There's been no DC comics I want to read in the past two weeks (that changed this week, as you'll soon see!), and I'm in the middle of unpacking after our move so I have no access right now to old comics that I might want to write about, but when Previews comes out, it's time to check what's what! Let's dig in!



Yes, it's that time of the month again, as the Dynamic Douche Duo is back to dig through the catalog! Travis is blue text as usual, and this month, your assignment is to see how often something does or doesn't "sway" him. It's his favorite word this time around! I remain in black, of course!

Dark Horse:

The complete solicits are here!

Page 55 has the new Resident Alien mini, The Man With No Name. I am behind on reading, of course, but I enjoy this series so I will be getting it!

Tarzan shows up on the Planet of the Apes on page 56. Wait a minute, isn't the Planet of the Apes ... Earth? What the heck is going on here? This crossover can't be the first time these two brands meet, is it? This seems far too logical to have waited this long for it.

Yeah, it's a great mash up. I'll wait for the trade cuz I'm like that, but ooh mama, that sounds like fun!



Mike Mignola gives us Rise of the Black Flame on page 58. Hey, look, it's an adventure set in Victorian times! From Mike Mignola? Shocking! Christopher Mitten is drawing this, so it will look keen.

Yessirree, I like Mitten. I hope we'll eventually get more Umbral, too!

Yeah, don't hold your breath there, unfortunately.

Douglas Rushkoff and Michael Avon Oeming have Aleister and Adolf on page 69. I assume the "Adolf" is Hitler, as it's about Aleister Crowley coming up with a weapon to fight the Axis but which just might destroy the world. Yeah, whoops. I haven't read anything by Rushkoff (he hasn't written too many comics), but this sounds intriguing, and Oeming's work in black and white looks sweet.

Well, yeah, Hitler's there on the cover, upside down. [Oh, yeah. Duh.] A little disappointed that we're going back to the ol' Nazi well, and the Nazis using occult weapons well at that, but it might be good. Oeming is really good, and looks great in B&W. I've read some of Rushkoff's Testament comic, and I also picked up a copy of his ADD GN, both from Vertigo, and Testament was probably more interesting than good, with a new Bible created by a computer sort of a storyline that looked pretty with ... Liam Sharp's art, iirc. I probably saw Rushkoff talk in that GMozz doc, so that may be why GMozz is doing a foreword here.

Hitler's always a good villain, man! And yes, Sharp drew Testament. At least he started on the book. I don't know if he drew all of it.



I didn't pick up the first mini, but I'm glad that The Rook is continuing in trade form (page 72). Dark Horse seems to be having some issues with single issues selling enough lately, like Shadow Glass (cancelled after 3 of the 6 issues were released, but plans to print the trade after digital release of 4-6), and Resurrectionists. It's got to be tough -- people like us who gamble on certain books getting the trade treatment don't pick up the singles, but then if the singles don't sell, is there enough demand for the trades? It must be tough to be a comic book publisher! Leave Dan DiDio alone!

I don't feel very badly for Dark Horse or any other major publisher, to be honest. I know single issues are essential to creators, and for that I feel bad, but the publishers have created this mess, so they can lie in it now. Single issues simply aren't worth what they used to be, and Dark Horse/DC/IDW/Image/Marvel make it far too easy to wait for trades. They're relying on readers' desire to stay current rather than readers' desire to be economical, and that tide has shifted. It sucks, but that's the way it is.

I guess my only reply to that is that single issues are still a relatively cheap way to sample a newer creator (or any creator, I guess) and their work, without shelling out bigger bucks for something that doesn't please you. It's a weird psychological thing, I know, but if I got, say, 4 issues of a 4 dollar book and didn't like it, I wouldn't feel "ripped off" as much as if I got a 15 dollar book with 5 issues of stuff and didn't like it, because I didn't drop the cash all at once with the singles. It's weird!

More Gaiman and Zulli re-released goodness on page 74 with the second edition of Creatures of the Night. I think I read this, and with those creators, of course it's good!

New Nexus Omnibus (v8) on page 75, with what appears to be the Dark Horse issues released in the early to mid '90s. Also includes the Nexus Meets Madman book, which is delightful!

Not sure what Ranx is, other than what it says here, a "sci-fi antihero made of photocopier parts and ultraviolence". OK. It was published in Heavy Metal, so undoubtedly there are bare boobs involved. (page 76)

Echoes by Mike Richardson and Gabriel Guzman on page 77 sounds pretty neat - a dude travels back in time 30 years and is given a chance to "right the wrong that ruined his future." Things get complicated, it seems.

His last name is Martin, or Marty for short. And he goes back 30 years. To save his mom. No precedents here! When you're the publisher you can relist all the books you've done, too, dammit!

I missed that the dude's name was Martin. Funny stuff.

I didn't get any of the Kim W. Andersson books that DH has released lately (Alena and the Complete Love Hurts, offered again here), but another book, Astrid v1, is offered on page 79. Disgraced officer trying to get back in good graces with a sci-fi adventure that just might fail. Could be fun!



Page 81 features Tree Mail, the new book from The Stuff of Legend guys, Brian Smith and Mike Raicht. This looks and sounds cute, with a frog who wants to be a mail delivery animal, and Raicht has been a really nice dude whenever I've met him.

DC:

You want the solicits? You GOT the solicits!

I'm cautiously optimistic about Gerard Way's Doom Patrol on page 89, although, as usual, I wish creators would "honor the past" by doing their own thing instead of reusing characters from a different classic run. That's why The Umbrella Academy was so good - it was in the spirit of Morrison's Doom Patrol, but was its own thing. Still, good for Way, and I have my fingers crossed for this. The fact that it's $3.99 bugs me to no end, but we'll see.

That's pretty much how I feel. Way seems to "honor the past" a bit too much, anyway, as I saw that a line from the My Chemical Romance Danger Days ... album was taken wholesale from Brat Pack (about dying with your mask on). That album is pretty damn good, though, and GMozz is the bad guy in the videos, so bonus. Hell, even this peel off burrito thing is lifted directly from the Velvet Underground and Nico album cover by Andy Warhol! But Umbrella Academy and ... Killjoys were pretty good, so I too am cautiously optimistic. Probably "read it in trade cuz of the cover price" optimistic, but I think that's safe with DC these days ...

Wait, what? The Cyborg Superman is now Supergirl's dad? WTF, DC?!?! (page 94)

Bwah-ha-ha-ha!!!!! Although I can't even say that's the dumbest idea DC has had in the past ... what, two months? DC: Always Striving For That Next Dumb Idea!

It's nice that Francis Manapul is getting to do a book with Wonder Woman, Superman, and Batman in it (Trinity on page 96), but, as usual, the premise is just dull. Such is life, I guess. The book will be very pretty, until Manapul decides he just wants to write and passes the art off to someone not as talented!

Yeah, it's always "let's get them together and retell their origins YET AGAIN"! I guess the Busiek Trinity series wasn't necessarily like that, but man, other writers, get a new riff!



