Temple 12, free comic showcase, available now

Have you forgotten how good it tastes? The 66-page Temple APA Issue Twelve is now available to download as part of a complete breakfast a totally free pdf file, containing contributions from the likes of Dave Hailwood, Paul Eldridge, Simon Mackie, Tony Suleri, Adam Grose and Malcolm Kirk, who also provides 100% of the recommended allowance of front cover, which you can see on the right these words, (unless you're standing on your head or something, in which case - what on Earth are you doing that for? Get the proper way up this instant! How can you even work a mouse like that?).

 

You can download from Dropbox, MediaFire or view online at MyEbook. PDF file size is 17.6 MB.

 

The Temple APA is a showcase for amateur and professional creators who are active in the UK comics scene. If you'd like to contribute or just want more information, check out the Temple blog or like us on Facebook...

 

• Temple APA blog

• Temple APA Facebook page

 

 

New Temple APA showcasing British creatives free online

The lightly seasoned Eighth Issue of the Temple APA digital comics showcase is now available to download as a completely free pdf file.

Full of comicy goodness from such persons as Simon Mackie, (also responsible for the cover shown above), David Hailwood, Matthew McLaughlin, Dirk Van Dom, Tony Suleri, Derek Hamill and numerous others including Malcolm Kirk, who cobbled it all together.

Also included is a small press Feature on Paragon comic.

The Temple APA is a showcase of UK based comic book talent, both amateur and professional. If you'd like to contribute or just want more information, check out the Temple website at: http://templeapa.socialgo.com

• To download Temple APA 8, scroll down the blog page of Malcom Kirl’s blog at: http://malcolmkirk.blogspot.com. File size is 19.27mb

Temple APA moves web home

The Temple APA - a group of some of Britain's most enthusiastic comic creators, most of them on the indie press scene - has moved homes on the internet after the closure of its ning site, after that community hosting service ended its support for non-paying sites.

The new Temple site is at social go, and you can sign up to here: www.templeapa.socialgo.com

"I've still got to give the site a bit of an overhaul" says Temple member David Hailwood, "but it's gradually getting there."

Members of the group include Davey Candlish, Paul Harrison-Davies, Paul Eldridge, John Kirkham and others.

• Visit the new Temple site: www.templeapa.socialgo.com

Talent aplenty in Temple APA Issue 7

Zombies! Supervillains! Cowboys! Strange Creatures! Stick-Men!

The seventh issue of the Temple APA digital comics showcase - featuring a range of British comic creators, all members of the Temple APA, a great forum for developing comics talent - is now available to download as a completely free PDF file.

This issue features 56 pages of artwork and strips with contributions from the likes of Malcolm Kirk (who did the cover), Dave Hailwood, Dirk Van Dom, Matthew McLaughlin, Simon Mackie, Paul Eldridge, Dan Butcher and Adam Grose, among others.

Set up a few years ago now, the Temple APA magazine is intended as a showcase for the creators involved. Join the Temple forum to fin out more.

• Click Here to download a copy of Temple APA Issue 7 from the Temple APA Forum

• View Temple APA Issue 7 online via MyEbook

Back From The Depths Presents Hallowscream! 2009

It's finally here! The 2009 Back From The Depths Hallowe'en Special is an anthology horror comic that's not for the nervous, inspired in part by the short-lived Scream! title published in the 1980s.

The comic, which includes contributions from creators such as David Hailwood, Malcolm Kirk, Tim West, Andrew Milne, Dave Windett and John Gatehouse is available as a totally free pdf file from the Back from the Depths forum or via Clickwheel.

I particularly enjoyed The Golem Rises by Mister Roberts, with art by Simon Mackie; Mo Ali and Brian Gorman's Avenger; Bucket of Blood, written by Andrew Milne & Carol Kewley, with art from Matt Soffe; and the fun features such as "How to Sell Your Haunted House"!

New British Comics #2 On Its Way

The second issue of indie anthology title New British Comics, featuring this spiffing cover by Nelson Evergreen, should be published in October.

Contributors for the 84-page anthology, which will be published by Karol Wisniewski in both English and Polish, include Dan White, Dave Thomson, Paweł Gierczak, David Hailwood, Tony Suleri, Maddku, Jacek Zabawa, David Robertson, Frank Lamour, Rob Miller, WJC, Jon Edwards, Tony Hitchman, Lawrence Elwick, Paul O’Connell, Leonie O'Moore, Iain Laurie, Craig Collins and Nelson Evergreen.

"I hope I've quietly perverted the idea of 'Britishness' here," says Nelson of his fab cover, "what with the tea drinkers, bowler hatted gent and ominous skies rendered in a vaguely European sort of style and topped off with a decidedly shop-soiled Union Jack."

