DARK HORSE COMICS
DANGANRONPA: THE ANIMATION VOL 1 (TPB)
Writer/Art/Cover: TAKASHI TSUKIMI
B&W, 192 pages, $12.99, TPB, 5 1/8" x 7 1/4"
Each year, the elite Hope’s Peak Academy selects only the most gifted and talented students to enroll ... plus one ordinary student, chosen by lottery. Makoto Naegi was that lucky person—or so he thought! When he shows up for class, he finds the elite students are a bizarre cast of oddballs under the ruthless authority of a robot teddy bear principal, Monokuma. The bear lays down the school rules: the only way out of Hope’s Peak is to not only murder another student ... but get away with it, as every murder is followed by a tribunal where the surviving students cross-examine each other!
• Inspired by the video game series for PSP, released through NIS America.
• Based on the anime TV show, released in 2015 through Funimation.
“Equal parts social sim, murder mystery and courtroom thriller.”—Polygon
I tried to read this. I may just have to admit to myself that I'll never be a manga guy.
First, when I opened up the digital review copy, I was at the end. Yes, the book read right to left, like a manga, but also from back end to front, forcing the reader to back up all the way. Which is stupid. People who do read back to front, like the Japanese, do not regard what they are doing as reading back to front. To them, the back IS the front. Here, the back is just the back, so I don't think anybody would be happy. It's not cultural, it's just a silly and aggravating affectation.
So I was not in a good mood when the story begins. And I'll say that regular manga readers might find the opening scenario enticing: A group of kids -- looking like they were plucked from other manga, like a guy with Dragonball Z hair and a girl in a sailor outfit -- are gathered in their new high school's gymnasium, where a homicidal robot teddy bear tells them the only way to graduate is to kill one of their fellow students. Reaction shot.
Which is where I closed the DRC. Not interested. It's just another And Then There Were None scenario, which I find artificial and implausible. (How many people could actually kill another with their bare hands? Not many, I warrant, and I'd think most superheroes would refuse, even if they were killed as a result. I complained about this in Convergence, as well.) I also find it morally repulsive. I was disgusted by the concept of Avengers Arena and did not read it, and I actually liked some of those characters! I have nothing invested in these kids, archetypes (I assume) from manga I haven't read. And I don't find "homicidal robot teddy bear" amusing, as I assume I'm supposed to.
But, hey, a lot of people read Avengers Arena, and some on this board said they liked it, so the description above may be interesting to you. So game on!
WORLD OF WARCRAFT CHRONICLE VOL 1 (HC)
Writer: MATT BURNS
Art: PETER LEE, JOSEPH LACROIX (A)
FC, 184 pages, $39.99, HC, 9" x 12"
Journey through an age of myth and legend, long before the Horde and the Alliance. This definitive tome reveals untold stories about the birth of the cosmos, the rise of ancient empires and the forces that shaped Azeroth. Featuring original art, this is the first in a multipart series exploring the rich lore of the Warcraft universe, from the distant past to the modern era.
“World of Warcraft: Chronicle is the first in a series of books that attempts to codify, tighten up, and clarify the history of Warcraft,” said Chris Metzen, Blizzard Entertainment senior vice president of story and franchise development. “People often ask why lore is important. The lore, the storytelling of Warcraft is something that we’ve really tried to work on and hone over the years as an integral part of the fantasy you’re playing through. When it catches you, it’s something you want to keep coming back to over and over.”
This beautiful hardcover book features over twenty full-page illustrations by World of Warcraft artist Peter Lee and is the first in a multi-part series exploring the Warcraft universe, from its distant past to the current era. Volume 1 covers the creation of the Warcraft universe up to the story of the original Warcraft: Orcs & Humans.
• Featuring over twenty full-page illustrations by fan favorite Peter Lee!
• Must-read companion to the Warcraftseries.
• Never-before-revealed secrets of the Warcraft universe!
The preview shows that Azeroth is as fun and imaginative as any fictional world I've seen, and the art is excellent. If I played World of Warcraft, this would be a must-buy. I don't, so it's not. But if any of you are WoW enthusiasts ... well, I expect you've ordered this book already.
DC COMICS
BATMAN V. SUPERMAN POLYBAGGED VARIANT COVERS
Here are this week's variant covers for Super/Bat books. I'm not quite sure what the value is of some covers being only partially colored, but I guess just having them to chase makes it fun.
ROBIN: SON OF BATMAN #10
Written by PATRICK GLEASON
Art and cover by PATRICK GLEASON and MICK GRAY
Polybagged variant cover by RYAN OTTLEY
32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
The Son of Batman faces the Son of Lu’un Darga! Damian, Maya, Goliath and their new friends seek out Talia al Ghul in order to fight back against the rising threat of the Lu’un Darga family, only to come face to face with the rival clan’s champion, young Den Darga! Has Damian finally met his match?
This issue features open-to-order variant covers that will ship in opaque polybags.
SUPERMAN #50
Written by GENE LUEN YANG
Art by HOWARD PORTER
Cover by JOHN ROMITA, JR. and KLAUS JANSON
Polybagged variant cover by KAARE ANDREWS
48 pg, FC, $4.99 US • RATED T
Superman returns in all his glory in this very special issue that sees the Man of Steel back to full power as he faces his greatest enemy and also comes face to face with the pre-Flashpoint Kal-El! At last, it’s the meeting of the Supermen you’ve been waiting for!
This issue features open-to-order variant covers that will ship in opaque polybags.
SUPERMAN/WONDER WOMAN #27
Written by PETER J. TOMASI
Art by DOUG MAHNKE and JAIME MENDOZA
Cover by ED BENES
Polybagged variant cover by CHARLIE ADLARD
32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
“Savage Dawn” continues from this month’s ACTION COMICS #50! A comet drawn by Vandal Savage to Earth is wreaking havoc across the globe—and empowering his children in the most dangerous way possible!
This issue features open-to-order variant covers that will ship in opaque polybags.ASTRO CITY #33
Written by KURT BUSIEK
Art by BRENT ANDERSON
Cover by ALEX ROSS
32 pg, FC, $3.99 US • RATED T
Steeljack and Cutlass rekindle old memories, and more, as they plumb the depths of Astro City’s demimonde to try to clear her name. And, more ex-villains are getting in trouble. Plus: Introducing the Fix-It Man—and the indescribable threat of Retro Rocky’s Superbistro.
Astro City alert! Continuing a new Steeljack story by Busiek/Anderson, which is pretty much as good as it gets.
BATMAN VOL. 8: SUPERHEAVY (HC)
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Art by GREG CAPULLO, DANNY MIKI and JOCK
Cover by GREG CAPULLO and DANNY MIKI
160 pg, FC, $24.99 US
After his deadliest battle to date, Batman is bruised, battered and scarred. And forever changed. Now, a figure in an 8-foot mechanized suit of armor roams the streets of Gotham City. More powerful than ever before, Batman’s pursuit of justice has never been more swift or efficient. But who is the new Dark Knight? And why is he ... or she here? Plus, learn the secret origin of the strange new villain known as Mr. Bloom! Collects BATMAN #41-45 and a story from DC COMICS DIVERGENCE #1.
I've generally had a blast with the Snyder/Capullo Batman, but I had less fun with this one. To point out one obvious reason: There's no Batman.
As everyone reading this probably knows, Batman is presumed dead, and yet another longtime Gotham fixture that we've never heard about before -- a company that has absorbed Wayne Industries -- has built a robot Batman suit for ex-Commissioner Gordon to use as a new Robobunny Batman.
There's also no Robin. Or even Bluebird, or whatever the new girl calls herself. I guess they're all off having their own adventures at the moment, either in Batman and Robin Forever or Robin Son of Batman. Whatever, they ain't here. Of the usual supporting cast, there's Alfred and ... well, there's Alfred. Bruce Wayne is alive, but his memories are missing. (In a nice nod to Batman history, he's taken up with his old girlfriend from the early 1940s, Julie Madison.)
I also feel something else is missing: a transition. The previous volume ended with Batman and Joker presumed dead. This one opens with Batman dead as an established fact, and Wayne Industries somehow no more as well. There's no mourning, no funeral -- the only Justice Leaguer who even seems to notice is Superman, who shows up in Clark Kent mufti, apparently aware of the Bruce Wayne situation. I guess Snyder didn't bother with the scenes setting up the current status quo as too boring, or maybe it all took place in other titles.
Either way, this whole storyline feels like a placeholder until Batman comes back. Not bad for what it is, but not terribly satisfying.
COLORING DC: BATMAN ADVENTURES – MAD LOVE (TPB)
Written by PAUL DINI and BRUCE TIMM
Art and cover by BRUCE TIMM
96 pg, B&W, $15.99 US
DC Comics presents classic adventures in a whole new way: in black and white, on heavy stock suitable for coloring! This Eisner Award-winning tale told the origin of Harley Quinn, by the creative team that first introduced her in Batman: The Animated Series! Includes MAD LOVE, plus stories from BATMAN ADVENTURES ANNUAL #1 and BATMAN ADVENTURES HOLIDAY SPECIAL #1.
Given the cartoony art style of Batman Adventures, this seems like a custom-made coloring book. I'm tempted to get it myself! One question: What do adult coloring enthusiasts color with? Crayons? Magic markers? Colored pencils? I'm genuinely asking, because I do not know.
LEGENDS OF TOMORROW #1
Cover by AARON LOPRESTI
80 pg, FC, $7.99 US • RATED T
It’s four powerhouse tales in one colossal comic, as some of comics’ most legendary talents launch new tales of Firestorm, Metamorpho, Metal Men and Sugar and Spike—that’s right, Sugar and Spike!
This new anthology series will reunite several characters from DC Comics’ rich history with the writers that made them fan favorites: Gerry Conway returns to Firestorm, Len Wein will handle the writing chores on Metal Men, Aaron Lopresti will pen Metamorpho, while the always interesting Keith Giffen puts his own unique spin on one of DC’s more offbeat titles, Sugar & Spike.
