Sirens: The Pin-Up Art of David Wright

sirensdavidwrightWhat comes to mind, when you think pin-up art from of the 1940s-1960s?  Maybe model Bettie Page might pop in your head or paintings like the “Vargas Girls” by artist Alberto Vargas.  How about David Wright?  And NO, he’s not the Third Baseman from New York Mets baseball team!  In the 20th Century, British artist Dave Wright was also right-up there with his American peers like Alberto Vargas and Gil Elvgren.  World War II sparked the pin-up girl craze as David Wright created his “Lovelies.”  Dave Wright’s pin-up girls was all over Britain, “a standard fixture on the walls of barrack rooms, officers’ messes, pubs and clubs” (Terry Parker, Sirens: The Pin-Up Art of David Wright).

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Thrud The Barbarian by Carl Critchlow

thrud the barbarianIs it He-Man?  Conan the Barbarian!  No, it’s not – it’s our wandering beer-guzzling warrior Thrud The Barbarian!  Comic artist Carl Critchlow first unleashed his character Thrud as a college project, where it first appeared in a fanzine in the 1980s and then spawned a six-year comic strip run on Games Workshop’s “White Dwarf” magazine.

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Interview with Sharky! author Dave Elliot

 sharkycoverDon’t know the name Dave Elliot?  Well, he’s worked at DC, Marvel, 2000AD and Heavy Metal, just to name few places.  Over 25 years in the comics scene, our Retrenders team catches up with Dave Elliot about his new Sharky! graphic novel published by Titan Comics.

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RTNDR:  You have worked with artist Alex Horley on many projects, what is the work relationship like when you guys do a project together?  Is there much collaboration on story building and character designs?Dave Elliot:  Both Alex and myself have very similar influences.  Kirby, Frazetta and John Buscema are all at the top our lists.  We have had enough of those fevered fanboy chats late into the evening that even before we started we both knew what the other wanted to do.  For Sharky some of the character designs were set but Alex made them his own and then we built from there.

We wanted to do something that was a tribute to those creators as well, so in true Kirby style we wanted to come up with as many ideas as possible and then throw them in.  I think after all the decompressed storytelling of the last 15-20 years Sharky must read like a roller coaster ride.  I think we managed to get enough ideas for 20 comics in those original four issues.

RTNDR:  As you mentioned in the Sharky! graphic novel a origin story of Gunmetal is coming, can we also get a story arc on Thor Stormhausen (Max to her friends)?

David Elliot:  You’ll see Thor again in issue 256 of Heavy Metal this month. She makes a brief appearance with Sharky in a new Maximum Force story where Sharky tries to get Max Carnage to get back in the game and help him build a new team.

RTNDR:  How about a kick-ass team-up of Thor Stormhausen and Vampirella?
Dave Elliot:  That would be awesome and a lot of fun.
RTNDR:  In Sharky! Volume 1:  When Titans Clash! there are lots of special guests like Savage Dragon, The Mask, Madman and Wildstar.  How did you come about grabbing these characters?

Dave Elliot:  I knew all the creators so I just asked them for permission and they said yes.  It was just a brief use and all for fun.  Those creators got that.  Sharky has since gotten to team back up with Mister Monster as well as meet El Zombo in Monster Massacre.

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Automobile Drawings by Makoto Komori

komoriJapanese artist Makoto Komori is well known for his children’s illustration books and his Datto-san series is popular with kids in Japan.  It’s kinda of like Pixar’s Cars, but with Komori’s own sense of style and flair.

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Travel Boy Carry On Luggage

travel gear 01Travel in geek-style with this retro gaming inspired Travel Boy Carry On Luggage.

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Kidrobot DamGun ‘Bots

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The Ramen crew visited Kidrobot SF for the release of the DamGun ‘Bots.   If you’re a Gundam fan or just an anime mech-head, then you might like these ‘Bots.  Kidrobot pays homage to these plastic snap-on model kits with their own  DamGun ‘Bots.

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Japan Only: Butt Pudding (Crayon Shin-Can)

shin-canFrom the Japanese manga series by Yoshito Usui comes the Crayon Shin-Can butt-shaped edible pudding.  The dessert kit comes with DIY instructions and when you’re done you can eat Shin-Can’s twerking butt.

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Sharky! by Dave Elliot & Alex Horley

sharkycoverI got a glimpse of the off-beat muscle-bound Sharky and his friends in the graphic novel anthology Monster Massacre Vol. 1, and now we get a full Sharky graphic novel from writer Dave Elliot and artist Alex Horley.  Why does Tank Girl have to get all the crazy fun?  Sharky gets in on the action too.  If you’re looking for Shazam!, well this isn’t it bitches!  This is Sharky!

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Sugar Series by Emily Blincoe

gold candyorange candyIt’s Friday and I want some darn sweets!  Austin-based photographer Emily Blincoe arranges her sweets through the theme of rainbow colors.  Her candy galore photographs are from her “Sugar Series.”

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Mishka: Decade of Destruction

decade of destructionUrban streetwear companies are a dime a dozen and some last a couple of days, or couple of years, or they can change the game and make a fashion statement, and this year Mishka celebrates it’s 10 years in the business with this mini-capsule collection with the Decade of Destruction.

