The Forty Dollar Pull List – June 2010
June, 2010
By Craig Reade and Brandon Schatz
June already? This month flew by…
That may because you’re getting older, Craig. I hear that happens the closer you get to the grave.
And on that note, welcome to the $40 Pull List! My name is Brandon Schatz , and this young buck is Craig, the Crackerton J. Reade!
True fact – ‘Cracker’ is a Scottish term that refers to a person who talks, or boasts. In fact, the word “craic” still means a chat.
What this has to do with comics, I have no loving idea.
In Ireland, a “craic” is a funny story. Or something. I should ask my sister how that went again. Buuuuut anyway…
May Issues
Demo #4 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/05/10 ON TIME
Written Brian Wood, Art by Becky Cloonan
The book opens with Colin, sweating his junk off in a car. He gets all too uncomfortable about being stuck in traffic, and so gets out of his car, grabs some supplies, and plunges into the murky deep. Immediately, the book flashes back to when Colin was young, and being chased by some punk kids. Stuff goes down, and Colin is left to die in a river. Only Colin has discovered that he can breathe under water. Sort of. See, the thing is, it doesn’t work all the time – just under certain conditions. Eventually, the guy learns to love it underwater. Which brings us to now – living up in the air is for the birds, he decides, and he’s heading off into the water to live his life.
A decent issue – if a little bizarre. But then, I get the feeling Demo’s usually supposed to be like that.
Most of it, yeah. Basically, its a touch of reality, but reality that’s… over there.
Well, this one wasn’t quite as good as the last issue, but way better than the first two. So I still think we’ve had some progress. The series might have been worth reading after all.
iZombie #1, $1.00, DC Comics. Due Out 05/05/10 ON TIME
Written Chris Roberson, Art by Michael Allred, Colors by Todd Klein
The story starts at a funeral – the mourning family burying their dead, and in the distance – a quartet of apparent gravediggers waiting in the wings. The one girl in the crew, named Gwen, seems to get along well with her coworkers, but after declining to go out drinking with the boys, she sneaks back to the graveyard, and into a crypt where she finds her friend Elle, who has been dead for 4 decades and apparently a ghost.
Meanwhile, a pair of friends are playing paintball in the woods (at night), and run into a beautiful but hungry vampire.
Ellie and Gwen head to a diner to meet their friend “Spot,” a were-terrier or something like that.
After some random character encounters, Gwen goes home for the night, but not without stopping for a snack at the office. Mainly – some brains. Because she’s a zombie. Totally didn’t see that coming. (totally, for real).
Anyway, after she eats the guy’s brains, some of his memories leak, and as it turns out, he was murdered, and his soul is screaming for vengeance. To quiet his voice. Gwen decides to help him out. To be continued.
Craig, I’m getting the distinct feeling that you did not like this book. If that is the case, you and I can no longer be friends. While I don’t think they treated the ending properly – building the reveal of her zombie-ness as a twist, and not a mention – didn’t quite sit right with me, but the rest of it was a joy. The characters all have distinct voices, the main thrust of the plot is brought to the forefront, and we’re given some background happenings to take us through future issues. Plus, Mike Allred art. I mean seriously dude.
I don’t know if I disliked it as much as I was thoroughly underwhelmed by it. The story was boring, the “twist” about her being a zombie was plastered on the cover, the characters were different – sure – but they were shallow…
And the art. Well, it wasn’t horrible, but I wasn’t wowed by it. The “storytelling” aspect of his art was certainly lacking…
Clearly, you’re wrong about a lot of things here. And by a lot, I mean the art. The characters were shallow, but I still managed to care about them… or at the very least, I found them interesting enough to continue with.
If you say so. The characters seemed very generic to me, but meh – you like weird stuff sometimes. I don’t always have to bring up the Gilmore Girls, do I?
Psh. Only if you want to prove the point that you have no taste…
Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #1 (of 6), $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/05/10 ON TIME
Written Jason Aaron, Pencils by Adam Kubert, Colors by Justin Ponsor, Inks by Mark Morales and Dexter Vines
The scene begins with an a castaway Peter Parker, staring into the sky with a telescope he borrowed from the Professor from Gilligan’s Island (a joke that was way more clever before I read Parker make the same comparison a page later). He sees something that makes him realize he will be dead within the day.
