Tag: To Be Filed

In general you can tell that June is the start of summer, as a lot of projects and big releases are coming out form the major and not-so major publishers. Both major publishers have their company wide events in full swing, while, the other publishers are releasing This month I’m going to try a different take to on the to be filed column. Instead of highlighting individuals book, I’m going to instead take a more editorial view of things were appropriate. If there anything on here that looks interesting to you, remember to let your local comic shop know by the end of the month so they can order it for you.

So with all of this in mind, skitter patter, let’s get at ‘er.

Dark horse

Dark Horse made its mark and early dollars with high quality books based on licensed properties. While Dark Horse has tried to expand itself into original material (World’s Greatest Heroes) and hosting some creator owned books (Hellboy, Sin City and Grendel) , their bread and butter has always been the licensed properties. Looking at their output for June, one can’t help but be reminded of this. We have a new issue of Buffy, we have various Star Wars books, and a specially priced($0.99) relaunch of the Conan series with, Conan the Cimmerian #0. Dark Horse also forays into new Indiana Jones territory this month with the start of their Indiana Jones and the Tomb of The Gods mini-series. Nothing ground breaking, but you know they are going to be solid books.

DC

I’m not sure what to make out of DC these days. I’m a die hard fan of DC, and will always support them, but they seem to be in beyond overdrive mode when it comes to their ‘event’ output lately, and this month really highlights it. First off before talking about the new event-series that launch this month at DC, lets consider what they have in-progress:

• They have Final Crisis continuing with its second issue
• A DC/Wildstorm universe cross over, which could have been major event 10 years ago, but now, if anything, marks how far Wildstorm has fallen.
• The Tangent miniseries, Superman’s Reign running, which again, could have been a major event if they wanted it to be.

And what do they do this month? They launch the Reign in Hell miniseries, and Trinity, the next DC weekly book.

Really, do they need all of this right now? Do they need to launch ANOTHER weekly book so soon? Could they wait till the end of Final Crisis, let the taste of Countdown get out of our mouths, and use Trinity to serve the same purpose of 52? Let Trinity, like 52, be an epilogue to the crisis and a love letter to the DCU. It almost as if they are publishing things with the intent of them being lost and ignored.

This feeling of publishing books to be lost, is exemplified by the relaunching of Manhunter. Perhaps the best title you never read, Manhunter resumes publication, not with a new first issue, but with a new thirty-first issue. Let me repeat that, a book that has been on the chopping block numerous times for low sales, is coming back after a year break, not with a #1 issue, but a #31. I can understand the desire to keep the original numbering, and it would make more sense if the series had only been on hiatus for three to four months. Being on hiatus for about a year, and coming out in the midst of all the above mention events, the books needs a #1 style launch to capture any possible new audiences. The creative team of Gaydos and Andreyko will not guarantee the book to light up sales charts. If you loved the Jack Knight Starman, then you owe it to yourself to read this book.

There are also a couple of interesting trades coming out from DC this month. In the ‘I’ never thought they’d collect it’ department, a collection of Going Sane is being released. Going Sane was a four issue Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight story arc from about 15 years ago. Written by J.M. DeMatteis the arc explored what would happen to the Joker if he overcame his biggest challenge, Batman. Early on in the story he seemingly defeats Batman, and a result the Joker finds himself slowly going sane.

And the trade that frustrates me to no end for this month is… The New York Four by Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly, the team that worked on the Oni press maxi-series, Local. I love Local, and readers of this column know that I get excited every time an issue ships– the only thing that has bother me about the series, that it was supposed to be done in one year, and due to various unnamed delays, the series is finally finishing after three years. So why did it take so long for Local to finish? Well the fact that this is coming out so soon after the end of Local is probably the biggest reason. I’m all for indie artists doing work for a big pay day, but when you delay a book by over two years because of said big pay day, that bothers me. Something about art, integrity, and economics would probably best said here. I admit I could be wrong about the delays, but thats what it looks like to me.

