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Crimebuster

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Journal Entries posted by Crimebuster

  2. Crimebuster
    I took a small break from working on my comic The Crimebusters to finally finish editing the next episode of my podcast. This is the second part of a four part look at Marvel's original Star Wars series from 1977 through 1986. In this part, we discuss issues #11-38. Enjoy!
    https://classiccomics.podbean.com/e/classic-comics-forum-podcast-22-stars-wars-by-marvel-comics-part-2/
     
    Now, back to work on the comic!
  4. Crimebuster
    I'm excited to announce that you can now read a sneak preview of the first six pages on my website here!
    I've also created a Facebook page if anyone is interested.
    I'm going to be creating a mailing list too, but I haven't quite got that figured out yet. But if anyone wants to be put on it, the website has a "Contact Us" button you can hit to send me a message. I'll be streamlining this at some point.
    Right now I am expecting to have the whole 30 page story completed in about 3 weeks. I have 9 pages done, and 21 left to add inking and shading to. I'm tentatively aiming for the first week of June to launch the Kickstarter, but we'll see — I'll definitely be announcing more about that as soon as it's solidified. 
    I'm going to have two variant covers, but this is what the regular cover will look like (more or less - I may do some minor tweaks as we go):
     

  5. Crimebuster
    In the latest entry of my production blog, I give a prgoress report and share some line work in progress for page 4, along with a discussion of some of my storytelling influences. Enjoy!
    https://crimebustercomics.com/2019/01/10/progress-update-steranko-and-the-soviet-montage-theory/
    Here's a look at page 4, in process, which you may notices has a Steranko influenced layout with the sequence of small panels (which will be dialogue free when I get to that point).
     

  6. Crimebuster
    In the latest entry of my production blog on the first issue of The Crimebusters, which is my continuation of Chuck Chandler's adventures from Boy Comics, I discuss font choices, and I also give a preview of the first finished page! I have the linework and dialogue complete for all 30 pages, so now I'm just inking and shading the book, and it will be done!
    https://crimebustercomics.com/2019/03/17/font-madness-plus-a-project-update/
     
    here's a look at the completed first page!

     
  7. Crimebuster
    I've been having a lot of health issues recently, which has slowed me down some. But I am still plugging away - just finished the linework for page 24, and am beginning the linework for page 25 (out of 30). My goal at this point is to have all the linework done, as well as all the (first draft) dialogue and word balloons done, by the end of the month. I am still aiming to have the whole thing complete for a May 1st kickstarter launch, but we will see. 
    Here's the latest blog entry:
    https://crimebustercomics.com/2019/02/14/asking-for-trouble-part-3/

    And a panel in progress from page 19:
     

