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Set 2 of my komiks review for the komiks I got from SUMMER KOMIKON 2012.
I stated off with my first review of The LUNAROCK Quarterly Comics Compilation. They were a lot of komiks in one compilation so I decided to end it as my Part 1. Here’s the link of that review. http://meganoncomics.tumblr.com/post/23915296072/komik-reviews-summer-komikon-2012
Part 2 is my review about the indie komiks of Ernico Lopez, Section 6 comics and Kahlil Baet and Brian Fajardo. http://meganoncomics.tumblr.com/post/24098748894/komik-reviews-summer-komikon-2012-part-2
Now, here’s part 3!
Hipon Gamay
Story by: RH Quilantang and Odree
It’s a story of 3 friends who’re sitting on the sidewalk while drinking and talking about Hipon’s love sturggles. The main character, Hipon, has two BFFs, Joey (Hipon calls him Kambal) and Tabo. Kambal is his friend who is like Hipon. They like the same things, do the same things, sometimes, think the same things. Kambal (according to Hipon) is very talkative and has a tendency to be a little gay. Tabo on the other hand doesn’t talk much. It’s more like action speaks more than words for him. They were discussing why Hipon wasn’t really successful with his love relationships and apparently, Kambal was the one who’s doing all the analysis. He tells Hipon about his attitude and his choice of girls. Until Hipon reveals his new crush that makes Kambal really pissed off.
Isa talaga syang WTF na kwento. RH did a good job on the storytelling. I love how he opens up the story as the twist was revealed at the end of the komiks. Odree’s style for the art I think added the cuteness factor of the story. The art is as simple as the story. This kind of combination is what we see usually from strips but I think it worked on this piece. Now I’m wondering what Odree’s art will look like if she will do a serious komiks in the future. I LOVE TABO. I felt pity and shame when a fraction of his past was revealed. I don’t want to see turtles for a while. Haha. XD After the revelation, I immediately related myself with Joey but that’s another story. Hahahah. Maybe that’s also the reason why I loved this komiks. It’s a very interesting material and I think it can stand alone as a one shot story. But since I saw a “to be continued” page, I’m wanting for more! MORE PLEASE!
KARIT
Story and art by Ronzkie Pacho-Vidal
It’s a story about a girls who was maltreated by his co-villagers. She works hard to survive the cruel life that she’s been burdened with. People don’t like her, the kids treat her like dirt and the one she works for thinks she’s lower than dirt. As the story progressed, her reason to live was revealed and she will do anything for that reason. One day, after she worked hard picking up kamote, she was given less than enough and she demanded a raise. As usual, the employer shouted at her to the point that the poor girl couldn’t tolerate her employer anymore.
The first thing I notice was the impressive art of Ronzkie Vidal. Her pencils and details made this komiks worth it. The story at first has the feel of any other Filipino story formula. The poor girl known as Lupe is being treated like dirt and she struggles to survive for a very humble reason. BUT the twist at end proved me wrong. It has a dark start and I think it’ll be darker in the next coming chapters. It’s like when we’re watching a telenovela where the good guy gets beaten by everybody and he’s not going to do anything because he’s not suppose to be doing anything against his enemy. And we as the viewers are frustrated and shout out curses in front of the TV. To me the komiks is like those telenovela but there’s a satisfaction in the end that we all wanted for the main character to do. We all wanted him to do something against the people who did him wrong. And that happened in Karit. I’m now very much interested in the story and I want to know more what Lupe will do after. Good job!
SULSI
Story and art by Ronzkie-Pacho Vidal
A story of 5 ragdolls named Asul, Lila, Pula, Ming-yaw and Aw-haw falling from the sky and trying to save their companion, Aw-haw. Aw-haw is apparently Asul’s dog and friend and he’s doing everything he could to save him in mid-air. They encountered some difficulties when they literally fell on a small bird. The mother bird attacked the Asul that hurt her chick. When the ragdoll woke up, he found out that he lost one eye and his dog aw-haw.