Image

Image has a little bit of a more quiet month, as they release a new mini-series entitled War Heroes, which banks on its creative teams name star power, and I’m alright with this as those creators are Mark Millar and Tony Harris. While the story doesn’t seem like anything new (US Army makes super powered soldiers, hilarity ensues), it’s the art that has me interested. The preview pencils are really, really pretty. It makes me wish the box was done in just pencils– no inks, no colours, just highly quality reproduced graphite.

Also being released this month is a softcover and hardcover collection of the entire Scud the Disposable Assassin series. The 13 year old in me is really excited for the chance to read this, and the 27 year old is a bit hesitant about it. Will this series live to the hype that others have given this book over the past 15 years? Or will it just come off as another ‘I’m black and white and heavily inked and filled with slacker-humor book’? I’m not sure, but the 20 year old in me has made a compromise with the 13 and 27 year old, to at least give this collection a chance. So even if I am ultimately disappointed in this book, it won’t be from lack of trying.

Marvel

Secret Invasion chugs along with over 10 tie in books this month, with the series still being pretty young, it’s hard to tell if these books will be required reading or just auxiliary like much of Civil War titled books were. Speaking of Civil War, the creative team from that series is back this month with a stint in the monthly Wolverine book called: Old Man Logan. Think Dark Knight Returns meets Wolverine.

Speaking of Marvel events (if only tangentially at this point), the final spin-off book from World War Hulk, Skarr: Son of Hulk launches this month. World War Hulk had it’s moments, and ultimately told more about the state of Marvel editorial, or the direction they were not willing to take the Hulk, then it did about the actual plot. I wonder, if anyone even cares about Skaar? This book may have been better suited spinning out of Nova or some other Annihilation-event like story.

With the release of Ultimate Origins #1, readers are promised that the threads of the tight-knit Ultimate universe are going to be explored. This series is to lead into the Ultimatum, the first cross-over for the line, which to me, despite the great wordplay in the title, is a bit disappointing to see happening. The whole line has had a good philosophy of of being small and controlled; three regular series at a time, and one miniseries max. And for the most part this plan has worked. Each title has a distinct tone, and with the exception of the occasionally referenced event, the stories are self-contained. It’ll be interesting to see how much of the line philosophy changes after the cross-over.

What If? – The Fantastic Four Tribute to Mike Wieringo, while not technically a Marvel book (in reality it’s being published by the HERO Initiative), this completes the unfinished What If story that Wieringo was working on at the time of his death. To complete the story about the New Fantastic Four (a short lived joke team of Ghost Rider, Wolverine, Spider-Man and the Gray ‘Mr. Fix-it’ Hulk), a variety of artist help complete the art chores on the book. As an added bonus (if you want to calls it that), other lend there talents for a tribute section to the man and his work. And in case I didn’t mention it yet, it’s the NEW Fantastic Four, my inner 12 year old is excited by that alone.

The Rest

Oni Press makes a single collection of all the Barry Ween: Boy-Genius series. This series is notable as it’s the first published works by Judd Winick, who did both the writing and art chores of the series. So why should you care about this collection? Barry, is a f-bomb dropping ten year old who also happens to be the brightest boy in the universe. And like most genius his plans are addled by his friendships. For example, Jeremy, his best friend, often misuse Barry’s work, which leads to situations that may induce pant-wetting in some. I remember having this once described to me as Calvin and Hobbes hopped up on PCP, and I think I agree with this. A 25 page preview can be found here.

May fairs as a better month then April, as publishers release more books that are either preludes to the summer block busters, revisiting past ones, or just taking a plain risk. All of these items of note here are based on the Diamond Preview catalogue for May that came out this past March. Remember, advance ordering is your friend, as it guarantees that what you want will be in stock when the time comes.

Dark Horse

Umbrella Academy
The surprise hit of 2007 gets collected by Dark Horse. This is also known as the ‘book written by the lead singer of My Chemical Romance’. While this claim to the book was a a major draw for some, it also act as a major deterrent for others, such as myself. Somehow though, this book managed to get in all the right peoples hand’s for me to actually be curious about it. Almost everyone whose opinion I respect on books like this have been praising this. From the description, I gather that the book focuses on a broken adoptive family of powered beings, who are reunited when their father unexpectedly dies. The cover image for this collection is striking, and reminds me of why I like Gabriel Ba.

