I drove 628 miles round trip to buy your minicomic: The 2014 fuo Fluke report.

This is Fluke. (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

(EDITOR'S NOTE:  I started writing this soon after Fluke but then I got busy with work that pays me money.  Sorry.  As much as I'd love to spend all day creating "content" for you to share with your mom on Facebook, I gotta get paid. The kids gotta have their My Little Ponies.)

FLUKE, APRIL 19th 2014. ATHENS GA, USA.

Fluke is a mini-comics and zine festival that takes place in Athens GA USA every spring.  I love it.  I think this is year twelve of the show.  I think I've been to maybe seven of them?  I like it so much that when I don't go I have Henry Eudy drop in by parachute to write a report about it for file under other.  (Or maybe he drives there?  I forget logistics.)  The point that I am trying to make with this opening paragraph is that Fluke is great.  I love it.  You love it.  We love it. 

I love Fluke so much that I requested to have off from work the Friday before the show months in advance so that I could drive down before the show and enjoy Athens.  This request was denied.  So, I had to leave after work and drive in the rain all Friday night showing up in town sometime in the Saturday AM.  Same as always.

The way you (and by you, I mean I) get to Athens GA from southwest VA is to drive to Kingsport, TN then get on Interstate 26 and take it through the Carolinas then on into Georgia.  I'd like to take a moment to talk with you about the abomination that is Interstate 26.  

I once read a book about traveling through Mongolia and post Soviet Russia and how terrible the roads were.  As in there were not any roads.  I'm assuming it was a lot like Interstate 26.  Calling Interstate 26 an "interstate" is the most flattering lie I could direct at Interstate 26.  Interstate 26 is a nightmare.  It is driving for three hours on road so bumpy that you have to keep telling yourself over and over that you do not have a flat tire.  Yet.  How do people in North Carolina live like this?  If you drive that road more than once a week I assure you that you are living with a constant concussion and you are most likely brain damaged right now.  Brain damage being the only thing I can imagine that has prevented every single citizen of North Carolina from marching on their state capital and demanding that Interstate 26 be improved and/or just murdering everyone in the building. 

Sections of I-26 have sings that read "Future".  They have said this for years and years.  The future is never going to come to North Carolina.  I guess the future can't happen everywhere.

Eventually, I made it to Interstate 85 and headed on into Georgia.  Touching tires to asphalt on I-85 after hours on I-26 is like arriving at Disney World after a days long journey.  I can only imagine what it must feel like for pilgrims to arrive at Mecca but I'm guessing the elation is much like that moment when you realize that all of I-26 is behind you. 

This concludes the Interstate Highway System review portion of the report. 

Around 12:20 or 1:30 AM (some time with a 30 in it) I finally arrived that the home of cartoonist extraordinaire and Fluke organizer Patrick Dean.  Patrick had graciously offered me couch space to I took him up on it as I am cheap and don't like sleeping outside. I presented my host with a collection of Werewolf by Night comics as is the custom.  Patrick gave me the tour of his lovely home.  He has some very impressive original art but I mainly looked at his kids' toys. We then talked about Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko for a while.  Again, as is the custom.

The next morning everyone got up and I met Patrick's wife and kids.  Patrick's son showed me his toys.  We had a nice breakfast and then it was time to get out there and make Fluke happen.  Patrick lives a few minutes outside of Athens and I enjoyed the drive into town.  The non-Atlanta parts of Georgia are very pretty.  Trees, ponds, ducks, covered bridges, Waffle Houses with giant bulldogs painted on the side... it's nice.

We went to Kroger and picked up a giant cake for the show.  As is the custom.

This is 40 Watt Club around 9 AM before the Fluking starts.

We got to the 40 Watt Club around 9 AM and met up with Fluke organizer, writer, editor, publisher, retired pod-caster and all round swell fellow Robert Newsome.  This is a good two hours before the show starts but there were already a few exhibitors waiting to get into the show.  Which is odd, because Fluke adopted a pre-show registration process last year so these guys knew they had a table.  But, who am I to question their enthusiasm?   I drove six hours in the rain.

At 9 AM on a Saturday, 40 Watt Club is an empty place.  It was strange to be in a bar in the AM and not be intoxicated.  I pressed on. Robert and Patrick's friends showed up to help set up for the show.  They included Joey Weiser, Michele Chidester, Drew Weing, David Mack and maybe some other people I apologize for forgetting.  In my mind, I call this group of people Athens Force and when I think the words "Athens Force" I see it in my mind in the font from the cover logo of  Atari Force.  They showed up to help load in the tables but the tables were not there yet.  Drama!
Not really.  The tables showed up a little while after 9:30.  We probably had them set up and ready for Fluking by 10.

Somewhere previously in that last paragraph, I should have mentioned that while we waited for the tables two fun things happened.  1) Patrick Dean went to Waffle House to get a knife to cut the Fluke Cake but he also bought and ate a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit because he felt it was the polite thing to do.
2)  Robert Newsome played with the Fluke megaphone.  Fluke has a megaphone.

