When I put out the call for Goblinologists, 38 experts answered. While, regrettably, only five could receive prizes, it would be a travesty if I kept this creative treasure trove to myself. So here is the first batch of runners up. Thank you so much for entering, everyone. Sirs Jones & Froud would be proud.
Thirty-eight people entered the Goblinology contest and with so much creativity and whimsy on display, picking five wasn’t easy. No two names were alike, and only a couple of jobs were similar. Just about the only thing these entries had in common is that they were all VERY SILLY! Which is perfect, as any Goblinologist can tell you that silly is every goblin’s middle name (how it is that not one of these 38 otherwise meticulous goblinologists got that middle name right is beyond me). I wish I could send a copy of volume 4 to everyone who entered, but in the end, these are the five I selected. Continue reading
It’s happening. The final volume of Return to Labyrinth is now on sale in bookstores around the country. Amazon orders shipped yesterday and comics retailers will have their stock out tomorrow with the rest of the new graphic novels. I’m sure many of you have already picked up a copy and are itching to talk about. Next week I’ll turn gobblin.net into a place to discuss, debate, and dissect Vol. 4 and the series as a whole. I’ll be happy to answer questions. This week, while the book trickles out to readers, I would like to keep gobblin.net a spoiler-free zone.
For those of you who are champing for a chance to chomp the newest book but for whatever reason can’t get a hold of a copy this week, there is one way you can score a free copy. I will send out 5 signed copies of return to Labyrinth this Friday, and all you have to do to win a copy is help me out with a little Goblinology.
What exactly is Goblinology? Well, it’s highly-scientific, that goes without saying! Basically, Goblinologists are experts and observing goblins and deducing their name, occupation and life story without ever touching, conversing with, folding, spindling or mutilating the goblin subject. There are skeptics who call even the very best Goblinologists brazen fabulists, liars and curs, and they might be right. But just because a Goblinologists observations are in no way grounded in facts doesn’t mean they can’t be true.
Anyway, to win one of FIVE SIGNED COPIES OF RETURN TO LABYRINTH VOLUME 4, all you have to do is come up with a name, occupation and other bit of lore for this yet unclassified gobblin specimen.
Is he a blacksmith? A florist? A dentist? Did he commit any grievous atrocities or is he a hero of the people? I haven’t a clue, but I’ll know it when I see it. After all, in Goblinology, there are no right or wrong answers — just various shades of truishness.
Send your goblin name and a brief goblin bio of this mystery specimen (no more than 200 words, please!) to gobblincontest [at] gmail [dot] com by Saturday 8/7, midnight PST. I’ll pick 5 of my favorite responses and send those lucky Goblinologists a signed book (and if you’re lucky, a Jareth sketch too!).
Feel free to post questions about the contest in the comments, but remember — only descriptions received by email will be considered.
Ever since gobblin.net debuted almost three years ago, this site has hosted dozens of preview pics from Return to Labyrinth. It’s hard for me to accept, but after this post, there will be no more previews. In just three more days, Return to Labyrinth volume 4 will be in stores, and with that volume, the series is over. More reflections on that point later. Right now, I just want to savor the anticipation a little longer.
Today’s preview features Sarah in a most unusual theater. (Even in comics form, it seems Jareth can’t help but mingle with puppets!) What happens here is just the beginning of what Jareth has in store for Sarah and this scene was one of my favorite ones to write.
While this is the last preview picture on gobblin.net, that doesn’t mean there won’t be new Labyrinth art here. I’ll still have previously unseen sketches and interior art in the months to come. And soon, I hope, you’ll find preview art here for other series as well. For now, I hope you’ll savor the anticipation with me for one more weekend.
When you’re at ground zero in the seething maelstrom of hype and nerdgasms that make up the Comic-con’s main floor, it can be tough for a small publisher to stand out, but this year Archaia came out strong as a major force in the comics world with a booth that drew readers in droves. Their tentpole title for 2010: Fraggle Rock! The first volume, collected in hardcover, debuted over a month early at the show to brisk sales and rave reviews. In the event that you’re a Fraggle fan and you missed your chance to pick it up in San Diego, amazon.com has quite a consolation prize — the book is on pre-order at 49% off the cover price. That makes it cheaper than Return to Labyrinth vol. 4, plus this one is in color and hardcover. (How exactly does that work?)
