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| HISTORY |
| Who & What is a "COMICULTURE?" |
Comiculture is many things. It is this website; an online home to a group of comic book pros. It is a publishing imprint for a line of original comics and graphic novels. And, in the words of one reviewer, it is "the best comics anthology you've never heard of!" A magazine featuring comics stories, articles and interviews related to comics and pop culture. The folks responsible for Comiculture share are based in Los Angeles and call themselves Mad Science Media.
Mad Science Media is a collective of comics professionals who have been collaborating since 1996. Individually, each "Scientist," has been working in and around the comics industry for much longer than that. The core group originally met while working on staff in Marvel Comics' Editorial and Production departments in the late '80's and early '90's. |
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Years later, fate conspired to bring these four friends together in Los Angeles, where they founded the studio to develop new projects. The four founders were Steve Buccellato, Rob Tokar, Don Hudson and Marc Siry.
In the beginning, Mad Science Media acted as service providers, lending their talents to projects published by most of the major comics publishers (Marvel Comics, DC, Image, Dark Horse, etc), as well as non-comics related clients (Disney, Mattel, Warner Bros., Sony Animation, FoxKids.com, Nickelodeon, and United Media). In fact, Comiculture Magazine was originally concieved as a proposal for Marvel Comics back in 1997 under a different title. The pitch was simple: "Heavy Metal meets Spy Magazine" or "Epic Illustrated meets Maxim." The proposal was met with enthusiasm by the Editor-in-Chief, but it never got going. |
In 2001 Steve Buccellato and his studio decided to throw caution to the wind and publish the magazine on their own. They Joined with other comics pros (like Klaus Janson, David Wohl, Ben Raab and Walt Simonson to name a few) to develop several original creator-owned properties and leaped into the world of small-press publishing. Drawing upon years and years of collective experience in all aspects of comic book production, pre-press, printing, marketing and web-site management, the Mad Science Media team ambitiously launched first issue of Comiculture magazine and Comiculture.com simultaneously at the San Diego Comic-Con in the summer of 2002.
The reaction to the magazine was overwhelmingly positive. While issue #1 was only available in comic shops, the second issue was picked up by several magazine distributors who sold Comiculture to Borders Books, Tower Records and other newsstand venues. The second issue actually sold more than the first. Fans and critics alike responded to the variety of work in Comiculture with glowing reviews, including a spot in The Fourth Rail's "Best of 2002":
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"(Comiculture is) a gorgeous production that fills a niche no one else is tackling in comics...."
--Randy Lander, The Fourth Rail
"...a great mix of mainstream styles and storytelling and more oddball, indy-spirit comic art as well. There's a remarkable balance in the material here, and it means that any reader...will find something about Comiculture to really enjoy."
--Don MacPherson, The Fourth Rail
"5 (out of 5) Bullets...This magazine deserves your attention...(the) second issue of Comiculture is actually better than the first"
--Ray Tate, Silver Bullet Comics
"...packed from cover to cover with entertaining stories and informative articles."
--Wolfen Moondaughter, Sequential Tart
"'With No Power'...had me laughing out loud...this is an example of the kind of autobiographical delight that makes the genre so rewarding."
--Alan David Doanne, Comic Book Galaxy
Unfortunately, producing a high-quality color magazine is an expensive proposition. Without outside investment or any advertising revenue, the costs of producing Comiculture were just too high to justify going beyond the second issue. The gang at Mad Science Media had to rethink their publishing strategy.
In June 2005, Comiculture Books debuted its first publication: a black & white, 90-page graphic novel called Comiculture Anthology (details below). The new book picks up where the magazine left off, but in an all-new format and excluding articles & interviews. Comiculture Anthology marks the beginning of a new chapter for Comiculture and Mad Science Media. Look for more exciting comics and graphic novels in the future under the imprint Comiculture Books!
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| OUR LATEST & GREATEST |
| Comiculture Anthology |
Now available ONLY at CafePress.com! Our new limited edition graphic novel features ten original stories by some of comics' finest new talents.
From feudal Japan to the American heartland, these short stories will take you all over the world and out of it! Here's a sample of what people are saying about our new book...
"...I tore right into (Comiculture Anthology) and, yes, I loved it."
—Prof. Challenger, Ain't it Cool News
"...A winner of a book...a great collection...Each story is well-done and successful in achieving what the creators intended..."
—Jason Sacks, Silver Bullet Comics
"I actually enjoyed every story from cover to cover. The artwork never falters, the storytelling is always good and the subject matter always interesting...the guys at Mad Science Media are an idea factory that is offering up a breath of fresh air in an often stale marketplace."
—Randy Lander, The Fourth Rail
"...a solid collection of stories from very talented artists, writers, and cartoonists. I’d like to see more..."
—Michael Deeley, Silver Bullet Comics
For more details, check out the links on the right and buy your copy today!
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