Well, I guess the cats out of the bag; The Truthful Comics Podcast will be coming back this Summer! Alvaro Cortez Ortiz Jr (The Mighty Warlord, The Mysterious Exorcist, Project: New Wave) and Manuel A. Carmona (Project: New Wave, Captain Action) will be joining forces once more to bring you a monthly podcast dedicated to bring you all the news regarding Truthful Comics for your listening pleasure. The format will tentatively be one monthly episode, around 30-45 minutes long and the hosts will fill you in on everything that's happen the previous month and will give you a preview of what's coming next month from Truthful Comics.

   The episodes will be posted exclusively on our website the last Monday of the month but a slide show version will be posted the next day exclusive on the Truthful Comics YouTube page. Besides telling you what went down and what's will be happening with Truthful Comics, Alvaro and Manuel will also be recording individual episodes that will range from in store signings, Q&As, Live streams, maybe do an episode talking about their artistic inspirations, etc. They'll also be discussing more in depth some of the blogs they've written on the site so that way, maybe people that are on the go don't have time to read a long blog but they can listen to it instead. 

​   We'll be letting everyone know the exact launch date exclusively on our website so stay tuned!

   Well, the hits keep on coming thanks to the Covid-19 Pandemic. An event we were very excited to be a part of has been cancelled making this the third cancelled event this year. Here's their press release:

Written by Manuel A. Carmona


​​   These are scary and uncertain times we're living in these days, but it's nothing new; we should've been ready for it by now. I'm not saying we should've known how to handle a virus that we didn't even knew existed, much less that it had the capacity to cripple society like it has; I meant that we've dealt with enough tragedies in our lifetime to have learned our lesson and always be prepared. Obviously, by the chaos we're seeing from people fighting each other over toilet paper, people partying during Spring Break while being warned there's a virus swallowing the entire Planet and there's no cure in sight or people camping outside of supermarkets to buy everything they can get their hands on without even realizing most of that stuff will go bad in a week; we've learned nothing from our previous mistakes.

   In my household we live under a certain... code that we follow religiously: Love God, Love One Another and Love Our Neighbors. I however, taught the wife MY personal Mantra, one I've lived by since I was very young: Hope for the best but ALWAYS prepare for the worst. Because I live by that Mantra we're always one step ahead of bad situations. We have means to store food, medicine, cleaning products, weapons, B.O.Bs (Bug Out Bags), maps, alternative routes; etc. So when this whole craziness of people going to stores desperate trying to buy the last roll of toilet paper began, we sat at our house thinking to ourselves how clueless some of these people are, how unprepared and/or unaware some people live their lives and it's sad but I guess we're witnessing Darwinism at it's finest... some people have learned from their mistakes and evolved while others are flocking supermarkets under a contagious pandemic trying to buy cases of toilet paper and Lysol. 

   So, since we were prepared from the start, I've taken advantage of this quarantine to work on a few projects I've been putting off because of lack of time. It's been a stressful time for everyone I'm sure, especially those in high risk areas but me personally; I've tried to not be overwhelmed with the situation and used this time to stay productive and creative. I've been busy finishing a short story I did for last year's 12 Hour Comics Day tentatively  titled Spaceboy 2020, which will be part of the upcoming Truthful Comics Presents relaunch later this year. 

   I've also seen many of my colleagues doing the same, trying to stay positive and focusing on their projects although I know it's been extremely hard for some of them due to all the event cancellations because of this Pandemic; since they make a big chunk of money at these conventions. So, if you know any creators who've ​mentioned on social media that their upcoming events have been cancelled be a blessing to them by supporting them, buy one of their books, t-shirts, prints or anything else they produce; we all need to help each other out during this difficult times. Stay safe, stay indoors as much as possible and stay informed; we'll get through this together. As always... keep it Truthful!

​-MC

Entonces, ¿qué hay reservado para TMW?

Estoy haciendo la edición impresa desde cero debido a varias circunstancias, así que estoy planeando hacer ediciones comerciales, llamándolas la Edición de La Verdad de cómics de la historia. No es un simple remake panel por panel, voy a cortar si necesito cortar, y extender donde necesito extender. No es sólo una nueva edición brillante, tendrá contenido que es nuevo y que importará a la historia.

¿Estás trabajando en otros proyectos en este momento?

¡Siempre! Estoy escribiendo Project: New Wave para Manuel Carmona, soy freelance como escritor así que tengo algunas cosas que salen de Silver Island Studios, también tengo un montón de webcomics y cómics que tengo bajo mi manga para TC. 

¿Algo más que quieras compartir con nosotros?

Ser indie, no te detienes. No tienes las restricciones de las empresas más grandes y no tienes a nadie más que a ti mismo y a tu audiencia para ser responsable. Así que experimenta, diviértete, ve tan oscuro, tan serio, o tan tonto como quieras, pero CREA.

   As our star colorist Francisco J. Rivera begins sending in the pages for Project: New Wave #2 we find ourselves at a loss for words, somehow he outdid someone who' we never thought he could; himself! Issue #2 is scheduled to be released around August, just in time for Plastic City Comic Con in Fitchburg, Massachussets; but we decided to give the fans a sneak peek of the interior art and get some feedback from all of you. We hope you like the artwork as much as we did and remember... keep it Truthful!

