The ultimate test of a work of art, to each individual subjectively, is “how memorable were the impressions this left?” Well, there's no way to forget the fleets of ships, the charge of warriors, the archetype of command from a time when a leader could choose bravely to withstand the threats he takes on alongside the ones he asks to risk sacrifice and chance victory. You felt life and death everywhere, from the brooding scenes of rulers behind the battle front to the absolutely electric warriors themselves, civilization stripped away, fight or flight impulses naked before blades, arrows, cannons, fire, and sea. You can turn the pages at the end and recognize each figure's progress as a character since their montage premiere at the front. Any feeling of confusion is utterly heightened if you have the experience of reading this for the first time broken up. The truth is, there's a LOT going on here! Even with quiet interludes roiling in their more personal tempest, not...

How Does one publish a completely original graphic novel these days? I'm going to share this for several reasons: 1) It's instructive as to how independent publishing attains resources. 2) It's based on an idea that feels socially relevant and contains possibilities of surprise and characterization that transcend product-driven comics. 3) Roger's worked hard on this and he asked me to consider it personally, along with some funny stories about communist black-listed DEFENDERS stories and meeting RUSH. Personal touches are everything! Personal touches, for that matter, are the reason he's self-publishing. From his site linked here: THE MALCONTENTS GRAPHIC NOVEL The Concept The Malcontents appear to be random casualties of the health care system run amok, treatments gone terribly, terribly wrong. A popular movie actress, scarred beyond recognition. A visionary artist, blinded and left destitute. A loyal soldier, whose loss of limbs came not from battle, but betrayal...