DC

DC Universe: Zero
Another 50 cent book, and another ‘the DCU starts here’ story. Rumor has it that this book was created to bridge the gap between Countdown and Final Crisis, as Grant Morrison’s forthcoming epic didn’t exactly connect all that well to what Dini was setting up in Countdown. This book has been ‘retro-solicited’ for April 30, which with the book have seven artists listed for 32 pages, doesn’t make me feel all that comfortable in what the result will be. But for 50 cents, its worth the risk– I’ve spent more money on books that I was taking a similar chance on.

Batman: Gotham After Midnight
Next to Jim Aparo and Neal Adams, I think one of the best Batman artists have been Kelly Jones, because like Aparo and Adams, Jones brought a distinctive look to his Batman which has become associated with a specific period of the title. Reading that he is back on Batman, made my fanboy heart flutter, then reading then next line how this is the first issue of a twelve issue miniseries is made my heart drop just as quickly. I’m not sure what the logic behind such long term miniseries are– its a long term commitment for both readers, retailers and DC to be doing these books. If they series isn’t selling, DC is essentially committed to publishing the series for the year, readers are buying what turns out to be another ‘regular’ title, which again they may drop. 12 issue mini’s should be reserved for guaranteed sales and creative teams. This is not a team to sustain an audience for 12 issues. Clearly, I’m a pessimist today.

Lost boys reign of frogs
I’ve never watched the movie, and thus am probably one of the worst people to talk about this title. The concept of the Lost Boys though, does sound like one that can carry a miniseries, if not a regular series. This mini is supposed to bridge the gap between the first movie, and the new one coming out. While not top sellers, the Wildstorm horror license from what I’ve heard has been doing a good job with the properties that they adapt. If you a fan of the Lost Boys, this might be worth a look.

House of Mystery
A return to the house that Joe Orlando built. The new House of Mystery series will be using a framing device of a group of stranded travelers, telling stories with each other to pass time as they try and find a way to escape the house. Some of my favourite Vertigo books was the World’s End run in Sandman, which featured a similar framing device. Anthologies series of this type tend to not fair well, as they don’t provide any hook for readers to come back month to month. If DC wants this new attempt to survive, they will be best served by ensuring that the creative team, Bill Willingham(Fables) and Matt Sturges, spends several pages exploring the framing device in each issue.

Demo
Demo was a series of standalone single issues from a couple years back by Brian Wood (DMZ) and Becky Cloonan (American Virgin). With this series continuing under the DC:Vertigo imprint, it makes sense that Vertigo will be issuing a new edition is being released. The original collection was put out by AIT/PlanetLar, and really showcased both members of the creative teams skills, Wood showing his ability to make compelling done-in-one stories, while Cloonan showed her competence in many styles of comic art. Perhaps the best story the two of them accomplish is the ‘Mix Tape’ issue, which has struck a cord with a wide range of readers. If you like non-obvious superpower stories with a strong indie sensibility, check this collection out.

Marvel

Sky Doll
Marvel reprinting European comics for American audiences? Its an interesting move as Marvel continues to slowly expand the variety of their print output with their new Soleil line. The sample art is fun, and if your not a fan of European styled comics, then its probably worth a flip through when it comes out. My understanding is that Marvel, is planning on releasing all the work under this Soleil line as miniseries, then collecting them at a later date (much like they do with all their output), which is a bit weird, as these books were originally published as graphic novels. For the audience of these books, it would be better suited to keep these stories in their graphic novel format.

1985
The long awaited project from Mark Millar finally comes out. Originally rumored to be a fumetti book, the book appears now to be done entirely as a traditional comic. The added surprise is that 1985, is in reference to the year that the first major Marvel miniseries, Secret Wars. The story focuses on a young boy from our Earth, who is the only one who can save the day when the villains from Secret War invade. The art is done by Tommy Lee Edwards, which is great as he is a talent definitely deserving more recognition. Is this the book that will give him the acknowledgement that he deserves? Maybe, but I have a feeling its going to get lost in the Secret Invasion hype that is going around it, which is a shame.