Honestly, I bought Sulsi because I love the art and the cover. I love the character design of the ragdolls and the concept behind them. I have no problems with the story as whole except the first part. After I read it, it left me asking a lot of questions. Like, where did they come from? Why were they falling from the sky? But maybe you’ll care to reveal it the next chapter. :D The story still interests me and I want to know what will happen to them after. CHAPTER TWO PLEASE! 8D
CRIME FIGHTING CALL CENTER AGENTS
Story by Noel Pascual and Art by AJ Bernardo
It starts with four individuals running for their lives from a serial killer they picked up on the high-way. They ran into an abandoned house and there they stayed to protect themselves from the nasty killer. In the process of making their fortress, they had their battle strategy ready. They had their lighter and their hairspray to light up as soon as the killer tries to go near them. But since they are staying up late and the killer wasn’t really trying to come in the house, they decided to drink the gin. (I’ll leave it here. It’s more fun to read it!)
The title was one that made me buy it. Crime-fighting call center agents is not your average a story. At first, I thought it was about call center agents getting suit up like super heroes but It wasn’t. They weren’t really introduced as call center agents in the story but because of the title, I just assumed that they are. It’s crazy, funny, serious and intense at the same time. XD The story is a slice of life type—- correction, a slice of INTENSE life. Well think of it this way, you need to get away from a nasty serial killer and you’re stuck in someone else’s house with your friends and all of you must think of battle strategy. You have a friend who has a useless cellphone, a friend who have gin in her backpack, a friend who has a lighter which turns out that it belongs to your friend with the cellphone and a friend who’s good a locking doors. BRILLIANT. It’s a new recipe for survival. Of course, Aj’s art is superb. I love the art dude! San nanggaling yung braso? Sino yung asong mascot at talagang hindi nila nakita yung baril sa backpack! HAHAHAH! XD The mixture of Aj’s art and Noel’s storytelling is really good and because of that I can’t wait for the second chapter! (Which by the way, I got a preview of last SUMMER KOMIKON. Yey!)
RAWWRR KOMIKX
By Patrick Enrique
It’s a compilation of all the strips and short stories of the author. There are some insert arts and single panel strip. (Is it still a strip? XD)
It’s surreal. It’s bad attitude. It’s Rawwrr.
I’m like walking through the mind of Patrick while I read this komiks. It reminds me of the Quarterly Bathroom Comics Companion only, it’s been done by one person. Mature readers indeed. Don’t be fooled by the cute drawing on the cover. This komiks may not cater to a lot of readers due to it’s punk-like tone, vulgar images and bad words but there are some stories here that can be appreciated and liked. Patrick’s art is getting better compared to his earlier works and also his storytelling so I hope he keeps it up!
DAKILA
By: Point Zero Comics
Two local superheroes dressed in a flag-themed costume were fighting a super villain in a local grocery store. They talked about their companion, Bandila who hanged himself using his own—wait for it—his own LONG tongue. Simultaneously, another local hero was fighting another flag-themed super. Compared to the red, white, blue and stars theme of the main characters, this super used the flag with the ”I” or aka a bayabayin symbol for “K/Ka” and sunrays for his own costume, not to mention his color is red. This Red Flag super kills (I assumed) this local super hero and muttered “Kahunghangan ang araw na napili mong isuot, ang mga bagay ma hindi dapat sa ‘yo. Dinudungisan mo ang mga kulay ng ating inang bayan. Ang dapat sa ‘yo ay durugin.” This is where the plot thickens but the story abruptly ended with the earlier two local heroes running off with free grocery.
BITIN! Eight pages are clearly too short for a good story like this. I had fun reading it though because of the dialogue and the story behind it but it’s still too short. The chapter is only meant to establish some heroes and tell the plot which is basically, a super villain roaming around the city killing off the other superheroes that wear flag-themed costumes. No more, no less. Genius? Yes! But I don’t think this is to put down other superhero theme comics. There’s a lesson in here, I know it. I can feel it. Plus, the artists behind it are Taga-ilog (Melvin Calingo), Jon Zamar, Kilayman, Judd Abinuman, Randy Moncis, Roy Canlas, James Palabon, After Ross (Lloyd) and Deodato (Totmo). Hihindi ka pa ba?