This is Michele Chidester using sorceress powers to make a cake appear. (She did not really use sorceress powers to make it appear.  Patrick Dean bought it from a grocery store bakery. I saw it happen.  Both Michele and Patrick may have sorcery based powers but I'm pretty sure the cake was just eggs, flour, sugar and whatever else goes into cakes.  What does go into cakes?  I honestly have no idea.  (It's probably sorcery.)

This is the stage of 40 Watt Club.  Famous people have performed music on that stage.  I have never seen that happen.  I have seen people buy, trade and read minicomics and zines in a rock club though.

This is Robert Newsome harassing complete strangers with a Megaphone.  (He totally knows who those people are but the thought of him harassing strangers is funnier.)

 It was my understanding that the Earth revolves around the sun so the appearance of sunshine moving is just an illusion.  But, since these guys have an exact street address of where the sunshine has moved, I may be wrong.

Tables hungry for Fluking.

The line was backed up all the way to where the sunshine had moved.

At 10 AMish, exhibitors were allowed into the show to set up.  This is great because a lot of the exhibitors are my long time pals.  It only takes a few minutes to set up so that leaves some time to socialize.  As soon as Henry Eudy came through the door I flagged him down and asked if he wanted to share a table with me.  This is because I love him.
He said yes.
We used his cool Halloween skull tablecloth to cover our table.  It looked nice.

This is my table setup.  Kinda orange. 

After the tables were set up, the knife was acquired and Patrick ate his biscuit, the non-exhibitor patron type people were welcomed in at 11 AM and Fluke was on.

Also at 11 AM, 40 Watt Club's bar opened.  I believe I was the first customer.  I ordered Jim Beam with Ginger Ale.  Five bucks and a tip.  It was good. 

This is me making a face at Henry Eudy. (Image stolen from Henry Eudy.)

This is Henry Eudy (the world's most dangerous man) making a face at me.

 Robert Newsome.  The longest reigning The Atomic Elbow Professional Wrestling Zine World Heavyweight Champ of the modern era.

This is Robert Newsome yelling at my shoes with a megaphone.  (He is not really yelling at my shoes but, again, made up stuff is funnier.)  (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

Now there are people in Fluke doing Fluke things.  I see Rich Tommaso, J. Chris Campbell and Jason Horn.  We are doing Fluke y'all!   (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

This is Adam Daughhetee doing Adam Daughhetee things.  (Image stolen from Fluke.) 
Adam and Shawn Daughhetee had the new Dollar Bin comics zine thing and it looked great.  It contains an Adam Rose pin-up by me.  You should track them down and buy 12 copies. 

That is Eleanor Davis on the right being tall and awesome. (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

Yes, David Mack and Joey Weiser would like some cake. (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

Fluke does not have an awards show or panels.  Fluke has cake.  I think we started eating the cake around noon.  

It was probably also around noon that Patrick's wife showed up with more biscuits from Waffle House.  Patrick ate them.

Henry Eudy's cake kind of fell apart.  He cried for a while and then murdered all of us.  (No, he did not murder us.  But again, made up stuff is funny and murder is hilarious.)  (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

That is Adam Casey doing Adam Casey things. (Image stolen from Fluke.) 

 This is people Fluking.

The show had a good crowd.  All of the tables were sold out in one day of registration so we knew the room would be full.  I think the walk up non-cartoonist attendance was steady.  Not the most shoppers I've seen at Fluke but it was a rainy day and the day before Easter.  I didn't sell as much as I have in the past but a lot of the business you do at a show like this is with other cartoonists and I did not have anything new on my table that the folks that I already knew had not already picked up.  I was also out of what have been my two best selling comics so I guess I need to re-print those and finish some new stuff right now.

 Here is a picture I took from one of Henry Eudy's sketchbooks.  I think it is great.

Henry Eudy seemed to do very well.  Henry's table is a good example of my multiple price points philosophy in action.  Henry had small prints and comics in an affordable price range.  And his stuff looks great.  His bigger prints with their bold colors seemed to bring folks over and the smaller stuff gave them something to walk away with.

I didn't ask anyone about sales or numbers but Rich Tommaso seemed to be very busy.  He had a solid variety of Recoil books on his table.  The all look great.  Picking up some stuff from Rich was one of the main things on my to-do list.  So I did.

Other things on my to-do list included getting whatever Drew Weing and Eleanor Davis had to offer and getting anything that Patrick Dead had that I was missing from my collection.  I did those things and it was good.

I really was not focused on selling. I was mainly there to talk to my comics friends and see what was new.  I talked to J. Chris Campbell about Brad McGitny.  I talked to Rich Tommaso about Patrick Dean.  I talked to Drew Weing about Margo Maloo.  I talked to Robert Newsome about Jimmy Valiant.  I talked to a lot of people about wrestling.  A lot of people talked to me about how rad my Brad McGinty t-shirt was.  I regretted not talking as much as I wanted to to many other people.  (Sorry bros.  Get at me at HeroesCon.)

 This is Patrick Dean announcing that Fluke has cake for people to eat.  I really should have put this picture up above the pictures of people eating the cake but get your own blog and don't tell me what to do. Maybe try tumblr.  All the kids love tumblr.

