All posts by Jarrett Samson

Hi! I'm Jarrett Evan Samson, currently the events and social media manager at The Beguiling, along with lots of other things that we all just naturally do. Uh, that's all? Hello.

SEP 16: Jay Stephens “DEJECTS” book launch!

Monday, September 16th The Beguiling is delighted to announce a book launch and signing with the one and only JAY STEPHENS!
 
Best known for his animated television series Jetcat, Tutenstein, and The Secret Saturdays, Jay Stephens has spent the last quarter-century telling stories-with-pictures in his own comic books (SIN, The Land of Nod, Atomic City Tales, Jetcat Clubhouse), alternative weekly strips (Oddville!), monthly kids magazines (Chick & Dee, Arrowhead), daily newspaper comics (Oh, Brother!), and picture books (Monsters!, Heroes!, Robots!, Freaky Fun Activities).
 
Over the years, many of those comics have been collected in several volumes: The Land of Nod Treasury, The Land of Nod Rockabye Book, Go Power!, Oddville, Jetcat Clubhouse… but what of those characters and pages and strips that didn’t fit in any collection? What became of the Dejects?
 
Lovingly coloured for this collection, Dejects is the resource for those odds and ends, and bits and bobs, from 1991–2019. That’s 136 pages, spanning 28 years worth of Jay’s unique and diverse comics, available here for the first time since their original appearances in print, and some for the very first time anywhere!
 
See you in the store at 7PM September 16th! We can’t wait!
“Jay Stephens’ comics have knocked my socks off from day one! He can draw anything with power and energy, be it simple, complex, goofy, or flat-out disturbing… as if his pencil and brush have been imbued with a twisted magic spell of some kind. The kind of magic that gave us Harvey Kurtzman, Tex Avery, and (name your favorite twisted comic strip). Dejects is a wonderful collection of Jay’s most bizarre stuff! A priceless treasure for anyone that digs great cartooning straight from the id!” Michael Allred, MadmanSilver SurferiZombie

OCT 17: KOYAMA PRESS BOOK LAUNCH!

THIS IS IT FOLKS, the big one! The showstopper! The, uh, very nice time!

On Thursday, October 17th, The Beguiling welcomes a plethora of guests to the store for a huge KOYAMA PRESS book launch event!

FEATURING:
“Bradley of Him” by CONNOR WILLUMSEN
“Sports is Hell” by BEN PASSMORE
“The Death of The Master” by PATRICK KYLE
“Stunt” by MICHAEL DEFORGE
plus a chance to get advance copies of GG’s “Constantly” and “Rat Time” by Keiler Roberts!

Everything’s going to kick off at 7PM and just keep going– it’s gonna be a heck of a time with so many of our favourite creators and our favourite publisher celebrating the final wave of books from Koyama Press in-store!
We’ll see you there!!

poster by MICHAEL DEFORGE!

SEP 19: SYLVIA NICKERSON “CREATION” BOOK LAUNCH & GALLERY SHOW!

On Thursday, September 19th we are thrilled to be welcoming creator SYLVIA NICKERSON to The Beguiling to help celebrate the release of her new graphic novel CREATION from DRAWN & QUARTERLY!

Sylvia will talk about her work in conversation with ASMAA MALIK, graduate program director at Ryerson school of journalism and former managing editor of the Montreal Gazette! There’ll also be a chance to ask questions and get your book signed afterwards!

As if that wasn’t enough, Sylvia will also have a display of her original work that month in our gallery space to coincide with this event!

Everything kicks off at 7PM on Thursday, September 19th– this one means a lot to us as Sylvia has been a creator whose work we have been a fan of since for a long time, so it feels really special to be able to celebrate the release of her book from D&Q!

Thanks to Sylvia, Asmaa and Drawn & Quarterly, and thanks to YOU too! We’ll see you there!

ABOUT CREATION:

NEW LIFE AND OPPORTUNITIES ARISE FROM THE WRECKAGE OF A NORTH AMERICAN CITY URBAN RENEWAL AT WHAT COST?

A new mother takes us on a tour of Hamilton, a Rust Belt city born of the Industrial Revolution and dying a slow death due to globalization. This mother represents the city’s next wave of inhabitants—the artists and young parents who swarm a run-down area for its affordability, inevitably reshaping the neighborhoods they take over. Creation looks at gentrification from the inside out—an artist mother making a home and neighborhood for her family, struggling to find her place amid the existing and emerging communities.

While pushing her child’s stroller around Hamilton, Nickerson shows us the warehouse filled with open barrels of toxic sludge, the parking lot where the city’s homeless population sleeps, and the refurbished Victorian house (complete with elegant chandeliers) that is now a state-of-the-art yoga studio. Creation presents the city as a living thing—a place where many small lives intersect and where death, motherhood, pollution, poverty, and violence are all interconnected.

Drawn in evocative watercolor, Creation is unafraid to leave questions open-ended as Nickerson wanders the city and ponders just where the personal and political intersect, and where they ought to intersect.

PRAISE FOR CREATION:

Way back in the Stone Age, when I first began making comic books for adults, it was with hopes that books like this would follow. Sylvia Nickerson’s Creation is filled with the deep, complicated, messy stuff of real life—hard, sad, funny, insightful, and very rich in empathy. Seth, author of Clyde Fans

Creation is an ambitious work that thoughtfully explores themes of gentrification and one’s complicity therein and also talks frankly about the difficulty of making art after having children, all in Sylvia Nickerson’s unique and vibrant comic art style. Joe Ollmann, The Abominable Mr. Seabrook

Nickerson allows the profoundly personal to be completely universal in her stark, soft drawings and faceless figures. This is a deeply human, generous book. Eleanor Davis, The Hard Tomorrow

AUG 18: SCOTT PILGRIM’S 15TH ANNIVERSARY FILM SCREENING, WITH CREATOR BRYAN LEE O’MALLEY!

