this week’s comics

(SPOILERS, as per usual. Don’t blame me, buddy!)

Let’s get it out of the way…Space Ghost #1 came out yesterday, and it’s selling reasonably well for us thus far. I imagine I’ll probably have to put in a reorder before too long (assuming reorders are available, of course).

As for the quality of the book…well, you can take a vacuum to the desert, and you can vacuum for hours and hours and hours, and when you’re done you’ll still have a desert.* That’s sorta like this Space Ghost comic…you can dump as much “serious” content into this comic as you’d like, but you’re still gonna end up with freakin’ Space Ghost. Say, Space Ghost has a pregnant wife? I’m sure nothing’s going to happen to her!

That said…it’s not a bad-looking comic. It’s one of those rare instances of fully-painted superhero comic art actually looking like cartooning, and not like a long series of photo references. The art, by Ariel Olivetti, has a goofy charm that’s totally in contrast to the story’s events. And I also want to note the unusual shade of blue at the bottom of front cover…looking at a scan of it online doesn’t do it justice. It’s a painfully…neon? electric? shade of blue that you need to see in person…very eyecatching.

If you’re looking for a version of Space Ghost that’s slightly more serious than the one that’s on Cartoon Network, but not quite as “grim ‘n’ gritty” as this new version, find yourself a copy of the 1987 Space Ghost one-shot from Comico. It’s just as serious as it needs to be (i.e. as serious as the original cartoons were) and it’s chock full of Steve Rude goodness.

Other new funnybook arrivals:

Adventures of Superman #634 – absolutely fantastic. Last week, when we got our preview copy of this issue, pal Dorian showed me the cover, and pointed out the very subtle (and slightly disturbing) hidden images. I may never had noticed if he hadn’t drawn my attention to it. The interior is a lot of fun, too, as Mr. Mxyzptlk gets mixed up in a battle between Superman and the Parasite Twins. As a result, Mxy ends up in the “real world,” interacting with DC Comics’ staff in some of the clearest photos I’ve ever seen used in a comic book story…we’ve come a long way from those grainy black and white photos that used to pop up in the Bullpen Bulletins every once in a while. Also appreciated is the much more sympathetic portrayal of Mxy, as opposed to the evil little S.O.B. he was following the mid-80s Superman revamp.

Terra Obscura Vol. 2 #4 – did anyone else think this issue read really fast? I got to the end of the comic and thought, “wait, is that it?”

Ex Machina #6 – there’s a discussion between a couple subway workers near the end of the book that made me blush, and I’m someone who has to hear discussions about gay porn on a fairly regular basis. So, fellow retailers…for God’s sake, don’t sell this to kids! Well, otherwise, another fine issue…I find myself really enjoying the flashback sequences that take place during Mayor Hundred’s career as a superhero…they have a “real” world Astro City-esque feel. A

JLA #108 – anyone disappointed that the first issue of Kurt Busiek’s run didn’t feature enough of the Crime Syndicate will be happy with this issue, which has the Syndicate almost to the exclusion of anything else. Well, there are some Qwardians in there, too…I wonder if this is a nod to DC’s brief attempt at retconning the original Crime Syndicate into Qwardians a few years back. Anyone else remember that? I seem to recall a giant Phil Jimenez drawing of all the Justice League villains that had those big Qwardian bug-eyes badly edited onto the faces of the Syndicate members.

Fantastic Four #520 – I love the FF, but aside from Stan ‘n’ Jack, and a couple other people since then, the book is rarely done well. I have been enjoying Mark Waid’s run on the title, and this issue had a good laugh out loud line (regarding Reed’s fear that Johnny may try Galactus’ patience)…it’s a shame that Waid’s leaving the book after this storyline, especially given the big brouhaha when he and Wieringo were temporarily forced off the book a while back.

Cosmic Guard #4 – I’ve given up on this comic. I normally enjoy Jim Starlin’s work, but I think my patience has officially run out on this particular title. It’s not bad work** by any means, but I don’t think I need to see yet another variation on the “kid gets superpowers he’s not ready for” storyline. The cosmic stuff from the first issue hasn’t made a reappearance, and the “hero corrupted by power” theme is currently being done better in Firestorm.

