By Andrew A. Smith

Scripps Howard News Service

 

They say crime doesn’t pay, but Crime Does Not Pay sure did. Now, thanks to Dark Horse, we can see what made this particular comic book so successful – and notorious.

 

Crime Does Not Pay began in 1942 at small Lev Gleason publications, co-edited by Bob Wood and Charles Biro, who contributed stories and art as well. It was the first “true crime” comic book, which is…

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100 SEXIEST WOMEN IN COMICS SC

30 DAYS OF NIGHT NIGHT AGAIN TP

7 WARRIORS #1 (OF 3) (MR)



ABSOLUTE SANDMAN HC VOL 05 (MR)

ACTION COMICS #3

ALTER EGO #105

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #673

AMERICAN VAMPIRE #20 (MR)

ANDREW LOOMIS DRAWING HEAD & HANDS HC

ANIMAL MAN #3

ANITA BLAKE CIRCUS DAMNED SCOUNDREL #2 (OF 5)

ASTERIX OMNIBUS SC VOL 01 NEW PTG

ASTERIX OMNIBUS SC VOL 02 NEW PTG

AVENGERS 1959 #3 (OF 5)

AVENGERS ACADEMY… Continue

 

There’s a saying in the comic book world that every fan wishes they were a comic book writer.  Supposedly, the axiom is exponentially true for comic book columnists.  Those who write about comics wish they wrote comics themselves.  However, lately, I’ve gotten the impression that the reverse is also true.  I think that a lot of comic book writers secretly wish that…

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Spider-Island has been a ton of fun.  It’s possibly my favorite story of the year.  I especially appreciate the story’s wit.  It’s even demonstrated in clever covers with J. Jonah Jameson and Mary Jane Watson displaying their newfound spider powers (Amazing Spider-Man 670 and 671). …

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By Andrew A. Smith

Scripps Howard News Service

 

Oct. 18, 2011 -- Batman: Year One is one of the most critically acclaimed and fan-revered stories about the Dark Knight. Wisely, Warner Bros. has hewed closely to the original for its animated adaptation.

 

Originally published as a four-issue miniseries in…

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100 SEXIEST WOMEN IN COMIC SC

2000 AD #1754

27 SECOND SET #2 (OF 4)



ABE SAPIEN DEVIL DOES NOT JEST #2

ALI BABA & THE FORTY THIEVES RELOADED GN

ALL STAR WESTERN #1 2ND PTG

ALL STAR WESTERN #2

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #672 SPI

AMNESIA TP (O/A)

ANGEL & FAITH #3 REBEKAH ISSACS VAR CVR

ANGEL & FAITH #3 STEVE MORRIS CVR

ANNE RICE SERVANT OF THE BONES #3 (OF 6)

ANNIHILATORS EARTHFALL #2 (OF 4)

AQUAMAN #1 2ND PTG

AQUAMAN… Continue

The Games are finally over. 

            More than 20 years in the making, Marv Wolfman and George Perez have finished their New Teen Titans original graphic novel.  For a long time, Games was one of those lost projects that comic book fans fantasized about.  But now, the Titans have defeated writer’s block, artist’s burnout, other creative obligations and a…

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Andrew A. Smith

Scripps Howard News Service

 

Oct. 11, 2011 -- It’s not often a graphic novel can bring me to tears. Stargazing Dog, by Takashi Murakami, did just that.

 

It’s the story of “Daddy,” an ordinary Japanese man whose life slips a gear and he loses…

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30 DAYS OF NIGHT ONGOING #1

68 (SIXTY EIGHT) #4 (OF 4)



ACTION COMICS #1 3RD PTG

ALAN MOORE NEONOMICON TP (MR)

ALL NIGHTER #5 (OF 5)

ATOMIC ROBO GHOST OF STATION X #2 (OF 6)

AVENGERS #18

AVENGERS 1959 #2 (OF 5)



BATMAN #1 2ND PTG

BATMAN #2

BATMAN ODYSSEY VOL 2 #1 (OF 7)

BIRDS OF PREY #1 2ND PTG

BIRDS OF PREY #2

BLUE BEETLE #1 2ND PTG

BLUE BEETLE #2

BONNIE LASS #2 (OF 4)

BOOK SMART GN

BOYS BUTCHER… Continue

In Showcase # 6 (Jan.-Feb., 1957), four men---Ace Morgan, Prof Haley, Red Ryan, and Rocky Davis---survived what should have been a fatal air crash.  Deciding they were living on borrowed time, they continued to cheat death, tackling the riskiest of dangers head-on, as the Challengers of the Unknown.  It was a venture that would last thirteen years, spanning the length…

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Andrew A. Smith

Scripps Howard News Service

 

Some things never change. One is human nature. Another is the vivid way writer Brian Azzarello brings human nature to life.

 

“I go back to the same poisoned well over and over,” laughed Azzarello, writer of the critically acclaimed crime noir 100 Bullets, the…

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Andrew A. Smith

Scripps Howard News Service

DC Entertainment may have saved the best for last in its ambitious revamping of its entire line of superhero comics – and it’s a book that doesn’t have a single superhero.

 

All-Star Western #1 arrived Sept. 28, taking…

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Last week, I relived some of the famous failures in comic book history.  Now, it’s time to look at the other side of the coin.  Comic books wouldn’t have lasted for more than 70 years without a few successes.  Many of those successes are well documented such as Superman originating the superhero genre or Flash sparking the Silver Age.  I’m going to take a look at some of the…

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100 BULLETS HC BOOK 01 (MR)



ABSOLUTE IDENTITY CRISIS HC

ACTION COMICS #1 2ND PTG

ALL WINNERS SQUAD BAND OF HEROES #5 (OF 8)

ALPHA FLIGHT #5

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #671 SPI

AMERICAN VAMPIRE SURVIVAL OT FITTEST #5 (OF 5) (MR

ARCHIE ARCHIVES HC VOL 03



BALTIMORE CURSE BELLS #3

BATGIRL #1 3RD PTG

BATGIRL #2

BATMAN AND ROBIN #1 2ND PTG

BATMAN AND ROBIN #2

BATMAN ARKHAM CITY HC

BATMAN BLACK & WHITE STATUE CLIFF… Continue

10 WAYS TO RECYCLE A CORPSE SC

28 DAYS LATER TP VOL 05 GHOST TOWN

68 ENCORE ED (MR)



ACTION COMICS #2

ALL STAR SUPERMAN TP

ANIMAL MAN #1 2ND PTG

ANIMAL MAN #2

ANITA BLAKE VH GUILTY PLEASURES ULT TP (MR)

ARCHIE AMERICANA HC VOL 02 THE 50S

ARCHIE BEST OF HARRY LUCEY HC VOL 01

ARKHAM ASYLUM ATHLETIC DEPT T/S

AVENGERS 1959 #1 (OF 5)

AXE COP BAD GUY EARTH TP



BATMAN EYE OF THE BEHOLDER HC

BATMAN THE LONG HALLOWEEN TP NEW… Continue