must be read in that baritone movie trailer voice-over voice

THIS SUMMER...
... SEE TRESE
...LIKE YOU'VE NEVER SEEN HER BEFORE


... AT THE U.P. BAHAY NG ALUMNI


THE FLOOR PLAN : FIND US AT THE VISPRINT AND ALAMAT BOOTH


THE MAP: JUST IN CASE YOU STILL DON'T KNOW HOW TO GET THERE


KOMIKON SUMMER FIESTA 2009
UP Bahay ng Alumni, UP Diliman
May 16, 2009, 10am-8pm, Saturday
Entrance Fee: Php 50.00
http://komikon.blogspot.com/

The Thing that Lurked in Motel 26

Art by Bow Guerrero

See more Trese artwork at:
http://www.exhibit13.blogspot.com/

TRESE reviewed in COMICMIX

Thanks to Charles Tan, comic book reviewer and editor Andrew Wheeler got copies of Trese, Elmer, and Martial Law Babies and posted a review at: http://www.comicmix.com/news/2009/04/23/review-three-dispatches-from-the-philippines/

I think this was the first time TRESE got reviewed by a foreigner and it was interesting to see that the Filipino elements in the story didn't get in the way of the telling the tale. Here's the review:

Trese is an altogether more conventional series: it’s a contemporary dark fantasy with a nourish affect, both in art and story, about a young woman in Manila – Alexandra Trese – who’s called in by the police on supernatural cases. The plots are pretty standard for the genre, though Tan does tell them well, with a knack for tough dialogue and important confrontations.

But the art is gorgeously inky, with a sometimes scratchy intimacy and flow. And Alexandra Trese has a whole new world of supernatural entities to work with – vampires and werewolves and faeries and wendigos have been picked over for generations, but kambal and aswang, tikbalang and tiyanak, those are another story. Tan has an entirely different mythology to work with – one he and his original audience knows well, and which he explains just enough so that non-Filipinos can figure them out. But they’re still new and exciting, the way supernatural beings should be – they may have rules and restraints but we don’t know what those are.

So Alexandra Trese’s exploits are more exciting than even those of another tough female investigator with a mysterious past would be, even more intriguing than another story illustrated by Ka-Jo Baldismo would be. And these two volumes are already very good urban fantasy to begin with.

I won’t try to describe all of the stories here, but you know the general type – mysteries about the supernatural, with a heroine we slowly learn more about, a woman with a direct connection to these creatures herself…whatever the exact nature of that connection is. Tan tells those stories well, and Baldismo shows us that world, in black-and-white frames that look like a world illuminated by lightning.

a new story from The Diabolical

READ THE COMPLETE STORY AT:
http://diabolical13.blogspot.com/2009/04/coffee-black.html

TRESE in MANUAL

Book review: TRESE
Manual, December/January 2009 issue
RJ LEDESMA
http://rjledesma.net/

I hate Budjette Tan. Because he is living out my dream. No, no, not my dream of becoming a mutant porn star superhero millionaire. It's my other dream: To be a comic book writer. And, despite the fact that he has to struggle with a day job, Budjette still writes comic books.

READ THE COMPLETE REVIEW AT:
http://komix101.blogspot.com/2009/04/trese-reviews-in-manual-january-2009.html

TRESE in UNO

Trese 101

Couple of days ago, I noticed that this site was getting more visitors that usual. So, I got curious on where they were all coming from. One of the visitors landed on this site by jumping from: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pp190thr1/message/68

And to my surprise, I found out that a class in the University of the Philippines has decided to make TRESE part of their required reading list.

I wanted to attend the class, but was afraid I'd be ask to recite and might give the wrong answer. :)

TRESE 3000

3000 copies.

It’s not exactly enough to be considered a national best-seller, but it’s a big deal to me (and Kajo) since it’s the first time we’ve ever done anything that sold more than 500 copies.

It was such a big surprise when Nida, our publisher, told me that TRESE Book 1 had already sold 3,000 and is now on its second printing. (And Book 2 has already sold 1,000 copies.)

Thanks to all the comic book store owners, book store managers, and most especially to all readers.

Me and Kajo are still working on Book 3. It’s a bit delayed, we know, but we just want to make sure you have as much fun (and feel as much fear) when you read Case #9 to 13. We hope it’ll be worth the wait.


