Midnight Taxi Tango: An Endorsement

Before we get into the rest of my full endorsement of Midnight Taxi Tango, I feel the need to ask a question: What kind of Ouija board does author Daniel José Older have access to? Is he somehow hotline blingin’ with the underworld? The way he writes about the dead, the half-dead, the preternatural and the politics that govern them — it reads more like dictation than creation. There are some genuinely creepy scenes in MTT. Skin crawling, looking over your shoulder, peering into shadows to see who is there, creepy. Other scenes are damn frightening. Let me put it to you this way: weaponized ghosts of babies who are hungry and out to devour you. Borderline nightmare stuff. What really works about this novel, and the “Bone Street Rumba” series as a whole, is that none of the scares are cheap. Every scare is legitimate. Every scare is necessary to the tale. This is evidence of Older’s mastery of his narrative.

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Half-Resurrection Blues: An Endorsement

A spoiler free endorsement.

Daniel José Older is the type of writer that forces you to reevaluate your likes and dislikes for particular (sub)-genres. Up until I read Half-Resurrection Blues, I declared a moratorium on anything even resembling urban fantasy. Most urban fantasy almost supernaturally privileges European myth/folk/legend and leaves zero room for stories or influences from other cultures. Fairy court intrigues, battles amongst the Sidhe, and some kind of blonde or “flowing raven haired” chosen one or outcast or bi-species offspring rule the urban fantasy space to such a degree that reading these books feels like looking at a “No Melanin Allowed” billboard written in fairy dust. With Half-Resurrection Blues, though, Older makes a very bold departure.

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Sikh Captain America: The Man Behind the Shield

Is America ready for a Sikh Captain America — a superhero fighting hate crimes and intolerance? In the wake of 9/11, the massacre of Sikh Americans in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, and America post-Ferguson, my answer is a resounding yes! If superheroes can battle aliens, cyborgs, and fellow villainous superheroes, why can’t there be one that fights for social and racial justice?

In 2013, cartoonist Vishavjit Singh wore a Captain America costume for the first time with a royal blue turban to match his ensemble. The short documentary Red, White, and Beard is a quirky, lighthearted glance into Sikh Captain America and the man behind this growing phenomenon.

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Celebrate Black Comic Art From Coast to Coast

Get ready. This weekend is going to be a huge one as our very own John Jennings has organized two comic art festivals on either coast that will celebrate Black comic art and artists with day-long events featuring panel discussions, film screenings, and more.

Festivities kick off in New York City on Saturday, January 17 at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture for its third annual Black Comic Book Festival. The scene then shifts to San Francisco on Sunday and Monday for that city’s inaugural Black Comix Arts Festival — which John announced in October. Both events are free and open to the public.

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Red, White, and Beard Documentary Launches

Back in 2013, cartoonist Vishavjit Singh made a splash on the internet when he took to the streets of New York in a customized turbaned Captain America uniform. A year later, a team of filmmakers followed Singh on one of his Captain America runs and the result of that journey, a short documentary feature called Red, White, and Beard, debuts in one week at its eponymous website.

Also, come back later in the week for Alice’s review of the film. In the meantime, check out its trailer and description after the cut.

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Making it Up As I Go Along with Larry Hama

A few weeks back, I had the honor to attend the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU’s presentation of Making It Up As I Go Along, a documentary about the legendary G.I. Joe creator Larry Hama. After the screening, I was also able to have a one-on-one conversation with Larry and fielded some questions from the audience in attendance.

If you were unable to be at the screening, the APA Institute has posted the whole thing online, and you can see it for yourself after the jump!

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NYCC 2014: We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Boat…

Hello Everyone! My name is Raphael, and I’ll be a regular contributor here at The Nerds of Color! New York Comic-Con may have ended a week ago, but here are my thoughts after attending my eighth NYCC.

I’ve been going since its inception, but this was my first as a civilian — working the Midtown Comics booth for the last six years — and it’s definitely a different experience (the lines). The one positive is that since they decided to stick to the current layout (with the Show Floor on the main floor, autographing and panels downstairs, Artist Alley in Javits North) for the last couple years.

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Larry Hama Documentary Screening in New York City on October 22

On Wednesday, October 22, the Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU is presenting Making It Up As I Go Along, a documentary by The Spitting Image. The film reveals the creative process of a man who has become a legend, beloved by throngs of comic book readers worldwide — cartoonist, musician, and G.I. Joe creator Larry Hama. Following the screening, Hama speaks with Keith Chow, founder and editor of The Nerds of Color and co-editor of the groundbreaking Asian American comic anthologies Secret Identities and Shattered.

Items from the A/P/A Institute-produced traveling exhibition,  MARVELS & MONSTERS Unmasking Asian Images in U.S. Comics, 1942-1986 will be for sale in a silent auction to support the institute’s collections building initiatives. MARVELS & MONSTERS was curated using images from the William F. Wu Comics Collection, the world’s largest collection of American comic books featuring images of Asians and is housed at the NYU Fales Library & Special Collections.

Register for tickets by Monday, October 20. You can find and RSPVP to the event on Facebook as well.

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My Chance Encounter as Captain America with a 9/11 Responder

by Vishavjit Singh | Originally posted at Medium.com

On a hot July summer day in New York City, I was working with a film crew hopping in and out of the subway in my costume as Captain America. We stepped out on one of the stops and after shooting for a few hours in Washington Square Park hopped back on the subway. That is when a couple spotted me and appeared amazed at having seen me a second time on the subway that day. The wife initiated the encounter and I sat down next to them for a few brief moments. The couple was from Arizona, and they were in town primarily to tick an item off the husband’s bucket list. To attend an Arsenal soccer match. They asked me what I doing, and I summarized the motivation of my social experiment. I stepped out on my next stop.

We finished the film shooting the next day. Two days later I received an email titled “Our chance encounter” from a sergeant in an Arizona police department. It was one of the most touching mails I have ever received.

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EXCLUSIVE: Strength in NUMBERS Featuring HOYA by Chi-Yun Lau

The Strength in NUMBERS train keeps rolling as we unveil the latest “variant” album cover to Chops’ massive Asian American hip-hop movement.

The latest Strength in NUMBERS album cover features New York emcee — and Strength in NUMBERS original cover artist, HOYA illustrated by Boston-based cartoonist and graphic designer CHI-YUN LAU.

After the jump, download a high-resolution jpeg of the latest Strength in NUMBERS alternate album cover. Just right-click on the image and save. And remember to DONATE NOW to help make this project a reality!

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