Monica (comic) Books

The Brazilian publisher Editora Girassol will release, in participation with Maurico de Sousa Productions, two special editions in which Monica Teen(and her gang) interpret classics of world literature: Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson; and Midsummer Night’s Dream, by William Shakespeare.

MSP and Editora Girassol 

The new collection, baptized Monica Teen- Romances and Adventures, will bring Monica, Jimmy Five, Maggy and Smudge starring in the modern retellings of the plots. These are the first releases by Girassol(Sunflower) involving Monica’s Gang(the teenage version).

The two volumes will be released in 7 inches (17.5 cm) by 9 inches(23 cm) format, with 48 pages and a hard cover. Each edition will cost 49.90 reals(about 22 US dollars).

(Original article: Turma da Mônica Jovem reviveclássicos da literature, written by Samir Naliato on April 2, 2014. Republished and translated with permission by UniversoHQ)

MSP(Mauricio de Sousa Productions) have made a smart move here. Turma da Monica Jovem(Monica Teen) has been a must read fever among tweens and young adults in Brazil since it was introduced in 2008. Issue  34, showcasing  the first kiss between the two protagonists, sold over 500,000 issues in September 2011. America’s best selling issue was Justice League  #1, with over 200,000 issues sold. Monica, Maggy, Jimmy Five (now, a more mature Jim Five), and Smudge sell chocolates, dolls, clothes, fashion accessories, and personal hygiene products all over Brazil. Last year, they made a special appearance in beloved young adult writer Thalita Rebouças’ novel: Ela Disse, Ele Disse: O Namoro(“She Said, He Said: The Romance”), published by Rocco Young Readers. Mauricio de Sousa included the characters in vignettes, reacting to the action in the novel- connecting the fictional characters with the popular trends of today.

MSP, with Panini Comics,  also produces a bimonthly “Cinema Classics” series with each issue featuring a spoof of a different film series or movie classic. From ET, Blair Witch Project and Night at the Museum to classics like King Kong, Casablanca, Gladiator and Titanic. Superhero movies have also been featured with issues featuring Batman (Batboy), Superman, Green Lantern and The Avengers. With MSP focusing on retellings of popular high school reading material, this both dulls the burden of an assignment and introduces the reader to the original works. Time will tell how successful these retellings are or how the brand will grow from here. 

How Much Would You Pay For a Comic? Name Your Price

The online comic store Mais Gibis(More Comics) is premiering a new way of payment, called “Name Your Price”, for select titles.

With this option, the reader will decide how much they want to pay for some editions, like Gibi Quântico("Quantam Comics") or Manual da Autodestruição("Self-destruction Manual"), and collaborate with the creators. The price paid could be any value upwards of 1 Real(.50 US cents). If the reader prefers, they can enter R$0.00 and download the issues for free.

Quantam Comics,  available through Mais Comics is created by 10 writers and various talents of Brazil

"Quantam Comics" is one of the new titles available through the site. Others include Pieces 1 and 2, by Mario Cau; and Os Passarinhos e Outros Bichos("The Birds and Other Animals"), by Estevão Ribeiro and published by Balão Editorial.(Other titles do not feature the "Name Your Price" flexibility)

To see the full catalog of digital titles, check out the site.

(Original article: Site Mais Gibis estreia o modelo Quer pagar quanto? Written by Samir Naliato on March 19, 2014. Reprinted and translated by permission from UniversoHQ)

Stateside, Brian K. Vaughan(Saga, Y the Last Man, Runaways) and Marcos Martin(Daredevil, Doctor Strange:The Oath, The Amazing Spider-Man) teamed up to “deliver original comics directly to readers around the world, who pay whatever the hell they want…” This format takes the middle man(distributors, publishers) out of the picture and all proceeds go right to the hands of the creators. Their digital exclusive series, The Private Eye, has been getting rave reviews and is currently in the middle of its proposed ten issue run. 

Brian K. Vaughan and Marcos Martin through The Panel Syndicate

An appreciated feature is that the issues are available in English, Spanish and Catalan- with older issues available in additional Portuguese and French as well. Try it out at panelsyndicate.com. 

