LOVE MACHINES


Covering past, present, and future, LOVE MACHINES tells love stories about technology. These are sometimes funny, sometimes tragic romance comics that deal with the objects that inhabit our lives. Featuring an international team of artists, each tale spotlight our personal connection to objects and how technology impacts our connection to one another.

LOVE MACHINES speaks to unstoppable constants in our lives: progress, romance, and the loss that comes with the passage of time. These tales include “The Velocipede” about how a Colorado family is rocked by the appearance of a bicycle, to “Hero and Leander” about two supercomputers going on a “date.”

While most are grounded in historical reality, only one, "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" is about real people. The story, set in 1937, spotlights forgotten fashion icon Lester Gaba and his invention of the modern mannequin. His inanimate creation "Cynthia" became an overnight celebrity and took the fashion world by storm. Trujillo and artist Wyeth Yates went to great detail to piece together Gaba's incredible life as faithfully as possible. By looking to the past Trujillo and his collaborators hope to inform the present conversation about what role technology and innovation have in our society. 

Originally printed in black and white single issues, LOVE MACHINES: Volume 1 presents the series’ first 10 stories in a 6x9” full-color hardcover for the first time.

Written and created by Josh Trujillo
Collection cover by Levi Hastings
Collection design by Adam Pruett
Logo and series design by Dylan Todd


AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE ON AMAZON


"The Velocipede"

Art by Ben Bishop
Colors by Marissa Louise
Letters by Adam Pruett

In 1880's Colorado a family is rocked when Aunt Clara arrives with a bicycle! 

"Solenoids" 

Art & Colors by Jonathan Bell Wolfe
Letters by Adam Pruett

Can Raj overcome temptation at the pinball tournament long enough to win?

"Workers of All Lands, Unite!"

Art by Ryo Kawakami
Colors by Mike Dake
Letters by Adam Pruett

The spirit of Karl Marx transforms young Ritsuko as she adjusts to her new job at a Japanese theme park.


"Appliances in Love"

Art & Letters by Michael Schisler
Colors by Mike Dake

Can two machines overcome circumstance and make a love connection?

"Applications"

Art & Letters by Dave Valeza

Xavier finds love with an app on his new phone, but who is he really chatting with?

"Lung" 

Art by Patrick Horvath
Letters by Adam Pruett

Forces are tearing Harvey and Mattie's burgeoning romance apart; she's just been accepted to nursing school and he's... in an iron lung.


"Hero and Leander"

Art by Kate Glasheen
Letters by Adam Pruett

The debate over Artificial Intelligence rages on as two computers go on their very first "date."

"Sandy Andy"

Art by Colin Andersen
Colors by Mike Dake
Letters by Adam Pruett

Forgotten treasures capture the imagination of a young orphan living In the ruins of the 1905 Panama-Pacific International Exposition.

"The Most Beautiful
Girl in the World"

Art and Letters by Wyeth Yates
Colors by Kendra Wells

The true story of Cynthia, the world's most famous mannequin, and her pioneering creator Lester Gaba.


"An Electric Moon

Art and Letters by JT Cole

Unconventional love is threatened by the latest technological innovation: electricity!

Issue 6 cover by JB Wolfe

Issue 3 cover by Dave Valeza

Issue 4 cover by Kevin Jay Stanton

Issue 5 cover by Wyeth Yates

Issue 2 cover by SM Vidaurri

Critical Praise for Love Machines


“…[Love Machines] ably deconstructs the romance of the past and the romance of the future without destroying them. Instead, it revels in these impulses even as it shows them for what they really are: a reflection of what is, who we are, and what we hope may be. This is a clever comic anthology, light on tech pundit doomsaying, heavy on sweetness, for the tech-loving romantic at heart.”
Megan Purdy, Comics Alliance

“The stories never take the conventional route. Their inventiveness, heart and lack of cynicism reveal in trujillo and his collaborators a searching thoughtfulness and genuiness humanism. And though technology is always a part of the story, it’s almost never the point. It’s the people themselves, their times, their needs and their passions that take center stage.”
Joshua Dysart, writer of Harbringer

"Josh's machines have as much soul as their human counterparts. Whether something as familiar as a bicycle, intimidating as an iron lung or obscure as a Sandy Andy, each bring out surprising and very real moments within these carefully crafted vignettes."
Ed Luce, creator of Wuvable Oaf

"Love Machines has a running technological theme, but at its heart lies the sadness and beauty of humanity. The varies and gorgeous artwork, paired with Trujillo's brilliant and sensitive writing, make each story worthy of multiple, careful reads."
MariNaomi, author of Turning Japanese

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