The comic blogosphere seems to grow larger every day and just like comics, sometimes it’s pretty easy to get a little lost. “Meanwhile…” will act as your map pointing out what interesting discussions are happening out there while you’re reading Blog@Newsarama.

This is my last Meanwhile column here at Blog@Newsarama.

I’ve enjoyed the time with everyone on the team, all of you reading the column week after week, and all the bloggers out there, but the real world calls and I don’t want Meanwhile to suffer because of it. Don’t worry. Meanwhile won’t be ending. There will always be someone here telling you what’s what and who’s who in the blogosphere. JK and the rest of the crew here at B@N have some surprises in store for you over the next couple of weeks with some guests taking over for a while before the new Meanwhile columnist is announced.

Anyway, for this last column I’ve decided to list some of my favorite blogs/sites and why I enjoy them so much. Do you think the new columnist might be in my list? I guess we’ll have to keep reading to find out.

NeilAlien

NeilAlien is the grandpappy of comic book linkbloggers. In fact, I think I first heard the term linkblog the same time I first heard of his site. Just about anyone linkblogging about comics today has most likely been inspired by either NeilAlien or Dirk Deppey. My inspiration came from Neil. He’s not shy about his love of Dr.Strange and sometime I just kind of skim over all the fan talk, but he has this amazing ability to wade through all the information on the net out there and only list what’s absolutely imperative.

Kaliber 10000 aka k10k, Drawn, and Pixelsurgeon

These are my favorite design oriented linkblogs out there and with the exception of Drawn, helped inspire me to start blogging way back when. They’re obviously geared for people in the art and design field, but every once in a while they find some hidden pop culture gems that really shine. I’ve learned about a ton of interesting designers and illustrators at these sites and usually feel the need to pass them on to others.

Heidi MacDonald

Way back in the day Heidi wrote this article in The Comics Journal that said that most blogs weren’t really any good or even necessary. Being a young hothead that thought he was more important than he actually was, I took exception to that and said “maybe she was just jealous of all the attention blogs were getting”. What was the difference between what she was doing (at The Pulse at the time) and what everyone else was doing? Wasn’t the Beat really a blog anyway? Pretty soon after that The Beat became a blog, but that’s besides the fact. Heidi kicked me, and a lot of other bloggers in the ass and made us step up our game. I have to thank her for that. Plus she’s pretty good at what I call the Entertainment Weekly style of blogging… Short, sweet, and poppy.

Kevin Melrose and Graeme McMillan

If I remember right these two popped up about the same time. We’ll hit Graeme first. Fanboy Rampage I don’t even have to mention. That was a phenomenon that I don’t think will ever happen again. I think Graeme is the closest thing the blogosphere has to a “celebrity”. Everyone knew FBR. Depending on who you were with it was either a dirty word or the best thing since sliced bread. I see little hints of the old FBR style Graeme peeking out every once in a while here at B@N. I don’t think we’ll ever have anything like FBR again, but in my opinion it’s much nicer in small doses anyway. Everything in moderation.

Kevin used to run Thought Balloons. He was my closest contemporary and at one time Kevin and I were named as the closest things to Dirk Deppey’s successor. I don’t really think I belonged in that sentence, but I know Kevin did. Sometimes he was the closest thing I had to a nemesis. You don’t know how many times I would go to link a certain news item and I found out that Kevin linked it two days ago. It STILL happens HERE! Sometimes he was my inspiration. Kevin, Ken Lowery, and a few others used to talk about blogging quite a bit on AIM or in e-mails and help each other out. Those discussions often led to some interesting posts.

I’m proud I was able to work with both Graeme and Kevin here at the blog.