This is a great way to show comics are not a luxury item and that the medium can be enjoyed by all cultures and economic classes. Comics are for everyone!

A New Member of the 500 Club.

As mentioned in the previous post- 500 is an increasingly rare number for comic book series to achieve but Brazil is hitting the big 5-0-0 mark once again with this month’s Cebolinha 500, published by Panini. Learn more about the journey to 500 and Maurico de Sousa's beloved character!

Cebolinha 1(1973)-Abril/MSP

Ceblinha- “Little Onion” in Portuguese- referring to his five strands of hair is renamed Jimmy Five in the English translations. Always trying to regain the throne as “owner of the street” he always comes up with “infallible plans” to unseat the neighborhood’s leader, usually stealing her stuffed rabbit and making fun of her stature, height or teeth; the more well-known character, Monica, started as a secondary character in his comic strips. The mean little boy is not without his charm. His speech impediment changes his Rs to Ls…making him always declare he will be the owner of the moon, not the street (Lua=moon, rua=street). In English, still mispronouncing his Rs…he would be the owner of the stweet(R=W).

His first appearance was actually in comic strips- he was a secondary character (with more than five strands of hair) appearing frequently after his October 24th, 1960 premiere in “Bidu e Franjinha” from the Sao Paulo based “Folha de Manhã” newspaper. His creator, Mauricio de Sousa, claims the character is based on a childhood acquaintance. Celebrating 50 years in 2010, Panini released a hard cover commemorative book detailing his “career” : Cebolinha 50 Anos.

A celebration of Cebolinha

In 1973, Abril, publisher of Monica, granted the character his own series. Cebolinha stayed with Abril for 168 issues until the property was sold to Globo, enjoying 246 issues there until 2006. With 85 issues under his belt with current publisher Panini(since 2007)…Cebolinha reaches the monumental 500 this month! The preview, released today, states “Cebolinha acquires  Marina’s magic pencil to create a infallible plan, but Captain Ugly(Captain Fray in the translation) has other ideas… Anniversary special that commemorates 500 issues of Cebolinha in Brazil.”

Cebolinha 500- Panini/MSP

Issue 500(listed as 86 on the website) is available in Portuguese from the publisher's website for $1.60(with a high shipping rate, unfortunately). The issue is 68 pages and includes activities and games.

Learn more about his competition, Monica, here!

Bienvenidos, Bem vindo, Willkommen, Welcome, Accueil, Velkommen, Benvenuto, Powitanie, Welkom, Sambutan, Maligayang pagdating

So, welcome!
I am Jeff. For a while now I have been looking for a forum that really welcomes the international world of comic books...and that has lead me to here. As someone who enjoys comics and traveling, it was inevitable to fall in love with international comic books! As a lifelong learner, I needed to research and learn all about comics in all reaches of the world.
Stateside, Fantographics and NBM are the main publishers of imports, but is that enough? During my time in Brazil, I got to know the 4th biggest entertainment company in the world, Mauricio de Sousa Productions(Think Walt Disney Studios combined with Stan Lee's name brand). In its flagship title, Turma da Monica (Monica's Gang), they often display Sousa's travels to various licencing shows, ambassador visits etc, often times in the US... Yet, when walking into New York's largest comic shop and asking where it is possible to purchase comics from Brazil-"Brazil" was their best guess. Should these comics really be so foreign?
To me, this is a very limited view; we should be opening our arms to other viewpoints and art styles, and opening our hearts to other characters!
This blog aims to be a labor of love. If I can figure out a scanner and photoshop software I'd like to try my hand at translating (Portuguese and Spanish for now, French and German are the next languages to dominate!) Think of it as a cultural exchange in the world of comics.
Feel free to give recommendations, ask questions or anything!
Time to take over the world!
Jeff**

Me and Brazil's Stan Lee: Mauricio de Sousa- leader of Brazilian comics, creator of more than 200 characters and in the business for more than 50 years!(Copyright Saraiva)