What I'm Getting Wednesday

Given the brutal killings that occurred at Virginia Tech today, I realize all of this is so trivial, but for myself I find it as a way of trying to maintain some semblance of normalcy in a world that has gone mad. It also strikes me as how much of a different world view one must have when you live in a country like Iraq is at the moment, when the number of dead from random attacks are daily what we only have to try and rationalize on an occasional basis.

This is no segue from that. Small side note attended a small gathering of comic art collectors as Lee's guest. Wow, was that a blast to see the art that these collectors have put together. Mickey was one such collector and he is a Legion fanatic to the nth degree and owns around 1,000 pages of Legion art. He didn't have of it with him, but it was fun seeing at least 100 pages of it, Kitson, Immonen and Giffen, great stuff.

52 #50 - World War III is here. I like that while we have four additional chapters tacked onto 52, that we have a big event over and done in one week.

World War III Part1, 2, 3 & 4 - The four additional chapters to WWIII in 52. Looking forward to reading these books.

Aquaman #51 - Will Tad Williams and Shawn McManus lose more readers or will anyone care anymore. I thought the transition was a little rough and I was being kind compared to most. I think McManus's style is almost an animated style and too light for what we have come to expect from this book. Still I don't know how long this book will last now.

Army @ Love #2 - The first issue was Rick Veitch at his subversive best, I hope issue #2 can maintain what # 1 delivered. I think this book might be a limited concept.

Birds of Prey #105 - The Birds of Prey versus the Secret Six. I know Gail had to let go of something to write Wonder Woman, but I hated to see her leave this book so soon. Still this issue should be a blast.

Brave & Bold #3 - Batman and Blue Beetle versus the Fatal Five. Just typing the words make me want to read this issue. Mark Waid and George Perez are doing a great job with this book.

Flash #11 - I'm now enjoying this book with the new writer. This issue the Rogues are all gathering against the Flash. Last issue we saw Iris West seemed to be the main villain. When your grandmother is trying to get you, life sucks.

Hellblazer #231 - In one issue Andy Diggle took over this book and made it his own. I think Diggle's run could be a really great run on this book.

JLA #8 - The beginning of the JSA/JLA cross-over. The yearly cross-overs between these teams were some of my favorite all time stories, so I look forward to this cross-over and hope it delivers at least some of the greatness of those early cross-overs. It was more fun when they were on separate Earths.

Manhunter #30 - What was to be the series finale, but Manhunter has again been granted a reprieve and will be back with an issue #31 at some point. Good solid series, glad that it is continuing.

Nightwing Annual - The answer to why Dick and Babs did not get married. No answer will satisfy me and I wish they would retro-con that Dick never wore the short pants. I want to retro-con some of my looks over the years also.

Robin #161 - The street gangs are super charged on a new drug and Robin is getting his ass kicked. Adam Beechen really makes this a rock solid series.

Superman/Batman #34 - The Metal Men and art by Pat Lee (whose art has never been impressive). A big - eh - I don't know.
Shadowpact #112 - Will Jim Rook (Nightmaster) survive. Enchantress is the only thing keeping him alive. When you are a minor character death could actually occur, I hope he lives (I mean he has a great first name).

Showcase Superman Volume #3 - More great Silver Age Superman stuff. These comics are great fun and have some amazing stuff that is fun to mock. A truly different time in comics and the books were written for a vastly different audience. Still some great artwork and a lot of story material that is still mined by today's writers.



Spirit #5 - I love this book. The official hype "The Spirit's likeness has been hijacked and slapped on a rather unappetizing little product called "Spirit Pork and Beans Spread," much to our hero's chagrin. The culprit is one Mr. Carrion, an eccentric con artist.But it seems Mr. C is in over his head this time after he's paid a visit by a decidedly more brutal member of the Spirit's rogues gallery… " - Should be fun.


Testament #17 - New storyline starts, but the book is one long continuing story. I hope this book has an ending in mind, because I want some resolutions to the stories being told.

Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Guilty Pleasures #6 (of 12) - Still an interesting book and still I feel like I missing a lot of what is going on.

Avengers Earth Mightiest Heroes #8 (of 8) - This book fell apart for me and became very pedestrian in the last couple of issues. If it wasn't ending I would have ended it for me.

Mighty Avengers #2 - So Tony Stark was transformed into a female Ultron at the end of last issue. Gender crisis and humanity crisis. Of course Ultron is female - Frank Cho is drawing this book.

