It's a bit late due to other things, but let's check out Previews #294 - maybe there's some interesting stuff in it!



Dark Horse:

I'm not positive that I'll pick up Ghost: In the Smoke and Din, the trade of Kelly Sue DeConnick and Phil Noto's mini-series, but I might. And if you've been waiting for it, it's on page 44 for your ordering pleasure! (31 July)

I hope the fact that Dark Horse is publishing a one-shot of The Deep Sea (page 46) means that there's going to be a mini-series. This was a pretty cool story in Dark Horse Presents, and it ended somewhat abruptly, so I was hoping there was more to it. Plus, Tony Akins's art is much better than it is on Wonder Woman, so there's that. (22 May)

Dean Motter brings back Mister X on page 47. I really ought to get caught up on Mister X, oughtn't I? (1 May)

I didn't read much about Billy the Kid's Old Timey Oddities and the Orm of Loch Ness, but it's out in trade on page 66, and I might pick it up. I liked the first mini-series well enough, so I might have to give this a try. (10 July)



Star Wars: Agent of the Empire volume 1 was a fun read, and on page 71, the second trade is offered. It's inexplicable that Ostrander doesn't still work for one of the Big Two, but I imagine he's having a grand time writing Star Wars comics, so good for him! (31 July)

DC:

The Green Team (page 82) sounds perfectly fine within the confines of the DCnU, but The Movement (page 83) sounds ridiculous. There's no way DC will allow Gail Simone to go where this book needs to go for it to be successful, so it sounds like it will end up being some kind of "Superman can't fix the world's problems because" kind of comics. I love the idea, but let's get real, people. (22 and 1 May, respectively)

Oh, David Finch. I try to defend your artwork, and then we get something like this (page 84):



I mean, I hate to point this out, but there are plenty of places on the Internet where you can find naked women lying on their back, and some of them don't even have breast implants! Finch couldn't have used something like that as a model? (8 May)

DC's idiotic policies continue with the cover of Batman, Inc. #11 (page 99):



Does Talia even have nipples? Why would DC Editorial approve this cover? Wouldn't someone say, "You know, Talia's lack of nipples makes her look even weirder than if she were naked"? I can't even figure out what's going on in the corporate offices these days. (22 May)

I'm a bit disappointed with Detective #20 (page 104), as Ogilvy has apparently become a superhuman. Man, he was turning into a pretty decent character, and then Layman has to go an do that. I hope it's not as bad as it sounds. (1 May)

Man, Geoff Johns leaves Green Lantern (page 110) and DC clears the decks (pages 111-113). That's odd. (1 May)

I'm really tempted to buy Ales Kot's first issue of Suicide Squad (page 125). I may have to break down!!! (8 May)



One reason why I like DC is that they drop something like 7 Against Chaos (page 128) on us every once in a while. A 200-page science-fiction graphic novel by Harlan Ellison and Paul Chadwick starring completely new characters? I can't even imagine Marvel doing that. But I'm down with this sucker! (10 July)



And then we get $30-hardcovers of the Before Watchmen stuff. I guess these aren't bad deals - they appear to have 10 issues per book, which makes this not a bad deal, but still. Hey, have Our Dread Lord and Master and Wayward Child Chad Nevett given up on Before Watchmen? That would be too bad. (26 June and 10 July)

For a mere 25 bones, you can get Batgirl/Robin Year One in trade (page 141), with 13 issues of totally retconned comics! I may have to get this - I've heard they're both good series. (19 June)

The Wake gets solicited on page 146. I'm a bit wary about this - I could trade-wait it, but I don't trust Snyder to stick the landing, because I've never read a good ending by him. So do I get the first issue and see what's what? Do I get the trade and hope? Do I ignore it? I don't know if I can't do that last one, because Sean Murphy is so freakin' good. (1 May)



Seventy-five dollars will get you the Animal Man Omnibus, which I really might have to get. I own all the issues, but having Morrison's run in one place might be cool. Of course, it's over 700 pages, and I worry about the binding. Yes, I do. Whatever shall I do? (31 July)

Speaking of which, Promethea: The Immateria Edition might be something to get, too, even though it's $150 (page 149). Presented in landscape format so we can appreciate the J. H. Williams III double-page spreads, this is a ridiculous indulgence, but if I sell one of the kids' kidneys, I can probably swing it. (25 September)

IDW:

John Byrne continues to carve out a nice career at IDW, as on page 161 we get Doomsday.1 #1, in which astronauts from the International Space Station have to return to Earth after the end of the world. What will they find???? Byrne just keeps trucking along with these series!

