On The Shelves: 6/14/06

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My weekly look at select comic books being released Wednesday, 6/14/06. The full shipping is list available at ComicList.

[NOTE: Not all of these titles will actually arrive in all stores. If your LCBS offers a pre-ordering service, be sure to take advantage of it. If not, find another one; or try Khepri.com or MidtownComics.com]

Call me cynical, but after the lameness of last year’s Mr. T comic book — mercifully aborted when AP Comics folded — I can’t help but be nervous about a four-color version of P.E., especially based on American Mule’s low-budget web site. Early press coverage for it claimed that “an exclusive CD of new PE material” would be included with the comic, but at $2.99, I’m guessing that’s not happening with this issue, at least. The real question, though, is which Flava Flav shows up? If it’s the one from Flava of Love, then I’m in!

AVATAR PRESS INC
Lady Death Abandon All Hope #1 Ryp Litho, $29.99
Medieval Lady Death #2 Siqueira Serenity Litho, $29.99

Avatar’s only releasing two things this week? Surely a sign of the apocalypse.

DC COMICS
Ex Machina Special #2 (Of 2), $2.99
Firestorm The Nuclear Man #26, $2.99
Green Lantern Corps #1, $2.99

Am I the only one who feels like Ex Machina‘s been running in place the last few issues or so? I still mostly enjoy it, but it’s no longer top of the reading pile material. *** OYL Firestorm has been a rather pleasant read; competent superheroing with an appealing cast, the kind of thing so many people claim to want to see more of and yet don’t support, gobbling up the convoluted likes of 52 instead. Go figure. *** Even though I’m in the midst of pruning back my pull list significantly, I am a bit intrigued by the Green Lantern Corps. I like the basic premise well enough, and while I’ve never been a big fan of Guy Gardner, I’ve always wanted to be. (And it’s not like John Stewart’s going to get his own series any time soon, you know!) On the other hand, I’ve been rather unimpressed with most of DC’s OYL efforts so far, so I’m on the fence here.

DEVILS DUE PUBLISHING
GI Joe Americas Elite #12, $2.95
Nightwolf #0, $0.99

The current G.I. Joe arc, featuring the death/resurrection/villaining of Snake Eyes, wraps up this week and it’s been a surprisingly fun ride to-date. With the return of Cobra Commander on deck, Joe Casey’s got a certifiable hit on his hands that more people should be reading. *** I’m leery of werewolf comics in general, but I like Devil’s Due and the introductory issue of Nightwolf is sporting a great Georges Jeanty cover, so the $0.99 ploy is going to work for me this week.

IDW PUBLISHING
Supermarket #3 (Of 4), $3.99

Loved the first two issues, and while I’m not quite ready to jump on the Brian Wood bandwagon, if he closes this mini-series out satisfactorily, I may have to check out his The Couriers series which I’ve heard is similar in tone.

IMAGE COMICS
Fear Agent #5 (resolicited), $2.99

Should I or shouldn’t I? Thanks to their inconsistent shipping schedules, I’m thisclose to switching to a TPB-only policy with all Image Comics. Guilt by association sucks, but as the saying goes, oncetwicethriceseveral times burned, understandably shy.

MARVEL COMICS
Civil War #2 (Of 7), $2.99
Marvel Westerns Two Gun Kid, $3.99
Thunderbolts #103, $2.99

You’d think after the underwhelming House of M and the craptastic Infinite Crisis train wreck, that I’d just leave these overblown, universe-changing crossovers alone. You’d think… *** Ever since Clint Eastwood’s masterful Unforgiven — which I’ve just added to my Wish List…hint, hint! — I’ve been something of a closet fan of Westerns, so Marvel’s Western one-shots have been on my radar since they were first announced. *** So Marvel screwed up and sent out Thunderbolts #103 to retailers last week as part of their First Look package, overlooking an apparently huge spoiler for Civil War #2 contained therein, and then sent out a threatening email insisting that no one try to “scoop” the spoiler lest they be denied future access to any of the CW creators and preview artwork. Surprisingly, even Rich Johnston played ball. I have to admit that it was enough to keep Civil War on my pull list, but at the same time, it’s raised the stakes to a level the reality likely won’t be able to match unless it involves the irreversible death of Mary Jane.

SILENT DEVIL PRODUCTIONS
Last Sin Of Mark Grimm #1 (Of 4), $3.00

After the surprisingly good Death Comes to Dillinger a couple of weeks ago, and the fact that they will be publishing future installments of Monkey In A Wagon vs. Lemur On A Big Wheel, Silent Devil has attained guaranteed flip-through status for all of their titles. It helps that Last Sin Of Mark Grimm actually looks pretty good.

TOP SHELF PRODUCTIONS
Super F$$$$$S #3, $5.00

Cult of personality is an always interesting phenomenon, and it’s the only way I can explain the acclaim this juvenile riff on superhero comics has received. It’s Project: Superior done the wrong way, superheroes for alt-comix fans who are too ashamed to admit they still like Batman and Spider-Man.

Magazines
Comic Book Nerd #1, $8.95

TwoMorrow publishes Back Issue, my favorite comics magazine, so I’m inclined to check out this MAD Magazine-style spoof of fan mags. The 16-page sample, though, suggests something a bit more one-note than I’m willing to spend nine bucks on. Never mind the fact that its target is almost too easy.

Written by Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

Guy LeCharles Gonzalez is the Chief Content Officer for LibraryPass, and former publisher & marketing director for Writer’s Digest. Previously, he was also project lead for the Panorama Project; director, content strategy & audience development for Library Journal & School Library Journal; and founding director of programming & business development for the original Digital Book World.

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