Our writers reflect on what makes their hearts beat. Critical, witty, honest.
I’ve focused on the comics travelogues of small press creator Moogs Kewell in the past in ‘Small Pressganged’ back when I reviewed her self-published offering Big in Japan here last…
Columns · Eyecatcher · Small Pressganged
John Riordan and Dan Cox’s animated music industry parody Hitsville UK was one of the very earliest self-published comics to be featured in this column, and one I described at…
Columns · Crossing Borders · Eyecatcher
Writer and artist Andrew Rae crafts a parable about growing pains using the teen comedy template, while injecting a dash of absurdity into this ever-popular storytelling arrangement. Life is a peach…
Of all the variations on autobiographical comics – one of the enduring thematic mainstays of comics self-publishing going all the way back to the early days of photocopied and stapled…
I was rather taken with Adam Vian’s first issue of Long Lost Lempi when I reviewed it here at Broken Frontier last year. Delightfully whimsical, the series follows the adventures…
Chris Kent is a man of many artistic talents, working not just in comics but also in a number of disciplines in the world of fine art. To date he…
One thing that always make the output of Latvian publisher kuš a welcome read is that, whether it’s in their digest-sized anthology š! or the mini kuš series of minicomics,…
It’s important to mention from the outset that today’s ‘Small Pressganged’ choice – The Man Called Uncle Tim #1 – is not so much a comic book as a zine that employs…
Columns · Crossing Borders · Eyecatcher
On June 28th 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary was murdered. It was the spark that sets the world on fire. Artist and writer Henrik Rehr has burrowed into the life of the Archduke’s…
Over a Safari Festival weekend in which desirable comics treasures were in abundant supply, and attendees could be forgiven for lapsing into sequential art sensory overload, there were nonetheless a…
Columns · Eyecatcher · Small Pressganged
For those outside of the world of comics Jessica Martin will be best known as a versatile performer on both stage and screen – whether as star of musical theatre,…
The first two issues of Tim Bird’s Grey Area – psychogeographical comic narratives that are a perfect complement to the work of creators like Oliver East and Simon Moreton –…
Columns · Eyecatcher · Small Pressganged
When you cross over to “the sunny side of sinister” with small press artist EdieOP you enter the wicked imagination of a creator whose twisted and gleefully nefarious narratives are…
It was billed as “a celebration of the new wave of alternative and art comics from the UK and beyond” and last weekend’s Safari Festival in London’s Shoreditch most assuredly…
Columns · Crossing Borders · Eyecatcher
Joris Vermassen, aka stand-up comedian Fritz Van Den Heuvel, conveys an emotional heartbreaker about the impact of the dying upon the living, and how defeat in the face of death…
A creator unafraid to cross both genres and demographic appeal through his Illustrator: Lam imprint, Mickey Lam is a regular face at London’s small press comics fairs. His work ranges…
Columns · Crossing Borders · Eyecatcher
Though the regular Spirou series is still going strong with their all-ages action-adventure approach, for older readers the real fun lies in Spirou by… , a new creator-driven series. Each album…
Deconstructing an ‘80s Patrick Swayze movie in graphic novel form is an exercise in comics making that sounds so obscure that it couldn’t even aspire to reaching a niche audience….
“It’s about Fame, Friendship, and Just How Long You’re Willing to Fake it to Make it” – Duane Murray and Ahmed Raafat Talk ‘Who Are the Power Pals?’ from Dark HorseNovember 6, 2025
“It’s Tough Out There, But You’re Absolutely Not Alone!” – Dave Cook on ‘Killtopia: Phantoms’, Challenging Times for Crowdfunding, and Returning to Thought BubbleNovember 5, 2025
“My Brain Broke, and Out Came Donuts” – Neill Cameron Looks Back on ‘Mega Robo Bros’ and Forward with ‘Donut Squad’, the Latest Smash Hit Strip from the Pages of ‘The Phoenix’November 4, 2025
“The Biggest Challenge for Me Was Having to Think More Like a Director” – Michael Schwartz on Writing for Comics for the First Time and His Supernatural Ghost Story ‘Armored’October 31, 2025
“It’s a Fantasy Adventure about Growing Up” – Joe Latham Talks ‘Haru’, the Self-Publishing Journey, and Using Colour as a Narrative ToolOctober 30, 2025