Here are more Fluke people.  I'm pretty sure I've known everyone in this picture for about a decade but I don't know any of their names.  (I know some of their names but, again, comedy.)

Here is another picture that looks almost the same as the other pictures I took from behind my table.  Walking around and taking pictures honestly never occurred to me.  Professional photo journalists just stand in one spot and wait for something exciting to happen right?  Well, that's what I did.

The dude on the left is me and the dude on the right is my pal writer and former co-worker Todd O'Brien.  The last time I saw him was a previous Fluke show about 5 years ago.  He grew a beard.  And a hat.  Maybe he bought the hat.  I didn't ask.  Look, if anyone can grow a hat, it's that guy.

After Fluke we all went to the Bizzaro-Wuxtry comics shop.  As is the custom.  It is great.  You should go there.  They have at least one of everything.  Also, Devlin, the gentleman that runs the shop, bought copies of Fluke peoples' minicomic and zines to sell in the shop.  Go there now.  I several different minicomics on sell there right now.  Right now!

This is Robert Newsome playing with a Hulk toy at Bizzaro-Wuxtry.  I thought about cropping out that bending over dude's back but whatever.  When I put this picture on my facebook page it wanted me to "tag" all of those masks because it thought they were all real peoples' faces.  Ha hah hah!  The joke is on you Zuckerberg!  You may be worth a billion dollars but that website you "invented" that is just MySpace with the customization features turned off does not know the difference between a Sylvester the Cat mask and a human being!

We eventually left Bizzaro and headed out looking for some dinner.  I was super hungry having eaten only breakfast, cake and some tic-tacs.  Patrick was starving having only eaten at least breakfast, cake and three bacon egg and cheese biscuits.  Robert, Patrick, my pall Todd and I ended up at Yummy Pho where we found Rich Tommaso, his girlfriend and another fellow to whom I apologize for not remembering his name.  I ordered grilled pork.  It was great.  Robert and Patrick ordered these huge bowls of crazy Vietnamese noodles.  These bowls were the size of bowls you would use if you were going to make a large quantity of food that would then be served in several smaller bowls to several people.  They ate it all and did not die.  I was impressed.

Yummy Pho was very good and very affordable.  I recommend it.  I wish I was there eating right now. (Even though Robert Newsome thinks that adults should not say the word "yummy".  I kinda agree with him.  Maybe mothers can say the word yummy to their own children but a grown man should probably never say it unless talking specifically about a Vietnamese restaurant with the word "yummy" in its name or Chester Brown comics.)

This is a picture of the stuff I got at Fluke.  Actually, I got other things but those were for my kids and they took those things before I took this picture. 

After dinner and a stop in a record store (it was record store day) it was time to say my sad farewells and head back to Virginia.  Huge enormous thank-yous to Patrick Dean and his family for having me.  Thanks to Robert and everyone else for hanging out and having a swell time.  I miss you all already.  Let's do it again. 

Your best pal ever,

Shannon Smith

p.s. Say you want a leader but you can't seem to make up your mind. I think you'd better close it and let me guide you to my twitter feed.
p.p.s. Let's pretend we went to high school together on facebook.
p.p.p.s. Google + is another place you can read the same thing I posted here.
p.p.p.p.s. I'll tumblr for ya.
p.p.p.p.p.s.  Yeah, I do Instagram too now.  I guess it's a law or something.

Other Comics News Parade-O-Links 04172012

(One of my all time favorite covers by the late great Carmine Infantino.  Notice that you have your "Frazetta Pyramid" but the pyramid is turned on its side.  Which, I think says a lot about Infantino's style.  Super master level skills with everything tilted and skewed beyond expectations.  Just right outside the comfort zone.  Full of energy and a subtle edginess.  Image stolen from bipcomics.)

Here are some things I found interesting in the world of minicomics, comic books, graphic novels, small press, self publishing, zines, webcomics, cartoons, digital comics, other, etc. during the week ending 0417013:

"No more hurting people." -Martin Richard.

• Hello brothers and sisters.  It has been a while since the last Parade-O-Links.  I've been making my little list throughout the days and working on the column but I've just not been able to get the thing together.  I'd love to have a new Parade-O-Links up for you every Sunday morning but, my life has been challenging lately.  Times is hard.  A lot of awful things have happened.  We mourn for those we've lost.  We pray for those that have had tragedy forced upon them.  And, it's sadder each time.  You don't really get used to it.  It just piles on.  Maybe the weight of it makes you stronger and maybe you can carry the burden but the weight is there.  Heavier and heavier.  But we press on.  Ya know, I'm a guy, staying up past midnight writing about a hobby I can not afford to have.  But here we are.  We press on.   I'm reminded of a gym teacher I had at Saint Paul Elementary School.  His name was Tom Payne.  He was a character.  I remember one day, I think it was sixth grade gym class, he stood up and he said, "Kids.  Do you want to know what the meaning of life is?  All through your life you are going to hear people talk about it.  What does it all mean?  Why are we here?  What is the meaning of life?"  He turns around and he grabs a piece of chalk.  He writes on the chalkboard.  Real big.  He writes to huge words.  "HAVE FUN."
• And I don't even know what that means.  I think it's gotta be more than that.  But it's not a bad start.  Times is hard brothers and sisters.  But we press on.  If for no other reason that somewhere down the road we'll share some laughs.  And to those that try to keep us down...you've got to live with me breathin' baby.

