AIM Comics: Ten Years Later

 

Wow, how time flies. It was 10 years ago today that we published the first volume of Ian McDonald's "The Brutal Blade of Bruno the Bandit", featuring not only an all-star lineup of webcomics artists and a ton of Ian's work, but also praise from renowned Conan author Roy Thomas and arguably the last published art by Savage Sword of Conan legend Ernie Chan.

It's been an interesting ride since then, with many changes both personal and professional. Sales on the books (7 volumes so far!) have been up and down and for a sales neophyte like me, it's still proving hard to find the presence in the market I think this work deserves.

However, it's also been nice having these books as a constant presence in the background, a pivot point for me to return to when my schedule allows. I've been working with Ian in one form another since 1988 and his work continues to bring me great enjoyment.

Volume 8 is due to be released soon. We're well past the midpoint and on the way to reaching the end of this strip; after that, who knows? Until we reach that point, I'm going to continue enjoying the work of compiling and publishing these books and will continue looking for ways to bring them to the readers' attention.

Thanks, Ian, for letting me play around with your work for the last decade. I'm grateful for the opportunity and for the lessons I've learned as an editor and a publisher. We've still got a ways to go, so let's see what we can do with this thing!

 

 

Setting Bruno Free!

In response to the current situation around the Covid-19 Coronavirus and the requirement for self-isolation, I have seen several creators online offering some of their work for free.  Hey, we've got to do something to fight off cabin fever while we're avoiding other people right?
Armed with that inspiration, I've gotten Ian McDonald's permission to make Vol. 1 of "The Brutal Blade of Bruno the Bandit" free.  The book is available free in pdf and cbz formats right now from DriveThruComics. 
Head over there and grab a copy if you don't already have one!  It's a great introduction to a very entertaining series with some of Ian's finest work, not to mention a host of illustrations from other webcomics artists, all wrapped up with praise from Marvel Comic's own Roy Thomas and a cover that is arguably the last published work by classic Conan artist Ernie Chan!  All that and you can't beat the price!! Click the link above, or the cover image below to get your own copy of this comics classic!

While you're there, don't forget to check out our other free offerings, "Why Comics?" and a Journals of Simon Pariah short story, "A Pair of Boots". 

Here's hoping all you Brunatics stay well and stay safe.  It's not a great time right now...but it could be a great time to catch up on some reading!

All of AIM Comics books are currently on sale at DriveThru for their Christmas in July sale!  Check out our books as well as thousands of other titles on this huge annual sale!

AIM Comics Roundup!

Time for a quick roundup of what's available where.  Consider it a cheat card for finding everything from or related to AIM Comics!

AIM Comics flagship title is The Brutal Blade of Bruno the Bandit, an ongoing series collecting the webcomic by Ian McDonald.  Find it in a number of places, in a number of formats, depending on your preferred method of reading...

The first two volumes are available in both print and Kindle editions through Amazon, while volumes 3-7 are available on Amazon in print only (honestly, I really don't recommend the Kindle editions; they're just not formatted correctly, and I haven't had the time to fix them).  The best way to find them all is by searching "Brutal Blade of Bruno the Bandit' at the Amazon storefront for your country.

All seven volumes to date are also available through our DriveThru Comics storefront.  Honestly (again), if you're into reading digitally, this is the best choice right now, as your purchase here is a DRM-free pdf that is a much better price for you than the Kindle editions from Amazon.  Perfectly portable and readable on just about any device.
If you want to save even more money, you can buy the Brutal Blade Bundle from DriveThru.  It contains all issues except the most recent one at a special discount, and is updated each time we release a new volume.

Volume 1 (only!) of Brutal Blade is also available on Comixology.  This format is very user friendly, especially with their guided view.  The rest of the volumes will be up there eventually, as soon as we can get them approved.

If you want to take your enjoyment of Bruno the Bandit to the next level, you can also pick up the Bruno the Bandit Card Game from DriveThru.  Prove yourself the best thief in Rothland by stealing the most loot in one night in this easy to learn, fun to play card game that not only gets you an exclusive card featuring art by Ian McDonald, but also gives you a code to download a free copy of Volume 1 of Brutal Blade!

 

Also available in our DriveThru store are four issues of the comic "The Journals of Simon Pariah".  Although this comic is currently cancelled, these stories are each standalone and worth a read in their own right.  In fact, one of them, issue 1A is a free issue, done as a wordless tribute to the recently deceased Steve Ditko.

Speaking of free comics, don't forget to snag a copy of our other free book, "Why Comics", containing an article of the same name written for Blueline's Sketch magazine so many years ago, as well as my first (and so far only!) attempt at a 24 hour comic. Exclusively from DriveThru Comics!

Another DriveThru exclusive for those who can't get enough of my artwork (both of you!) is my portfolio book "Believable Illusions", containing a good sampling of the work I've done for a variety of publishers, including podcasts, album covers, and other comics publishers.  You can even order this one as a hardcover book if you really want to!