FIRESTORM, written by Gerry Conway with art by Eduardo Pansica and Rob Hunter: Firestorm is back! To save Jason Rausch, Firestorm will need to retrieve Danton Black’s stolen research from Professor Stein’s lab. But if Jason can’t fuse with Ronnie by the Firestorm Protocol … who can?
METAL MEN, written by Len Wein with art by Yildiray Cinar and Trevor Scott: Doctor Will Magnus’ Metal Men may be the next step in robotics technology, but when the mysterious cyber-terrorist known only as Nameless comes after them, they may have met their match!
METAMORPHO, written by Aaron Lopresti with art by Aaron Lopresti and Matt Banning: Metamorpho—a prisoner of millionaire industrialist Simon Stagg! Now, the only person who can save him is Stagg’s beautiful daughter, Sapphire!? But can they defeat Stagg’s prehistoric bodyguard, Java?
SUGAR & SPIKE, written by Keith Giffen with art by Bilquis Evely: The last time we saw Sugar and Spike, they were still in diapers! Now, they’re grown up, and they’ve become private investigators who specialize in cleaning up embarrassing problems for the DCU’s greatest heroes. Sugar & Spike’s first assignment: retrieve a cache of Batman’s retired costumes that have been stolen by Killer Moth!
Is this a hint that Legends of Tomorrow will feature Metal Men, Metamorpho or Sugar & Spike in the future? Nah, that's too far-fetched. But it's nice that DC is attempting an anthology to give these second-tier concepts a little love.
QUARANTINE ZONE (HC)
Written by DANIEL H. WILSON
Art by FERNANDO PASARIN and MATT RYAN
Cover by MASSIMO CARNEVALE
160 pg, FC, $22.99 US
In the future, humanity has discovered the root of all evil: a virus that modifies the neural pathways for empathy. Those infected have been forcibly imprisoned in the Quarantine Zone—regardless of whether they choose to do good or evil.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world is sterile and crime-free, but permeated by an oppressive, paranoid fear of new outbreaks of the malnoro virus.
Written by New York Times best-selling novelist Daniel H. Wilson, QUARANTINE ZONE is an action/sci-fi original graphic novel that examines questions about free will and the nature of good and evil. Co-published with Alloy Entertainment.
This GN is actually published by DC, not Vertigo, in conjunction with something called Alloy Entertainment, but isn't connected to the DCU. It's written by Daniel Wilson, who's written a couple of SF novels and currently writes Earth 2: Society. I didn't get a DRC, so I don't know any more about it than what's said above.
SUPERMAN: THE GOLDEN AGE VOL. 1 (TPB)
Written by JERRY SIEGEL
Art by JOE SHUSTER
Cover by DARWYN COOKE
384 pg, FC, $19.99 US
The original tales of the Man of Tomorrow are collected in trade paperback from the pages ACTION COMICS #1-12, SUPERMAN #1-4 and WORLD’S FAIR COMICS #1. Written by Jerry Siegel and illustrated by Joe Shuster, this title includes the first appearances of Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, and Superman’s alter ego Clark Kent, as well as the first use of his x-ray vision.
I'm tempted to get this because it combines all of Superman's solo stories in one place (which I guess excludes only his cameos in All-Star Comics), avoiding a huge mistake made by the Archives series.
If you don't know -- and most of you probably do -- DC's Archives line separates the Man of Steel's Golden Age appearances into three series, Superman, Superman in Action Comics and Superman in World's Finest.
That may not sound like a big deal, but for a guy like me it is. Say I want to research Luthor's transition from red-haired mad scientist assistant to bald mad scientist. If the stories were collected chronologically as in the collection above, it's easy-peasy: Just flip through and note each Luthor appearance. But if I use the Archives, I have to flip through all three series, noting each appearance while flipping to the front to get the date, and then putting them in chronological order myself. Irritating and time-consuming.
Of course, I have these early stories in two or three different formats already, so I'm not going to buy this. I did, however, want to whinge!
IDW PUBLISHING
3 DEVILS #1 (of 4)
Writer/Art/Cover: BO HAMPTON
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
3 Devils, from writer/artist Bo Hampton, is a high-action, supernatural western that centers around a pact of vengeance sworn by a tragically orphaned Gypsy girl, an ex-slave with no soul and a carnival freak billed as the Human Wolf. Gaining strength and courage from each other, they set off across the Old West—in search of the three hideous, inhuman entities that caused their torment and haunt their lives.
A supernatural western from writer/artist Bo Hampton (New Mutants, Batman: Castle of the Bat)!
Do you think comic books invented the supernatural Western? Wikipedia seems to think so, and I can't think of any contradictory evidence.
The first time I can remember stumbling across the genre and realizing it was a genre was DC's Weird Western Tales in the 1970s. Later in life, I'd see the occasional story reprinted from the pre-Code '50s where horror and Western tropes were mixed, although I don't know if there was a regular weird Western series of any kind. Offhand I don't recall books, movies or TV doing similar until an occasional Twilight Zone episode from the early 1960s. Weird Western seems to have been the first Western with supernatural elements as an ongoing, deliberate genre-mixer.
Anybody know?
Anyway, I do like this genre mix, and look forward to this series. Hopefully it's more straightforward and gritty than Pretty Deadly, which I found pretty disappointing.
ARCHIE'S AMERICANA BOX SET: 1940S–1970s
Writer/Art/Cover: BOB MONTANA
HC • FC • $99.99 • 776 pages
In 1941, Pep Comics introduced Archie Andrews, starring in outrageous tales of dating woes, high-school hi-jinx and slapstick mayhem. Since then, Archie and his teenage friends have entertained young and old alike with their hilarious misadventures. Now, experience unforgettable comics moments from the 1940s to the 1970s in this box set collecting four volumes of the Archie's Americana series.
Four decades of the best Archie comics!
If you're into comics history but don't want to buy the entire Dark Horse Archie Archives, this Whitman's sampler is probably the way to go. At $100 it's pricey, but buying the entire Archives -- which I'm doing -- is decidedly pricier!
COMIC BOOK APOCALYPSE: GRAPHIC WORLD OF JACK KIRBY (TPB)
Writers: Various
Art/Cover: JACK KIRBY
SC • PC • 168 pages • 8″ x 12″ • $39.99
A catalog companion to the exhibition Comic Book Apocalypse at California State University, Northridge, Fall 2015. Featuring scholarly essays on the brilliance and diversity Jack Kirby brought to his work, as well as a rare opportunity to view an amazing selection of the Kirby art that was displayed at the exhibition. Essayists include Glen Alan Gold, Diana Schutz, Howard Chaykin, Carla Speed McNeil and others.
Taking an academic approach to Kirby's work almost feels like a betrayal of his everything-into-the-soup, high-energy ethos, and guaranteed to make that vibrant work boring. Outrage! But he's one of the few comics lions whose output and approach genuinely deserve to be studied as well as admired. I'm not the only one who thinks he created the American visual language of comics art virtually single-handedly.
GHOSTBUSTERS: DEVIATIONS (ONE-SHOT)
Writer: KELLY THOMPSON
Art/Cover: NELSON DANIEL
Subscription Variant: DAN SCHOENING
FC • 40 pages • $4.99
In a world, where on that fateful day in New York, the Ghostbusters did NOT cross streams, and were thus unable to destroy Gozer or close his portal. Now, 31 days later, NYC has descended into chaos and ruin, ruled with the deliciously soft fist of … THE STAY-PUFT MARSHMALLOW MAN!
• One event changes everything in the world of DEVIATIONS!
• Extra-length one-shot!
• Find out what happens in a world … where the Ghostbusters NEVER crossed streams!
• Part of IDW’s Deviations 5-week event!
Clearly, the solution to a giant kaiju coporate mascot is another one. I vote we make a giant Pillsbury Doughboy to take on the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man, and if that doesn't work, there's always the Michelin Man. That's a three-way donnybrook I'd pay good money to see!
TRANSFORMERS: DEVIATIONS (ONE-SHOT)
Writer: BRANDON EASTON
Art: PRISCILLA TRAMONTANO
Cover: MARCELO MATERE
Subscription Variant: CASEY W. COLLER
FC • 40 pages • $4.99
In a World … Where OPTIMUS PRIME Never Died! One would stand and one would fall … and we all know OPTIMUS PRIME fell. But how would history have played out if he hadn’t? Would the AUTOBOTS have still stood triumphant in their darkest hour … or would UNICRON have reigned supreme?!
• Extra-length one-shot!
• Find out what happens in a world … where Optimus Prime never died!
• Writer Brandon Easton (TV’s AGENT CARTER) writes his first TRANSFORMERS comic!
• Art from rising star Priscilla Tramontano!
• Part of IDW’s Deviations 5-week event!
I'm not a Transformers reader, so this book wouldn't do me any good. But if you're a Transformers reader, let me know how this "what if" works out vis-a-vis how it actually went. Also, check out the Baron's take on last week's X-Files: Deviations.
WORMWOOD: GENTLEMAN CORPSE OMNIBUS
Writer/Art/Cover: BEN TEMPLESMITH
TPB • FC • $29.99 • 394 pages • 6” x 9”
Wormwood is an intergalactic, inter-dimensional, immortal, happy-go-lucky larval worm-thing with a liking for fine stout, strippers and most of the other vices planet Earth has on offer. Oh yeah, and he wears corpses like suits. Follow along as Wormwood, his robotic drinking companion Mr. Pendulum and his new hire Phoebe take on demonic beings nesting in humans, nasty leprechauns, and the revenge of the Brotherhood of the Calamari. Collects issues #0–8, the One-Shot, Calamari Rising #1–4, and Last Call.
“Brings together all of what makes Ben Templesmith’s work so great–humor, horror, sex, drugs, sarcasm.” –New York Journal of Books
I've read a few issues of Wormwood, and enjoyed them. It's the blackest of black humor, and Templesmith's art is appropriately murky and nasty. Can't say it will be to everyone's taste, but it is to mine.