Outside the cave he calls home, Parker has been carving a woman’s face – a face he’s seen in his dreams repeatedly, but one he doesn’t know the identity of.
Parker runs, into The Valley of Fire, to tell Wolverine what he has seen. Logan is busy repelling an invasion from some large primitive known as the “Kill Folk,” – it appears that Wolverine and Logan have travelled back in time, to right before the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs hit. And it’s on its way. Both Peter and Logan spend a few pages moaning to themselves about who they got stuck in the past with, and then we fast-forward to the present, to see how they went back in time.
An aside? Normally I bash the non-linear gimmicks, complaining about their overuse in comics. But as I have always said – there is a time and a place for the tactic. This, folks, is an appropriate use of the literary device. Consider yourself commended Mr. Aaron.
Anyway, back in the present (past), Spider-Man and Wolverine bump into each other as The Orb is stealing some diamonds from a bank. The diamonds are dropped, and their glow is a hint that they are out of the ordinary. With a flash, the pair end up millions of years in the past.
The pair deal with their impending death in their own way – Peter by desperately trying to solve the problem, and Logan raging. The asteroid hits – but the pair do not die. Instead, they are sent into the future, where it appears that they managed to somehow change history.
Craig, I think you’re skipping over the most important part here: right at the very end, there is a robot Devil Dinosaur, and that’s just amazing. Who knew changing the past could be so awesome?
We don’t have giant, robot devil dinosaurs?
Well, not actual Devil Dinosaurs, created by Jack Kirby. Anyway, I loved the ever loving crap out of this book. Lots of fun, and it even included the All New Orb! Who I loved in Aaron’s Ghost Rider run.
Hrm, I could have sworn…
Anyway, the issue was on the plus side of decent. Normally I complain about issues with padding – this one could have done with a little more. I wanted more of Logan/Peter in prehistory. I like how it started, and how it developed, but there was a lot more story there. Seems like it was rushed.
Solid start. I’m curious to see where it goes next.
Spectacular Spider-Girl #1 (of 4), $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/05/10 ON TIME
Written Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz, Art by Sal Buscema
In the future MC2 Universe, we find Frank Castle in South America in a self imposed retirement. He gets news of the return of Silverback, an enemy he left only crippled, and decides he needs to go back and finish the job.
Meanwhile, one of Silverback’s men, Wild Card, has come up with a device that turns Mayday’s spider-sense against her, and has used it to defeat her. Silverback’s plan is to supplant the current Kingpin of Crime, the Black Tarantula. Mayday calls in a few favors to get some dirt on Wild Card, and her clone/cousin, April, decides that it’s time to make an impact of her own.
A fire breaks out, and Spider-Girl arrives to help rescue some people, and in the aftermath learns that the gang war Silverback is waging has attracted the attention of the Punisher.
I tried for the life of me to get this comic to keep my attention, but nothing was happening. I mean, I caught it all? But Tom DeFalco’s magic on this book died shortly after issue #50 for me.
I really wish I could disagree. This is such a great character and a great concept, but its time for her to grow – DeFalco’s run out of ideas. The American Dream back-up wasn’t bad, but that character is slightly fresher.
And yeah, I enjoyed the American Dream back-up. THe original intent with this series was to put in a back-up featuring another MC2 character in each issue, which had me excited, but the fact that they’re only letting this run for four issues means we get the Buzz in the next issue, and then nothing else, really. Boourns.
Boo-urns indeed. The Buzz is lame. What about J2? A little Bluestreak? Hell, Darkdevil would be good too.
I love MC2, I really do. But Marvel and DeFalco need to give someone else a swing at it.
Okay first off, shut up, the Buzz is awesome, and I love him. And second, yeah, I agree, but what can you do, other than get really famous and pitch them a story?
Whine and complain a lot.
This is a truth fact.