​   With just these three names alone should be understood that Kirby is, and always will be the most important and influential creator in comics, but the list doesn't end there, there are hundreds of creators who specifically point to Jack Kirby for their inspiration and view him as a teacher of the medium, and to say that a book drawn by Kirby wouldn't sell in this day and age is not only ridiculous, but also incredibly disrespectful. Another ridiculous statement is that art has gotten better with the years, to which I say not really. The art in comics specifically has gotten flashier and more colorful, but not necessarily better. 

Hey, everyone, Lance Danger here once again, and I'd like to write briefly about going back to school to learn my craft better. It was back in 2014, when I decided to go to SVA, it was decided that the only way really to get there was going through KCC first in order to have the credits necessary and the grades necessary since my high school messed up my transcripts a bit.
I had to take a test to get in, which was a bit nerve wracking since I hadn't taken a test in forever. And I also had to write an essay on the spot as part of the test. Thankfully, I passed with flying colors, and this new adventure began.  
I majored in an associates degree in fine arts. I took as many classes relevant to compliment the art classes. I started with figure art and painting.
The figure drawing class was the first time I ever drew with models and forcing myself to draw objects I had never done or wasn't too bothered with trying. And it was amazing. To be in a room with other artists, drawing the same thing at the same time and yet seeing so many different styles and interpretations was really inspiring to me.
With the painting class, it was more difficult because my experience with painting was, in a word, lacking.
But the professors were top notch and really knew their thing. I was doing great. Until I fractured my right hand close to finals!
So, I had to do art AND paintings finals with a fractured hand. So, I used mainly my left hand because I did not want to quit, I couldn't, I had come too far to just give up. Sometimes I'd even still use my right hand through the cast. Sure, t did eventually slow down my healing, but I had a few weeks to heal after the semester ended and the special winter classes began. 
As a result, I got one of my paintings from my finals to be exhibited at the student exhibit at the campus museum, and I passed my classes with better grades than I would have thought considering, you know, having a fractured freaking hand.
Then for the second semester, I took the advanced drawing and painting classes along with sculpture. Sculpting was completely new to me, so that was interesting, and luckily enough, I got the hang of it pretty fast! I was in a good upswing in my drawing and painting classes....and towards finals again, I fractured a finger on my LEFT hand.
Again, I battled through the pain, and one of my sculptures was selected for the student exhibit as well! Hey, I'm an artist, it's natural to work through pain!
In my final semester I took modern art and social art, where one of the mock posters I made for the book "Just Mercy" was presented in a big screen and I spoke of the inspiration behind it during a panel at campus discussing the book and it's cultural impact. I had NEVER seen my art displayed on something so...large. Also, no broken bones at the end of my journey through KCC, so, yay!
I ended up graduating with honors and having had my art exhibited at an actual museum, which is MIND BLOWING to me. If you're young and wondering if you want to go to art school, definitely give community colleges a try at least to save up on money compared to starting from scratch at a big art school like Cal Arts, RISDI, or SVA.
I wouldn't trade my experiences at KCC for anything in the world, and I actually still in contact with some friends I made in my time there, talented artists in their own right.
And if you're reading this, this is my message to you:
Don't stop pursuing your dreams, your happiness. If it's something you're passionate about and you truly believe in, you have an obligation to yourself to share those talents and dreams to the world. Lose, draw, or win, it's better to try and let the chips fall where they may than not try at all.
-Alvaro 

Hello, everybody! Your pal Lance Danger here, been a while!
So, let's talk indie, ok? On Wednesday I was lucky enough to go to the release party for the crossover comic Tales of the Night Watchman/The Red Hook at my LCS, Anyone Comics. That in itself was a blast, but to make it even cooler, writer Vita Ayala popped up and randomly did and impromptu signing! This guy right here got the new James Bond #1 signed by her and the artist, SWEEEET!
Tales of The Night Watchman I have been following for a while now. I first saw the comic at Strand Book Stores. I didn't get it at the time but I was always curious. Then when I enrolled at SVA, I saw it in their library as well! I didn't get to flip through it because I was always swamped with work. Then when I moved and happened to run into the comic shop Anyone Comics, I ran into the comic AGAIN, and I got it. I've had it on my pull list ever since.
The Red Hook is a comic I found through the announcement of this crossover. The announcement came . out about the time volume 1 of the webcomic came out through Image Comics. I've been a steady reader on Webtoons ever since. 
This release party was amazing! The creative team for the book was on board as well as the respective creators. It was a night of comics, drinks, and camaraderie that makes me feel happy and proud to be a geek. I got my copy from my pull list (of course) and got my stash as well, so I'm going to be well read over the next few days.
Activities like this are important for the creative community and I'm so happy that places like Anyone Comics exists and gives a space to indie creators like this.
If you want to check out these comics, check out  www.sowhatpress.com/  and www.webtoons.com/en/super-hero/the-red-hook/list?title_no=643&page=1
Enough words, though, check out the pics! And until next time, see ya' when I ya'! -Lance Danger