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Mal and Chad Starts Again Soon!
Jan 1, 2008 1:17 pm
Well, my Christmas break is going well. I hope you all had a good holiday season. Here’s a little piece of Youtube goodness to start us off.



This animation, called Run to Old, was done by a young animator in Hong Kong. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any more information about the creator of this short. If you find a video you like, pop me an email and I might feature it in the blog spot.

Lot’s of big things happening soon. I have a five page experimental comic called Tiny Tim that’ll be posted shortly. I’m exciting to see what you guys think about it. And with the new comments functionality, feedback is easier than ever!

Also, Mal and Chad will start up again this Monday! So, keep an eye peeled.

This next year is going to be huge for me. I’ll be leaving this continent… seeing things I’ve never seen before… and drawing more comics. And I’m glad you will be here at Doodle Alley to experience it with me.

Happy New Year!
 
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Aquatic Language
Jan 3, 2008 11:46 pm
Hey everybody!

I’ve been preparing to go headlong into my extended Christmas break cartooning activities.

This week’s Youtube Video of the Week is a beautiful semi-avant garde Japanese short done by Studio Rikka. This is the original Japanese version of the piece with French subtitles. We’re very multilingual today.

You can watch the English dubbed version of this short here on Youtube. I couldn’t feature it on the blog spot because the person who uploaded the video disabled the embed function.



Excellent, isn’t it? The title of the piece is Mizu No Kotoba, which translates to "water words." I’d recommend watching it a couple of times because new, subtle meanings pop up with repeated viewings.

I sent samples of Mal and Chad to my local paper to see if they wanted to print them, and they set up an interview. I’m not sure yet whether they will publish Mal and Chad, but they did write a human interest article about me recently which you can read here. Exciting!

And finally, Tiny Tim is up. I hope you guys enjoy this little experimental comic.
 
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Mountain Head
Jan 25, 2008 10:57 am
So it’s a little different being at home instead of at school, but I definitely have plenty of projects to keep myself occupied. We’ll talk about those projects, right after we watch this great little animated short. Sorry if the subtitles are hard to read.



This Youtube Pick of the Week is Atama Yama, which translates to “mountain head.” This strange, Japanese short was directed by Koji Yamamura. It takes a couple of viewings to really appreciate. It has sort of a Triplets of Belleville aesthetic.

Right now on Gallery Avenue there are two new images for you to appreciate in the Drawergeeks section. Just click on the “From the Gallery” link at the left.

Also, Mal and Chad has been updating five days a week, so be sure to check on that.

Preparations for my semester abroad in Japan is going well. I’m buying tickets through a travel agency. The plan is to leave on March 12 and be back at the end of July. The crazy thing is that instead of flying straight home, I’m planning on going straight to Comicon from Japan. This is going to be one long, fun trip.

Also, Mike Maihack, the editor of Parable, has given me the opportunity to interview other cartoonists on the Parable staff. My first interview with James Mar is out on the Parable website, and you can read it here.

Finally, I’ve started teaching classes on cartooning here at my hometown. So far I’ve taught one class for elementary schoolers, and this afternoon I’ll be teaching students who are in middle school and high school. It’s been really fun so far. I collaborated with a first grader and a third grader to make a comic about character named Pointy-Head who has lunch with a pirate and feels sick afterwards. The pirate takes him to the hospital, and after a visit with the doctor, Pointy feels better.
 
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Three-Tailed Monkeys
Feb 10, 2008 5:38 pm
So… guess what? I applied for a visa to Japan. But before we talk about that, let’s watch the Youtube Pick of the Week.



This music video was animated by Yannick Puig, and you can see more of his animations on his website. The song, “I Lived on the Moon,” is done by a band called Kwoon. I liked this piece because of the clever blending of 2-d animation and 3-d animation. This film was suggested to me by my friend Amber. If you find a video you like, send me an email and I might feature it.

Applying for a visa to Japan was a little scary, because I had to send my precious passport by mail to the nearest Japanese consulate, which is a couple states away. Luckily, my passport made it safely back to me, along with a student visa! I’m very excited. There are very few obstacles now between me and Japan. I’ve just got to wait.

I also got a doctor’s checkup for the trip. The university I am exchanging to sent me a form for the doctor to fill out, to guarantee my health. On the form, I spotted my first encounter with Japanese “Engrish,” or perhaps, to be fair, it was merely a typo. The form asked if I had any “leaning” disabilities. Ha ha!