IMAGE COMICS
THE 13th ARTIFACT (ONE-SHOT)
Writer: AMIT CHAUHAN
Art: ELI POWELL
Cover: LINDA SEJIC
32 PAGES / FC / T+ / $3.99
2015 TOP COW TALENT HUNT WINNER!
Stranded on a mysterious alien planet after her shuttle crashes, astronaut Valentina Kedr is desperate to find a way to survive. With her oxygen rapidly running out, she decides to explore her new surroundings. Upon discovering a civilization on the planet, will her curiosity lead to her downfall?
Does the cover art look familiar? Does the cover artist's name look familiar? It's no coincidence -- Linda Sejic is married to Stjepan Sejic, who has done a lot of Image work (Witchblade, Aphrodite IX, Sunstone). Interesting to see a married couple with such similar art styles, especially when it's such an attractive one.
THE BEAUTY, VOL. 1 (TPB)
Writer: JEREMY HAUN & JASON A. HURLEY
Art/Cover: JEREMY HAUN
160 PAGES / FC / M / $9.99
SPECIAL LOW INTRODUCTORY PRICE OF $9.99
Imagine a sexually transmitted disease that makes those infected better looking... a disease people want. That disease is real, and it's called The Beauty.
Two years after the Beauty burst onto the scene, over half of America is infected. Now, it looks like the downside may be far worse than anyone suspected. Detectives Vaughn and Foster find themselves on the front line of the battle against the Beauty, embroiled in a conspiracy they never knew existed.
Collects THE BEAUTY #1-6.
I've been reading this, and it's really more than a crime thriller than anything else. "The Beauty" is a designer virus that makes the infected beautiful, but eventually kills them. (The "kills them" part was initially not known, so a lot of unsuspecting Beauty users now find themselves on borrowed time.) A couple of maverick police officers are defying their superiors to chase down ... I've forgotten. The makers of Beauty? The kingpin of dealers? Something. I mean, once you read "maverick police officers," you kind of tuned out too, didn't you? So it's a Starsky and Hutch sort of thing, and it's good for what it is. I enjoy it as a police procedural -- I'm not expecting to be wowed by originality, which means I'm unlikely to be disappointed.
Interesting covers, though.
EMPTY ZONE #6
Writer/Art/Cover: JASON SHAWN ALEXANDER
24 PAGES / FC / M / $3.50
NEW STORY ARC
Eisner-award nominated artist Jason Shawn Alexander (Abe Sapien: The Drowning, The Escapists), joined by newcomer and co-writer Darragh Savage, will launch a new story arc in the ongoing dystopian series EMPTY ZONE this March.
Previously in EMPTY ZONE, Corinne White, ex-soldier and black-market spy, was on a slow spiral to oblivion at the bottom of a bottle when she got a message from the ghost of her lover. A psychotic billionaire named Oni, obsessed with finding the secrets of death and immortality, was bionically reanimated corpses. His experiments had ensnared the souls of Corrine's dead friends, and to set them free, she had to kill them. Corrine destroyed Oni's lab in Pittsburgh, but the job wasn’t quite finished ...
EMPTY ZONE #6 introduces us to the cold streets of future Berlin, a pair of doomed lovers, a deadly bounty hunter, and the bloody secret waiting for Corrine in the walled city.
“Now that we’ve established who our main characters are, this arc will be faster-paced, with more intense action and horror,” said Alexander. “Everything has been turned up. But there is also a love story geared to make you hurt a bit. This continues to be the most fun I’ve had working in comics!”
"We want to deliver a book that is beautiful, visceral, psychological and passionate," Savage said. "On a surface level Empty Zone aims to animate horror tropes with injections of future-style and high level visual execution, but at it’s core it is a book about people and what moves them, saves them, or dooms them. It’s for people who like ghost stories or love stories or stories about the future—as long as they like their stories a little on the dark side."
Here's a press release about a new story arc in an existing title, which appears to follow a new Image policy. And it's working on me. I've never read Empty Zone, but now I might start.
NAILBITER: THE DELUXE MURDER EDITION, BOOK 1 (HC)
Writer: JOSHUA WILLIAMSON
Art/Cover: MIKE HENDERSON
304 PAGES / FC / M / $34.99
This deluxe oversized hardcover collects the first ten issues of NAILBITER and features bonus material never before released including sketches, a process section, the original pitch, and script pages.
Collects NAILBITER #1-10.
This must be doing well for Image to do a second, high-end collection series. I like the premise, but never got around to it. Now I might.
NAMELESS (HC)
Writer: GRANT MORRISON
Art/Cover: CHRIS BURNHAM & NATHAN FAIRBAIRN
160 PAGES / FC / M / $19.99
NAMELESS tells the story of a down-at-the-heels occult hustler known only as "Nameless" who is recruited by a consortium of billionaire futurists as part of a desperate mission to save the world. A massive asteroid named Xibalba—the "Place of Fear" in Mayan mythology—is on collision course with the planet Earth. If that wasn't trouble enough, the asteroid has an enormous magical symbol carved into its side and is revealed to be a fragment of our solar system's lost fifth planet, Marduk, destroyed sixty-five million years ago at the end of an epic cosmic war between the inhabitants of Marduk and immensely powerful, life-hating, extra-dimensional "gods." One of those beings is still alive, imprisoned on Xibalba, dreaming of its ultimate revenge on all that exists. When Nameless and his teammates inadvertently unleash this malignant soul-destroying intelligence, the stage is set for a nightmarish, nihilistic journey to the outer reaches of human terror.
I don't want to spoil anything in this series, which I read as individual issues. Suffice to say it's Morrison at his most Morisson-y, with big concepts flying by willy nilly as the story hurtles forward into -- perhaps literally -- insanity. Oddly, that pace and feel reminds me a little of Multiverse. Maybe it's the "interdimensional gods" bit.
Anyway, it's not only borderline insane, it's also pretty gory. I enjoyed it, but I'm not easily disgusted.
ROCHE LIMIT: MONADIC #1 (of 4)
Writer: MICHAEL MORECI
Art/Cover: KYLE CHARLES
32 PAGES / FC / T+ / $3.99
THE CRITICALLY-ACCLAIMED SCI-FI HIT RETURNS FOR ITS THIRD AND FINAL ARC
The bestselling team of writer Michael Moreci (HOAX HUNTERS) and artist Kyle Charles (‘68) will launch the final story arc in their ongoing dark sci-fi series ROCHE LIMIT.
Previously in ROCHE LIMIT, the Roche Limit colony, and consequently most of Earth itself, crumbled under the onslaught of the insidious Black Sun.
Following the fan-and-critic-favorite CLANDESTINY, ROCHE LIMIT: MONADIC #1 kicks off the final chapter in the ROCHE LIMIT trilogy. Earth is in ruins after the Black Sun’s annihilation of the planet. Now, in the last remaining human city, its inhabitants fight for survival while a chosen few realize that their world may not be what it seems.
“After what's still, to me, a surprising amount of success, the Roche Limit story is coming to an end—the end I've always envisioned, and I can't wait to take readers there,” said Moreci. “This volume, Monadic, will continue to push the story deep into cerebral sci-fi and deliver the kind of suspenseful and existential story Roche Limit is known for. I can't wait for it to start, but I'm dreading seeing it end!"
"To go from being a fan, to drawing these last two volumes, is about as weird and odd as the world of Roche Limit, itself,” said Charles. “Our creative team is sad to see the series draw to a conclusion but we're making sure it's going to kick butt for the fans of Roche, new and old."
Roche Limit doesn't start new story arcs, it starts new series. Gets a press release anyway.
MARVEL COMICS
CIVIL WAR CAVALCADE
Here are books 7, 8 and 9 in the Civil War reprints. And, yes, there's more to come.
CIVIL WAR: FANTASTIC FOUR (TPB NEW PRINTING)
Written by J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI, DWAYNE MCDUFFIE, STAN LEE & PAUL POPE
Penciled by MIKE MCKONE, NICK DRAGOTTA & PAUL POPE
Cover by ADI GRANOV
176 PGS / Rated T / $24.99
Whose side are you on? One member of the Fantastic Four lies hospitalized, a casualty of the Civil War that has fragmented the superhuman community! Another member of the team is secretly helping the opposition. It had to happen: Amid the tumult and tensions, the Fantastic Four break up! Who will toe the line, who will join the resistance, and who will leave the battlefield altogether? Is this the end for Marvel’s First Family? Collecting FANTASTIC FOUR (1961) #538-543.
CIVIL WAR: FRONT LINE (TPB)
Written by PAUL JENKINS
Penciled by RAMÓN F. BACHS, STEVE LIEBER,
LEE WEEKS & MORE
Cover by JOHN WATSON
360 PGS / Rated T+ / $34.99
Reporters Ben Urich and Sally Floyd are determined to uncover the secret truth hidden in the heart of the superhuman Civil War. But to find it, they’ll have to brave the front lines of the battle — and that’s a very dangerous place to be. Through interviews with heroes, villains, government officials and power players on both sides, Sally and Ben inch ever closer to unraveling the true motivations behind the war — but some secrets should never be brought to light. Plus: Speedball is public enemy No. 1, jailed and blamed for the Stamford disaster that kicked off the war. Determined to defend himself, he soon finds that he has further to fall than he ever thought possible — and that the road to redemption will take him to a very dark place. Collecting CIVIL WAR: FRONT LINE #1-11.