Green Lantern Rebirth #1 2nd printing – this cover, featuring Hal Jordan as Green Lantern, was probably the one they should have used in place of the Hal as the Spectre cover on the first printing. Oh, and we were shorted half our order on these for some reason.

Identity Crisis #1 3rd printing – just wanted to mention that this came out as well, in case anyone still needs a copy.

Plastic Man On The Lam trade paperback – it’s formatted like that Chip Kidd-designed Plastic Man book from a few years ago…you know, with the cover slightly larger than the pages inside. Oh, and hold your nose if you take it out of the plastic sleeve…the book is quite pungent. Hoo boy. Good comics, though.

In other news:

Those of you who bought the first two volumes of The Complete Peanuts as they came out, and were a little miffed that a slipcased set was released…the slipcase is now available for order from Diamond, separate from the books. It’s only $4.95, so start nagging your retailer today!

Commenter Anonymous points back to that Love Is eBay auction I mentioned the other day…it ended at $274.99. Let me repeat that…$274.99.

* Why, yes, I am master of the analogy. Why do you ask?

** Your mileage may vary, depending on your Starlin tolerance levels.

New funnybook day! Spoilers may be afoot, so watch your step (or, um, something like that):

• Essential Tomb of Dracula Vol. 3 – man, this is a fat, fat book. It’s gonna take me forever to plow through this thing…given I just finished the Essential Monster of Frankenstein, I’m not sure I’m ready to start another marathon Marvel monster session. Yeah, I know, “boo hoo, I’ve got too many comics to read!” But it looks good, like the previous volumes…one of the stories from the Tomb of Dracula magazines reprinted herein is by Steve Ditko, so you Ditko fans take note!
• Ocean #1 – this is the first of the mini-series by Warren Ellis and Chris Sprouse which, while it had my interest, I had pondered waiting for the eventual book release (because that’s just the kind of killing-the-comic-industry guy I am). Pal Dorian had a compelling argument for not waiting, in that it’s a six issue series and bimonthly, so it’s well over a year wait for a trade…thus convinced, I went ahead and grabbed it. And it’s good — all set-up (Inspector Kane is a prototypical Ellis bastard/hero on his way to investigate shenanigans on Europa), and it got a nice cynical chuckle out of me regarding a reaction to a book Kane is carrying.
• Plastic Man #11 – Didn’t spot Plas on the cover right away, which made me feel very silly a little later when I did notice him. Which is okay, since this is a very silly issue…DC continuity freaks stay away, as this issue will give you heart palpatations. Baker gets in some good jokes regarding the whole Luthor-as-President storyline, Smallville, and our own real-life President. Edwina, the vampire’s daughter from last issue, is surprisingly still around. The art style is slightly different as well, it seems to me…a little simpler, with machine-lettering instead of Baker’s hand-lettering. Anyway, another great issue, and I hope Plastic Man sticks around for a while longer. (EDIT: I’m told that Baker does all his lettering by “machine” – or, rather, computer…which makes sense…so let me amend my statement to “machine-like lettering.” I still like its look.)
• Identity Crisis #5 and Firestorm #6 – okay, read Firestorm after IC. Not that there are any major spoilers or anything, but it’s probably better for both stories if you do so. In IC, a lot of theories some of us had about the identity of the killer(s) may be thrown out after this issue, and…well, I want to say more, but I really don’t want to spoil anything. And Firestorm is still quite interesting, as the “hero” of the book continues his apparent moral decline. He goes through some of the superhero motions, but keeps makng increasingly selfish decisions…he gets called on it by a couple of superhero Big Guns, but one gets the feeling the new Firestorm doesn’t really take the hint.
• Madrox #2 – Peter David’s mutant-detective comic continues, with some revelations about the nature of Madrox’s duplicating powers, particularly the slight personalities differences among his duplicates. (I’m not a regular X-comic reader, so I could be wrong that this is new.)
• Other new arrivals: Luba #9 (more goodness from Beto, with a shock ending!), JSA: Strange Adventures #3 (Johnny Thunder proves why he gets to hang out with the Justice Society — it’s a scene we’ve all seen a hundred times before, but still effective), Fantastic Four #519 (I’m a sucker for Galactus stories; the only reason this is an Avengers: Disassembled crossover is apparently to explain why the Avengers aren’t also facing this threat to New York, it appears), 1000 Steps to World Domination (trade collection of Rob Osborne’s mini-comics…I particularly like when Rob reveals to his wife that he’s making a list of things to do in order to dominate the world, and her response is “I don’t want anything like that in the house”), and Bart Simpson’s Treehouse of Horror #10 (the Pat Boone-scripted story is hysterical!).
• That new printing of Identity Crisis #1, the one with the original Turner pencils printed in a “negative”-style reversed black and white, is terribly unappealing. Not that the image was all that great to begin with, in my opinion, but doing this to it didn’t do it any favors.
• Jimmy Olsen Adventures Vol. 2 by Jack Kirby – another fine full-color trade paperback reprinting Kirby’s nuttiest DC work. If only we could get a good color reprinting of the other Fourth World comics (those black and white volumes just didn’t do it for me).
  