Punisher Max Volume 7 - Trade Paper Back - Love Ennis' version of Frank Castle and this is one of the few books I do as a trade. For a weekly fix person, the wait between trades gets to be too damn long.

Squadron Supreme Hyperion vs Nighthawk #4 (of 4) - This has been an excellent mini-series and I'm looking forward to seeing how it ends.

Ultimate Spider-Man #108 - Daredevil's plan to take out the Kingpin is coming to fruition. This is a fun book, but still how easy is it to write stuff when you are just revamping and recycling old plots.

X-Factor #18 - This is just the best X-book being published. I love what David is doing with this book and look forward to every issue. Maddrox has become one of the most interesting characters in all comics under David's watch.

X-Men #198 - Rogue is dying. This story is a build-up to issue #200. So far this book has not excited me at all. It is well written, I'm just not invested in this group of mutants that much.

Blood Nation #3 (of 4) - A fun little mini-series that explores the vampire theme via the idea that a vampire nation has taken over half the earth. Art work has been weak, but the story has had some good moments. All in all though I do not believe this book has been worth the price of entry.

Invincible #40 - Best straight solo old time super hero book on the market.

Conan #39 - This series has slowed with too many gaps in the storyline. Hope we are getting to the Rogues in the House story soon.

Fallen Angel #15 - This should be a good issue as we found out that the Fallen Angel had a predecessor. I want to see how Angel deals with her "rival" and what happened to her? Really good series with Peter David as writer.

Are Comics A Dying Artform?

I have had this discussion with numerous people all the time and the last couple of years have seen so overall increase in sales numbers (pure $$ generated), but are monthly comics really a viable artform or are we just circling the drain?

All printed media has taken hits, CD sales have taken a nosedive and I'll willing to guess DVD sales are not what they used to be for many movies. The internet and the massive amount of free content has reduced the demand for many things.

Monthly comics have taken some dramatic hits also. The 10 year numbers are pretty damn strong evidence that those of us buying the monthly comics are that last ones left standing. In 1997 (according to CBG) the sales numbers for books #25, #50, #75 and #100 for February 1997 were 70,300, 45,800, 35,100 & 27,300. 10 years later the same sales numbers for those books were 62,780, 36,529, 25,582 and 21,570 respectively. Those are decreases of 10%, 20%, 27% and 21% respectively.

Those are really horrible numbers. Now all of these numbers are based on the direct market and the trade sale via Barnes and Noble, Amazon and other outlets are not covered by these numbers. Also the real money for comic come from the marketing of the brands via movies and other branding of toys, video games and clothing. The comic books are lost leaders in a sense and the reason for publishing some books are tied more to copyright needs and other contractual arrangements versus actual sales figures.

Still I just really wonder how much longer we can stem the tide of the end of of this industry. I believe the graphic novel will continue to exist (Magna proves you can have sales that are still strong), it is just in what format.

It is also sad to realize that our favorite books may only be enjoyed by a few others (50,000 is .02% of the US population). How marginalized can we be? The good news is that with the advancing of technology at $3 or $4 a book it can still be profitable to produce a magazine that has guaranteed sales, but how long will a corporation continue to fund a product that has such a small market segment. If I have talented people wasting their efforts against .02% of the population it is really just pissing money away.

Still at least remember if you drop a title you are actually having an impact in this type of market place, where with most places, Wal-Mart won't notice you have stopped buying from them to protest them for some reason.

I just hope the market continues to survive as I have enjoyed this method of entertaining too long and would miss it if it dies before I do. At least I'll finally have time to read all the trades and hard covers I have accumulated.

As a side note I also believe that 50% of the community has blogs or "reports" on the industry, but we have very few people who really report of examine our industry.

Random Thoughts

Baseball is being played again and a bird is trying to build a nest in our front porch light fixture, so spring must be in the air. Spring my a**, it still too damn cold for April 13 for crying out loud. My grass is growing and I will have to wear a fall jacket to go out and cut the jungle down. It needs to get warmer damn it. I like seasons, but come on spring. Too often in Baltimore, Maryland area we go from winter to summer with a passing notion that spring is a season.