UK Indie distributor SmallZone is still selling the first issue of New British Comics, which features 13 stories and 17 artists including Dave Thomson, Malcy Duff, Paul O’Connell and Rob Miller. The contents and strips are the same in both editions but the only difference is language.

The comic is also available from Bad Press (UK & Worldwide) and Centrum Komiksu,Imago.com.pl, Incal.com.pl and SklepKomiksowy.pl (Poland)

• Read our review of Issue 1

• Visit the blog about the project at: newbritishcomics.blogspot.com

Temple Seeks Drawing, Writing Devotees!

Just a quick reminder that there's just under a month to go until the deadline for contributing to the next Temple (18th September), the e-comic of British small and indie press work that's the brainchild of the Temple APA. Everyone's welcome, so long as they contribute something comic related.

"Last issue was not only the biggest, but the most impressive," says editor David Hailwood, "and Issue 5's also shaping up to be quite a beast of an issue.

"Insomnia have sent me a whole wealth of material for the Insomnia feature, and I've heard from quite a few great creators that they're planning to contribute."

If you have a small press comic that you'd like to advertise in the Temple directory, you can post your details on the Temple APA forum. It's best to put comic details up at least a week before the deadline, so that John Kirkham has time to assemble the Directory.

• Visit templeapa at: http://templeapa.ning.com

In Review: The Rainbow Orchid

We plugged The Rainbow Orchid enthusiastically after its Foyles launch (see news story), but David Hailwood has just sent us this review, so here's another plug for the book!

The Plot: The Rainbow Orchid is an ambitious blend of classic storytelling and cinematic artwork in which adventure, historical drama and legend are seamlessly intertwined. In Volume One, follow the story's hero, Julius Chancer, as he embarks on a hazardous quest for the rainbow orchid - a mythical flower last mentioned by the ancient Greek philosopher, Theophrastus, and steeped in legend. His epic journey takes him from 1920s Britain to the Indian subcontinent and its mysterious lost valleys.

The Review: The Rainbow Orchid – a new graphic novel by Garen Ewing, published by Egmont - involves the adventures of Julius Chancer, the youthful headstrong assistant of historical researcher Sir Alfred Catesby-Grey, as he embarks on a quest to find the mystical rainbow orchid.

Finding a copy of the book just a few days after the launch turned out to be quite an adventure in itself. After globe trotting across several continents (Bognor, Lewes and Brighton), employing various exciting modes of transport (train, and a brisk walking pace), and getting into many hilarious scrapes with the natives (one lone sales assistant in Waterstones, who believed I was after something called ‘Rambo Orchard’), I finally managed to track down a massive towering display containing at least fifty copies of the rascal in Borders.

After four long arduous hours, my quest was finally at an end! But at what cost, eh? What cost?

Quite a reasonable one, actually: £6.99.

Thankfully, it wasn’t just the price that made it worth the trek. The Rainbow Orchid is what the Daily Star or some such tabloid might refer to as ‘A Rollicking Rip Roaring Roller-coaster Ride of Excitement, Adventure, Mayhem and Mirth!’

Garen expertly juggles a cast of dozens, all of whom ooze personality and sport brilliantly extravagant names (and in case readers forget who’s who, there’s a handy character reference sheet at the front of the graphic novel).

The artwork throughout is clear and vibrant; simple in style, yet detailed in scope. The story carries universal appeal; children will enjoy The Rainbow Orchid for its sense of fun and adventure, and adults will enjoy it for the nostalgic Tintin qualities and gentle English humour, with villains being dispatched using bags of flour and pots of paste in a true Jeeves and Wooster fashion.

There’s little to offend and plenty to enjoy, with lots of visual jokes and character laughs (my favourites involving a scene with a drunken lord waving his sword around on the roof whilst spouting a near Churchill-like speech, and the villainous henchmen getting their comeuppance when they’re set upon by a rowdy group of angry French clowns).

Although there are only 36 pages of comic strip inside, The Rainbow Orchid’s still a densely packed affair; sometimes as many as 13 panels are crammed into a page, and yet the storytelling’s so well paced it never feels like Garen’s trying to squeeze too much in.


Since this is only Volume One of The Rainbow Orchid, we’ll be seeing a lot more of Julius Chancer’s escapades. Good thing too, as it’s marvellously entertaining stuff, and a bally good read at that!

Web Links

• The Official Rainbow Orchid web site


• Podcast Interview with Garen Ewing


• Read an interview Matthew Badham conducted with Garen here on the Forbidden Planet International blog


More Reviews...


• Kelvin Green for Comics Bulletin


"Part of the joy of The Rainbow Orchid is that it has a massive nostalgic pull, taking me right back to the days when the only comics I could get from the library were these colourful cartoony things from artists with unusual Gallic names. Yet a greater part of my enjoyment of the book--enough to get me to buy it a third time--is that it's just very well put together. It's an exercise in a type of storytelling that we do not see too often in English nowadays..."