I decided to wait for the trade of The Hollows, and on page 179, it shows up. I've been sneaking peeks at the issues, and Sam Kieth's art looks pretty good, so I'll have to get this sucker.



The Crow: Skinning the Wolves also gets a trade on page 182. I'm not as sure with this one, but I'll have to think about it.

Image:

J. Michael Straczynski and Ben Templesmith show up on page 190 with Ten Grand, which is about a hitman who works for angels ... maybe? Beats me. I'm not the biggest fan of JMS's work, but he's not bad, and I always like to check out Templesmith's work. This might be pretty keen. (1 May)



Joe Casey has yet another superhero comic coming out, The Bounce, on page 194. The text doesn't give us much information, but I'll still check it out! (22 May)

Bedlam gets a trade on page 202. I was going to get the first issue, but it sold out so quickly at my store that I decided to wait for the trade. And so here it is! (1 May)

Speaking of comics that sold out really quickly, Blackacre gets a trade on page 203. I'm not quite as into this one, but I might have to check it out, especially because it's five issues for ten dollars. That's not a bad price at all! (1 May)

Chris Giarrusso has a new volume of G-Man on page 207. These are really nice comics for kids, so if you have kids, pick this up! (1 May)



Comeback is offered in trade on page 209. This is another series I wasn't sure about and was waiting to read a bit about, so I waited for the trade. Michael Walsh's art is fairly decent, and while I haven't read a ton of stuff by Brisson, what I have is pretty good, so I'll have to pick this up. Plus, they were both swell when I spoke to them in Seattle, which does influence me a bit. (8 May)

Marvel:

I missed the part where Bryan Hitch wasn't drawing all of Age of Ultron, as Brandon Peterson and Carlos Pacheco show up for issues #7 and 8 (pages 1-2). I don't have that big a deal with it (I'm not actually buying the book, after all), but didn't Bendis have this planned for three years? And hasn't it been delayed partly because they wanted Hitch to draw it? So how long does it actually take Hitch to draw a page if he can't get ten issues done in three years? (1 and 15 May)

Well, this is what I want when I read comics: Superior Spider-Man #9 (page 12) promises to "get you angrier than you were after Spidey #700!" You know, if there's one thing I want from my superhero comics, it's to be angry after I finish them. Boy howdy, that sounds fun. (1 May)

Kelly Thompson gets quoted in the solicits of Young Avengers (page 20). Doesn't Marvel know that she's already way too full of herself? THIS WILL ONLY FEED THE BEAST!!!! (Actually, I think that's pretty cool. Someone at Marvel reads Kelly's work!) (22 May)



Of course, Marvel's a bit behind the times, as they use a pull quote for Deadpool (page 29) - "Moore's artwork is great" - that really doesn't apply to this arc, as Moore isn't drawing it. Bwah-ha-ha! (8 and 22 May)

Man, that would have been awesome if the solicit text for Wolverine #3 (page 31) had read "Guest-starring Not Nick Fury!" I mean, come on, Marvel, embrace the stupidity of casting Samuel L. Jackson! (8 May)



You know, I wouldn't call Scarlet (page 69) "controversial" OR the "best-reviewed book on the stands today." Would anyone? I really want to write solicitation text for Marvel or DC Previews. You can write whatever the hell you want! (8 May)

I don't know if this was in The Mighty Thor Omnibus volume 1, but in volume 2 (page 75), the text notes that the original letters pages are included. As you know, Tim Callahan has championed putting the letters pages into collected editions, which I think is a superb idea. I hope doing it for this book starts a trend! (14 August)

Deadpool: Dead Presidents shows up in trade on page 81. I'm stunned that I love a Deadpool comic so much, but I do, so if you've been waiting for the trade, there it is! (29 May)

Jonathan Hickman's final Fantastic Four trade gets solicited on page 95. I guess that means the inevitable Omnibuses are a-comin', which means I have to start thinking about whether I want to get them or not. (26 June)

I never got around to buying Spider-Man 2099, but Marvel has handily fired up a new printing of the first trade on page 99, so I'll have to pick that sucker up! (29 May)

I've never had any interest in Geoff Johns's run on Avengers, but Marvel thinks a lot of people do, so they're pumping out a "complete collection" on page 103. Man, remember when Johns wasn't associated exclusively with DC? Good times! (29 May)

Ah, the back of the book. Where superhero fans fear to tread! Don't fear it, people!