Just how damn thin skinned have we become as a society. The whole Don Imus debacle has been a mess. From Imus making such a stupid remark, to his not apologizing for it the next day, to his groveling afterwards, to Jesse and Al coming out to extort money from the networks that owned the show, to the overplayed "hurt" that was fostered on the basketball players (can anyone say lawsuit), it has been a ridiculous extravaganza of coverage. No one involved looked good at the end of the day. How about Obama calling for Imus to be fired because his daughters should never have to be talked down to and then he has the rapper Ludacris as part of his youth outreach (and one of his songs is entitled "Ho"). Just insane, that we now have people who are offended by almost anything that is said. My favorite thing that happened was the fact that the New Jersey Governor got banged up in an auto accident (as he was going to attend the Imus / Rutgers meeting) because apparently he was not wearing his seat belt. The frelling nanny state wants to tell us what to do and how to do it and our own elected officials ignore the rules. This just shows that these people do not feel like they are servants of the people, they think they are our rulers. Poetic justice.

Yeah, the Duke Lacrosse team has been exonerated. It was such a travesty of justice to see those kids get raked over the coals by a prosecutor looking to get re-elected that it made me feel like sometimes things work out the right way. One thing I do think that hopefully guys throwing these type of parties will understand to not hire strippers or whatever and put themselves in a position to be question.

So Amsterdam has legalized prostitution and legalized smoking of marijuana and guess what the world has not ended. One of my co-workers just came back from there and after hearing her stories it really makes me realize that the US should try and lighten up on all of our puritanical restrictions and start to understand that certain vices are what people want to do and by legalizing it you can control it better and make tax revenues off of it. I think as we go bankrupt these things may become a reality. Of course we have this crazy anything goes attitude in America, mixed with a wide puritanical streak and political correctness fever that makes for a really schizophrenic culture. In Maryland we have passed a state wide smoking ban because smoking is such an evil, but next year we should have legalized slots as we need more revenue. Yes our every shifting morals are a moving target.

Mr. Stuffins #1 - A Review

Mr. Stuffins #1 (of 3) - Writers Andrew Cosby and Johanna Stokes, Artist Lee Carter, Colored by Pablo Quiligotti.

Premise - First off the picture to the left is not the one I have for the cover. I don't know if they did multiple covers or what, but my cover is a teddy bare sitting at a table with a tux on, a dart gun laid on the table and a stack of oreo cookies and a drink with a straw next to him. Too funny. Wish I had a scanner.

The story gets going very quickly as a man is on the phone telling his wife to get out as he has sabotaged some program, the wife has already been captured. He dumps the program disc into an interactive bear box. As fate would have it a father is taking his son to buy him a toy to make up for the fact that he has separated from his wife and is spending quality time with his son. The nine year old boys wants a bear and the dad wants to buy him a tank and a football.

Once home the broken family syndrome is in full force and as the bear comes to life and acts very strangely the boys remarks about it are ignored. Mr. Stuffins thinks he is a spy on a covert mission, he tortures other stuffed animals for information, forces Zachary (the boy) to take him to school, Mr. Stuffins beats up three bullies who were working over Zach, the mysterious corporation finds out the boy has the boy and the issue ends with bad guys surrounding the house.

What I liked:

1) The story. I was pre-sold on this book based on the premise, but it really delivered. The dialogue back and forth between Zachary and Mr. Stuffins was priceless. Mr. Stuffins is overly serious and Zachary has an almost disinterest in almost everything as he is suffering from his parents separation. Given that this is just a three issue mini-series I thought it was perfect to make the rest of the cast somewhat stereotypical for the parents and bad older sister and other characters as no space is wasted on them (or needed) as the story is about Zach and Mr. Stuffins.

2) The art. It really works for this story. Lee Carter (who I have never heard of) is not going to set the world on fire with his style, but it really works well for this story. Plus he nails making Mr. Stuffins look like a serious teddy bear on a mission.

3) It was fun. I mean flat out this was an enjoyable comic book to read and I could have also read it to my daughters when they were younger and I think they would have enjoyed at a younger age also.

What I didn't like:

1) The muted and overly dark palette used for the coloring. I'm not sure if the choice was made to hide any inadequacies of the art, but it should have been one or two shades brighter.

Grade A

Birthday... The Aftermath

Howdy Ho! Here we go again. I am sure by this point you are all wondering just what the heck I am going to talk about this week… I see your head nodding “Yep. That’s right”

This week, something different, I shall review some books and maybe a movie too. BUT, not just any books and movies! Oh no, I shall review what I got for my birthday.

