Sequential State – the comics criticism archive of Alex Hoffman

Tag: comics

  • Review: Heaven’s Dream Town! A VR RPG by Wren McDonald We’re a week away from TCAF, and I couldn’t be more excited about that – getting out on a convention floor means discovery, new cartoonists, new comics, and the thrill of finding something new and unique. Wren McDonald’s work is also a recent discovery, fueled…

  • Review: Lemon & Ket by Natalie Andrewson We’re getting closer and closer to TCAF – expect a “to buy” list coming in the next few days or so. In the meantime, I’m trying to get my hands on books that premiered at MoCCA and won’t be readily available at the Canadian show. PEOW! Studio came…

  • Thoughts on Blacksad and Its Portrayal of Race

    In light of the recent Comic-Con announcements and Blacksad receiving yet another Eisner nomination, I thought now might be a good time to bring to bear a piece I’ve been thinking about for quite some time. Blacksad is a very popular noir comic featuring the titular detective John Blacksad. Throughout the series of comics, John…

  • Review: Last Man: The Stranger by Balak, Michaël Sanlaville, and Bastien Vivès As manga continues to become a larger part of comics in the West, it’s no surprise to see manga-influenced comics becoming more and more the norm. We’re starting to see this already as manga-reading kids are growing into comics-making adults. Last Man is…

  • Review: Frontier #7 – SexCoven by Jillian Tamaki If I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again – as far as indie comics goes, 2015 may very well be remembered as the year of Jillian Tamaki. With This One Summer receiving the Caldecott in February, Tamaki has had a great start to the year. And…

  • Review: Mowgli’s Mirror by Olivier Schrauwen

    Review: Mowgli’s Mirror by Olivier Schrauwen

      One of the first books to be sent out as part of RetrofitComics 2015 subscription is Olivier Schrauwen’s Mowgli’s Mirror, a book previously published in both Spanish and French.  Clocking in at 44 pages and at a BD-sized 10×12”, the book feels more substantial than previous Retrofit floppy comics, which have all been lovely…

  • Review: BORB by Jason Little Comics convention season has officially begun with RIPExpo two weekends ago and MoCCA coming up in this weekend; the latest comic on my docket is a MoCCA 2015 debut from Uncivilized Books, Jason Little’s BORB. Clocking in at 98 pages of black and white comics drawn in a style reminiscent…

  • Review: Old Ground #1 by Noel Freibert Part of the challenge of comics criticism is the piece of work that redefines the way you think about comics. We have our own little buckets we put things in; art comics, autobio, speculative fiction, etc. and it’s easy to get wrapped up in the trappings of those…

  • Looking Forward: April Releases, Yeti Press and Sparkplug Books Announce 2015 Publishing Slates

    MoCCA Comics Fest is just around the corner, and some small presses have begun to send out their plans for this year’s publishing slate.  Two books I’m excited about from two different Canadian presses – Koyama Press’ koyamapress​ Mighty Star and the Castle of the Cancatervater from A Degen adactivity​ and Towerkind from Kat Verhoeven…

  • Comics Review: The Hospital Suite by John Porcellino

    Comics Review: The Hospital Suite by John Porcellino

    Review: The Hospital Suite, by John Porcellino John Porcellino is a stalwart of the indie comics scene. King-Cat Comics is going on its 26th year, and Porcellino’s zine distro, Spit and a Half, was how I bought some of my first indie comics at SPACE in Columbus last year. Late in 2014, Drawn and Quarterly released…

  • Review: Vortex by William Cardini

    Review: Vortex by William Cardini

    I’m still working through a giant stack of 2014 books – themore I get through, the more I realize how far behind I am. The good news is that there are plenty of good 2014 comics I haven’t gotten to yet and one I recently read is still stuck in my craw. Part of Sparkplug Books…