Set 2 of my komiks review for the komiks I got from SUMMER KOMIKON 2012.
I started off with my first review of The LUNAROCK Quarterly Comics Compilation. They were a lot of komiks in one compilation so I decided to end it as my Part 1. LINK —> http://meganoncomics.tumblr.com/post/23915296072/komik-reviews-summer-komikon-2012
Here is some from the new line of indie komiks that I got that day. There were a lot of them so I just got those that immediately got my attention.
KABITENYO (part 1 of 4) by PELIGRO KOMIKS
Story and Art by Enrico Lopez
The story opens with a number of bounty hunters waiting for their target. They were calling their target the “International Black Class Assassin. Their attacks backfired and were killed by the Black Assassin then cut to a flashback. The Black Assassin remembers his homeland, the Philippines. He’s specifically came from or grew up in Cavite and was raised up in a squatter’s area. His friends called him Lucas. A lot kids his age were trained to be assassins in a place even they don’t know. Some old guy was training them and they treat him as a teacher. That certain day, he called out some boys to fight Lucas. He said that this would be Lucas’ quiz. There should be no hesitation. Lucas passed his test with flying colors. Apparently, he’s a bit advanced than anyone in his so-called class. Obviously, he was bred to be a high-class assassin. To do something dangerous when the time comes. Then one day, his training paid off. A group of mafia looking men broke into their training ground. The man told the young assassin that these were the men who killed the boy’s parents. The boy broke into madness and killed his parents’ murderers. Cut to- flashback’s over. We see a group of assassins talk about an audition for assassins, and that’s the end of the chapter.
It’s an interesting story. So far, the build up for the main character is good. Readers might be able to attach themselves to Lucas since his background was already revealed. I can sense the Kabitenyo pride! Hahaha. I know it’s hard to make buildings and structures and yes, it needs improvement. I say that to myself too, so don’t worry, you’re not alone. XD I like the inking style! The little rough edges give it texture that compliments the story. One thing though, I hope the artist put his narration in a narration box or something to keep the umm… “at bay” XD. It’s really hard to read it especially when it’s overlapping his panels and his visuals. If I may suggest, with your type of inking, I think adding gray would be awesome. :D
DEVIL AMONG THE SHADOWS
Story and Art by Erico Lopez
Sengoku Jidai Era, 1467. A man taken as prisoner by a group of ninjas was headed to an old shack near the sea. The prisoner was not named. The plots seems to be two clans are fighting for or about something. The prisoner apparently has followers from the Koga Yoshito Clan. They fought the ones from Lord Ashikaga’s clan to rescue their comrade from captivity. There was fighting everywhere. Some battle skills were shown and described. Then when everything seems to going smoothly, an enemy was chanting some demonic cry.
Hmm… I’m still not sure what to get from this story. The family feud seems to be clear but since the reason wasn’t revealed yet. I’ll wait for it first. There are some issues with the paneling. Some panels are a bit confusing but that can be addressed easily with practice. :D Also, some text are hard to read because they overlap on the visuals. Although this story doesn’t really appeal to me compared to Kabitenyo, I still think this is good and can still be improved. Maybe a bit more push?