The birthday celebration was excellent. I can’t imagine my birthday without the little ones these days. Somehow they haven’t quite figured out that it’s MY birthday and not THEIR birthday. We did the whole family dinner thing which involved little eating and lots of answers like “We will open presents after cake” and the occasional statement like “It doesn’t matter if you sing the song now, you have to sing it when the cake arrives”. Which leads back to questions like “Cake is after dinner” and statements like “Well, even if you aren’t hungry, I am hungry and no cake until I am finished with dinner. Yes you can have more food.”

The cake arrived and we have a wonderful picture of the kids blowing out the candles for me. Oddly enough, that’s what present opening was like too. Three little heads hovering over each package.

Gift #1, Hoodwinked.
Desc: When the police arrive at Granny’s cottage in the woods to answer a domestic disturbance call, it looks like just another open-and-shut case. But Red, Granny, the Big Bad Wolf and the Woodsman are not your usual suspects, as they have their own dark secrets, wily deceptions and conflicting accounts of the crime. Together, they must put aside their differences and find their own original twist on Happily Ever After in this "raucous, genre-busting, animated gem (Entertainment Weekly, The Must List)."

If you don’t remember Hoodwinked, it was an animated indy movie a couple of years ago. Because it was Indy and low budget they could get away with more than usual. It got rave reviews and I have wanted to see it for a really long time. AND, as soon as I get a free hour I will. Most likely this weekend.

Gift #2, DC Archives Action Heroes.
All I need to say is Golden Age Captain Atom by Steve Ditko. All art and story pre-Spidey. Not all golden age superheroes hold up but this one does. A great fun.

Off topic. I have to beat the boy off this book. EVERYDAY, “Daddy can I read you new superhero book”. EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Yes I let him read it… How can I not!!!

Gift #3, Art Out of Time, Unknown Comic Visionaries 1900-1969
Desc: This collection of 29 marvelous nearly unknown comic strip and comic book artists. Many are reprinted from yellowing newsprint—in a few cases, like Walter Quermann's late-'30s newspaper strip Hickory Hollow Folks, from the only copies of their work still extant.

This is such a great book I haven’t put it down for days. There is so much to read and enjoy in this volume. You have to remember that for years, comic books and strips were the training ground for young artists. The real money was in advertising or other ventures and comic books were for hacks. But, put enough hacks together and there will be gems that push the boundaries of the medium before moving on. This is a book full of such gems. I am sure you have heard of Dick Briefer, Bob Powell, and Howard Norstrand but have you heard of Charles Forbell or Boody Rogers? The book seems to have an equal number of strip reprints and comic reprints but the art within all is astounding. It’s fabulous to look and fun to read too.

Finally, without doubt the absolute best gifts I got… three homemade pictures! A horse rider (what she wants to be when she grows up), A mow man (what he wants to be when he grows up) and a giraffe Picasso style! (her favorite animal)

And... pictures of the event!

Independent Preview Review for June Part 2

Onto the second half on the independent review. A more modest size posting which means either we could have done it as one or should have broken it earlier.

Markosia
BREATHE #3 - [of 4]
Full Color. Creators: John Sheridan & Kit Wallis Description: Mi Ling finds out about Zhen's secret hut... a hut full of chemicals and potions. The two head off to track down the gang, drug them, and try to find out the truth of what really happened to Mi Ling's family. The result: one death and a skeleton in the cupboard that changes her friendship with Zhen forever. COVER A: MI LING. 28 pages. http://www.kitwallis.com/
Jim: Breathe #1 is coming out on April 11 and I started checking out a preview of the artwork and was drawn to try it out. It’s as story of a young girl in Japan whose family is killed and she is looking for the killers. Kip Wallis art has a nice fluid fell to it. Look interesting.
Lee: Markosia seems to have something here. I have checked out some of their other titles and its always interesting. Good call on art!

ONI PRESS INC.

