456. The Apocalypse with Peter Kuper, NYC No Kings March, & My New York Comic Con Recap

Plus! Sam Harris at the Beacon, Nishant Jain at the Book Club Bar, Sketching Kestrels & Morris is finally tired of my crap

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In this week’s edition:
• My New York Comic Con Recap
• A Sneaky Book Launch
• Sketchbook Highlights
• More dog sketches from Comic Con
• NYC Neighbourhood Wildlife Sketched
• Sam Harris Talk at the Beacon
• Upcoming NYC Activism Marches
• My Interview with Peter Kuper
• Last week’s cartoonist chat with Tom Tomor
• A re-release of my chat with Asher Perlman
• Society’s shift from beauty to utilitarian ugliness
and MORRIS!

Hey again, friend.

Welcome to Issue #456 of New York Cartoons. This week’s edition is coming a little later than usual on account of the fact that I finished four straight days at New York Comic Con, stationed at the National Cartoonists Society booth- the same organisation I once had the privilege (and mild chaos) of presiding over for four years- drawing people’s dogs straight into copies of my new book.

It was a blur of ink, caffeine, and pure dog joy, interrupted only once when I looked up mid-sketch to see an actual giant walk by. Totally normal for Comic Con. Between the cosplay, the crowd, and the sheer volume of Pomeranians, I somehow managed to keep my lines steady. Check The Sketchbook below to see some of the highlights (and a few canine disasters I’m pretending were “stylistic choices”).

This year was my 14th Comic-Con. I missed last year’s NY and this year’s San Diego, but I do like seeing all my cartooning pals in one place for the 4-5 days of utter madness. The cosplayers were even more professional than usual this year. My friends Deanna and Billy always have a creative outfit. This year it was a Home Alone reference:

It’s good, but nothing beats their costume last year, recreating that..er… iconic.. scene in Ace Ventura 2.

Sneaky Book Launch
Congrats to my friend Nishant Jain on his sold-out book launch in New York this week. It was great to spend time in person talking shop and discussing the state of the world.

The book is excellent— grab your copy here!

Lots more to share below. If you get to the end of this post, and it nudged your brain in a good way—made you think, laugh, or even gave you a halfway decent idea—maybe buy me a coffee. It’s the easiest way to say thanks, and frankly, I can always use more caffeine to keep this circus running.

As always, be sure to leave a comment, say hi, and ask a question. I love hearing from you every week.

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The Sketchbook I’m sharing with you this week is a selection of the sketches I did of people’s dogs as gifts this past week. If you have a friend with a dog, send me a photo and I’ll draw them into the book for you.

1. Nora In New York has a kestral that’s been visiting her each morning.

   

   I couldn’t help but scribble her. I don’t know if she has a name, but if she’s a New Yorker, she’s probably going by some kind of lightly offensive nickname to do with the colour of her feathers. Here’s my sketch:
   

2. I went to see Sam Harris at the sold-out Beacon Theatre Wednesday night, talking about the fracturing of the information landscape, the dire nature of our threadbare democracy, and the dangers of silencing dissident voices in an open society.

   

   I know every generation thinks they’re in the most interesting and precarious of times, but we’re on the precipice of a very unique calamity borne of algorithmic divisions, A.I. deepfakes, and literal authoritarianism.
   (I try not to use the word ‘literally’ or ‘literal’ in conversation these days because people use it incorrectly, but in this case, I’m sincerely making the case that the government are enacting actual authoritarian moves that will ensure their ability to hold on to power indefinitely. It’s just a bit concerning.)

   

   I went to café Lux to gather my thoughts and go over my notes after the firehose of thoughts subsided. I’m writing up my insights from the talk for next week. I got to meet Sam after the show, which was pretty great. I’ve been working on his app for a while.
   

3. Speaking of which, there are two New York events that might interest you this coming month— The first is the “No Kings March” this weekend in NY and NJ— it’s our moment to say loud and clear: we don’t bow to thrones, we demand accountability, democracy, justice. People are meeting at Bryant Park at 2 PM on Saturday, then marching down 5th to Madison Square. For my friends in NJ, you’ve got marches in Jersey City, Newark, Weehawken — show up where you are.

   

   Stay peaceful, watch out for each other, document stuff, and make it clear: this isn’t about one person — it’s about our rights and our future. No mad kings. No crowns. Democracy for all.

   The second is on the 21st/22nd October: Artists, writers, filmmakers, and citizens across the country are mounting Fall of Freedom, a coordinated wave of protest and creative action against censorship, authoritarian drift, and the suppression of dissent—as detailed in The Guardian. Join in: show your work, amplify voices that are threatened, and make it unmistakably clear that we won’t be silenced.
   
   Related Reading:
   

Earlier today, I spoke with Peter Kuper about his upcoming book, “Wish We Weren’t Here: Postcards From The Apocalypse” We covered everything from developing style, political cartooning and using imagery to share a complex message, and his long and prolific career publishing work in everything from MAD Magazine (Spy VS Spy) to WW3 Illustrated and Charlie Hebdo— upgrade to paid to watch the full replay.

You can also catch my replay of Tom Toro and my chat from last week about his new collection of cartoons here:

Additionally, @Asher Perlman just republished my chat with him from earlier this year when his book came out. I had a lot of fun on this one:

My Interview with Jason Chatfield

If you’re new here, or you haven’t had a moment to wander back through the archives of profound genius I’ve shared up to this point, take a peek at the following scribblings:

Lastly, I really enjoyed this video about how the world went from caring about the ornate and beautiful, to the utilitarian and boring, and basically… ugly:

The yawning beast. Photo by Uncle Paulie.