For the ones who are still trying to hunt down for their own copy of TRESE, it is now available in the following stores:

Best Sellers
Comic Odyssey
Comic Quest
Fully Booked
National Bookstore
Pandayan Bookstore
Powerbooks

If your local branch or favorite bookstore/comic book shop doesn't have copies, just go to their customer service counter and give them the following information:

1
TRESE: MURDER ON BALETE DRIVE
Published by Visprint
Authors: Budjette Tan & KaJo Baldisimo
ISBN: 971-92574-7-4

2
TRESE: UNREPORTED MURDERS
Published by Visprint
Authors: Budjette Tan & KaJo Baldisimo
ISBN: 971-92574-9-0

Tell the bookstore that they can reach Visprint via:
http://visprintpub.blogspot.com/
book_inquiry (@) visprint.net

Hope this makes it easier for you to find copies of TRESE.

Many thanks!

Fans of the Kambal

Melvin posted : "[This is] my nephew, Prince. He insisted on having his photo taken wearing one of the Kambal's masks. His fave is Case 7: Embrace of the Unwanted and he's still forcing me to shoot another short horror film cause he wasn't able to play the aswang part on the first one we made last year."

See more of Melvin Arciaga's work at:
http://vinarci.deviantart.com/

TRESE: The Usual Spot

Bernie the bartender is always the first one to see her. Actually, she’d be the one who’d call his attention. While wiping the bar or serving another customer, he’d suddenly feel this fingernail tap him on the shoulder. He’d smell her perfume first before he’d look and know it was her.

She’d just be there, seated on one of the bar stools in her jacket. Her jacket that had the color of dried rose petals. Or was it more like the color of dried blood?

Read the complete story at:
http://diabolical13.blogspot.com/

Ang Kambal ni Kevin

ART BY KEVIN SABINO

The Three Faces of Trese

BLOOD RED TRESE


Art by Kevin Sabino aka "Sir Kevin",Harrison Communications' Head of Art

Possible movie poster for Trese


Produced and photographed by Melvin Arciaga
http://vinarci.deviantart.com/art/TRESE-112202559


Possible look for TRESE : THE ANIMATED SERIES


Art by JP ARCEO
http://greathandjp.deviantart.com/art/Alexandra-Trese-111969917

More Trese artwork at:
http://www.exhibit13.blogspot.com/

Trese in FREE PRESS

Where Adam David writes about his Best Books of 2009 for the Philippine Free Press (January 10, 2009)



TRESE By Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo (Visprint)
A series of slick done-in-one stories, exactly like CSI, only it’s steeped in traditional Pinoy monsters and mythologies and the main protagonist is a goth chick with guns and emo hair. It’s a working off of the more common vein of action horror comic books and once you really read into it there is certainly a formula to the construction of the stories themselves. But Trese manages to rise above it all above it all by simply resorting to the most obvious thing: it spins us a good yarn page in page out. Tan and Baldisimo show us what can be done with formula, why formula work, how formula can work for you, all the while not making it seem like formula. Komikero all over should not only read this for the words and art but also study it for its craft as there is certainly craft at work here. There are currently two books out, both utterly smooth, available absolutely everywhere (with good reason).

a postcard from the dream king

Last Monday, got to work and saw this on my desk. It took me awhile to realize who sent it and when I did, my jaw dropped; which was the the reaction of the other people who saw the card. (They'd squint, try to read the signature, ask who sent it, flip the card, see the sender's name and their jaw would drop right beside my jaw)



Thanks so much for the nice copies
of Trese -- I can't wait!
They look amazing! --Neil Gaiman


And I had this silly smile on my face for the rest of the day.

TRESE: One Last Drink at the Diabolical

...Alexandra saw a new group stumble into the club. They were lead by a man who smiled at every girl that looked his way. His red jacket seemed to blaze in the crimson lights of the club.

He looked around and smiled even more. He liked what he saw.

He popped a cigarette in his mouth, placed his finger on the tip of the cigarette and a bright blue flame shot out to ignite his Malboro.

“Brim Yap Tan,” Trese cursed under her breath.