• Win Wiacek, The Comics Review


"Enchantingly engaging, astonishingly authentic and masterfully illustrated in the legendary Ligne Claire style, this is a wonderful tale that ranks amongst the very best all-ages graphic narratives and although the wait for the next volume might seem interminable the online presence and added value items which can be found at www.rainboworchid.co.uk should keep your bated breath puffing along until then."

• James Lovegrove, The Financial Times


"Ewing has mastered the ligne claire style which Hergé and his “Brussels school” pioneered in the 1950s. This means strong, clean visuals, no stippling or cross-hatching, artful use of colour to separate foreground from background, cartoonish figures set against realistic backdrops, and often wordy captions...

"... Yet The Rainbow Orchid is no mere homage. Ewing has crafted something at once reverential and joyous that has a life of its own. With the UK publishing industry slow to adopt the graphic novel form, it’s heartening that someone has given a book like this a chance. "

• Richard Bruton, Forbidden Planet International blog


"The Rainbow Orchid could be, should be, a huge hit for Garen and Egmont. The Tintin connection means it’s got an instant recognition factor, but beneath the obvious beauty of the artwork is an equally great, old fashioned adventure tale. It works for children and it works for us adults. An absolutely cracking adventure story."

• Julia Eccleshare, LoveRead4Kids


"The Rainbow Orchid is an ambitious blend of classic storytelling and cinematic artwork in which adventure, historical drama and legend are seamlessly intertwined. If you like your comics full of mystery and adventure and you love the worlds of H. Rider Haggard, Arthur Conan Doyle, Jules Verne, Edgar P. Jacobs and Hergé, then you'll love this. The Rainbow Orchid is traditional adventure at its best."

Review Round Up: Pasties, Khaki Shorts and Thief Takers!

Over the past couple of months several indie press folk have sent us comics for review and I have to apologize for being slow at publishing reviews of them. downthetubes remains a site created in spare time between paid work (offers always welcome) and I've got behind with this aspect of the site. The good news is that David Hailwood has now stepped up the plate to be our small press/indie press Reviews Editor, and if you want a plug here, please send your comics to the address below. (But make sure you continue to send us press information to the usual e-mail address, thanks)

Premable over, let's cut to the comment, firstly for Rob Jackson's joyous Pasty Anthology, a 28-page black and white title with colour cover dedicated to the Cornish-created pastry delicacy that you can fill with anything (purportedly the reason why the devil never crossed the Tamar river, by the way). Combining the talents of Matt Badham, Jim Medway,
Steve Butler, Francesca Cassavetti, Dave Hughes, Ant Mercer and of course, Rob himself, this is a fun title, evidenced from the outset by its Planet of the Apes-inspired cover. Favourite elements? Hard to choose, but Steve Butler's twist in the tale 'Keeping Fit' and Francesca's 'Chewing Gum' are in there, but some of the grotesque eating habits displayed in Rob's own 'Shortcrusts #2' don't just make for strong comic strip, they'd look great on t-shirts, perhaps.

Another anthology title, Khaki Shorts #20, has also been winking at me from the corner of my desk for a while: Glasgow's longest running small-press comic offers another fantastic assembly of talent that includes Neil Bratchpiece ('Apocalypse Now & Then', featuring Amazilian, the most anatomically incorrect woman in comics, ever, surely), loads of Rob Miller's 'Star Trudge', 'The Wildebeests' by Shug and much more. Khaki Shorts is simply bursting with the kind of frenetic energy that some pro titles used to have: personally I think some strips would benefit from a larger page size rather than the A5 format ('Dollyforce 2020', in particular), but with a cover price of just £1 one pound, who's complaining?

Finally for this round up, there's Storm Comics two issue mini series Thief Taker General, which we frist plugged back in (gulp) June (see news story). Writer-artist Michael Crouch has worked hard on this true-life story adaptation, telling the story of two legends of 18th century London, Jonathan Wild and Jack Sheppard. It's an impressive piece of work, with some qualification.

Of the two issues, the first features the better art (but I'm not keen on the cover) but #2 seems, well, rushed, somehow, as if Michael was setting himself a challenge of getting the book out to a self-imposed deadline. There is better composition and storytelling in Issue 1, although in some establishing panels his wonderful attention to detail and careful recreation of 18th century life sometimes distracts from the central characters in a panel. Script-wise, the second issue also seems a trifle muddied: I have to confess I lost track of who was who, although the three-page set piece of Jack Sheppard's esacpe from prison is a visual gem.

Thief Taker is good with plenty of promise and I think Michael has the makings of a fine talent, properly tempered by stronger storytelling and better figure work (this is what all editors say, but it's true). With the huge number of 'historical comics' on the market in the pro sector, there should be no shortage of work for a honed talent.