GUANTES: SAGUNAS
Story by: Kahlil Baet; Art by Brian Fajardo
The story opens with a media report about a riot over the bridge. People were running away from the explosions and the police are all over the place to control the situation. Snippers are everywhere and are ready to take down the culprit. The core of the explosions came from a big man with a big attitude and looks like he’s after a man named Shemuel. Both men have an armored glove wrapped around their arms. The big man attacked and hit Shemuel. Before Shemuel was able to hit back, the story cuts to a flashback. Shemuel’s past. His family and his career as a champion boxer is established. Then one day, when he’s about to face his opponent, he was approached by a woman who wants him to lose against his opponent with of course, a price. When our hero refused to comply with the demands, his wife and child was threatened. Shemuel’s opponent turned out to be the same man who’s currently attacking him in the first part of the story. His name is Levi. The two boxers fought and Shemuel won against Levi. Three unknown men caught Shemuel off guard in the shower. He was dragged into some place and was tortured until he was knocked out. When he opened his eyes, he was in a grassy field and was looking for his family. A light suddenly appeared in front of him and when he touched it, a mystical woman appeared.
The art is superb! I love the fight scenes and I love the paneling! I just hope the artist would lessen the gray tones though. Since the comic is black and white, It’s hard to read when I see it gray and black. Even the outside of the panels is gray. XD That’s also the reason why I loved the torture scene. My eyes had a quick rest from all the grays. Yun lang. :) I love the boxing scene too! I felt like reading Hajime no Ippo. More action scenes please! :D The story is also good. It’s not too fast and not to slow, it’s just right. Hindi rin naman ako masyadong nabitin. Colored cover, great art and an interesting story is a recipe for a comics worth buying! Now I’m curious of what’s going to happen next! I can’t wait for the chapter 2. :D
PUSO NEGRO
By SECTION SIX COMICS
It’s a comic of wittiness. Hanggang dyan lang ang masasabi ko in English. Hindi ko na din sya isa-summarize. Hindi ko mae-explain nang tama ang feelings ko para sa komiks na ‘to kapag nagingles ako.
Ang Puso Negro ay malapit na sa aking puso. Isa sya sa mga komiks na gusto kong ipamahagi sa mga kaibigan at kinakaibigan nang hindi nagdadalawang isip kung magugustuhan ba nila o hindi. Pang-gago lang ito. Pang-patawa. Pero puno ito ng aral at pangangaral.
Paborito ko yung Chapter 2, “Koffee & Donuts”. Maganda ang pagkakasabi ng storya at makikita mo ang pagkatapat na kaibigan ng isang character sa bidang walang modo. Gusto ko din ang Chapter 4 na “Mga Alaala mo kaya? Ang Sumpa Mo sa Akin.” Kwento lang sya ng isang malditang babae na mahilig mangmaltrato ng tao pati ang sariling anak ay minamaltrato din. The best para sakin yung scene na nakita ng nanay na ginuguhit ng anak ang “Happy Birthday” Card na may kasama pang “I love Mama”. At sa sobrang touched ng ina—- BOOM. Yun na yun. :P At SYEMPRE, maliban sa full colored ang komiks na ito, maganda din ang cover at kakaiba ang art niya. Madaling makilala ang istilo. ANG GANDA! XD HAHAHAHAHA! Sana ay meron pang kasunod ito. :D.
I wasn’t able to post my reviews last time so I’ll just focus on the materials that I just bought this Summer Komikon 2012.
Summer Komikon. It’s one of those places that we are so eager to go to, aside from Boracay, every summer. We could already feel the heat of the event when our favorite artists and writers post their upcoming komiks for that single day. Posts about freebies new titles, new creators and new groups to watch out for.
One particular group, they call themselves LUNAROCK, are not actually new to the KOMIKON scene. They are actually present in the event for 4 or 5 years but we always see them as volunteers and seldom see them come up with their own komiks. Although there are individuals in their organization that were able to release their own indie komiks, the name LUNAROCK wasn’t really carried out that much until last Saturday.
LUNAROCK Quarterly Komik Compilation: ISSUE 1
The compilation consists of 14 young artists and writers from the UP DILIMAN student organization called LUNAROCK. The colored cover costs 120 pesos and the black and white costs 100 pesos. The content are also in black and white. The compilation has a variety of art styles and storytelling. It doesn’t really have an overall theme like Shounen Jump or Heavy Metal but it’s a compilation of the works of aspiring and promising young komik authors nonetheless.
