NEWS: A new project, Ronin Digital Express in print, and more on the way
It's 2023, and I have some stuff coming hot and fast out of the oven.
Hey, fellas!
This post is a part II, a direct sequel even, to my previous post reflecting on 2022 and everything I managed to accomplish (if you haven’t read that, you can do so here).
Big reminder folks that if you like this post, hit the ❤️ up there to let me know, or leave me a 💬 down below, I’d love to hear from you.
In that post, I described 2022 as my “freshman year” in comics. That means one thing for 2023 —
Orientation is over. And for sophomore year, I’m lining up an ambitious schedule.
Here are the main points:
There’s going to be more Ronin Digital Express this year, IN PRINT.
A brand new FREE comic right here on Substack called Fistful of Yen.
Some changes to the newsletter, and a new business venture with Ladyhawkey.
Let’s carve up that turkey!
The next chapter of Ronin Digital Express
The big news is that there’s more Ronin Digital Express coming in 2023. What’s more, you’ll be able to hold a brand-spankin’ new chapter in your own two mitts.
Can’t say too much at this point, but here’s what I can say: I was invited to participate in a pretty well-known ongoing indie anthology by an editor who was impressed with the Legendary Ronin Warui Hito chapter of the comic.
That editor asked to print Warui Hito in the next volume of the anthology. But I said, if you’re offering me 20 pages, let me do something completely new and unique. Something people won’t be able to get anywhere else.
And so, I wrote and drew a new 20-page one-shot called “Tower of Death” that will be appearing in the anthology. It is in continuity with the webcomic, taking place after the events of the “Season Zero” finale Huang Jui.
The anthology should be available in the spring. I’ll let you know when I know more.
I’ll show some previews when I can, but until then, here’s a promotional piece to give you a sneak peek:
This is probably the only Ronin Digital Express you’ll get in 2023, but don’t cancel that subscription just yet —
I’m in the middle of putting together plans for the long-term future of Ronin Digital Express as we speak.
I’ve mentioned it before, but what currently exists here on Substack is a sort of “prototype” of a larger story I want to tell.
Given the success and positive reception of Ronin Digital Express, I’m convinced that it’s a story I need to tell.
BUT, that means I need to put a bit more work in behind the scenes. More world building, story arc planning, character designs, etc.
I’m going to spend most of 2023 doing that.
Afterwards, my loose plans are as follows:
Kickstart a Ronin Digital Express OGN (100ish pages) in late 2023 or early 2024, depending on when I finish it.
Resume publishing the new, rebooted Ronin Digital Express on Substack (right where you’re already subscribed), roughly 50 pages per year (more over time, if I can manage to get some help).
So 2024 is going to be the huge year for that project. Until then, “Tower of Death” and the occasional sneak peek of things to come will hopefully be enough to tide you over.
A new project: Fistful of Yen
Just because I’ll be busy working on building the world of Ronin Digital Express doesn’t mean I’ll be leaving you empty-handed in the coming year.
I’ve been working on a different comic here and there called Fistful of Yen. You’ll finally get to read it this summer.
First, some backstory. Buckle in.
As I’ve noted countless times, Ronin Digital Express is heavily inspired by spaghetti westerns and old Kurosawa samurai films. The Green-Eyed Ronin is directly influenced by the “man with no name” characters played by the likes of Toshiro Mifune and Clint Eastwood.
It’s pretty well known to fans of genre film that the famous Eastwood Dollars Trilogy character is a complete rip-off of the title character from Yojimbo.
This isn’t that unusual. There’s actually quite a lot of cross-pollination within and between the western and samurai film genres. Both explore similar themes and use similar archetypes, and unsubtle homages / straight-up remakes (licensed and not-so-licensed) are common.
One of the best and only examples of the two genres crossing over in that era is the 1970 film Red Sun, which features Charles Bronson teaming up with a samurai played by Toshiro Mifune.
This movie is very okay. It’s a solid story with solid performances, but aside from the novelty of the cowboy/samurai team-up (and the scenery-chewing villain played by French megastar Alain Delon), it probably wouldn’t be all that notable.
It’s definitely not widely known or revered like Once Upon a Time in the West, Seven Samurai, or other standouts of each genre. It’s not the kind of film casual fans are likely to happen upon. You have to go digging for it.
Now, it’s rumored that Eastwood was intended for the lead role instead of Bronson, but turned it down. This would have been a not-so-subtle move to put the Man with No Name played by Eastwood and the Ronin with No Name played by Mifune together on the same screen. Even though they’re playing completely different characters, this kind of nod and novelty would not have gone unnoticed; it’s something genre films did all the time with iconic characters in that era.