At the Henson panel on Sunday, Archaia announced the full partial lineup of creators involved with the next Fraggle Rock series. That Return to Labyrinth artist Chris Lie and I are contributors is not news, but knowing who our respective partners are is. (“are is” — is that even a proper sentence?) Chris will be drawing the lead story, written by Grace Randolph, fresh off her successful run on Muppet Peter Pan. Also coming up in volume 2, a story by Joe LeFavi. Chances are, you don’t know Joe yet because this is his debut published work as a writer, but if you read Return to Labyrinth, you absolutely know his work. He’s been my story editor for the last two volumes, providing invaluable notes on my scripts in his former capacity as the head of publishing development at the Henson company. Joe’s since launched his own entertainment company, but he’s still working with Henson to ensure that the licensed stories like Labyrinth, Fraggles and Dark Crystal stay true to the Henson legacy. A greater Henson fan and expert you’ll never find. His story is illustrated by Heidi Arnhold, illustrator of the Legends of the Dark Crystal books. Small world!
The story that I wrote, titled “The Ghastly Stain,” is one of the two backup stories in the issue. It will be illustrated by Mark Simmons, someone I’ve known for close to a decade as “Mark the Gundam Guy,” as he’s worked with Bandai as script editor and keeper of the Gundam Official website ever since the venerable giant robot series debuted in the US. I didn’t realize until last year that Mark is also an incredible artist in his own right. Check out his webcomic series “Blood Bite of the Death Dragon” for a taste of his work.
The second Fraggle Rock series debuts this fall.
One other bit of news that came out of the Henson panel, Archaia will be releasing a graphic novel adaptation of an unfilmed Jim Henson screenplay entitled A Tale of Sand. This screenplay, co-written with writing partner Jerry Juhl, was created early in Henson’s career as a filmmaker and is an experimental story reminiscent of the best Twilight Zone episodes. The screenplay will be adapted word-for-word, making this the first Henson-written story to be released since his passing. Lisa Henson will be overseeing the graphic novel’s creation. I confess, I got chills when this project was announced and I can’t wait to find out who Archaia tapped to illustrate it.
Archaia did talk about The Dark Crystal comic. Concept artist Brian Froud will be providing the story and art direction, but he won’t be writing or drawing it himself. It’s going to be a prequel that explores the origins of the Dark Crystal. Augra’s heretofore unseen son will feature prominently. To hear Froud talk about the Crystal, it all sounds very cosmic and mind-bending. I can’t wait to check it out! As for Labyrinth, no details from Archaia yet about how they’ll be approaching that property.
Comic-con is officially over and there are about 100 copies of Return to Labyrinth volume 4 in the wild. For everyone else, however, the release date is still a week away. In the meantime, Tokyopop has put up a preview of the first 20 pages which you can read here. It ends pretty abruptly halfway through the chapter, but it does have a couple pretty big developments. I hope you enjoy it!
Right now I’m still in San Diego for a few more hours. I had a wonderful time at the show. It was great to be able to meet readers in person and talk about the books, the movie and comics. There were I also had a chance to work on my sketches — still crude, but increasingly recognizable. 
Thank you so much Alyssa, Amanda, Asia, Kayla, Nicholas, and everyone for coming by. I’m also still giddy that Brian Froud came by the booth and I was got to shake his hand and talk about Labyrinth a bit. I gave him a Toby amulet to give to Toby, as well as a Moppet one to give to Wendy. Such a nice guy and a phenomenal artist.
I want to apologize for lack of updates this past week. It’s been rather frantic around here since returning from my Sloth-cation, and now I’m off to the airport again, this time bound for San Diego and the nerdtastic madhouse that is Comic-Con.
In case you missed the update last week, here’s everything you need to know about Return to Labyrinth and me. You can find me during most of the convention at Booth #O-08 in the Small Press Pavilion where I’ll be sharing a table with Jason Thompson of King of RPGs and MANGA: The Complete Guide fame. There I’ll be selling advanced copies of Return to Labyrinth vol. 4, as well as a limited quanitity of volumes 1-3. You’ll also be able to purchase handmade amulets featuring Return to Labyrinth art and check out the amazing plushies made by Jennifer Lin.
Aside from selling and signing at the booth, I’ll be on three panels this year.