"Rebirth" started in June (more or less; the big thing came out in the final week of May, but the regular titles started in June). In SEPTEMBER, DC decides that what people want is a crossover among the Bat-books. Sigh. Lessons learned, DC. Lessons learned indeed. (page 106-107)

Well, the sad thing is that they're probably right ...

In their new series, the Justice League are facing the Kindred. Is this like that old Image crossover between the Wildstorm stuff and the CyberForce stuff? (page 114)

AGAIN the Titans solicit talks about the "intergalactic demon that stole their memories", which seems to refer to the premise behind DCU Rebirth. So I'm still of the opinion that the Watchmen stuff is a head fake or red herring, and since we didn't actually SEE any Watchmen characters in DCU Rebirth, it wasn't actually them involved. If I'm right, y'all owe me a dollar. Just cuz. (page 120)

Well, Dr. Manhattan COULD be an intergalactic demon! Or do the Titans already know who stole their memories, and it's not him? Or do they just ASSUME it's an intergalactic demon, because those things are always stealing memories? Oh, so many possibilities!!!! I would love it if DC was going to do something with the Watchmen characters, but the backlash scared the crap out of them and now it's just Neron or someone like that. That would crack me up.

"Man, those intergalactic demons are ALWAYS stealing our memories!" "How do you know?" "I forget!" Nah, if they are doing a Watchmen thing, they're committed to it, but I just like to point out that anyone who says that we see the Watchmen characters in DCU Rebirth 1 is wrong.

Gotham Academy Second Semester 1 is offered on page 123, but we haven't gotten the third trade yet. I'm not even sure the second one has been offered yet, actually. How am I supposed to catch up, DC, after I dropped the book with the Robin War crossover issue?

Brendan McCarthy does the sweet sweet art for the cover of Doctor Fate 16 (page 125). Ooh!



Another Wonder Woman '77 Special on page 132, #4, with Trina Robbins writing a story! Yay! I don't think I read #3 (what?!) but the first 2 were quite entertaining.

In case you didn't see it, Wacky Raceland is only a 6 issue mini. I will be getting the trade, since you shilled issue #1 so well! (page 136)

I think Wacky Raceland was already a mini-series last month, but I definitely knew about it, somehow. That's okay, though - the chances are higher that the concentrated insane awesomeness from issue #1 will be sustained over six issues rather than indefinitely!

On page 137, we get a Goodnight, Moon parody with Goodnight Batcave (the missing comma is crucial!). It sounds fun, but not for $14.99 for a 32-page comic.

I like MAD Magazine still, but then, I read it for free from the library. I vow to never fully grow up! But yeah, not paying for this, even though Tom Richmond is great.

Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? 73 features Velma's favorite comics character come to life, which looks like it'll be goofy fun (with a story from Derek Fridolfs). But the bigger news on page 138 is that Scooby-Doo Team Up 18 features the dog heroes of the DCU!!! OH YEAH!!!! G-muthafuggin'-Nort, dammit! I already have this on my pull list, but I want to take it off just to add it back on because this promises to be so damn fun! Get this book if you're not already!!!! This kind of thing is why I love comics!



I'm twitching because page 139 features Watchmen Noir, the book in B&W. So cool sounding, but it's just another way to screw over Moore and Gibbons! And really, is Gibbons's art in Watchmen "dark and moody"? I hear that, I think of Sin City or Ted McKeever or something. I dunno.

Gibbons's art in Watchmen is definitely NOT dark and moody. I'm sure it will look fine in black and white, but honestly, Higgins's coloring was a big part of what made the book so unique. Still, if DC sees a chance to screw over Moore, they'll take it!

OK, the new Aquaman collection, the Red Hood/Arsenal collection (both on page 140) and the Cyborg collection on page 143 have the last issues of the new 52, but also include the Rebirth issues. Why? Wouldn't those, BY DEFINITION, be the first part of a new trade? WTF, DC?

Including the Rebirth issues with those collections makes absolutely zero sense. So, it's a perfect DC move!

You can recall once again when Ed Brubaker actually worked for DC (before they pissed him right off) with a second trade of his Batman work on page 141. Good times!

That may have been when I wasn't paying as close attention to behind the scenes stuff -- what did DC do that pissed him off? The thing I remember is that they put Paul Gulacy on Catwoman and he upped the sexy look by making Selina forget that her zipper went up as well, and Bru wasn't too happy that the artist decided to up that element of the book when he wasn't trying to push that. Was there more? (I thought I heard too that an artist who worked with him wouldn't draw what he asked them to. I wondered if it was Gulacy or if it was Warren Pleece on Deadenders. Or someone else.)

I don't know if DC did anything really to piss Brubaker off except not offer him more money than Marvel when Marvel wanted to poach him. I'm just pointing out that DC once employed him and, like a lot of talent they used to employ, they thought they didn't need him so they let him go. DC's motto should be: We're great at finding talent who do great things at Marvel!

I was amused in the last couple years at how much DC talent started at Top Shelf. It's like they started stealing Kindt, Lemire, Van Jensen, I think Venditti did some work for them, all about the same time that they snagged the Marshal Law Omni from TS. And dammit, they should have made deals to get all the other crossovers collected of that too! Pinheads!

I'm sure you have these ones, but the second Elseworlds: Batman trade on page 143 collects the Moench/Jones/Beatty Batman/Dracula trilogy. Good stuff!

A new book in the Silver Age collections, this one Green Lantern, on page 144. I may not get this one, because I do have the Showcase Presents B&W phone book that I believe collects everything in here plus more. If I get a chance to dig it out and take a look before the due date, I might consider this, though!

Ooh, they are continuing the Byrne Man of Steel books, with volume 9 introducing the new Supergirl. I'll have to see if I have these issues or if I need this book. (page 145)

Man, I really need to buy the Byrne Superman collections. One of these days ...

Len Wein and Kelley Jones's recent Swamp Thing comic gets collected on page 146. I've read just enough about it to be wary that it's not very good, but six issues of Kelley Jones drawing Swamp Thing is never a bad thing!

I was hoping they'd stick the two Convergence issues that this same team did into this collection. Alas! I may go for this because yeah, Kelley Jones!

I forgot about the Swamp Thing Convergence issues. Come on, DC, your trades are usually so nicely put together (well, with the exception of putting the Rebirth issues in those trades mentioned above)!

They resolicited the PAD Supergirl book on page 148. No idea why they delayed this one, but maybe I'll order it this time!

I saw the resolicitation of Supergirl. Maybe they thought the show was going to be cancelled, so they cancelled the trade? And now that it's not cancelled, the trade is back on the schedule?

I'd think that about the show cancellation, but they've been putting together so many other ... different, we'll say, Supergirl collections, that to cancel this one but not the others seems odd. I'll give partial credit to DiDio as to his idea several years back of wanting to streamline the Supergirl origin from the Supergirl seen here back to the "cousin of Superman" origin, since it indirectly led to the show, but the first iteration of DiDio streamlined Supergirl was that shitty Superman/Batman Loeb/Turner run, so ...

