RICK REMENDER + ISOTOPE COMICS 25TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
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SATURDAY, AUGUST 8, 2026
All-Ages Signing: 3–6 PM
21+ Afterparty: 7 PM
Isotope Comics, San Francisco
Coming back home to my favorite city to celebrate the passing of time, sign books, and launch a permanent Giant Generator pop-up shop inside Isotope, featuring our full library of compendiums, oversized hardcovers, limited-edition giclée prints, old and rare single issues, signed posters, and tons of cool stuff out of my file copy closest you won’t find anywhere else.
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Twenty-five years ago, I was a dirt-poor writer/artist struggling to pay rent for the rotting garage I called home in the Sunset District of San Francisco.
When James Sime, a young whippersnapper in a Willy Wonka zoot suit with hair like the bride of Frankenstein, opened the Isotope comic book store down the street from me, it seemed fated by the rat god of punker nerds.
Pretty soon, I was there a couple of times a week. James and I would spend hours talking about old hardcore, new wave, post-punk, skating, and the strange business of attaching one’s life to the comics business.
Isotope quickly became my home away from the black-mold dungeon I was living in. At a very uncertain time in my life, when there appeared to be little hope I’d feed myself, much less accomplish my dreams, Isotope gave me a home base and a safe harbor. James was always generous with encouragement and advice, not only supporting the books but throwing parties around them.
When you’re dead broke, working yourself to death while receiving very little positive feedback, something like this can encourage you to continue. In my case, it sure did. It was the kind of support that made me feel like I was part of a community, and it offered a glimmer of hope that the dark tunnel had some light down the road.
As James and I were reminiscing a few months ago, it turned out that I was one of the creators featured at Isotope’s first-ever signing event, where I drew Black Heart Billy on a toilet seat, beginning a long-running Isotope tradition that hundreds of artists have contributed to since.
So, returning to San Francisco to celebrate Isotope’s 25th anniversary and 25 years of Giant Generator is a nice homecoming.
If you’re in the region or feel like traveling to my favorite city to come hang out, we’d love to see you. You’ll find me sitting in a corner, reminiscing with ghosts and wondering how the fuck it’s been a quarter of a century. You can toss pebbles at my head.
Nothing bigger than that, though, as my old bones have become quite brittle.
