An action packed evening of comix craziness with Johnny Ryan is in store this Saturday, October 10 at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. A show of original art from Ryan’s wild new graphic novel Prison Pit will be on display, along with colorful silkscreen prints and figurines.

The event will feature a Ryan-inspired performance piece by Fantagraphics’ own Ardent Vein in full Prison Pit character. (Yeah, we can’t wait to see this either.) So join us this Saturday from 6:00 and 9:00 PM for beverages and meet the extraordinary artist behind Angry Youth Comix, Blecky Yuckerella and other unforgettable comics. This promises to be great fun, and coincides with the Georgetown Art Attack featuring festive arts events throughout the historic cultural community.

Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery is located at 1201 S. Vale St. (at Airport Way S.) only minutes south of downtown. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone (206) 658-0110. See you soon.

Blast from the past: On his blog, Kevin Nowlan shows the various stages of his artwork for the back cover of Bob Fingerman's Minimum Wage #2 from 1995. Found via Bob on Facebook.

Online Commentary & Diversions? Yes:

• Review: "An abstract comic? What the hell is that? And more importantly, what’s the point of a comic if it doesn’t tell a story? These are the questions a book like Abstract Comics raises right off the bat. Thankfully, it also answers them. The anthology, edited by Andrei Molotiu, covers the time period of 1967-2009 and is in all respects a Serious (capital S) volume. ... Worth a look, for sure, and maybe more." – Molly Young, We Love You So

• Plug: Ulrich Scheele of artblog peeks at the "charming" and "wonderful" Rock Candy: The Artwork of Femke Hiemstra

• Plug: "When it comes to creepy comics, Al Columbia isn't only a member — he's the president. And in Fantagraphics' Zero Zero #4, Columbia produced a short story called 'I Was Killing When Killing Wasn't Cool' that is so startling and nightmarish in its quiet elegance that it'll stick with you forever." – Rickey Purdin, Rowdy Schoolyard

• Plug: Some Love and Rockets nostalgia from California retailer/comics blogger Mike Sterling

• Commentary: At Comics Comics, Jeet Heer declares "It’s a good time to be a Nancy-boy."

• Interview: The Inkstuds radio program talks to Abstract Comics editor Andrei Molotiu, with musical selections by Andrei

• Things to see and buy: From the Robert Pollard camp, "New collages and price reductions on Bob art work for Rocktober. All collages from EAT 7 are avaliable." Available framed and unframed.

Mark yer calendar: Johnny Ryan & Marc Bell rock Family in LA in 2 weeks. Freebird!

Starts tomorrow!

October 8th to 10th... The James River Writers Festival

October 17th and 18th... The Alternative Press Expo

October 27th to 30th... The Center for Cartoon Studies

More details TBA.

Drew Friedman tackles the scandal that launched a thousand "Worldwide Pants" jokes for the New York Observer. See the full page on Drew's blog.

Most regular Flog readers are already familiar with Al Columbia's massive talent as a visual artist. But he's also an equally talented musician and filmmaker. I met Al when we were both 23 year-old punks who'd just scored jobs at Fantagraphics in 1994. We became fast pals, and I distinctly remember the first time he played for me a cassette tape of some of his musical recordings in my car as we were taking a ride somewhere. They blew me away, and I've been inspired by his music (not to mention his art) ever since. Thankfully, he's started putting a lot of his music up on his blog for others to hear, as well, and more recently has been creating videos for some of his tunes. I highly recommended you surf around his site. Here's a couple of direct video links:

Satan's Children

P.O.V.

I should mention that the snake in the first video was maimed by Al's cat and not harmed for the purposes of the video.

Your daily dose of Online Commentary & Diversions:

• Review: "Maybe it’s because blood and brain matter look somewhat more disturbing in the chunky, primitive black and white favored by famed French cartoonist Tardi, but there’s something particularly creepy about his adaptation of the late Manchette’s crime novel [West Coast Blues] that wouldn’t have been well served by color. ... Manchette’s plot is pure pulp, with a driving engine for a plot and a Lee Marvin-like inclination toward swift and unreflective action. Tardi’s art delivers the action with admirable punch and attitude to spare." – Publishers Weekly

• Review: "Rock Candy is a wonderful book. [Femke] Hiemstra's work is a tribute to folk tales and surreal nightmares. It could not be better portrayed than how designer Jacob Covey of Fantagraphics has done it. This compact book, in style with Hiemstra's art, depicts her imaginative work in a playful way. Sketches, examples and inspirations then give a look behind the scenes how Hiemstra's childhood dreams and nightmares are established. An absolute must!" – Cadoc.nl (translated from Dutch)

• Plugs: At Robot 6, Sean T. Collins runs down his SPX haul, including a bunch of our Ignatz Series titles

• (Wild) Things to see: Vice magazine has a series of strips they commissioned to tie in with the Where the Wild Things Are movie by some of our favorite cartoonists selected by Johnny Ryan; Josh Simmons contributed this strip and reveals a different one that was rejected (for PG-13 gore)

• Things to see: Peanuts parody from Roger Langridge

• Things to see and buy: Via email from C. Tyler: a rare original Justin Green comics page on eBay

We just wrapped up our listings for the November issue of Previews, for our releases scheduled for January 2010. The issue's not even printed yet, but we've already posted the listings over in our News section! Get the details on King of the Flies Vol. 1: Hallorave by Pirus & Mezzo, the new volumes of our Mome and Hotwire Comics anthologies, the second volume of Unlovable by Esther Pearl Watson, and our collection of out-of-print Jason stories, Almost Silent! Follow Fantagraphics as we forge ahead into the second decade of the 2000s!

So I brought Al Columbia's astonishing new book PIM & FRANCIE to Jim Woodring's "Friends of the Nib" salon last week. A crowd of cartoonists gathered around and Jim immediately proclaimed it "the book of the year" among other superlatives. Words simply fail to communicate the breathtaking originality of Columbia's visionary renderings. Really.

You can preview an advance copy of this remarkable book right now at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery. Check it out at Johnny Ryan's reception on Saturday. (And mark your calendars for Al's Columbia's appearance on November 7.)

Speaking of amazing art: Ryan's PRISON PIT pages were a delightful surprise. I suppose I expected something more primitive. But his original art and colorful silkscreen prints are wonderful. Come see for yourself and meet this provocative cartoonist this Saturday at Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery, natch.