CIVIL WAR: X-MEN (TPB NEW PRINTING)
Written by DAVID HINE, FABIEN NICIEZA & PETER DAVID
Penciled by YANICK PAQUETTE, AARON LOPRESTI, DENNIS CALERO & STAZ JOHNSON
Cover by JUAN DOE
232 PGS / Rated T+ / $24.99
Enough is enough! The tension between the X-Men, the refugees of the 198 and the Office of National Emergency’s Sentinel guard dogs has finally reached a breaking point. As the superhuman Civil War rips apart the Marvel Universe, the X-Men also find themselves crumbling from the inside out. Will they admit defeat, or will they finally start to fight back? As a very prominent member of the team breaks ranks to join the Pro-Registration movement, and a member of the 198 plots bloody vengeance from within, the original X-Men go rogue in a search for the truth. But the truth might just get them — and half of the world’s very few remaining mutants — killed! Collecting CIVIL WAR: X-MEN #1-4, CABLE & DEADPOOL #30-32 and X-FACTOR (2006) #8-9.
EXTRAORDINARY X-MEN #8
Written by JEFF LEMIRE
Art & Cover by HUMBERTO RAMOS
Connecting Variant by KEN LASHLEY
Classic Variant by LARRY STROMAN
Story Thus Far Variant by TODD NAUCK
Women of Power Variant by LEINIL YU
40 PGS / Rated T+ / $4.99
This March, the Extraordinary X-Men come face-to-face with one of their most fearsome foes. Marvel is pleased to present EXTRAORDINARY X-MEN #8 – the first chapter of the “APOCALYPSE WARS” storyline. Be there as creators Jeff Lemire and Humberto Ramos take you into the far-flung future. Mutantkind is an endangered species once more – what better way to ensure your people make it to tomorrow – than to skip ahead right to it? As the mutant race’s last hope is jettisoned into the time stream, the Extraordinary X-Men make a startling discovery: the fate of their kind is about to fall into the hands of one of their most formidable adversaries – the immortal Apocalypse! Now, Storm and her team must race into a perilous and deadly future if they are to have any hope of reclaiming their present! Only they’re completely unaware of the horrors that await them on the other side. Be there as the flagship X-Men title kicks off a blockbuster Apocalypse tale this March in EXTRAORDINARY X-MEN #8!
I was realizing the other day that not only has Marvel diminished the importance of mutants in the Marvel U, but whether planned or not, they've basically killed off all the characters that say "X-Men" to me. Half of the six original X-Men, and the three most important, are dead (Prof. X, Cyclops and Marvel Girl), leaving the three boring ones. Wolverine, the most interesting of the All-New era characters -- and the face of the franchise for the last 20 years or so -- is also dead. No wonder Magneto is the star of Uncanny X-Men: He's basically the most interesting X-character left!
That complaint is reflected in Extraordinary as well, which got a press release for the new story arc starting this week. I like Storm, but after that, my interest drops off. I have next to no interest in (faux) Wolverine, Colossus (boring), Marvel Girl (faux) or Iceman (making him gay doesn't overcome 50 years of boring).
Incidentally, I think Cover A is an homage to The X-Men (first series) #55. Cover B looks familiar, but I can't place it. Maybe it's just because the arms of two characters form an "X."
INTERNATIONAL IRON MAN #1
Written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
Art & Cover by ALEX MALEEV
Variant Cover by GABRIELE DELL’OTTO
Young Variant by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Action Figure Variant by JOHN TYLER CHRISTOPHER
Hip-Hop Variant by MARCO D’ALFONSO
32 PGS / Rated T+ / $3.99
This March, ask yourself – who is Tony Stark, really? Is he the super hero known as Iron Man? Is he the billionaire philanthropist genius? Or is he something more? Find out this March as the Eisner Award-winning creative team of Brian Michael Bendis (Invincible Iron Man, Daredevil, Guardians of the Galaxy) and Alex Maleev (Daredevil, Moon Knight) present a completely new take on the Armored Avenger!
Now is the time to uncover what his legacy truly is, a journey that will carry Tony into new directions as a man and a hero. Traveling the globe, Iron Man will discover new things about the Marvel Universe he didn’t know existed before!
As technology and globalization continue to reduce the size of the world stage, Marvel continues to reflect the world outside our windows and brings the “Golden Avenger” to defend the globe. “I think we all, no matter where we are in our lives, feel that the world has gotten much smaller,” said Bendis while speaking with Entertainment Weekly. “We can all reach out to each other no matter where we are in the world. We feel each other’s pains and victories. I think for Tony it’s like that times 100. He’s much more aware of the global situation and how a big fight with Galactus in New York would affect things in other parts of the world.”
Tony Stark is a futurist. He anticipates threats to come and plans for them. That mentality is what leads Tony to take Iron Man out of New York and proactively taking on threats across the globe. “If I was a villain, New York is the last place I’d attack, because you know, just by math, there are 700 superheroes in a 17-block radius. I’d go anywhere else,” explains Bendis. “We’ll be dealing with some of the criminals in the Marvel Universe who are smart enough to put that together in their head finally. Tony’s gonna be racing to help people that don’t necessarily always get the attention of the Marvel superheroes.”
Accompanying Iron Man on his new global – an unlikely partner who knows everything there is to know about the dark underbelly of the Marvel Universe – Doctor Doom! “Doom knows where the bodies are buried … he knows a lot of stuff that Tony doesn’t know.”
Additionally, not only will Iron Man reach out worldwide, but so will the actual published comic book. Working with a number of Marvel licensees, INTERNATIONAL IRON MAN will be translated into the respected languages of 25 different countries and will be printed for over 40 different countries in English.
Strap in and suit up, True Believers. Coming in early 2016, Bendis and Maleev reunite for an armored adventure that establishes Iron Man as global advisory for all of those who stand against him in the Marvel Universe. Don’t miss the blockbuster INTERNATIONAL IRON MAN #1!
Tony Stark has always had more potential than we saw for his first 40 years or so, where he always hung around his Long Island plant. It took Robert Downey Jr. to make him a star, and now we get to Stark as the international jet-setter (as well as businessman and superhero) that it was always implied he was. So yay for that!
SECRET WARS (HC)
Written by JONATHAN HICKMAN
Penciled by ESAD RIBIC & PAUL RENAUD
Cover by ALEX ROSS
224 PGS / Rated T+ / $49.99
Trim size: oversized
The Marvel Universe is no more! The interdimensional Incursions have eliminated each and every alternate universe one by one. And now — despite the best efforts of the scientists, sages and superhumans — the Marvel Universe and Ultimate Universe have collided…and been destroyed! All that exists in the vast empty cosmos is a single, titanic patchwork planet made of the fragmented remains of hundreds of devastated dimensions: Battleworld! And the survivors of this multiversal catastrophe all bend their knee to Battleworld’s master: Doctor Doom! What strange creatures inhabit this world? Which familiar faces will return? And what happens when Battleworld’s various domains go to war? The Marvel Universe is dead — and the victors of the Secret Wars will determine what comes next! Collecting SECRET WARS (2015) #1-8 and material from FREE COMIC BOOK DAY 2015: SECRET WARS #0.
I was always planning to buy this book. But it almost seems irrelevant now. What say you, Secret Wars readers? Is it still important enough, or good story enough, that I should read it?
Replies
OTHER PUBLISHERS
A&A: THE ADVENTURES OF ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #1
Written by RAFER ROBERTS
Art by DAVID LAFUENTE
Cover A by DAVID LAFUENTE
Cover B by KANO
Cover C by TREVOR HAIRSINE
Valiant x CGC Replica Variant by CLAYTON HENRY
Variant Cover by RAFER ROBERTS
Variant Cover by PHIL JIMENEZ
B&W Sketch Variant by DAVID LAFUENTE
Blank Cover also available
Teaser Artwork by DAVID LAFUENTE with RYAN WINN and BRIAN REBER
$3.99 | 32 pgs. | T+
GET SMASHED ... OR BE SMASHED! This spring, Valiant's award-winning heroes are back …and dropping into their biggest adventure yet for an all-new monthly series!
Valiant is proud to present A&A: THE ADVENTURES OF ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #1 – the FIRST ISSUE of the NEW ONGOING SERIES from red-hot rising star Rafer Roberts (Plastic Farm) and superstar artist David Lafuente (Ultimate Spider-Man)! Valiant's next blockbuster series starts here on March 16 with "IN THE BAG" – an insane rescue mission sending Archer into the depths of Armstrong's bottomless satchel to free his roguish partner from an ages-old enemy … but only if he can fight his way through a mind-bending maze of history's greatest lost treasures first!
MEET ARCHER: A sheltered teenage martial arts master and expert marksman who was raised for a single purpose – to kill the devil incarnate. Little did he know that this undying evil was actually Armstrong (he’s actually a pretty good guy once you get to know him) and, since hitting the road together, these two have become great friends and even better partners.
NOW: Archer is about to set off on his most dangerous mission yet – a quest into the mystic reaches of Armstrong’s bottomless satchel to liberate his friend and comrade from the clutches of the mad god Bacchus! (Okay, so, Armstrong went into the satchel himself to get a bottle of whiskey that he kinda misplaced and got stuck. It’s like the Amazon warehouse of arcane treasures in there…and he doesn’t exactly have a maid service.)
"A&A: THE ADVENTURES OF ARCHER & ARMSTRONG is a funny book. It is also action-packed and full of strange and surreal characters and situations. However, under all the humor and surrealness, there is a great deal of heart," series writer Rafer Roberts told ComicBook.com.
"One of the most satisfying things I get to play with in A&A is the fluid dynamic of a strong friendship under the guise of a manic action series. Like in any relationship there will be ups and downs. There will be good times spent fighting an army of lizard-men and trash golems, and bad times where they are getting their asses kicked by an 80-foot tall goat monster that they unleashed upon the Earth.”
All this … plus the return of Mary-Maria and the Sisters of Perpetual Darkness! The landmark first appearance of Davey the Mackerel! Fleabag motels! A taste of the world's greatest whiskey! And surprises galore! Take two aspirin and call us in the morning because, on March 16th, Valiant's history-smashing heroes are going "IN THE BAG" for A&A: THE ADVENTURES OF ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #1 – featuring covers by David Lafuente (Patsy Walker: Hellcat), Kano (Swamp Thing), Trevor Hairsine (DIVINITY), Clayton Henry (HARBINGER WARS), Rafer Roberts (Carpool Buddies of Doom), and Phil Jimenez (Infinite Crisis)!
