Experience KOMIKON once again this Summber!

KOMIKON SUMMER FIESTA 2009

Date: May 16, 2009, Saturday
Time: 10:00am - 8:00pm
Venue: UP Bahay ng Alumni, UP Diliman, QC
Tickets: P50

Wear your coolest summer clothes and catch the first wave of bigger things to come!!! Stay tuned for more details.
For sponsors, exhibitors and indie tiangge inquiries, please email komikon@gmail.com

Bayan Knights Komiks featured in FHM

Bayan Knights #1
There’s much attempt at drawing from Filipino culture, so we’ve got heroes like Morion, an iron-clad brute wearing a Moriones Festival mask, and Boy Ipis, who’s a cockroach-y Spider-Man, complete with Ipis Sense and all. Written in conversational English and Filipino, Bayan Knights is a quick and accessible superhero read.

KOMIKS REVIEW: Unstoppable

There’s No Stopping Unstoppable

by Mark Rosario

Its no secret for any comicbook enthusiast that the Philippines really has an unlimited number of great comicbook artists. Just check out some DeviantArt accounts and finding samples of what I’m saying shouldn’t really be difficult at all. We really have a lot of artists who have already made it big (or has the potential to soon make it big) here and abroad. On the other hand, finding a good artist who has the capacity to write good stories at the same time can be a rare experience. Not all artist can actually do that - and that’s one of the main reasons why I admire Hubert Khan Michael and his work.

Hubert is actually the creator (writer and artist) of Unstoppable comics. This is one of the titles I got during Komikon 2008 and reading this totally caught me off my guard. I’ve seen the character a number of times at Hubert’s DeviantArt account and I’ve always liked the black-and-white color scheme of the costume. Reading the actual comicbook and knowing the real story about the character, however, truly made me love the character even more.

Unstoppable #1 is actually an origin issue that leaves you with more questions than answers - and I mean that in a good way. Here’s a comicbook that will leave you craving for more you’d wish the next issue would already be available tomorrow.

For example, the unexpected twist found at pages 16 and 17 on issue #1 was really very intriguing that I excitedly tried very hard to find clues at issue #2 to solve the mystery. Did i get some? Well, I guess I did but I’d have to wait for issues #3 and #4 to check if my suspicions are correct (You see, there are actually 4 issues for the 1st story arc).

Awesome artwork, impressive story-telling, clever dialogues, a well thought-out plot plus cinematic transitions between pages and panels - I really have nothing but praises for Unstoppable comics!

As I’ve indicated in one of my previous blog posts, I went home from the Komikon with a bag full of indie comics. Personally, I’d say that discovering Unstoppable comics is one of the reasons why I could say that the long 5-hour trip from Dagupan to Manila was really worth it. This is definitely a must-read and I’d recommend it to anyone who would enjoy reading a good superhero comicbook.

KOMIKS REVIEW: Callwork

callwork comics a stroke of genius
by karlo cesar cordero

UNA akong nagkaroon ng awareness sa “Callwork Comics” na likha ni Hazel Manzano-Chua nang mag-attend ako sa nakalipas na Komikon noong November 2008 sa Bahay ng Alumni sa UP Diliman. Habang patungo ako sa venue at sakay ng dyip ay naririnig ko ang ilang estudyanteng kasakay ko na isa sa priority nilang bilhin na komiks ang Callwork. Tungkol daw ito sa buhay ng mga taong nagtatrabaho sa mga callcenters.
Doon pa lang ay naisip kong stroke of genius ang ideyang ito ng creator ng nasabing komiks. Sa panahong ito na mahirap umagaw ng market para sa likhang magasin or comics, may captured audience na agad ang Callwork. Pinakasikat na trabaho ngayon ang pagiging callcenter agent. Kahit maliit na porsyento lang nito ang bumili ng nasabing komiks ay sigurado na ang return of investment para sa creator. At kung maganda talaga ang komiks at kumalat ang tungkol dito sa sirkulo ng mga callcenter agents, dito ngayon papatak ang sinasabing niche market, na bago pa man nalikha ang produkto ay nariyan na. Bukod pa rito ang mga mahihilig sa humor, comics junkies and impulsive book buyers.