The Rest

Judenhass
Another book by Dave Sim (Cerebus), and perhaps what may turn out to be his next biggest contributions to comics. Using his photorealistic style and excerpts from various sources on the events of the Holocaust, Sim has crafted. what can best be described as a photojournalistic account of the event. I’ve saw the pencils of some of these pages last year when he was at a local show, and they blew me out of the water. I was recently given the retailer preview copy as a birthday gift, and I look forward to finding some time to really digest it. An online preview can be seen here.

The last week of every month marks the release of the new copy of Previews, or what I refer to as the retailer book of destiny. Why is this a book of destiny? Well simply put, Previews is a catalogue released by Diamond each month that lists all products available that can possibly ship to a retailer in a few months time. The following are what I feel to be some of the highlights (and lowlights) for product shipping in April 2008. My general impressions for April is that this month is very so-so. Nothing really stands out. Thats saying a lot for a month that see the shipping of Secret Invasion #1.

Remember advance ordering is your friend. Not only does it give you an idea of what your spending will be, it also gives you some insight into where your favourite titles are going and what new creative teams are starting. Most importantly, it helps guarantee that your local shop has what you want.

Dark horse
Pigeons from Hell With a title like this, you have to find this book someone what interesting. Let me reiterate the title its about Pigeons. From. Hell. think about it. The book is an adaption of a Robert E. Howard story, and as Dark Horse describes it, “At dusk, as the sun slumps below the horizon, scores of pigeons can be seen flocking from the house … the pigeons they say, are the souls of the damned, escaping from the bowels of hell itself”. Maybe its a metaphor, but I really hope not.

Grendel God and the Devil collection. This collects for the first time the story that I believe explains the rise of the ‘Grendel’ nation concept that populates the world of the Grendel Prime stories. Any event I’m excited to read more Grendel that hasn’t be collected. Grendel turning 25 is by far the best thing to happen to Grendel in the past 25 years.

DC
Black Adam :The Dark Age. Out of all the mini-series that came out of 52, this is the series that I have been most eagerly awaiting to read in a collection. The story of Black Adam has been one of the most engaging and pathos filled stories in the DCU.

Ex Machina HC. Brian K. Vaungh and Tony Harris is the four year story of Mayor Michael Hundred. The sole person in the world who has any kind of superhero, who after the events of 9/11 retired from active duty to pursue a career in politics. Part Starman in the reluncatency and unsureness of the protagonist and part West Wing for its political tappings, Ex Machina is a book well worth checking out. This hardcover will collect the first 11 issues of the series.

Marvel
Secret Invasion. Secret Invasion kicks off in the Marvel U. The sample pages provided doesn’t put much comfort in the story for me, but we’ll see how it goes. Yu’s art has been slipping and this story hasn’t captured me the same way as other marvel events have. Unlike Civil War and House of M, there was an actual build up to this story, and this could be my problem. If the lead up was shorter; ending when Spider-Woman running off with the body, and the start of this issue is, her giving the body to Stark, I’d be more significantly excited about this series. That being said, I’m going to probably still buy it, as bad as the Yu art it is still Yu art.

Ultimate Human. Much like the Ultimate Iron Man II HC, the release date of this HC is a really puzzling. Its coming out on the same day as the final issue you in the mini-series. I assume this is only because the Iron Man movie opens 3 days later. Still this sets an interesting precedent for comic collections. If this sells really well, will Marvel bump up there trade releases to being this much closer to the regular issues— which may, and will, effectively stop the single issue market from growing. Food for thought, thats for sure.

The rest
Glamourpuss. Say what you want about Dave Sim, the man and his politics his art is amazing. From the sample pages I’ve read, the story doesn’t seem that hot, but it doesn’t really matter as I’m buying this book purely for the eye candy. Sim’s political views/ramblings have sadly over shadowed how strong a penciller he is. Glamourpuss isn’t set to change this viewpoint that many people have about Sim. If you hate him, you’ll still hate him at the end of this story. But, man what beautiful line work.
Sample pages can be viewed here.

