The The Zine Volume 5 Issue 5
The The Zine Volume 5 Issue 5
This is a very exciting issue of The The Zine and I will tell you all about it, but first I want to address an issue that has been heavy on the minds of Comic Club participants.
There seems to be a feeling that the club has failed this year. There is a concern that when compared to last year we are not as good as we used to be.
I don’t believe this. Comic Club has always been a struggle. Any creative endeavor is a struggle, but you do it because you love it. It gets into your blood and if you don’t pick up a brush, or a pen, you feel like you want to die. You want to make something and you want to communicate with other people. You want to leave a mark that says “I was here”.
I curated a museum art show about successful comic book artists in the state of Minnesota. Most of these artists make around $12,000 a year from their work. This is not very much money so they supplement their income with other jobs. People in their everyday lives look at them as failures, but they can’t help themselves and keep making the art.
The members of Comic Club are no different. As proof I want to direct your attention to the work you are looking at this very moment. The front cover by Yura and the back cover by Star are some of the cleanest and tightest work we have ever published. If you don’t believe me ask them to see the originals. Both of these covers follow in the footsteps of Charles McGregor’s cover for the last issue, which he colored himself on the computer for the online version.
Tang’s leading the issue by starting a new story called Not My Prince. It’s just the beginning, but I love what I’ve been reading. Tang’s work is always top notch and she pays close attention to detail. It’s a fun story, smoothly paced, and efficient to read. This piece shows an understanding for how comics communicate and it’s good enough to be worth showing to publishers, submitted for a publication grant, or used in her portfolio to apply to school.
I’ve been able to read several chapters ahead so I can tell you she’s dedicated to the story and there is a lot to look forward to!
Star didn’t just make the back cover for the issue she has several more pieces of artwork in the issue and a few illustrations for Larka’s story Shadow’s of Doubt. It’s emotionally rough being a senior, but she keeps up a good verneer.
Larka continues to work on Shadows of doubt even though she has been so sick in past weeks I was concerned for her health. She struggles to tell stories that are so much bigger in her mind than what she has time to commit to paper. In this issue Ven discovers new powers and a dark antagonist is revealed. There is a lot of fighting and deforestation.
Things are heating up in Mukey’s Cold War where we learn a great deal about the political circumstances of Nyx’s kingdom. You will feel like you are there as Nyx skillfully navigates fantastic politics and Zero explores a world of exotic characters. It’s impressive to see this kind of writing and I’m on edge waiting for the next part of the story.
For an artist it’s not the problems we face that define our success, but how we approach them.
You can see even though things are tough these artists have what it takes to continue producing work. Comic Club is supposed to be fun, but it is not always fun; there might be a behavioral issue, or an administrative problem, poor moral, or lack of access to basic building recourses, but even when things are that difficult they keep making the work they need to make and hope that someone will appreciate it.
Readable pdf 