  
  

• Dorian pointed this one out to me: Neferu the Cat, a hardcover album from Safcomics…didn’t get much of a chance to flip through it, but the cartooning is top-notch from what I’ve seen, and the plot (Neferu and his cat-friends stuggle to protect themselves from the encroaching dominion of the dogs) may not sound like much, but it really looks entertaining.
• Archie #552 – am I the only person who saw this particular word balloon (located to the right), and pictured Archie keeping Dilton Doiley in a pit, telling him to rub its lotion on its skin? No cover gag Archie Comics could come up with could compare, surely.
  

You like the new comics, hmmmmm?

• One gets the feeling that Chuck Austen’s run on JLA (which ended with today’s release of #106) may have been better had it been cut down to, oh, say, one issue. This particular issue was slightly better than the previous parts, and did get an honest laugh out of me (Batman’s line “I just have a way with children”), but boy, this storyline was near Marvel-esque in its eventual-trade-paperback-release padding.
• Palookaville #17 is a very frustrating experience. It’s the latest installment of the “Clyde Fans” storyline, and it’s beautiful and brilliant, as each chapter has been previously, but the huge gap between issues is driving me crazy. Not quite as bad as, say, Charles Burns’ Black Hole, but I wish I could get more than one issue a year.
• Green Lantern #181 wraps up this iteration of the GL series in sort of a “blah” fashion. While it was nice to see Kyle get his revenge on longtime nemesis Major Force, some plot points sort of bother me. Yeah, I’m gonna have SPOILERS, so skip or deal, mister. Okay, first, I didn’t buy that Kyle would just hand over his ring to MF* — seems a little out of character. And second, Major Force is a killer, who had murdered Kyle’s girlfriend way back when…is Kyle really taking MF’s word that he didn’t kill Kyle’s mom? What the…? And after all is said and done, Kyle never bothers to check on Ma and make sure she’s okay, and just zips off into space? Sheesh.
• DC: The New Frontier #6 wraps up this heavily 1960s-flavored series with a final battle against the giant walking-island alien monster thingy. Yeah, it sounds stupid, but it’s a good excuse to get all the classic DC heroes together, and when it all looks this pretty, you don’t worry too much about the plot contrivances. There’s a stunning two-page spread featuring all the heroes going off to battle…it’s a scene right out of every 90s action movie, where the group of heroes are walking side-by-side toward the camera in slow motion…you know, that scene, the one we’re all sick of seeing by now. Well, there’s one of those in this comic (only without the whole “slow-motion” part) and it looks great. And the epilogue on this comic is something else…a variety of snapshot images of DC’s Silver Age, presented with a speech on the New Frontier by President Kennedy. A nice ending to an enjoyable book.
• Adam Strange #1 – this must be the week for purty comics, because this one is absolutely stunning. Even if you’re not an Adam Strange fan, you gotta pop open this book and take a gander. Another thing I enjoy about Adam Strange — not just in this book, but in most of his recent appearances — every time he’s on Earth and he’s trying to explain to someone other than another superhero about his space adventures, he’s treated like he’s nuts. It’s a cheap joke, but still funny. Yeah, I’m easily amused.