Read the complete story at:
http://diabolical13.blogspot.com/

Tracking down TRESE

TRESE is now available in the following stores:

Best Sellers
Druid's Keep Comic Odyssey
Comic Quest
Fully Booked
Pandayan Bookstore
Sputnik

Powerbooks
http://tresekomix.blogspot.com/2009/12/trese-in-powerbookscomph.html

National Bookstore (available nationwide)
http://tresekomix.blogspot.com/2010/05/order-trese-at-national-bookstore.html

These stores have already ordered TRESE and all their branches should them in stock. In the bookstores, they're usually found in the Philippine Fiction section. In the comic book stores, they're usually found with all the locally-made comic books. If your local branch or favorite bookstore/comic book shop doesn't have copies, just go to their customer service counter and give them the following information:

1
TRESE: MURDER ON BALETE DRIVE
Published by Visprint
Authors: Budjette Tan & KaJo Baldisimo
ISBN: 971-92574-7-4

2
TRESE: UNREPORTED MURDERS
Published by Visprint
Authors: Budjette Tan & KaJo Baldisimo
ISBN: 971-92574-9-0

3
TRESE: MASS MURDERS
Published by Visprint
Authors: Budjette Tan & KaJo Baldisimo
ISBN: 971-94569-0-6

Tell the bookstore that they can reach Visprint via:
http://visprintpub.blogspot.com/
book_inquiry (@) visprint.net

Hope this makes it easier for you to find copies of TRESE.

Many thanks for all the support!

p.s. in case you do find copies of TRESE available at your local store, please post it here so that other readers will know the specific branches where it can be bought :-)

Trese 2009

TRESE: The Choir

“They just kept coming back, night after night। And every night, it seemed like there would be more kids, enough to fill up the front gate of the house; all of them singing `Silent Night` like it was the saddest song in the world. And every night, I’d see her –the girl in the red dress. She’d look at me, as if she wanted to tell me something, but had this great need to sing this song, to finish the song and maybe if she did finish the song she tell me that thing that she wanted to tell me, but she just never gets the chance to do so.

Read the complete story at: http://diabolical13.blogspot.com/2008/12/trese-choir.html

Trese tangles with Anansi Girl

Now online! GEEKS ARE EVIL: THE TRESE EPISODE! Hosted by Anansi Girl. Co-hosted by Charles Tan.

Hear me and Kajo babble about Trese! Discover the secret origin of Kajo's name! Hear Kajo's voice (which disappeared when we were being interviewed on ANC... hehehe). Find out if we'll tell you the secret origin of the Kambal (we don't, actually). Listen if we'll tell you what happens in Trese: Book3! (Maybe, we will.)

Download the episode at:
http://blog.literature-ph.com/?p=511

Whilce Portacio talks about TRESE

An AZ VIDEO BLOG : Whilce Portacio's message to pinoy komikeros

From the video:
The first topic is comments on Filipino Komiks … on what’s been happening in the local scene lately. I have to say I’ve been very proud of what been happening lately with books like Zsazsa Zaturnnah and the reaction its gotten from the Philippine society as a whole.

And I’m extremely proud of, for instance, Trese. … when I was in the Philippines and I was introduced to this ghost-hunter subculture in the Philippines, I was enthralled by that. And I always thought someone should who take that world, those people, and show the world what’s that really like.

I believe Budj and Kajo have done an exquisite job of giving us that slice of life, of that world, that what that subculture in the Philppines is like, and I believe once that gets known with world gets to know that, they’re just going to go crazy.


FROM : http://whilcefriends.blogspot.com/
Trese... is one of the best ongoing books in that market. It is the book I would love to write myself...about Filipinos in the Philippines and all doing purely Filipino things in Filipino ways. They capture the true atmosphere of the Manila I know and love.

TRESE reviewed by the Tres Komikeros

EJ, Alex, John have already produced and uploaded 12 episodes of their comic book review show. Really great that the guy decided to review TRESE in this episode. Many thanks!

Download the show at:
http://treskomikeros.wordpress.com/2008/12/05/tres-komikeros-14/

TRESE: Enter Stage Right

Will the real Trese please stand up.

Melvin Arciaga's TRESE production
http://vinarci.deviantart.com/



This is a scene from TRESE: THE TRAGIC CASE OF DR.BURGOS.
It's amazing how they recreated the panel.
They even have the same bottles/jars in the background.