Local. The twelve issue miniseries resumes, after what feels like (and in reality was) a one year hiatus. I’ve been particularly impatient for this issue as it is set in Toronto. Much of this series has lost steam with me because of its very erratic publishing schedule. One day I’ll sit down and re-read this whole series and probably remember why I enjoyed it, but for now I’m buying it out of Canadian Pride and to complete the series.

X-O Manowar: Birth. I’m not a big X-O fan, but I’m excited to see more old-school valiant books get reprinted. Its interesting that they are printing the 0 issue in this collection which has radically different art from the rest of the issues in the book, and is also post-Shooter. Many people are going to be turned off by the Queseda art for 20 pages, and then Layton and Windsor Smith for the remaining 200 pages. A nice bonus feature to this collection is that it has some new story by Bob Layton.

So where can you preview these treasures of the future? Look no further then the monthly publication by Diamond, called Previews. This catalogue is a great resource for some advance budgeting or to get you excited for what is upcoming in your favourite comic(s). This book also allows you to make advance orders, which helps ensures your retailer has what you want when you want it.

Dark Horse
Hellboy Library Edition Volume 1
If you’ve never read Hellboy, this is a good place to start. The library edition reprints the first two story arcs, Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil in an oversized format. The book is going to be published as with a hard fabric cover so it matches The Art of Hellboy book, that Dark Horse released a couple of years back. Over all this looks like it’ll be an awesome presentation, and if you haven’t yet, it’ll be a great place to start reading Hellboy.

Grendel Devil Child HC
The best thing to happen in 2007 with Dark Horse? Grendel turning 25 and re-releasing a lot of the great stories about the world of Grendel. This one, I remember reading as it was coming out, and it being one of the first stories to really get under my skin in a purely psychological way. Devil Child answers the question of what ever happened to Stacy, Hunter’s ward, after the events of Devil By The Deed. The story was written by long time Grendel editor Diana Schultz, and had art by Tim Sale.

DC
Booster Gold 0
First off props to the awesome homage to the cover of Zero Hour #4. Ever since they hinted there’d be a Zero Hour story in the first issue, I’ve been sold on this book. The idea that they are referencing the first DC crossover that I ever read really excites me. From the cover it appears that this story will be focusing less on Zero Hour, and more on the Blue Beetle plot resolution, which I’m guessing is that he saves Kord, just to see him die again. Booster Gold was the surprise hit for me in 2007, and if you a fan of the DCU, you really should be reading this book.

Batman 670
Grant Morrison has really been doing some interesting things with the title, and in the process has taken Batman place he hasn’t been in over 30 years. As a pretty big fan of Batman, I would be lying to say that I was a fan of some of the throwbacks that haven gone on. This issue, which is following up on his second storyline, seems a bit late for me– there was the league of Batman story and Ghul between all of this. I honestly don’t remember much about the three other personas of batman running about, but hey the issue does promises an appearance of Bat-mite. I’m curious enough to see how all of this gets pulled off.

Action Comics Annual 11
At last the conclusion to the Last Son storyline. The art and story for this series has been solid (to date), and hasn’t fumble like the OYL story. I really think five years from now when people look back at this story they will not see a late book, but an awesome story.

Action Comics 862
The conclusion of the Legion storyline. A lot of people I think have been avoiding this because of the ties, and the inherent continuity confusion that comes with the Legion. The first two issues of this story line have been amazing, and possibly the best Superman I’ve ever read. The Legion has been used well here, and you don’t need to have been following the Legion to understand their use here. Actually, this story might be a lot better if you have no previous experience with the heroes of the 31st century. If you haven’t been reading this monthly, then definitely keep an eye out for this collection of this story.

Lobo Portrait of a Bastich
DC’s out of left field solicitation for the month. Last month was the Giffen/DeMattis Justice League vol. 1 trade as a HC, this month its the first two Lobo mini series. I have some fond memories tied around the first issue of Lobo’s Back, but next to that, I’m pretty sure this stuff will not have aged well. This is just a really weird book to see get solicitation space. Maybe they have big plans for Lobo coming up in 08? Regardless this is the series explains everything you need to know about Lobo, including how he achieved his immortality.

