Thomm: Woo-hoo! We’re back with Previews for fun covers, hopefully content worth our time, and all around loquaciousness.
Mike Richardson (W) and Stan Sakai (A/Cover)
FC, 32 pages, $3.99
Among the best-known tales in Japanese history, the legend of the 47 Ronin and their epic mission to avenge their disgraced master epitomizes the samurai code of honor. It has been said, “To know the story of the 47 Ronin is to know Japan.” Retold through the ages, the legend at last comes to comics in a meticulously researched and beautifully illustrated miniseries from Mike Richardson, Stan Sakai, and editorial consultant Kazuo Koike! Recounting this sweeping tale of honor and violence in all its grandeur, chapter one details the tragic incident that would seal the fate of Lord Asano and set forty-seven of his vassals on a years-long path of vengeance!
Lee: This is all about Sakai! I love his art and always look forward to any work he does outside of Usagi. This should be really good.
Thomm: I wouldn’t sell Richardson short, either. I’m most familiar with his editorial work, but he’s done bits here and there that I’ve enjoyed, too. And I think he knows the subject matter well.
5 more below the break
COLDER #1 (of 5)
Paul Tobin (W) and Juan Ferreyra (A/Cover)
FC, 32 pages, $3.99
Declan Thomas’s body temperature is dropping. He never gets sick, never feels pain. An ex-inmate of an insane asylum that was destroyed in a fire, he has the strange ability to step inside a person’s madness and sometimes cure it. He hopes to one day cure his own, but time is running out, because when his temperature reaches zero . . . it’s over.
Lee: This is definitely one of the most gruesome covers that I have seen in a long, long time. Based on the cover alone, I am pretty sure this book isn’t going to be for the squemish.
Thomm: I wonder which zero? Fahrenheit? Celsius? Kelvin? He’d have lots of time if it’s Kelvin.
Brian Wood (W), Becky Cloonan (A), James Harren (A), Dave Stewart (C), and Massimo Carnevale (Cover)
FC, 152 pages, $24.99, HC, 7" x 10"
Kicking off Dark Horse’s sweeping adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s “Queen of the Black Coast,” Conan turns his back on the civilized world and takes to the Western Ocean. Finding first danger and then passion in the arms of the pirate queen Bêlit, the Cimmerian begins a new life of pleasure and pillage along the Black Coast, in this epic of romance and terror! Collect issues #1-#6 of the Conan the Barbarian series. Great jumping-on point!
Lee: I’ve just started reading Wood’s Northlanders which is a lot of fun. If his take on Conan is anywhere near that this is a slam dunk winner. Add Cloonan’s art and, while pricey, I am not sure I can pass this up.
Thomm: This is the sort of collection of the Wood and Cloonan Conan that I’ve been waiting on, except I’m cheap and want it as a trade, not an HC. It might already be a trade and I just missed that, though. Anyway, everything I’ve read by Wood and everything I’ve seen about this Conan tells me it’s a very good buy.
FC, 248 pages, $34.99, 9" x 12"
Dark Horse Books and Nintendo® bring you The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia, containing an unparalleled collection of historical information on The Legend of Zelda™ franchise. This handsome hardcover contains never-before-seen concept art, the full history of Hyrule, the official chronology of the games, and much more! Starting with an insightful introduction by the legendary producer and video-game designer of Donkey Kong™, Mario™, and The Legend of Zelda™, Shigeru Miyamoto, this book is crammed full of information about the storied history of Link’s adventures from the creators themselves! As a bonus, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia includes an exclusive comic by the foremost creator of The Legend of Zelda manga—Akira Himekawa!
• The full history and making of the The Legend of Zelda™ franchise, never-before-seen concept art!
Lee: I am not a Zelda guy but I certainly know lots and lots of them. Heck I wasted more than a few hours watching guys bomb every single square inch of a screen just to find hidden doors. Once we made a drinking game out of it, it became a lot more entertaining.
Thomm: Never seen a lick of Zelda so this is definitely not my thing. My son the Pokemon and Mario geek will probably like it in a few years, though. He’ll save up his gift money and buy it all on his own, too.
Robert Love (W/A/Cover), David Walker (W), Michelle Davies (C), and Diego Simone (C)
FC, 40 pages, $3.99
In a postapocalyptic wasteland populated by mutants and terrorized by flesh-eating ogres, a young amnesiac searches for the answers to the mystery of his identity. Wandering aimlessly, he comes to the rescue of Lorna, a young girl who gives him a name: Number 13. Facing danger at every turn, Number 13 fights to stay alive as his quest to find out who he is leads to the deadly truth of what he is.
• From the pages of Dark Horse Presents!
• Love and Walker craft a bizarre landscape.
• A heart of gold and a fist of laser cannons!
Lee: This is another story that is being collected from DHP. It must have had some pretty good reactions to get its own mini-series. I remember it being fine but the art was large, which meant fewer panels per page, which made the stories sometimes feel like filler even though they weren’t.
Thomm: I remember that about the art, too, but it did move along well as story. I don’t think I liked it enough to buy it again when I have the DHP issues already.
Peter Lenkov (W), Jeremy Barlow (W), Tony Parker (A), and Dave Wilkins (Cover)
FC, 32 pages, $3.50
Roy Pulsipher and Nick Walker are dead, but that doesn’t mean their time in law enforcement is over. Both Roy and Nick are officers in the Rest in Peace Department, sworn to serve the Almighty and protect the living from evil’s foul corruption. Their current case has them chasing a ghostly fanatic determined to undo all of creation—a threat with very personal connections to Roy’s past, stretching back a hundred years into a weird, Wild West and Roy’s first day on the job. It’s a twisted history that Nick is only starting to uncover, and one that could have him reconsidering ever joining the R.I.P.D.!
• Prequel to the upcoming feature film starring Ryan Reynolds and Jeff Bridges!
• The return of the hit series by Peter M. Lenkov (Hawaii Five-O, Demolition Man).
• Co-written by Jeremy Barlow (Dethklok) and drawn by Tony Parker (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?)
Lee: Wow, talk about an old series AND an example of how slow Hollywood is. The original series was published back in 1999! It’s only now getting released as a film. That’s just nuts. Since I have the original series… I wonder if they’re worth anything? Might be time for another ebay sale.
Thomm: Come on, now. The Dark Knight was published in 1986 and it’s the ‘00s before Hollywood brings around a Batman having any resemblance to that telling, and still no direct telling of that story. Getting through Hollywood is like getting a law passed by Congress. Unless it’s some pointless frippery the House passes to repeal Obamacare, of course.
Thomm: I’m liking the Conan and the 47 Ronin stories. I should also mention, since we were gone for a little bit, that The Creep is well worth your time, even if you didn’t read the parts of the story that appeared in DHP and were collected in a #0 issue. Starting with #1, which is on the stands now, works just as well.
Lee: I'm waiting for the 47 Ronin trade, that's the one I want! I think it's interesting how more and more series from DHP are making into single issues. For example, I really enjoyed the 'Resident Alien' series.
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