MAINTENANCE VOL. 1: IT'S A DIRTY JOB SC
By James Massey & Robbi Rodriguez You think your job is bad? Well, Doug and Manny have you beat! These guys are janitors! But they're not your typical custodial crew - no, sir! They work for TerroMax, Inc., the world's biggest and best evil science think tank! When they're not dealing with toxic spill monsters and menial time machine repairs, they have to contend with their boss, a multitude of mad scientists, jetpack-equipped cavemen, alien repomen, and the cute girl who works at reception! 96 pages. (6x9)
Lee: Maintenance is the latest humor title from Oni. Oni usually does pretty well with the funny stuff and the idea of janitors at the mad scientist secret hideout is ripe with ideas. Rodriguez has a nice enough style so it should be worth checking out.
Jim: I have enjoyed many of Oni’s books and they certainly are a publisher who makes sure that all genres are covered, but this one will be a pass for me. Still I really enjoy many other Oni books such as Wasteland and Local. Oni Press id definitely a publisher’s whose solicitations I look forward to every month.

MARQUIS VOL. 1: DANSE MACABRE SC
By Guy Davis In the world of the Marquis, faith is not only the religion, but the strict law of life and death. It is into this world that the souls of Hell have escaped to sin, murder, and be free within the possession of the living. During this time, one man has been blessed with the ability to see into the very souls of the damned and fight the demons within. But as the Marquis begins his holy crusade to send back the escapees of Hell, the lines of good and evil begin to blur into a struggle between faith and sanity.
Lee: This concept sounds really interesting. But, Guy Davis’s art is always hit/miss for me. I can’t seem to decide if I really, really, like it or I really, really hate it. The series has been around for awhile and I think it got good reviews. I tend to say no but it just sounds so darn interesting.
Jim: This is an order again item and while the concept sounds good, this is a book I would need to read the first 10 pages or so before I decided. Guy Davis’ art style is not flashy, but it is well done, I enjoyed is Sandman Mystery Theatre work.

PAPERCUTZ
TALES FROM THE CRYPT #1
The greatest, most infamous horror comic is back! After over 50 years, the flagship title of the legendary EC Comics line has returned with all-new Tales From The Crypt as narrated by the original Crypt-Keeper, The Old Witch, and The Vault Keeper. Each issue will feature two 20-page jolting tales of terror in the EC tradition! "Artistic License," by horror author Marc Bilgrey and drawn by Mr. Exes, "For Serious Collectors Only," by Bluesman author Rob Vollmar and Batman artist Steve Mannion,. Introductory pages, featuring the Ghoulunatics, are by Jim Salicrup and Beavis and Butthead artist Rick Parker. Cover by award-winning artist Kyle Baker.
Lee: This looks great. Top notch names and artists. Can’t wait!
Jim: I’ll have to sign up for this book also. It should be interesting.

REBELLION
THRILL POWER OVERLOAD SC
For 30 years 2000 AD has been one of the most influential science fiction comics in the world. Home to such respected characters as Judge Dredd, Strontium Dog, and Rogue Trooper, the Galaxy's Greatest's influence on the world of comic books as a whole is incalculable. Explore the history of this legendary comic in a comprehensive and fully illustrated book. 260 pages.
Lee: WOW! If you have any interest in British Comics this is the book to have. Another book for the comic historian in us all.
Jim: Lee is on a heavy history quick, but as he has almost turned 40 he maybe having an early mid-life crisis.

TWOMORROWS PUBLISHING
JOHN ROMITA AND ALL THAT JAZZ HC
In this new book, Jazzy John Romita - the artist who made The Amazing Spider-Man Marvel's #1-selling comic book in the 1960s - talks about his life, his art, and his contemporaries! The hardcover edition includes a dust jacket, custom endleaves, plus a 16-page color section not found in the softcover edition. 208 pages. (8x11)
Lee: At 8x11 this is a big book. And 208 pages is long. Basically this is one really long interview with Romita. I am sure there will be tons of insight into the Marvel world from the 60’s thru the 80’s. A must have for any comic historian.
Jim: I guess, but Jazzy Johnny Romita was always a very clunky artist at best to me and really a poor man’s Jack Kirby. I know that sounds sacrilegious to many (as his girls were a lot better looking then Ditko), but Romita and some others from that era were never my favorite artists.
Lee: WAHOO! We agree on something. I was always afraid to say Romita wasn’t my favorite. I always felt his Spidey run was “ok”

MODERN MASTERS VOL. 12: MICHAEL GOLDEN SC
A first-ever look at Michael Golden's life and career with a cornucopia of rare and unseen art from his files, as well as a career-spanning interview, and a deluxe color gallery of some of his finest work. 120 pages.
Lee: I got a couple of the early modern master books. They are really good if you want to learn a lot about a certain artist. I stopped getting them for awhile but this I will have to get. MG has been a force in comics for so long and his work is so good. From some of his early work in Batman Family to his latest covers, I am really looking forward to this.
Jim: Now this is an artist who I can sing the praises of, Michael Golden did some terrific work on Batman and Doctor Strange as well as many other books. If you are into these type of books, then Golden is a subject worthy of this type of treatment.