Tiny Titans
The 3 page preview was entertaining, but will it last? I’m not sure. It might do strong sales in book stores and other non-LCS where the targeted audience can get their hands on it. In a LCS sense, I see this following the Franklin Richard trend, were it will do well and be highly talked about for the first three, maybe four issues, and then it will be forgotten and have sales figures around the level of the Teen Titan’s Go comic. This book could be a real success, if it wasn’t a monthly.

Gen13 17
Just want to point out the the Gen13 reboot is 17 issues in, and Wildcats #2 still hasn’t been shipped (and according to the most recent issue of Wizard, the script for the issue was just finished). Its a shame that the relaunch of the Wildstorm universe failed so miserably.

Image
Scud the Disposable Assassin
Scud returns as a 4 issue mini series, promising to wrap up the story line that was last seen 10 years ago. This title has a lot of street cred, but I’m surprised that there has been no mention Scud trades to help bring new readers up to speed. There are about 20 issues of the title that have been long, long out of print, and to release a mini-series tying strongly to these issues (and possibly not recapping them) seems to be depending TOO much on the street cred.

Marvel
Clan Destine
Alan Davis for me is always at his best when he is both drawing and writing his work. Look no further then his Excalibur run to see why. Because of this, I’m happy to see him back to doing double duty on something he clearly cares for, his creation of Clan Destine. I feel that the concept of the Clan, that of a large immortal super powered family, will/can do a lot better in todays environment. The only thing that may be holding this back, is what I feel its greatest strength, Alan Davis’s art. It beautiful, but it doesn’t stand out in the current market place. Its not hyper realistic ala Hitch, and its not in the Jim Lee school either. This is no way a bash on his work. But much like Mark McKone, I find those who like the style are those who truly appreciate comics.

Fantastic Four
Speaking of Hitch, the start of the Hitch/Millar run on the first family begins this month. There signed on for a one year stint, and it will probably sell like gangbusters. Despite this, beyond the Byrne and Waid runs on the FF and Ultimates, I still don’t have any interest in the title. I fully believe my view of the Fantastic Four has probably been forever tainted by the work of Tom DeFalco.

Fantastic Four: Lost Adventure
While I really have no interest in the FF, I do have interest in Kirby. So ‘New’ Jack Kirby work on the FF is something I can really get behind. So where did the new work come from? Well Jack drew102 issues of Fantastic Four that were published, for what ever reason his last issue, #103, was never completed– until now. Stan Lee and Joe Sinnott (who I assume was the inker at the time), have taken this penciled pages and finished the story. Will the story stand up to today’s standards? Most likely not, but I’ll take new Kirby work where I can get it. The book also contains the original penciled pages and a reprinting of issues 108, which used some of the art in a flashback sequence. The package seems well worth the $4.99 USD.

Marvel Fanfare Vol. 1Trade
…. And Marvel’s weird reprint of the month. I’m not exactly sure why they are putting this stuff back in print. The artists listed in this trade is impressive, but I still don’t hear anyone clamoring for a collection of these issues. Definitely a weird choice by the house of ideas.

The Rest
Contraband (SLG)
From the description: “Toby picked the wrong person to turn his cell phone camera upon. A Self-style “citizen journalist,” he is documenting a group of underground video journalists who look for violent acts to film on their pone when he is discovered by agents for a cell-phone channel called “Contraband.” Forced to work for them, Toby is assigned the difficult task of finding a female activist bent on sabotaging Contraband and must navigate a difficult path where he must choose between his own safety and the greater good”. There is a lot of discussion/stories that can be drawn out of the changing view people have about the media, the role in it, and the shrinking of private space. From the before-mention description, it looks like they are approaching the story with some of these issues in mind. This book can be a hit or a miss, I’m really hoping for it to be a hit.

RASL #1 (Cartoon Books)
Jeff Smith returns to this indie world with his new title, RASL. Rasl, is an art thief who is trying to escape his past. Unlike the other art thieves who need to plan their robberies to the smallest detail, Rasl makes use of his unique ability to travel through the light between dimensions. This often allows him to steal work that is deemed impossible. It’s good to see Smith back, but I’m more excited by the fact that he is approaching a story that is as far removed from Bone as possible.

