Diamond Destinations: December for comics shipping in February 2011

I haven’t written a Diamond Destinations column since June, but as part of my new online status quo I will be regularly covering each and every issue of Previews, with more detail than I ever did in the past.

So much detail that it actually takes two articles to cover it all.

Right now you can head over to the Examiner to see them both.

Part one focuses on Marvel, DC, Image, IDW, and Dark Horse.

Part two focuses on the rest of the comics available in February.

So check out the articles, let me know what you think, and tell me if you would like to see me cover that last couple hundred pages of merchandise, toys, and whatnot.

Super-Powered Comics: Diamond Destinations July 2010 (for September)

p. 48 Billy The Kid’s Old Timey Oddities and the Ghastly Fiend of London #1 (of 4): The title may be a bit ridiculous length-wise, but Eric Powell and Kyle Hotz have already created one great series starring Billy and his freakshow gang, and this story which takes Billy in to conflict with Jack the Ripper looks equally impressive.

p. 78 New Teen Titans: Games: The fact that this hardcover is even being published is all around amazing. Unfortunately, DC likes to solicit its graphic novel programs months in advance, so this one won’t be out until November. Once it is... well, 144 more pages of the eighties Titans, even Danny “I’m too lame to live” Chase! All by Wolfman and Perez!

p. 17 Deadpool Pulp #1-2: I would show far more interest in Marvel’s new pulp-inspired story if it wasn’t with the already overexposed Deadpool. However, this follows in the tradition of the Marvel Noir books and takes an Elseworlds kick. Too bad the solicits also make it feel more like James Bond than old school pulp.

p. 78 X-23 #1: I am a fan of Marjorie Liu’s writing both in and out of comics. Sadly, her Black Widow run ends this month, but she starts up a new series starring Wolverine’s lady-clone instead. I’m not sure how I feel about the character getting her own ongoing, but Liu does make it more appealing.

p. 85 Incognito Bad Influences #1: I wonder if Marvel will try to advertise Deadpool Pulp somewhere near Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips’ pulp hero book. The first Incognito limited was nothing short of amazing, so we will see if this one lives up to the first. Oh, and the pulp essays by Jess Nevins in the back matter totally make the single issues well worth buying.

p. 263 Vampirella Archives Volume 1 Hardcover: Call me less than enthused about Dynamite’s lackluster debut for Vampirella with two reprint volumes. The character deserves better, but at least it gives me an excuse to run this classic Frazetta cover.

p. 286 Valhalla Cindermane #1: I know next to nothing about this throwback to the bad girl era. It sounds fun IMHO. Oh, and the character apparently already has her own Myspace and Twitter.

p. 300 Return of the Originals: Battle For L.A.: Moonstone begins its new pulp initiative with this graphic novel by CJ Henderson and Mark Sparacio. The goal seems to be to quickly bring all the public domain pulp characters back in both prose and comic form and this is where it starts. This is by far the book I am most interested in checking out this month.

p. 305 Guerillas Volume 1: I was quite intrigued by Brahm Revel’s tale of an all primate squad active in a very real Viet Nam when Image published the first half of it a few years back. Now those stories are being collected by Oni Press, hopefully with the second half of the story to follow.

p. 378 Scott Pilgrim t-shirts: Bryan Lee O’Malley’s soon to be movie star finally goes hog wild on a whole series of shirts.

p. 382 Iron Man 2: Arc Reactor Glow Accessory: Am I the only one that thinks thorwing htis in the middle of a shirt would be simple and freaking awesome Halloween costume?

The New Game Plan

Yeah, so I’m still not updating this blog nearly as much as I like, but I think I have worked out a remedy for that. You see, my erratic Clone Saga posts have made me think that it would be fun to go pick up old runs and start reading them, one issue at a time. I will blog about each series one day a week until I have came to the point where they aren’t so enjoyable anymore. And unlike reading old Clone Saga issues, hopefully I won’t get the urge to cut myself while reading them. So expect the first of those updates a week from tomorrow as we go back and look at the work of Walter Simonson as we start the first installment of what I like to call “Thor’s Day”.

Stay tuned.

(Oh, and I should have my next installment of Diamond Destinations up sometime between now and then.)