Also on 148 is the HC of the Neal Adams Coming of the Supermen mini. I doubt it could be as wacky as Batman Odyssey, but anyone know how it has been?

Joshua Williamson and Jason Shawn Alexander have a new futuristic comic called Frostbite from Vertigo on page 151. It doesn't sound all that interesting, but as I mentioned when I read Williamson's Flash comic, if writing that allows him to do some more stuff of his that he's truly invested in, good for him!

One of these apocalyptic weather books that seem to be coming from publishers. New ice age here, check. Interesting that both these creators have Image books, but they brought this here. Movie deal, I wonder?



Art Ops 12 is the last issue of that series. Haven't read the first trade yet (I know you're surprised!), but I'll probably just get the second one regardless, because ALLRED!

I was pretty unimpressed with the first trade of Art Ops. It was just okay, I guess. Clean Room, on the other hand, was excellent.

I was waiting for the trade on this, because it sounded really cool, but Simon Oliver and Rufus Dayglo's Last Gang in Town is collected, the story of punk criminals. I'm in!

Yeah, I'll get Last Gang in Town, too.

Hope no one ordered the HC of Neil Gaiman's Midnight Days that was reoffered last month, since a new trade of that book is offered on page 156.

Was the Vertigo SFX mini any good? It's collected on page 156.

The SFX mini-series was like every other Vertigo anthology of the last few years. Some great stories, some mediocre stories, and all-around excellent art. If you're into art, it's a good book to get, but the stories do vary in quality.

IDW:

All the solicits that are fit to print!

This Hasbro Revolution stuff tempts me a bit, as I am right about the target age for this throw every Hasbro toy line into one book thing. I'm a bit nostalgic for the MASK book, as I had a DC mini comic of it as well as a transforming jet of the bad guy. I'm also wondering what's in the Road to Revolution special. However, I'll just wait and see if they collect the whole shebang in one big trade. Maybe I'd get it then. (pages 164-169)

I totally glossed over that Revolution stuff. You're right - it's just not my thing at all.

TMNT holds no sway with you, I know, but the creative lineup of Sophie Campbell, Nick Pitarra, Dustin Weaver, et al. on Bebop and Rocksteady Destroy Everything sways me towards this book, plus the valley girl wizard from the original TMNT run issue where Cerebus appeared is in this, I think, so I'm probably going for this trade! (page 176)

Meredith McClaren is drawing Jem #19 (and the issues in the foreseeable future, I guess) on page 179. That's very cool.



Bloom County gets a new collection on page 180. I don't know if people have been reading these on Facebook, but Breathed really hasn't missed a beat, and with Donald Trump, he STILL has the perfect punching bag for his humor (it's amazing that he was making fun of Trump back in the 1980s and he's still able to do it today - he could even recycle many jokes from 30 years ago and they'd still be relevant!).

One of my favorite strips ever. Plus, the other collections are all offered here as well, so people can catch up. As to Trump jokes, hell, the Doonesbury strips from the same era point out most of the same issues that bedevil Trump that seem to get him traction today!

There's another trade of Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency on page 182. I never got the first one (I don't know if my retailer forgot to order it or if Diamond screwed him over), so I'll have to order that one, too.

I think I didn't get around to reading Dirk Gently before I stopped being interested in Douglas Adams stuff. Hitchhiker's is ok to me now, and the second episode of the radio show (iirc) is still amazing, and I love the "first against the wall when the revolution comes" bit, but when I tried re-reading Hitchhiker's at some point in my 20s, I think, it just didn't hold the sway with me that it did when I was in junior high. But thanks to Adams for helping me get through junior high!

The two Dirk Gently books are, I think I've mentioned before, far better than the Hitchhiker books. The Hitchhiker books tend to be funnier simply because there are more jokes per page, so more land, but the Dirk Gently books are better written and far more interesting. Adams was getting better as a writer when he died, and it's too bad he didn't survive, not only because he seemed like a cool dude, but because I would think we'd have more Dirk Gently books to read. So I've been curious about this series, and I'm peeved I never got the first trade! Plus, Ilias Kyriazis is a terrific artist.

Also on 182 is the collected version of Paul Dini's Jingle Belle, Santa's daughter! This is amusing stuff, and I think the crossover issue with the (Kyle) Bakers must be included. Fun comics, great creators, a decent price. I think I'm in!

Page 185 asks the musical question, Who Killed Kurt Cobain?, the answer of which is obviously Courtney Love, duh! Heh. I doubt this is anything I'd go for. I'll just stick with his music and be sad that he couldn't get past his suffering to continue on living.



Last issue of The Maxx: Maxximized? Or is there an epilogue? But issue 35 is offered on page 190, along with the second big trade of this series. I need to catch up!

According to the GCD, there were 35 issues of The Maxx, so I assume this is the final one!

I thought there was also a "Friends of the Maxx" book, so I don't know if that would be released as well. I'm working off 15-20 year old memories here, though!

Also on 190 is the Richard Matheson GN collection, with four of his stories collected, including I Am Legend. His writing is quite good and these are probably decent adaptations.

Also on 190 is the collection of 3 Devils by Bo Hampton, the fourth issue of which just came out. I'm hoping my guy has the singles, because the 4 issues are collected for 20 bucks in trade. Damn you, IDW, for outsmarting us trade waiters!

Pricing the trade of 3 Devils so high is kind of a douchey move by IDW. I mean, if I knew exactly what their pricing policy was with regard to trades, I would buy single issues. But their trades are priced differently depending on ... something arcane, it seems, so this is a dick move.

I think most IDW trades have now moved to 20 bucks for the self contained 4 issue minis like this, so in general, if there's something like this I'm interested in, I ought to get the singles. The only ones where I might not are the ones where they do a lot of variant covers, because if I can't pick between a few covers, I usually just go, "screw it, I'll wait for the trade". Then I forget and don't get the trade. Publishers, variant covers suck! But I wouldn't characterize the trade pricing as a dick move, but, y'know, a business move. I hope it's one that works for them, that's the thing!

Jack Kirby: Pencils and Inks is on page 191 for 50 dollars. This sounds amazing - it shows three issues - The Demon #1, Kamandi #1, and OMAC #1 - with each page on uninked pencils and then the inked pages side-by-side. It's very tempting!!!

Tempting, hell, I'm probably going for this. I have OMAC 1, so I can look at the original colored comic as well. I see something interesting on the covers of The Demon and Kamandi that I'll have to ask the Dread Lord about, and see if he's covered it as a Legend before!



Oh my glory, that America's Best Comics Artist's Edition is something I must have. So many good artists, and that line was so good, and Dunbier, the line's editor, obviously knows the good stuff to feature. I will be asking my guy how much this will be, and the hardest decision will be which cover to pick! (page 192)

Ahem, the Mickey and Donald Search for the Zodiac Stone is collected for the "fist" time on page 194 ...

