to go over and choose what to buy. That’s where we come in!

Each week our contributors choose what they can’t wait to read this week or just sounds interesting. In other words, this is what we’re looking forward to and think you should be taking a look at!

Find out what folks think below, and what comics you should be looking out for this Wednesday.

Bad Reception #2 (Aftershock) – The first issue was fantastic with an Agatha Christie vibe and commentary on modern technology. Hoping for more of the same with the second issue.

Batman/Superman #2 (DC Comics) – The first issue setting up the next major story of corrupted heroes was surprisingly good. With an evil Shazam now staring at our heroes, this issue should be full of action and excitement.

Bloodshot #1 (Valiant) – It’s a new beginning for the classic character as Valiant begins to focus on the upcoming film.

Chris Ware’s Rusty Brown (Pantheon Books) – Chris Ware’s latest highly anticipated graphic novel that takes on nothing less than humanity and existence.

Criminal #8 (Image Comics) – Stil one of the best comics on the market. If you like crime stories, it’s a must get.

Frogcatchers (Gallery 13) – Jeff Lemire’s latest graphic novel is a surreal descent into one man’s psychosis.

Harleen #1 (DC Comics/DC’s Black Label) – Stejpan Sejic takes on Harley Quinn and we’re beyond excited to see the result.

Meyer (Humanoids) – An imaginary biography of the legendary Jewish mobster as he attempts to organize his last con job. It just sounds fun.

New Mutants: War Children #1 (Marvel) – Chris Claremont and Bill Sienkiewicz reteam for this never before told story of the New Mutants’ past.

The Plot #1 (Vault Comics) – A new horror story from Michael Moreci, Tim Daniel, and Josh Hixson in time for Halloween.

Powers of X #5 (Marvel) – We’ve been debating a lot internally about this series but no matter good or bad, we all want to see where this goes.

Red Winter #3 (Scout Comics) – We thought this was a straight-up gangster series set in Russia but the end of the second issue has our heads still spinning and wanting to see what’s next.

Relics of Youth #1 (Vault Comics) – Teenagers around the world deam of a mysterious island. Then one day they all wake up with tattoos only six of them can see. It’s a mysterious discovery of an unknown paradise.

SFSX #1 (Image Comics) – This was to be a part of Vertigo’s relaunch but not so much. That alone has us intrigued.

Snowpiercer: Extinction (Titan Comics) – A prequel to the fantastic sci-fi series. We love the originals and can’t wait for anything new in this universe.

Strikeforce #1 (Marvel) – Blade, Angela, Spider-Woman, Wiccan, the Winter Soldier, Monica Rambeau and Daimon Hellstrom join forces and that lineup alone has us excited.

Transformers Galaxies #1 (IDW Publishing) – IDW’s Transformers relaunch has a bit mixed in quality but a new series focused on the Constructicans has us intrigued.

Review: Hand-Drying in America and Other Stories

Posted on by

For those of us who grew up in cities, skyscrapers were our trees and city blocks were our forests. With the streets as our rivers and streams we went exploring. The public transportation, like the commuter trains me and my cousins took everywhere, were our boats to get where we are going.   That is why in New York, you can normally tell who the tourists are and what they are used to. Their eyes open wide as they take in the city, and usually smile, when most native New Yorkers would not care to make eye contact.

The thing that is most fascinating about out-of-towners is how much they know about our city that most New Yorkers won’t. We rarely get to “smell the flowers,” as most people on their commute are focused about getting to their destination. Now being out of the city myself, I understand the fascination. In Ben Katchor’s Hand Drying In America he tells a few stories about the city and some things all people take for granted.

In “The Faulty Switch,” he gives a concise history of the light switch through the market research conducted to enhance its evolution. In “One The Human Lap,” he takes us on a historical and psychological dive into how the phrase “the lap of Luxury” came to be. In “Chapter 713, Sec. 51a: PEEPHOLES,” he dissects the irrepressible obsession of how they work and how it gains at least one on the other end, a sense of privacy. In “Riot Gate Style,” he ponders what re big cities obsession with having these types of gates on storefronts. In “The Current Occupant,” we get a story about an elderly apartment dweller, who becomes unruly and eventually is taken to a detention center. In “The American Coin Wash Co.,” he examines humans fixations on fountains and peoples need to drop coins in them, as one such company makes a profit of it every night in this one tale. In the titular story, he dives in the psychology of hand dryers and the almost OCD need to feel dry hands. In the last story I will highlight, “The Tragic History of the Oversized Magazine,” he looks at how magazines went form large print size to an almost handbook size it is now.

