Nick Simmons, son of Gene Simmons of KISS, was supposed to be this hot new writer/artist that had a lot of folks in a rush to buy his work. But, as it turns out, Simmons just had a lot of folks rushing out to see other people’s work. Now, in the title of this blog, you’ll notice the name Tite Kubo. For those who aren’t familiar with that name, you may be familiar with his most popular work, Bleach. Bleach is a manga that follows the exploits of “Soul Reapers” who hunt down corrupted spirits and send them to the next realm. Incarnate is about… Well… Its about these entities called Revenants, that happen to be almost immortal… Kinda like how a Highlander is immortal. Anyway, this one Revenant, Mot, wants to die an honorable death on the battlefield, but being immortal doesn’t make that easy. It isn’t until some folks figure out a way to kill the Revenants, that the story really begins.

So, the premise of both of those titles are different enough to where you wouldn’t think Incarnate would be a book of plagiarism. And as far as that goes, you’d be right, for the most part. But… When you get a look at the artwork, that’s where it really kicks in. This link right here will take you to a page where the Internet has already done most of the footwork. Once you take a look, there’s really nothing else to discuss. Nick Simmons has hacked himself out of a career that’s barely started. I mean, seriously, who the hell pulls this kind of crap these days? And who the hell steals from Bleach? Bleach is arguably one of the most popular manga series out there right now. But despite the books, anime, movies, video games, trading cards, toys, statues, plushes, key chains, etc… This guy figures that no one is going to notice? Come on. But that’s not as far as it goes… No. Bleach wasn’t enough. It would seem that other properties and artists felt the bite too. Hellsing, another Japanese property, has had an “influence” as well. Not to mention a few deviantart members…

So then, all that’s really left to ask is “Why?” Why would this guy rip the work of others for the sake of his book? Well, honestly, I think its because he’s some punk kid who found himself overwhelmed with the responsibility of delivering something good. As I understand it, Nick Simmons is currently 19 years old. This kid got a lot of doors opened for him through his father’s connections. He got a second chance at telling his story, seeing as back in ‘07, his first attempt was passed on by IDW. Radical Comics took a nice leap of faith for this guy, and I guess the pressure was just too much. But that is what happens when you don’t earn your way into anything. Being a writer/artist isn’t easy. Just being one or the other isn’t easy, so trying to be both without any real experience has got to be killer when you’re at the big show. So… I could see that as a reason for it, but that doesn’t excuse it. Stealing is stealing. He’s dug his own grave, and now he’ll have to lie in it. And sure, there’ll be some sympathy for him, but I would hope that he’d never work in the business again. Homage and Inspiration is one thing… Tracing is another. But… alas, I find myself restrained in my commentary. What I really want to say, just isn’t going to fly here. I know way too many folks struggling to get to where Simmons got to at such a young age, it’s disgusting what he did with his opportunity. The profane things that I wish say would never be published on this site, and they shouldn’t be. But I think that you all understand where I’m coming from with this.

Also… You may have noticed, there aren’t any pics of Incarnate in this blog. That’s just how it is. This whole thing has left me bitter, and as I result, I’ve no desire to show off his work, save for comparisons of what passed off as his own. And in that regard, the link that I posted before is more than sufficient in that regard. So… Yeah, that’s it. Radical Comics is investigating, and as a result, they have halted production on the book and the upcoming trade. That’s real classy of them, unlike myself when I say, “Nick Simmons is a hack.”

-Fleet

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