• I only get two comics-related magazines on a regular basis: The Comics Journal, which I’ve been reading for well over twenty years now, and Alter Ego, which generally has enough material of interest in each issue to keep me picking it up every month (though it feels like it’s been biweekly lately). There’s a lot of stuff packed into each of these magazines, and the older I get, the less time I seem to have to devote to reading them. Basically, I’m saying that I have a high resistance to picking up yet another comics magazine. However Back Issue #6 got me today, with their Halloween issue containing — you probably guessed it — articles on Swamp Thing. Gosh dang it! Features interviews with Swampy’s creators Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson, plus Steve Bissette and Rick Veitch, and even a discussion of who came first, Swampy or Man-Thing. Also, I’ve learned in this magazine that there exists a 1984 promotional videotape from DC, featuring Alan Moore discussing his work on Swamp Thing. We’ve gotta have one of those around the back room of the store somewhere….
• Also picked up today: Hellblazer #200 (nice to see Steve Dillon on the book again, even if just for this special issue; comic now has the logo that emphasizes “Constantine,” which will probably disappear once the Constantine movie finishes its run); Luba’s Comics and Stories #5 (Gilbert Hernandez continues to do that voodoo he does so well…for some reason, the “ALL NEW!” on the cover really tickles me); Superman #209 (we’ve had about three issues’ worth of story in 10…but give me a national monument come to life to attack Superman, as in this issue, and much will be forgiven); and the Dark Horse Comics Halloween mini-comic (reprinting “Stray” by Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson from the Dark Horse Book of Hauntings).
• Also arrived today: Superman: Man of Tomorrow Archives Vol. 1 (which I might have picked up if I weren’t broker than a broke thing that’s broke), more Classics Illustrated Junior reprints (I wonder if anybody other than Classics Illustrated collectors are buying these? Kids won’t touch ’em in our store), Captain Canuck: Unholy War #1 (what? Again? I remember the last time they tried to revive Captain Canuck…didn’t really go over too well then), Challengers of the Unknown Must Die trade paperback (I really liked this mini-series…and this looks like a nicely-packaged collection), and Tarot Witch of the Black Rose #28 (I’m not asking this to be critical, or to hold anyone up for ridicule, or anything like that…I’m honestly curious: if you like this comic, why do you like this comic? What is it about this comic that makes you buy it every month?**)
• Not arrived today: Superman/Batman #12, which is a no-show to stores serviced by Diamond’s Los Angeles warehouse. Well, we’ve all waited, what, two months? What’s another week?
  

In other news:

New theory on the Identity Crisis killer, hashed out with pal Corey: Bat-Mite! Who else could get past all the security equipment? And how does he benefit? By putting together a mystery that only his hero Batman can solve! See, it all fits!

Wow! Ed cuts to the chase about the perceived direct correlation between the low quality of certain comics and articles written about same.

In 1978, a young Will Pfeiffer, inspired by the recently-released Star Wars, creates his own comic book: Space Force Frog!

* For some reason, “Major Force” strikes me as a really dumb name, and I don’t want to type it any more.

** Of course, people can ask me the same thing about Liberty Meadows.

It’s new comics day, it’s new comics day….

