Pre-orders ...NOW!

Ok the title is kind of a cheap shot at Marvel right now as I'm dreading the re-re-re-re ignition of books at the house of ideas, though I will agree that with their lesser teir books pre-orders are petty important and I do so for books like Nighthawk, Powerman and Ironfist, Patsy Walker aka Hellcat and Moon Girl for fear of them going the way of Angela Queen of Hel. I'll here post the link to the Kieron Gillen pre-order tutorial as I still think it's pretty cute and will likely cycle it up ever couple of weeks. The odd way the comic direct market functions with any kind of publisher large or small it can act as a gatekeeper and can prevent a book finding its audience so promote share and tell people about books...

Princess Princess Ever After (May 161668)

Katie Oneill's webcomic fairytale twist on princesses captive, in distress or not though still available to read online here (which I fully encourage people to do if they have not) is getting a gloriously cute print edition in August from Oni Press. It's the story of Sadie, a princess who takes to adventuring on her unicorn and Amira, whom was her first reluctant rescue, defying type and finding a new way of living through their friendship and coming together through their trials and others drama. Katie's art is reminiscent of several manga art styles and is richly details despite its cute soft look. Books that explore the strength of female friendships or friendships at all have been a scent in comics until fairly recently and it's nice to encounter a range of titles across genres and age ranges that are doing in fact just that. Go read the book and I'm pretty sure if it's not your thing your probably know someone who would love it. Fans of Gotham Academy, Jem, Squirrel Girl, Ms. Marvel and the like will likely dig this.

 

Insexts Vol. 1 (JUN 161072

Didn't really know that Victorian penny dreadful body horror would be my kinda thing until I read this creation of writer Marguerite Bennett Penciler Ariela Kristantina and colorist Bryan Valenza. Insexts follows the life of an abused rich trophy wife of a British toff whose maid, confidant and lover finds an ultimately ugly bloody solution to her loves problem freeing them and their offspring from him. This book is full on NSFW as each issue has had an intimate boudoir moment between the two women tinged with a bit of weird horror sometimes. Marguerite and Ariela preset an ugly view of the era which in reality treated women and minorities near as shamefully as some people today dissapointly long to return to. This is an escape fantasy that has a dark cost to it; it's a story that is both beautiful and hopefull in tone even given the ugliness that underlies it.

Ghosts (Jun 161552 or 161553)

So the majority of regular superhero comics fans quite likely have not read any of Raina Telgemeier's award winning graphic novels Smile, Sisters, or Drama; I know I hadn't till just this year they take a fresh different story telling tact then what is my usual fare having no speculative elements. Her books sell real well in normal books shops but it would be great to see them getting attention at direct shops to. This is a story of Catrina and her family moving to a small town in Northern California for her mothers health and struggling with that forced change that many people can probably relate. She learns that there is a local belief that the ghosts of a persons loved ones come t visit at a particular time of year that is approaching. It sounds like a pretty heartfelt story and is something I'm looking forward to reading given the strength of her storytelling. It's a book created solely by Rainaand it's pretty cool to see that singular kind of vision.

 

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Comics Pull List June 1 2016

These weeks don't happen to me that often... Weeks when I really only have a single book that I would normally pick up so I get to kind of play a bit picking up books I might have otherwise passed on or go back and get some that I did pass on as I didn't want to stretch to pick up in my loose twenty dollar budget...

Papergirls 6 $2.99

Papergirls was one of the really enjoyable new books that oddly remains enigmatic as to what is really going on throughout its initial arc. Brian K Vaughan created a group of creat characters, put them through the wringer threw them around space and time and ended the arc with some of them tossed into our 2016 present from their era in the late eighties. Between the crazy cool story by Brian and the beautiful pages created by Cliff Chiang and Matt Wilson, whose linked pallet if colors create a stunning look overall, this is one of books your really should not miss out on and as this week we get the collection you don't have to... And we're I not crazy I'd save some money and leave it there...but