(A panel from one of the issues of Carmine Infantino's water planet story in Marvel's Star Wars.  Image stolen from the Jedi Council at theforce.net.)

• The great Carmine Infantino passed away earlier this month on April 4th at the age of 87.  He was a lot of things in his career.  Inker, penciler, designer, art director, editor and publisher.  But to me, he was the guy that drew the coolest looking, most exciting Star Wars comics.  And to me, when I was a kid, that meant that he had the most important job on Earth.  I met him, gosh, close to 10 years ago now, and he seemed to be a sweet man.  I had him sign some Star Wars comics and he had a story about each issue.  He remembered drawing them, and remembered conversations with Lucasfilm about what could and could not be in them.  He seemed to really enjoy the issues that took place on the water planet.  They were pre-Empire Strikes Back and were a huge contrast to the desert and sterile space station locations of the first Star Wars film.  (Years later we would see a Star Wars water planet and sea dragon type creatures in Attack of the Clones but it was nowhere near as cool as what Infantino did.) That work was a good example of what Infantino was in comics.  He took what you gave him, The Flash, Batman, Star Wars etc., and pushed it a bit further.  Turned it on its side.  Skewed the perspective so that it felt like you were falling into the image.  His drawings were like a broken mirror.  It felt like if you held the paper the wrong way it would cut you.  And those lips he drew on the female characters,  you knew if they kissed you it would be fatal.  He didn't draw the stuff "on model".  He drew it better than model.
• Mark Waid spoke about Infantino here.
•  Neal Adams spoke about Infantino here. 
• The Comics Journal remembered Infantino here.
• The Gary Groth TCJ interview with Infantino here.  With an additional piece here. 
• The "collective memory" at The Comics Reporter. 
• Roger Ebert also passed away since last we met here on the Parade-O-Links. When I was a kid, Sneak Previews and At the Movies were a big deal.  Most of us just called them "Siskel and Ebert".  Other than stuff like Starlog and the TV commercials, Siskel and Ebert was about the only place you could get a look at new movies.  The main thing I took from Ebert as a critic and a writer was his enthusiasm.  A lot of critical writers hide their enthusiasm if they have any of all.  Never be ashamed of what you like.  That is just stupid.  The notion that you will get closer to the objective truth by denying your personal truth is just idiotic.  And always want the things you like to try and be better. 
• All I knew about Margaret Thatcher I learned from comics and rock music.  The lady was ahead of her time.  And by that I mean she should be on Fox News right now. 
• Another non-comics obituary I'd like to point to is that of Mrs. Ann Gregory.  She and her family bought the town newspaper from my family when I was just a baby.  She would be a great friend to my family and a positive presence in my life.  Saint Paul, Virginia is a very small town but reading her obituary I'm struck by how much she accomplished and how many people she reached through her work.  Sometimes, here in these hills, here in this valley, you feel like you can't reach beyond the hills to the rest of the world, but she did.  Her life was full of honors and titles but none of them were achieved out of ambition.  All she accomplished was out of a commitment to the service of others.  She was a very impressive person and will be missed. 
• Congratulations to this year's Eisner Award nominees.  I've been paying attention to the Eisner's for a decade or more and this might be the first time where I have a work or a creator that I'm excited about in every category.  It's kind of like, dang, they nominated my twitter feed.  Are the Eisners getting more savvy in their awareness of indie comics and webcomics or is everything mainstream now?
• The winner of comics kerfuffle of the month went to the "Saga saga".  First teh intronets thought Apple was banning things because they hate teh gays.  Then teh intronets decided maybe Apple did not hate teh gays but only hated boners.  Then the CBLDF reminded us that boners are totes legal.  But some retailers said, I don't care, I ain't selling boners.  Then Comixology came out and said my bad bro, my bad.  So now you can read all the boners you want.  I guess.  Which is kind of where we were before it all started but now a lot more people know about that Saga comic.  But it still kinda sucked.  Teh intronets everybody!  Seriously though, Tom Spurgeon summed up the more important parts of the story here.  One of the best things about this issue was that Spurgeon got to talk about boners in, I think, three separate blog posts.  So, that was a good week for me in my comics internet reading.  "Mostly, though, anyone that interprets the clumsy negotiation of a potentially troubling content policy by a corporate entity as some sort of failure to make sure that the PR image of involved business is treated with some perceived level of demanded respect is a scary person. Fuck that. Question everything. Tiny boners 4-ever."  Tiny boners 4-ever indeed.
• Boners.
• In other news, just last week, I became the owner of a cell pad pod phone for the first time ever.  That's right.  I have a "smartphone".  Mine is an android phone and the Comixology app was the first app I installed.  So no Apple store for me.  All the boners I want!
• Boners.
• Speaking of boners Comixology, remember that whole deal where Comixology and Marvel tried to give away over 700 comics to way over 700 people and it all blew up?  Well, just like they promised, they delivered this week.  I got the comics I wanted easy as pie.  Like, ridiculously easy.  Like, faster than I could eat my dinner.  I did not chose to own all of the comics but I got a lot.  A lot people.  And I'm loving it.  So, boners or no boners, high five Comixology.