• Flash #214 – do my eyes deceive me? Did I just see an in-continuity reference to The Best Doom Patrol Story Ever? (under March 31st…it may not come up right due to the way the pictures load) The events of Identity Crisis begin to have some impact outside of that mini-series, and this issue plays off the events very well.
• Plastic Man #10 – another “done-in-one” issue, featuring Plastic Man and friends versus a vampire! Very funny, as this series continues to be one of DC’s best.
• Teen Titans #16 – this is the first issue of a Titans comic I’ve bought in about 12 years, and I only picked it up because it guest-stars the Legion of Super-Heroes. It’s the beginning of the wrap-up of Superboy’s time-travel adventures, and a character drops a not-so-subtle prophetic hint about how this will be the last adventure of this version of the Legion.
• Tom Strong #28 – Brian K. Vaughan and Peter Snejbjerg are the fill-in creative team for this issue, which delivers a story focusing on the Strong family’s robotic manservant Pneuman. Nicely done.
• As is Vaughan and Tony Harris’ Ex Machina, where Mayor Hundred’s superheroic past begins to catch up with him. However, I hope there’s more to the reasoning behind the attacks beyond the theory presented in this issue…seems a little…too facile, you know what I mean?
• Haven’t had a chance yet to read Cosmic Guard #2 (it’s a Jim Starlin comic, which should be description enough for some people…if you like Starlin (and I do), you’ll like this) and Uncle Scrooge #334 (another fantastic-looking 34-page Don Rosa story). And that was pretty much all I bought today.
  

Other new releases:

• Army of Darkness: Ashes to Ashes #2 – asked about every day for the last month, sold like 3 copies today now that it’s finally out. I’m sure we’ll sell out eventually, but I just like how this sort of thing always happens.
• Doom Patrol Vol. 2 – The Painting That Ate Paris – if you haven’t been exposed to the true successor (in tone and spirit) to the original ’60s series, you’ve got to pick up this book. Also includes the above mentioned Best Doom Patrol Story Ever.
• Hino Horror volumes 9 and 10 arrived today…dear God, these things look absolutely terrifying. Seeing as how it was a horror-themed story that finally got me to pick up one of these darn manga things that we seem to have a whole wall of, I think Hino Horror may be next on the list. Plus, that’s a great photo of the cartoonist inside!
• Puttin’ The Backbone Back is a nice small softcover of sketches and flyer work by Jim Mahfood, well-priced and handsomely packaged at $9.95.
• Dictators: Saddam Hussein #1 from Antarctic Press…hot on the heels of the Dictators: Hitler series, of which we didn’t sell a single copy. So why did we order this second series, you may ask? Because every once in a while, we get Ted Nomura fans who must have everything he’s done, and boy, I don’t want to be the one to look into that fan’s eyes and say “Sorry, sir, we’re fresh outta Hitler.”
• Nightcrawler #1 – beginning Marvel’s newest short-lived X-Men tie-in series! Oh, I’m sorry, did I say “short-lived” out loud?
• Elric: Making of A Sorcerer #1 – now, I’m not a reader of the Elric novels (in fact, I just recently read my very first Moorcock book – a 34-year old paperback of Behold the Man), but I have to say this is a very attractive comic, thanks in no small part to artist Walt Simonson.
• And that Mr. Monster comic from Atomeka I mentioned yesterday is also out on the shelves. Entertaining mayhem, and well worth your attention.
  

In other news:

• So pal Corey and I are talking about Identity Crisis, and somehow we jokingly suggest that the murderer is going to be revealed to be the Silver Age Flash, Barry Allen. We laugh about that for a moment…actually, I begin to laugh, then I start to think “you know, maybe….” And then I realized that fans hate DC now as it is because of this series, and making Barry the killer would only stir up the flames more…which only convinces me further that it’s a great damn idea.

  My other idea is that it’s Jean Loring who killed Sue Dibny, and that it was Sue Dibny from the past, having time-travelled from the past into the DC Universe’s present on some adventure or another with the Giffen-era Justice League, discovers her own murder, and attempts to do in Loring in revenge. Yeah, I know, but I have to keep occupied somehow during lulls at the store.

• Identity Crisis #1 has gone back to press for a new printing…doing a black and white “negative” of the art doesn’t do it any favors, especially considering that the cover wasn’t all that great to begin with. But some people do like the Mike Turner art, so we ordered plenty of the 2nd printing, and we’re sure we’ll sell through.
• You know what’s selling really well for us right now? The Akira Capsule Toy assortments. If you don’t know what these are, these are little opaque plastic egg thingies that contain one of an assortment of miniature toys based on Akira…the toys are packed randomly inside, and you have no idea which ones you’re getting. Our customers love these things.
  