An immortal mischief-maker, a teenage assassin with a heart of gold, and the Greek god of partying walk into a fifth-dimensional messenger bag … stop us if you've heard this one before when "IN THE BAG" starts with a bang on March 16th, only in A&A: THE ADVENTURES OF ARCHER & ARMSTRONG #1.
Whew! That's a lot of words! Believe me, there were a lot more before I combined all the press releases I've been getting.
And they might be justified. The plot, as can be gleaned from above, is that Archer goes into his "magic" bag (it's some sort of tesseract) for something, and ever-naive Archer goes in to "rescue" him, leaving the untrustworthy Mary-Maria to guard the bag (hint: there's a reason she's untrustworthy). Anyway, there's lot of interesting stuff in the bag, including a Greco-Roman god with a grudge.
So there's action a-plenty, but also a lot of humor. I chuckled all the way through this first issue, and found all the major characters somewhat endearing. YMMV, of course, but I recommend it.
CASCADE O' CAPTAIN CANUCK
Publisher: CHAPTERHOUSE COMICS; Writer: ED BRISSON; Art: GEORGE FREEMAN; Cover: MICHAEL ROOTH; $4.99
The original Captain Canuck is back in a brand new ongoing series! Trapped in the past, and pursued by the enigmatic aliens that gave him his powers, Captain Canuck must fight to return to his own time before it is too late!
Brought to you by the blockbuster team of Ed Brisson (Batman and Rob-in Eternal, The Violent) and fan favourite original Captain Canuck artist George Freeman!
All New Captain Canuck #1 is the perfect jumping on point for new read-ers and the triumphant return longtime fans have been waiting for!
CAPTAIN CANUCK 2015 ONGOING #7
Publisher: CHAPTERHOUSE COMICS; Writer: KALMAN ANDRASOFSZKY; Art: LEONARD KIRK; Cover: KALMAN ANDRASOFSZKY; $3.99
Site ALEPH is secured. Captain Canuck and his brother Michael finally have a working pact. Equilibrium is ready to explode onto the world stage and do good on a global scale. So everything's great, right? Wrong. Captain Canuck's second dynamic arc "The Gauntlet" starts here!
CAPTAIN CANUCK VOL 1: ALEPH (TPB)
Publisher: CHAPTERHOUSE COMICS; Writer: KALMAN ANDRASOFSZKY; Art: LEONARD KIRK; Cover: KALMAN ANDRASOFSZKY; $19.95
Born of the true north and tested in war, Captain Canuck is thrust into battle at the head of the global crisis intervention agency Equilibrium. He must find his way as a warrior, leader and ultimately hero to save humanity from the machinations of Mr. Gold and Blue Fox, and the even more menacing forces that watch in the shadows. Collects issues #1-6 and features a full variant cover gallery by Cary Nord, Fiona Staples, Marcus To, John Gallagher, Cameron Stewart and Leonard Kirk.
Chapterhouse Comics is a gen-yoo-wine Canadian publisher, which alone makes me want to support it. But I haven't seen any of these books yet, so I'll wait and see.
Script: MARK WAID
Art: FIONA STAPLES, ANNIE WU, VERONICA FISH, ANDRE SZYMANOWICZ, JEN VAUGHN, JACK MORELLI
Cover: FIONA STAPLES
$19.99 / $21.99 CAN / 6 5/8 x 10 3/16” / TPB / 160 pp, Full Color
ARCHIE, one of the longest-running titles in comic book history, is rebooted here in this full-color collection that brings together two of the most talented creators in comics, Mark Waid and Fiona Staples. Together they create a surprising and definitive take on the origins of everyone’s favorite redheaded teen and his friends while showcasing the beginnings of the historic love triangle between Archie, Betty and Veronica. The book captures the bite and hilarious edge of Archie’s original tales in a modern, forward-looking manner, while still retaining the character’s all-ages appeal. ARCHIE Vol. 1 collects ARCHIE #1-6 and features bonus content including scripts, sketches and variant covers.
Some here have expressed reservations about the new Archie, but I found it a tour de force by Mark Waid. Fiona Staples (Saga) is no slouch either, so all in all I found the new Archie a terrific book.
Publisher: ALTERNATIVE COMICS
Writer/Art/Cover: RICH TOMMASO
Mature / $14.95
Abigail is an aspiring hitwoman out to prove her value to the family. She braves the wilds of Newark: overpriced parking, traffic jams, and bad hair days, to track down Trevor -- her former mentor -- who is on the lam with a big briefcase of mob dough. From the creator of Image Comics' Dark Corridor.
That cover art shows a Dan Clowes influence to me, which gives me expectations of what the story might be like. That could be entirely misleading, though. Has anyone read this book? GIven the title, it's a pretty good bet it was first published 20 years ago.
DIMENSION W VOL 1 (GN)
2072 CE. With the invention of cross-dimensional electromagnetic inductors known as "coils," the world's energy crisis has long been solved. Kyouma Mabuchi is a "Collector" who makes his living by recovering illegal coils for the powers that be. When his latest gig brings him upon a mysterious girl named Mira, little does he know that their meeting will bring them both closer to the secrets behind "Dimension W," the fourth dimension, beyond X, Y and Z, that powers the world. So begins this progressive sci-fi tale where the future of science and humanity itself may very well hang in the balance!
First issue alert!
Publisher: JOE BOOKS INC.
Writer/Art: DISNEY
$29.99
Winnie the Pooh is hungry. Again. The lovable bear's search for honey brings him to Christopher Robin's doorstep, but he's not home. There is, instead, a note. Winne the Pooh, Eeyore, Owl, Rabbit, Piglet, Kanga, Roo, and Tigger believe Christopher Robin has been taken by the fearsome Backson. To rescue their friend, the group sets out to entrap the creature. But, as happens in the Hundred Acre Wood, things never quite go as planned. And Pooh remains hungry. The beloved 2011 Disney film is brought to exciting life in this heartwarming graphic novel.
Disney-book-not-published-by-Marvel alert! (I know, I know, I'm like a dog with a bone. But it stuns me that Disney contracts outside comics publishers when it's got the largest comics publisher in North America under its roof.)
DOORMAN #1
Henry Clay Waters is The Doorman of Earth and hasn't had an interstellar visitor in decades until ... his last day on the job when an extraterrestrial assassin darkens his doorstep. Saved by the neurotic alien Detective Flower, the two must team up to solve the galaxy's biggest mystery or get killed trying!
First issue alert!
ELASTICATOR #1
It's the debut issue of the next great modern superhero! In this neo-crime epic, we follow The Elasticator (aka Mikey Mazzagatti) as he tells us his story of life in Brooklyn during the height of the recession. With a city on its knees and organized crime working alongside the government, Mikey must push past his own troubles towards a greater good. Mixing equal parts humor and grit, Mikey goes from outcast to a neighborhood icon. Mikey pulls no punches as he tells a story of regret, hardship, and second chances.
Another first issue alert! I wish I had more to say, but I'm not getting DRCs for these off-brand titles.
EVEN SO I WILL LOVE YOU TENDERLY (GN)
Writer/Art/Cover: KOU YONEDA; $13.95
Ryo Onoda is a straight guy and he is three years younger than Harumi Deguchi. They have nothing in common and at first, they were just friends. But that's not enough for Harumi -- he wants more from Ryo and he realizes that he has fallen in love with him. Feeling anxious and emotional, he wants to tell him how he feels ... but he can't. Fearing rejection, he'd rather be just friends and not ruin what he has with him. Here we have a story of pain, sorrow and happiness of being in love.
First issue alert!
I'm still adjusting to the existence of the yaoi genre, which makes no sense to me. (Why isn't the target market gay males? What do female teens get out of it?) I'm also uncomfortable with the tropes of the genre, with a "top" -- usually older and aggressive -- stalking and pursuing a passive "bottom." It feels abusive to me. It's probably a cultural thing that resonates perfectly with its target audience, but not with me, because I'm not Japanese.
Anyway, if you like "pain, sorrow and happiness of being in love" between two guys, here ya go.
Publisher: KODANSHA COMICS
Writer: MAG HSU; Art/Cover: NAO EMOTO; $10.99
Serizawa is a twentysomething working at a divorce attorney's office. Walking home from work one day, he gets into an accident, and a woman carries him to an ambulance. Later, at the hospital, still bleary, he receives a phone call from the woman who saved his life. This person knows intimate details about him ... but he's not sure who it is. Serizawa's gentle personality has drawn lots of girls to him since his childhood, but he's far from perfect. Was it someone he loved and lost? Or perhaps someone he wronged, to whom he failed to make amends? A collection of love stories told through extended flashbacks to different periods in Serizawa's life.
First issue alert!
Also, an anthology of stories about this guy's love life, which might gives us more pain, sorrow and happiness of being in love.
Publisher: BOOM! STUDIOS
Writer/Art: MADÉLEINE FLORES; Cover: NICK SUMIDA; $19.99
What's to Love: Madeleine Flores' tale of a smart, hilarious, and intensely capable little warrior enchanted us immediately with its unique sense of humor and manga-influenced look and feel. If you love the brand of kick-butt girl power that the Lumberjanes bring to the page each month, then this sword-wielding girl and her hilarious adventures will be exactly what you need. Also, there are witches who turn everyone to hunks. What's not to love?
What It Is: Based on Madeleine Flores' popular webcomic, Help Us! Great Warrior is about a very powerful Great Warrior (natch) who protects her village from evildoers and looks great in her armor while doing it. Possessing great strength and even greater self-confidence, she's ready to kick some butts and save everyone, especially hunky guys. Collects the complete six-issue mini-series.