VEROTIK
VALKYRIE GOLDEN AGE COLLECTION VOL. 1
By Fred Kida From the Golden Age comes Valkyrie, Airboy's Nazi Femme Fatale from the '40s. These stories would cost collectors a fortune on the back-issue market, if you could even find them! Now, all of her appearances are collected here in one volume, in their full un-PC glory! .
Lee: A great way to see some golden age material. Their other reprints like Phantom Lady was good.
Jim: This type of material always gets my attention and if the reproduction is good enough I will possibly buy it.

VIRGIN COMICS LLC
SNAKE WOMAN SC
By Zeb Wells & Michael Gaydos
Born 1981. First kiss 1996. Graduated with honors 2002. Moved to Los Angeles 2006. Within three years, she will have killed sixty-eight men. Jessica Peterson is learning first-hand that the cycle of revenge cannot be broken. Without understanding why, she finds herself turning into a creature - a vicious Snakewoman. Her mission - to avenge a centuries old wrong that was conceived half a world away, deep in the jungles of India. Terrified by her true nature and hunted by a mysterious organization known only as "The 68," Jessica must confront the monster that lurks inside her before it is too late.
Lee: And this is what I have been waiting for. The first of the Virgin Comics trades. I am really looking forward to this because it is rumored to be quite good. And Zeb Wells continues to impress with all the things he is writing.
Jim: It is quite good and you have been missing a really good series. What is odd to me that instead of just continuing the series they have stopped it and restarted it as a new mini-series. I guess they are approaching their books as a series of mini-series, but Snakewoman’s story would lend itself to an ongoing in my opinion.

CLASSIC MARVEL FIGURINE COLLECTOR'S MAGAZINE SPECIAL: THANOS
The Thanos Special Edition is a 20-page magazine that features a detailed history and background on Thanos, and includes exclusive images and interviews of his creators! It also includes a hand-painted lead figurine of Thanos that is sculpted by master craftsmen and based on original pieces of Marvel artwork. Measuring 4 tall, the figurine is individually numbered, comes stamped with the Marvel official logo, and comes packaged in its own box. It comes with an exclusive slipcase and a double-sided poster. 20 pages.
Lee: I ordered a couple of these already and I think they look great. Perfect for all the little Marvel geeks out there. These are nice little things that can be displayed but aren’t overly gaudy like some of the other things out there.
Jim: In order to keep myself from going overboard on collectible figures I relegate myself to only DC figures.

FROM THE TOMB #22
This issue feature 1950s tales of terror, the Corpse Bride, reefer romance, and Harvey and Atlas writing styles with references from Stan Lee. Plus, a new horror strip from Pete Von Sholly, Fiction House uncovered, an interview with Eric (The Goon) Powell, and comic, film, book, and small press reviews! 72 pages.
Lee: I mention this because “From The Tomb” is a great fanzine about old horror comics. If you have any interest in the golden age horror books this is the place for you. An easy read and very entertaining!
Jim: Sounds like an interesting book.

That wraps up the June Preview reviews and it is insane but Dark Horse has already published their July solicitations. Sometimes I forget what the hell is actually coming out as I get focused on next week or three months from now.

What I'm Getting Wednesday

This is a huge week for me with a ton of books coming out. The fun in following so many independent books is never knowing when they actually show up. This week over 11 titles (non DC or Marvel comics) are hitting the stands. That means a lot of fun and different types of comic enjoyment.

52 Week #49 – The last week before WWIII, which is only a one week event. This has been a great series, but I think Countdown which begins after this book is over should be even more fun as it will be in the current timeframe of the rest of the DCU.

All Star Superman #7 – Superman versus Bizzaro, as my favorite Superman series returns to the stands. This book is a quarterly at best title, but when the quality is this good and the issues are self-contained it doesn’t matter. Absolutely can’t wait.

Fables #60 – Part 1 of “The Good Prince” where Flycatcher the Frog Prince takes center stage. This book is really one of the best series ever produced and really deserves the hard cover treatment, hell maybe the Absolute treatment. Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham continue to bring excellence to the updated fairy tale.