And, um, that’s it, really. Oh, I’m also finally getting around to reading last week’s Alter Ego, which continues the Julie Schwartz tribute, and contains some Gil Kane goodies as well, not to mention an interview with Russ Heath.

Once again, new comics day:

• Since pal Dorian and I started our respective weblogs, one of the regular Wednesday morning rituals we have while we’re breaking down the comics shipment, is the calling of “DIBS!” on various discussion topics for our websites that are inspired by items in said shipment. It’s sorta funny, and by “funny” I mean “remarkably sad.” Anyway, I wasn’t really thinking about the weblog this morning, so Dorian was dibsing things left and right, leaving me to dibs talking about dibsing. Sigh.
• The new Wizard has an article about Batman’s mistreatment of Robin, including that one Justice League of America panel that was making the rounds a few months ago, as well as that one Batman cover I showed you. Interesting.
• That Scott Pilgrim book everyone’s been talking about still hasn’t arrived at the shop…I’ve been curious about it, but we were shorted on our initial order, and apparently when reported the shortage to Diamond, the report ended up getting lost, deleted, whatever. So yes, we are trying to carry the book, honest!
• As I had thought (hoped?), Doom Patrol, with its third issue, has improved slightly now that it’s extricated itself from that vampire storyline we were all pretty tired of halfway through Claremont and Byrne’s JLA issues. This new issue (dealing with what appears to be Lovecraftian Antarctic critters) is a little less confused than the first two issues, and the new members of the team seem to be at least circling around personalities, if not quite landing on any yet. It’s just plain old-fashioned superhero stuff, which is fine…but it hasn’t even begun to approach the bizarre campy weirdness of the original ’60s series.
• WE3 by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. Very good. Sure to baffle and irritate those people that require baffling and irritation.
• The Weird Secret Origins 80 Page Giant has been unleashed from DC Comics today, and I was all set to pick it up…until I realized that I have, in one form or another, most of the stories within. The reproduction is nice, though.
• Atomeka A1 Big Issue #0 is also out today, reprinting selected stories from the original A1 anthologies from…Good Lord, 15 years ago? Anyway, this issue does include the must-read “Survivor” by Dave Gibbons and Ted McKeever, as well as one of the “Bojefferies Saga” chapters by Alan Moore and Steve Parkhouse (which I think may have actually first run as a back-up in the Dalgoda Flesh & Bones mini-series). Unfortunately, the art for the “Bojefferies” story is printed in such a way that the sides of the panels are trimmed off at the edges of the page, which is a little distracting. There are also multiple covers on this item, including a Flaming Carrot cover (yes, there’s a FC story in this comic as well, also reprinted from the original A1) and a Bojefferies cover. Good stuff, if you don’t already own it.
• The last of the Julius Schwartz tribute comics is out today, DC Comics Presents the Justice League of America, and thankfully this series goes out with a bang, given that the last couple of issues were only sorta okay. The Harlan Ellison/Peter David story is entertaining, with Julie battling the JLA, and interspersed with Ellisonesque humorous asides and personal touches (such as Julie bemoaning that his superhero “family” seem more real than his own, and Julie’s revenge on a complaining parent). The Marv Wolfman story is a nice wrap-up to the whole series, eschewing explicit references to Julie (except maybe an implied reference at the very end), and instead focusing on the differences between the Silver Age and the modern JLA. The art by Dustin Nguyen and Richard Friend is just a tad shaky, particularly during the parts where it appears he’s trying to ape a Silver-Agey style, but it’s serviceable. The cover by Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez is very nice, though…we don’t see nearly enough work from him.
• Did anyone else reading the new Flash get the impression that the Turtle has somehow developed some…unnatural tastes? Ick.
• Also: Promethea #31 (probably a bad issue with which to start reading the series…felt like the very last issue, but there’s another to go it apppears); X-Statix #26 (last issue…a shame, and I guess that’s it for my X-book needs until Madrox comes out); Dreadstar Vol. 1 TPB (is there any difference between the two editions that anyone’s aware of? I haven’t had a chance to thoroughly check, but a brief look tells me “no” – same with the hardcover editions); Green Lantern #180 (next-to-last issue – boy, are people not going to like what happens in here).

