Teenbit

Kudossesseses!

2007-10-24T10:48:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to T and Gisele for appearing in the TokyoPop Online Manga page! That's awesome.

Also- GB is almost a year old- as of November 7th. Yaay!

El finally posts...

2007-09-06T22:38:00.000-07:00

Well, with our update schedule being what it...ah...is, the concept of me getting things done promptly should surely have flown far, far out the window by now. :p But actually this post is to say that The Broken Mirror has updated and will be returning to its regular schedule as of, well, today! So go check it out. :D Also, for comic enthusiasts looking to broaden their reading lists, might I suggest you take a look at the magnificent Fainting Spells at http://biev.net/faintingspells/index.php - it doesn't quite fit into the category of a teen comic, but is a beautifully sinister yet charming tale of the dreamlike adventures of a young woman who faints on her wedding day - well worth a look. ^________^ So, that should be enough reading to keep you going heh?

Yup, I'll be back soon. :)

- El.

I'm not late, you were early

2007-06-24T11:57:00.000-07:00

Hey this is Justin of Masters of the Art, I've been away the past month on a study abroad scholarship, they kept all us students very busy, and right when Teenbit started up too. Well I'm back now, and I wanted to say hello and let you know MotA should be updating again, though just as I got back my partner Patrick is leaving, which is problematic, but we shall persevere!

New look for Betty and Veronica...

2007-06-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

Since T was talking about the new look in a previous post, I've been curious. I picked up the new issue from the grocery store to have a look at it, and the remembered that I actually also have some of the Badger Comics that Steven Butler did pencils for. Have to say- I'm not sure it it's the mixing of the fairly "golden age" style of Betty and Veronica with a more realistic style clashing, or- what, but it's definitely not as "Dynamic" (so says the inside cover) as his other work. It could just be that I'm not used to seeing Betty and Veronica in a more modern comic style, but they look- kind of bizarre. A lot of the expressions seem kind of forced and awkward. I think- if they are going to go for a new look, the publishers would be better off either shifting gradually, or staying a little closer to the classic style. That's just my two cents about it.

News and Goodies for GeekBlather!

2007-05-20T21:30:00.000-07:00

So, I owe major thanks to Corey Messer, of Plush and Blood for wrangling some flash for me, to help me create a paper doll dress-up game for Geek Blather.
I also put up my own new site, at www.geekblather.com, to avoid server issues once and for all.

The game can be found in my Extras Section

I'd also like to nudge people towards my very favorite webcomic forum: HyattArt it's a warm cuddly place, with all kinds of comic creators, from professional printers, to people with brand new webcomics. There's also a weekly draw-off sponsored by forum members, with fabulous prizes! Everyone likes prizes.

I like this.

2007-05-18T11:34:00.000-07:00

Fungus Grotto.

Yay Teenbit!

2007-05-16T10:44:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick hello. I'm the artist and half the writing team for "Geek Blather" and I'm really excited to be a part of this little collective, and I'm looking forward to hearing from the other artsy and writesy people involved.
-Quinn

Teenbit Launches Today.

2007-05-16T06:48:00.000-07:00

And so the world has become a slightly happier place.

"Please Read Supergirl"

2007-02-05T18:44:00.001-08:00

A few months ago, Supergirl's characterization was kind of the issue of the moment, and I wrote this:

I have to sympathize with the people taking flak for Supergirl. It's not an easy thing to reach out to teenagers and girls when you've spent so much time immersed in DC superheroes and their adult male audience. (I'm here to help, Eddie! Call me! ;-) (What do you think, guys? Too subtle?))

I think the most unfortunate statement is that Supergirl is "a typical teenager." I think anybody who sets out to make their character a "typical" example of a certain group is setting themselves up for a fall. "My character is a typical black person." "My character is a typical man." Try any example, it still doesn't work.

The fact that the character of Supergirl keeps failing to launch, the fact that she seems to keep disappointing the expectations one has of "America's sweetheart," the fact that she's sort of adrift and distant from the people she might call family... these are facts that could indeed make interesting stories. But the notion that she is a representative for all of teenage girlhood is an obstacle to good storytelling. It'd have to be the first thing to go.

Apparently, other people feel the same way. Mark Waid and George Perez's The Brave and the Bold has taken pretty much exactly that approach, transforming flawed characterization into a flawed character almost without missing a beat, while Waid and Kitson's Legion of Super-Heroes features a more innocent (but also delusional) version of the character.

That's one of the things I've always loved about serial comics: their ability to transform last month's wavering flame of an idea into something that burns hotter and brighter. Good to see they've still got it.

Betty and Veronica's "New Dynamic" Look

2007-02-05T18:42:00.001-08:00

I ran into Steven Butler when I lived near the University of Maryland. We talked about running some of his ideas on Graphic Smash, but things never quite came together-- still, I liked him and his enthusiasm for comics. So I was pleased to see his name again, in a controversial project from a publisher not known for controversy: Betty and Veronica #151, introducing what Archie Comics calls a "new dynamic" art style.

In fact, Archie uses the term "new dynamic" three times in as many paragraphs, as if trying to coin an art-historical term like "found art" or "New Wave." Or maybe just as if they're trying to convince us of something. I've seen Butler's portfolio and BOY is he capable of dynamic work, but that cover illustration is not it. Still, I'd like to wait till I get a look at the interiors before passing judgment.

Contrary to some early reports, this style seems confined to a single experimental story, which is probably fortunate-- unlike the "default" Dan DeCarlo style, Butler's work isn't very easy to reproduce or mass-produce. It's interesting Archie decided to tinker with this style now, though, considering that Sabrina's manga makeover is in its third year. A shojo-or-shonen-comedy-inspired style seems like a much more natural fit for the Archie icons, and at this point in the game, I'd expect Archie Comics to be moving their titles firmly in that direction rather than making a play at stylistic diversity.

But my artist on Penny and Aggie, Gisele Lagace, reports that Archie Comics flirted with her in regard to a Josie and the Pussycats reworking, so maybe it's just one of those years where editorial doesn't quite know what it wants. We'll see how Butler's version sells. The market has a way of making up editorial's mind.

What Are "Teen Comics?"

2007-02-05T18:08:00.000-08:00

Comics about teenagers aren't necessarily the same as comics for teenagers. The makers of Archie Comics have carefully kept their wares G-rated. I first encountered them at seven, and their slapstick adventures gave me some idea of what to look forward to and what to watch out for. Then there are comics aimed at an older crowd, that treat adolescence as a story with a beginning and an ending, like Dave Gibbons' The Originals. And then you get the stuff that seems to attract fans from 7 to 37, like the Cartoon Network's Teen Titans.

For that matter, plenty of adults read Archies. And as I remember, if there's one thing kids hate, it's adult ideas about what is and isn't "appropriate" for them. The subversive thrill of reading something like The Originals is probably a rite of passage for certain kids.

Teenbit is for comics about teenagers. Unless it's marked as G, you're probably safer assuming our stuff is PG-13. If you're looking for a more elaborate rating system than that, we may not be able to help you. But if you're looking for comics about the crazy and confusing world of adolescence, you've come to the right place.