Honestly, I have no idea what to expect. I mean, I know that I want to go to Japan, but what will it be like? I don’t know. I can watch as much Japanese cartoons as I want, I can read as much Japanese comics as I want, but what is the real Japan like? I won’t know until I get there.

In order to record my stay there, I’m seriously considering starting a video blog to broadcast my experiences back to you all. I’m looking into buying a camera and some editing software. I’ll let you know whether or not that idea comes to fruition.

And thank you so much for the comments. Tafreer said, “This is probably one of the best strips in any comic I've been reading for a while. The dramatic setup is excellent!” I failed to update Mal and Chad twice during these last two weeks, but because of comments like this I felt so encouraged that today I cranked out enough strips to catch up. So check the Mal and Chad section because there’s new content to be read. Be careful not to miss a strip. I’ll be updating Mal and Chad until the beginning of March, when I begin serious preparations for going to Japan.

Also, there’s another interview that I did with fellow Parable contributor Michelle Gorski, that you can read here, on the Parable website.

Talk to y’all later!
 
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Mal and Chad Reaches 100 Strips!
Feb 21, 2008 1:16 pm
Mal and Chad has reached the 100th strip. Good gravy.



Thanks for all your support.

I’m proud to announce that Mal and Chad is going to be digitally syndicated by Uclick. I signed the contract today, and if everything works out, Mal and Chad should begin appearing on Uclick’s website, GoComics, within the next month. GoComics attracts a wide audience because it hosts comics like Calvin and Hobbes, Garfield and Foxtrot. This means that Mal and Chad will reach a wider audience, and Doodle Alley may become a very busy intersection in the Internet Metropolis.

So, here’s what’s going to happen. At the end of this February, I’m going to stop updating Mal and Chad so that I can prepare for my trip to Japan. While I’m in Japan, I’ll be posting old Mal and Chad strips on the GoComics website until the GoComics audience is caught up with us here on Doodle Alley. By the time all hundred-and-something strips are posted on GoComics, I’ll be back from Japan and I can start working on more Mal and Chad content. Does that sound good?

Also, I bought a camera and started a Youtube channel, so check back here at Doodle Alley to watch my video blog, which will document my stay in Japan. My good friend and college roommate Phil Silvia is coming with me on this journey, so expect to see a lot of him in these movies too. It’s gonna be fun.

Wish me luck!
 
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Stalking Japan-- The Pilot Episode
Feb 22, 2008 8:18 pm


Well, here’s my first attempt at a video blog. I hope you all enjoy it.

I never realized how hard speaking to a camera is. It felt like there were a million people watching me from inside the camera. Hopefully as the show progresses I will get over this stage fright and find my voice. Also, I need to figure out how to get quality videos on Youtube.

Anyway, next week is the last week of Mal and Chad, and then only two weeks before I leave for Japan. I’ll keep you all updated.
 
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The Unknown Approaches
Mar 8, 2008 5:58 pm
Boy I’m tired. Let’s watch a movie.



This movie, called "You Make Me Want To Be A Man," was done for music artist Utada Hikaru. Sorry about the low resolution. I thought this animation was an excellent interpretation of the music.

This movie was suggested by my friend, Kim Herbst. She’s an excellent illustrator, you should check out her work! If you find a video you like, send me an email and I might feature it.

There’s new work up in the gallery, especially in the Drawergeeks section, so be sure to check that out. Also, Mal and Chad will theoretically appear on GoComics this Monday.

I’m amazed that this time next week, I’ll be in Japan. I’m leaving at 6:30 AM this Wednesday. There’s so much I don’t know about the trip, but I trust that it’ll be a good experience.

I’ll let you guys know how it goes. I’ll have the first episode of Stalking Japan up in a week and a half or so. Wish me luck!
 
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The Details
Mar 17, 2008 5:09 pm


I’m finally in Japan. It’s amazing.

How do I describe what it’s like?

The Real Japan is all the little details that you never imagined Japan would be like.

Today I went for a run and got lost a ways away from the dorm I’m staying at. The city is a strange amalgamation of the ancient and the modern. You climb to the top of the mountain, and there are many moss-covered stone graves. Descending the slippery stone stairs through the forest, you reach the suburbs. The houses are cramped together, and there are beautiful gardens next to big telephone poles.

And when I was nearing the end of my run, a Dachsund dog popped out from behind a corner and barked at me. A Japanese lady came running up apologizing.