Mica's version of TRESE
http://delurianne.deviantart.com/


Ernie,Lady, and Greg




Li'l Trese (MOLINA FAMILY! COME ON DOWN!!!)



Who's your favorite TRESE? :)

Thanks to the cosplayers who took the time to comb their hair and dress up and bring our characters to life. Maybe when we launch the third book next year, you can all come and have a dance showdown!!!

TRESE at Komikon 2008

The great thing about having insomnia the day before a big event is that at least you’re awake to get to the event on time. With only two hours sleep, I actually got to the UP Bahay ng Alumni at 9am. (Kajo didn’t sleep at all and arrived a couple of minutes after I got there.)

Before we set up at the Visprint table, I asked Syeri if we could give away some Alamat comic books (as a way to commemorate 14 years of Alamat Comics). She said yes and I brought down four boxes (14 years worth of unsold Alamat Comics) and said they could give it away to everyone who came to the Komikon. (Well, it wasn’t really 14 years of unsold comics, more like 4 years worth. We gave away copies of Batch72, Indigo Valley, Tattooed, TKS:The Kill Stalker, 3 copies of ARCHON, 2 copies of EXODUS, and a partridge in a pair tree.)

An hour or so later, we were set-up at the Visprint table and Team Skyworld (with Ian, Mervin, and Shali) was set-up at the Alamat table. They were joined by Paolo Fabregas, who has a sneak preview to his upcoming comic book FILIPINO HEROES LEAGUE. Paolo introduces us to the government sponsored Pinoy super team that is now not sponsored by the government.

Ian & Mervin had a sneak preview of their next book SKYWORLD: TESTAMENT. The unlettered pages can be seen at: http://iantoy.deviantart.com/gallery/

We had free Trese posters for all the people who bought copies earlier in the day.

By the end of the day, we were surprised that we already sold all 100 copies of TRESE. (We apologize to the last two guys who came to the table wanting to buy a set. Hope you were able to find a copy of Trese 2.)

THANKS TO EVERYONE! We do hope you can give us feedback on Trese, Skyworld, The Last Datu, Kadiliman, and The Filipino Heroes League.

Another surprise we got was Mica, who cosplayed Trese and we got to pose with our creation.
Mica and Wilson “Wolverine” Tortosa shot a Trese mystery at the Komikon and can be viewed at:
http://batangbatugan.multiply.com/photos/album/10/A_Summoning_At_Komikon_2008#

And at:
http://delurianne.deviantart.com/



Quote of the day:
“I hate you! I read Trese (Our Secret Constellation) and it made me cry!”—Oscar

You’re welcome.

It was great to meet finally meet the people who you've only talked to online, the artists who've contributed to Exhibit 13, the bloggers who've reviewed the book, the readers who collected the original/photocopies editions of Trese. Thank you for all coming over. Very happy that we finally got to meet.

In between the signing and the selling (and the sweating), it was also great that I got to talk to some of the guys (usually while standing in front of the giant aircon unit or by the doorway, trying to catch some fresh air). It was chance to catch up, talk about comics, about future projects, the projects that got delayed, and crazy ideas for next year.

Special thanks to the EK-gang for coming to the Komikon. Hope you like the titles that you got!

More pictures swiped from the blogs people we met that day.


Greco M, creator of Aha Hule Komiks
http://ahahulekomiks.blogspot.com/


Azrael, http://azraelsmerryland.blogspot.com/



Andrew Villar, creator of Ambush
http://ambush007.multiply.com/

Also got to meet the Philippines’ first puppet rock star GORGORO!!!
He was distributing his comic book, which contained his not-so-secret origin.
Must watch Gorgoro’s next gig!

http://animalismydad.blogspot.com

TRESE in Manila Bulletin

Trese gets lucky
by Ronald S. Lim

Manila Bulletin, Youth & Campus Section

In the world of Alexandra Trese, heroine of the comic book series "Trese," there are many things that go bump in the streets of Manila whenever darkness falls, and the city’s enthusiastic club-goers only make up a small portion of it. Manananggals, tiyanaks, tikbalangs, and duwendes make their presence felt when the lights go out, and it is Alexandra Trese’s job to keep them in line.