Not directly related to AIM Comics, but as an ongoing project in which I am involved, there is the game Dread Streets available at the DriveThru sister site Wargame Vault.  Dread Streets is a cinematic swashbuckling game that "lets you direct a swashbuckling movie, complete with ridiculous stunts, pirates, musketeers, freaks, drinking, brawling and lots of taunting." I designed the miniatures for this one, as well as a fair amount of art for the rulebook.  

For those who like superheroic goodness, one final thing I should mention is the "Powers vs. Power" series by Robin Reed.  There's three volumes in this series (so far!) available at Smashwords, each of which is a collection of stories about a group of young superheroes.  Your humble publisher did cover art for all three volumes.




That's it, until/unless I think of something else that should be here.  But stay tuned, as there's more work on the way!  Volume 8 of Brutal Blade will be released later this year, and there's a graphic novel project and another special illustrated volume that I'm keeping under wraps for now.  Keep an eye on AIM Comics, because there's good things to come!

Now Available: Brutal Blade of Bruno the Bandit Vol. 7!!!

Available at last!  Volume 7 of The Brutal Blade of Bruno the Bandit, collecting more great stories from the archives of Ian McDonald's popular webcomic. 

BRING ON THE LADIES! The women of Rothland take center stage in this latest volume, and they’re all ready to show Bruno who’s boss! Whether it’s former fame vampire Ella, Bruno’s cuter-than-cute daughter Delorus, the amorous Xantippa, or feisty sidekick Fiona, they all put Bruno in his place in “Bruno’s Queen”. Later, there’s the distant chimes of wedding bells as some of our “Couples” set themselves up to get hitched! Meanwhile, Bruno’s parents take a trip down a convoluted memory lane. Finally, the Mother Confuser helps Bruno find out whether Ricardo Aisa really is the good kind in “The Good Guy”. To top it all off, you get a peek behind the creative process in “Rough Strips”. Settle in for another wild ride as the women show the men how it’s done, and once again, some of the best comics on the web become some of the funniest comics in self-publishing.

Brutal Blade Vol. 7 is now available in print on Amazon.com and Amazon.ca, and in digital at DriveThru Comics.  Get it now!

The Worst Possible Meme...

That moment when you open the working file for the new Bruno book and realize that the file has become corrupted, all your images are missing, and just when you thought you had finished, you've got to start the whole thing from scratch.

EDIT: The problem is mostly fixed.  For reasons known to no one, Scribus decided not to recognize all the linked images in the book.  It kept the layout for all the pages, but just showed empty frames where the images were supposed to appear.  I was able to restore most of it with a couple of hours work, so I can pick back up from there to get the book finished.
I don't get how this happened though.  I don't recall having moving any directories around, and shouldn't these links be absolute anyway? 
Oh well...live and learn!

Time to Close the Book on the Journals

Due to an overwhelming lack of interest...not least of all on the part of the creator...the series "The Journals of Simon Pariah" is cancelled at AIM Comics.

I've been flogging this dead horse for over two decades now, and it's time to admit that it's just not working.  At this point, all I'm doing...when I'm doing anything at all...is rehashing old material, and I haven't got the fire in me to create any new stories.  There's still a lot that could be done with the series, but I don't see myself doing it, and even if I did nobody's reading it.  I've run it up the flagpole and no one's saluting. 
That's not to say that I've got no creative ideas left at all...I've got more ideas than I have time to get to (that's a problem for another day).  So, it's time to close the door on this project and see if I can't free up some brain space for something that I actually feel inspired to finish.
The existing books will remain on sale for now; they're pretty good in their own way so they might be worth a look.  Other than that, the only project at AIM Comics for the next little while will be my reprints of Ian McDonald's "Bruno the Bandit" series.  At least until I get something else interesting up and running.

That's all.  Move on to something more interesting.  I think I saw some cat gifs around here somewhere.

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 17

I'm including this one for no other reason than that I absolutely love the expression on the face of the waiter in the last panel.  Ian absolutely nailed it.  I mean, the rest of the strip's good too, but c'mon...look at that face!

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 16

Brunella!  Ian was gender-swapping before gender-swapping was cool! 
While I know Ian's not a fan of cheesecake for cheesecake's sake (don't even get me started on our disagreement over Frank Cho!), he occasionally pulls an interesting twist on the idea out of his hat.  The Brunella story was one of those times.  Imagine the personality of Bruno in a female body.  What changes?  What doesn't?  And what will happen when a stripling prince mistakes him/her for his beloved Octavia?  It's a fun story in all respects!

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 15

A revelatory moment for Bruno's parents.  Ah, good ol' Uncle Lucius. I've often suspected that Charlie Bucket's grandparents were pulling the same kind of scam as this guy.  Also, I'm pretty sure that single "Z" over Lucius is a nod to Charles Schulz. 

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 14

A triumphant moment for Maledict.
For this one I could do an analysis of how Ian perfectly paced the humour in this strip and tagged it with a sweet counterpoint in the fourth panel (and that "Whoopee" really sells it), but honestly, I chose this one just because I REALLY like that third panel.