First issue alert! Also, does this seem to have an Adventure Time vibe to anyone else?
HUMAN RESOURCES (GN)
Writer: MICHAEL SHEAR; Art: JERRY RASCOE, HAROLD SAXON; Cover: JERRY RASCOE, CHANDRAN PONNUSAM; 414.95
Unemployed men's magazine editor Mark is selling his soul in a buyer's market. After pitching to every magazine on the market and failing, he then begins to look for work in other fields and lands an interview with Sunshine Capital Life. Selling life insurance does not seem like the type of job he wants, but they make an offer too good to refuse. Sure, the boss is a little creepy and his assistant carries a blade from a paper cutter, but they have a way of getting what they want.
First issue alert!
IMPERIUM #14
Art by KHARI EVANS
Cover A by GIUSEPPE CAMUNCOLI
Cover B by CAFU
Variant Cover by JUAN JOSÉ RYP
$3.99 | 32 pgs. | T+
“STORMBREAK” – PART 2! Toyo Harada has brought war to the Foundation Zone … and Livewire and H.A.R.D. Corps are manning the frontline!
To his enemies, Harada is a despotic madman with a messiah complex. But to countless refugees and subjects of tyranny, Harada has been a savior and a benevolent provider. Now his world-changing Foundation Zone has grown faster than even he planned for. With diseases to cure, mouths to feed … and all of humanity to save … Harada will go to war against former allies and longtime enemies. At stake? The resources he needs for the Foundation Zone to succeed. In the balance? Everything Harada has ever built and fought for.
One of my favorite Valiant books.
JAMES BOND #5
Art: JASON MASTERS
Cover: DOM REARDON
32 pages / Teen + / $3.99
Bond is locked in a death trap in a medical lab in the middle of Berlin, London is going into meltdown as poisoned drugs are turning homes into abattoirs, and the only way to save Britain is the secret of someone or something called ... VARGR. Dynamite Entertainment proudly continues the first James Bond comic book series in over 20 years! "Ian Fleming's James Bond is an icon, and it's a delight to tell visual narratives with the original, brutal, damaged Bond of the books." -- Warren Ellis
Still working for me, as Ellis restrains his wilder impulses to present a subdued SF story that works in Bond's world. But I have to say I'm beginning to find it a bit too subdued. More Ellis craziness, please.
LORDS OF THE JUNGLE #1
Writer: CORINNA BECHKO; Art: ROBERTO CASTRO; Cover A: ALEX ROSS; Cover B: ROBERTO CASTRO
32 pages / Teen + / $3.99
Tarzan has long been the protector of his jungle stronghold, but this time the fight has to be taken to his enemy's territory, deep in the heart of London. Half a world away and nearly a century later, Sheena is battling foes of her own when she is mysteriously swept through time and space to 1930s Africa, leaving her own land unprotected. Will these two Lords of the Jungle find enough common ground to join forces? Or will the resulting culture clash lead to mutual destruction?
Tarzan doesn't make an appearance until the last page, so the book is mostly a Sheena story. There's more to come, though, so a proper team-up is inevitable. (In case you're wondering, Sheena went through some sort of mystical time warp to get back to 1936, where/when Tarzan is).
It was OK, but the art -- which shows some Continuity Studios influence -- didn't wow me.
LOST IN SPACE #1
Irwin Allen's legendary Sci-Fi property returns! Before being prematurely canceled during its third season, LOST IN SPACE had several screenplays lined up and ready to film. These are those lost episodes, adapted for comics from screenwriter Carey Wilber's original teleplays! First up is "The Curious Galactics", a three-part tale that sends John Robinson, Will Robinson, and Major Don West from a run-of-the-mill radar scouting mission into a potentially deadly alien maze.
The logo and the painted covers looked familiar, and sure enough, when I checked the Comics Cave these look a lot like the 1991 Lost in Space series published by Innovation. But these particular stories aren't from that run, so either they're aping the style or these were prepped for publishing 30 years ago but never got printed.
MYSTERIOUS GIRLFRIEND X VOL 1 (GN)
Writer/Art/Cover: RIICHI UESHIBA; $15.95
Akira Tsubaki happens to fall hard for Mikoto Urabe, who just transferred into his class. This obsession eventually leads to Akira building uo an extremely high fever. Urabe claims the cause is lovesickness which only she can cure. Each of the 6 volumes of this series will be a 440-page omnibus paperbacks collecting two volumes of the Japanese edition. Each book will feature color plates, letters to the author and extra comics that were never translated before.
First issue alert!
THE NIKOPOL TRILOGY
Writer/Art/Cover: ENKI BILAL
176 pages / 9.6 x 0.6 x 12.8 inches / $34.99
BACK IN PRINT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 20 YEARS!
Titan Comics breathes new life into the previously unavailable French cult classic, The Nikopol Trilogy by writer and artist Enki Bilal.
After being out of print for 20 years, Titan Comics present a brand new translation for a whole new generation of readers to enjoy. Publishers Weekly described Enki Bilal's The Nikopol Trilogy as "an extraordinary comics literary achievement and a crackling good story"!
The Nikiopol Trilogy's groundbreaking ideas not only captured the imagination of readers but went on to inspire the 2004 movie, Immortal.
For 30 years, Alcide Nikopol has floated alone in space, sentenced to cryo-preservation. When he finally returns to Earth, the year is 2023, and the world has been ravaged by two nuclear wars!
But the strangest change in the world floats above Paris – a giant pyramid, home to the recently returned Egyptian Gods, who would like to reclaim humanity as theirs, if only they could all agree …
"I’m beside myself with excitement about,' said editor, Lizzie Kaye. "It has been out in English before, but many, many years ago, and it’s been out of print for a long time. It’s one of those books that you want for your own collection so you obsessively watch listings just to hopefully get one. It’s been one of those books for me for the last decade, obsessively watching the listings, I’m beyond excited and it’s going to be wonderful.”
I have a copy of this book from when Humanoids published it in 1999, with a chewed corner where my dog teethed on it when she was a puppy. (No, I didn't yell at her. It was too cute.) Like most European books of the late 20th century, I had trouble following the story, but really enjoyed the art.
PARADISE RESIDENCE VOL 1 (GN)
Writer/Art/Cover: KOSUKE FUJISHIMA; $13.99
The new series from the creator of the classic manga Oh My Goddess! Hatsune Takanashi is not the best of students -- her grades are subpar, she hates homework and the only thing that will rouse her from bed in the morning is the promise of pudding. But for all her drawbacks, Hatsune is full of energy and intends to make the best of her time at Ritsukan Boarding School, an all-girls high school atop a mountain that has been called a high school girl's paradise. With a cast of characters that includes the clumsy and chipper Hatsune Takahashi, a pint-sized house mother and a brazen British exchange student, the lives of the girls at Kitsuka Boarding School are full of hijinks and new, exciting experiences.
First issue alert!
I'm guessing most high school girls wouldn't call anything without high school boys "paradise." But I've never been a high school girl, so I could be wrong.
PATIENCE (HC)
Writer/Art/Cover: DAN CLOWES
180 pages / 7.75" x 10" / $29.99
Fantagraphics Books is proud to announce Patience, the first all-new, original graphic novel from Daniel Clowes (Ghost World) in more than half a decade. It's the biggest and most ambitious book of a storied career in which he's received an Academy Award nomination, a PEN Award, and multiple Eisner and Harvey Awards.
Patience is an indescribable psychedelic science-fiction love story, veering with uncanny precision from violent destruction to deeply personal tenderness in a way that is both quintessentially "Clowesian," and utterly unique in the author's body of work. This 180-page, full-color story affords Clowes the opportunity to draw some of the most exuberant and breathtaking pages of his life, and to tell his most suspenseful, surprising and affecting story yet.
Fantagraphics and Clowes helped usher in today's golden age of literary graphic novels, as evidenced by the just-released Complete Eightball #1-18. It collects the historic comic book series (1989-2004) in which Clowes classics such as Like a Velvet Glove Cast in Iron and Ghost World were serialized; the latter is the best-selling book in Fantagraphics' history, with 20 editions since its 1997 debut.
"Patience is the best book yet by probably my favorite cartoonist ever," said Fantagraphics associate publisher Eric Reynolds, "and I can't wait for people to have the chance to not take my word for it."
I mentioned Dan Clowes above, and like Beetlejuice, he appears!
I find I have to be in the mood for Clowes stories, which seem to exaggerate the misery of human existence, and for Clowes art, which is static and unrefined. But when I am in the mood, I enjoy them.
Then I put them away until I'm depressed again.
POWER BUTTON #0
Writer/Art/Cover: ZACK SOTO, $4.95
The beginning of a brand new science fiction adventure series by Zack Soto (The Secret Voice). In this issue, we meet Adatra, one of the illustrious Omega Knights, and learn of her life-long battle with the Galactic Horde Empire! Aliens! Apocalypse! Mega Battles! Monsters! Pathos! Cool Space Armor! A Study Group production.
First issue alert!
I guess this is more of that "primitive" art these kids today seem to like, because it looks like it was drawn by a middle schooler.
PROJECT SUPERPOWERS: BLACKCROSS (TPB)
Writer: WARREN ELLIS
Art: COLTON WORLEY
Cover: TULA LOTAY
176 pages / Teen + / $19.99
All small towns have secrets. All small towns have ghosts. Blackcross, in America's Pacific Northwest, has more secrets than most ... and it is being haunted by something impossible. Something is reaching out from the other side of the night, through the forest and mist of this remote town, to grasp at the hearts of a handful of people ... and they may not discover why they're being hunted until it's much too late.
Forget what you know about Project Superpowers, as award-winning writer Warren Ellis and artist Colton Worley take readers on a sinister journey away from the brightly-clad heroes of the Golden Age, and into the shadows of Blackcross, a supernatural noir thriller of ordinary people stalked by an otherworldly killer.
