Tin Lizard Productions


	Christopher Jones Art Christopher's web site. e-mail Christopher		Tin Lizard Productions Melissa's web site (where you are now). e-mail Melissa
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	Event sites Useful Web Resources Discussed in Class: History Discussed in Class: Nuts and Bolts Nifty Things Recommended Reading Superheroes Fantasy Noir/Crime and Horror Biographical Drama Other Analysis and History How-To

	Midwest Comic Book Association (MCBA) Link to the MCBA web site, which lists details about their two annual comics shows, Microcon (April 26th, 2009) and Fallcon (in October).		CONvergence This is the convention that both Christopher and Melissa work on.

	Comic Book Database On this site, you can look up the creative team, cover art, and rough plot of nearly any comic ever made.		Scott McCloud Most web-based resources and experiments mentioned in Scott McCloud's invaluable books are housed here.

	The Story of the Comics Code Authority The history of the comics scare of the 1950's, which lead to decades of self-censorship within the comics industry.		Bob Kane, Bill Finger, Zorro, The Shadow, and Batman An extremely in-depth analysis of where the ideas for Batman came from.
	The Uncanny Valley The Wikipedia entry about the phenomenon through which slightly abstracted characters are easier to relate with than nearly-human replicas.

	Step-by-Step: the Killing in Comics book cover This will open a .pdf file of the step-by-step images Melissa showed in class.		Step-by-Step: the CONvergence wraparound guide cover While we did not look at this image in class, this link goes to a series of web pages with detailed descriptions of each step in the coloring process.
	Step-by-Step: the whole process by Kazu Kibuishi This site contains a very elaborate description of the entire comic-making process, from pencils to finished product.

	Dr. Blink: Superhero Shrink Buy our book!		Archie Meets the Punisher We weren't kidding!
	Wally Wood's 22 Panels A single-page piece of art that illustrates 22 different ways you can show a moment in a comics scene.		Melissa's Cool Screensaver It's free, too!

Watchmen Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons A deconstruction of the superhero genre. Very dense reading. Often regarded as one of the best comics ever made.		The Dark Knight Returns Frank Miller and Klaus Jansen Revitalized superhero comics in the mid-1980's. Often regarded as the beginning of mainstream comics being written for adults in America.
Batman: Year One Frank Miller and David Mazzuchelli A re-telling of the early history of the Batman. Elements were used in the film, Batman Begins.		Batman: The Long Halloween Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale A continuation of the Year One storyline. Elements were used in the film, The Dark Knight.
V for Vendetta Alan Moore and David Lloyd A very dense book about an anarchist in an Orwellian future London.		Justice League International Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, and Kevin Maguire A comedic reboot of the Justice League franchise from the early 1980's. The plots focus mainly on C-list superheroes and bizarre plots (i.e., beginning a "Justice League Antarctica").
Justice League: New Frontier Darwyn Cooke Possibly the best superhero series created within the last decade. The iconic characters are boiled down to their purest elements, and the art is exceptional.		The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill A sort of "Justice League" set in Victorian England, starring many classic characters from Victorian fiction.
Marvels Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross A history of the Marvel Comics universe, as told through an everyman character. Features gorgeous paintings by Alex Ross.		Kingdom Come Mark Waid and Alex Ross Apocalyptic epic superhero story that encapsulates most of the DC Comics Universe, also featuring gorgeous Alex Ross paintings.
Crisis on Infinite Earths Marv Wolfman and George Perez Epic apocalyptic tale set in the DC Comics universe. Notable for being a huge event through which DC reset the continuity of all of its ongoing titles. Not recommended for beginning comics readers, as it requires a large amount of background comics knowledge.		Ambush Bug Keith Giffen and Robert Loren Fleming Comedy superhero book from the mid-1980s. Basically, it's Monty Python for comics: very absurd, experimental humor. Ambush Bug is the first comics character who actually knew he was in a comic book.
The Tick Ben Edlund Another comedic send-up of the superhero genre, later made popular by two TV series (one animated, one live-action).		Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird A comic, first self-published in black-and-white, which soon turned into a multi-million-dollar franchise. Started the independent comics boom of the 1980's.
Astro City Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson Alpha Flight John Byrne Top 10 Alan Moore, Zander Cannon, and Gene Ha Three excellent series that all involve ensemble groups of heroes, each existing within their own contained universe. All three series deconstruct the genre in different ways.		The "Essentials" collections Marvel Comics The "Showcase" collections DC Comics Both Marvel and DC are currently publishing massive square-bound, black-and-white collections of many of their early comics. Reprinting the art without color enables the companies to sell huge collections for a very modest price (around $12 per collection). Great way to read classic runs of comics.