That’s the extent of my involvement, but Labyrinth fans should definitely take note of Archaia’s panel on Sunday where they’ll discuss their upcoming Dark Crystal and Labyrinth comics. Brian Froud, concept artist for both films, will be on the panel as well as at the Archaia booth signing an exclusive Dark Crystal poster.
Oh, and speaking of the Dark Crystal, on Thursday evening from 5-7, Jason and I are handing our booth over to the creative team behind Legends of the Dark Crystal. Writer Barbara Kesel and artist Heidi Arnhold will be signing free posters and sharing previews of the second volume of Dark Crystal manga, due out from Tokyopop on August 3.
I hope to see many of you there! For those of you who can’t make it, I’ll get back to posting early next week with a final round of previews for Return to Labyrinth 4 as well as a contest to win a free copy just in time for the release. Until then, should you need us… er, you’re on your own.
It wasn’t so long ago that action figures, trading cards, plushies and posters were regular impulse buys on my trips to the comics shop or convention. Animation cels and special edition books, I ate them up too. Yup, I had the collecting bug pretty bad for a while there and if I hadn’t curbed the habit, I’d probably be broke and up to my neck in blister cards and boxes (True fact – I have box of unopened Star Trek: TNG action figures under my grandma’s house). There are still a few nerdy collectibles that I cherish, like my Sandman bookends and Harley Quinn production cel, but most of the rest of those collectibles I passed on to the next generation, donating to my cousins or other friends/family with kids. (I haven’t seen Toy Story 3 yet, but I have a feeling I’ll relate all too well).
Even though I’ve kicked the collecting habit, I still get a vicarious thrill looking at cool toys and treasures at stores and online, and ever since I started working on Return to Labyrinth, I’ve dreamed about seeing merch made for characters that I created. RtL as an intellectual property belongs entirely to the Jim Henson Company, so whether or not official merch is ever made is entirely up to them (and should it happen, I’d get no royalties anyway, but I’d still like to see it!). In the meantime, with the series ending, I wanted to do something special for my inner-collector to mark the occasion. In this era of etsy and blossoming DIY geekery, there’s no reason to let that stop me! And so I scoured the webs for an independent artist who could help make my dream a reality.
The artist I ended up working with is Jennifer Lin, aka Meowchee, a new but super-talented member of the Japanese-style plushie community (like those chibi stuffed dolls you see at the back of any anime/manga/otaku store). She has a blog and a deviantart page. Why did I pick her? Because of her amazing Jareth plushies, of course! She’s made him in several costumes, each more impressive than the last.
For my commission, I asked Jennifer to make Toby from the volume 2 cover and Moulin from the cover of volume 3. Moulin’s costume is pretty clearly presented on the cover, but for Toby, Jennifer had to do a fair amount of extrapolating, and I love what she did, adding a design based on Jareth’s amulet to the back of his vest. Moulin is definitely my favorite, with her adorable raincloud companion Nimbus and trusty book! (Both accessories feature magnets so that they’ll snap to moulin’s hands). I also asked for one of her “Magic Dance” Jareths. So cute!
These are one-of-a-kind commissions, so I’m afraid I can’t sell them to you, but I will have them at the booth at Comic-Con (Booth O-08 in the small press pavillion), so if you’ll be in San Diego next week, do stop by to give them a hug. Of course, you’re welcome (encouraged even!) to commission plushies of your own from Jennifer. Details and price estimates on her blog.
While I’m so excited to see and hold these pro-quality Return to Labyrinth dolls, I won’t be keeping them. They’re gifts for the wonderful folks that helped make Return to Labyrinth happen. And maybe, just maybe, someone will see them and decide to make some official merch.
UPDATE: Additional pics and commentator from the plushies’ creator at Jennifer’s blog.
In the gift shop at the Aviarios Sloth Sanctuary near Cahuita, Costa Rica, an educational DVD cover reads “Sloths: Hardly a Deadly Sin!” It’s true, there is nothing sinful in the unhurried lifestyle of these jungle beasties, but they certainly bring out the vices in me. Envy for those sloth handlers who get to hold the sloths at the rescue. Lust to stroke the fur of the baby two-toed. Greed, in that I want ALL THE SLOTHS! And now you can add Pride to that list; Pride that I met the sloths whereas you, most likely, have not. Gluttony? I confess, one of my earliest questions about sloths is why they didn’t become a staple of the tropical dinner table. Apparently they just taste nasty. And as for Wrath, can there be any greater antidote for that vice than this precious mug?
