Six komiks I liked from summer Komikon

Six komiks I liked from summer Komikon

by rick olivares

Just like that, the Summer Komikon is done. It was another fun day as both a fan and an exhibitor to be among people with similar tastes.

Some things that were pretty popular…

Stickers! Fetching for a low as PhP10, these were a hit with fans.

Freebies! It seems that selling your komiks isn’t enough. Freebies such as postcards, bookmarkers, stickers, or pin-ups add to a good buy.

There weren’t a lot of new releases but here are six books that I picked up and liked:

Tales from the Kingdom of Tundo #1 (story and art by Mark Del Rosario)

A dark fantasy story in the mythical kingdom of Tundo that was once ruled by Lakan Bunao Dula who forged an alliance of sorts with the world’s mythical creatures. He wakes up some time later as an amnesiac. In the midst of a battle with some kapres, he learns his identity. But that is just the beginning of the mystery.

Not since the late Nick Manabat have I seen a n artists use a lot of dark and heavy inks. But it does suit this dark fantasy.

Ellie: An Inktober Story (story and art by Patrick Concepcion)

A thirty-four page black and white stand-alone piece. For fans of Michael Cho’s Shoplifter or even Craig Thompson’s work (and Concepcion’s style is reminiscent of the latter). It’s a mundane story but the art is really fetching. 

Mono Kuro: The Windless Valley (story and art by CY Vendivil)

For fans of anthropomorphic stories, Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo, David Petersen’s Mouseguard, and Jeff Smith’s Bone. The fourth issue in the adventures of Momiji, a fluffy-tailed rabbit swordsman sworn to protect the world. Thus far, all the stories in this series are silent stories with the reader left to figure out things. In this story, Momiji stands guard at the gate and holds fast against demons. Interesting stuff. I think that that the story needs a very good inker.

BGMBYN (story by Reginald Tolentino with art by Jap Mikel)

Not a comic per se but an illustrated story of an alternate history set in 1896 when Philippine insurgents battle the Spanish empire. Good stuff. The art is reminiscent of Matthew Reynolds who did excellent work on Image Comics’ short-lived adventure series, “The Mercenary Sea”.

Bawal Mamatay: May Tumawid Na Rito (by Toto Madayag)

The latest collection of works by cartoonist Toto Madayag and his satirical look at life. In this follow up to “P’Cha, E ‘DI Komiks”, Madayag offers his own take on social media humor and memes.

The Nivene Assumption (story and art by Nib Santos)

When Nivene’s dog, Graeme, utters a word to her, the young lass must figure out if she is going crazy or if there’s another purpose to her life akin to an animal whisperer. If you like Marguerite Bennett and Rafael de Latorre’s “Animosity’. Chapter one of an ongoing series.