* "Worley and Hickman make Blackcross ... look like the David Lynch superhero movie that we've always wanted." -- Newsarama
* "Ellis is absolutely killing it with this comic. The writing is phenomenal." -- Comics The Gathering
* "Colton Worley's art is dark, borderline black. The artwork fits the story's dreamy quality." -- Multiverse Magazine
* "Colton Worley uses light and shadow masterfully in his art." -- OverMental
* "Recommended for those who like their comics on the dark and sinister side." -- The Beat
* "(Blackcross) will have readers hooked right from the beginning." -- ComicVine
* "One hell of a story." -- Geek Sushi
* "This story could work perfectly without a single word printed. It is that perfect." -- Comic Bastards
* "There is a richness to this book that I feel elevates it above most of what currently sits in the racks today." -- CBSI
This is the best take I've seen on the public domain characters from Nedor (and others), but that's not saying much. Still, it's Ellis being Ellis, and I wouldn't mind seeing more.
RIVERS OF LONDON: NIGHT WITCH #1
Writers: BEN AARONOVITCH & ANDREW CARTMEL
Artist: LEE SULLIVAN
Cover A: PAUL MCCAFFREY
Cover B: ALEX RONALD
Cover C: LEE SULLIVAN
Cover D: Blank Sketch
32pp / Softcover / $3.99
A police vehicle on a routine prison transfer in north London is stormed by Russian hoodlums seeking to free a very particular prisoner. Their target is a witch. A very powerful witch who doesn't want to be free. Things rapidly turn very ugly for the hoods and it's soon a job for full-time police constable and part-time wizard, Peter Grant.
Titan Comics brings you the highly anticipated Rivers of London: Night Witch, written by Ben Aaronovich (Remembrance of the Daleks) and Andrew Cartmel (Written in Dead Wax) with art by Lee Sullivan (Doctor Who, Judge Dredd) and Luis Guerrero (Doctor Who, The Troop).
Set within the world of the best-selling Rivers of London series, this all-new story is a prequel to the forthcoming novel by Ben Aaronovich, The Hanging Tree.
"We're thrilled to be able to continue the Rivers of London comic series and give fans of the world an all-new story as well as a sneak peek into where the next novel is heading." -- Titan Comics editor, Steve White
Here's another weird police procedural, which is rapidly becoming a genre (or sub-genre) of its own. The cops on the magic beat in London have to deal various kinds of sorcery and such, primarily the goddesses of the rivers, from which the title springs.
I didn't find the first series compelling enough to read past the first couple of issues, but as ever, your mileage may vary. Check the preview to see for yourself.
SABER RIDER & THE STAR SHERIFFS #1
Writer: MAIRGHREAD SCOTT
Art/Cover: SENDOL
32 pages / FC / $2.99
The classic '80s animated series is back in this wild western/sci-fi mashup! In the distant future, the safety of the galaxy falls to the Star Sheriffs. When the mysterious Outriders begin attacking planets with advanced technology, a legendary marksman named Saber Rider steps up to stop this terrible new enemy.
The Star Sheriffs are back -- and this time, the greatest threat to the galaxy lies in their own ranks!
In the distant future, at the far reaches of the new frontier, the safety of the galaxy falls to the Star Sheriffs -- an elite law enforcement agency protecting human colonies from alien marauders. When a mysterious group known only as the Outriders begins attacking planets with highly advanced technology, a legendary marksman named Saber Rider steps up to stop this terrible new enemy. But when an Outrider sympathizer is revealed in the Star Sheriffs' midst, Saber Rider realizes that he can’t complete this mission alone. The classic ‘80s animated series is back in this wild western/sci-fi mashup!
Mairghread Scott is a writer for television and comics, including work on Transformers Prime and G.I. Joe Renegades. She helped to create the first fan-built transformer, Windblade, and brought her to life in the IDW comics series of the same name as well as in the new animated series Transformers: Robots in Disguise. Her first original comic series, Toil and Trouble with artists Kelly and Nichole Matthews, was published in 2015.
Back in the 1980s animation explosion, few cartoons stood taller than the tech-heavy Japanese imports that led to timeless classics like Voltron. That particular team also made a nostalgic few seasons of gloriously cheesy excitement called Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs, a sci-fi/western genre mashup with its own giant transforming robot voiced by Peter Cullen (better known to us as good old Optimus Prime!). For those of us who remember Saber Rider there’s always a big, “I remember that!” moment when it resurfaces. And for those who don’t, it’s an undiscovered gem of cereal-chomping Saturday morning fun.
Lion Forge aims to ease that (re)discovery with a comic book reboot next week. The new limited series stays true to the adventure, intrigue and mecha awesomeness of the original while starting completely fresh for new fans. With humanity settling the outer reaches of the galaxy in a new frontier, pioneers are kept safe by the Star Sheriffs, an elite law enforcement agency led by chief weapons designer April Eagle. When top-gun Saber Rider steps in to stop a train robbery, he finds a reluctant new ally in the shifty bounty hunter Colt and a clue to the whereabouts of a notorious traitor who might be helping the enemy Outriders. The action never lets up from there.
Sendol Arts has created a cool new look based on the original style guide for the ‘80s TV show, and fan-favorite writer Mairghread Scott (Transformers, G.I. Joe) pens a page-turning adventure with a dashing female lead in April Eagle. Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs is the perfect update of a classic -- modernized, authentic, and a blast to read.
Technically -- according to Wikipedia -- any genre mash-up that includes Wild West tropes is a weird Western. For my money, weird Western means, specifically, a horror/Western mash-up. But I'm a persnickety fellow.
Anyway, this "weird Western" doesn't do anything for me, what with all the mecha stuff, which I boring unless coupled with a good story. I can't tell from the preview if a good story is in the offing, but given the simplistic art, I'm not very encouraged.
SANTERIA: THE GODDESS KISS #1
Writer: DAVID WOHL; Art/Cover: GIUSEPPE CAFARO; $3.99
Life hurts more than death.
The first brand new Aspen series to debut in 2016, from the creator of Executive Assistant: Iris, Legend of the Shadow Clan and Witchblade, and the artist of Fathom: Kiani comes a new tale spanning centuries, deep within the heart of the ancient civilizations of Africa ...
Meanwhile in Spanish Harlem, Emergency Medical Techs Michael and Naomi are working the violent and unpredictable streets daily. However, nothing can prepare the duo as a routine Police shooting reveals something far more powerful -- and dangerous -- for Naomi's future!
First issue alert!
You know, I sometimes think that if Santeria didn't exist, we'd have to create it, just to have an excuse for voodoo stories. I have to think, though, that Santeria adherents probably aren't too happy with its portrayal in pop culture.
Anyway, Aspen isn't known for its deep stories, so this probably isn't going to improve Santeria's public image very much.
SHURIKEN & PLEATS VOL 1 (GN)
Writer/Art/Cover: MATSURI HINO; $9.99
When the master she has sworn to protect is killed, Mikage Kirio, a skilled ninja, travels to Japan to start a new, peaceful life for herself. But as soon as she arrives, she finds herself fighting to protect the life of Mahito Wakashimatsu, a man who is under attack by a band of ninja. From that time on, Mikage is drawn deeper into the machinations of his powerful family.
For teen audiences.
First issue alert!
The manga is coming fast and furious these days, isn't it?
STEVEN UNIVERSE & CRYSTAL GEMS #1
Writer: JOSCELINE FENTON; Art: CHRYSTIN GARLAND; Cover: KAT LEYH; $3.99
What's to Love: The Steven Universe Cartoon Network animated series has given us a serious case of the feels over and over again, and our first Steven Universe comic series was met with enthusiasm from our fellow fans, so we had to head back to Beach City for more adventures! Plus, all the Subscription covers in this mini-series by Jeremy Sorese connect to form one image!
What It Is: Josceline Fenton (Hemlock) and Chrystin Garland (Adventure Time) help keep Beach City weird with this new four-issue miniseries. Steven takes the Gems out for a camping trip and tells them spooky stories around the camp fire. The Gems don't give him much of a reaction, but they do tell him a spooky story of their own about a monster who turns bad Gems into glass and shatters them. Pearl assures a terrified Steven that it's just a story, but suddenly people around Beach City start turning up frozen in glass ...
First issue alert!
Also, the Adventure Time connection is even stronger for this one, with the same artist who draws the AT book. This is what happens in America when something is popular: Everybody copies it immediately.
TOMBOY VOL 1: DIVINE INTERVENTION (TPB)
Writer/Art/Cover: M. GOODWIN
128 pgs./ T+ / FC / $14.99
“No Crime Goes Unpunished. No Criminal Walks Away.” The death of a friend catches sixteen year-old Addison off guard, but a chance encounter with his killers on the subway forever changes her life. Crime cover-ups, dirty cops and magical dead boyfriends consume her life as she's thrust into the vigilante lifestyle and murder becomes her after school activity. Collects Tomboy #1-4.
I didn't read this series, but they sent a nice preview, so what's a boy to do? Why, post it, of course.
TURNCOAT #1
Writer: ALEX PAKNADEL; Art/Cover: ARTYOM TRAKHANOV; $3.99
What's to Love: Employing the most compelling elements of science fiction and the detective genre, Turncoat is a gripping exploration of power vacuums and the legacy of oppression. Alex Paknadel (Arcadia) and Artyom Trakhanov (Undertow) tell the story of a guilt-ridden protagonist through a grisly quest for a truth. Turncoat will scratch that itch you have for dark sci-fi like Blade Runner, The Forever War, and Neuromancer.
What It Is: 300 years since humanity was brutally subjugated by the alien race known simply as the Management. Two years since these invaders abandoned Earth to return to their home world. Following her participation in the brutal massacre of human-alien hybrids left behind by the Management, resistance fighter Marta Gonzalez declines to join the new human government and starts her own private detective agency instead. Gonzalez is forced to confront her own bloody past and acknowledge the fact that the transition from oppression to emancipation is anything but clean.