Now, I had a Dachsund when I was a kid, but I never thought there were Dachsund dogs in Japan. Don’t get me wrong, if I had ever thought about whether or not Japanese people had Dachsunds, I would have concluded that they do, but it’s a detail of Japan I’ve never thought about. That’s the Real Japan. It’s the details.
 
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Manga Pipe Dream
Mar 24, 2008 9:19 am


Imagine if you will, a young, budding cartoonist, absolutely in love with comics. Imagine me, as a young boy.

I’ve always loved comics, and wherever I go and in whatever store I step into, I have this subconscious urge to look for comics. As a kid, I devoured Garfield and Archie comics, then, as I grew, I got into superhero comics, and then I started reading some more underground comics later on.

And then there’s manga.

One of the reasons I went to Japan was for the incredibly healthy comics culture they have here. Old people, young people, girls and boys alike read comics. They have manga cafes, where you can rent a room and just read comics. They have giant manga shops full to the brim with all different types of comics and all different types of genres.

Meanwhile, in America, I’ve had deal with small, struggling comic shops, and grumpy store clerks.

So imagine my excitement when I got here and went to a bookstore, and saw the biggest comic selection I’ve ever seen. Then, imagine my disappointment when I realized that every comic was wrapped in plastic, and you were unable to browse.

The Japanese have this astounding sense of presentation, an abundance of wrappers and tags and packaging. And now it was preventing me from gratifying a desire I’ve had since I was a child.

But a couple days ago, some of my peers took me to a used book store. And in this book store was thousands of volumes of manga. And they had no wrappers, and they were available for browsing.

And they were only one American dollar each.

And I still giggle when I think about it.
 
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Treasure Bomb
Mar 30, 2008 9:05 pm


I went to a strange shop a couple miles from where I live called Treasure Bomb.

It was full of tiny little figurines in tiny little bags. Thousands of bags hung on wireframe shelves.

Some figurines were for key chains and cell phones. Some were for collecting. There was little toy cars and monsters and figurines from every manga/anime series imaginable. It hurt your eyes to look at them.

I only saw one child the entire time I was there. There were lots of middle aged men browsing the tiny figurines. Many were collectors. I thought it was really cool that grownups would be passionate about something that only little kids would be interested in back in America.

I was looking for an interesting keychain-- one that was unlike any of the others. I found a small statue that looked like a little idol. It was such a strong contrast to the colorful plastic figures next to it that I wondered whether or not it really was an idol from some ancient time that had accidently been put in a little bag and mixed in with the rest of the key chains.

But it had this strange, creepy aura about it, so I didn’t buy it. I don’t think I could sleep in the same room with it.

It was a very strange shop indeed.
 
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The Tokyo Excursion
Apr 7, 2008 12:57 pm
 
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Wax Food
Apr 14, 2008 11:22 pm
 
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The Manhole Cover Project
Apr 21, 2008 5:01 pm


Well, unfortunately, there's no Stalking Japan this week. Phil and I went to a Kibuki play, and it was very interesting, but we weren't allowed to take photos, let alone shoot a movie.

So this week I bring you a very small but interesting piece of Japan which you’ve probably never seen.

I bring you the Manhole Cover Project.

In Japan, each district has its own design of manhole covers, and some of them are pretty creative. So, every time I see a new one, I take a picture. This project was inspired by my dad, who took pictures of manhole covers and interesting buildings instead of more touristy subjects while traveling Europe.

And now my pictures are in the gallery.

So check them out.

Next week, be sure to check in for another episode of Stalking Japan. See ya!

 
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Base Ball!
Apr 28, 2008 1:15 pm



It was an interesting experience. There were a lot of small differences between Japanese and American baseball.

For one, at American baseball games, there is a lot more screaming and whistling and sometimes even cursing. At this game there was just as much enthusiasm, but it was much more organized. I didn’t hear anyone whistle, and there was also a lot more songs. There was a different song for each team, and even songs for individual players! Instead of clapping, the crowd used small plastic bats. The hardcore fans had bright costumes and face paint, and I think people even brought their own instruments to play the team’s songs.

One mistake Phil and I made in the movie though… the final score was Tigers: 4, Dragons: 3 instead of 2 and 1. Sorry about that.

See you guys next week!
 