Sandman Neil Gaiman and various artists One of the few comics to break into the New York Times Bestseller List, alongside Watchmen. Extremely well-written, with non-traditional art.		Bone Jeff Smith A series about a family of creatures who are chased out of their town into a Lord of the Rings style adventure tale. Self-published.
Cerebus Dave Sim and Gerhard Regarded as one of the greatest self-published comics of all time. At 300 issues, it is also the longest-running comic of all time that was created by a single creative team. Also notable for the themes explored later in the series, which bring up many issues about gender, sexism, and religion. Fascinating if disturbing read.

Sin City Frank Miller Hyper-stylized crime/noir tales set in a Las Vegas-type city. Notable for the extremely simple, stark artwork as well as the pulp fiction themes.		100 Bullets Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso The 100th and final issue is being released this month! Award-winning crime drama about the nature of revenge.
The Spirit Will Eisner This series was actually a serial published in newspapers, starting in 1940 and ending in 1952. Eisner is often regarded as one of the greatest visual storytellers in comics, and this is the work he is best known for.		From Hell Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell Extremely dense graphic novel that centers around the Jack the Ripper case.

Maus Art Spiegelman Alongside Watchmen, Maus is often regarded as the best comic book ever made. Won a Pulitzer Prize in 1992. Spiegelman documents his father's experiences in Nazi Germany through an allegory of cats and mice.		Persepolis Marjane Satrapi French-language graphic novel about the author's childhood in Iran during and after the revolution.
American Splendor Harvey Pekar and various artists Accounts of Pekar's life in Cleveland, Ohio, starting in 1976 and continuing through today. The first issue was drawn by infamouse underground comix artist Robert Crumb, and subsequently by many of the best artists in the business.

Love and Rockets Jaime Hernandez and Gilbert Hernandez Notable for being one of the first major comics series that was heavily multi-cultural and gender aware. Very Tolstoy in its focus on relationships between characters.		American Born Chinese Gene Luen Yang Independent comic with three interlaced storylines, which deals with racial identity in America.
Ghost World Daniel Clowes Eight interconnected stories about two American teenagers who have just graduated from high school.		Box Office Poison Alex Robinson A bittersweet soap opera about the relationships and families of a group of urban friends. Exceptional art and dialogue.

24 Hour Comics Compiled by Scott McCloud Several years ago, Scott McCloud proposed a challenge: make a full comic book in 24 hours. A few brave souls took up the challenge. Now it's a yearly event. This is a collection of some notable efforts.

Understanding Comics Scott McCloud If you read only one book of this entire list, this is the one to read. Tackles nearly every conceivable aspect of visual storytelling, from history, to theory, to execution.		Reinventing Comics Scott McCloud Discussion and analysis of the future of comics, in regards to technology, distribution, and cultural influence.
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay Michael Chabon Fictional novel that loosly mirrors the lives of Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster, the two men who created Superman. Many aspects of the early comics industry are reflected during the story. Won a Pulitzer Prize in 2001.		The Ten-Cent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How It Changed America David Hadju History of the horror comics debacle that led to the creation of the Comics Code Authority.
Ghastly Terror! The Horrible Story of Horror Comics Stephen Sennitt History of the horror comics debacle that led to the creation of the Comics Code Authority.		Seduction of the Innocent Frederick Wertham This is the book that started the horror comics scare.
Stan Lee and the Rise and Fall of the American Comic Book Jordan Raphael and Tom Spurgeon A biography of Marvel editor Stan Lee, that also documents the history of mainstream comics during the 20th century.		A History of Underground Comics Mark James Estren A history of the self-published comics of the 1960's and 70's.

Comics and Sequential Art: Principles and Practices Will Eisner A beautiful book based on Will Eisner's popular art course, which he taught at New York's School for Visual Arts.		Making Comics Scott McCloud The second book of McCloud's trilogy about the art of comics, this one focuses on the nuts-and-bolts of telling a story visually.
The DC Comics Guide to Writing Comics Dennis O'Neill The DC Comics Guide to Penciling Comics Klaus Jansen The DC Comics Guide to Inking Comics by Klaus Jansen and Frank Miller The DC Comics Guide to Coloring and Lettering Comics Mark Chiarello, Todd Klein, Jim Steranko These four books are invaluable reference books for beginners and seasoned pros alike.