One of 5 drawings drawn Wednesday evening during my live drawing program on my Cartoons by Rob Smith, Jr. Facebook page.

The chat mentioned mice and I added the yuletide element.

Drawn live with no pencils and made up as I drew.
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#Draw #Art #Artwork #Drawing #Cartoon #Cartooning #Christmas #Alligators #Presents #Gifts #Live

Die Weiße Iris by Fabcaro
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What an exemplary inclusion to the decades of tales of Asterix. The story and plotting is excellent and the artwork stellar. In these days of almost entirely rotten comics out-put, this volume should lead on to what comics should be today.

Involving story, i love the silly Tony Robbins-type character out to turn the world around with mind games. The idea this is to increase the power of Cesar aids in the hilarity of it all. I love the clever writing of seducing one to use as a pawn to attempt to overcome the Gauls. Then also there’s the resolution to it all. The use of stage is brilliant as a metaphor of the showman being undone. Perfect.

Involving artwork, this hits levels above what Uderzo drew. The rendering and inking is skilled wonder. There are a slew of individual panels that are mezmerizing.
One in particular I love is a brilliant rendering of what ‘Light Rail’ might’ve been like hundreds of years ago. I especially love the different faces of the horses struggling.
As I worked in government on light rail projects, I see the depiction in this volume being more practical than what’s being built today!

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 10 out of ten points.
I obtained this English version via NetGalley.com.

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One of 4 drawings drawn Tuesday evening during my live drawing program on my Cartoons by Rob Smith, Jr. Facebook page.

The chat asked of a Swampy’s Florida character and elves.
Here’s Trilby, the baby alligator, with gifts for all.

Drawn live with no pencils and made up as I drew.
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#Draw #Art #Artwork #Drawing #Cartoon #Cartooning #Christmas #Alligators #Presents #Gifts #Live

The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain by Charles Dickens
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is more a book to be at the end of October than Christmas. I don’t care for horror stories. Many of Dickens are along those lines. This is the closest I’ve read yet. Though I didn’t care for the very dark aspects, it’s the construction of the story that stinks.

A muddled mess of poor plotting and storytelling. I know Dickens had his own financial issues. This may have been shuttled through to meet whatever requirements were required to exchange story for shillings.
Dickens would have been best to have edited this to a good half of what it is. The droning on and on and on of darkness and shadows and such silliness. Same with dialogue.

The relentless pounding of darkness in the first two parts and then the flip to a, relatively, happy ending is far too contrived to be considered good writing.

Bottom line: I don’t recommend this book. 3 out of ten points.

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One of 6 drawings drawn Sunday evening during my live drawing program Sunday evening.
The chat area turned to ‘A Christmas Carol’ briefly, thus, I doodled this.

Drawn live with no pencils and made up as I drew.

Godzilla: Here There Be Dragons by Frank Tieri
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve been rather uber-critical of recent (Past 20 years) comics. I find this above most. There is a very good story included. The conspiracy theory angle is as much a part of our wonderings of history as that documented. I just wish this volume had better explored the ideas, intertwining the conspiracy with the drive of the book. I’m just very glad the angle was presented and included in the tale.

The plotting is wonky with far too much real estate dedicated to interior prison scenes and too much silly fighting of monsters. Structuring the story via the Queen and Drake to the prisoner to the monster would’ve worked better.

The critique of the artwork is about the same as I’ve written of other recent comics. The style is Lladro where Armani was needed. A grittier style was essential to give the book the weight it needed. Full sets of teeth and perfect nails are impossible of any working pirate back then.

There are a series of historical inaccuracies begging why use historical figures at all to avoid the trap? Example was mention of mutinies, which rarely occurred. The Media presents such silliness which makes little sense when cooped on a finite area of a ship. Democracy reigned with ships’ crew to keep all alive.

Still an admirable effort to present the story. The ability to read this prior to publication is due to access via NetGalley.com

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 7 out of ten points.

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The Cricket on the Hearth by Charles Dickens
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A klonky tale that juggles a bit much, but wraps nicely.
The writing is typical Dickens with his melancholy trappings. This should end joyously, but that is not Dickens’ drive.

The interactions written by each couple is exemplary prose. Each character well defined to enhance each couples interactions. Certainly, the strength of the book. I’d like to have read Dickens’ writings of each couple in separate volumes.

Strung together, Dickens seems to have struggled to get it all to fit. Maybe he should have focused on individual couple.

Nevertheless, a fine book.

Bottom line: 8 out of ten points.

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One of 6 drawings drawn Sunday evening during my live drawing program Sunday evening.
Co-host, 10 year old Alex got on a track of his own improvisation, using Russian accent, with a very clever tale of corgis and Russian spies.
As he spoke, I draw this. Is that a corgi dog a Russian spy? 😀

Drawn live with no pencils and made up as I drew.

Bugs Bunny’s Christmas Funnies (Dell Giant #3) 1952 by various stories
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

100 pages of real comic book content! Outstanding artwork (Especially the Walt Kelly ‘Sniffles’ story.) and great stories. This is beyond what comics are supposed to be.

The first story is lengthy in typical comic book terms, running nearly 35 pages. It’s a clever story of Bugs Bunny, his pals, escaped circus animals and how Santa Claus can solve a problem and a problem solved for Santa.
There are a number of short tales with the Chuck Jones’ 3 Bears, Daffy Duck, Panco Vanilla, etc. Most are Christmas related. There are also some games and crafts included and the 2 pages written story.
All of the stories are great to excellent with such clever writing that would be above the heads of young today.

The Sniffles tale is Walt Kelly producing top level illustration work and a great story of Jack Frost.

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 10 out of ten points.

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The Frontier Overland Company by William W. Johnstone
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The endless Johnstone Clans continue with still another one involving a couple blokes running a stagecoach company in unfriendly territory. This features a large cast, but a cast of typically strong Johnstone characters. The character I liked best – and would think a good helmer of a Johnstone series – is Hunt.

The plot of this book should’ve stretched three books and another example of the overlong Johnstone book for sales purposes. This is a very good tale and a plotting not found of the few hundred Johnstone books I’ve read. So much happens that the book does get exhausting at points.

The angle of the stagecoach brings traveling characters and the stagecoach business and those running the local towns into a story that is headlines by the two running the featured stagecoach company. The story is so well written that all of the characters involved are not mixed up or similar.

The only troubles I came upon could have been due to this being read pre-store appearance via NEtGalley.com. Lots of editing missteps which does mix up characters and spellings. That and the length that should’ve been edited into other books. Especially considering this book leaves a cliffhanger to point to the second entry.

This is one of the better Johnstone Clan books in recent years with an exciting plot and worth the reading journey.

Bottom line: I recommend this book. 8 out of ten points.

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