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Golden Week
May 8, 2008 3:33 pm


 
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Maid Cafes!
May 19, 2008 2:27 pm


 
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In A Word: Ninjas
Jun 12, 2008 10:17 pm


Hey everbody. Sorry it's been a while since I updated the blog. Me and Phil had a week full of tests a couple weeks ago, and it took us a while to recover.

To make up for it, we made this especially long episode for you all.

Enjoy!
 
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Happy Fourth
Jul 5, 2008 1:05 pm
 
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Coming Home to Comicon
Aug 1, 2008 4:16 pm
Well. A whole chapter in my life has ended, and a new one has begun.

The video blogging has been fun, but it takes so much energy. So now that I’m back in the States, I’m hoping to start text blogging a little more. The last episode of Stalking Japan should be up in the next week.

So get this, instead of flying straight home from Japan, I decided to stop by in San Diego for Comicon 2008. It was nuts.

DAY 1

Coming back to America was more of a culture shock than going to Japan.

I went to Japan with a real open mind, a willingness to try anything, but I didn’t think to make these mental preparations before returning to America, so when I arrived in the international airport in San Francisco it was a surprise. Instead of seeing only Japanese faces like I was used to, I saw all sorts of people from all sorts of places. And instead of constantly hearing Japanese, I heard English coming out of people’s mouths as they talked on cell phones and yelled to family members.

I saw a man throw his trash at a garbage can, and even though he missed he walked away without picking it up, and I thought to myself “How rude! That would never happen in Japan!”

Once I got to my departure lobby, I walked in a daze up and down the concourse, staring at all the people. Even though I wasn’t really hungry, I bought a gyro and sat down to eat. And as I was eating, a middle-aged man with a kind, round face and a whitish beard stopped next to my table and asked me how the gyro was, and whether or not I’d recommend it, and then was on his way again. And I thought to myself “How nice! That would never happen in Japan!”

And after that I began to recover from my reverse culture shock.

I flew in to San Diego Airport and checked in to my hotel. The 10 hour jetlag left over from my flight over the Pacific was intense. My body was so wacked out that I felt like I could sleep or stay awake and it wouldn’t matter. So I decided to stay awake.

I went to the convention center and got my badge and later met up with some friends that I made last year, including Kim Herbst, Kazu and Amy Kibuishi and other people from the Flight booth.

At this year’s Comicon, the newest thing on the cosplay scene was steam punk. Old and young people braved the crowded convention hall with Victorian outfits and intricate bronze goggles and complicated belts filled with test tubes and strange mechanical devices. I’ll show you some of these guys in the last episode of Stalking Japan.

DAY 2

The next day I met up with fellow Parabler, Bryan Ballinger. I’ve noticed that once you meet someone in person, all of his or her forum comments or blog posts that you’ve read up to that point suddenly make so much more sense. And this was no exception with Bryan. Bryan was quirky and interesting, like his comics and artwork.

Bryan was a little shocked to see how young I was, because age is something that’s often obscure over the internet. But we soon discovered that as cartoonists we had a lot to talk about. We had a wonderful lunch together, and ate hamburgers the size of your face.

After lunch, I rested in the hotel room and waited for Mike Maihack, the editor of Parable, to arrive from Florida. He was going to room with me for the rest of the con.

I lay on the bed, digesting that giant hamburger. They definitely don’t have hamburgers like that in Japan.

I’ve known Mike for 2 years online, and we’ve even talked on the phone a couple times, but it was great to finally meet him in person. Mike seems like a very spontaneous individual. He had decided to come to Comicon only a few weeks before, which was a surprise, but a pleasant one.

That night I went to the Avatar panel and afterwards I met up with Dave and Raina Roman, who were enjoying all the great Avatar cosplay that was going on. From there I went and picked up a bite to eat at Subway with Mike and Johane Matte, a contributer to Flight and a storyboarder for the Avatar series. Meeting Johane was wonderful, you could really see her passion for her art and her love for her work.

Afterwards, Mike and I met up with a lot of the Flight cartoonists who were relaxing in our hotel lobby. There I got to meet JP Ahonen, a Flight contributor who had traveled all the way from Finland to be at the convention. He spoke perfect English, and was really fun to talk to.

DAY 3

On day 3 Mike and I showed up at the Nickelodeon booth for a signing by Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino, the creators of the Avatar series.

