Friday, January 29, 2010

What an Impact...

Well, Wrecktums, it's been a dream-like 24 hours. As well as having my first Transformers #1 released since the one I vommed into an exercise book in 1986 (It was a Christmas issue, and featured a giant fan-made Decepticon city garage called Cargantua - I WISH I still had that level of creativity) I was able to share the honour with the fantastic creative of team of Tommy Colourlips (Josh Burcham) and Billy Inkhole (Waki 'John' Wycough) and Guernseyan ubermench, Damien Sparkes' best mate, James Roberts. James has wanted to have a crack at TFs pretty much as long as I have, and rightly so: He am a best. Add to this the viral internet psychosis which has given us all the thumbs up our apertures could handle, then things couldn't get much better. But I like to push my luck.

So I headed down to Forbidden Planet Dublin, where the wonderful Kevin who operates the Palace of Pulp (and assorted TV/film merchandise) has kindly agreed to run a massive Wreckers promo. Firstly, he led me behind his gaping wizard's curtain to sign all the copies of Last Stand of the Wreckers in the shop.


Jesus, I look rough...

And man, are there a lot of copies! Kevin kindly expanded his order to accommodate the big demand there seems to be for this series. So this was a huge deal for me personally. When I was 15 (and as we all know, that's the age when we're all borderline special needs, and 100% deluded) I self-published a comic called Captain Ireland (BIG step down from Cargantua, right ladies?)and persuaded the lovely FP people to stock my little photocopied nonsense. And since then, I've always associated getting the thumbs up from the city's biggest comic shop with 'making it' somehow. So it really was a special moment to sit silently with the comic I've given WAAAY too much of my life to, with my best girl Whittle beside me, and enjoy defacing every copy of Wreckers in the shop. Basically, if you buy your copy from Forbidden Planet, it's got traces of my DNA on it whether you want it or not. One copy in particular will actually make you pregnant. So the hunt is on!

A slightly more desirable offer is the one I mentioned in my previous post(below): Buy a copy of Last Stand from FP, and you'll enter into a draw to win an original Springer sketch. To push this aspect of the event, the crew in The Planet have controversially eschewed their sacred alphabetical order scheme and place Wreckers at eye-level! Van der Valk!



They've placed the framed drawing on display and everything, having to remove a Tommy Lee Edwards and Cameron Stewart sketch to accommodate the robotic awesomeness! Swivel, TLE! Spin on it, Stewart-o!

And there's evidence of my whorish nature in the front window of that most Forbidden of Planets. Look at 'im! Springer wants so badly to shove Hal Jordon's ring right on his finger!



Essentially what I'm saying is, no matter where you are in the country (Ireland that is), Forbidden Planet will look after you on The Wreckers front. And I've had good word that sales are brisk, m'fwends. So contact 'em, and be in witha chance to get a free drawing outta me. They do mail orders too, so no excuses. Correct?

On the subject of sales, reports all over say that this book has legs, with a couple of establishments in the UK down to their last couple of copies. Which is bonkers. So, y'know, I'm grateful for the attention, just like a dope-fiend cheerleader with daddy-issues. And I'll be soo nice to you...

BANNERMEN

Just wanted to steal some artwork off some addled-gentlemen who live on the internet. First of all, the pornographically talented Trever Hitchinson, who does variant covers on Wreckers, and is probably responsible for 78% of the sales so far, has made a Photoshop document of the Wreckers logo available for folk to create their own LSotW banners, artwork, promo-tugs or t-shirts. It looks like this:



And is available here: trevhutch.deviantart.com/journal

The Best of the Rest I've come across on an internette are -

This one from Rycochet:


This is the best thing Shaun Knowler has ever done:



And this heartfelt treat from the brazenly-gifted Matthew C Adams:



I confess that without knowing this next one is something I've wanted to see for a LONG time. It comes from Kup Kollaborator Kris Karter. The man's barely human, but all-genius:



And is this the first LSotW-based fanfiction? I tell the now that it is canon, and nothing will ever be done to contradict that. From the home of...just horrible jokes like this one, Andy Turnbull must surely apologise for this:



Go to weirdwithoutend.com for more of Andu's predominantly TF-themed funnies. Re-nick-ulous.