Birds of Prey #1, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/12/10 ON TIME
Written Gail Simone, Art by Ed Benes, Colors by Nei Ruffino
The scene opens with Black Canary deep in frozen Iceland, on her way to rescue a young girl named Katy who is being held hostage. With a little help from Zinda, Black Canary manages to turn the tables on the kidnapper and rescue Katy.
In the aftermath, Canary and Zinda catch up on old times, when a surprising call from Oracle comes in, with an offer to “get the band back together.” It seems that some unknown individual has compiled detailed files on several superhumans, including each of the Birds, the Riddler, and Power Girl, and has threatened to kill one of them an hour until they are stopped.
The big reveal happens quickly, as the killer strikes The Penguin – Shiva has returned, more dangerous than ever.
Dude, that was Shiva? I thought they thought it wasn’t her. Either way, I like the idea of the villain.
Well, it seems clear that they were trying to make the point that she got better – last time she and Canary tangled, she got beat. She looks like she vanished for a while to improve her game. A nice twist on her character – she really embraced the White Canary thing since she got beat
Hurm. I got the sense that they were talking about someone else, as they were saying that Shiva never fought like that. But, that makes a lot of sense. Either way, a pretty good start, and Gail Simone didn’t seem to do so bad rolling with what I’m going to go ahead and assume are some corporately mandated character inclusions.
I am on the fence. While this was a far cry from the pits of Wonder Woman suckage, and definitely keeping in mind that sometimes Simone took an issue or two to get going last time she was on this book, a couple of the scenes seemed a little rocky. The reunion being one of them. Clearly there was supposed to be all of this emotion bubbling under the surface, but it seemed like she stumbled on that a bit. To be fair – Benes could share some of the blame for that as well.
So, a rocky, but passable start. I think its excusable. Now that the annoying “how did they get back together” part is over, we can go back and pretend Simone never left.
Neither Simone or Benes really bothered me in this issue. Which is odd, because I don’t really care for Benes. But it hit what I want for these characters, and thought the reunion was handled quite well – I mean, I felt the emotion there, even if it wasn’t quite “shown” properly. But, that could just be because I’m more in touch with my feminine side.
Which is just a way of saying you are girly.
Damn rights. I see no shame in that. Vaginas are awesome.
Only when they are attached to someone else.
Says you.
Ooookay then….
Booster Gold #32, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/12/10 ON TIME
Written Keith Giffen & J.M. DeMatteis, Pencils by Chris Batista, Colors by Hi-Fi, Inks by Rich Perrotta
The scene starts with Booster Gold, smack in the middle of a future cosmic war, sent by Rip Hunter to retrieve some kind of artifact. Daxam’s been invaded by Darkseid, and he’s turning the population into slaves. Booster leads a group of aliens to safety, to ride out the attack and plan for what to do next. He leads them into a prison, where they think they will be safe, but one inmate didn’t escape during the attack named Emerald Empress, who kills one of the aliens and realizes she finds Booster attractive, and her flirtations seem to have calmed her killing rage.
That all changes when Rani, a young girl in the party, interrupts the Empress, and lights her killing rage once again. Booster defends her, and leads her Eye on a chase. Destroying it, and thinking the Empress now helpless, he returns to find that she has still killed all of the aliens, save for Rani. Booster and Rani return from the future with the artifact in tow – the Helmet of Fate, which Booster successfully retrieved before Darkseid could claim it.
In the end, a revelation – Maxwell Lord lives.
(Also – that has to be the cleverest “credits” I’ve seen in a comic in some time. )
Man, I really liked this book. There was some harsh things that happened, but Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis are great at balancing the serious stuff with alla their talky jokes and whatnot. Plus, seriously? This book was a wall of text, and I absolutely loved it. I love it when it actually takes me some time to read a comic book.
Describing it as a wall of text might be a disservice. There was a ton to read – I noticed that too – but it wasn’t intimidating. It took a decent amount of time to read this issue, and the art didn’t suffer as a result.
I also have to concur on the balance – but these two have always been good about mixing humor and despair. This issue hit in every way that counts.
