This is just a notice that the two new pages for The Tower (now pages 26 and 27) are up.

http://highwatercomics.com/comics/thetower/index.php?p=26

-Sakari

I went to see Hokusai and Hiroshige exhibition in Ateneum art museum in Helsinki. It is evident where for example Herge, creator of Tintin, did get the ideas for his drawing style.

There were numerous woodcut prints on display. Many, but not all, of the 36 views of Mount Fuji including the iconic “The Big Wave”. Hiroshige’s Road to Edo was also well covered.

I especially liked the winter scenes. The weather and the seasons in general were superbly rendered. And speaking of rendition it is quite amazing that the thin reed pen like strokes were all cut out with a fine wood chisel-and mind you the strokes were wood left untouched. The white (non priting areas) were carved. Check out the documentary in the last room.

Strongly recommended!

This about sums it up:

http://www.iftheworldcouldvote.com

Looks very much like Sin City and very little like Eisner’s The Spirit. That’s of course the up and coming The Spirit Movie directed by Frank Miller. Being a huge Frank Miller fan I naturally liked the familiar Miller-style scenery in the trailer, but is it The Spirit? It is naturally Miller’s interpretation and no doubt a homage to the great Will Eisner, thus it is interesting to see how Miller’s rather darkish style fits/clashes with the setting and style that The Spirit was originally drawn.

One thing is certain: this is definitely a different Christmas movie.

I read the latest (that only recently has been translated to finnish) Hellboy: Darkness Calls with great interest. The story was familiar Mike Mignola stuff, but the artwork by Duncan Fegredo. Finnish scifi publication “Tähtivaeltaja” opined that the artwork was not up to par with the previous drawn by Mike Mignola himself. I disagree. Not being a die hard Mignola fanatic I in fact liked Fegredo’s work much more. The colours howewer were a bit too dark and murky to my taste, but that might just be a wrong type of paper chosen for the European edition or something to do with colour profiles. The finnish edition was printed in Poland.

And finally kisses to Sirja. Leave a comment if you read this.

…new pages are coming along. Check out the latest addition here. 

Also here’s something to check out. Sands of Sarasvati. A Finnish SciFi story set in the year 2020. Based on a novel by Risto Isomäki. Art by Jussi Kaakinen. 

Here’s a link to the Finnish site with additional information (if you can read Finnish, that is), some sample spreads and an online store to get your own copy.

I received a flattering note in Comic Space. This from CaptainPanda:

“cool fantasy style!!! and even your story is really well done, with some more love for lanscapes u d be the Finnish Jeff Smith:)”

And if you by chance are unfamiliar with Jeff Smith you can check his stuff out from here.

and here

-Sakari

Yet another page added to The Tower gallery. Check out the explosive action. 

Found a great site for comic supplies. Blue Line Pro has got everything you’d need to create a comic. From T-squares to artboards. And what a great customer service they have. The items I ordered were shipped before I had time to spell cat. Highly recommended.

One more thing. If you are in need of a great colorist, you might want to check out Ronda Pattison’s work. Very talented and hard working Canadian.

-Sakari

One new page added to The Tower gallery. Our intrepid heroes run into little trouble. A lot of it actually. 

And congrats to Team Finland that nailed Team USA 3-2 in Ice Hockey Championships in Canada! A mystery goal (that seemed to go through the net, although no visible hole was found in the net?) got Team Finland back into the game and caused the Team USA to loose their grip respectively. Great third period.

-Sakari

Just received the first six printed Atland comics and it’s just pure magic what happens when a comic is printed on paper. Not only is the format larger but it was somehow much more “real”! And the printing was of excellent quality. If you haven’t already read the web comic, check it out in www.realmofatland.com.

-Sakari