Books Books Books

Hello, here's the post about books I spoke about in the last few updates I made here.

In the last weeks I got quite a handful of new books to read or look, I found out I'm going back to be more of a reader rather than a watcher as I was before, mostly because I used to buy more Japanese artbooks and comics than now.

Here's a picture of the things I got since mid-July to now.

I usually buy single things from European sellers and make big stash shipment from Japan to save something on shipping costs.

First book is Arnon's Wanda Et Les Dinosaures, as soon as I saw Arnon's drawing I wanted to get this book, picture a Flintstones remake, with a Lux Interior inspired protagonist getting in trouble with women, cavemen and dinosaur men, and have it drawn by a devout Jack Kirby lover and you get this. Lovely.

Then I bought a cheap copy of Josh Kirby's Garden Of Unearthly Delights, especially for a better look at his Ayeguy's paintings, and they really are amazing.

 

I'm fond of the classic sci-fi look mixed with organic elements, these pictures have a really unique twist, something like heroic sci-fi. I also love the warm colours and their contrast with cooler shades.

Nothing much to say about Valerian Et Laureline, it's a must read, the best French science fiction comic besides Moebius' ones.

Last Western comic I got is Alfonso Font's Prisoner Of The Stars, an amazing dystopian story about a doomed world and the struggle for a final moment of freedom.

I'm glad there's some reprint of this kind of comics, I'm really hoping in a reprint for Negrete's Cosmopolis.

Then, the big bulk shipment from Japan.

I mostly got tankobons for fantasy manga's. Nobuteru Yuuki's Vaelber Saga has the typical elements of lots of J-Fantasy comics, start in a heroic fantasy world to move on with a more sci-fi setting.

Yuuki's style is amazing, there's a couple of great looking characters like the muscular woman warrior and the half-robotic priestess/queen. I really wish I could understand what happens through the volumes.

Most of Yuuki's published works go for crazy prices, luckily Vaelber Saga's complete run goes for about 500 yen, and it's a great buy if you're into Japanese fantasy.

Next is Masaya Hokazono's Laguna Tsushin, apparently it is a longer series published in one-shot volumes; set in a strange steampunk-ish world.

Hokazono's style is simple but crazy, he reminds me a bit of Hiroshi Masumura's one.

 

I like the strange characters he often uses as sidekicks, I always liked the type of character with big hats and capes, guess it's a thing from Big Trouble In Chinatown's villains, and Amemiya's Zeiram, of course.

I already spoke about Iblard Monogatari in another post, flipping through the book pages reinforced my impressions, great backgrounds, with a poetic, surreal, feel.

Last manga I got is God Gun Yarou by Hirosuke Kizaki.

Kizaki died at a young age, he made three mangas before dying, one about an aspiring mangaka and the other two with a more fantastic setting.

God Gun Yarou is set on a fantastic railroad, the main character has a magic gun and fights against a quite sadistic lady and her robots.

Kizaki style is very detailed, with a modern shonen manga style filtered through the influences of Tatsuyuki Tanaka and Katsuhiro Otomo, I really enjoyed the drawings and I think I'll be getting is other sci-fi manga, called A.Li.Ce sometime soon.

 

And finally Choji Maboroshi's doujinshis. Maboroshi worked on some soft erotic mangas, with fantasy settings, and along with them, published these Camel Filter booklets, containing sketches and b/w illustrations.

He's really classic with subjects, looking like a Japanese take on Dungeons And Dragons' universe, what's cool is the high contrast style of his drawings and the armors' designs.

That's it, I'm waiting for my copies of Gang Bang Bong and Demon God to arrive, but I think they're floating in Italy's postal maelstrom and will be delivered next week.

Now a quick lunch and then back to draw, have a great weekend, talk soon!