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Mishka Fall 2013 Women’s Lookbook

miska 02Recently Mishka dropped their Fall 2013 Women’s Lookbook.  This Fall Collection theme is color aggressive, a does of punk-rock with a sprinkle of yuppie-glam.  The 36-piece collection features leggings, graphic tees, jackets, button shirts and pants.

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Fan Film: The Dark Knight Legacy

red hoodRed Hood on film!  Well, this is a fan-made film, but it’s pretty darn entertaining.  If you’re a fan of DC Comics’ Batman universe you will probably enjoy watching this short directed by Brett Register.

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Kidrobot x Marvel Labbits and Frank Kozik

KRFKML01Last week in SF, our Ramen crew went to a special Kidrobot event with artist/designer Frank Kozik and his Marvel Labbit series.

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Drink: Hello Kitty beer

hello kitty beerSanrio surely has licensed Hello Kitty on everything and anything, now a limited edition batch of Hello Kitty beer.  This fruity alcoholic concoction has 6 tropical flavors like Lemon Lime, Peach and Banana.  The beer is produced by Taiwanese beer maker Long Quan.

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Tokidoki x Peggy Guggenheim Collection

peggy collectionWhen we hear people mentioning “modern art” or “contemporary art”, one of the words that pops up in our minds is the “Guggenheim”.  Now Tokidoki is collaborating with the Guggenheim to bring us “The Peggy Guggenheim Collection.”

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Enter the world of Atmosphere by Kaskade

kaskade atomsphere“America’s Best DJ 2013” Kaskade just dropped his latest album – Atmosphere.  Pick up the album @ iTunes – the Deluxe Edition features 13 tracks, 1 Atmosphere remix track and included Atmosphere music video.

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Monster Massacre Vol. 1

mmcoverAre you tired of the regular ho-hum superhero comics?  How about something with big muscles, big guns, sexy babes, scary monsters and dark humor?  Titan Comics’ Monster Massacre Vol 1. is a anthology collection of sci-fi/fantasy stories from the top writers and comic book artists in the industry.

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Boxers & Saints by Gene Luen Yang

boxers and saintsI’ve been a big fan of artist/writer Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese, Avatar: The Last Airbender) and have many of his graphic novels on my book shelf.   He just released his epic 2 volume series Boxers & Saints.

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Black Milk Clothing x Harry Potter Collection

blackmilk harry potterFashionable Harry Potter clothing?  What are you talking about?  Urban apparel company Black Milk Clothing teams up with Harry Potter with this Hogwarts Collection.  This capsule collection has 32-pieces featuring leggings, dresses and swimsuits.  Prices range from $56.00USD and up to $93.00USD.  Harry Potter fans can look sexy and fashionable.

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Kidrobot x Street Fighter Series 2 Release Party

KRSF2003I still remember that feeling of saving up all my quarters for the week and rushing to my local 7-Eleven store where they would have video game arcades like Space Harrier, Daytona USA, Thunder Blade, Operation Wolf, Afterburner and of course Capcom’s Street Fighter! Those were the days, but let’s move on … Kidrobot’s first Street Fighter 3″ vinyl figures were super popular and now it’s back with a Series II.

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Frankie’s Garage: Tuned Lexus 460 by TMG

lexus 460There’s a tuner shop named TMG in Germany that’s been known to tune Toyotas for track racing, now they show-off a street-legal concept, the TMG Lexus LS460 TS-650.  It’s a mouthful to say, but the large sedan is street-legal and track ready.  XCar Films takes a ride in this one-off racing family sedan.

Ramen goes Snack Tasting @ Japan Expo 2013

Not all anime-cons are about cosplay, manga, buying toys and going to the different panels, our Ramen and a Half team goes snack tasting at Japan Expo 2013.  The convention took place August 23-25th, 2013 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, CA.  Our host Eddie and Jonelle hit-up JFC International to taste all the yummy snacks and candies.  With their stomachs full, they also headed to the Yakult booth to drink the healthy yogurt drink.

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Interview with Legendary Character Designer: Yoshiyuki Sadamoto

NadiaAt Japan Expo 1st Impact 2013, Jonelle from “Ramen & a Half” had the pleasure of interviewing iconic artist and character designer Yoshiyuki Sadamoto.  His famous works include Nadia, Neon Genesis Evangelion, FLCL, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Summer Wars.  Emanuel, the agent for Yoshiyuki Sadamoto was our translator during the interview.

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RTNDR:  What was your background and inspiration in becoming a character designer and artist?

Sadamoto:  First, it was the director Yamaga Hiroyuki, the director of The Wings of Honneamise who asked him to do the character design.  It started here.  Up to that time, it was manga that had led him to draw his own characters for his personal works and this, in turn, led him to work in character design.

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“The Star Wars” Rough Draft by Dark Horse Comics

the star warsWTF – Is George Lucas re-releasing another Blu-Ray cut of the Star Wars Trilogy with additional scenes and new 3D effects?  Nope.  This time, Dark Horse Comics is publishing the original “Star Wars” rough draft by George Lucas before the mega-iconic 1977 hit film Star Wars.

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Custom LEGO Masters of the Universe

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If you can’t afford to buy all of Mattel’s He-Man Master of the Universe’s toys and figures, why not just build your own from LEGOs?  And that’s what custom LEGO builder Alex Jones (Orion Pax) has done.

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