the net raiders

Viz Media had it’s grand opening of it’s new theater in Japantown (San Francisco) yesterday. They held a large festival that closed down the road right out front of the building, which also happens to run parallel with the Japantown Mall. A friend informed me that Yoshitaka Amano (the artist for many of the Final Fantasy games and Vampire Hunter D) himself would be at the grand opening to say a few words and sign some autographs.

So I treked down to Japantown with a friend to check out the venue and maybe get an autograph or two. I probably visit Japantown on an average of two times a month, and generally there’s a light crowd. As soon as we rounded the corner, a large group of people surrounded a small stage area where a man was handing out t-shirts and other memorabilia. The movie showings had sold out and the security wasn’t letting anyone else in the new building, so no Yoshitako Amano for us. But for a moment I was transported to a world that was ruled by young girls dressed to the teeth in adorable Lolita dresses, complete with parisols and handbags.

We stopped by the Japanese bookstore at the mall and glanced through the manga section where we spotted a small series of comics based on The Legend of Zelda games. I started thinking about how many comics I read are based off of video game, and thought maybe I would share some of my favourites.

VGCats – This one is pretty popular, but you should be reading it if it’s new to you. Each comic is a one shot page which come in varying lengths (and updates).  It gets pretty graphic on a frequent basis, but in the most hilarious ways possible.

Super Effective – By the same artist as VGCats, this comic focuses on ripping the original Pokemon a new one, while prodding painfully at the nostalgia of how much the game kicked butt when we were ten. This comic is hilarious, but beware, it does depend heavily on the reader having played through at least the first in the franchise.

Bob and George – This one is usually new to most people. The creator of this epic tale uses Mega Man sprites to tell his story by doing some clever re-coloring and sizing. I really enjoy this one because of it’s slap-stick, elementary school sense of humor. There’s also plenty of gamer jokes, which is a big plus.

Real Life – I started reading this when it was only months into it’s being. I have a signed copy of the book and am eagerly awaiting the sequel. Greg Dean does an amazing job of blending all that is nerdy in the world with his own personal life, and the fictional world he creates to tell his stories in. Sometimes they’re one shot pages, sometimes there are entire story archs with their own inside jokes. I strongly recommend you read this comic from beginning to end.