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3.10.05 You want comics? Fine.

You may have noticed I never talk about comics here. That's generally because all my (limited) energy in that regard goes to doing reviews on Ninth Art. Last week I talked about Lady Snowblood, and this week I rattle on about The Quitter, Bone Sharps, and Peng.

I went a little too New Journalism this week's batch of Ninth Art reviews (Grover Lewis is fairly spinning in his grave). They got pretty heavily edited, and deservedly so. For your amusement and delectation, here is my Peng review in its uncut edition:

"Picture this: I'm kicking around San Diego on the Thursday of SDCC after spending a week in LA, and I'm dead flat broke. The evening before was something colloquially known as The Night Of A Thousand Martinis (kids, don't try this at home) and both my wallet and my head were feeling pretty abused. Over at the Oni booth, I pick up pretty, shiny books and dazedly put them down again. I want both Scott Pilgrim 1 (I had Vol. 2 already) and Sharknife. I can't think. I look in my wallet: nothing but $10 and some dude's phone number. Finally I decide: Sharknife. I gave my money to the Oni folks and asked them about the status of a pitch I have in with them. They just laughed and said, "That'll be $9.99."

Well, it was love at first sight, me and Sharknife. It's the comic equivalent of a teenager on a sugar high, with action, love, a soliloquy on gangster fashion, and not a bad little soundtrack in the back. I've been waiting eagerly for Sharknife 2 as well as Corey Lewis' next project, Peng (an extreme kickball story). Featuring Lewis standbys like ridiculously awesome names ("Rocky Hallelujah"), talking vomit, great one liners, stupidly over the top videogame-style fight scenes, and hot chicks, Peng is the book you need to own. The world owes Corey Lewis a living, so go do your part. Check out a five-page preview here.

If you like Lewis' stuff, might I also suggest Kaneko Atsushi's ace manga Bambi and her Pink Gun? It's out from newish publishers Digital Manga, and is about a hot punk chick with a pink gun, a kid in tow, and a price on her head, and guest stars Puffy AmiYumi - it's a J-pop chickfest in 100-decibel glory.

Oh, the follow-up to my tale of Oni shopping woe? The next day, my mate the Famous Indie Artist drags me back to the stall, says howdy to the Oni lads, and walks off with 20 free books. Sigh. A gal just can't get a break. But still, that $10 was the best Hamilton I dropped in all of San Diego."

Compare.

( 12:30 PM )

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