What I’m Getting Wednesday July 14

After an end of June I found to be somewhat lacking July has started off with a bang. I also found it interesting that Mark Waid made a public statement saying he has grown tired of super hero material. I have heard that remark in different forms from a lot of fans and I think the inability of companies to move characters forward or let someone else take over the identity creates the sameness that creates the malaise. Fortunately not all comics are about super heroes and with a constant weeding of my list hopefully the best of the capes can still provide pure escapism fun.

A big week this week, leading off with:

Killer Modus Vivendi #4 (of 6) – The best comic I’m reading right now.

Richard Stark’s Parker Man with a Getaway Face (Prelude) – The first chapter of the next adaption by Darwyn Cooke of the Parker novels. The first one was a gem so I will be paying $2 to see the first chapter a few months ahead of time.

Doctor Solar Man of the Atom #1 – Can Jim Shooter make this concept work a second time? He did a great job with the book when he launched Valiant Comics and his last arc on LOSH was well done, so I’m guessing this will be good.

Viking Prince Hardcover – A collection of the Viking Prince series from DC by Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert. This is from the early silver age when DC still published comics across a broad spectrum of genres.

Daytripper #8 (of 10) – I have loved this series and feel like the best description of the book is calling it a book about the meaning of life as defined by death. I hope DC does a hard cover collection of this shortly after it is over.

Echo #23 – Terry Moore’s excellent sci-fi series, with just terrific writing and of course his great artwork.

Gorilla Man #1 (of 3) – More solo spotlights for the Agents of Atlas, what’s not to love.

Absolute Planetary Book 2 – Glad to see this volume finally hit the stands and now I must carve out sometime to sit down and read the entire series, that some people have called the best comic book ever done.

Batman #701 - Grant Morrison and Tony Daniels are filling in the blanks between RIP and Batman getting hit by the Omega beams. I’m curious to see how we got from point A to B.

Iron Man Noir #4 (of 4) – Concluding what has been a very well done story by Scott (AmericanVampire) Snyder and Manuel Garcia.

Stuff of Legend The Jungle #1 (of 4) – I’m very happy to see this series is back on the stands. I have been waiting impatiently for this story to continue.

Batgirl #12 – Stephanie has quickly become my favorite Batgirl. I enjoy how she is learning the role from the original and she comes across as someone you would want to know or be your daughter (as the case maybe).

Brave and Bold #35 – The Legion of Substitute Super Heroes and The Inferior Five, this should be amusing.

Revolver HC – By Matt Kindt – what a great premise “Stuck in a dead-end job with a boss he can't stand and a materialistic girlfriend, Sam rises from a late night of barhopping to discover his whole world has changed. Literally. An avian flu outbreak has killed millions, the nation's infrastructure has crashed and a dirty bomb has destroyed Seattle. Forced to go on the run, Sam awakes to a normal world the next day – and to chaos again the day after that. A single constant between the two worlds will undo all the damage, if he can find it – but that seems impossible. In one world, anything goes. In the other, he's out of danger and sleepwalking through life. So Sam's got an even bigger problem: Which world to choose?” Sounds great.

Rebels #18 – A great under the radar series. The current story is about the three Brainiacs.

Superman #701 – Starting the Grounded story arc by JMS. I have my fingers crossed hoping he can pull off what sounds like a lame idea.

Titans #25 - More fun with Deathstroke and his gang with Lex Luthor. It has started off as a decent series so far. In fact they should have started with a new number one last issue as the concept is totally different from what it was before.

Chew #12 – I thought the second arc was a little weak, but this arc is good and this book continues to be a lot of fun.

Locke and Key Crown of Shadows #6 (of 6) – Another comic I would call illustrated literate fiction. I’m curious if there is an ultimate endpoint for this series as I believe that would make this series even better.

DMZ #55 – Since I just got back into this series having a soft re-boot works well and I’m anxious to see where we go from here.

The Mighty Crusaders #1 (of 6) – I like the Red Circle characters and hope this team book can help make them bigger stars in the DCU.

Farscape Scorpius #3 – I have been re-watching the series and love this book even more for continuing the adventures of these characters.

Sixth Gun #1 and #2 – An evil gun in the possession of an innocent girl in the old west and a guns linger who is looking to help her out. Has promise and since I missed the free comic book day of #1, I get two issues to start.

Thanos Imperative #2 (of 6) – Continuing the cosmic epic by DnA of death’s greatest admirer (Thanos) versus the universe of life gone crazy (the Cancerverse).

Green Hornet Year One #4 – For me this is the only Green Hornet book I get. I think he is a character that works best as a pulp fiction type of character.

Calling Cthulhu Chronicles #1 – BOOM always produces the best books in this sort of sub-genre of horror.

Authority the Lost Year #10 (of 12) – This has been entertaining, but the rotating artists make it a hit or miss proposition.

Justice League Generation Lost #5 – This series is bordering on being just okay which means it has to pick up on be put on the chopping block. There is no good reason to follow okay for 26 issues.

Strange Science Fantasy #1 (of 6) – I have no idea what to expect from this series from IDW but the concept sounded like fun. The premise “This tongue-in-cheek commentary is written and illustrated by award-winning creator Scott Morse. Each chapter is a seemingly stand-alone tale, grounded by insane landscapes and surprising characters. Take, for instance, this first installment's 'Dawn of the Gearheads!,' where hip hot-rodders take over a world gone crazy, DaddyO! Or the cinema-minded noir throw-back 'The Projectionist.' Strange Science Fantasy harkens back to the inspired pre-hero comics of the Golden Age!”

Astro City The Silver Agent #1 (of 2) – I’m always willing to invest in Astro City material.

Adventure Comics #516 – Not sure if I’m sold on the LOSH and adding a backup feature with an unrelated character (The Atom by Lemire and Asrar) may only make the front of the book look worse.

Daredevil #508 – Maybe this will help make some sense out of Shadowland. I have found Marvel’s practice of making the main title subservient to the “event” mini-series amusing.

This is a big week with tons of great stuff and lots of indy material hitting the stands. The number one book for this week is Killer Modus Vivendi #4 (of 6). I love this series and have enjoyed getting others into this book.