Also – oddly enough – it was the second issue this month that featured “creepy eye villains.” Part of me wondered if it had anything to do with it being the sixth anniversary of Mickey Eye (Seaguy #1 first released May 19th, 2004), but I figured that was likely a stretch. I hope it’s a stretch anyway – the fact that anything reminds me of that abortion of a series is a bad sign…
Why’d you have to go and bring Seaguy into this, and remind me how wrong you can be about things? I love Seaguy, and can’t wait for it to conclude with the next mini. Oh, but as for this book? It’s off to a great re-start.
Ha – I wouldn’t even use copies of Seaguy to line my litter box. Thankfully, the level of extortion he had to go through to get the second volume printed means that the third waste of ink likely won’t ever see the stands.
But this book? Awesome so far. Looking forward to #33.
Galacta: Daughter of Galactus #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/17/10 ON TIME
Written Adam Warren, Art by Hector Sevilla Lujan
Okay, so seriously, this book? Is crazy. So. There’s this daughter of Galactus, and she’s got this twitter account where she goes on and on about stuff, like how she’s always hungry and junk? But instead of eating people like they’re tasty, she limits herself to alien lifeforms and diseases that are attacking humans. It doesn’t really feed her, because she’s got a cosmic tapeworm in her stomach which is all kinds of lamesauce, and her dad is all, “I’m a cosmic entity, I got no time for your business.” The jerk. But yeah, so she’s going around, and she sees Wolverine, and she’s going “heck yeah, Canadians are hot!” and then imagines how simple life would be if Wolverine mixed his junk up with Ego, but that doesn’t work out. So then she also talks a bunch and then talks with the FF and then her dad comes and says she’s preggers, what whaaaaaat???
I really liked this book. Like a ton. At first, I was just expecting some random teeny bopper chick as “Galactus’s Daughter.” I honestly didn’t expect her to be just like Daddy- her justifications for doing good were so unique, and the Twitter thing was well integrated. I liked how her Followers spiked after she hinted about who her Dad was.
And the art was awesome in so many ways. Especially the jaw-dropping scenes.
The first bit of this appeared in a weird two issue Marvel Assistant Editor’s Special put out some time last year, so I knew what I was getting into – and I knew you were either going to really, really love it, or absolutely hate it. I’m really glad that you like it though. All of Adam Warren’s stuff is like this – just absolutely insane and stuff with neat ideas… and NOBODY READS HIS BOOKS.
This is a concept we need to see again. Well, they can forget about the pregnancy thing for a while – but hell, you can easily fit this into the canon, what with Galactus having spent time as a normal human. Even if you totally ignore how she came to be, the concept is too brilliant to let die.
Come on Marvel. Make this happen.
Put Adam Warren on a book – any Marvel book – and I guarantee we’ll see her again eventually. But other than that, I’ll be surprised…
DC Universe Legacies #1 , $3.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/17/10 ON TIME
Written by Len Wein, Art by Scot Kolins, Andy Kubert, and Joe Kubert, Colors by Mike Atiyeh and Brad Anderson
This issue treats you to a pair of short stories.
The first is told from the perspective of an old man, reflecting on his youth in the “Golden Age,” when crime was rampant, and he (Paulie) with his friend Jimmy found themselves involved with various gangs. Chance encounters with the Crimson Avengers, The Atom, and The Sandman turned Paulie on the straight and narrow, and gave him a fascination with ‘masks’ for the rest of his life.
The second follows a reporter named Scott “Scoop” Scanlon, who is sent with his photographer Rusty James to investigate Seaview Manor for a story. It would seem an encounter between Doctor Fate and a demon had captured the imagination of the few who heard the story, but most believed the tales of magic to be incredible exaggerations. A few more tales of amazing encounters were summarized involving Zatara and The Spectre, and Scoop’s opinion that the heroes use parlor tricks to convince the world of their incredible powers.
I came into this not knowing what to expect – but with the knowledge that when DC has gone back to the well with some of these older writers, that things never quite jived properly in my head (Jim Shooter’s Legion, Len Wien’s fill-ins on Justice League, Mark Waid’s return to Flash). That said, this book was pretty dang entertaining – and I like the fact that they look to be hitting the different eras with artists that helped define those times. Joe Kubert with some earlier stuff, Jose Garcia Lopez and Dave Gibbons for a stretch coming up, and who knows in the future. A nice touch.