(Doctor Who reads comics.  Of course.  Image stolen from Bleeding Cool.)

• The Fluke Mini-Comics and Zine fest took place back on April 6th in Athens, Georgia USA.  Sadly, I missed it.  I was going to go but things occured.  So, I did what any hard working comics blogger would do and I called up the most dangerous man in the world, Henry Eudy on my email phone.  (Which does not exist.)  Our conversation went like this:

from the desk of file under other, April 3, 2013:

Dearest Bro Duder,

Are you still going to Fluke?  I unfortunately cannot go.  Again.  Due to the horrors of going through a separation/divorce and needing to use my spare time knocking over convenience stores to pay for my kid's braces.  

If you are going, would you be interested in writing another con report for file under other for absolutely no reward whatsoever? 

If so, please send the following fax to Dave Sim:

"Dear Mr. Sim,

No one has a fax machine anymore therefore you have received this via magic and you are either a wizard, elf or troll.   Please forward this fax to Shannon Smith via your magic ways so that he will know whether or not Henry Eudy can write a con report.

Sincerely,

Gloria Steinem"

from the desk of Agent Henry Eudy, April 3, 2013:

I received the following reply by way of it being taped to the topside of a badger that somehow appeared in my living room:

"Dearest sirs,

I can't be bothered to give a damn about your completely insignificant con report. Frankly, if yours truly and my amazingly underrated and misunderstood tracings of women from Vogue aren't the main attraction at a convention, then why bother anyway? It's all too insipid. Probably a woman is behind this. What kind of name is Shannon anyway? Humph. Anyhow, I got tracings to do and rants to write. You two pansies figure this our your own selves."

Graciously yours,

David Albert Sim"

Weird, huh? Plus I think it was all written with old cigarette butts. Anyhow, I am planning on making FLUKE although I already know I'll have to bail out a few hours early to get back home for an prior engagement. Still, I should be able to experience enough for a solid con report. Sorry I won't be seeing you there. Good luck with those robberies and such.

---- H.

Sadly, Agent Eudy's mission was to be aborted due to life events happening.  Like they do.  But all hope was not lost.

from the desk of Agent Henry Eudy. April 5, 2013:

Hold the phone! I did have an idea for a perfectly good con reporter. I believe all around good guy and fancy beard grower Adam Casey will be at FLUKE. Might make a pretty good Henry H. Eudy replacement, if you ask me. 

And so it would come to pass that Adam Casey and his beard would journey to Fluke and record the important details of this most important event.  And now, dear reader, you can read the whole thing here. 

(Glorp mania takes over Fluke.  Image stolen from Shawn Daughhetee's facebook.)

• Here is a comic about how it is apparently hard to openly like things if you are a girl.  Honestly, this notion has never made any sense to me.  I just don't get being insecure about the things you like.  And I also just don't get that there have apparently been generations of girls around this world afraid to openly like video games.  I guess everyone's perception is different but I thought pretty much every girl on post-industrial electricity having Earth since the Atari 2600 played video games.  My high school girlfriend and her little sister both beat my ass at Super Mario Bros y'all.  For those of you that do not live in my reality, I offer you both condolences and congratulations depending on which you would prefer.
• There have been several of transgendered comics characters before.  You people are aware that things happened prior to six months ago right?  But, either way, high five transgendered folks!

• Do you need things rated on a points scale before you buy them?  Or, do you need to look at a points scale after the fact to validate your purchase and in turn your overall value as a human being on planet Earth?  Well, congratulations. 
• Robert Venditti and Van Jensen talk about Green Lantern.  (Hey guys, don't forget you promised to have Tomar-Re in every panel.  Thanks!  Chicken Fish Head Guy forever!)
• Ben Towle of Oyster War and many other things was interviewed at Comics Coast to Coast.
• Jill Thompson on creating the t-shirt art for WWE's CM Punk. 
• Another installment of Pádraig Ó Méalóid's Marvelman history is up. 
• Finally a jihad we can all get exited about.