Power Ranger: Pink 1 $3.99

Ok I'll be honest even on a week where I was already at budget I would be likely to pick this up as the writing team includes Kelly Thompson (Jem, A-force) and Brenden Fletcher (Gotham Academy, Batgirl and Black Canary) and the few preview pages by the art team of Danielle De Nicuolo and Sarah Stren looks pretty damn nice too. I will have to say I never watched what the American producers did with all the Sentai shows they bought and reworked for the American market but I did have great fun watching the original series' when I got the chance in the late eighties and early nineties and miss those opportunities now. I look forward to seeing new stories about a character I've seen buy not really seen in this incarnation. I'm pretty confident the book is in excellent loving hands and worth the admission price. Oh and all those cover choices....

Punisher 2 $3.99

So as time has not allowed me to get to last months Punisher 1 I'm taking it on my faith in the kick ass writing of Becky Cloonan and the art of Steve Dillon that this is a book worth my attention and money. I will say that having Frank Castle mentioned in one of the books I did get to this week (Nighthawk... And good stuff it was...Plug plug) reminded that this was coming soon. Becky writes characters that are dark and disturbed quite well and has a great grasp of creating a sense of growing forbidding dread so I know that it's likely to be a worthy read. (Subsequently read the issue and fully justified in my opinion it's worth a look...)

 

The Revisionist 1 $3.99

Aftershock books have been hit and miss at my FLCS as i think if no one asks for it taking a risk I know can be a bit of a step too far so I don't know if I can get this but as Frank Barbiere is writing e book it's likely to be a good lot of pulp fictiony fun. Time travel suspense and horror combined is a good mix so I will hope to get a look at it. On the whole I've been quite happy with the Aftershock books I have had the luck to get and I'm sorry I didn't think about preordering this to make sure. ...

 

Anyway this week has some other books that will do really well out of the gate that have the title Rebirth in the title and I know they need no more hype and I'm possibly picking one or two up despite misgivings as to how committed DC is to change (I already miss Midnighter and I worry about the tone of the new Batgirl, Birds of Prey, and have hopes for Suicide Squad but... Time will tell) the other big company had a book bannered by the title Civill War that I hope does not adversely affect title I love over the next couple months... There is lots of good to look forward to and DC Bombshells comes out this week and I'm well behind on that and Legends of Wonder Woman so I'm sure to kill my excess budget...

Till next post take care and remember why you love comics and genre media as some fans are taking things too too personal sometimes...

Addendum

 

A-force 6 $3.99

Last months A-force was a real lot of fun with Kelly Thompson taking the reigns and looked amazing at the hand of Ben Caldwell and though it looks like he won't be on the title long the group of characters are a real joy. I mean honest how could you pass up a book that has Thor-Dazzler and punk rock Dazzler both in the same book. Of the many reasons to buy this is the sense of joy I get coming from the team working on it and look no crossover banner....

 

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Pre-orders are paramount...

Hi there and here's another call to talk to your friendly local comic shop staff about the books your wanting wether it's a monthly book like me or it your trade waiting... hell given the price point on things and that fact comic shops can return nothing on the average for the life of a project it can be a make or break kind of thing. If you need visual aids I will put a link here to the nice comic tutorial Kieron Gillen put together a couple years ago that still holds true... I try to put in the diamond order codes after the title where I can to help but knowing the publisher month it's out and the title can usually be enough...

 

Secret Loves of Geek Girls edited Hope Nicholson (JUN 160030)

I am likely to gush about this book because Hope managed to pull together such a a brilliant collection of talent to celebrate all things geek that are created by women... and look they even got Kelly Sue Deconnick to add a forward. This started out as a Kickstarter project and as with many of the ones that get attention it's been picked up for another publishing run by Dark Horse Comics. Naming all the writers and artists Hope hot to contribute would take far too much space as I would have to just copy the table of contents but I have to mention Ireve Koh, Jen Bartell, Margaret Atwood, Marguerite Bennettn Sam Maggs and from the look of things they added some more for this version including a new cover. This is one of those times I'm going to have two copies as it was a book worth having twice... look at the people mentioned in the cover... Books like this are a gift you should really give yourself, and others...