  10. Crimebuster
    I'm still plugging away at the line work for #120. I'm currently working on page 10, and hope to have the line work done before I leave for vacation on Friday. I decided to bump my page count up from 28 to 30, so that has slowed things down as well, so I am currently looking at a mid-February date for finishing the line work for the whole book. 
    When I get back from vacation, I hope to share a sneak peek at another page in progress, but for now, I have updated my production blog with a look at the process behind creating my new leading lady, Trixie Trouble. Enjoy! 
  11. Crimebuster
    So, I am working on my first comic book, and wanted to share the process with you guys here, especially since my series is a continuation of the Golden Age title Boy Comics. And lets by honest, the only people in the world who care about Boy Comics are here on these forums!
    My series is called The Crimebusters. I'm picking up where Boy Comics #119 left off, so The Crimebusters #120 is set in the fall of 1956, with Chuck Chandler — aka Crimebuster — returning to Curtiss Tech for his junior year of college. Even in a sleepy small college town, though, trouble has a way of finding Chuck. Trouble with a capital T, that is, as Chuck is reluctantly forced to team up with girl reporter Trixie Trouble to solve the mysterious death of a beloved professor. So was it simply suicide, as the authorities claim? Or did the professor bring back more than rare artifacts from his recent trip to Peru... like an ancient curse?
    The Crimebusters is my ode to classic teen detective stories, in the style of Scooby Doo, Archie's Weird Mysteries, and The Three Investigators. I'm drawing it in an Archie style, and the original Life with Archie series is another big influence on me. I the classic Golden Age tradition, this will be a stand alone story, though I hope to do more issues, with a broader mystery building in the background as the series progresses. For now, though, I'm just focusing on trying to make one comic book! 
    Some of you may recall tat four years ago, I began work on a somewhat different version of Boy Comics #120, before ultimately giving up on it. A big part of that was the style - I was trying to emulate the style of the Golden Age crime comics, which just isn't really my thing as either a writer or an artist. This time, I am adopting a style that is more fun for me to work on, and, I hope, to read. 
    I have also devised what I think is a more sustainable work flow than last time. At that time, I tred to complete each page before moving on to the next. This time, I am using a classic assembly line style, so I have plotted, laid out, and done full breakdowns for all 28 pages. I am now in the process of doing the line work for all 28 pages, and when I am done, I will then go over it again for an inking stage, then a dialogue stage, then a final edit stage. 
    I expect the line work to take me through the first week in February. My hope is to have the book done by the end of March, do a Kickstarter launch in April, and then publish in May. But we'll see how it goes!
    I'll be updating things here as I go, and you can also check things out over at my website: https://crimebustercomics.com/=
    Thanks!

  12. Crimebuster
    The latest episode of my podcast is now available, featuring the first part of a four-part examination of Marvel's classic Star Wars series. In this first episode, we cover the contributions of Roy Thomas, from the title's genesis through his departure with issue #10. Enjoy!
    https://classiccomics.podbean.com/e/classic-comics-forum-podcast-21-star-wars-by-marvel-comics-part-1/
  13. Crimebuster
    Here's a master list of all the episodes of the Classic Comics Forum Podcast so far!
    As new episodes are released, i will update this list as well as post new entries for new episodes. 
    Most episodes I am joined by guests, so before we start the discussion about the topic at hand, there's a short interview where we discuss their reading and collecting history so you have an idea what their frame of reference is going into the discussion.
    Enjoy!
     
    Issue #1: Life the Archie: The Married Life part 1
    Issue #2: Life with Archie: The Married Like part 2
    Issue #3: Boy Comics
    Issue #4: Red Sonja part 1
    Issue #5: Red Sonja part 2
    Issue #6: 1st Issue Special part 1
    Issue #7: 1st Issue Special part 2
    Issue #8: Captain America by Steve Englehart part 1
    Issue #9: Captain America by Steve Englehart part 2
    Issue #10: Green Arrow by Mike Grell part 1
    Issue #11: Green Arrow by Mike Grell part 2
    Issue #12: Blackhawk by Mark Evanier part 1
    Issue #13: Blackhawk by Mark Evanier part 2
    Issue #14: Blackhawk by Mark Evanier part 3
    Issue #15: Cap's Kooky Quartet part 1
    Issue #16: Cap's Kooky Quartet part 2
  14. Crimebuster