• Above is a picture of the world's happiest illustrator Ashley Holt with his head on a stuffed version of The Demon.  I think Ashley had a birthday since our last Parade-O-Links.  That's as good a reason as any to post this picture.  (But I was going to post it anyway.  I think Josh Latta made it.)  I believe Robert Newsome also had a birthday since our last P-O-L.  And according to the facebook, April 16 was Brad McGinty's birthday.  Happy birthday y'all buncha geezers. 
• Josh Latta:  Social Media Queen.
• I've never been to MoCCA but I liked this piece Darryl Ayo Brathwaite wrote about it. 
• How about instead of step 5 we just slash your tires and burn your house to the ground you ignorant douche face?
• BREAKING:  Producers of the upcoming film adaptation of Dave Sim's Last Girlfriend have announced that the role of the fax machine will be played by Bradley Cooper. 
• Here's a tip for all you young copywriters: stop sucking so hard.
• Tom Spurgeon does some very interesting talking about comics at Deconstructing Comics. 
• A while back, Tucker Stone (still not dead) talked about Thanos and Judge Dredd and other things.  That Thanos comic sure looks weird.  Speaking of Thanos, one day earlier this month I was driving down the road listening to a sports talk radio station and I heard a radio commercial for Marvel's Thanos Rising.  That happened.  I swear to you that I was not under the influence.  Speaking of Judge Dredd, I watched that Dredd movie.  I liked it a lot.  Liked the look of it.  Loved the sound design.  I could listen to motors and gadgets for hours. 
• And finally...Iron Man's a drunk ya know.

Oh, and one more last thing!  Did you know you can leave comments on these posts here at file under other?  It's true!  And, I'll probably respond.  Twitter and facebook killed the message boards but that's no reason why you can't argue with me, praise me or leave me recipes.  It's your intronet.  Have fun!

And that's just a taste of some of the interesting things going out there in the wonderful world of comics and things. I can't keep up with it all but I do keep up with a lot of it on twitter and I try to re-tweet the good stuff. You should probably follow me there. If you did something to make comics better this week then high-five!

Your best pal ever,

Shannon Smith

p.s. Say you want a leader but you can't seem to make up your mind. I think you'd better close it and let me guide you to my twitter feed.
p.p.s. Let's pretend we went to high school together on facebook.
p.p.p.s. Google + is another place you can read the same thing I posted here.
p.p.p.p.s. I'll tumblr for ya.

The fuo Fluke 2013 report by Adam Casey.

The FLUKE That Was.

Adam Casey here, reporting on behalf of file under other. I can say that I had the best comics (mini or otherwise) in all of FLUKE and that I’m the bestest ever.

Wait. Shannon, I have to write more than that? And be truthful? FINE. Put down the crowbar, I’ll type it out for real.

Yeesh…. 

Okay, ya’ll, so let’s set the scene: The place? The 40 Watt in Athens, GA. The day? Saturday, April 6th. The purpose? FLUKE.

From this reporter’s perspective, attendance at FLUKE this year was on par with previous years, both in terms of exhibitors and attendees. The lay out was modified slightly from previous years with lack of “end caps” on the rows which anyone who has had to sit in the corner of (i.e. me) can tell you, it ain’t the best seating arrangement to be had.

 This year featured an appearance by Chris Schweizer who always had a gaggle of people around his table. I mean ALWAYS. There were less people lined up to kiss the new Pope’s ring on Easter than there were waiting to bask in Schweizer’s awesomeness.

Also present was Rich Tommaso, signing his stellar output of work. Seriously, the guy is a siiiiick cartoonist. That’s right, five “i”s. Deal with it.

Representing the ATL Mafia was Jackie Lewis, Cara McGee, and Catie Donnelly. I might be missing other Atlanta residents, but being from North Carolina, all Georgians look alike. (Sorry. Not Sorry.)

 Some people that I know are from Georgia are the organizers of FLUKE, Patrick Dean and Robert Newsome. They are fine and dandy gents (but not dandies. Don’t call Robert that. I learned the hard way.) who put on a stellar show. Robert seemed to be the enforcer, running around making things happen. Tables need adjusting? He’s your guy. Oh, we need more chairs? Robert already has them in his hands. Want to see somebody burn his mouth on some fries from Clocked? Watch Robert eat! 

Another Georgian was my tablemate, Jordan Mooney. While not a Georgia native, he now calls Savannah home where he makes the best coffee in Savannah, and maybe all of Georgia at Foxy Loxy. This was Jordan’s first time exhibiting, but you may have traded with him at past shows for his mini-comic The A-to-Z Guide To Dispatching Your Enemies.

Joey Weiser was there with his new slick Mermin color graphic novel from Oni Press along with the Spongebob Comics he has contributed to.

 Former Georgian(?)… Indianan? Indian? DAVID YODER, STOP BEING A NOMAD! Anyways, David Yoder was there. His stuff is always a hoot and a half. 

South Carolina had representatives in the form of J. Chris Campbell, who was exhibiting with his neat stencil prints, and non-exhibitors Adam and Shawn Daughhetee who graciously gave up their table so Rich Tommaso could sign books. They’re good people.

Indiana native Kyle Starks was at FLUKE with his wrasslin’ graphic novel The Legend of Ricky Thunder. You might have seen this up on Kickstarter, and if you threw money his way, you’ve done so wisely. It’s a sharp book so be on the look out for it. 

I’m not certain if he had a table, but Scott Stripling was walking around trading his mini-comics Shock ‘N’ Awww…(about the seedy back stage initiation of Roddy Piper into the wrestling community [and it involves Ric Flair, so I can’t be certain if this did happen, which it may have, but you’re better off not Googling the contents if you get this mini.]) and an untitled one that channels Jack Kirby by way of Brendan McCarthy.