Walt Disney's Comics and Stories 734 features the Salvador Dali collaboration's "back story". Sounds cute. (page 195)

My Little Pony Friends Forever v7 on page 196 is soooo unrealistic. Granny, an older pony, has broken her hip, and a young pony comes to look after her, instead of doing what God intends and putting Granny out of her misery. Heh!

Strawberry Shortcake is collected on page 197, and I'm not sure if the back up stories by Henchgirl's Kristen Gudsnuk are included. But she's writing some for that book, if I read correctly!

I don't know that I've heard of Will Gould's strip Red Barry before, but the solicit info makes it sound exciting and lurid. I'll have to think about it! (page 200)

Image:

Yes, we have all the solicits!

Once again, the fact that Jerome Opeña likes working with Rick Remender means I won't get to see Opeña's art for a while, as Seven to Eternity (page 204) doesn't sound like my thing, plus Remender lets me down far too often. Le sigh.

I don't know Sara Kenney, but I do like John Watkiss, so I might check out Surgeon X on page 205. A darkly comic medical thriller? Sure, why not?

Watkiss is quite good, the preview pages in Image Plus 3 remind me of Trigger, which he did the art on. It will "horrify and delight", dammit! Cool concept, plus the return of Karen Berger. I may go for this in singles, even! Mostly because I'm a total nerd and am salivating over the return of that Vertigo cover credit lettering! So cool!

I like how the preview pages of Surgeon X remind you of Trigger. Considering it's the same artist, I should think so! :)

Shut up. I meant they're in the same "futuristic" milieu that Watkiss used for that book too. SHUT UP!



Another apocalyptic weather book, with Eclipse on page 206 (no, Jeff Nettleton, this isn't the cat yronwode story!). Sunlight too hot for humans, check! Sounds interesting, but I don't know either creator, so unfortunately for them I'll be trade waiting!

Glitterbomb sounds intriguing, with the horror of aging Hollywood actresses. Based on the reaction in the last panel of the third preview page shown here, there's a black humor to the book that could be fun. I'll get this in trade! (page 208)

I dig me some locked-room mysteries, so Hadrian's Wall (page 210), which takes place in space, could be cool. It's by Kyle Higgins, Alec Siegel, and Rod Reis, and their C.O.W.L. was pretty good, so I might have to give this a look.

Yeah, I liked v1 of COWL quite a bit, and don't know why I didn't get v2 (which I can rectify as it's reoffered here!) Sounds like fun and this also has some black humor, based on the preview here and in Image Plus!



Was Red One good enough to get the HC of and then get the single issue #3 offered here? (page 217)

I don't know. I enjoyed it, and I like the idea of them doing two issues a year, like European comics, and they're longer than usual, and I love me some Terry Dodson art, but it's not like it's a classic or anything. I don't know how much that hardcover is, but each issue is only 3 bucks, so this might be a situation where it's better to get single issues than wait for the trade.

Yeah, I think so too, probably, because if I remember right, the HC was 15 or 20 bucks. I'll have to search for the singles, or see how much extras the HCs have!

The Wicked + The Divine does a one-shot set in the 19th century, drawn by Stephanie Hans (page 219). I'm sure it will look wonderful, and doing specials like this helps get around the fact that the ongoing might be slow so that McKelvie can draw all of it. This is known as the "Ex Machina Technique." I'm all for it!

I've fallen (behind on this), and I can't get (caught) up ... until I sort my comics better. But let it be noted that this special does not appear in the fourth trade! Also, steampunk eyeglass and raven. I just hope it's not a stealth way of upping the price on the regular series to 3.99! (Oh, wait, I get it. Thought you were talking about the dramatic use of ex machina, and not the BKV/Tony Harris book. D'oh!)

Yeah, technically, all of Ex Machina was drawn by Tony Harris. But there were, what, four specials drawn by other artists to help him catch up. Clever!

Black Road volume 1 is offered on page 241. To Simon's eternal chagrin, only 3 issues have come out so far, but they've been good issues. I mean, we know that Brian Wood can write good Viking comics, so there it is!

Sounds like a neat concept, plus 5 issues for 10 bucks by good creators is hard to pass up, even if they haven't been reviewed! What, are you going to trust some goons on the internet to point you to the comics you should be reading? (Don't answer that!)

Why do you hate female creators, Greg? You totally skipped over She Changed Comics from the CBLDF on page 242. There are some good looking preview pages in Image Plus. I suspect this is a better book for libraries and other educational institutions than one the casual reader would get. Maybe it'll make someone want to get the Trina Robbins and cat yronwode books about female creators back in print?

I'll probably get She Changed Comics. I can't mention everything!

Funny how it's the book about women that you don't mention. I see, I see. No, no, explain it away, sure, fine.

The Discipline also gets offered on page 243 even though its 6 issues haven't shipped either. This is a tough call, because the book is still finding its way, and it's not great yet, but it is intriguing. Plus, Leandro Fernandez's art is stupendous. Of course, it's only 10 bucks for 6 issues, so it's easy to take the plunge!

Yeah, don't be a wuss, 6 issues for 10 bucks is such a good deal, it'd have to really suck to not be worth it. I'm in. Mostly for the sexy bits, of course, but that's because I'm a pervo. Dammit.

Not sure about Grizzly Shark. Sounds too dumb to be good, although Ryan Ottley was a pretty cool dude when I met him. (page 244)

I've been looking at issues of Grizzly Shark, and it looks terrible. I mean, it's pretty and all, but the story - such as it is - just seems awful. For what that's worth, of course.

Head Lopper sounded like fun, though, so I'll probably get this trade. Barbarian slayin' fun with nice cartoony art. (page 245)

I don't know if Kill Six Billion Demons is any good (and I don't feel like checking it out on-line), but the preview pages look pretty danged cool (page 246).

Who can't kill that many? C'mon! It does look pretty cool and the religious stories are intriguing. It's a hard maybe! If I get ambitious I'll look for it online!

Page 248 has the second Blue Monday collection, the second Elephantmen Mammoth volume, and the sixth East of West trade. I need to catch up with all of these!

Page 249 has the deluxe edition of The Fade Out. Was this worth getting (beyond it being a Bru/Phillips book, of course)? Also, the new Hawaiian Dick collected, a new Savage Dragon Archives B&W phone book, and the second trade of Sons of the Devil, which I am required to mention because the lead character shares my name!

I was disappointed by the ending of The Fade Out, but until then, it was pretty keen.

Page 250 has the second (and final, I guess) trade of Tokyo Ghost, so I better read the first trade to see if I want this!

And Image Plus is no longer included with Previews, so you have to order it separately now. It's a pretty good mag, with another fun Brandon Graham page (with 20 ish things I like to see in panels highlighted in issue 3), Image's favorite new 2 letter combo being ZH-, with Zhia in Horizon and Zhal in Seven to Eternity, a retrospective of Chew, a cool essay from Karen Berger on Vertigo and Image, and the fun fact that John Watkiss taught anatomy and fine arts at the Royal College of Art in London. You can't pass this mag up, especially for just 1.99! (page 254)

That's funny, because I haven't been getting Image Plus (not because my guy would charge me, but just because I don't care enough), and this month, it was shoved into the main catalog, so I actually got it this time around. Now I'll have to read it!