I really enjoyed it. I think they should have spent a little less time name-dropping, and more time showing these Golden Age heroes, but that is a small quibble. I think the issue had a fantastic classic feel – real good atmosphere. A pleasure to read.
Zatanna #1 , $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/17/10 ON TIME
Written by Paul Dini, Pencils by Stephane Roux, Colors by John Kalisz, Inks by Karl Story
After a performance, Zatana is approached by Detective Dale Colton, who wants her input on an unusual crime scene. Zatanna uses magic to replay the memories of a single survivor of the attack, and learns that Brother Night and a team of allies stormed the party and attacked. She goes to his den to confront Brother Night, and learns that he is expanding his reach to the human underworld. Zatanna slaps him and his crew around for a bit, and leaves – he then goes to enlist the aid of an ally for revenge.
This issue features a very splashy return appearance by Rape! I mean seriously, that first page? Is one of the most rapetastic things I’ve ever seen.
But it was stage Rape – kind of like a Thanos dupe or a Doombot. Dangerous, but not nearly as bad as the real thing.
The real Rape would have held off until the end, where the totally “unnecessarily naked” Zatanna scene was. God I hate comics sometimes.
Does it make you more or less mad to know that Paul Dini is married to a magician that looks exactly like Zatanna in real life? And no, I’m not even joking about that. not even a little. Anyway, normally I’m pretty easy going on these books, but I’m going to come down on this book. Because I did not like it. First off, that bit of stage rape to start? Yeah, Zatanna is totally going to have guys dress up as Dr. Light, who is a known rapist (and who licked the salty remains of Firestorm’s girlfriend in a Blackest Night book) and the Joker, who is known for tons of grizzly murders tie her up in a stage show for fun. I mean, WHAT?
And yeah, that’s even before we get to the gratuitous stuff.
Her selections certainly weren’t the best choices. And there was a lot to be irritated about in this book – Dini should know better. I liked the way she was presented in Seven Soldiers much better. I really don’t know where I am with this title…
I’m not in a good place, that’s for sure. Not sure if I’d be up for any more to be sure…
The Thanos Imperative: Ignition #1 , $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/26/10 ON TIME
Written Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning, Pencils by Brad Walker, Colors by Wil Quintana, Inks by Andrew Hennessy
Thanos recaps his fate at the end of the Annihilation War, his death at the hands of Drax the Destroyer, how the insane Adam Warlock found his body and preserved it, and how the Universal Church of Truth found his cocoon and mistook it for Adam Warlock regeneration, how he returned and destroyed their world in the process. Thanos laments his life, mourns his again-lost love Death, bringing us to the present where Thanos is in chains, imprisoned in Knowhere by the Guardians of the Galaxy, where Mantis, Moondragon, and Cosmo attempt to figure out why he is back, and telepathically keep his rage in check. Elsewhere, the rest of the Guardians debate whether or not they should kill him.
Across the galaxy, Nova is hot on the tail of the fake-Quasar (recall the last issue of Nova), who is heading back to the Fault. Nova communicates with the real Quasar and Gladiator who are at the mouth of the Fault, preparing for invasion. Quasar departs to assist Nova with his quarry, and Nova drops into real space only to find a fleet of Universal Church ships waiting at the mouth of the Fault. An Inhuman/Kree fleet arrives with Blastaar, and engage the Universal Church. Nova catches up with Fake Quasar, and the two come to blows. An ally arrives, tipping the scales against Nova- Adam Magus. Quasar arrives to help even the odds, but the Universal Church brings another piece on the board – entire planets, filled with true believers, adding power to their already dangerous fleet. They detonate the planets, causing a massive telepathic ripple that is felt all the way to Knowhere, which enrages Thanos, allowing him to break free. The leader of the “Cancerverse” arrives – Lord Mar-vell, who wants to destroy Death and her avatar, Thanos.
