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The Week in Gay Geek: Remembering Steve Gerber, Torchwood Babiez and more!

Posted by
Lyle Masaki
 on February 15, 2008

  • Steve Gerber, RIP:
    Early this week, the comics world was saddened to learn that influential comics creator Steve Gerber had died. Gerber's most important creation was Howard the Duck, which mixed absurd elements with social relevance (including mockery of anti-gay activists like Anita Bryant); Gerber made a lasting mark on comics.

    I have to admit, I never warmed up to Howard the Duck but loved his mini-series Nevada (which turned a throwaway Howard gag about a showgirl and her pet ostrich battling a lamp into a series of its own) and his prison drama Hard Time (which included a great transgender character). There's a long list of amazing comics we wouldn't have seen if not for Gerber's influence on the medium. (In case you haven't noticed, all of the images at the top come from comics Gerber wrote, including an issue from his Defenders run.)

  • Which raises the question of if the Face of Boe is any different:
    On a cheerier note, this could be my new favorite fancomic in ages: Torchwood Babiez, which hilariously makes fun of the Doctor Who spin-off using adorable pint-sized versions of the Torchwood team. There's also a special guest appearance by an adorable pint-sized Doctor... and is that a lil' Rose Tyler with the Dalek dolly?

    I always chuckle at the sight of Ianto crying in Jack's arms.

  • Thomas Roddy has a Heart:
    I wasn't aware of Sequential Heart until Pride High creator Tommy Roddy became a part of the organization. The group works on getting comics that would otherwise end up discarded or destroyed to be donated to homeless youth programs. Sounds like a cause worth paying attention to ... I wonder if they'd be interested in nine copies of X-Force #1...

  • Glam and Pride:
    Meanwhile, Roddy's Pride High was also one of the recipients of Prism Comics' Queer Press Grant, along with Justin Hall's Glamizonia. The Queer Press Grant is focused on helping LGBT-created and themed comics get published, an additional challenge for independent creators (the major arena for finding gay inclusive comics) that can really distract from the creative process. Both Hall and Roddy say they plan on using the grant to publish collected editions of their series, which certainly make me happy as someone who usually waits for something that'll sit nicely on my bookshelf.

  • The gay Wondercon agenda:
    And speaking of Prism Comics, those of you planning on attending Wondercon next week should check out the organization's plans for the Bay Area comic convention. As usual gay creators will be spending time at the booth (including Hall and Roddy) and Prism is hosting a panel Saturday afternoon on LGBT voices in comics as well as a reading and mixer at the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Center. Prism is also looking for volunteers to help man the booth.

  • Releasing Spores:
    One of the most highly anticipated games finally got a release date this week. It turns out that evolution sim game Spore will hit stores September 7. If you're not familiar with Spore, it's the latest innovative idea from the same mind that gave us SimCity and the gay-inclusive The Sims, Will Wright. The game will let you control the evolution of a species from the single-cell stage, guiding them through becoming sentient, forming civilizations and developing technologies. I think the last time I was this excited over a game, it was over The Sims.

  • The Eiffel Tower lit by the glow of a blue screen:
    Lastly, here's a bit of Microsoft schadenfreude humor for you: a photograph of the video billboard outside of the Paris casino in Vegas showing a blue screen of death. Because it's funny when the blue screen doesn't toll for thee.



Tags:  
Torchwood
comic books
Steve Gerber
Thomas Roddy
Justin Hall
Prism Comics
Video Games

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