Gen 13 #7 – A stand alone issue that focuses on a solo character from Gen 13. I like this book, but I have still not been really drawn into who is who on the team. Hopefully a spotlight issue will start to resolve that issue.

Green Arrow #73 – Is this the end of Green Arrow as mayor? This story focuses on revelations being made about Oliver Queen and whether his financial support of certain groups will cause him to loss his position as Mayor. Still can’t believe this series is going to move to an end by #75 with Green Arrow proposing to Black Canary.

Green Lantern Corps #11 – This has been a great series so far and I enjoy seeing adventures of various Green Lanterns. Using Guy Gardner as one of the main characters was a good idea as it gives us a familiar character while introducing other Lanterns.

Grifter/Midnighter #2 (of 6) – Chuck Dixon having fun with two of Wildstorm’s tougher characters. One is on a mission to protect and one on a mission to kill. Should be great fun.

JLA Classified #37 – The beginning of the “Kid Amazo” story by Peter Milligan and Carlos D’Anda. This was going to be an original graphic novel but has been demoted to an arc of JLA Classified. An interesting conceptual story where Amazo has a child. I’m sure with Milligan this will be an exploration of what it means to be human.

Loveless #17 – The saga of Blackwater continues as Ruth Cutter may save the town just to burn it down herself. This is truly a wonderful rich and multi-layered story set in the Old West.

Rush City #6 (of 6) – Wrapping up a great and fantastically fun little mini-series by Chuck Dixon and Tim Green II (hope to see a lot more of his art work in the future). Also hope we see more of the hero of Rush City Diego.

Sandman Mystery Theatre: Sleep of Reason #5 (of 5) – Truth be know the finale of this series will have to really impress me for me to care to try out a second mini-series based on this Sandman. If it was an ongoing I would have dropped it.

Stormwatch PHD #6 – Christos Gage and Doug Mahnke are back to continue the PHD’s adventures. This is a really good series and Gage has fast become a writer’s whose work I enjoy.

Tales of the Unexpected #7 (of 8) – Continuing tales of the Spectre and Dr. 13. Both series have entertained and I really hate to see this series come to an end next month.

Teen Titans #45 – Deathstroke versus his son and daughter (Jericho and Rose). Certainly not your typical family reunion. Deathstroke has certainly become one of DC’s more interesting villains. This is also a continuation of Titans West vs. Titans East.

Trails of Shazam #6 (of 12) – Freddy’s continued quest to earn the powers of Shazam. Really enjoying this series and the setting of a new status quo for a new Captain Marvel.

Wonder Woman #7 – Well last issue by new writer Jodi Picoult was pretty much lambasted, but I still thing you have to remember what she was handed and give her more then an issue to get things rolling. At least we have a Wonder Woman book actually being published on a regular basis again and I enjoyed the last issue enough to hand in there a little longer.

Iron Man #16 – The second issue since the end of the Civil War. Tony Stark as the director of Shield and my guess is the Mandarian is behind all the new terrorist activity. If nothing else his ten rings of power are being used as weaponry.

Legion of Monsters: Man-Thing – A new Man-Thin story and a new Simon Garth Zombie story. I always enjoy revisiting these types of characters, but often the returns are disappointments. Still I always anticipate these issues.

Marvel Masterworks Iron Man – Volume #77 – This collects the end of the Tales of Suspense run of Iron Man, the One issue Iron Man / Sub Mariner book and Iron Man #1. Gene Colan I believe was the artist on all of these issues. A truly gifted artist, who I believe would have done better with non-super hero work.


Nova #1 – Looking forward to this series and a little worried about this book. I like the update Richard Ryder who has matured and become a man. Nova was leading the forces against the Annihilation wave and doing a good job. I hope the writing team keeps that Nova and does not portray him as a younger hero again.


New Avengers #29 – Can’t believe I have allowed myself to be sucked into the Avengers books, but have. This issues the renegade group versus the legal group.

New Universal #5 – Warren Ellis continues to craft a wonderful story using the Marvel New Universe concepts and putting his own spin on the entire event. I’m really enjoying the ride with this series. I believe this is a 12 issue limited series, but not 100% sure about that.

