Good Times

Today in class we reviewed for the Understanding Comics quiz tomorrow and began reading Persepolis. Before we did that, though, I showed them a couple more small press publications. Yesterday I showed them SPUDD 64, by Matt Kish, and today I showed them Taproot and Spandangle.

Taproot is a collection of color drawings by Matt Kish; Spandangle is a collection of drawings by me. That's right, me! Gaze upon the majesty of this book:

It's got some fun drawings in it. I put it together in 2006, shortly before I started grad school.

Something you may not be aware of is that I have significantly less teaching experience than most teachers my age. Most of my colleagues majored in Education and started teaching right out of college. I didn't take any education classes, got a degree in English, and then, almost ten years later, decided to become a teacher.

Sometimes when I remember that other teachers my age are eleven years closer to retirement than I am, it's easy to think, "Man, I should have started teaching sooner." But regret is for chumps. If I'd become a teacher right out of college, I wouldn't have moved to Columbus and worked at Barnes & Noble, and my life would be a lot less interesting.

I worked at B&N for six years and met all kinds of great people, many of whom were writers and artists and musicians. There were lots of us who were in our twenties and had college degrees, creative ambitions, and no idea what to do with our lives. Thanks to my time at B&N I met superstars like Xan and Chris Sprouse and Matt Kish.

Disclaimer: Yesterday, when I was raving about how great Matt Kish's comics are, I probably should have mentioned that he's a good friend of mine. You could argue that I'm biased. Fortunately this is just a blog, so I don't have to worry about maintaining journalistic integrity, and anyway the comics really are awesome.

Back in the days when I lived in Columbus, Matt and I got into the small press comics scene around the same time, and went to the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo (SPACE) to sell our wares. Matt sold SPUDD 64 at SPACE, and I sold (among other things) Spandangle. I have no idea how many copies I made, but since I only have a couple left, I must have managed to sell most of the print run.

You don't go to SPACE to get rich; you go because you love making comics and you want to share them with people. Even if you don't make enough money to pay your printing costs, you get to talk to like-minded people who are obsessed with the same stuff you are.

So sure, I could have started teaching earlier, and I'd be making more money now, and blah blah blah. But I'm glad I didn't.

Whoa, wait! What's all this autobiographical stuff? I thought we were talking about Persepolis? Yes, we were. And we'll talk about it more tomorrow.

Small Press Spotlight!

So I realized that, when I've shown the students comics, it's always been mass-produced stuff. But part of the magic of comics is that anyone can make them--all you need is some paper and a pen, and if you have access to a photocopier, you can make your own small print run. I wanted to show them some small press comics, so I took in issues #1-4 of one of my favorites, SPUDD 64. 

These four comics were written, drawn, and produced by Matt Kish between 2003 and 2006. SPUDD 64 is hard to describe, but I would say it follows in the tradition of George Herriman's Krazy Kat, Larry Marder's Beanworld, and Jim Woodring's Frank. That may sound like I'm over-selling it, since Krazy Kat, Beanworld, and Frank are three of the all-time great comics, but bear with me. SPUDD 64 is like those other three comics because it has no interest in anything as mundane as recreating the real world. In comics, where artists are bound only by the limits of their imagination, why should they limit themselves to the real world? Why even imitate it? We see the real world every day; art can take us to places that are much more interesting. Comics, more than any other medium, allows artists to create new worlds, worlds that follow their own rules.

SPUDD 64 is the story of a vegetable-creature named SPUDD, the 64th in his line, spawned in a god/tree/spaceship named Tzadkiel, and sent out to find his place in the universe. That description doesn't do it justice, but no description would. You can't read about the story; you have to read the story, and enter into the fictional world that Kish creates. Once you let go of your preconceptions and allow the story to work its magic, the world of gods and monsters and magic tree beings all makes perfect sense, and seems to be communicating some deep spiritual truth you can't quite put your finger on.

Look at those covers! So lovingly hand-crafted. Each one is unique, so if you got your own copies, they would look slightly different. I like a well-produced hardcover book from a major publisher as much as the next guy, but there's an unmistakable charm to small press comics like these.

Happy Jack Kirby Day!

Today would be Jack Kirby's 94th birthday. Every year I find out it's Kirby's birthday on the day of, and vow to remember the date and plan some sort of celebration.  And I always forget. This has been happening for several years now.

Jack Kirby, as you may or may not know, was the greatest American comic book artist of the 20th century. That's my opinion--some people may argue with the "greatest" part, but no one can argue that was one of the two or three most influential comic book artists. As with George Herriman, of Krazy Kat fame, the average person who sees his art for the first time will probably find it strange and possibly even ugly. When you invest yourself in the story, though, and get in the right mindframe, it becomes glorious and even addictive. Here's a sample of his artwork.  Look at that stuff! Once you accept the Spirit of Kirby into your heart, each drawing is like a mystical revelation.

Years ago, a few days after I started a new job, my manager Matt saw me reading a graphic novel. He asked me if I liked comics, and I said yes. Nothing unusual there. Then he said, "Have you read Jack Kirby's New Gods? It's one of the greatest things I've ever read." At that moment I knew Matt and I would get along great. Sure enough, he ended up becoming one of my best friends. (He's a talented artist, too.)

I decided to celebrate Jack Kirby Day by re-reading a couple of  favorites. One was "The Glory Boat," the climax of which can be seen above. The other was "Himon" from Mister Miracle #9. I've read it several times and I thought I knew what to expect, so I surprised by how much the story spoke to me, and how relevant it is to my life and my job.

Even though this school year has been going great so far, I still get frustrated from time to time about how hard it is to get students really interested in the material. They're all dealing with so many distractions, and have so many other concerns, it's hard for them to care about reading The Epic of Gilgamesh.

The story "Himon" is about a man who is a scientist and a dreamer and a teacher, who lives on the hell-planet Apokolips. The young people are, like everyone else, dedicated to the service of the tyrant Darkseid. Thinking for yourself is a crime. But even though the authorities are out to kill him, Himon is determined to show these young people a better way, to expose them to beauty, to free their minds from Anti-Life. It's exaggerated, obviously, but it's a metaphor for the importance of education, even in a society that doesn't always value it.

And if Himon can get shot and blown up for his troubles, and still keep on teaching, what do I have to complain about?