Bits and Pieces: quick one line thoughts of other things coming out this month

Princess Midnight
Andi Watson can do no wrong. Well– only wrong by writing Marvel books and doing single issue work. His work has, and I always, read better in a collected format. A new 64 page novella, while small, is enough to hold me over till his next substantial collection is released.

The Nearly Complete Essential Hembeck Archives Omnibus
Just look at that title. Just look at that cover of various Hembeck self portraits. The only thing that is missing from this is the word spotlight somewhere in the title. While the whole Hembeck phase is before my time, I’m still likely going to flip through this just to see his work for the first time.

Kick-Ass
I’ll probably skip this, but a new Mark Millar ICON book with JRJR art is definitely something to note. The book promises to be ‘the next realistic’ step in a superhero title. With that in mind, and the the title of the book, I’m seeing this being something along the lines of Nextwave and other dark hyper-violent books.

Drawn & Quarterly issues new printings on a couple of classics, the Chest Brown, I Never Liked You, and Seth’s Its a Good Life If You Don’t Weaken.

Narcopolis marks Jamie Delano return to comics in this avatar book that will play to his strengths, black magic and sci-fi.

Wizard reissues the collection of Beautiful Killer, with gorgeous art by Phil Noto.

Perhaps the coolest prop to come out sometime is the Flux Capacitor replica, being released by Diamond.

Martin Scherer enjoys reading, thinking and consuming comics in mass amounts. His most favorite day of the month in the one that marks the release of the new previews catalog. His by far not the worlds greatest boyfriend. He looks forward to hearing your comments about this, past articles or general questions about comics. Contact him via email, martin@geekscape.net

Long Box Thoughts: To Be Filled July 2007
With the August preview catalog coming out sometime in the next two weeks, I figured it was about time that I sat down and focused on the July issue. Previews is the advance ordering catalog put out by Diamond. Advance ordering is your friend as it ensures your retailer has what you want. As an added side effect, Previews gets you excited for comics of the future.

Dark Horse
The biggest release I see from Dark Horse this month in Grendel: Behold the Devil #0. This is the first time that Matt Wagner has written and drawn the original Grendel in over 20 years. Released as a prelude to the forthcoming mini-series, the book will only cost you 50 cents. The art is in the standard Black, White and Red. Other notable release is the final book in the Martha Washington series, Martha Washington Dies. I haven’t read any of the Martha books, but have heard good things, and I don’t see how you can go wrong with Frank Miller (on a creator owned book) and Dave Gibbons.

For you Buffy fans, a second omnibus has been announced for September, collection 300 pages of the older miniseries for $25 USD.

DC
The period when the Atom became a fantasy book is high point to many. The All New Atom 13 has the new atom searching for Ray Palmer by searching the setting of the Sword of the Atom series. While I haven’t read the new series, and few if any of the old Sword series, the Landronn cover to this issue is stunning.

Green Arrow finds life after the ending of his regular series in the 6 part miniseries Green Arrow Year One. Will it be a new Longbow Hunters, or is this just a mini to keep the character in people’s minds? I’ll be picking this up out of my love for G.A., but the team of Diggle and Jock is a nice bonus.

Manhunter Volume three is advance solicited for August, which reprints issues 15-23 and focuses on the origin of her weapons and costume. This also has the bonus of tying her into the Starman legacy by exploring her ties to the DCU golden age. If you haven’t been reading this series, check out these trades. Manhunter is a unique book on an otherwise crowded superhero market.

Wildstorm launches The Programme by Peter Miligan and C.P. Smith. The programme focuses on the events after a Cold War Soviet weapon is awaken by the recent military actions of America. ‘Conventional warfare is suddenly outdated: the new weapons of mass destruction wield super-powers. Does America have an answer to … the Programme?’ Milligan is a hit and miss writer with me. This series seems far enough removed from standard superhero fare that it will be a story playiing to Milligan’s strengths.

A trade is offered of the complete Alan Moore Wildcats. This is the run that introduced Tao, the villain from Sleeper and other elements of the Wildcat universe that change the direction of the book. This would be an interesting read for fans of WildCats Version 2.0 and Sleeper.