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 13

Lucky 13!
This time around, we see the genesis of another recurring idea in Bruno the Bandit...the magic spell.  While at first glance it appears to be nonsense, after a close inspection, sharp eyed Bruno readers can pick out "hidden" messages in the text. Ian pulled this stunt a few times in the strip, always to good effect.  I'm not sure if this was inspired by Jim Starlin, Zatanna, or Judas Priest, but either way it adds to the enjoyment of the whole thing.  Bruno the Bandit...the only strip that's as funny backwards as it is forwards.

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 12

...and I mean it this time. 
I just realized that I had skipped Day 11 and mislabeled the last entry as Day 12.  All fixed now.  As you were.

Today's strip is brought to you solely on the strength of the first panel, which has to be easily one of the most unusual and possibly disturbing drawings ever done for Bruno the Bandit.  Truly a classic! 
Also of interest, both Ian and I have had a sort of long-standing, slow burning feud over which classic Conan artist was better, Gil Kane or Ernie Chan (cover artist for our first issue, can you dig it?!).  While I appreciated that no one drew battle scenes like Chan, I didn't care much for his heavy-handed inking style and always preferred Kane's sense of form and composition.  Ian always sided for Chan over Kane's sparse linework and up-the-nose shots.  I can't help but wonder if this strip was, in Ian's own weird way, a "tribute" to Kane.  If so, well done!

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 11

One of the defining and most enjoyable characteristics of Bruno the Bandit is the casual way it deals with the clash between old school sword and sorcery tropes and modern world technology. It's an interesting pocket universe that Bruno lives in, where the collision of ideas can lead to a man who wears a sword to work becoming hooked on the Home Shopping Channel. This strip very nicely sets out that juxtaposition to great comedic effect in this story. I also can't help but think that there's a slight tribute to Berke Breathed in the flat staging of that last panel.

 

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 10

Not exactly a high point in the career of Bruno the Bandit, but definitely a high point in the comic strip Bruno the Bandit. 
I love the emblem on the judge's dais...makes me wonder if the principle of Rothland law is "beheaded until proven innocent".

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 8

Hitting a kind of trifecta in key Bruno characters, here's the first appearance of Uncle Lucius!  Although he just gets a nod in this story, he will feature more strongly later in the series.  In a way, he kind of reminds me of the grandparents of Charlie Bucket in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", although I can't see this guy singing and dancing like Jack Albertson anytime soon.

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 7

First on-screen appearance of Bruno's father, Ambrose, the original "one armed bandit"!  Scoundrel in his own right, and parental bane of Bruno's existence!  No matter how good (or bad) Bruno gets, can he ever live up to the legend of Ambrose?
To me this strip is also significant for the creative lettering in the last panel.  Ian often inserts special effects into his dialogue lettering like this.  Artistically, it's one of the things that really distinguishes this strip to my eye, giving it a visual punch like no other.  It also makes me completely envious, because Ian makes hand lettering look so darn easy, and I suck at it so horribly.

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 6

Introducing Bruno's mom, Eunyce.  Little here suggests that she will later be known as Eunyce, Warrior Hottie, just as Ambrose's off-screen appearance does not hint of his own rogue-ish background.  Still, a scoundrel like Bruno does not just happen overnight!
Also, is it just me, or do you see a little of Aunt May in Eunyce's design?  I know Ian's a fan of old-school Spidey, so it wouldn't surprise me a bit!

Brutal Best of Bruno the Bandit: Day 5

Poor Bruno; even when he wins he loses. 
I know that Ian's a huge fan of Charles Schulz's work on "Peanuts" and I can't help but think that a significant portion of Bruno's personality is informed by the eternal loser, Charlie Brown.  There's a pathos to Bruno at times that mirrors the angst of Charlie Brown, likewise matched by an eternal determination to get up and try again.  He may be defeated right now, but you'll soon see that you can't keep a good bandit down...

Forever Free....

I've only recently discovered the DivShare, the cloud based storage service I used to host the free book "Why Comics?" has shut down.  It's not a huge loss, as I didn't have a lot else stored there, but it would have been nice had they sent out a notice to their subscribers. 
In any case, it means I have to redirect readers who might want to snag a copy of the free book, so you'll notice that the sidebar on the left now points to the listing at DriveThru Comics.  You will have to register for a DriveThru account to get the book, but membership is free, and by joining up, you will also get access to the free issue of "The Journals of Simon Pariah", Issue 1A - "A Pair of Boots". 
If that's not enough of an incentive, you also get access to all the other free content on DriveThru. I know it's probably not the smartest thing to recommend someone else's books, but I enjoy their content myself, and can't dispute the amount of good work they have on there.  A few recommendations, if I may:

• Artesia #1 from Archaia Entertainment - the art in this series is just beautiful.
• Dork Tower #1 from Dork Storm Press - THE comic for gaming geeks, and I just love Jon Kovalic's art.
• Deadworld Vol. 1 #1 from Caliber - Zombies!  Long before anyone had heard of the Walking Dead, Vince Locke was ruling the zombie genre with this book.
• Dead Future #1 from Raven Warren Studios - Zombies again! In space no less!  Zombies in space!  What more do you want?

And that's only a small portion of the free books they have available there.  Go grab them all!  Just make sure to read ours first!