Unfortunately for us, we discovered that we had to get tickets just to get in line for the signing. So we went on a wild Easter egg chase to find out where they were distributing the tickets. When we finally arrived, we were surprised to find that they were raffling off the tickets! Luckily, Mike won the raffle on his first try, and I won it on my second. Amusingly, the winning tickets had eggs stamped on the back, so it really was an Easter egg hunt! We felt quite pleased with ourselves.

Oh yeah, and the signing was fun too.

That night Mike and I had dinner with Bryan and some of his friends, one of which was Cory Edwards, the writer and director for the next Fraggle Rock movie.

DAY 4

This last day was mostly filled with saying goodbyes and exchanging sketches and mini-comics and business cards.

That afternoon I met up with Christian Hill, who offered to drive me to the airport. We talked about my next big project that I’ll be announcing officially on Doodle Alley some time soon. He’s a real professional, a master at networking, and he had a lot of great advice for me about navigating the professional world. I felt like talking with him was one of the highlights of the con.

It was such a surreal transition for me. I knew that I was back in America, but I also knew that the Real America wasn’t Comicon. In the Real America, it isn’t a common thing to see fleets of storm troopers walking around, is it?

Bah, who knows what the Real America is… who knows what the Real Japan is…

Life is life, I suppose.
 
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The Final Stalking Japan
Aug 11, 2008 8:17 pm
 
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Things to Come
Sep 27, 2008 2:43 pm
Hey everybody. It’s been a while. Before we get caught up, let’s check out the Youtube Pick of the Week.



This movie, entitled I Met the Walrus, was an Academy Award Nominee for the best animated short film of 2008. Directed by Josh Raskin, you can read more about it here.

If you find a video you like, pop me an email and I might feature it!

So, I’ve been back at school for a month, and a lot of people have been asking me where Mal and Chad went, and when I’m going to start drawing it again.

I’m sad to announce that Mal and Chad won’t be updated for long while.

But the good news is that I’ve got a big project that I’m working on that will satisfy all your Mal and Chad cravings. I’ll give you the full details on it when I can, which will be soon.



In other news, it looks like I’ll be attending Wizard World
Convention in Texas this November for the debut of the first volume of Parable. Preview books of this anthology of short story comics will be available exclusively at this convention, but if you can’t make it, Parable Volume 1 will come out officially this December.

If you live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and you want to meet, just let me know.
 
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Broccoli and Banana Splits
Oct 26, 2008 11:56 pm
First off, here’s a funny video of me dancing at a party when I was doing my foreign exchange in Japan. Don’t laugh too much.



Next, in two weeks I’ll be at the Wizard World Convention. I’m really looking forward to it.

In preparation for the con, I’ve made a minicomic called Broccoli and Banana Splits, which will be available to read on Doodle Alley after I get back.



If you’re in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and you want to meet up at the con, shoot me an email.
 
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The Big Project
Nov 5, 2008 11:07 pm
Well, tomorrow I’m flying out to Texas, and I’m really excited about it!

Before I leave though, I wanted to make an announcement about the big project that I hinted about a couple blog entries back.



Just a couple weeks ago, I signed a contract to create my first graphic novel.

Mal and Chad has been picked up by Philomel books, a division of Penguin. Hopefully, by the end of next year, there will be a full color, Mal and Chad graphic novel.

Talk to you guys when I get back!
 
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The Con
Nov 10, 2008 11:00 pm
Here’s a beautiful piece of animation done by Hyun-min Lee.



Well, Wizard Con was not the best convention experience I’ve ever had. I did get to meet fellow Parabler Scott Zirkel, but the convention floor was mostly full of merchandise tables and old superhero comics, and even a few washed up wrestler celebrities manned booths. On top of that our publisher had some printing difficulties and there was no preview volumes for Parable. And without a book to promote, the booth to promote it in fell through too.

But visiting friends was so worth it.

Mike Maihack, the editor of Parable, fellow contributor Michelle Gorski, and I got to stay at Stephen Nanney and Sarah Mensinga’s house. It was so cool to have that many cartoonists under the same roof. We played cards and watched movies and talked and ate. And we got to play with Stephen and Sarah’s cute new baby Hazel.

It was wonderful.
 
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Stalking Japan
Dec 10, 2008 12:40 pm


I think I might have featured Simon Tofield before with his wonderful Simon's Cat animations. This piece is a warning about overfeeding your animals, sponsored by RSPCA

And check it out! I put up the entire archives of Stalking Japan up in the Gallery! Enjoy!
 
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