On comics and other pop culture topics, including archived Comic Book Commentary posts from 2005-2007.
Cowboys & Aliens By Fred Van Lente, Andrew Foley, Dennis Calero, Luciano Lima, Magic Eye Studios, et al (Platinum Studios, 2006; $4.99) What if an alien invasion of North America in 1873 interrupted the European settlers' westward expansion of the United States, forcing them to band together with the native Americans they had ruthlessly displaced for nearly two centuries, and fight for their mutual survival? It's the kind of high concept Hollywood loves, so the only surprise in the comic book version of the story being published by Platinum Studios is that, well, they're actually publishing the comic book version…
Today's N.Y. Daily News, in their monthly Viva New York pullout section, included a feature called "Authors Pick Their Favorite Reads of 2006", wherein Junot Diaz (of the critically acclaimed collection of short stories, Drown), gave Rocketo a shout-out:"A comic book of extraordinary power, with a Cuban hero, written by a Cuban writer. I've read nothing like it before and can't imagine anything like it ever being written again."High praise indeed! And with Diaz being one of three featured authors in the article, his selection, the only comic book picked, really stands out. (Drown was an excellent read, highly recommended,…
Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort (who oversees New Avengers, Civil War, and Fantastic Four, among others) offers a peek into his editing process that the cynical observer might parse as an explanation of the delays behind Civil War, among other things:Different editors work in different ways, in terms of how they approach the actual editing of the story in a given comic book. For example, as near as I can tell, Axel Alonso focuses the majority of his efforts on the initial full script--once he's got what he considers his "master document", the story is largely locked, and he'll only…
Reading is fundamental. Don't waste your time reading bad comics out of habit! My weekly, semi-informed look at select comic books being released Wednesday, 12/13/06 follows. 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] PICK OF THE WEEK Star Wars: Legacy #1CUP O JAVA STUDIO World Without Super Heroes #1, $2.99 Curious about this title? Hope not because there's no sign of it anywhere…
Newsarama's interview with newuniversal artist Salvador Larroca suggests it might be yet another high-profile series Marvel is unable to ship on time:NRAMA: Could you tell us what was your first impression when you read newuniversal script?SLR: I loved it. It was water clear that Warren Ellis would write a solid script, but I really got impressed with the visual strength of his writing: I could really see the movie inside the story and drawing it was not only easy but a real pleasure. After more than 14 years in the comic industry, the script got me so impressed that I…
Reading is fundamental. Don't waste your time reading bad comics out of habit! My weekly, semi-informed look at select comic books being released Wednesday, 12/6/06 follows. 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] PICK OF THE WEEK Robotika (HC)ARCANA STUDIO Ezra Evoked Emotions #2 (Of 3), $3.95 I missed the first issue of this new mini and didn't see it on the shelves…
Publisher's Weekly reports:Amazon.com has installed HP Indigo presses at several of its fulfillment centers to expand its print-on-demand capability. The new presses, already in place at several locations, can print up to several hundred copies of a single title up to several hundred copies [sic], said Vyomesh Joshi, executive v-p with HP, who added the presses also print in color. Greg Greeley, v-p of books at Amazon, said the collaboration with HP "will enable us to significantly increase the number of available titles our publishers can purchase while offering publishers the highest quality of printing options."Amazon's description of its POD…