Action Lab is expanding a bit, trying to get into some more "mature" fare - not that they're going to turn into Avatar all of a sudden, but that they want to branch out a bit away from their kid-friendly antecedents. On page 236, they have Ehmm Theory, a one-shot about zombies and talking cats, and on page 238, they have Ghost Town, about terrorists sending weapons of mass destruction into the future. Action Lab's Grand Poobah, Dave Dwonch, gave me both of these issues in Seattle, and I'll have reviews up in a day or two. They both look pretty cool, though.



Amigo Comics hasn't released any books yet, but they're soliciting some very intriguing ones. This month it's The Westwood Witches, about a dude who writes "young witch romance bestsellers" and hates it. He gets writer's block and moves back to his hometown, where he, naturally, comes across actual witches. Sounds neat.

Archaia has some nifty books in this month's Previews. Mouse Guard: Legends of the Guard is back, and that's always nice. Plus, they have The Reason for Dragons, which is about a lonely suburban kid who meets a dude who's convinced he's a knight and that he has a dragon to slay. The preview art looks pretty neat, and who doesn't like the sound of Don Quixote in the suburbs?

I don't know how "classic" 2 Guns is, but it's a nice story, and Boom! has solicited a nice fancy trade to celebrate the movie of it, which stars Denzel and Marky Mark. Does that movie have a release date? Anyway, it's pretty good, and it's 20 bucks, which isn't bad.

Boom! also has Suicide Risk, a new ongoing by Mike Carey. It's about a world where there are too many supervillains and not enough superheroes, and the cop who has to live with this situation. As you know, I'm not Carey's biggest fan, but it's still cool that he's doing something like this.



I haven't been reading Brandon Seifert's Hellraiser series, but The Road Below gets a trade on page 282. Seifert seems like a good choice to write Hellraiser; has anyone checked this out?

Coffee Table Comics offers two volumes of reMind on page 292. I bought both of these in Seattle, and they look pretty cool. Jason Brubaker's art is reminiscent of Skottie Young's, which is not a bad thing at all.

For 10 bucks, you can pick up Silence & Co. from Crystal Productions on page 293. It's the story of a hitman who wants out of the business, but of course it's not going to be that easy! Ron Randall provides the art, so it should look pretty keen.



Also on page 293, Drawn & Quarterly has Marble Season by Gilbert Hernandez, which is about growing up in 1960s California. Those Hernandez Bros. - I bet they have a future in this industry!

First Second offers Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong by Faith Erin Hicks on page 317. I know the cool kids have already read this on-line, but I don't care, because I like the book thingy!

Also from First Second, Matt Kindt has Red Handed: The Fine Art of Strange Crimes, about a great detective who is suddenly confronted by odd crimes that he can't solve. Kindt is a comics-creating machine, and they're all very good, so I'm looking forward to this!



I haven't read a lot of Dara Naraghi's work, but what I have read is pretty good, so I'm intrigued by Persia Blues from NBM. It's about an Iranian woman who lives in both the real world and a fantasy world, but is either of them the real woman? You'll have to read it to find out! I'm always a little wary of "volume 1"s, but I'm still interested in this.

The whole idea of toys coming to life and being evil feels like a cliché, but Wars in Toyland from Oni (page 334) might be something to check out, because Joe Harris is writing it, and Harris is pretty good, and Adam Pollina is drawing it, and Pollina has always been an interesting artist even at the height of the 1990s X-TREEEEM era. I'm very tempted!

Capote in Kansas gets a new edition from Oni on page 336. This is a wonderful comic, and Chris Samnee's artwork is tremendous.

SelfMadeHero offers A Chinese Life on page 341. It's about the rise of Mao done by Li Kunwu, who was the state artist for the Communists for 30 years. It sounds pretty darned interesting.

On page 348 we find Numbercruncher by Simon Spurrier and P. J. Holden, from Titan Comics. A dying mathematician figures out to be reincarnated endlessly as someone close to the woman he loves and the "Karmic Accountant" who tries to stop him. Groooovy! Holden's interior art looks really good, too.



Ken Krekeler has put together a "volume 1" of Westward on page 348, collecting the first three issues. This is a really good series, and I encourage everyone to check this out if you haven't already.

I'm really tempted to get the From Hell Companion from Top Shelf on page 348. I loves me some behind-the-scenes stuff, man! And From Hell is excellent, so this probably will be, too.

Well, that's a good place to finish, with Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell. It's always fun to check out Previews, and I hope this isn't too late for you to pre-order stuff from your comic book shoppe! My guy tends to procrastinate, so I can still get an order in, but I don't know how it is for others! Enjoy paging through the catalog this month!