    A crazy dream

    By Crimebuster,

    Should I draw and self publish a comic even though I am not an artist?
    One of my dreams is to someday publish Boy Comics #120.
    I know, some people dream of being rich and famous, I dream of reviving a forgotten comic book series that ended 58 years ago. What can I say. Crimebuster is one of my favorite characters and since Boy Comics and Crimebuster are in the public domain it's actually feasible. It's just a matter of having the time, energy and - most importantly - the money. Time and energy I can supply. The money...
    Over the last few weeks I've been messing around a little bit, looking at the cost of artists and printing and that sort of thing. It's a pretty decent chunk of change to hire an artist to draw a full length comic book. And obviously, the better they are, the more they are going to cost.
    Unfortunately, I have certain standards for art, especially if I am going to be paying for it. Even more importantly, since I am going to be writing the story, that art is representing my work. No matter how great my story is, if the art isn't good, the whole thing is going to be poop. I don't want to be known as the guy who wrote the poop.
    Still, the idea of publishing Boy Comics #120 is something I can't really shake. I have a little money socked away from my tax returns and instead of buying some expensive back issue to look at, I keep thinking it would be so much cooler to publish my own comic instead.
    So... still not sure what I am going to do. Every so often I get the bug to just draw it myself. I haven't drawn anything in probably 15 years, but I was thinking about buying a tablet. I wasn't sure, though, if I could get used to looking up at the screen while I drew instead of down at the paper. So I thought, well, let me mess around a little in photoshop and see if I could get used to that.
    Anyway, I ended up with a doodle that's far from great. But I unexpectedly kind of enjoyed making it, which I wasn't expecting. Drawing it myself would sure save me a lot of money, but more importantly it would save me a ton of headaches in trying to find the right artist and, you know, also be an editor that has to worry about art corrections if I don't like how my words are being translated. All that stuff just seems like a giant pain in the butt to deal with. Plus, even if my art isn't very good - which it isn't - I think I know how to tell a story in comic form, which is the main thing.
    Not sure what to do. Any of you guys have any experience creating or self-publishing comics?
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  15. Crimebuster

    My Top Ten

    By Crimebuster,

    A countdown of the top ten books in my collection.
    Well, I do like making lists, so I thought I would do one of these top ten books everyone is doing. These are the ten books in my collection I would get rid of last. To be honest, beyond the top eight, it was pretty hard to pick the last two, so there are a number of books that almost made it in, the last cuts being Captain America #111, Star Spangled War Stories #151 and Wow Comics #38.
    But here is my current Number 10 pick: Strange Tales #167
    I picked this up a couple years ago with store credit at my LCS for a pile of books and other things I was getting rid of. At the time, I was mainly looking for high grade bargaining chips for trade, but this classic cover was also awesome, so I figured it would be something cool to have if I never found the right thing to trade it for.
    Since then I have put together runs of Strange Tales as Nick Fury stuff, so it's definitely not going anywhere now. Only major issue is the non-color breaking bend in the bottom left corner, which could be pressed out. And might be some day if I decide to get this slabbed.

    To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.
  17. Crimebuster
    The latest episode of the Classic Comics Forum Podcast is now available:
     
    https://classiccomics.podbean.com/e/classic-comics-forum-podcast-19-the-brave-and-the-bold-50-73-part-1/
     
    This time around we're starting a 2 part discussion of the team-up era of The Brave and the Bold, before they settled on Batman as a permanent star. In this episode, special guest MDG and I discuss issues #50-56, as well as his time working as a writer for both DC and Valiant/Acclaim, where he co-wrote X-O Manowar for several issues. Hope you enjoy!
  19. Crimebuster
    This time around we do something a little different, as I talk to a new reader/collector about her experiences getting into comics more than two decades after being briefly introduced to the hobby as a kid. We also discuss the stories she first read as a kid, particularly the Wonder Woman: Space Pirate storyline from Bill Messner-Loebs in Wonder Woman #66-72. 
    Here it is. Hope you enjoy!
  22. Crimebuster
    If you ever wanted to listen to three hours of discussion about the 80's revival of DC's Blackhawk, now is your chance!! This episode is the last of three about this classic series. 
    Next episode: Cap's Kooky Quartet!
     
    Classic Comics Forum Podcast #14: Blackhawk by Mark Evanier part 3
    September 1, 2017 In the final part of our three part discussion of the 1982 reboot of the classic war comic Blackhawk by Mark Evanier and Dan Spiegle, Prince Hal and I examine the last 14 issues, covering #260-273. 
     
     
  23. Crimebuster
    The second part of this epic three-part examination of Mark Evanier and Dan Spiegle's 1980's Blackhawk run is now available to listen to. I guarantee this is the only podcast in the world that will deliver three hours of conversation about Mark Evanier's Blackhawk!
    In this middle installment, we start going through the actual issues themselves, discussing #251-259 in detail. Enjoy!