Overall, the graphic novel is an excellent collection of the history and stories that surround all cities. Katchor digs into what makes up our surroundings, something every reader can relate to. The stories and histories as told by Katchor are both interesting and illuminating. The art by Katchor is simple yet elegant. Altogether, a graphic novel which should be added to everyone’s list.

Story: Ben Katchor Art: Ben Katchor
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

Review: Shoplifter

Posted on by

It seems like ages ago, when the show, Mad Men, aired on television, as it brought back a certain sophistication to the television landscape, reminding everyone that after a certain age, every man should at least have two good suits. Don Draper, certainly had more than two, and had his own indulgences. The show had great acting and great writing going for it, where they not only showed the world the glamorous side of those yesteryears but also gave the world reality of how it was for women and minorities.

The most prominent character who embodied this struggle, was the character played by Elisabeth Moss, Peggy Olson. She was the viewer’s entry into this world and the many rules that governed who climbs the corporate ladder. Each season, showed how any woman in her position, would subvert perceptions, challenge the status quo, and elevate herself because of her talents and not what society expected of her. In Michael Cho’s brilliant Shoplifter, we meet a woman, much like Peggy, with her own set of struggles, who eventually become the hero of her own story.

In the first few pages, we meet Corinne, a millennial, who has found herself stuck in the same job for the past five years, dreaming of a world where she could have used her degree. As, she is no part of the Boys club, like Peggy Olson, she finds her vices in other places, through shoplifting, a local convenience store several times a week. She endures her day to day, through shoplifting ang socializing with her friends after work, until one day, the local shop clerk, confronts her, which makes Corinne take stock on who she is and what she needs to do move forward with her life. By book’s end, Corinne leaves her, at peace, in full breath, ready to go to the next stop in her journey.

Overall, Cho takes the reader on a journey, that feels melancholy at first, but leads to place where the protagonist is the captain of her own destiny. The story by Cho feels like a procedural, but beautifully develops into a coming of age tale. The art by Cho is gorgeous. Altogether, ultimately Cho gives the reader, a protagonist, who is a mixture of Peggy Olson and Don Draper, making her a force of will.

Story: Michael Cho Art: Michael Cho
Story: 9.5 Art: 9.4 Overall: 9.6 Recommendation: Buy

Anders Nilsen’s New Graphic Novel “Tongues” Retells the Greek Myth of Prometheus

Posted on by

Set in a version of modern Central Asia, Anders Nilsen‘s Tongues is a retelling of the Greek myth of Prometheus. It follows the captive god’s friendship with the eagle who carries out his daily sentence of torture, and chronicles his pursuit of revenge on the god that has imprisoned him. Prometheus’ story is entwined with that of an East African orphan on an errand of murder, and a young man with a teddy bear strapped to his back, wandering aimlessly into catastrophe (readers may recognize this character from Nilsen’s Dogs and Water). The story is set against the backdrop of tensions between rival groups in an oil-rich wilderness.

Tongues is loosely based on a trilogy by the ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus, of which two plays are lost and only dimly reconstructed by historians. Key to the story of Tongues is Prometheus’ role as creator and protector of humanity. In flashbacks and in Prometheus’ conversations with the eagle and others, the book will touch on humanity’s deep evolutionary past and its complicated prospects for a future. Tongues is both adventure story and meditation on human nature.

Tongues will be serialized in large-format, full-color comics and self-published over the next few years by the artist himself, making it his most ambitious work to date. Issue one will be available for pre-order May 25th, 2017, and will ship August 1, 2017.

Upon the series’ completion collected editions will be published in the U.S. by Pantheon Books and in the U.K. by Jonathan Cape.