 For this reporter, the best deal to be had was the mini-comics from Nora and Price Colussy-Esties, titled We’re Spies?! and Diary Of A Werewolf respectively. At 50 cents a piece, they were a bargain, and they were awesome. We’re Spies?! is more of a chapbook (with two parts completed) whereas Diary is more of an illustrated story and it ends on a cliffhanger. UGH. It’d be okay with me if Price stayed home from school for a day or two so part two can go ahead and be unleashed. I’ll write him a doctor’s note.

Speaking of value, one person had a sign saying that you could pay less with BitCoin. I guess they’re from the Star Trek future or something, in which case, please don’t mess up the time stream. KTHXBI.

All in all, a great show, awesome venue, and neat books down every row. If you’re within driving distance of Athens (and not there for the UGA football game which made parking and eating at area restaurants AWFUL), then I recommend blocking out some time for FLUKE.

Now, shout outs:

Allison Carroll

The Howard Johnson

Clocked

Big City Café

Junkman’s Daughter’s Brother

Henry Eudy

And that’s the way it is.

Adam Casey's resume includes being a previous Punt, Pass, and Kick champion of Johnston County, North Carolina, playing with a bunch of vacuum cleaners with the screenwriter of "Pacific Rim", and watching all 7 seasons of The West Wing in one month. He doodles at adamcasey.com and retweets your rebloggings of repins on Twitter at @adamccasey.

Thanks Adam!

For other Flukings about teh intronets, you may want to check out the following links:
Fluke site. 
Fluke interviews at The Dollar Bin podcast.
Comics Alliance's Chris Sims on some of the book he picked up.
Box Brown's Fluke poster.

Fluke Mini-Comics and Zine Festival 2012 guest report by Henry Eudy

Pic totally stolen without permission from Jono Ruelas facebook page.  

This past Saturday was Fluke day in Athens, GA.  The annual trip to Fluke is one of my favorite weekends of any year but due to circumstances beyond my control I had to cancel at the next to last minute.  I was downtrodden not just for myself but for you dear reader.  An annual Fluke reportt has become a beloved tradition here at file under other.  Missing it would be like that time my family went to Disney World without me.  So, I did what any devastated person would do.  I turned to twitter and asked Charlotte cartoonist and pal Henry Eudy to write a report about Fluke for file under other.  

Take it away Henry!

Pic of Henry 'E.U.D.O.K." Eudy totally stolen without permission from Rico Renzi's twitter feed. 

Hey Shannon, 

Here's a quick rundown of my impressions of this year's FLUKE show. Firstly, I should say that FLUKE is my very favorite comic book show of the entire year. I look forward to it, I dream about it, I yearn to be there all through the rest of the crappy time I'm alive. FLUKE always feels like home even if I do have to drive 250 miles to get there. I gotta think the move to the 40 Watt is the greatest thing since Abraham Lincoln sliced bread and fed all the Indians and pilgrims for 40 days and nights. It's a fabulous venue and the show just hums with energy (and booze) through the entire length. 

I'm sad to say a little of that energy was in regress due to the lack of a few favorite and familiar faces. One, yours, of course, dear Shannon but also the absence of Josh Latta put a tear in everybody's tall boy. Come back to us Josh, you are so missed. Even so, there were many of the standard FLUKE cadre in attendance plus a seeming over abundance of very young SCAD students out on their first endeavors as comic book hucksters. So many shy and innocent faces sitting over their folded and stapled goods, sweating it out, wondering who they thought they were fooling trying to be something akin to an "artist". I was one of those kids, four years ago, doing my very first show in a town far away from my own, hoping no one could tell I was a fraud. I hope those kids caught the fever on their first times like I did and I hope they'll be back, making themselves real cartoonists staple by staple and fold by fold. But, anyway, I'm getting romantic here. Does it show that I've been drinking?

Anyhow, here's how my trip went. I arrived with my pal and FLUKE first-timer Rico Renzi in tow about 8:30am, well before the doors were scheduled to open, and captured an amazing parking space at the side of the building that I managed to hold a full 13 hours. As we passed by the 40 Watt front entrance on a trek through town for biscuits, we glimpsed Patrick (Dean) and Robert (Newsome) already furiously arranging tables within. When we returned a little after 9, only the faintest signs of a line were evident and I ended up waiting the shortest amount of time ever to gain entrance to the inner sanctum. By 9:30 people were being permitted inside and barren tabletops were quickly being converted into storefronts. 

Everything seemed to go very, very smoothly. In a short time Rico and I were joined by fellow Charlotte dweller Bridgit Sheide, and we constructed a flotilla of Queen City power along the edge of the stage. The public was admitted around 11ish, I suppose, but it's always a little hard to tell because already the exhibitors were out and about casing their compatriots and buying up a few pre-opening items. I made sure right away to buy a copy of Audrey Morris' "Power Drive A" anthology. I've kept my little eye on Audrey since last year when I was sorely impressed by her "Jawsome 1999" and there was no way I was missing getting a copy of her latest bit of amazement. As fortune might have it, I found here squeezed in right next to my good buddy Adam Casey who was making a triumphant return to the show after a few years in the wilderness. Adam had a really funtastic new "Drac-Drac-Drac-Drac-Dracula" mini and I was able to get a neat Hamburglar in prison drawing from him as well. Then I sat at my table and was a good little comic seller for a good spell. 