Do you get it? Because he died from CANCER. Oh, the irony is delicious. And that reveal was pretty damn awesome. Would’ve been a bit better had that nonsense of Mar-vell returning, but not returning during Civil War…
For a moment when you first saw Mar-Vell, from behind, talking yellow, I was just imagining how awesome a Cancerverse Deadpool would be, what with the cancer and the maybe hating Death in that universe. This is so much less cool.
I think that’s because you might be the only person who has gotten their fill-and-a-half of Deadpool in different books right now. Seriously, I may have tossed the book across the room if that happened.
Well, the difference between me and everyone else is, if the book a favorite character of mine is in a bad book, I stop reading it. So while others are sick of him, I am still eagerly anticipating a good run.
Anyway – outside the minor let-down over the identity of the big-bad, this issue was a good start for the event. All the right players were there, and the action was explosive from the beginning. I am interested in checking out the main event.
Ditto, but at this point, that’s pretty much par for the course for DnA.
Secret Avengers #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/26/10 ON TIME
Written Ed Brubaker, Art by Amanda Conner, Colors by Paul Mounts
In Dubai, an arrogant American exec cosies up to a pair of beautiful women, who are actually Valkyrie and Black Widow in disguise, on an op. With a little help from Steve Rogers, they defeat the executive’s security and retrieve their target, a box containing an artifact they believe to be the Serpent Crown. Beast analyses the crown and finds it isn’t quite what they thought it to be, and Steve takes a few minutes to make out with Sharon Carter. Later, Moon Knight and Ant-Man break into Roxxon headquarters to try and steal a little data on the crown, and they discover something strange about a supposedly abandoned mine on Mars. Nova is sent to Mars to recon, but encounters more than expected. Diving into a mountain to get a break from combat, Nova discovers another Serpent Crown, which he goes to put on against Worldmind’s advice. Part of the team goes to investigate, but back at headquarters, the Shadow Council attacks, seeking to reclaim the crown.
This? I’m okay with. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of the team that Brubay… umm… Captain America put together, but seeing it in action, I’m perfectly fine with it. And I liked the scene where everyone is going, “How do we get to Mars?” and Cap just smiles and says, “Don’t worry, I know a guy.
Yeah, the introduction to Nova was decent – but I am a little worried he is going to be dumbed down for this series. I’m sorry – but after being at the heart of three cosmic wars, no writer has the right to have the same character get excited about joining the Avengers because he is finally “in the big leagues.” Nova outgrew that a long time ago.
I read that line as Rich sarcastically recounting what Steve had told him to get him to lend a hand every now and then, but we’ve been differing on our reads this week quite a bit. I have no problem with it, mostly because your perception saw Nova going up to the big leagues with his book, but my perception saw a low selling book that nobody saw. This is the big leagues, Craig.
Annihilation was hardly a “low selling book that nobody saw.” And neither was his ongoing, really – for the first half of its run it was near the top of Marvel’s line.
I’m keeping an open mind on it, but we will have to see…
Power Girl #12, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/26/10 ON TIME
Written Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray, Art by Amanda Conner, Colors by Paul Mounts
We open this issue with Terra taking Power Girl to meet her family, and they go into this pool where they have to wear these weird, almost-nothing looking bathing suits. Terra soon explains that the pool “isn’t just about the visuals” and we’re treated to some flashbacks. Then the girls put their bits away and have some hug time, before Power Girl goes home and names her kitty, deals with the aftermath of a blackmailing comic reading kid who got a pretty girlfriend out of knowing Power Girl, and then, it’s the return of Vartox, chesty man of action (and sex times). There’s a bit of a fight, and then PG goes to work to find out that someone who has been very important to her for the past 12 issues is leaving the book due to other commitments, and the stress of full time work (wink wink). There’s a little bit more chatting, and then there is a party and the book comes to an end!
This was an outstanding final issue for this creative team – but the fact that they managed to tie every single loose end up just shows how tragically short this run was. But for whatever reason, it was a solid 12 issues. This team will definitely be missed.