It's not terribly meaty, but it's a good looking mag for a preview thing, and you don't have to squint to see the preview pages from upcoming books ;) It's a nice combination of stuff, and as a lover of print, I like it even though it's something that's basically stories that could just be on a website. Pretty good design for print, though!

Marvel:

So many solicitations!

Page 1 -- Dead No More: The Clone Conspiracy. Funny, cuz I've got faith no more in these types of events! HA!

Magneto loves to play flashlight (page 7).

I can't put my finger on why, but it amuses me that there are Prostate Awareness month variant covers for some books, like ANAD Avengers (page 12), and even more amusing, Captain Marvel (page 20) and Thor (page 41). I'm aware that those female characters do not have a prostate, does that count? Or is it a typo and it's "prostrate" covers, where all the characters are bowing down to the reader? HA!

As I barely look at the single issues section of Marvel Previews because I just don't care, I thought you were joking about Prostate Awareness Month covers. What the actual fuck, Marvel?

As funny as I think I am, I don't think I could pull that one out of my ass.

Spider-Man 2099 has "Ravange" in the background? (page 28)



OK, there are cosplay variant covers this month, like for A-Force 9 on page 21, but Mockingbird 7 (page 29) takes place on a cruise ship with cosplayers ... and no cosplay variant cover!?!? WTF, Marvel?

That Mockingbird mishap (that should be the title of at least one story in this series, right?) is pretty awesome. "Hey, let's do cosplay variant covers!" "Great idea, what about one for Mockingbird, since she's actually on a cruise full of cosplayers?" "Nah, fuck that."

I will say that last issue was part of this cosplay story too, and it's possible that there was one for that issue. If not, though ... oops.

Thunderbolts 5 on page 36 has Winter Soldier vs Spider-Man, with only one of them going to walk away ... and it won't be ME!

Not sure why the Serpent Society is featured in a mini collection of stories in the Captain America: Serpents Unite! book on page 44, but there's Sal Buscema art, so that's a good thing.

First the Flaming Lips, now the Toadies? What's next, X-Men '92? James? Candlebox, for the love of all that's unholy? Ugly Kid Joe?!?!?! (page 76)

James released a new album in March, I should point out. Screw you, Pelkie!

I threw in James because I know you like them (I dig what I've gotten of their stuff too). Just based off the Laid video they might put them in.

Hey, Devin Grayson wrote the Dr. Strange novel The Fate of Dreams on page 98. Neato!

Cool Epic collection of the good Doctor on page 99, with the Englehart/Brunner run.

I can't imagine Doctor Strange: The Flight of Bones trade on page 100 is really that good, but man, with those creators, I don't know how I can pass on it!!!!



Yeah, I have most of this stuff and I still might get it! I've read the first issue of Flight of Bones, ages ago (it's the 4 issue mini from '99 listed), and as I recall, Dread Lord featured a later issue where the word balloons got all out of whack, so hopefully they fix that. The Starlin story is from the Shadows and Light 2 B&W book that Marvel did for awhile, and it's ok, a prettier looking story than deep and meaningful (we know our pal Chad has it!) Not sure about the other stories -- looks like most are from the "Mystic Hands" book, which is one of those B&W ones they did several years back. And I feel like this is a good spot to mention that Ted McKeever, one of the creators featured in this book, has left comics (hopefully just for now!) with the publication of Pencil Head 5 the other week. I know you like his stuff (they quoted you on one of the Image HCs of his early stuff!), and he's been one of my absolute favorites ever since I first encountered his stuff, so I hope he'll recharge after a while and come back to comics. We'll miss him if he doesn't!

I didn't know that about McKeever. Yeah, I hope he's not completely done, either, because his stuff is always fascinating.

Also a Doctor Strange coloring book on page 101, which might be fun just to see the art in B&W!

I don't normally give a crap about Star Wars, but that Legacy Epic Collection on 104 has Ostrander and Duursema, so I figure it's worth mentioning.

Those Ostrander/Duursema Star Wars comics are pretty good. Not great, but pretty good.

Wonder why they're relisting Runaways (page 108)?

I have heard good things about the Mockingbird book, so I will probably get the first trade on page 111!

I'll probably get Mockingbird, too. Six issues (one slightly longer than normal) for 18 bucks is a good deal in the Marvel world.

I knew Vote Loki would have to be a short run, but I didn't figure it was a 4 issue mini. They should have mentioned that.... A couple neat older stories added to the trade, the first Loki appearance and his retelling of the first Avengers story. The book still can't be as weird as real life, though! (page 117)

I am interested in the Star-Lord trade on 119 solely because of the Dread Lord featuring Javier Garron a bit ago. I am so easily swayed!

So, Black Panther didn't appear again after his first appearance in FF 52-53 until Jungle Action in '72 or so? Is that right? That can't be right. I guess he was in FF and Avengers in the meantime. Anyway, Epic Collection of his solo stuff on page 124, including the first FF stories.

Son of Satan Classic trade on page 127! Lots of good creators, so I am tempted! Tempted by Satan, resist boy, do not let the devil into your heart or he shall damn you unto eternal fire! (whoa, just went preacher on y'all!)

That Son of Satan book does sound pretty keen.

I have an unholy love for the Spirits of Vengeance stuff offered in the Rise of the Midnight Sons book on page 129, so even though I have most of this, I may still go for this trade. Ooh, that GR/Blaze story from Midnight Sons Unlimited #1 with Klaus Janson art is really creepy! The Darkhold B&W story in that issue, drawn by Quesada, is pretty good too (but not in here)!

I might have to get The Marvel Universe According to Hembeck trade on page 130. It's 300 pages and only 35 dollars, and Hembeck is a very funny dude, so this might be worth a look.

Um, yeah, I'm in! He's so good! Can't pass it up! Plus, it gets some of his serious stuff in there, too, I think, as the Marvel Super-Heroes 1 from '90 is a serious take on Brother Voodoo, I think. He's a really nice guy and only looked at me a little weird when I asked to take a picture of his knees.

What? That's weird now?

We know Kelly is all over the Gambit and Rogue trade on 131, with the solo minis for each character from the '90s. Gotta find that Rogue mini, because 'Ringo art! I have the Gambit mini. Hell, I have at least 3, maybe 4 copies of Gambit #4. I don't friggin' know why either! (well, I sorta do ...)

The Wieringo art on the Rogue series is pretty good - it's Wieringo, after all - but the story is pretty mediocre. I mean, it's Howard Mackie, so of course it is, but caveat emptor and all.

Well, yeah, that's why I'll be back issue diving for it, hoping for a cheap deal. Certainly not going for this 25 dollar book when I have half of it.

Well, this Marvel shill is out. There's so very little that I can care bit about in Marvel Previews this month. Sheesh, Marvel!

