Comic book creator Kerry Callen (Halo & Sprocket) has been getting attention on the web for posting humorous faux vintage strips called Super Antics and animated GIF versions of classic comic book covers.

The Escapist caught up with him to talk about the philosophy behind Halo, a comic about an angel, a robot and a young woman living together, their disparate natures spurring debates on the mundane and mores of modern life. We recently got some of the first volume in stock at The Escapist and really think there’s some genius behind it.

READ THE KERRY CALLEN INTERVIEW

The Eisners are the biggest awards for graphic novels and comic books, and it’s also exclusive. Like the Oscars of Comics, typically only industry people–creators, writers, artists, publishers and retailers–are allowed to vote.

The ESCAPIST COMIC BOOKSTORE is letting you, our faithful customers, vote in our place. We’ll tally up your votes together and that’s what we’ll send in to the Eisner folks.

<< CLICK HERE TO VOTE >>

See a list of previous winners HERE. The 2012 nominees are very impressive and we’re far from surprised about many of the entries.

We’ve been telling people Mark Waid’s new Daredevil series is awesome for a while and it was nominated six times. Bay Area artist Thien Pham (seen above at The Escapist) got recognized for Level Up in the Young Adult category. Anders Nielsen’s Big Questions, for example has already been on the New York Times’ Notable Books list. Eric Powell’s foray into all ages comics, Chimichanga, is a riot and so is James Kochalka’s Dragon Puncher Island; both are nominated. Books from the small publishers Drawn & Quarterly and Fantagraphics are nominated several times, and deservingly so as they’ve been putting out beautiful books all year.

Check them out: our front display table at the Escapist Comic Bookstore has many of these books on it now. Anyhow, see for yourself the full list…

EISNER AWARD NOMINEES 2012

Graduates of the Spring 2012 Graphic Novel Workshop class at Oakland’s California College of the Arts will be featured at The Escapist Comic Bookstore on Saturday, April 21st from 6 to 9 pm.

The final project of their semester was to create their own mini comics and publish them. The Escapist has always been proud to support local artists in our Small Press section and on our shelves. This a great group of local talent. Think of it as a smaller, more local version of APE.

All the creators will be here to read from and talk about their comics and zines and to sell them too. Check out student Jessica Destoppeleire’s sweet poster (above) for the event.

Come celebrate this local talent at the First Annual CCA Students Comics Fair at Escapist Comics on Sat. April 21, 6-9 pm. Also, check out the Facebook page. 

Welcome to this new weekly Escapist column, where we highlight one book we stumbled upon. People often tell us they like the store because there is so much there, comic book after graphic novel stuffed tight in our tall shelves. Great books that may not have the spotlight are often found there; this is a nod to those books. 

Fernandez Britten is a depressed private investigator on the hunt for a case that isn’t about a jealous lover, another case that ends in heartbreaks. His partner Brulightly is actually a teabag he keeps in his breast pocket which, consider Britten’s neurosis, is hardly surprising.

The story picks up with a dame and a murder (in true noir crime fashion) and Britten goes in headlong, albeit with something of an apathetic deathwish. If you’re a fan of the excellent Spanish crime import graphic novel Blacksad, you’ll enjoy this one.

And it’s a stylish book, broodish in tone and set in a city perpetually wet and dark. The storytelling switches from a third-person narrative with swooping camera angles made for the silver screen and a diary-style rehashing in Britten’s cursive.

We have a single copy of this book, currently on sale for just $10, half-priced. It’s a large format softcover with 112 pages. 

DC’s Before Watchman is coming in June, whether you like it or not.

Creator Alan Moore certainly didn’t and others are discussing creator rights at length but the fact is, there’s a heck of a lot of talented writers and artists involved in the six titles (one for each Watchman member). It’ll be a short run with four to six issues per title.

The writers and artists involved are: Brian Azzarello (100 BULLETS), Lee Bermejo (JOKER), Amanda Conner (POWER GIRL), Darwyn Cooke (JUSTICE LEAGUE: NEW FRONTIER), John Higgins (WATCHMEN), Adam Hughes (CATWOMAN), J.G. Jones (FINAL CRISIS), Andy Kubert (FLASHPOINT), Joe Kubert (SGT. ROCK), Jae Lee (BATMAN: JEKYLL AND HYDE), J. Michael Straczynski (SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE) and Len Wein (SWAMP THING).

CLICK HERE TO SEE ALL COVERS!