In other news:

• If you have a weblog, sooner or later you’re posting pictures of cats. There’s just no getting around it. (Here’s my cat post.)
• House of the Ded reviews Captain American and The Falcon: Madbomb, one of the nuttier later-day Kirby storylines.
  

EDIT: Apparently pal Dorian dibbed (dibsed? I have no idea) the Wizard article when I wasn’t looking, since he posted about it, too. Rats!

EDIT AGAIN: This is my 400th post. If only I’d spent all that time doing something productive.

Funnybooks, ahoy! I didn’t get a whole lot this week (unless you count the Simpsons Season 4 DVD set, which finally shipped from Diamond), but I did get the new issue of Flash, with a nice Michael Turner cover, for a change; Luba’s Comics & Stories #4 by Gilbert Hernandez…remember, Los Bros Hernandez = quality entertainment; The Stuff of Dreams #2 by one of my favorite cartoonists, Kim Deitch…more insane faux comic strip/Waldo/old film history as found via eBay; Superman #206 (I am enjoying it, but it’s paced even slower than a Brian Michael Bendis comic, if you can believe it); Hellblazer #197 (homeless amnesiac John Constantine finds himself in the clutches of a religous cult…hasn’t this happened in Hellblazer before?); and Batman Adventures #15 (a story that’s sympathetic to the villain, and doesn’t show Batman in much of a good light).

I’m also trying out The Gray Area…I like John Romita Jr.’s art, but usually he isn’t drawing anything I want to read. However, this story (about a policeman stuck in an afterlife limbo) seems like it might be interesting…I would have preferred that they lost the gratuitous sketchbook pages and the prestige squarebound format and dropped the price a couple bucks, but What Can You Do? (Yeah, yeah, I know, “not buy it.”)

Also bought Mark Evanier‘s latest collection of essays, Superheroes in My Pants — illustrated as usual by the always excellent Sergio Aragones. There’s a lot of space devoted to the late Julius Schwartz, which is understandable. I’m a big fan of Evanier’s writing…light and enjoyable and very informative…so I’m looking forward to this book.

In other news:

Totally stolen from pal Reid: a comic strip adaptation of Douglas Adams’ first Dirk Gently novel. Enjoy it before the lawyers find out!

Pointed out to me today by pal Dorian: an object of pure horror.

Only a couple days left to send in your entries to The Street Angel Squid Contest. Get crackin’ there, Sparky!

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the Alan Moore action figure came out today.

New comics day!

Seaguy #2 – the genius continues! Grant Morrison and Cameron Stewart bring us a comic that feels like it’s every comic you’ve ever read, squeezed into a three-issue mini-series. I love this comic.

Plastic Man #7 – Scott Morse fills in with Plastic Man helping Woozy out on a date. It’s a beautifully illustrated comic (not that the previous issues by Kyle Baker weren’t), and lots of fun as well. I’ve said it before…all the people who are skipping this series because they apparently wanted a serious Plastic Man comic are really missing out.

Captain Marvel #24 – remarkably depressing…well done, and a logical resolution to this storyline…but depressing. Here’s hoping the next, last issue of the series ends on an up note!

Justice League: Another Nail #2 – this is one crowded funnybook, but Alan Davis draws everything so well you really don’t mind.

Also (and this could be a *possible spoiler* since I’m discussing story specifics) the new issue of Batman: Gotham Knights seems to establish once and for all that some of the details of the Joker’s origin as seen in Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s The Killing Joke are canon. However, given that the flashback sequence in this issue is as apparently related by the Joker — who, in The Killing Joke, states that he remembers his origin differently each time — the story could still be suspect. A couple interesting notes: 1) the sequence of events in the B:GK Joker origin appears to be slightly different from the one in KJ; 2) The Joker’s real first name is finally revealed in comics for the first time* (and should come as no surprise), even if it was in flashback and possibly suspect; and 3) The Joker seems remarkably sane as opposed to most of his appearances…which makes this story strangely affecting and the Joker that much more menacing.