Punisher War Journal #6 - “Goin’ Out West” PART 1 With the echoes of last issue’s tragic ending still rattling in his head, Frank Castle finds himself tied to a fencepost with barbed wire, watching what may be his last sunrise. Somewhere along the U.S./Mexico border a super-militia bent on igniting a race war has been killing scores of innocent people. By the time the last shot is fired and the last body falls, you’ll have met the modern incarnation of the HATEMONGER and seen an all-new look for the Punisher. – The official hype. This sounds like Matt Fraction is going to go all stop hating the poor illegal immigrants on us and if this book starts to preach that crap I’m off it in a heart beat. I’m so tired of people who thing the illegal immigrants are some sort of cause to be defended as opposed to actual people who are breaking our laws. Plus the group defending them and fighting for their (non-existent) rights live to call those of us opposed to it as racists or nativists or some other made up crap name designed to make us the bad guys.

She-Hulk #17 – This book is part 3 of She-Hulk as an agent of Shield. I hate that Civil War has taken the heart out of She-Hulk. What was a fun title and a light in the Marvel universe has been darken and made too much of a straight super-hero book.

Spider-Man / Fantastic Four #1 (of 4) – This is set before the Civil War and is written by Jeff Parker. Jeff Parker has become my favorite Marvel writer and he writes modern super hero tales that invoke the fun and innocence of the silver age.

Thunderbolts #113 – Continuing one of my favorite Marvel books that has the worse concept for a series ever. Ellis makes this band of “Thunderbolts” the most evil and conniving group ever and makes it work.

Uncanny X-Men #485 – Part 11 of 12 of the “Rise and Fall of the Shi’ar Empire”. This has bored me to death and I may have to drop this title soon.

White Tiger #5 (of 6) – If this was an unlimited series I would drop it. At this point I take it out until the end of the series. An uninspired launch of an new character.


Dynamo 5 #2 – Really looking forward to this issue. Last issue was a great launch of a new super team with the premise being each hero is the child (by a different woman) of a hero who died. His wife (who was unaware of these kids) is the leader of the group. Really solid issue #1, hope issue 2 holds up.



After the Cape #2 (of 3) – The first issue of an ex-hero who fell from grace due to alcoholism and has now turned to crime was an interesting twist. How much further will he fall?

BPRD Garden of Souls #2 (of 5) – Okay this series I haven’t read yet, because I have to read the first few mini-series on this first. The first four mini-series were given to me and I haven’t had the chance to read them, but I have heard so many good things about the books that I decided to continue to get it without reading any of the books yet.

Fell #8 – Simply one of the best series out there. Wonderful self-contained stories about a fallen from grace Detective. This is by Warren Ellis and Ben Templesmith, two creators who are at the absolute top of their game.

Nightly News #5 (of 6) – Another book that should be fantastic. This series which has been both an exciting story, an excoriating attack on the media and many other sacred cows has been a great read. I will probably get the trade when that comes out. It is a story I would be happy to give to anyone with an open mind to read.

Breathe #1 (of 4) – A book I just recently decided to add to my list. It is the story of a young Japanese girl who finds who family has been killed and what she does because of it. I was reviewing some sample artwork pages and Kip Wallis has a beautifully fluid and almost lyrical style to his work that compelled me to try this out.

Desperadoes: Buffalo Dreams #3 (of 4) – This is another terrific western that has a supernatural bent to it, yet Gideon and his crew are so real and the supernatural elements are usually fairly tame (not cosmic type things) that it all works. Another great book that is a series of mini-series.


Two Guns #1 (of 4) – A story about cops robbing from thieves which makes them thieves. The premise sounds a little weak, but execution is everything and I like trying out new books.


Mr. Stuffins #1 (of 3) - I have been dying for this book to come out. Here is the hype from Boom Studios “My teddy bear's a secret agent! In the tradition of Lions, Tigers, and Bears comes something completely different. When a scientist succeeds in creating an Artificial Intelligence, he discovers to his horror that the government plans on making it a weapon. On the run, he hides the program inside a mechanical toy bear. An unsuspecting family buys the toy bear and a little boy discovers a new best friend he never knew he had -- a cute, cuddly toy bear who's got all the moves of James Bond! Chaos, fun and mayhem ensues.” How can you not love that.


Wasteland #8 – My favorite post apocalyptic book. Wasteland is back to the main story and the “fill-in” was actually a story that advanced the story line, but focused on a one character. We are now in the city and dealing with the inner workings of a Ruler who is trying to enslave a growing religious group.

Wolfskin #3 (of 3) - Warren Ellis completes his blood and guts barbarian story. Over the top fun.