2016: Oozing Wound Fascination

Hello hello. I've been working continually on a lot of quite in depth projects over the last couple of years, so it's with some excitement that hopefully 2016 is the year when some of these will see the light of day. I'm thinking of also taking a bit of an ill-advised step into the world of lo-fi illustration zines, though feel free to talk me out of this. In the meantime, here's some collected shonky photos of some dubious work that's seeped out on Twitter over the last few months. Onwards and upwards!

 

Cavernous and crepuscular opinions on The Apprentice. Serious kvlt shit. As it is, this benighted young man called it early and backed the winner.

An official Khorne Berzerker Product review for yet another excellent Williams Brothers beer. For completion's sake I should probably do the other Chaos Gods, but I don't know if I want to draw a bunch of Slaaneshi Penis Marines.

You can simultaneously indulge your interest in making profoundly stupid art about ridiculous things while shamelessly baiting for RTs and Faves on Twitter by combining a current topical issue with a hugely successful and beloved television program. But you won't necessarily get those Faves, and then you'll just feel cheap.

I thought I'd have a go at The Mooks' Draw Stormtroopers project. There's an abundance of incredible stuff here.

 

Sheldon. Ghnuzunga.

Sometimes you just lose your fucking mind and hold up a Greggs.

 

A reflective self-portrait. I watched Attack On Titan and it led to some profound thoughts.

 

Positive vibe emanation at MCM Birmingham.

He's not wrong though.

 

Sweet mood ring, Bro.

It was National Burger Day back in August. About a week later it was National Cheeseburger Day. No one's flying the plane.

 

Getting in on that "Draw Andy Oliver of Broken Frontier" action. Sorely tempted to write some of those ludicrous comics whirling about him.

The Acrid Stink of Burning Trash

Hello! I've been striving away on some in-depth and lengthy projects for some time now, so I've been doing a wee bit of dumb doodling on the side when on the train and so on. Here's some shonky photographs of the decidedly mixed results...

Jar Jar Binks ♥s Deathspell Omega. Of course he does.



For someone who's pretty sick of the near-saturation of culture by Star Wars and mash-ups thereof, it's pretty hypocritical to combine the Mos Eisley Cantina Band with berobed drone outfit SunnO))). But here we are. 

Here's KIZZ. I pretty much hate KISS. I imagine if I was born ten years earlier I would have absolutely loved them, but to me they seem corny as shit. Maybe I'm a rigidly self-conscious person who's uncomfortable with their unabashed celebration of life and self. Who knows? We could ask Paul Stanley I guess. 

♪ ...Thank you for being a friend. ♫

Even the least talented of us can get on the Mad Max: Fury Road Fan-Art Armoured Bandwagon. And why not, it was a glorious thrash metal religious experience. This is an accurate recollection of the movie's events and characters.

Life philosophy. 

You can simultaneously indulge your interest in making tattoo-like crest-designs about ridiculous things while shamelessly baiting for RTs and Faves on Twitter by engaging with a current topical issue. But you won't necessarily get those Faves, and then you'll just feel cheap. 

 For your Ferengi Devo needs. Yeah, zap those Federation fuckers!

Product Review for the Gregg's BBQ Pulled Pork Lattice. I'm a big fan of variations on existing foods. They put Ritz Crackers in Cadbury's chocolate, I need to know, and then share my opinions with anyone who'll listen. Maybe Greggs would have RT'd this if I'd awarded them four Blight Grenades, but they just weren't all that good.

It's a bit of a challenge to not be over-expectant of myself and grow comfortable with my limited skills, and essentially just draw some dumb shit and not be too precious about if it looks "good enough". But it provides a great brain-valve and allows me to just get some stupid ideas out there, so I suppose we're all in for a bit more of this.

The Teeth That Never Bit...

Keeping in line with Glaswegian Heraldry, "Here's the teeth that never bit..."

Way back in 2011 I was asked to provide an header image for Creative Spotlights, to be used on the site and email newsletters and the like. Here's what me and the mighty Iain Laurie cooked up for it...

For whatever internal reasons it won't be used, so here's the toothy bastard for you to have a look at anyway. Click the image to embiggen for the full dental examination!

Thanks to Henry Gomez for the invitation. Henry interviewed me on my comics work back in 2011, which you can read here. Marvel at my naïveté or how I've subsequently failed to take my own advice!

Extraordinarily Niche Comics-Metal Gags 4Life

Yeah, why the fuck not...?

Haunted Bowels Phantom Newsround

Some news and reviews tumbling forth from the Haunted Bowels...

Ahem-hem. I'm pleased to say Haunted Bowels has received more positive reviews...

First up is on High-Low Comics, where Rob Clough has plenty of good things to say including "Accustomed as I am to seeing cerebral if visceral horror stories from Collins, it was amusing to see him riff on pop culture and lay down some deadly puns".

It's all about the Round-Ups, as Henry Northmore grabs the Scottish Small Press by the scruff of its filthy neck in Scotland's premier events and entertainment magazine The List, and describes Haunted Bowels as "... satisfyingly weird as long as you like pitch-black sci-fi/fantasy-themed humour." And surely you do!

Phillip Buchan review Haunted Bowels in the mighty Starburst Magazine, nestling me between reviews of Scott Snyder and Craig Thompson like a turd betwixt two tiaras. Among Phillip's comments are "That dichotomy between wry observational humour and outright bad taste lies at the heart of Collins’ best work..."

And "...Collins’ love of horror elevates his comics to the extent that I suspect we’re only getting a glimpse of what he’s be capable of on a more sustained project".

 Startburst #380 - available in all good newsagents and Aggro-Domes now!

Phillip also sets me against the "wholesome, Guardian-friendly fodder being created by so many independent artists around the UK" and likens Haunted Bowels to "the grotesqueries of Frank Quitely or the confrontational stylings of Mark Millar" which makes me sound far more bad-ass than actually I am.

And as an aside Rob Clough is back reviewing New British Comics in The Comics Journal as part of a Survey of International Small Press, giving a nod to me and Iain Laurie's strip "The Quiet Burden".

So thanks to all the above for the very kind review! You can head over to my Big Cartel store, but you won't find any copies of Haunted Bowels to buy I'm afraid. Either I sold them to you, or I gave you one because I think you're cool and I like your work. But I'll print more soon, so check back sometime!