I hate when the checks don't clear in time! That's why I asked them for direct deposit!

It's time for the back of the book!

Holy crap! My MUST HAVE of the month comes right on the first page of the back of the book! Aardvark-Vanaheim has Cerebus in Hell? #0 (that's Cerebus in Hell, question mark, btw!). Here's a sampling from our pals at A Moment of Cerebus: This was a total surprise. I mean, Dave had said he'd been working on a project, but I did not expect anything like this! The humor is undoubtedly going to be hit or miss for people, but I love Cerebus so much I don't even mind that this is basically a collage comic strip, sticking Cerebus into Gustave Dore's illustrations of Dante's Inferno. The first 4 volumes of Cerebus are re-offered, and the first 3 should be the sweet looking new remastered versions. But I am definitely getting Cerebus in Hell? #0 and the upcoming mini!!! (page 264)

Page 270 features Alters #1 from Aftershock. Supposedly the first transgender superhero, except for the ones that the Dread Lord featured before, of course ... I think this is an interesting sounding book, and a noble endeavor, but the solicit text seems a bit too much patting one's own back. And this series has been "years in the making", so it's certainly not jumping on a bandwagon, oh no! Again, noble effort, but based on the Dread Lord's Civil War posts, I'm not sure I'd trust Paul Jenkins for this.



So, AH! Comics, on page 276, has Moonshot: the Indigenous Comics Collection GN 1, which apparently was a Kickstarter book that's edited by Hope Nicholson. Due to my love of Canadian comics, I may go for this (especially since Chapterhouse cancelled a number of their comics -- thanks to Rich at BC for looking into that for me!)

Alterna's book Corktown on page 276 sounds neat, about a ghost vampire cop.

On page 276, So Buttons from Alternative Comics sounds interesting. It's autobiographical, so it should mean I won't like it, but they're vignettes drawn by interesting people, so it might work pretty well. We shall see ...

Yeah, with Rick Parker, Steranko, Hembeck, Dean Haspiel, Jay Lynch, Ed Piskor, and Tom Scioli on art, I don't know that I can pass it up. So what? So Buttons!

Also from Alternative on this page is After Land GN 1, where a detective composed of 2 women can spy on people's unconscious minds and sell that info to the highest bidder. Weird! And The Short Con has a kid detective pastiche that sounds amusing.

Killbox gets a trade on page 279 from American Gothic Press. Form a grid in a city, drop a bunch of people in it, kill at will. What's not to love?

Yeah, it sounded neat from what I'd read, so I was waiting to see if a trade was offered. I may get it!



Also from AGP is Thin #1 of 3, a horror story about dieting. Sounds creepy!

American Mythology has McCandless and Company on page 282, a neat sounding self contained crime story with a detective duo investigating a mutual fund theft. Art by Gene Gonzales, who I believe drew some of the later Maze Agency stuff.

AM also has Mike Wolfer's Crypt of Screams 1, a horror anthology that sounds fun. (page 283)

I don't think I can pass on at least mentioning Laser Moose and Rabbit Boy on page 284, from AMP! Comics for Kids. Laser Moose!

Archie's Black Hood season 2 #1 has entirely too many Gregs involved in it, with Greg Scott on the art, Greg Smallwood on the cover, and the character is named Greg Hettinger. Why so many Gregs?!?! What's with that name?!

I totally want a Josie and the Pussycats/Jem and the Holograms crossover. Get on that, Kelly! The ad for the new Josie book, on page 289, says it's by the "powerhouse writing duo" of Marguerite Bennett and Cameron Deordio. Um ... who's Cameron Deordio?

On page 291, Sabrina 7 has her father resurrected in her boyfriend's body. 1. Shades of Swamp Thing! 2. Ew. 3. What else can they do to violate Sabrina? First offering her up as a tentacle rape victim to Cthulhu in Afterlife with Archie, now this. Oy.

Aspen has a new volume of Lola XOXO on page 295. I may get the trade of v1 offered again here, just to catch up. You got it, pretty good, right?

It was decent. The art was nice, but the story was kind of generic. Nothing too awful, though.

Ooh, Cinema Purgatorio has gone up to 6.99 with issue 5. Be warned! (Avatar, page 297) And if you don't have Alan Moore's Writing for Comics, it's really good and reoffered on page 298.

Over at Black Mask Comics on page 300, we have Black, which imagines a world in which only black people have superpowers. It could be all right, I guess, but the big draw is that Jamal Igle is drawing it.

Yeah, it's something that probably would be either great or awful, and I'm hoping for great. It is a really cool concept.

Meanwhile, Curt Pires has a new comic called The Forevers, which looks at a group of friends who sold their souls to live forever years earlier but are now being killed off. Crazy, man, crazy.

That's why I don't enter into a tontine!



Boom! has Frank Cho's Skybourne, which is about a dude trying to stop Merlin from destroying the world (in the modern day, mind you). I have mixed feelings about Cho. I have heard he's not a good writer, but I love his art. However, the preview pages are very sparse, and I wonder if this is laziness. And then there's his idiotic and fairly douchey crusade to keep cheesecake alive, even though it's not actually going anywhere. What to do about Frank Cho?

I've read plenty of Liberty Meadows, and that's really funny stuff. Not sure how much of his stuff I've read otherwise, so I can't say about his writing. I do like his art, but seeing his outrage pictures shows that he really only has one body type that he can draw for women. I'd say that the art's sparse in these pages, but the focus is more on the character interaction and emotions, like Steve Dillon, maybe. That lady totally is not Brandy from Liberty Meadows, no way no how! Outrage! That Geof Darrow cover is friggin' awesome, though! (page 304)

Klaus gets a hardcover on page 311 for 35 dollars. That's more than the series cost in singles, so I'll be waiting for a softcover, thank you very much. The book looked really cool, though. Dan Mora is going to be huge.

The thing with Boom, though, is that based on some of the books they've been doing lately, I'm not sure the trade will be a whole lot less than this HC. It's a maybe for me, because GMozz, but yeah, that art looks cool.

I will, however, pick up the first trade of Joyride on page 312 for 10 dollars. Marcus To is a wildly underrated artist, and this sounds pretty neat.

I did think it sounded fun, and of course I'm in on 10 dollar trades!

I will also get the trade of Rowan's Ruin on page 313. I mean, I have to like a Mike Carey comic one of these days, right?

Ooh, burn! I've liked some of his stuff, and this sounded creepy. But it is 20 bucks for 4 issues!

I enjoyed the first trade of Giant Days (a lot. Like, favorite book of 2015!) and got v2 but haven't read it yet (I know!). I'm getting v3 from page 314, hoping that it's still good with a different regular artist!

Page 315 has the Roger Langridge book Abigail and the Snowman, with a young girl meeting a yeti who has government agents on his trail! Strong maybe from me, cuz Langridge is so good.

Our pal Kelly has a story in Adventure Time Comics #3 on page 320!

