There's links after the self-indulgent whining.

I haven't been posting lately, mostly because I was disappointed regarding my graduate school rejection. I've come to terms with it, though, and now I've learned that when I reapply next year, I probably should apply to more than one school. Also, I should not rush out a sloppy, crap-filled portfolio for the next round of applications.

Of course, the wife buying me The Complete Peanuts 1955-1956 and The R. Crumb Handbook as a thank you for helping her with some things cheered me up--the woman knows the way to my heart.

In any case, I've been grumpy and busy at work, so the reviews I've promised are still delayed. Reviews always take me longer than anything else, for some reason. I'd say that A Strange Day and Lunch Hour Comix should be reviewed by Monday at the latest.

• I guess as up on what's coming out from Speakeasy Comics as I should be. But former CWN columnist Erick Hogan has a book coming out through them, evidently. I'm going to have to buy it based on the cover alone:



Not only is it pretty, but it has a dalmatian. Hogan, you also know the way to my heart. I had to pester Hogan for more information after seeing this--he gave me the solicit:

Welcome to Megalotroplis, where superheroes battle for truth, justice, and top story on the evening news.

Alpha Major was Megalotroplis' biggest hero... until now. Everything changes when a young upstart, Diesel, arrives on the scene to steal the spotlight. Embarrassed and ashamed, Alpha goes into hiding until he meets a young boy that teaches him the true meaning of being a hero.

It doesn't sound groundbreaking, but it might be good pop comics, and it has art that Hogan described as coming from "Sam Keith's bastard digital son." Hero@Large is expected to drop this August from Speakeasy Comics.

• Speaking of former columnists, Broken Frontier's former columnist (and somewhat current blogger) Matt Maxwell has a new column published semi-regularly at the Isotope Lounge called "School of Hard Knocks." Even though I really have no desire to make comics, his column is an interesting look at his learning curve.

• Hey, I just noticed that Shawn Hoke has posted his review of the R. Crumb Handbook.

• I was talking to some people recently regarding the quality of the writing in the comics blogosphere, and it got me wondering... Am I missing anyone? Who should I be reading for the quality of the blog itself, and not just the content? I'm looking for anything interesting to read, no matter what the focus is--engaging writing is engaging writing, even if it's about something I'm not very interested in. For example, as much as I disagree with a lot of what he writes, Don Simpson has been making really thought-provoking posts lately.

• If you live in or around the Toronto area, this might be worth checking out: An Evening with Warren Ellis.

• I don't usually play the referral game, but it did tickle me that someone came through with a She-Hulk Haiku search. The low class porn search was less pleasing.