Vertigo has a new six issue miniseries by Mike Carey and Jock, called Faker. From the solicitation text: ‘Chock full of ruthless characters with hidden agendas, Faker takes place during freshman year in college. The ultimate time of reinvention, where, if you’re up for it, you can lie, cheat and fake you way through almost anything.’

Finally DC Direct is offering an AWESOME Iron Giant statue. ‘…measuring approximately 4.5″ tall x 10″ wide x 4.75″ deep for the main portion (Iron Giant head and shoulders), while the hand (with a miniature Hogarth attached) is a separate piece measuring 2.5″ tall x 2″ wide x 3″ deep that can be positioned at any distance from the main piece. This impressive statue includes a blueprint of the Iron Giant with notes from creator Brad Bird’.

Image
G0DLAND: Celestial Edition HC collects the first 12 issues of the series. G0DLAND can best be described as Joe Casey and Tom Scioli’s silver-age throwback book with a modern twist. Where else can you find a suave villain, whose main goal is to find a new ‘high’? Many people I’ve talked to are are turned off by this books strong Kirby influence art. Give it a try, even if your not a fan of the art, it will grow on you like a tumor. The first issue is available for reading online here.

Marvel
Just because this question will come up on the fourms sooner or later…

World War Hulk Books For July
WWHulk #2
Avengers: The Initiative #4
Ghost Rider #13
Heroes for Hire #12
Hulk #108
Iron Man#20
Ant-Man #10
Frontline #2
Gamma Corps #1
Gamma Corps #2
WWHulk: X-Men #2

The big news of July has to be the much awaited return of Thor, in Thor #1 by JMS and Coipel. Not much is revealed in the preview art or text except that this will reintroduce the original Thor into a post civil war Marvel. How will he react when he hears what happened to Cap? Or what Iron Man has become?

Speaking of Civil War, Civil War Chronicles begins in July, which is a series with the goal of reprinting Civil War in chronological order. Each book will be 72 pages in length, or about 3 issues of reprinting. Its been a year since issue 1, and marvel is still finding ways to make money off the books. Kudos to them, but I’m curious how long will the chronicles last.

The next Bendis and Maleev book starts in July too, a four issue Halo Miniseries which continues from where Halo 2 ended. Solicitation promises that there will be side stories to help further flush out the Halo universe.

Maybe I have Grendel on the mind, but The Immortal Iron Fist #8’s cover looks like something straight from Grendel.

L.A.’s (other) super team, The Champions series starts. Written by Fraction and drawn by newly exclusive Marvel artist Kitson. The catch of the series is that any member of the team can be fired at any time as they are held to high public standards. In addition each member is on the team with a 1 year contract. Expect a revolving door of characters throughout this series. I wonder how long it will be till a runaways/champions story is told.

The crossover you didn’t demand begins this month, with New Avengers/Transformers #1.

Devil Dinosaur Omnibus. Wow. Never thought I’d see this. Wow.

The Rest
Other interesting solicitations not from the big four publishers
A new Mouse Guard series starts, Winter 1152. I never read the original, but I heard a enough raving about it to make me check out the trade when it comes out in June.

Avatar has a new monthly comic by Warren Ellis, Doktor Sleepless. This promises to be more of the sci-fi future stories that made Transmetropolitan so popular. Unlike Transmet though, the story’s protagonist is not a journalist, but a mad scientist who has a plan for a ‘new future’. If you enjoyed big society sci-fi ideas, you’ll probably like this book.

Cartoon books is offering a plush Fone Bone toy, which looks pretty darn cute.

Dynamite Comics has The Boys #8 coming out, which is good news for a lot of people.

G.I. Joe goes through its own WWIII as part of its 25th anniversary, which firmly sets the theme for 2007 in comics to be World War III (or hulk).

Martin Scherer enjoys reading, thinking and consuming comics in mass amounts. His most favorite day of the month in the one that marks the release of the new previews catalog. When he is not dreaming about future purchases, he looks forward to hearing your comments about this, past articles or general questions about comics. Contact him via email, martin@geekscape.net