This Could Get Dangerous

The hotel has an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet with unlimited prosciutto! Knowing what I pay for it in New York, my breakfast this morning would have run me about $50 given the amount of cured ham I ingested!

Making Mouths Water

We ate at La Frattoria twice last year as it was so good, and we had no choice but to go back for our first meal in Mantova last night. I went with my usual, the Mantovana pizza, simply prepared with homemade sauce, mozzarella and local salamella sausage. I was so excited that I dug into it before remembering to take a picture. Out of this world!

Italy Quick Hits

Cool cafe tables at the Rome Airport...


My lunch of prosciutto and cheese filled cappelletti, also at the airport in Rome. Why can't every airport have food as good as this?


Disembarking old school: off the plane, across the tarmac and onto a bus...


Much like Angouleme, Mantova got their own cars this year...


Advertising for products that matter...

Breakfast in Rome

As I couldn't change my flight, I've got a five hour layover here in Rome, which I'm making the most of to catch up on e-mail, blogging and scripts. I was starving when I arrived though, so this was how I started my day...


Move over, Wheaties, prosciutto and mozzarella sandwiches are the new breakfast of champions!

On Approach

So I'm in Italy this week to attend the Mantova Comics and Games Festival. I came last year and it was a blast so I'm thrilled to be back for 2009. Found a lot of great talent here last year and am hoping for similar success again this year! I'll be blogging all week from the show, so keep checking back.

The flight over was bumpy as hell and I didn't sleep very well, which is odd for me. I even had my own row as the flight was pretty empty, but even stretching out, I had no luck dozing off. I was actually awake for dinner, which was surprisingly good for airline food. One of the best meals I've had on a plane that I've been awake for in years; steak with gnocchi on the side! Ended up reading magazines and comics for most of the flight. Naoki Urasawa's PLUTO was incredible as expected! Also played some Solitaire and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, except it was the British version and was pretty damn hard! How am I supposed to know what color British driver's licenses are or where Beckham was born?!

Anyway, this was the view out my window as we began our descent into Rome...

When Ordering

Recently, when I've been going out for dinner, rather than ordering something I want to eat, I've been ordering things I know that I can't make better by myself. I look for more complicated and exotic dishes on the menu that I know I have no way in hell of cooking on my own at home. It's a new habit that's served me well.

Case in point, for my birthday, when Mutsumi asked me where I wanted to go, rather than pick a steak house as I usually do, I choose to go to Blue Ribbon for one of my favorite meals that there's no possible way I have any chance of creating in our kitchen... Oxtail Marmalade and Bone Marrow on Toast!


Trust me, if you're in New York City and looking for one of the best things you could ever possibly have to eat anywhere, go to Blue Ribbon and try this stuff! It really is to die for!!

And their raw scallops and sweetbreads are amazing as well if you're feeling even more adventurous.

Recent Comics From Me

As I haven't posted in a bit, here a look at a few recent comics that came out that I had something to do with...

X-INFERNUS #3


ASTONISHING TALES #1



ASTONISHING TALES #1, Marc Silvestri Variant


YTHAQ: THE FORSAKEN WORLD #3, which I adapted into English.


WAR OF KINGS SPOTLIGHT, featuring a Darkhawk interview with me.

Reeeoooww!

As you can see, Wilie was so happy to see us last weekend...

Can Asuka Play With Us?

One of the coolest things I've seen all month, the Evangelion soccer ball...


Mutsumi wouldn't let me buy one. :(

Fighting Wine

Maybe you can't judge a book by its cover, but sometimes you can judge a bottle of wine by its label...


How could you see this and not buy it?

After A Brief Break...

...I'll be blogging a lot more starting this week. Sorry about the lack of posts these past few weeks, but NYCC took me right into the Marvel Artists Training Seminar after which I got deathly ill with the flu, mild bronchitis and a sinus infection. I'm better now but have been working my ass off to catch up on work and life, which meant a break from blogging, which I apologize for. But I'm back in good health and have lots to say and will begin regular posting again shortly. And from Italy no less! Sitting in JFK now actually, waiting for my flight to Rome where I'll connect to Bologna in order to attend the Mantova Comic & Games Festival again this year! So stay tuned for some sure-to-be-interesting updates. Ciao for now!

Chesterfest 2009 Invite

By David Lafuente and Emily Warren...

My New Favorite Comic Store

Thanks to Dewey's Comic City in New Jersey for picking War of Kings: Darkhawk #1 as their Highlight of the Week!

NYCC!

New York Comic Con takes place this weekend at the Javitz Center here in NYC and I'll be there all weekend.

I'll be at Table E5 in Artists Alley with Ryu Moto. Please stop by and say Hello!

You'll also be able to catch me at the following panels and signings...

Friday

War of Kings Panel (Panel Room 4 - 1A14) - 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm

X-Men Panel (Panel Room 4 - 1A14) – 3:15 pm – 4:15 pm

Signing @ The Marvel Booth (Booth #1141) - 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm

Saturday

Cup O’ Joe Panel (Panel Room 3 - 1A08) - 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm

Sunday

Signing @ The Marvel Booth (Booth #1141) - 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Marvel: Your Universe Panel (Panel Room 7 - 1A24) - 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm

Hope to see you there!

CBC Comics On Sale This Week

Astonishing Tales #1 with a Wolverine/Punisher story by me and Kenneth Rocafort...


...with a Variant cover by Marc Silvestri!



We got our first pretty positive early review here on Comics Bulletin.

And also hitting today is War of Kings: Darkhawk #1 by me, Harvey Tolibao and Bong Dazo, featuring the Loners!!

Afro Samurai: Resurrection

Afro Samurai: Resurrection goes on sale on DVD today, February 3rd. I had the pleasure of serving as the story consultant on the project and I think it turned out pretty damn well. I absolutely love how the talented folks at Gonzo were able to bring with what we came up with into such incredible animated life!

You can check out the trailer for the film here and buy the DVD from amazon.com.