Kevin Church

Where Warren Ellis seems like a wise sarcastic mean old drinker, Kevin Church is a funny sarcastic mean drinker who isn’t quite old yet. Kevin Church, no matter how he might act is a good guy. Not only that, but he’s an excellent blogger and a talented photographer. He’s now branching out into writing comics too! I really think this guy is going to go places and I’m glad he allows me and the rest of his readers to feel like they’re along for the ride. Some day I’m going to be able to say “I knew him when…”

Scipio Garling

If you want to know why people love DC Comics, then read The Absorbascon. Scipio’s joy in reading and following the characters in the DC Universe comes across in every post he writes. Be careful, it’s contagious. He’s almost got me wanting to pick back up my heroclix habit, but I’m still holding on to my sanity.

Chris Arrant and Shawn Hoke

These are the guys that keep me “cool”. They give me my “indy cred”. Between Chris and Shawn I usually know any interesting books or up and coming creators that I need to keep an eye out for. These guys know their stuff. Shawn decided some while ago to start his own blog about Mini Comics at Size Matters. Shawn is also one of the coolest people on earth for sending me every issue of Black Hole when I told him I was interested in it. You can usually find Chris over at our mother ship, the main Newsarama site. You can tell which articles are his before you even click on them.

Chris Sims and Dave Campbell

Sims and Campbell are the two funniest guys in the blogosphere. ‘Nuff said.

Jim Roeg and Mark Fossen

These two guys popped up at the same time and right from the beginning I was a fan. Jim Roeg excels at the long well thought out comic book analysis. It’s his thing. He doesn’t post often, but when he does it seems like an event with all the best minds of the blogosphere commenting on whatever he decides to post about. Mark Fossen is just a blogging machine. 52 on 52, Focused Linkblogging, TGIF, Scatter Thoughts, his blog is full of quality features. He’s my pick for the All-Star of the new bunch of bloggers that seemed to pop up last year.

Lisa Fortuner (Ragnell) and Kalinara

Just look at any Meanwhile column and you can tell I’m a huge fan of both Lisa and Kalinara. They’re a force to be reckoned with now that they’ve joined forces to form When Fangirls Attack. People pay attention when they link to something. I really think if they actually talked about each of the links they post on When Fangirls Attack we could have another Fanboy Rampage on our hands. Lisa is kicking tail here on B@N and I’m a huge fan of her personal blog as well, but they seem to work the best when they work together. Lisa will come at a subject on her blog from one angle and Kalinara comes at it from the other. They’re like the fast ball special of comic blogging.

Jog The Blog

Jog runs, hands down, the best comic book review blog out there.

Jason Rodriguez

This guy is amazing. I’ve been following his personal blog for a while and his vivid and heartfelt retellings of events in his past have made me a diehard fan of his. He’s got chutzpa, he’s got drive, and he’s what comics need more of. His Postcards project looks awesome and I hope Jason gets all the props he deserves for putting this thing together. This is a man to watch.

Mike Sterling and Dorian Wright

I have to mention these two as a pair. Dorian and Mike are “the odd couple” of blogdome. Progressive Ruin is the first blog I ever read. It’s been a must read every day since. That’s not only quality, but consistency and being that good every day is harder than it looks. A tip of the hat to you Mr. Sterling. Dorian is the master of sarcasm and quick wit. He’s elevated it to an artform and I hope to some day be as quick as he is everyday on Postmodern Barney.

Kevin Church, Ed Cunard, and Chris Tamarri

Graphic Language is a blog to keep your eye on. So far every interview they’ve posted has been consistently entertaining, interesting, and they’ve made me want to learn more about their subjects. It takes skill to produce a good interview and these guys have it. I expect great things guys. Don’t let me down.

I have a ton of blogs that I enjoy on a regular basis, but those are my favorites. Those are the sites that made me enjoy blogging. I’ll miss writing the column and keeping up with all the discussions going on in the blogosphere and I’m sure I won’t be able to stay away for too long. I’d like to thank all of the people listed above, everyone I’ve linked to in the comics blogosphere, everyone reading the column, and those that have shown up to comment on the column. Special thanks to the crew here at B@N, especially JK for asking me to join The Great Curve and B@N in the first place. Who knows, maybe I’ll be back for a guest column or two some time. Until then…

Peace.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 25th, 2006 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Internet, Meanwhile..., Site News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.