Pic of J. Chris Campbell's Fluke setup totally stolen without permission from J. Chris Campbell's facebook page. 

The crowd didn't seem quite as large as last year, perhaps because of the event coinciding with Record Store Day. Nerds only have so much money to blow on one weekend, I totally understand. Also there appeared to be a large bro-fest of terrible music and even worse people in a lot across the street from the club that may have detoured the more sensitive mini-comic patrons. I can't know for sure, but the crowd seemed a touch thinner. Still, the people that were there were major quality consumers and I actually sold my items quite briskly. Plus I had a lot of great conversations with culture savvy strangers. 

When I rose from my seat a second time I hit some of the majors in the room. I got Joey Weiser's new "Merman Theater", a handful of David Mack minis including a great little book about Athens itself and some lovely "Monsters in Transit" note cards. Drew Weing seemed to have nothing of his own new to sell but I snatched up the new issue of Eleanor's (Davis) "Beouija" sketchbook from their table. 

I dropped by the Dollar Bin to see Shawn and Adam Daughhetee and purchased a little charmer from Shawn about the time she was treed by cows. It's called "The Time I Was Treed by Cows." Sure, I was getting pretty thirsty by this time and I sauntered over by the bar where I paused to buy a pretty handsome FLUKE 2012 t-shirt and Patrick Dean's absolutely incredible new comic "Sometimes I Think About You at Night". Patrick's work is always amazing but this one.... wow. I got a beer and said hello to my friend Tara [Fend] Harris whom I met last year with her regular conspirator Alison Burke. She had a second volume of their co-created post apocalyptic survival tale "A.R.R.O." for sale and I made arrangements to claim one for myself. I also picked up "Dungeon World" and "Tales of Haunt" from the affable and future-minded Doug Metcalfe before returning to my spot to get my drink on. I did a little trading, most notably with Jordan Fitch Mooney who gave one of my favorite things of the show, "The A-Z Guide to Dispatching Your Enemies."

We comicers, we sold, we talked up, we chatted, we pretended to flick boogers across the crowded room. Suddenly the sweet, short hours were in their last minutes and so my tablemates and I started to replace our wares and count our money. I regretted I had visited so few tables and not sprinted from my chair more often. 

I never did see what Dean Trippe had as offerings and neglected my chance to get a collected Ninjasaur from Jason Horn. Neither did I properly visit the gauntlet of power ladies that was Jackie Lewis, Erin Gladstone and Cassie Hart Kelly, all seated neatly in the row opposite. And a great many of those hopeful, innocent faces... I'm sorry I missed you guys. I can be a real jerk sometimes. 

So, it was out the door, out for pizza and then hauling it back home. I spent the whole of Sunday sleeping it off and dreaming of next year when FLUKE will re-open to the waiting and wistful world and all will be right. 

Sorry I don't really have any pictures. I'm not much of a pictures taking person. Still, maybe you can find an image or two to steal some place or you can just insert a pic of Sam Elliot every once in a while to keep the public calm and let 'em know everything is gonna be alright. Best of luck! Hope to see you on the convention floor real soon. 

-- YOUR bestest pal forever,

Henry Eudy          

Pic of Fluke Co-Grand Poobahs Robert Newsome and Patrick Dean totally stolen without permission from Shawn Daughhetee's facebook album of Fluke pics. 

Thanks Henry!  You are the Absolute Hardback Edition best!  I hope to see you (and you dear reader) at HeroesCon.  Don't forget your drinkin' shoes.  Everyone go read every word and study every drawing on Henry's website, write a report about it, hand written, double spaced, due by 3rd period Friday.  Also follow Henry on twitter and all that nonsense. 

Thanks as well to the fine folks from whom I stole the above photos.  If you, or anyone has, photo sets or show reports that you would like to see posted here then let me know.  I tried to provide links to all of the people mentioned in Henry's Report but I had trouble finding a few of names.  Also I drank a Manhattan and got tired. (With Rye of course.  I mean c'mon.  I'm no savage.)

UPDATES:

• Chris Sims at Comics Alliance has posted about five great minicomics from Fluke.  Read it here. 
• The Dollar Bin has their Fluke 2012 re-cap podcast up.  Go listen. 
• At Space/Love/Robots, Kyle Nolan has a nice Fluke report with a bunch of photos. Look at it with your eyeballs here. 
• And here is a report with some more photos from Missy Kulik.  I think I stole some photos from her.  Maybe. 

Your best pal ever,

Shannon Smith   

p.s.  Say you want a leader but you can't seem to make up your mind.  I think you'd better close it and let me guide you to my twitter feed.

p.p.s. Let's pretend we went to high school together on facebook.

p.p.p.s. Google + is another place you can read the same thing I posted here.

p.p.p.p.s. I'll tumblr for ya.