COVER
The cover says a lot about the title. LUNAROCK that has this connection with the moon and a character that “maybe” in the compilation. Sadly, the character wasn’t in any of the stories. The cover was made by Frany Berry, who is by the way, an excellent watercolorist and digital artist. http://franyberry.deviantart.com/ Her interview in one of the Easter eggs inside the compilation. Covers tell the whole story of the compilation. Meaning, it’s a visual summary of the content. When we see the cover, we should immediately tell that the content of the komiks is already as awesome as the cover. It’s the same as crafting the name of the compilation. The name LUNAROCK is your Group name, that doesn’t mean you have to use it for a compilation title. What is the appropriate title of your compilation? Please keep that in mind. :)
ANG ALAMAT NI JOY-JOY Komiks ni Kat
It’s a short story about a girl who was being bullied because of her big forehead. She then had a vision of a pig that had the same type of bullying experiences and was able to overcome it by using his liability (being fat) into an asset. She then woke up from her vision and saw her town is being attacked by flies. She used her superpowers, which by the way was given by the pig, to stop the flies and saved the town. In the end, she gained confidence and respect.
The story is simply crazy. XD But what I like the most is the dialogue. I feels so natural and it’s like I can hear the author talking. It can be good and it can also be bad. Good meaning, the way your character speaks is natural enough to be easily attached to your readers. The bad part, it’s the author that I’m hearing and not the character. (Unless your character is an embodiment of yourself) But still, the author should learn how to create the character’s personality. It’s a learning process and I think it won’t be hard for you to do that. The art can still be improved especially the paneling.
Paneling is a way for you to tell the story visually. If your paneling is as cramped like what you did, your story telling is cramped too. Meaning, it’s like putting too many phrases in one sentence. I don’t know if it’s because you’re only given a few pages to tell your story or it’s your style. All I can say is it still needs improvement. :)
BUDDY by Tristan Yuvienco
It’s a story about a boy pretending to be superman who went into the woods to play. He met this wolf and seemed to be familiar with one another. The boy stepped near the cliff to see the majestic view but the soil started to crumble. When he was about to fall, the wolf bit the boy’s hand to save him. Years later, the boy was reflecting on that accident and he learned a lesson that he will never forget.
BITIN! I want to read the second chapter please! I love your storytelling and the way you make your facial expressions. I love the story because it’s simple and easy to understand the progress of the two characters. I’m just lacking the character build up of the wolf. Now there are so much questions I wanted to ask. Are they friends from the very beginning? How did they meet? When did they meet? That sort of thing.
Of all the stories in this compilation, I think this the one that I’m looking forward to see again. :) Good job!
EX. O. CHI. Pencils and Story by Romnick Toledo; Inks by Elaine Quililan and Melissa Cabral
Ok. I don’t want to be ruthless, but I just have to say this. For me, this is my least favorite from the compilation. The art needs major improvement, also with paneling and storytelling. I honestly cannot understand the story. And even if I just read the lines, I still can’t digest it. I’ve read it so many times just to know what’s it’s all about but all I got was a story of an escape. :( The visuals are always on close-up. I couldn’t identify the villain, I couldn’t tell who’s the hero and I don’t know where the setting of the story is. So… I don’t know what to say anymore. Umm, maybe you should improve more on your drawing and paneling. Practice more with your storytelling too. :) Read a lot of comics and graphic novels. Maybe you might get that spark of inspiration for your stories and art. :D
FRAGMENTS OF PANACEA: WAKE UP CALL by Greco Doodlez
Year 2024, a city was suffering from an unknown decease that was spreading all over. The government were trying to do everything they could to give meds to the victims of the decease. A non-believer, who I think is the main character, reflects on the his wife’s death. He promised his wife to take care of their daughter Tiffany. Cut to, he received a text from his daughter that she’ll be coming home late. He dozed off and dreamed and reflected then suddenly a vicious, zombie-ish person broke the glass wall and attacked him. The main character woke up not knowing where he was. A soldier shot the attacker and saved our main hero. The komiks ends with a plane crash.
