Indie Edge: Portugal, France, and the Backways

by Andrea Purcell

If you've ever browsed through a PREVIEWS catalog, you know how packed full each issue can be. It's so packed, that you might have overlooked a choice comic tucked away on one of its many pages. There are so many sections to look through each month, it can be almost impossible to search out all of the awesome comic books that you want to pre-order at your local comic shop. The Indie Edge column is made to help by taking a look at just some (and trust us, there's a lot) of the amazing small press, alternative, and indie titles currently available in this month's catalog!

The "indie" umbrella can be wide, and these comics cover a lot of different story types and styles, but you can find just about any comic you've ever wanted and maybe a few you never knew you needed. Take a look at the books highlighted below and if anything is begging to be read, wander over to your local comic shop to pre-order these comics and anything else from this month's PREVIEWS catalog!

There’s so much to choose from in October's Indie Edge column! This month explore Portugal with Cyril Pedrosa’s new graphic novel, find out How to Be Alive with Tara Booth, explore the Backways with Aftershock, and more!

 The October PREVIEWS catalog is full of amazing books that you might have overlooked. Dive into the small press side of comics with Indie Edge!

Backways #1

Justin Jordan returns to Aftershock comics, and brings artist Eleonora Carlini with him, for the new series Backways #1 (OCT171090). A twisted modern fantasy series, Backways explores the hidden nation that exists in the forgotten spaces of life. Your basement, attic, an abandoned house down the street, any of these could be a part of the Backways – and Anna Merrick will explore them all. Anna lost someone in the Backways, and now she’ll uncover every entrance to get them back. But Anna’s digging might unleash something, something that might destroy the world.  

Portugal

Famed Disney animator Cyril Pedrosa’s latest graphic novel Portugal (OCT171705) is coming to American readers by way of NBM. A semi-biographical look about a past he knows little about, Portugal explores the life Pedrosa may have lived if his grandfather hadn’t immigrated to France in the 1930s. A lush look at how a new place can unlock one’s potential, Portugal follows artist Simon Muchat as he travels to the title country looking for inspiration after hitting a dead end in life. Full of breathtaking artwork and a lovely story that will warm even the coldest heart, this beautiful hardcover is a must read from an animation master. 

Thicker Than Blood

A sought after horror series is getting the royal treatment from FPG with the re-release of Thicker Than Blood. Simon Reed, Mike Ploog, and Simon Bisley’s three issue mini-series following two brothers on a trek across the Scottish highlands is being re-printed not once but twice! The Pencil Edition (OCT171605) reproduces Mike Ploog’s detailed pen and ink pages, perfect for fans of his classic horror style, while the Painted Edition (OCT171606) showcases the painted style of Simon Bisley in all of its grisly glory. Fans of horror, and of great art, won’t want to miss this chance to finally get their hands on this gorgeous series once and for all.

How to Be Alive

Retrofit Comics is bringing Tara Booth’s absurdist gouache paintings to print with the vignettes collected in How to Be Alive (OCT171224). A densely patterned, colorful glimpse at modern life, Booth’s frenetic energy bleeds out on the page as she darts from bitterly painful to insightful to amusing. Fans of Lisa Hanawalt will enjoy Booth’s no holds barred look at every aspect of her daily life, from the mundane to the highly unusual. A great addition to any zine collection, How to Be Alive is the perfect primer on this clever artist.

It Don't Come Easy

The beloved French character Monsieur Jean’s latest outing is coming to America as Drawn & Quarterly releases It Don’t Come Easy (OCT171538). Over the last two decades Jean has gone from a young Parisian bachelor to a forty-something family man learning how to live with, and ultimately love those around him. Now American readers can enjoy seeing this French national treasure explore life with a unique joie de vivre and discover why French readers love Monsieur Jean so much.

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Andrea Purcell is a Web Content Writer for PREVIEWSworld.com and a part-time assistant to busy comic creators. Her favorite past times are singing karaoke at comic conventions and memorizing obscure trivia about random pop culture.