This alternate Manila where the creatures of Philippine mythology roam free and wreak havoc on the lives of ordinary Filipinos is the creation of the team of writer Budjette Tan and illustrator Kajo Baldisimo. Members of opposing ad agencies who knew each other because of their shared love for comics, the two decided to start "Trese" in June 2005.

Read the complete interview at:

http://www.mb.com.ph/issues/2008/11/01/YTCP20081101139546.html

TRESE in Philippine Star

‘Trese’ comics are a worthy homage to Monsters, Mythology and Metro Manila.
by J. Vincent Sarabia Ong
Philippine Star : SUPREME

The spell both Budjette and his partner Kajo cast comes not from their influences mentioned in past interviews like the comic book “Planetary” or “Twilight Zone” but rather from Neil Gaiman’s “Sandman.” The heroine Trese calmly interrogates a rich dragon man who is heir to a Chinese mall empire and in another panel seeks help from a Quiapo merchant who can talk to cats. The world of “Trese” is a place where you must suspend your disbelief and accept that crime has taken a weird turn as the authors describe it.

Read the complete review at:
http://supreme.ph/2008/11/01/trese-a-haunting-homage/

Trick or Treat!

Yesterday was the agency's annual Halloween Trick-or-Treat Party for the kids. Greg and Ernie decided to dress up as the Kambal. They couldn't get any of the girls to come dressed as Trese, but they were able to ask Lady to pose with them for one picture.

(Now, if I can only convince them to attend the Komikon, other events, and my birthday party.)

TRESE in Sindak

MEET THE `TRESE` CREATORS
By Athena Fregillana, Pictures by Paul Del Rosario
This interview originally saw print in the SINDAK Horror-Thriller Magazine(April 2006 issue). Originally written in Filipino, I translated it into English for our international readers.

Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo are part of a new generation of comic creators who are trying to save our almost lifeless comic book industry. How did the TRESE series start and why is this being considered one of the famous Pinoy komiks today?

Read the compete interview at:
komix101.blogspot.com

TRESE in Friendster

Check it out! It's the TRESE-Friendster Fan Page put together by the wonderful KOMIKON crew and the friendly people at FRIENDSTER.

So, if you want to also hang out at Alexandra Trese's Diabolical club and become the ka-Friendster of the Kambal and Hank the Bartender, then just click on:
http://profiles.friendster.com/85588277

See you at...
KOMIKON 2008
http://komikon.blogspot.com/
Ika-4 Filipino Komiks Convention
November 22, 2008 (10 a.m. to 8 p.m.)
UP Bahay ng Alumni, Diliman Quezon City
Entrance Fee: Php 50

TRESE in Sunday Inquirer Magazine

Supernatural Storytelling
By Ruel S. De Vera, Philippine Daily Inquirer, October 12. 2008



MANILA, Philippines -Almost from the very beginning, Budjette Tan has been surrounded by the unusual. “When I was a newborn baby, my parents moved into what turned out to be a haunted house,” he explains. “The ghosts were seen by my yaya and my uncles. My parents didn’t believe in such things, until one summer day after my mom gave me a bath. She said the right side of my face suddenly wrinkled up—that it looked like the face of an old man. She prayed over me until I became normal again.” Psychics were summoned and a séance held. “The psychics told the spirits that they had to move on to the next plane. The haunting stopped after some time.”

Even Tan did not know that something similarly spooky would redefine his life later on. With him doing the writing and Kajo Baldisimo providing the art, Tan came up with “Trese,”a comic book series that follows mysterious investigator Alexandra Trese as she helps the police solve unearthly crimes in Metro Manila—sometimes with some direct action from Trese and her bizarre bodyguards, the Kambal.

READ THE COMPLETE INTERVIEW AT:http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/sim/sim/view/20081012-165981/Supernatural-Storytelling

Trese in FHM

No... it's not what you think.

Trese did not appear in the nude.

Trese also did not allow herself to be interviewed (but I think the Kambal were more than willing to attend the Jean Garcia photo shoot).

In the October issue of FHM, Marc Laurenze put together a Halloween alphabet of sorts and Trese was featured under the letter "U" for Underworld.

Thanks Marc!

Trese in PLANET X

We were recently invited to be part of the opening of the PLANET X comic book store.

See the pictures at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/budjette/sets/72157607535118742/