Shis thsue:

(Y Under the Feminist Microscope

Y ‘Thief’ epically botches franchise heist
(Y Steven’s Man-Cave: Enjoy your stay at South Park

And more!

Seen something worth sharing?
Contact: Chery! Minns, Arts Editor
Marts@theotherpress.ca

www. theotherpress.ca

 

Kickstarter in the Community:
Comic book dream come true

» Fans unite, bring online comic to print

Cheryl Minns
& Arts Editor
Marts
@theotherpress.ca

Kane Jacques, a

Vancouver graphic
designer and artist, is currently
campaigning for funding on
Kickstarter to publish a book of
her popular online comic series,
Band vs. Band. At first, she
wasnt sure if she would reach
her goal of $3,000, approximately
half of the production costs to
publish the book; but in less
than two weeks, she has raised
more than her goal, and is

 

to the campaign, additional

the extra funding.

BvB began as a fun comic
project on Jacques’ blog three
years ago about two bands, the
cheerful Candy Hearts and the
angry Sourballs, in an Archie-

battles to see which band is the
best. After moving to anew
website dedicated to the series,
www.bvbcomix.com, the series
has now become an online
sensation and a soon-to-be
published book.

“If ’'d known I was getting

for three years, it would have
been smarter to have a plan

for it,” Jacques said, admitting
she hadn’t thought of a story
arc for the characters when she
created the comic series. “When
I started out, I thought it was
just going to be one. And then

: one turned into five, and then
: into 150.”

The weekly comics have

: ranged from standalone stories

: to magazine profiles about the

: bands to ongoing arcs that span
: multiple weeks. Jacques said her
: work has evolved over the years,
: particularly the art and the

: stories, as she has gotten more

: familiar with the BvB comics.

“T think it’s gotten deeper

: into the world and the

: characters have become more

: developed,” she said. “It started
: out with a basic, simple premise
: of two bands versus each other

: and it’s just expanded on that in

ys : : various directions.”
considering adding stretch goals :

One of her favourite comics

: : : in the series was a story about
incentives to offer supporters for : :
: Honey Hart and Turpentine, the
: lead singers from the two bands,
: drawing comics about each

: other.

“This was my favourite

: because I had to think about,

style universe facing off in music : in this comic universe, what do
: these comics look like done by

: these characters who aren’ really

: artists, and how do they draw,

: and how do they write that’s

: different from how I do it? Those

: were a lot of fun,” she said.

For the Kickstarter

: campaign, Jacques has put

: : ; _-: together a variety of rewards
into something I would be doing : and collectible BvB merchandise
: such as stickers, paper dolls, and
: miniature soft dolls of Honey

: Hart and Turpentine—all made

: by the artist herself. She is

: considering the possibility of an

: online store in the future where

: some of the merchandise may be

When I started out,

I thought it was just
going to be one. And
then one turned into
five, and then into
150.

: available. But the most popular
: Kickstarter reward that went

: right away was the most limited
: and least likely to be repeated,
according to Jacques.

“The most popular thing

: that is sold out that I don’t

: think I’m going to do again after
: Kickstarter was the reward tier

: where you get yourself drawn

: into either a comic on the site
or a photo illustration with the

: characters that’s going to be in

: the book.” she said. “That went
really fast, like on the first day.”

She chose Kickstarter as a

way to raise funds because she
: had seen—and taken part in—
: other comic book projects on

: the crowd-funding website.

“It’s where I’ve backed and

: bought other comic projects
that fund the print version of

: something that was already

: online or digital. So it seems to

: be the place of choice for comics
: looking to do something like

: this.”

Jacques’s goal is to have the

BvB book published and ready to
: sell at the Vancouver Comic Arts
: Festival (VanCAF) held in May.

If you would like to support

this project, check out Band vs.
: Band Comix Volume 1 at www.
: kickstarter.com

Old comedy strikes truth
and humour with students

» ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ review

Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

T" Importance of Being Earnest is a classic play written by
the witty Oscar Wilde in 1895 that was quite successful in
its time. Its popularity has not ceased and it continues to be
performed by professionals and amateurs alike. This week, it
is being performed by the Douglas College theatre program
students in the Studio Theatre until March 14.

Set in Victorian England, the play follows two upper-class
gentlemen named Algernon Moncrieff (played by Sam Hahn)
and John Worthing (Jordy Matheson). John lives in the country
with his ward Cecily (Aylin Vandeputte), but often travels to
London under the alias of Ernest. His girlfriend Gwendolen
(Alexandria Gamache), who also happens to be Algernon’s
cousin, knows him under this pseudonym. Algernon finds out
John’s secret and decides to steal the Ernest name for himself
in order to propose to Cecily. In true romantic comedy fashion,
John discovers his best friend’s plan and hilarity ensues,
especially as others also become aware of what is going on. It’s
sort of a cross between Fawlty Towers and Downton Abbey with

a bit more romance.

The show features lots of high-class, proper British culture
in its plot, dialogue, props, set design, and even in the voices
of all the actors. The complete seriousness with which the
actors play their roles is very impressive, as is their dedication
to their characters. They are all very believable in their parts
and completely pass for their characters’ ages. The costumes
and props all look authentic and even the subtler aspects are
notable, such as the way female characters walk while holding

up their fancy dresses.

Perhaps part of the reason the play is so entertaining and
popular is that it seems incredibly relevant. Even though it’s a
period piece, many of the witty observations are still apparent
today. The quips range from comments about romance and
marriage to satire of society and social customs. One of the
most reaching quotes is when Algernon states, “It is absurd to
have a hard-and-fast rule about what one should read and what
one shouldn't. More than half of modern culture depends on
what one shouldnt’ read.” That’s food for thought that can be
applied to almost all of the entertainment that exists today.

The Importance of Being Earnest runs until March 14. I
highly recommend it for fans of theatre, British culture, or
comedies in general. The visuals are great, the actors deliver
solid performances, and the play itself is delightful and
hilarious. That’s the pure and simple truth, even if, as
Algernon puts it, “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”

 

Chairman of the Board: Want to save the world?

» ‘Pandemic’ review

Ed Appleby

» ilustrator

8 Millustrator
@theotherpress.ca

 

ou will never have so much

fun losing a game.

Pandemic is a cooperative
board game for two to four
players designed by Matt
Leacock and distributed by
Z-man games. In this game,

: you and your friends are a team
: of specialists working for the

: Centre for Disease Control

: travelling the world trying to

: cure four diseases before they

: destroy humanity.

One of the strongest

: aspects of the game is in its

: cooperative nature. Some

: games, such as Monopoly

: or Risk, are notorious for

: nearly destroying friendships
: because players work against

: each other to succeed in the
: game. In Pandemic, players
: are encouraged to work with
: each other and debate every
: move with the weight of an

: international crisis.

This is where the game’s

: notorious difficulty works

: in its favour. There are three

: difficulty levels, of which the

: highest is generally considered
: nearly impossible. The start

: of the game feels easy and

: everyone feels like they have

: control of the situation; as

: turns progress things get more
: and more out of hand until

: all the players are scrambling

: just to keep from losing. The

: first time! playedthe gameon :
: medium difficulty, we lost eight :
: times ina row. If it wasn’t 3 a.m. :
: we would have tried again.

As far as I can tell, there

: is only one downside to the
: game: it is so balanced that

: one misinterpreted rule or one
: missed step in a turn can skew
: the gameplay and make the

: game easier than it should be.
: The rules are not long and, in

: the second edition, many rules
: have been clarified.

I can’t recommend this
game enough, especially if your

: friends have different levels
: of experience with tabletop
: games.