 

Lady Killer 2 (JUN 160017)

Anyone who caught the last two issues of Spiderwoman, the Mockingbird SHIELD 50th anniversary special or the First Lady Killer series will for sure tell you that you should not miss out in the sheer joy that is Joelle Jones' art and storytelling. Lady Killer is a wonderful mix of fifties/sixties family values kind of imagery thriller movie plotting and blacksploitation/Terintino levels of violence and blood gloriously well illustrated. Lady Killer was one of last years books I enjoyed a hell of a lot and it could only have been better if the writer of Grindhouse herself Alex De Campi had written it as it would have fit so well into that anthology. Somehow the juxtaposition of wholesome seeming images and pools of blood seems to work... Yeah sometimes I'm not such a safe for work kind of person....

Prince of Cats HC (JUN 160680)

This is a reprint of Ronald Wimberly's eighties hip-hop punk version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet by way of Tom Stoppard as it takes the story for the view of Tybolt. The story plays out in an underground sword dueling club in late last century New York... I've never seen the art for this but given the acclaim and words I have read about it the 24.99 pricetag makes this real tempting and if the cover art is anything to go on its sure to please...

 

So there are more new projects in August I'm exited about and I'll get to those later in the month... This weekend I'm going back to July as the initial order cutoff is coming up fast... Remember if you have been reading about Kim + Kim the order cut off I believe is the 3rd of this month... Just a reminder...

 

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Comics Pull List May 25 2016

Welcome to the end of another shipping month as this is the last #NCBD in May and as has become the the trend for me the week with most books that I'm interested in getting so trimming that list down to the twenty dollars to spotlight is pretty hard. I'll try to hit the books that I think may be lower on people's radar as they are usually the ones I'm more interested in.

Nighthawk 1 $3.99

So many reasons that this tops my list for the week; David F Walker is one of my favorite writers, one who definitely has something to say with this stories, Ramon Villalobos is one of the artists that combines the best of several art styles I enjoy while Tamara Bonvillain is a treasure as a colorist so creatively it's a go. Nighthawk is a new take in this character putting him in Chicago where the creative team gets to really build and define his world; a world taken from our headlines with all its ugly racism and contradictions and mires him right in the middle of all that potential explosive violence. This is not the Nighthawk of Mark Grunwald's Squadron Supreme it's a different one but the title seems to want to tackle social issues head on that that reminds me of that book from so long ago. I think it's going to be a pretty book written about ugly things and in the hands of someone unwilling to pull any punches.

Image + 2 $1.99

Yes this is pretty much an all in house ad for Image but like Marvel Age back in the eighties for the price it delivers value at least in my opinion. Issue one had an interview with Marjorie M Liu and some beautiful preview pages for Snot Girl with I already knew I'd be getting but those sealed the deal. In some ways this magazine is like the back matter pages from some of the image comics and the feeling I get from those, like being part of a community is kind of here in this too. This issue draws for me are the articles previewing the Prince of Cats reprint that I will definitely be ordering and the Kieron Gillen, Jamie McKelvie spotlight. There is also a Walking Dead feature that I'm sure will be a draw but as I got inn so so late with that I think it may be my only real entry to that lovely book. What else can you get for $1.99 comics wise that is of this value?

 

Another Castle 3 $3.99

I'm the kind of reader who loves a twist on genre conventions, boos that take your expectations even if you know they are breaking the rules and still manage to make you go hmmmm that is unexpected. Andrew Wheeler and Paulina Ganucheau have one of those on the go here with this approach to the kidnapped/married off fantasy princess story. Another Princess's heroine is someone fully capable of saving herself as she proved in the initial issue and that is sure to be complicated by the heroes trying to save her on the way. For me the title is a sheer joy because of the human qualities of the minions of the evil King and the fact that Paulina Ganucheau is on of the creators on this because I'm so missing Zodiac Starforce...