Super-Powered Comics: Diamond Destinations April 2010 (for June comics)

p. 35: King Conan Volume One: The five over-sized issues of King Conan in this book are my favorite Conan comic of all time. From a person that once ran a Conan comic website, that is strong praise. Everyone should read it.

p. 79: Batman Beyond #1: Terry McGinnis returns in comic form. I have no idea how good this book will be, but the return of the future Batman is definitely reason to celebrate.

p. 87: The Spirit #3 and Doc Savage #3: It’s Pulp Month here, so I think its would be best to cover these two new pulp-oriented ongoings. The first issues hit in the next couple weeks so be sure to check them out.

p. 107: Tom Strong and the Robots of Doom #1: It is without original co-creator Alan Moore, but Chris Sprouse’s always gorgeous art returns to Tom Strong. Peter Hogan wrote the amazing Terra Obscura for the ABC line, so I think this book has tons of potential to be a really great sleeper hit, Alan Moore or not.

p. 140: Jurassic Park #1: IDW moves to the front of the catalog and this book leads it off. I am not sure how big a deal a new Jurassic Park comic really is, but this will certainly be an interesting read. The concept takes the movie through real time and makes Tim and Lex Murphy the now adult leads. Should be interesting to see how this one plays out. And the Frank Miller dinosaur cover doesn’t hurt either (though I am pretty sure it comes from an old JP card set and isn’t original to this book.)

p. 173: Hack/Slash: My First Maniac #1: Hack/Slash has definitely had its ups and downs as a series, but with a move to Image, this book should be sitting in a lot more solid place for many months to come. If you enjoy slasher movies, you should definitely be reading this book, as it gives an interesting new and heroic twist to the genre.

p. 174: Dynamo 5: Sins of the Father #1: I am a huge fan of Jay Faerber’s little corner of the Image universe. While his artists are now working over at DC, he has teamed with Julio Brilha to bring back Dynamo 5 in limited series form. And to up the fun, he has brought in Invincible’s Omni-Man and Rob Liefeld’s Supreme to up the ante! This one should be a lot of fun and I highly recommend it.

p. 180: Brigade #1: Speaking of Rob Liefeld, here he has the return of Brigade! I always liked the team even through the pains of their original limited series, only to see them all slaughtered in the ongoing book. Here, Liefeld teams with the original artist Marat Mychaels to reboot the concept. Say what you will about Liefeld, but I am on-board for this one.

p. 181: Sea Bear & Grizzly Shark: Let’s just let the cover do the talking for this one.

p. 189: God Complex #7: I don’t think I have mentioned this well-written new book by Daniel Berman, John Broglia, and Mike Oeming yet. The basic concept is simple: Apollo decides to stop being a god and live as a mortal. Zeus and the rest of the family become less than happy about it. And the adventure begins! A great fun book that never takes itself too seriously. Anyone who enjoys fun comics should give this one a try.

p. M19: Deadpool: Wade Wilson’s War #1 & 2: Normally I am not much of a fan of Marvel’s current Deadpool titles. But you get Jason Pearson on art and my opinion can quickly change. This book is sure to be beautiful, even though the solicitations don’t really clear up what it is about. I think it is supposed to be his origin story, but I guess we will have to wait and see.

p. M27: Spider-Ham 25th Anniversary Special #1: I do not know what is more amazing. Is it the return of Peter Porker, Spider-Ham? Or is it the Joe Jusko cover it is wrapped in?

p. M31: Avengers Academy #1: I have no idea how this book differs from the original concept of Avengers: The Initiative, but I am happy to see it has new characters and excellent art by Mike McKone. Could be a winner.

p. M51: Hawkeye & Mockingbird #1: I am more of an indy comics buyer, but Marvel has guaranteed I will regularly be buying at least two of their regular titles with this book. Atlas was already a guaranteed sell, and I am nothing if not an unrepentant Hawkeye fanboy. Jim McCann wrote a pretty decent limited for these two last year and this one has the potential to be a great book as well. And it has Crossfire and Phantom Rider!

p. 218: The Royal Historian of Oz #1: While I don’t know the names Tommy Kovac or Andy Hirsch, I can’t argue with a new Oz comic for only a buck. Amaze Ink has me for at least one issue with this one.

p. 218: Shadoweyes: Also from Amaze Ink this month is a new graphic novel featuring the beautiful art of Ross Campbell. Campbell has previously drawn the gorgeous Wet Moon and The Abandoned, so I am guessing this future superhero tale will almost certainly be gorgeous.

p. 250: Pale Horse #1: One of my biggest complaints about Boom as a publisher is their lack of previews. While I am curious to learn more about this Western tale of an ex-slave, previews are nowhere to be found. Michael Alan Nelson has been more miss than hit for me as a writer, so I am going to pass it up. Hopefully I am not missing out on a good book do to bad marketing.

p. 252: Darkwing Duck: The Duck Knight Returns #1: On the other hand, Boom’s other new book pretty much sells itself. Darkwing Duck has a definite cult following and should make a big splash at Boom. Now if they can just get the continuance of Greg Weisman’s Gargoyles....

p. 290: Ghostopolis: Doug TenNapel, creator of Earthworm Jim, has produced some great comics over the last few years like Earthboy Jacobus and Iron West. He has left Image for his latest OGN, a kids book called Ghostopolis. It looks like an interesting dark fantasy, which isn’t typical kiddy fare, but neither was Harry Potter a little over a decade ago.

p. 292: Unfabulous Five: The Greasers From the Black Lagoon #1: Humanoids is back to self-publishing in America and part of the deal is the return of this great series (formerly part of Image’s Lucha Libre anthology) to print. Hilarious pseudo-super hero tales of washed-up luchadores. What more can you ask for?

