I'll discuss Kickstarter on the site sometimes, be it to spotlight neat looking things or complain about Kickstarter campaigns that strike me as lame. Today I'd like to cover three that I thought appear to be worth backing.
The Campaigns
I know what you might be thinking--"David, didn't you just rip Avatar Press a new one for doing a Kickstarter? Isn't this a publisher too?" To your question I respond, yes, I did really criticize Avatar Press (out of love, because they are a great publisher, after all), but I feel Broadsword Comics (the publisher of, "Tarot,") is not in the wrong here. Broadsword is a much smaller company--basically consisting solely of husband and wife team Jim Balent and Holly Golightly--and while a publisher like Avatar undoubtedly is flush with funds to make their next, "Uber," mini-series and seems to be offering little more than variant covers, I can understand if Jim and Holly want to make a special edition of the big 100th issue of, "Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose," and see if fans are interested. Plus, this isn't just some variant covers, this is a big extended book full of extras and other interesting stuff die-hard fans of, "Tarot," are bound to enjoy.
Should someone really enjoy this series I imagine they would eagerly jump on the opportunity to buy a special edition of the 100th issue available exclusively through Kickstarter, and Jim and Holly are doing this to make sure that regular fans can get the normal 100th issue for a reasonable price while us big fans can have an extra-big one. As a person who greatly enjoys this comic I'm excited for this huge anniversary and would say this is a Kickstarter worth checking out. Give it a gander here.
"The Hard Code," is a comic that had a small release of the first issue and is in the process of getting the second issue lettered. Is from writer Ramon Gil with art by none other than Trevor Von Eeden. I've enjoyed Von Eeden's work whenever I've seen his older or newer stuff, and the story-line sounds interesting with its allegory of a world where humans and androids are fighting over rights (considering what's going on all over the U.S. and world currently with various people being denied basic human dignities it is quite topical). I'm always a sucker for a good science-fiction story so this looks right up my alley with its mixture of futurism, current-event metaphors, and stellar artwork.
I'll see many promising Kickstarter campaigns that never, "Deliver the goods," but this one clearly outlines in the video how money shall be spent and Gil has had successful Kickstarter campaigns before, so that inspires confidence as well. The pledge levels are really reasonable too, with print copies of issue #1 and #2 available for just a $10.00 pledge and $3.00 shipping (so $13.00 total, not bad at all)! Check out the campaign and pledge here!
I of course love subscription boxes and Big Ol Box of Stuff--BoBos for short--is one that has been around for a bit over a year. One thing that has bugged me with various sub-boxes is that sometimes they will have one two great items, but then lame filler/fluff stuff. Plus, there is always the concern of a box containing an item that in theory is cool, but could be related to something I have zero interest towards (like the time I got a t-shirt that tied-in with, "Game of Thrones," and people said how great it was but all I could do was shrug). For those reasons what BoBos does struck me as genius. You fill-out a questionnaire with a wide range of your interests and get a box tailored to what you would like--including a variety of comic-related options! This is a stupendous concept and they have been doing pretty well, which leads to the question of why they would need a Kickstarter campaign.
Well, in a very well-produced video that I enjoyed watching, the folk behind BoBos (which is mostly a family-operation that works impressively hard to satisfy their hundreds of subscribers) it is explained clearly and concisely how with the funds from this Kickstarter campaign they will be able to increase their inventory. That way they will be able to make their business run even more smoothly and efficiently, thereby ensuring the continued success of BoBos. That this box has already been around for over a year and is not facing an imminent risk of shutting down as opposed to just needing more funds to function makes me think this Kickstarter should deliver the goods. Give them your support here.
In Closing
There are many upon many Kickstarter campaigns going on at one time, that is obvious. Without a doubt plenty more Kickstarters worth your attention are going on too, but I just wanted to put a spotlight on these as they caught my eye and--most importantly of all--appear as if they will fulfill their promises (always a concern after all the stories of successfully-funded campaigns that never delivered the goods). Kickstarter continues to be a fascinating platform and through its ups and downs I am always fascinated by what the people who utilize it create for us.
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