Monstress 6 $3.99

Though this is coming late in my pull list this week it's probably the title I'm look forward the most but it's the end of the first story arc and that may make it a bit of a tough first issue. The complex fantasy world created by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takada so recently torn up by war and destruction faces the threat of yet another conflict on the horizon. The good thing if the art and promise of a deeply thought out complex fantasy story appeals to you image has gone to multiple printings of the first and second issues so stores hopefully have them on hand. Sure this will be collected soon but with the sheer detail of Sana's pages being able to lay them out flat without worrying about the binding is so nice... if you have not looked beyond the covers the insides are no less detailed. One of the best books out there right now.

Mockingbird 3 $3.99

Chealsey Cain got the opportunity to write this series based in the strength of her one shot issue celebrating the 50th anniversary of SHIELD and she's actually dealing with the wacko crazy history that Bobbi has had over the course of her super-hero/super-spy career. It's a book getting overshadowed by a particular spider themed soviet spy being written by a couple of well known guys to comics fans. Mockingbird is kind of the weird fiction X-files-y Sex Criminals-y spy book that needs more eyes on it and people talking about it. Diamond took forever to get copies out to my FLCS which they shorted but it was honesty good enough to be worth the wait. Diamond is apparently overs hopping this book so give it a go if you have a taste for a bit of the weird.

 

And I'm safely in budget so far... But this week is also an Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Parsy Walker AKA Hellcat and Divinity II week so I'm sure to be breaking that budget to support them too...

 

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Pre-Orders, the continuing saga of promoting....

As some books are hard for shop owners to prepare orders for and with the growing stable of books out there pre-orders are pretty paramount nowadays for the life or long survival of lesser then a list books. Your local shop or if you have none your mail order of choice pretty much lives and dies, well at least the books do, on the demand that shop owners see for new and continuing books soo....

Black Hammer 1 (May160013)

This new book by Jeff Lemire who seems to be doing so many damn titles now is one that may just fall a bit under most fans radar unless they are like me and are obsessive about checking comics news sites and blogs. Jeff and Dean Ormston are creating their own superhero setting from scratch and with there off beat will be a conservative description of the likely characters and story. Black Hammer is a book that takes the superheroes of another age that for one reason or another became outcast from their reality and are existing somewhere else in a farming town making due when trouble seemingly finds them again. If they are not actually the figures we know and love they are versions of things we love and have for editorial reasons lost and want back. It's sure to be worth exploring this further look at the victims of comic events $3.99 coming July 20.

Angel CatBird (May160020)

Margaret Atwood does very little writing for comics; this may be the second time as I now she did a little piece for the Secret Love of Geek Girls (I'll be spotlighting that book in a couple weeks). This original graphic novel combines her talent with Vancouver BC artist Johnnie Christmas (Sheltered) and colorist extraordinaire Tamara Bonvillain promises to be a pulp action story about a scientists creation in an adventure that may just be full of cat puns. With the talent it would be a surprise if this slips below the radar but reminders that cool projects like this are coming up are a good thing. If I recall right proceeds from this go to cat and bird related clarities. It's been months since the comics news sites mentioned it so here is a reminder.

Mae 3 (sorr can't find the previews number but it's MAY16....)

Gene Ha Kickstarted this book as an original graphic novel that introduced a new urban fantasy story and it's heroes a year or so back and it gained the attention of Dark Horse Comics and got a nod to be a series. The first issue of the series came out this week (May 18) to positive reviews and added some pages and background to the first half of the graphic novel making it a must to have even if you have the KS version. It's a urban fantasy about a pair of sisters one who left her younger sibling to become the hero of a portal fantasy world that returns home inadvertently bringing the fantastic back with her. It's a pure joy of a book both in story and in art and well worth a look if Buffy, Alice, Dorothy or the Winchesters are your kind of thing. Take a look at the first issue and ask for this one ... order numbers tend to fall after the first issue and it's nice to reverse that trend by preordering books in progress.