Sa blog ng creator na si Hazel—na tinawag din niyang Callwork—sinabi niyang ang kanyang komiks ay, “a comic strip that pays tribute to all Business Process Outsourcing workforce here in the Philippines.” Una itong lumabas sa Manila Bulletin bilang comics strip. Incidentally, dalawa sa mga kaibigan ko ay may strips din sa nasabing diyaryo; sina Philip Cruz at Bladimer Usi.

Ayon pa kay Hazel, ang mga kuwentong inilalabas niya sa Callwork ay mga tunay na pangyayari at nilalagyan lang niya ng putahe ng humor. At aware siya sa mga callcenter humor dahil nasa ganitong linya rin ang kanyang propesyon.

Maging ako ay aksidenteng nakakasalamuha ng mga taga-callcenter at para sa akin sila ay mga interesting characters. Nakakasabay ko sila sa elevator, maging sa comfort room. Masasaya at maiingay—at nagkukuwentuhan gamit ang kanilang natutunang American twang. Most of the time, ang kanilang topic ay ang kanilang malaking suweldo, nakaaway na customer o kaya’y ang masungit nilang amo, gayundin ang kinaiinisang officemate. Topic din nila lagi kung saan masarap gumimik pagkatapos ng trabaho. Karamihan sa kanila ay laging naka-jacket at nakasalamin. Sa hugos ng mga tao sa loob man ng building, mall o kalye, hindi mahirap maka-spot ng isang callcenter agent.

Saludo ako kay Hazel for coming up with such a great comics. Sa mundo ng komiks na dominado ng mga kalalakihan, masarap makitang may isang rosas sa gitna ng mga tinik. Ito rin ang pagkakataon na makakita tayo ng artworks ng isang babae, maging ang kanyang sense of humor. Iba kasi ang sensibilidad ng babae pagdating sa arts, humor and storytelling. Malaking advantage ito para sa kanya.

And I think the Callwork Comics is doing great in the market. Couple of weeks ago ay nasa National Bookstore Glorietta ako at naghanap ng kopya nito. Iisa na lang ang nakita ko, hindi ko pa nabili dahil may nagbabasa at tawa nang tawa. Kung pagbabatayan ko ang kaanyuan ng nagbabasa na mukhang tatapusin ang buong komiks, isa siyang taga-callcenter. Sana naman ay binili niya ang komiks ni Hazel since malaki naman ang suweldo niya.

Kung pagbabatayan ko ang mga senaryong ito, ang konklusyon ko sa sa Callwork Comics ay komiks na may quality, enjoyable, funny, witty and relevant.

Thank you, Hazel, for your work of genius—a truly compelling read.

Bayan Knights #2 - Super Teaser!

Art by Gilbert Monsanto

Taking A Look At TRESE

by jtmtzrwj

I can’t believe that I finished reading issues 1 thru 7 of Budjette Tan and KaJo Baldisimo’s TRESE on one sitting. What is it about, you ask? It’s a crime-slash-horror comic about a girl named Alexandra Trese who moonlights as a police consultant for weird cases.
It’s definitely a good book. It has an episodic feel as each issue is a standalone story that has Trese solving a specific mystery. Although there are hints about Trese’s father and grandfather’s dealings with the underworld, nothing much is revealed about them. These may very well be a big reveal for future a storyline but I wannna see these pay-offs real soon.

But what really attracts me to these books are the tales written by Budgette Tan. They are really relatable stories that you may have already heard from your parents or grandparents - the White Lady on Balete Drive, the reptillian monster on a certain mall in Ortigas… etc. My favorite story so far is the one told in issue 3. It’s has a real WTF moment at its finale. A real good one. And be sure to check out Stories From The Diabolical for more Trese side stories. Ooh, and KaJo Baldisimo really deserve some kudos for his superb art style. The book is entirely rendered in black and white but the art is outstanding. He really has a great handle on the contrasts. And it gives the book an extra eerie feel. So go ahead and check it out.