A few years ago, at the inaugural Long Beach Comic Con, I was introduced to an independent comic book company known as Big Dog Ink. On hand at the event was one of the creators of Big Dog Ink, and writer of two of the series from the company, Tom Hutchison. He pitched me the line on his books and explained why I would be interested in reading his books and I bought the first issues of the books Critter and Penny For Your Soul. Admittedly, when I got home, they were not exactly the first books I wanted to read through as several other books by Top Cow, Marvel and Aspen had my attention from the start.

When I finally did get to the books I had purchased from Big Dog Ink, I was very surprised at how good they were. Looking back now, those two books are perhaps my favorite books now that I purchased at that event and currently have a place on my wall as they were both autographed by Tom at the point of sale. Both Critter and Penny For Your Soul were unique books that hit on some familiar subjects in comic books - Critter about a young heroine making the choice to start her career and Penny for Your Soul was a mature look at the supernatural side - yet each book was unique enough from their contemporaries that they stood out to me. 

Since that time, I have been pleased to see that books from Big Dog Ink have now been featured in Diamond Distributors’ sale book and that they have added several more books to the lineup. Last year at the Long Beach Comic Con, I took a chance and bought their latest release, Ned the Chainsaw Guy, and was taken aback by this violent, yet comical story set in some weird underworld and this chainsaw wielding freak acting as some kind of supernatural bounty hunter. Again, while the story was somewhat familiar to me from other books, the defining spin on the book provided by the people at Big Dog Ink made it memorable on its own.

This year at the Long Beach Comic and Horror Con, as they will now add the horror genre to their focus, I happened upon Tom Hutchison once again. Through the years, we have remained in somewhat constant contact through Facebook and other social media sites, and I had not seen him since his move to Chicago some months ago. So seeing him again was a pleasant surprise; but not as much as picking up the latest book from Big Dog Ink - The Legend of Oz: The Wicked West. Now this was a book that I had known about, primarily because of my wife who absolutely loves anything Wizard of Oz. Partly inspired by the expanding of the Oz universe started in the musical Wicked, The Legend of Oz expands upon Dorothy Gale’s time in Oz and some of the more exciting times in Oz. Not so much as short a tale as one dream would allow, Dorothy and her horse Toto must survive a world that is much more dangerous than originally perceived as she must travel through a wild west version of the mystical land. Again, Big Dog Ink has taken something familiar and put their own spin on the tale to make it interesting.

So I have come to understand what Big Dog Ink is doing over the last three years since I first was made aware of them. Their books are currently taking up several spots on my pull list at my local comic book shop and I wait to see what will come next from these guys. From mini-series that expand on Penny for Your Soul, to the full series of Critter, to now waiting to see what they come up with in The Legend of Oz and how much they will expand upon that story, Big Dog Ink is certainly becoming a player in the independent comic book scene. The unique stories, amazing pool of artist and creators (aside from Tom Hutchison) and the quality of their books and work make Big Dog Ink a company comic book fans should pay attention to. With many of their books for sale online, for order at local shops or in person at cons and expos, I suggest trying out their materials and discovering what it is that makes this company something special. At the very least, check out their official website and give them a look. I promise you, you will be surprised.