'Xoc' in NYT

Xoc was noted in a New York Times article on comics with educational value. Be sure to check out the accompanying photo, especially the book the boy is reading. :) 

Cool shark mural

Check out this cool video of middle school students painting a mural to support shark conversation, hosted by PangeaSeed.

A petition to protect Pacific great whites

If you'd like to support efforts to protect Pacific great whites under the Endangered Species Act, Oceana is running an online petition.

White sharks endangered?

Three environmental groups petitioned the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration earlier this week to list the West Coast population of great white sharks under the Endangered Species Act. It's a fascinating piece. Read the Washington Post article.

On a separate note, there's a gritty, punkish band in Washington, D.C., (my home town) called Shark Week debuting their album this week, which happens to be the Discovery Channel's annual Shark Week. (FYI, there's some swearing in the songs.)

Fan art!

Yahoo! Below is some wonderful Xoc fan art I received from brothers Alec (8) and Sam (4) from Minnesota! Thanks, guys! I'm glad you like the book, and that you took the time to draw for me!

'Xoc Pup'

A reminder that you can read Xoc Pup, the 8-page, online "mid-quel" to Xoc at the Big Planet Comics website, which sponsored the strip!

Cool reviews from Meepzine and Ghetto Manga for Xoc: The Journey of a Great White (Oni Press), which hit shelves today. 

I'll be at Big Planet Comics this Saturday, July 28, at the the College Park store from 11 am-1pm and at the Vienna store from 3-5pm signing Xoc with colorist Evan Keeling (check out the limited edition promo poster below, available for $5!). And then, well, maybe we'll hit Spacebar to unwind. Please join us for one or all of these! 

The Shark Trust on 'Xoc'

Here's is what Mark Richardson of the Shark Trust, an international shark advocacy organization based in the UK, wrote about Xoc:

Xoc: The Journey of a Great White moves shark conservation into a whole new genre. As a science-based organisation, the Shark Trust works hard to dispel the hopelessly inaccurate–and damaging–imagery which Great Whites and many other large shark species acquired post-Jaws. In its place the Shark Trust emphasizes the vital importance of these apex predators in healthy marine ecosystems.

And far from the ferocious, indestructible image most people attribute to Great Whites, the species is in fact listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. This scientific assessment reflects a global decline in White Shark populations–the result of Great White’s biological traits (late maturity, few offspring, low natural mortality and longevity) being unable to compete with overfishing.

This paradigm shift is clear in Xoc. The narrative and images, and the science behind them (that is, what little marine biologists actually know about the Great White) comes through loud and clear, bringing the crisis faced by one of our oceans mightiest predators to the fore. As tens of millions of sharks continue to be killed each year, Xoc’s message is a timely one.

Xoc hit shelves this week. You can see a 20-page preview here!

'Xoc' release this week at San Diego Comic-Con!

So, San Diego Comic-Con is coming this week. That means the release of Xoc: The Journey of a Great White (Oni Press)!

I’ll be doing Xoc signings with colorist Evan Keeling on the following dates and times at the Oni Press booth (#1833):

Thursday: 2-2:45

Friday: 1-2:45

Saturday: 1-2:45

I’ll also be on an Oni panel on Friday at noon, room 32AB, with a slew of talented Oni creators to talk about our projects. I'm very excited about that; lotsa good books coming from Oni.

BTW, I’ll not only have the hardcover Xoc books, but these wonderful hand-crafted sculptures (see pic below) by the brilliant Brooke Allen! (Speaking of Brooke, who did the cover to the upcoming District Comics: An Unconventional History of Washington, D.C., during my signings I will also have a limited number of pre-release copies of District Comics. Thanks to Oni for being so generous.)

You'll also be able to nab both these books at the free Trickster2 indie comics event, held just down the street from the San Diego convention center! 

Oh, and please check out my 8-page online comic Xoc Pup, brought to you twice a week courtesy of Big Planet Comics! 

Coming in mid-June....

Something 'Xocing' ("shocking") coming in a couple of weeks, leading up to the release of the "Xoc: The Journey of a Great White" (Oni Press) in July. Stay tuned!

Xoc in 'Comics Beat'

Xoc got mentioned in Comics Beat along with another shark-related book published this year. Is it a trend? That would be a good thing! A few of my friends also have shark-related comics that I will mention a little later in this blog (they are excellent!).

RoboJelly

This is very cool. Researcher at the University of Texas at Dallas and Virginia Tech have made an underwater robot using the mechanics of jellyfish. And it runs on renewable energy, hydrogen and oxygen found in the water.

A few reviews

There are a couple of good reviews out for Xoc, which was also profiled in Diamond's Previews as a featured upcoming book (Diamond order code: MAR12 1143). 

• Westfield Comics blog
• Rations magazine #2

Ask your local comic shop to pre-order the book for you. Another option is through Amazon.com, which also has a pre-order option.

Thanks for your support! More news to come soon!

EU eyes finning

The EU is close to banning shark finning. Let's hope they do it (c'mon, France and Spain!)--and that other countries follow.

Frenzy!

This recent news video of a shark frenzy off the coast of Australia is pretty amazing. Little fish, getting eaten by bigger fish, getting eaten by bigger fish! (And a bait ball in action!)

Shark fin soup

President Obama's visit to a Chinese restaurant serving shark fin soup is drawing some needed national and international attention to the issue of "finning." Here's an article to see why the president's take-out order has stirred the political pot.

The journey begins!

Welcome to the Xoc blog! This page, which is associated with the graphic novel coming from Oni Press in July, will feature articles, art, interviews, etc. related to sharks and the ocean ecology. I hope it'll will be a useful and stimulating resources. Thanks for your interest!

Matt Dembicki