“Thanks for the Ted Talk. What does this have to do with your new comic?”
The new comic, Fistful of Yen, imagines that the Dollars Trilogy isn’t just derivative of Yojimbo, but that both franchises occur in the same continuity.
Yojimbo takes place at the end of the Edo era, in about 1860. A Fistful of Dollars takes place sometime after, between 1865 and 1875 or so.
It struck me, it’s really too bad that they couldn’t figure out a way to do a team-up movie with Clint Eastwood’s Man with No Name, and Toshiro Mifune’s Ronin with No Name, given everything I explained about these genres above.
It’s too late for that now, of course. Toshiro Mifune is long dead, and Clint Eastwood is 600 years old.
So, I decided to make that concept into a comic.
Why?
Obviously, I can’t sell it. I don’t have the rights to the characters or anything, and I doubt any publisher does (Dynamite had rights to the Eastwood character once upon a time, but the Mifune character too? Doubtful).
I’m making it simply because I can. And because I want it to exist.
The benefit to you is that if you’re a fan of these films and are sold on the concept, you get a comic that’s going to tickle you in all the right places, completely for free.
Conversely, if you don’t know a lot about these films, but you like my work, you’ll get to see the genres that inspired Ronin Digital Express through my eyes, and hopefully open up a whole new lane of genre filmmaking for you.
I’m actually a little envious of you; you’ll get to see Yojimbo and A Fistful of Dollars for the first time. Boy, I wish I could get that back again.
Anyway.
Fistful of Yen will be published in three parts (with bonus chapters) sometime in the summer of 2023. If you want to get a head start, subscribe below:
Changes to rent*space / new ventures
Lastly, I’m making a few minor changes to rent*space.
I’m proud of the work I did to grow this publication last year, and it did indeed grow.
Looking back, I definitely carved out a space for myself in the community here, with unique art and exclusive short comics, as well as essays on whatever was approaching a roiling boil over on Twitter.
The problem is, I never really found that good balance between the newsletter and comic projects. There were a lot of times publishing here felt genuine and organic, but others when I felt I needed to push something out to keep the pot simmering.
A), I don’t think that’s a good motivation for creating content, and, B), I want to be a comic creator, not a guy with a newsletter, so if the newsletter is getting in the way of the comics, I’m a little upside down, ain’t I.
I want to be known for my work. Not nude pinups of Savage Land Rogue or essays about the nuances of AI art.
If you like that kinda stuff, don’t worry. I’ll still be doing it. I’m just going to focus on it a little bit less.
Rent*space is going to shift to a secondary focus. That might mean you go stretches of time without hearing from me. But all that means is that I’m working on something cool. I’ll show you little sneak peeks whenever I can.
If you’re a paid subscriber, first off, I’m grateful for all of your support in the past year (especially with how gas prices have been, shee-it). I hope you’ll continue to support me and that I can grow the paid subscriber base even more so that I can afford to do more stuff.
There will still be posts exclusive to paid subscribers. But, not as frequently as last year. If you choose to continue financially supporting rent*space, I’m asking you to treat it more like a Patreon — you support it because you like my work.
In return, if I have something to give away, or a sneak peek, or an NSFW post, you’ll be first in line to check it out.
Another thing I’ll be working on — Ladyhawkey and I are in the early stages of potentially launching a print business of some kind.
It’ll dovetail somewhat with what we’re doing here (meaning, some prints of stuff you’ve seen could be available for purchase, and commissions will open here and there) but it will also be distinct in its own way.
Ladyhawkey will lead art direction and we’ll make everything from shirts to stickers to magnets to mugs.
We’re still in very early stages, doing the boring stuff of business development, but we’re pretty committed to the idea.
Nothing more to say on this front just yet, except that I’m always looking for ways to monetize what I’m doing here, not just for income purposes, but also to help fund more comics development. If I could quit one of my freelance gigs, or hire a flatter, that would mean I could not only take more time to ensure quality work, but I could also do more stuff, faster.
That is the goal for 2023 and beyond. Quality stuff. More. Faster.
I hope you’ll stick around for it. Becoming a consistent, independent artist is a grind, and it takes time. In the next couple of years, I’m really going to focus on getting the rock to the top of the hill.
I deeply appreciate every one of you who stuck with me thus far, and continue to walk with me.
With that, happy new year, and as always, be good.