• If you have a small press or indie title you would like us to review, send them to David Hailwood, Flat 5, The Saltings, Bognor Regis, West Sussex P021 2RJ. Press information should still be sent by e-mail to the usual downthetubes e-mail address, thanks.


• For a measly £2.50 (PayPal accepted), free postage in the UK, you can buy Pasty Anthology from Rob's web site at www.robjacksoncomics.com. Rob's blog includes sample Pages and more info: www.robjacksoncomics.blogspot.com

• Khaki Shorts #20 is on sale from Avalanche Records, the Arches Cafe and Bar, Ychai Ovna, Play it Again Sam in Glasgow and Deadhead Comics in Edinburgh. More info and ordering: www.myspace.com/khakishorts.


• All three Storm Comics titles - the scifi tale After Life and Thief Taker General #1 and #2 - can be bought in one fell swoop for £8.00 inc. p&p, a saving of £1.25, from the Storm Comics web site at www.stormcomics.com.

Temple APA Issue 4 Online

The indie British creators group known as the Temple APA has just released the fourth issue of their 'portfolio' comic, available free in hi-res PDF format from their Forum here.

Intended as a digital showcase of British comic writers and artists both amateur and professional and also UK small press comics the comic, this stonking 132 page edition also includes an interview with Accent Press masterminds Dave West and Colin Mathieson.

Creators such as Tony Suleri, Dave Hailwood, Adam Grose, Paul Eldridge, Dave Thomson, John Kirkham and Jim Stewart; Malcolm Kirk, have all contributed material to the issue, ranging from full page comic strip to portfolio work. Adam Grose' work grows with confidence every time I see it, and his sample pages from new project, Time Wave Zero, are no exception. I definitely want to see more of Dave Thomson's work -- why isn't someone of this standard getting more notice from publishers? -- while Malcolm Kirk's parody of the sadly-missed Junior TV Times, Look-In, (or Pyook-In, as Malcom has re-named it), is a delight. Plus, with more great stuff from the likes of Paul Eldridge, Paul Harrison-Davies, Simon Mackie and others, this portfolio edition is well worth taking time to download.

That said, I think the team are missing a trick by not giving this quarterly outing a bit more structure: it might be worth considering making it more of a comic event, as sketch book pages and single page samples tend to be a little out of place. By taking a leaf from Accent Press' anthologies - extensively featured in this issue - and sticking to an overall theme for portfolio pieces -- SF, for example, heroes, steampunk or horror -- the Temple APA might prove an even nore attractive digital release.

The next issue is due in September and the team invite all British comic creators to join the APA and contribute via templeapa.ning.com

One great item in this edition is the ever-growing British Small Press Directory, useful for those of you trying to track down some of the higher profile indie titles at comics events or online. That this regular section has even more page dedicated to covering these is testament to the energy of the indie scene at the moment (and, of course, an indication of how ill-served our comic creators are by the sheer lack of professional outlets for their work...)

• Download Temple APA Issue Four

• Feedback on the work is always welcomed. Post any comments or feedback on the Temple APA forum here

Temple's Third Outing Online

The third Temple APA anthology, a collection of work from one of Britain's longest-running Amateur Press Associations, is available for download (PDF format).

Featuring work by Adam Grose, Dave Hailwood, Malcolm Kirk, Simon Mackie, Tony Suleri, Paul Eldridge and Jim Stewart, the anthology is intended as a platform to promote the creators and deliver some darn fine comics fun along the way. It also includes a new Small Press Directory.

My favourite parts of this issue have to be Simon Mackie's autobiographical strip and Tony Suleri's increasingly confident work - strip and illustration samples with simply stunning vibrancy. And, of course, it was great to read Paul Edridge's smashing strips he originally created over on the ROK Comics platform again -- both very funny! -- as is Malcolm Kirk's Stick Man.

"I'd like to attract some new and old faces for the next issue," says Dave Hailwood. "So if you're an old Temple member please send in a couple pages and if you can't spread the word!"

The next deadline is 22nd June 2009.

• Templeapa at: http://templeapa.ning.com

Highway Robbery Comics

British creators David Hailwood and Tony Suleri (artist on Cosmogenesis) have a a new webcomic online via Bulletproof Comics (www.bulletproofcomics.co.uk).

Highway Robbery features the adventures of ape bounty hunter Pubba Gintaro, as he defends the population of Hounddog City from its tyrannical Elvis fixated bovine oppressor... King Burger! (who first appeared as a character for the Rok Comics Mobile Combat game, designed by Stu Smith).

"The strip is exclusive to Bulletproof and will be updated every weekend," says David. "If you get the chance, pop along and have a look and tell us what you think!"

• Comment on Highway Robbery on the downthetubes forum (membership required)