That's it; Feel free to send comments and crits and cwestions here. Buy Last Stand of the Wreckers at Forbidden Planet Dublin if you can, DEFINITELY go to eclecticmicks.com where they're all fucking showing me up at my own game and listen to me browbeat you more at thecomiccast.com.

I will never top that page 22 again in my career...

You've Been Nicked

19 comments:

Sam said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sam said...

Amazing book! Congrats!

David said...

Awesome issue. I'm glad that you decided not to go the movie version hybrids for the Transformers. I was wondering if you ever sell any of your pages. Keep up the great work.

Stephen Thompson said...

They had about three copies left today in Forbid.

Unknown said...

Sam: Ta! Genuinely!

David: Hey man. Only emerging from the publicity pimpage now in order to address such things. No original art for sale currently. Just not something I'm ready to do yet, but if and when it happens it'll be flagged here. Thanks for the interest!

Thompson: Balls - you were in town today? Brought my dad in to a have a look at the display...and it's almost gone! All a bit much, just like your Pyro. I'll talk more to you about that soon. A lot more.

Rycochet said...

You've managed to put out a piece of Transformers fiction that even notoriously hard to please folk like myself adore. Be proud!

Rycochet said...

You might be a bad man, but you and James wrote one heck of a comic.

Stephen Thompson said...

Argh, that's a pity. Woulda been nice to meet up. Talk to me about Pyro? Am I gonna get a dressing down about some Transformer faux pa I comminted?

Unknown said...

I read this and totally loved it. :D It's got stuff that's been missing from TF comics for too long now for my tastes... crazy action, humor, scenery-chewing evil bastards, colorful and expressive art, obscure characters risen up and given their time in the sun, little continuity nods, character profiles, and Verity! <3

Even the non-hardcore TF fans are getting a kick out of it: one of my friends told me that even though she didn't know of most of the characters before she started, she still felt like she knew them by the end of the comic.

And the Autopedia is hilarious.

Nick said...

Ryc: Thanks so much. We are quite proud, but also realise we have to hit this mark FOUR MORE times. Yipes. But we'll always have #1, huh? Having you and folk like you onboard is great man, so we'll try not to let you down. And I tittered skittishly at that sig: Bravo, sir!

Thompson: NO dressing down, just effusive gushing. And A need to learn some cintiquery to draw a TF. And a request for the hi-res. You have made tomorrow a very daunting task...

Liz: Hey you! I think you just made my day to hear that we may have sucked in a non-regular. That's incredible! I hope she sticks with us - sales probably send a better message to the PTB that me and Jim know what we're doing, but I'm just happy to hear that this bad boy's getting read. And Verity's glad you're glad she's back.

Martin Fisher said...

Nick! Finally got all 3 covers today. Might help to push the sales up a little bit...

I'm wondering if this profiles thing is going to be a regular feature in the IDW comics. I think it should be (only so I can write some of them).

Mark don't do nothing said...

Excellent Start.

Loving the Guzzle Design.

Unknown said...

Turns out she made a blog comment including the matter, if you want to read it. :D

I figured, you know us hardcore folks are gonna love this ;), but it says something really good that even some of the casual folks are getting suckered in.

David said...

Thanks for the answer Nick. I am definitely looking forward to when start selling the original art. Keep up the great work. I am looking forward to the second issue.

Unknown said...

I got the last one available locally yesterday!! With Hutch's cover!! *Thrilled*

Great work on it, it really pulls you in!

So... if I wanted to make graphics to pimp LSotW, I'm assuming I won't be killed? I just thought "LSotW" would be owned as a name but, I take it that's okay to put on stuff we make to shout about this mini-series?

davehendrick said...

I knew it'd be good, but THAT good!! WTF Nick! If I was a pettier man I'd hate you but your writing makes me tingle in ways only your art has managed to thus far. 'Til all are one old friend, 'til all are one.

Jimtron said...

Congratulations on an awesome launch! All of the kudos you've been garnering have been well earned. Keep up the excellent work.

Michael Rea said...

Congrats Nick! Couldn't happen to a better bloke. :) Haven't picked it up yet (hopefully my shop'll have the reprints) but loving the consistently amazing perspective in the previews. See you soon I hope, let us know if you come to London again!

Andy said...

It was a belter of an issue Nick, sorry I've not had the time to do a proper review of it and thanks for the love for WWE!