Bayou; Jeremy Love, writer and artist
“South of the Mason-Dixon Line, lies a strange land of gods and monsters. Born from centuries of slavery, civil war, innocent bloodshed, hate and strife lurks a world parallel to our own. LEE WAGSTAFF is the daughter of a poor, sharecropper in a depression-era, Mississippi Delta town, called Charon. She’s an introspective, brave child and hard labor in the fields has made her sturdy and strong. One day, Lee and her father help the sheriff retrieve the body of a boy who’d been lynched and thrown into the river. Lee dives into the depths to tie a rope around the boy. While under water, she catches a glimpse of a strange world. Ever since that day, Lee hears voices in the trees and rivers. When Lee’s playmate, Lily, is snatched by BOG, an evil inhabitant of that place she saw, Lee’s father is accused of kidnapping. The worst thing a black man could do in the 30’s was harm a white child. Lee must pursue Bog into his world in order to save her friend before her father is lynched. Lee enlists the help of a benevolent, blues-singing, swamp monster called BAYOU and together they trek across a Southern Neverland in search of Lee’s friend. Along the way, they meet several colorful characters, like BR’ER RABBIT. Lee soon realizes that Bog has some sort of hold on all the inhabitants in this world and feeds off of hatred and strife in our world. As the racial tensions grow, Bog grows more powerful, so not only are Lee’s friends and father in peril, but all of Charon.” – from the Zuda Comics website
Cafe con Leche; Charlos Gary, writer and artist
“Gary launched his newly syndicated comic strip, called Cafe Con Leche, in April 2007. Cafe Con Leche is about an interracial couple getting to know each other’s cultural background.” – from Wikipedia
Fungus Grotto; Shatia Hamilton, writer and artist
“Vielle is like any normal 17 year old girl with dreams, goals, and aspirations. On the eve of leaving home to step into her future she finds she’s not quite ready to go. Torn between ‘out there’ and ‘comfort’ Vielle takes a moment to daydream… Just dream… And she thought going out into the real world would be hard.” – from the website
“Jefferson Jacks” from Crankshaft; Tom Batiuk & Tony Isabella, writers, Chuck Ayers, artist
A bit of explanation is needed for this one. Crankshaft is not normally a black-themed comic strip, but for about a month last year, veteran comics writer Tony Isabella was the guest writer for a story arc involving the tale of a Negro League baseball player. You can read the arc here, beginning with the September 15, 2008 entry.
The K Chronicles; Keith Knight, writer and artist
“The K Chronicles is a weekly, semi-autobiographical comic strip based on the life of cartoonist /rapper/ne?er-do-well Keith Knight. Fresh, sharp, topical, and edgy, the strip offers a strange and hilariously twisted view of the world through the eyes and pen of a (not so) young, urban, African-American male. The K Chronicles threaten to bring the funny back to the funny pages.” – from the website