The Scott Pilgrim 15th Anniversary Film Screening!

Come one, come all, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the release of Scott Pilgrim Volume 1, with this special film screening of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World at the Royal Cinema on August 18th at 6PM!

Series creator Bryan Lee O’Malley will be on hand to introduce the film, and you better believe there’ll be prizes too!!

MORE TO COME too so watch and wait for the next exciting plans for this day!!!

AUG 11: JORDAN REGINALD AELICK “DON’T FRET” GALLERY OPENING!

Don’t Fret: You’re Only Dreaming

Jordan Reginald Aelick

“While we sleep we dream. What a strange realm of existence it is. The clarity of these times can rival our daily lives, others lost in a confused fog, forever forgotten. Exploring the world of dreams and reality, Fret Aujir continues his unwanted journey throughout the land of the Feurlin’s where the greedy Reginald Oilslick continues his corporate reign. Every chapter alternates between being a dream inside of Fret’s head followed by his ongoing daily life, starting with a dream chapter. Over the course of two and a half years of daily panel comic practice the paintings in this series were made to be used as the cover image for each chapter’s printed zine, one panel per page. Between 30 and 90 copies of each chapter were printed. Upon completion of chapters 1-4 and 5-8 they were compiled in a larger zine, four panels per page. All twelve chapter’s were then collected and assembled into a hardbound book, hand made (except for printing which was done by a Xerox machine at Net Plaza) in an edition of 50.”

The Beguiling will be displaying Jordan’s art in our gallery for the month of August, with an opening event on Sunday, August 11th starting at 6PM!

 

AUG 5: HAPPINESS COMIX #5 LAUNCH W SCREENING OF MATTHEW THURBER’S “FLEEGIX”!

Whoah, yes!! This one has been germinating for a long while now and we’re so excited to finally tell you about it!

On Monday, August 5th at 7PM, The Beguiling welcomes editor LEAH WISHNIA and contributor MATTHEW THURBER to the store to celebrate the long-awaited release of HAPPINESS COMIX #5! After a 5-year hiatus, the legendary anthology series returns with an incredible roster of artists and we’re so excited to mark the occasion! Leah will be giving a performance incorporating readings and live music, and there will be readings from some other special guests! (To be announced soon, so check back!)

As if that wasn’t enough, to close out the evening Matthew Thurber will be screening his feature film FLEEGIX in 16mm!

This is going to be one for the ages, so come on out and cement a Fond Memory for future times!

More about HAPPINESS COMIX: 

http://happinesscomix.net/

More about FLEEGIX:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1209343473/fleegix

 

JULY 26: THE BEGUILING IS CLOSING EARLY!

Fridays! We’re usually open late for all your weekend comic-browsing needs! Well, on Friday, July 26th we gotta close up a little early!
We’ll be amending our regular store hours on the 26th, from 11am till 7pm, and then closing up for a private function that evening. We’ll be open regular hours every other day, and back to our normal 11-9 opening hours the next week!

AUG 1: GRIMOIRE NOIR LAUNCH WITH ARTIST YANA BOGATCH!

On Thursday, August 1st, The Beguiling welcomes local illustrator Yana Bogatch to the store in celebration of the release of Grimoire Noir, published by First Second!  Yana will be in attendance to speak about the book, her path to publication, answer questions and sign copies of this “brooding gothic fare brimming with style” (Kirkus Reviews)!

It’ll all kick off at 7PM in-store (319 College St)! We can’t wait to see you there!

About the author:
Yana Bogatch is a freelance illustrator/character designer/comic artist currently residing in Toronto, Canada. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Traditional Animation, and a background in music. She is committed to creating an immersive experience with her illustrations / comics, and her ultimate desire is to let the viewer step through the veil and feel like they are there with the characters.

JULY 27: COMIC SHOP LADIES NIGHT AT THE BEGUILING!

Come join us for some summer fun at The Beguiling! Bring your friends for a warm-but-chill evening of comics, coloring, door prizes, snacks, drinks, and a room full of your comics-loving peers.

Time: Saturday, July 27, 2019, 7pm – 10pm
Location: The Beguiling Books & Art
319 College St., Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5T1S2
(On College Between Spadina & Augusta)
Cost: FREE!

Comic Shop Ladies Night is back with another summer event! This is a ladies only event* where you can embrace your geeky side, discover new comics, share your opinions on movies, TV shows and video games, and cozy in from the cold with some comics! So put on your favorite Geek Tie attire (whether it’s a floofy dress or your favorite jeans) and come spend the evening with other nerdy ladies in a casual environment, surrounded by comics and merch.

For our July event, we will be returning to The Beguiling and every hour we’ll also be giving away amazing door prizes, but you have to be there to win, so be there is what we’re saying! We’ve got comics, games, a nerdy photo booth, and of course our popular table for the best colouring book action in town, so bring your pencils and imagination.

We’re trying something a little different with our Muskoka beer sponsorship this time — instead of an in-store tasting, we’ll be doing giveaways!

Don’t forget to invite your friends and RSVP to get yourself on the guest list and to get your name entered for the door prizes.

*This event is inclusive to all women, including those that identify as cisgender, transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary. Thank you to our wonderful community for supporting our intentions to build this event as a safe(r) space! We couldn’t do it without you. ♥

Accessibility: This location is accessible, but we regret that the washrooms are not.