I bought Tarot #50 and Tarot #75, so of course I'm going to get Tarot #100 (page 328)! Unfortunately, both the previous issues weren't all that insanely terrible. They weren't good by any means, but I was hoping for a "haunted vagina" moment and they were just kind of there. I have hopes for #100!!!!



Yeah, I've gotta get this, because you can't let a landmark like this go by without celebrating! And yet the wraparound cover of Jungle Fantasy Ivory 2 from Boundless on page 322 is dirtier than Tarot!

Matt Phelan, who does really nice comics, is back with a modern noir telling of Snow White on page 330 from Candlewick Press. I'm looking forward to it!

I think I've read something by him, but this sounds really interesting, because it's Depression era Manhattan. Neato!

Coffee Table has Remind v1 in SC, by Jason Brubaker (page 331). A cat who can now speak and an underwater kingdom. Sounds weird!

It's not bad. I'd have to re-read it to really give a better comment than that, but I do remember it being pretty good. Not as weird as you might think, though.

My nostalgia for Atari fun has me wanting that Art of Atari book on page 336 from Dynamite. So neat looking! I still have some of those game booklets.

The Great Divide, a 6 issue mini on page 344 sounds fun, with an apocalypse caused when people, well, basically all get Rogue's powers. Interesting concept and it looks like it does address the sexytime issue (of touching skin killing people).



Is the artist Luis Bermejo in the Best of Vampirella Magazine Art Edition HC related to Lee Bermejo? (page 346)

You think everyone named Bermejo is related? Really nice, Pelkie. Sheesh.

Chris Roberson's Doc Savage: The Spider's Web gets a trade on page 353 from Dynamite. I might check this out. Me too!

Did you try The Precinct? I don't know how much you love steampunk, so I don't know if you got it. (page 355)

I did not read The Precinct. I might get the trade, though.

Twilight Zone Shadow and Substance trade has several neat issues collected. The 1959 special featured several good stories, by Tom Peyer and John Layman, among others! (page 357)

Super Terre.r from Devil's Due/First sounds neat. It's a sci-fi story about a crew finding an earth-like paradise and the horrors that ensue, which is always neat. It's written by Omaha Perez, who's quite good, and drawn by Tony Talbert, which is a total blast from the past. I wonder what he's been doing for the past several years! Anyway, I'll have to pick this up.

Never heard of Talbert, but Greg Hinkle does some art too. I'm interested, too, although that period position irks me! (page 362)

Talbert did Continuity with Jason McNamara a long time ago, and something else that's slipping my mind right now. He's a good artist, but apparently he's a bit wild and crazy, which may have affected his career adversely.



Also from DD/1st on page 362 is Barack the Barbarian GN, with Larry Hama and Johnnie Christmas among the creators. Sounded goofy, but maybe fun.

Billy Budd, KGB is certainly a "re-imagining" of Melville's story, considering that the protagonist gets recruited by the Russians. Sounds keen, though. It's on page 368 from Dover.

I liked The Magician's Wife from the same creators, even if I didn't quite understand it! I may go for this, as our pal Drew Ford steered this through (and congrats to him for his success with the Red Range Kickstarter).

Fantagraphics has Love and Rockets on page 374, which is now an ongoing. As you might recall, I've never been a fan of the Hernandez brothers, so this just doesn't thrill me as much as it might thrill some people, but good for them!

If it wasn't for Cerebus in Hell?, this would be my pick of the month! I wish they'd reoffered the 3rd and 4th volumes of New Stories, as I missed them! (Birthday suggestion, hint hint!) Also, you're STILL a heathen for not being a Los Bros fan!!!

On the same page, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters sounds neat. It's a murder mystery set in late 1960s Chicago, so expect a whole bunch of political stuff, too. I will have to check it out!

That was interesting sounding, I like the lined notebook look to it.



Also on that page is Otherworld Barbara (v1 of 2) by Moto Hagio, a strange sounding sci-fi manga.

First Second has Mighty Jack v1, the new book from Zita the Spacegirl's Ben Hatke, a take on Jack and the Beanstalk. Should be good! (page 377)

451 Media Group has Red Dog 1 of 4 on page 380, with the only kid on a mining colony in outer space and his robot dog. Might be neat.

Oh, Heavy Metal has the book Heathen that another publisher had solicited a few months back. A female Viking warrior is after Odin to right his wrongs. I'll wait and hope they collect this, because it did sound good! (page 389)

Humanoids gives us a cheap 5 dollar 112 page intro to the Jodoverse of Alejandro Jodorowsky. How can you pass that up? (page 390)

Another weather apocalypse on the same page, with The Last Ones. Ultraviolet light blocked out letting vampires reign free? Check!

Kingpin offers some more Portuguese comics, with Fossils of Beautiful Souls, about a behemoth created by King John II, and The Waltz, about the dark secrets of a small coastal village (page 398).



Oh, man, I'm not sure I like the Attack on Titan stuff from what I've read, but the Anthology offered on page 402 from Kodansha has so many awesome creators, I might go for it! The Batgirl team, Faith Erin Hicks, Evan Dorkin, the Hanukas, Scott Snyder, Gail Simone ... DAMN!

Same publisher, page 403, Happiness v1, manga about vampires and teenage sexual awakening. Sounds intriguing.

Same publisher, page 404, Welcome to the Ballroom v1, manga about ballroom dancing battles! Vicious!

Lion Forge has Crystal Cadets in trade (page 405), which was offered (and maybe even released) at a higher price from IDW some months back. Sounded like a neat magical girl group story, so I'll consider it!

Ooh, Locust Moon has The Lost Work of Will Eisner GN on page 406. Probably nothing great from a story point of view, but historically it's awesome.

Magnetic/Buno offers Light on page 408, about a quest to return color to the world. Based on the picture of the cover, they need to be in color so that you don't confuse them with the Bones!

Our pal Hatcher undoubtedly likes the offerings from Moonstone on 409 (heck, I'm not sure, he might even have a story in the one!), .44 Caliber Funk, which says it's a novel but looks to be a short story collection of Blaxploitation stuff, and Foxy Lady: FBI 1, with the titular lady teaming up with T.H.E. Cat and our man FLINT. Both sound fun!



Night's Dominion is Ted Naifeh's latest comic, and it's offered on page 412 from Oni. It's basically a superhero book set in a fantasy world, and Naifeh showed me a bit of it in Seattle earlier this year, and it looks terrific.

Yeah, Princess Ugg was really good (have to get the second half of the issues that came out!), and Courtney Crumrin is good too. Does look great, reminds me a bit of Zander Cannon's Replacement God, somehow. I'll definitely get at least the trade!

John Allison of Giant Days releases another Bad Machinery book, which from what I've read was really cool. I thought he was ending this, but maybe this is just putting together stuff he's already done. (page 414)

The Bunker ends with issue #19 on page 416. I never liked this as much as I felt I should, but I'll be interested to re-read the entire thing and see how it holds together.

I want to read this, but missed the first trade, for some reason. Maybe they'll do a whole Omni collection?

Also on 416, apparently Merry Men 4 is the penultimate issue, so that was just a mini?