Another first issue alert from BOOM! (But no Adventure Time connection this time.)
UNCLE GRANDPA ORIGINAL VOL 1: TIME CASSEROLE (GN)
Writers: PETE BROWNGARDT & VARIOUS; Art: PHILIP MURPHY & VARIOUS; Cover: DEREK CHARM; $14.99
What's to Love: Uncle Grandpa series creator Peter Browngardt, series writer Kelsy Abbott, and Pranas Naujokaitis (Adventure Time) are taking us on a time-traveling adventure of epic proportions! Featuring a massive array of artists and madness that will make you scream "Good Morning!" at the top of your lungs!
What It Is: When Uncle Grandpa accidentally explodes his casserole into oblivion, it is up to him, Belly Bag, Uncle Gus, Pizza Steve, and Giant Realistic Flying Tiger, to travel back in time to make things right...to get all the missing ingredients to make another casserole. Traveling to the Moon, the '90s, Ancient Rome, Ancient Egypt, medieval times, and more, the gang WILL MAKE THAT CASSEROLE!
Yet another BOOM! first issue alert. And, yes, a little Adventure Time-y again.
WILL EISNER SPIRIT #9
Art: DAN SCHKADE
Colors: BRENNAN WAGNER
Cover: ERIC POWELL
32 pages / Teen + / $3.99
As yet another piece of the mystery surrounding The Spirit's lengthy disappearance is revealed, our heroes find themselves confronted with a violent attack at the hands of hired gun Pinky Fingers. The Spirit barely avoids the assassin's bullet... but are his friends so lucky, as well? Central City proves to be no refuge from the long and deadly reach of the international crime-lord, Mikado Vaas! This critically-acclaimed revival of legendary comic creator Will Eisner's most iconic character is helmed by Eisner Award-winning writer Matt Wagner and the fresh visual team of artist Dan Schkade and colorist Brennan Wagner.
"If you are not reading The Spirit you are missing out on a good time. This book ... has been firing on all cylinders lately." ComicBastards.com
I enjoy this book, but it still feels a little watered-down to me, and I've finally realized why: It has typical superhero comic book structure, which means an ongoing story built for trades. If it were more like the original, each issue would be a story unto itself, with the ongoing story more in the background.
But instead we have a single story building to a climax, with some issues -- like this one -- where there is no resolution of any kind, and almost nothing happens except for the main story moving forward incrementally. That's not how Eisner would have done it, so it doesn't feel like genuine "Spirit" to me.
Still, it's very good comics. Just not as good as Eisner, which is a pretty high bar!
WOODY GUTHRIE & DUST BOWL BALLADS
Writer/Art/Cover: NICK HAYES; $24.95
Using the sepia tones of the Dust Bowl as his palette, author and artist Nick Hayes tells the story of world-famous folkie Woody Guthrie (1912-1967), starting in the 1920s when Guthrie was a teenager supporting himself in dried-up, post-boomtown Oklahoma. Picking up a harmonica and eventually a battered guitar, Guthrie finds solace in the ancient lineage of folksong. Hayes charts the musician's course from Oklahoma and Texas towns ravaged by dust and the Depression to boxcars, factory farms, and the migrant camps of California, highlighting Guthrie's dedication to singing American folk tunes and creating his own modern classics along the way.
Abrams sent me a copy for review, and I just haven't gotten to it. Mea culpa. But based on their previous effort in this area (The Carter Family), this should be polished and informative.
WRATH OF THE ETERNAL WARRIOR #5
Written by ROBERT VENDITTI
Art by JUAN JOSÉ RYP
Cover A by PHIL JIMENEZ
Cover B by JUAN JOSÉ RYP
Valiant x CGC Replica Variant by CLAYTON HENRY
Variant Cover by SEAN CHEN
$3.99 | 32 pgs. | T+
“PRELUDE TO LABYRINTH” – PART 1
Valiant is proud to present WRATH OF THE ETERNAL WARRIOR #5 – the FIRST ISSUE of the two-part "PRELUDE TO LABYRINTH" from New York Times best-selling writer Robert Venditti (BOOK OF DEATH) and blockbuster artist Juan Jose Ryp (NINJAK)! On March 16th, jump on board one of the year’s most acclaimed new series here as the Eternal Warrior takes his first steps out of Hell … and into the crosshairs of one of the greatest villains the Valiant Universe has ever known!
Across six millennia, Gilad Anni-Padda – an immortal warrior sworn to forever serve the Earth – has felled zealots and madmen, emperors and tyrants in the course of his duty. But nothing he’s faced yet can prepare him to run the “LABYRINTH” – a miles-long maze of horrors specifically designed to undermine his every strength, enhance his every weakness … and send him screaming into the darkness of death at every turn. But what kind of brilliant but twisted psyche could have possibly conceived such a monument to terror … and for how many centuries have they plotted to break the mind and body of history’s most formidable soldier?
The answer lies at the heart of the “LABYRINTH” itself … and as Gilad endures a gauntlet of cutting-edge technology and sharpened steel, he’ll soon discover why the merciless figure known only as the Dying One has singled out the Eternal Warrior for the ultimate deathtrap.
He will run. He will suffer. And when his ordeal is ended, the Eternal Warrior’s place in the Valiant Universe will be forever altered by the cruel implements of his enemy’s "LABYRINTH"!
“With LABYRINTH, Robert Venditti is seizing upon one of the great, untapped characters of the original Valiant Universe and bringing them roaring into the modern day,” said Valiant Editor-in-Chief Warren Simons. “Soon, the entire Valiant Universe is going to meet this dark inversion of history’s greatest warrior – a figure that has thrived on horror, grief, and injustice while Gilad upheld duty, honor, and righteousness throughout the ages. It’s brutal, it’s terrifying, and it’s going to cast one of Valiant’s most important heroes into an all-new light.
"This tech environment that he is going to see in the labyrinth is something that he has never seen the likes of before," Venditti told Comic Book Resources. "It will be a great challenge for him. And operating in the background the entire time is this knowledge that someone has put him here for reasons he does not yet understand. He is trying to figure that out at the same time he is trying to survive. And as we come to see, for him not to survive. What the motives are behind that and how the Dying One is connected not just to Gilad but other people in his family, who we have seen in the afterlife, will also be explored. The Dying One reaches so far back into Gilad's past, Gilad has no idea. It's a very, very long game approach. The Dying One always knew what he wanted to do, but the world needed to get modern enough for him to be able to do it."
Now, before Valiant's immortal master of war confronts the cruel implements of his enemy's "LABYRINTH," discover where the Dying One's ancient rivalry with Gilad Anni-Padda began millennia ago … and how his centuries-long search for the secret of the Eternal Warrior's immortality is going to change both of their futures forever!
The road to the definitive Eternal Warrior saga of 2016 starts here on March 16th with the FIRST ISSUE of a special two-part "PRELUDE TO LABYRINTH" in WRATH OF THE ETERNAL WARRIOR #5 – featuring covers by Phil Jimenez (Infinite Crisis), Juan Jose Ryp (Black Summer), Clayton Henry (ARCHER & ARMSTRONG), and Sean Chen (Invincible Iron Man)!
Then, the escape begins in full force on May 18th with “LABYRINTH” – PART 1 (of 4) in WRATH OF THE ETERNAL WARRIOR #7, featuring the triumphant return of visionary artist Raul Allen (BLOODSHOT REBORN, Hawkeye)! The blunt force of Earth’s Fist and Steel slams into the cold and methodical masterwork of the world’s greatest executioner for a four-part lesson in pain when "LABYRINTH" takes hold in WRATH OF THE ETERNAL WARRIOR #7 – featuring covers by Raul Allen (Hawkeye), Pere Perez (ARCHER & ARMSTRONG), Juan Jose Ryp (Clone), Khari Evans (HARBINGER), and Dave Bullock (Rocketeer at War)!
With this issue, we finally understand the title. The first four issues showed us the afterlife of the Valiant Universe, where we met Kalam, Gilad's long-dead son -- and hints of his story. This issue begins that story, and trust me, it makes Gilad very, very angry.
Skipper, I'm guessing that you don't read much manga, pretty much all manga published in this country is presented in the "Japanese" format, i.e., back to front, right to left, and has been for a whole now. Personally, I don't find it all that hard of an adjustment. I don't think of it as an "affectation", either. For me, it adds to the authenticity, and it prevents them from have to flip the art, which is what they used to do in the old days, which could lead to some odd effects.
As for yaoi, I'll confess that's one area of Japanese popular culture that I have not explored. (I've read some yuri, though.) As for why young women read it - well, I used to wonder if it was a sort of feminine reversal of the way some guys like to watch two girls going at it. I've since heard that it may be because it sort of "distances" the female reader from the subject, makes it less "threatening". I've no idea, really.
On adjacent pages reading front to back, right to left would mean moving from the book's lower left corner to its upper right corner. But I think I've read translated manga printed that way, years ago, and didn't notice.
Sheena was arguably the first of the classic Golden Age comic book heroes. Her American debut, in Jumbo Comics #1, post-dates Superman's by two months, but she'd appeared earlier in a British/Australian comic called Wags. The series originated with Eisner and Iger - the GCD currently attributes the art of the first instalment to Mort Meskin - and the early issues of Jumbo Comics reprinted Wags stories. She didn't acquire her trademark leopard-skin outfit until several episodes in. (The costume appears on the cover of #9 but she didn't acquire it inside until #10. The GCD says the title was still reprinting Wags stories at that point. It attributes the instalment's art to Bob Powell.)
Eisner said Iger didn't have anything to do with Sheena's creation -- Eisner was the creative side, while Iger was the business side. Eisner said he ran the shop, while Iger went out and sold what Eisner created. Eisner said Iger had no input into Sheena, or much of anything else, on the creative side.
Iger, of course, said otherwise.
Since Iger had no credits outside of claiming Sheena -- the shop's most successful and valuable product -- I tend to believe Eisner.