 

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Trade Waiting May 18 2016

Zodiac Starforce: By the Power Of Astra by Kevin Panetta and Paulina Ganucheau $12.99

I make no secret of the fact that I lived this mini-series as it was runnin and it was one of the projects last year I was exited about for months before it started and the book really did deliver on all its promise to be a love letter to the magical girl genre. They didn't linger at all doing an origin tale rather doing a getting the gang back together story that remained true to the themes of the genre the creators so obviously love it was as much about fighting to protect the earth and your teammates as it was about the power of friendship, mutual respect and love and managed to really look at the costs that these characters often pay to take the job they have seriously regardless of the crazy of it. The collection promises to have a few extras so I'll most likely happily get it all over again. It's a great adventure story that hopefully will be followed up on sometime soon as there are well more stories to tell I think if we show them the is a supportive audience for them.

 

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Comics Pull List May 18 2016

So I'll start by with sending condolences to the friends, family and loved ones of Darwyn Cooke and say that I saw so many lovely posts about him over the weekend it's obvious he was much loved and respected. Go look him up is your unfamiliar as his work is a real joy to look at and well it's good to celebrate great artists. This is a slim week for me so sticking to my twenty dollar budget might be a possibility but I know I tend to go and try things when I have a chance... But the two regular books I get are pretty exceptional...

 

Mirror 4 2.99

Emma Rios and Hwei Lim's genre crossing book really is one that is hitting so many elements I love about comics. The story manages to be rooted in fantasy science and mythology all at once as so much of the story and imagery can reference any or all of the three. I still stand by my thoughts on it initially as the soft ethereal feel of the art makes a great partner to the work of Dustin Nguyen in Descender and the serious nature and themes am a and Hwei are touching on makes me think of Monstress. It's truly a georgous book and I'm happy to be back reading comics right now as there is so much to love. It's one of the books i love as it can be read on many levels including as a brilliant adventure starring human animal hybrids and talking animals who curiously bring to mind the creatures of myth.

Power Man and Iron Fist 4 $3.99

So the good deed that brought Luke Cage and Danny Rand back together is kinda, read full on, blowing up in their faces as their former employee becomes their new nemesis. So yeah the Heroes for Hire are so not getting back together like Luke told Jessica. David F Walker and Sanford Green are doing a band up, sometimes literally, with the new book starring these mis matched buddies and it's been a joy to get them back after so long. In the same way Ultimates is the best crazy cosmic title in Marvels stable this is the best book about freindship and doing the right thing. Honestly I have to ask if your not getting this book why not. Ok enough gushing it's a great read with pretty unique art and marvelous dialogue. No really it's the week to give this book a go.

 

And well outside my normal list there are a couple I will seriously consider...

To

Dept H 2 $3.99

Matt Kindt is the perfect person to write a murder mystery at the ocean floor. From MIND MGMT he has proved to be able to do drama, suspense and blend of weird fiction and thriller. I picked up issue one and a lark and given I have space to play this week I'm likely to pick it up as I enjoyed his set up and liked his fish out of water investigator searching for her fathers killer a one the only set of dubious suspects there are in this twist on a locked room mystery. Like Jeff Lemire Matt's art style is indosyncratically all him and I have to say the colors by hi wife Sharlene are pretty amazing and as clearly hers as his art is his. If your like me and can do with a bit of different this book is probably your man.

 

 

 

 

Goldie Vance 2 $3.99

So I picked up Goldie Vance 1 as it was just too good looking when I flipped through it and sadly have yet to give myself the time to read it. It's got that Nancy Drew, Veronica Mars Tin Tin kind of young clever investigator vibe and I have fond memories of the old Nancy Drew stories. So I can not say much more then it's got a very charming look to it kitschy and a bit Starman retro....

 

Spider-woman 7 $3.99

This Dennis Hopeless book is one I sadly passed on early on given budgets and I've picked up here and there and it's a pretty great book... It's even greater as Joelle Jones is doing a couple issues before returning to her book Lady Killer; she so well draws pretty without being exploitive... This issue also introduces Jessica's doppelgänger from Earth 66...

 

And that gets me right up to the edge of my twenty dollar limit...

 

Be good to each other and check me back tomorrow for a bit of collection reccomendation...

 

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