Go for the zombie bandwagon! 8D I just had a black out moment when he fell asleep, but if that was your intention then it’s ok. :) I like the punk-ish style. It’s a unique play of tones, figures and panels that requires skill to pull it off. My problem with this is when it’s used too much, it tends to overcrowd and some text are suffering from it. Readability is my main issue in this komiks. Make sure you guard your text from busy visuals like your tones so it’s easy to read. And try not to put one paragraph in one panel because it’s tendency is to crowds your visuals. Other than that, this is a very promising piece. :D Maybe a little tweak on the storytelling, especially on the last part. :)
PROPRIUS By Mitchie
A tattoo artist who’s telling the world his story as an artist who draws on bare skin. After his shift his tattoo stall, he saved a girl from a thug.
Please don’t forget your name under the title or over the title of your comics. :) It’s an interesting story but I’m lacks a jump start. A tattoo artist as a main character is something I haven’t read yet but I think it’ll be an interesting komiks to read. Some panels need improvement but other than that, it’s fine. :)
Lingerie & Suicide by Savy Sabaw
A high school boy was walking on a rooftop of a school. He was scared too his bones while he stepped near the edge of the building. He was surprised by a sexy woman who appears to be demonic. But because the woman was umm… sexy enough to play with the boy’s escalating puberty, she was able to “devour” him literally.
Again, please don’t forget to include your name on top or under the komiks’ title. :) It’s your komiks! OWN IT! :D All I can say is this is about blood and lust.
XD I can’t say anything about the story yet because it’s just a fraction. But I like the last line, “One more soul and my goal will be accomplished.” It’s a good way to tell your readers that don’t quit yet. I have so many things to tell you. Is she a shape-shifter? :P What is she? XD Well, I hope I can find that out in chapter 2. :D
I like the strips in the compilation. It’s one way to make your readers rest from all the heavy stories and art. But most of it doesn’t have the name of the artist. Please don’t forget to include them. I hope in the next compilation the strips would be cleaner in terms of the over all layout. :) Good Job LUNAROCK! See you at the next KON! :D
We are honored and excited to announce that our country’s most talented artists will be sketching at our Fort branch during Free Comic Book Day on MAY 19! With Comic Odyssey opening, it will definitely be a full day for comic lovers! :)
All proceeds of this sketch drive will go to the family of Tony DeZuniga. A very special thanks to Sandy Sansolis of Comic Odyssey for helping us orchestrate this. :)
Participating Artists:
Tepai Pascual (Maktan 1521)
Julius villanueva (Life in Progress)
Amos Villar (No Parking Anthology)
Andrew villar (Ambush Comics)
Carlo Villanueva (Boy Bakal)
Norby Ela (Wonder Years, Weather-Weather Lang)
Jon Zamar (Codename Bathala)
Freely Abrigo (Kulas, Kapitan Tog)
Aaron Felizmenio (Gwapoman 2000
Wan Mananita (Ang Morion, Unos Mundo)
Josel Nicolas (Windmills)
Chapel (Silent Sanctum Manga)
Ruben Nacion (Bennac Cartoons)
Gener Pedrina (Sanduguan)
Rommel ‘Omeng’ Estanislao (Bruho Barbero, Lipad)
Mel Casipit (Baboy)
Lyndon Gregorio (Beerkada)
Ronald Tan (Midknight, Weng-weng)
RH Quilantang (Manila Man)
Allen Geneta
Ariel Atienza (West Side Comics)
(Source: facebook.com)
World Book and Copyright Day Presents, SUMMER SLAM!
See you guys at KOMIKON! :D
May karapatan kang bumoto. Gamitin mo.
Pagkakataon mo nang iboto ang paborito mong komik artists!
VOTE NA! NOW NA! Voting ends until October 15.
http://www.komikon.org/vote-for-2011-grassroot-award/
It’s time to vote for your favorite PInoy Komik Artists!! VOTE NOW! :)