And, as I was poking through our previews for next week’s comics…the forthcoming issue of Excalibur has crushed all belief I had in the basic goodness of the universe. You’ll see what I mean.

*…though part of his first name was revealed in Legends of the Dark Knight #50, a few years ago. This is part of my brain that could be used for useful information.

So, anyway….

I haven’t had a chance to read all my new comics swag for the day…did get through Bone #55, the last issue of the series. It wraps things up quite nicely, I think, and interestingly it reprints a four-page Bone Christmas story from (I believe) a long ago issue of Disney Adventures, which does appear to fit into continuity between the two chapters of this issue. Neat. Now we can look forward to Jeff Smith’s Shazam! mini-series…he’s probably one of the few creators out there who can manage the right balance of seriousness and whimsy necessary for the original Captain Marvel.

Ever read a comic, and, not even after you’ve read it, but while you’re reading it, you wonder just what the heck it is you’re reading? I mean, nothing just really registers with you. I had that experience with Incredible Hulk #73. It might have been my fault, as I was trying to read it while I was fairly distracted…but it looks like it was a whole lot of stuff happening, to no purpose. And it’s another Hulk-free issue of the Hulk again…an interesting approach to the title at first, but three years or so on (and, inexcusably, during the release of the Hulk movie) it’s getting a little tired now.

And then there’s this week’s bull in the china shop: Identity Crisis #1. Well, I think it’s a pretty compelling beginning to this series, which established a high level of dread and anticipation right from the beginning of the book. You know something horrible is going to happen, and you almost don’t want to turn the page in case that horrible-something is waiting for you there. There’s also a nice bit of self-aware commentary at the very beginning, noting the safety (and lack thereof) of main characters in novels (read: comics) as opposed to “real life.” Plus, a throwaway reference to a character’s tenure as a superhero establishes the current DC superhero universe as being around for nearly 20 years…quite a jump from the 12-year (or so) span established in some of the most recent Secret Files.

Two asides: First, as I was pulling copies of Identity Crisis for subscribers, every time I looked at the Michael Turner cover, I kept thinking of the phrase “bad art makes Superman cry.” I could have sworn it was pal Dorian who first said this to me, but he told me that he believed that I was the one who said it, though I know I didn’t come up with it. I must have read it online somewhere, or maybe even a customer said it to me. At any rate, it’s hardly fair, as this cover isn’t that bad…it’s not quite as…anatomically adventurous…as most Turner efforts, and it’s a striking image.

Second, concerning a story element present at the very beginning of the book: if you’re gonna pick two superheroes to do a late-night stakeout on an illicit transaction, why would you use Firehawk, who emits bright-blue glowing flames from various places on her body at all times? This is a character that doesn’t exactly have a stealth mode. Ah, well…the old Firestorm fan in me was glad to see her, anyway.

I would have also like to have commented on the new Global Frequency, but, as pal Dorian has noted, our distributor saw fit not to send copies of this comic (among others) to us this week. For the last several weeks, we’ve been completely shorted of one title or another (usually a DC), only to get it a week later. Actually, we were completely shorted the new Y The Last Man last week, and we were just told our copies will be arriving next week. Sigh. I guess we’ll just have to go to a different distribu…oh, right.

Other funnybooks this week: Street Angel #2 (love the faux-Dan Clowes back cover!), World’s Best Comics Silver Age Archive Sampler (only 99 cents for three great stories, even though this is like the 10th reprint of the first appearance of the Legion of Super-Heroes that I have), Demo #7 (all issues available from Diamond, so you have no excuse. Larry – the AiT/Planetlar reviews will resume soon, I promise!), Love & Rockets #10 (new squarebound format! Special bonus: lists of Jaime, Gilbert, and Mario’s favorite comics!), Fallen Angel #12 (good stuff…read it, you), Fables #26 (includes a preview of The Witching, which does nothing for me), and a couple more books, but I’ve gone on enough to no good end.

Also, I’ve bought my very first issue of Toyfare magazine, for the complete photo guide to the DC Direct action figures. I’m a sad old fanboy.