p. 300: Super Pro K.O.! volume 1: It is an unwritten rule that wrestling comics fail. They fail hard. But this cartoony, over the top series by Oni Press might actually manage to make wrestling comics cool.

p. 324: Battle Smash vs. Saucer Men From Venus: And wrestling may be a them of this month’s previews with this lucha superhero series from Viper Comics.

p. 337: Alter Ego #94 and Back Issue #41: Two new issues of Twomorrow’s great comic history magazines. And they both now feature sixteen color pages, which ups their greatness that much more. Back Issue is a guaranteed buy from me ever six weeks, while this issue of Alter Ego looks good as it continues the magazine’s look at DC’s Earth Two.

p. 369: Tarot: Witch of the Black Rose Minimates boxed set: This may be the officially oddest Minimate set ever.

p. 388: Tonner Tomb Raider: Amanda Evert Doll: I haven’t played a Lara Croft game in years, but when did she get an evil goth enemy? And now that figure has a Barbie-style doll!

That’s it for this month. We will leave you with one last terrifying look at the Tarot minimates.

Super-Powered Comics: Diamond Destinations January

I am a bit late on this one, simply because I haven’t been in the comic shop for a couple weeks. But let’s hurry up and see what looks good:

p. 52: Buffy the Vampire Slayer #33: This issue features the big reveal that is all over the internet now. Still not sure how I feel about this one, but I would guess this issue will be a huge seller for Dark Horse.

p. 80: First Wave #1: DC’s revival of classic pulp characters under the pen of Brian Azzarello begins in full force this month. This follows directly after the events of Batman/Doc Savage, and will apparently pick up plot points from that story. With art by Rags Morales this book should be a real beaut, but it remains to be seen how much Azzarello can bring to the table for the classic pulp characters.

p. 116: American Vampire #1: Another series promises you Stephen King actually writing a comic and this one seems to actually be delivering it. However, I still strongly suspect that writer Scott Snyder is doing little more than working from King notes for the book’s back-ups. The book does seem to have an intriguing concept, and it does have 40 pages for its $3.99 price tag.

p. 142: Image United: Interlude #1: Well, invariably Image United was going to have some delays and for the second month we get no new issue here. But we do get a book that is potentially even more interesting, as several other Image characters make appearances in this special issue, all drawn by their artists. Invincible leads the pack, but from those shadows, I am guessing we will also be seeing at least Pitt in this book. Any guess on the other folks?

p. M85: Millar & McNiven’s Nemesis #1: I am by no means Mark Millar’s biggest fan, but this combination of the Batman and Joker in to one character leaves me intrigued. We will have to see how they play out on the printed page, but I suspect this could be the buzz book of 2010.

p. 229: Incredibles #8: I just wanted to point out the most recent issue of the Disney/Pixar/Boom book simply because one of my all time favorite writers and extreme Fantastic Four fan Karl Kesel is writing the most recent issue. Hopefully he will stick around for a long time to come.

p. 238: Green Hornet #1: The other huge release of March is the arrival of Kevin Smith’s take on the Green Hornet. This could either be an amazing book akin to his Daredevil run or more akin to the mediocre Batman: Cacophony. We will have to wait and see, I suppose. He has submitted every script though, so no worries of delays on this book.

p. 263: four different A-Team books: IDW wasted no time getting a hold of this license. I think the preview of the film looks excellent, but I think IDW is overdoing it with 4 titles in one month. This may be a huge gamble for the company.

p. 290: WWE Heroes #1: Wow. Just wow. Wrestling comics have always been an iffy prospect, and this one looks to be just a step above those terrible WWF books Valiant released in the early nineties. And by that I mean it makes even the worst of the Chaos! Comics titles look like a Gaiman masterpiece. It’s sad, because I think there is a potential market for wrestling comics, but this is not the way to do it.

p. 312: Back Issue #39: Every other month, this magazine brings retrospectives on some of the best comics of yesteryear. This month it brings you the funniest with an April Fools themed edition, complete with a Spider-Ham cover. And we all know Spider-Ham is worth the price of admission alone.

p. 316: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter: It is Seth Grahame-Smith’s next novel after Pride & Prejudice & Zombies. Do you need to know anything else?

p. 354: TNA Impact! figures: They have nothing to do with superheroes (except for maybe Sting), but I have to say I found it amusing to see the ads mention the show was on FoxSportsNet, even though it has been on SpikeTV for about three years now, I believe. Time to update your info, ad guys!

p. 358: Did you ever want to spend $200 for a non-moving Thundercat? Well now you can with the Cheetara statue!

p. 398: You know DVDs are coming out too fast after the movies initial release when Previews lists Daybreakers, Book of Eli, and Legion all on DVD prior to their release dates this month.

There you go, my look at this month’s Previews.