Jeez, already they offer the third volume of Oh Joy Sex Toy on page 417, even joking about it in the fine print at the bottom of the page! ARGH! I think I ordered these anyway -- no, wait, I cut them because it was too much for my list! Dammit, Oni!

If you skipped getting the Papercutz/Super Genius collections of the old Tekno Neil Gaiman books, the 2 volumes of Lady Justice are offered in a box set on page 421. I assume they're the SC versions, since it's 25 bucks for the 2. This sounded neat, so I may go for this, and wait for the Mr Hero and Teknophage box sets that are sure to come!

Pop! Goes the Icon has a second volume of Omega Comics Presents on page 422. These are generally good comics, so it's definitely something to check out.

Oddly enough, I just visited their site for the first time in ages the other day. Our pal PJ isn't around here as much lately, I don't think, but the comics San Hannibal and Old Wounds were pretty good, so I trust that these will be good too!

2000AD has issue #2000 on page 424, which is nice.

That's all you have to say for the anniversary issue of one of the most influential comics of the last 40 years? Besides all the neat characters that have come from this book (including Zenith, who's on that Fabry cover!), there have been so many great creators who have showed up in 2000AD and then gone on to even cooler things. I can't even list them all! I'm in, man!



Also from 2000AD, a memoir from a 2000AD editor, Steve MacManus, called The Mighty One, on the same page, and on 425, there's Misty, a collection of a girl's horror comic, with one story that sounds a bit like Carrie, and another with an amnesia/identity story. Might be neat!

Ooh, Renegade Arts offers, on page 425, the Shame Trilogy collected HC, which puts together 3 volumes of a story by Lovern Kindzierski with art by John Bolton, where a pure woman's selfish wish creates the most evil woman ever! Bolton art undoubtedly is awesome! I was waiting to see if these would be collected in one volume, so yay!

I got the first one, and it was okay. The art was beautiful, but it didn't really grab me. Maybe I'll get the entire thing just to see if it gets better.

I will mention that the final issue of Kristen Gudsnuk's Henchgirl is offered on page 426 from Scout. I will get the collection whenever it is offered (she's finally watching Venture Bros, too, so she's way cool!).

The Trial of Roger Casement on page 426 from SelfMadeHero could be pretty keen. Casement was a famous humanitarian (he helped expose the horrors of Leopold's Congo) who was executed for treason due to his involvement in the Irish rebellion. Interesting dude, so I might have to take a look at this.

Yeah, sounds like a really neat guy who got a shitty deal, so I'll consider this. Our pal Simon should link us to some previews, I hope!

Also on that page from SMH is Becoming Andy Warhol, written by Nick Bertozzi, about when Warhol first got famous, I guess, with the '64 World's Fair. Neat.

I like Bertozzi, so I'll probably get this.

And also from them, Ghost Stories of an Antiquary features MR James adaptations, who does creepy ghost stories, from what I know. I think I've read some of his stuff, but not the stories here, I don't think.

Seven Seas has Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid v1 on page 428, where a young woman office worker saves the life of a dragon girl, and the dragon girl feels she owes the office worker, so she moves in with her. Sounds amusing!

Also on the same page from the same publisher is My Pathetic Vampire Life v1, where a vampire has been 16 years old for 133 years and keeps going to school, for some reason. Why stick around school, vampire? His classmates want to help him out to finally pass, so this sounds interesting.

I normally don't care about Evil Dead, but Space Goat has Evil Dead 2: Revenge of the Martians one shot written and drawn by Ty Templeton, one of my all time favorites! (page 430)

Page 453 has Pacific GN from Titan, Nazis again! A book banned by the Nazis is destroyed but reappears! Oh noes!

New Tank Girl collection, 2 Girls 1 Tank, on page 454. I like the idea of Tank Girl, but haven't read much of her stuff.

I can't get this, just because of the title. I can't deal with it. Don't make me explain more!

Hmm, classic Tokyopop reoffering on page 456, with I Luv Halloween, 3 volumes by Keith Giffen and Ben Roman. I missed this originally, and love the Giff, so I'll consider this!

Uncivilized Books has Brighter Than You Think: 10 Short Works by Alan Moore on page 462. As I am kind of a sucker for Moore, I'll have to check this out. It has short stories by the master drawn by people like Bissette, Veitch, Totleben, and Peter Bagge. Sounds good!

Oh man, I saw about this and was so interested! I'm not sure what all is in this. The Mark Beyer story is from RAW, it's called the Bowing Machine and it's creepy good! The title story is the "banned" Cobweb story that Top Shelf published, so I have that. But honestly, it's Alan Moore's short and hard to find comics. Of course I want this!



Because Dread Lord used one for the homage streak, I'm going to mention the Udon Street Fighter homage covers on 464-465. That Cammy 3 one looks like it must be a Lois Lane homage, the Unlimited 10 one is She Hulk, of course, and the Swimsuit Special homages the Sports Illustrated covers and the Homage Swimsuit that Image put out back in the day, I think.



Peter Milligan and Juan Jose Ryp bring us Britannia from Valiant on page 470, which is about a Roman soldier in AD 65 out in the wilds of Britain solving a strange crime. Yeah, this sounds pretty awesome.

I'm totally in for the trade of this limited series!

Also from Valiant is Divinity II in trade. Gotta read the first trade! And same page (476) has the deluxe HC of the Doctor Mirage minis, and I may go for that one!

Carver: A Paris Story gets a trade on page 489 from Z2 Comics. I missed issue #3 and haven't picked it up yet, so I haven't been reading, but the first two issues were pretty keen!

I got the singles, but didn't get the Paul Pope cover on issue 1, dammit, but the first issue was pretty good. Probably a good trade!

Sweet lord a'mighty, not only are there 1, but 2 trades from Zenescope that intrigue me! Page 493 has Devil's Road, a survival story about the Highway of Death in Mexico, and page 494 has Satan's Hollow, where satanic rituals are used in an attempt to open a portal to hell. What happened to me that I'm interested in these?!

Back of the back of the book!

Page 496 has R. Crumb's Art and Beauty Magazine in HC. I got the first issue, and of course Crumb's art is great, even though Crumb women aren't my kinda women necessarily.

Also on 496 is the Art of Jock HC, who is great of course. I wonder how Will Dennis is involved.

As our pal Greg Hatcher mentioned, Hermes is putting out the Phantom Avon novels, as offered on page 498. Looks neato!

Beardy McGrumpypants's novel Jerusalem is offered on page 503. Wowie! I have Voice of the Fire and need to read that, but this looks neato, Blakean even!

Oh my glory, there's an upcoming comic where the Ramones meet Archie, and there's a t-shirt of it on page 522! Will Dee Dee shoot up with Betty and Veronica?

That Alien facehugger ski mask looks clever, though, on page 533.



So that's it for this month's Previews. Sorry it took so long - see news about my move, above, so I have been fairly busy. That doesn't mean you can't dig through Previews and check out the sweet swag inside!