I don’t remember exactly when I became obsessed with sloths, but I can assure you it was long before the advent of youtube. It probably began with my childhood fascination with Ice Age megafauna. For some reason, these not-to-distant ancestors of todays horses, cougars and armadillos seemed infinitely more bizarre to me than dinosaurs. (Apparently I’m not alone in feeling this way, as right now, the Academy of Science in San Francisco is holding an exhibit called “Extreme Mammals” that is largely devoted to just that question of why we silly humans get so caught up on crazy horns and teeth and overly extended limbs.) Megatherium, the largest of the ground sloths, and the tank-like Glyptodon were particular favorites.
Maybe I’d researched it, or maybe it was just taxonomic intuition, but as I formed my internal grouping of animals into “favorites” and “everything else,” a pattern emerged. On the “favorites” side, every species of the order Xenarthra. This grouping of animals includes all types of Sloth, armadillo and anteater. Let’s call them the Silly Snooters. Even though they’re technically found on separate branches of the evolutionary tree, Aardvarks and Pangolins also make the cut.
During my first trip to Costa Rica, two years ago, goal #1: see some sloths! This was before sloths went viral and I had no idea that we were staying just a couple of miles from the Sloth Sanctuary, so it was wild sloths or nothing. My wife (then girlfriend) kept claiming to spot them, but wherever she pointed, all I saw was a distant dark lump that could just as easily be a wasp’s nest or a leaf. As far as I was concerned, if you can’t see a face, it doesn’t count. Finally, we did see one very young sloth clinging to a tree in Cahuita National Park, but the way it was perched there at eye level right near the trail, completely unmoving, there was something suspicious about it. I’d seen better wildlife on the Splash Mountain ride at Disneyland. The monkeys (howlers and Capuchins) brought their A-game, but the sloths… frankly, they were just being lazy.
So when we left for Panama and Costa Rica last month, I tried to keep my sloth expectations (my slothspectations, if you will) in check. Of course we’d see some sloths — the Sloth Sanctuary was on our itenerary! — but I was still holding out for a sloth spotting moment that would rekindle my childlike fascination with the furry doofuses. Boy, did this trip deliver the goods! Everywhere I looked, there was a sloth dangling from a branch. We saw young sloths and old sloths, sleeping sloths and feeding sloths. We caught an extremely rare scene of a sloth climbing down from a tree with surprising grace and speed. While zip-lining through the canopy, we looked down from one treetop platform to see a sloth happily grazing on the branches below.
And then we visited the Sloth Sanctuary. Founded some 18 years ago after local children brought an injured sloth to a family-run eco lodge, the Sloth Sanctuary now houses dozens of injured and orphaned sloths and is a center of sloth research and education. The center’s goal is to one day rehabilitate as many sloths as possible back into the wild, but they are still trying to figure out how to give human-reared orphans the skills they need to survive on their own. The star of the sanctuary is Buttercup, the sloth who started it all. She spends most of her days lounging in a hanging wicker chair and grinning at her adoring fans. When she reached her three-fingered arm towards her longtime guardian, it felt like seeing ET and Eliot touch fingers in the flesh, right before my eyes.
My slothspectations were been blown away. Perezoso — you’re number one in my book. As for you, Silky Anteater, why you gotta be a stranger?
Top Ten Extreme Sloth Facts!
Poor Toby. He just wants to do right by everyone around him.
In retrospect, it might not have been the best idea to chose a passive protagonist for my first major work of fiction. Jareth and Mizumi definitely know what they want. Moppet in volume 4 knows what she wants. The scenes with those characters were much easier to write because I knew exactly where they had to go. In some ways, Toby is a victim, but how much of that is “bad luck” and how much does he bring upon himself with his passivity? Toby’s chapters were the hardest to write, both because of his flaws and because I invested a lot of myself in him. That moment in life where you go from coasting on autopilot to suddenly realizing that you’re in things over your head is a pretty common experience, and one that’s hit me hard several times in life. Writing Toby hasn’t been easy, but in the end, I’m very happy with where he ends up.