Well, they ended up jumping off the book much like the text of the issue implied: Amanda Conner can do a monthly book, but at the expense of a lot of other things, and the guys writing didn’t want to continue without her. I’m just glad we got twelve issues out of Conner… she’s not one of those artists known for hitting a monthly schedule, and usually does a book here and there over the course of a year.
If that is indeed the reason – you really have to hand it to Connor. There are a ton of artists who can’t handle a monthly book, yet say they can and cause delay after delay. She was on time with her work, only to back out when she realized she wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Great self-awareness and work ethic there. It is to be commended.
THE CHOPPING BLOCK
The List So Far
Demo #5 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 06/02/10
iZombie #2, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/02/10
Spectacular Spider-Girl #2, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/02/10
Birds of Prey #2, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/16/10
Booster Gold #33, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/09/10
DC Universe Legacies #2 (of 10), $3.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/16/10
Zatanna #2, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/23/10
The Thanos Imperative #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/03/10
Secret Avengers #2, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/30/10
Power Girl #13, $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 06/23/10
Trade Bank Value – $2.25
Amulet 3: The Cloud Searchers, $10.99, Graphix. Due Out 09/10
Future Issues
Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #2, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 07/08/10
Well, with a virtually new list, it is probably expected that there will be more than a couple drops this month (though I think you will instantly reject my idea to drop iZombie)… anything jump out as particularly sucky for you this month?
I don’t think I can deal with Zatanna again. My brain might implode, to be sure. And I surely do disregard your call to drop iZombie.
Heh – well, my brain might creak to a halt out of formulaic boredom if we have to sit through another issue of iZombie!
What about Spider-Girl? Back to the rack for that one?
Yeah, sadly, off it needs to go.
DROPPED: Spectacular Spider-Girl #2, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/02/10
Now I think we need to come back to Power Girl. We gave the title one more issue – sparing it from the pillaging we saw last month. Well, my bloodlust is somewhat sated… the question is, does this title get a stay?
I wouldn’t be adverse to seeing what the new creative team has in store. And hey, with Judd Winick involved, we could very well see Terra gets AIDS, which is always fun.
Ah, AIDS. Giving cheap emotional depth to bad scripts since 2004.
Well, while I thought Zatanna could have been better, I don’t think it was so bad that we need to cast it away in disgust. Unless there are any other titles that stand out as bad for you, it looks like we might be set to move on.
New Books
Well, with the books dropped this week, it looks like we have plenty of room for our new stuff. But first, I think we need to set aside another $3 for our Trade Bank. Agreed?
I am amicable to this sundry action. Those are words, right?
ADD:, $3 to Trade Bank for Amulet 3: The Cloud Searchers, $10.99, Graphix. Due Out 09/10
They are words, yes. Used correctly? That’s debatable.
Well, as the list stands now (Particularly with Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine off in June), we have just enough room for one new book.
Of course, the new Batman Beyond series caught my eye, but for a change we are really DC-heavy right now. Luckily, I may have just the thing – the Jeff Parker penned Namora #1. Anything else jump out at you?
Not really. I was leaning more towards that Batman Beyond mini myself, though. And seriously, soon enough, we’ll probably be dropping a DC book or two…
That settles it for me then.
ADD: Batman Beyond #1 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/16/10
June List
Demo #5 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 06/02/10
The Thanos Imperative #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/02/10
iZombie #2, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/02/10
Booster Gold #33, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/09/10
Birds of Prey #2, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/16/10
Batman Beyond #1 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/16/10
DC Universe Legacies #2 (of 10), $3.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/16/10
Zatanna #2, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 06/23/10
Power Girl #13, $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 06/23/10
Secret Avengers #2, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/30/10
Trade Bank Value – $5.25
Amulet 3: The Cloud Searchers, $10.99, Graphix. Due Out 09/10
Future Issues
Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #2, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 07/08/10
The Math
$.19 (Bank from May) + $40 (May Budget) = $40.19
$40.19 – $32.90 (May issues) – $2.55 (tax) – $3 (Trade Bank Deposit) = $1.74 Banked for June
Looks like we are well on track for Amulet 3, and there was a lot less slashing this month than I was expecting. I guess we will have to wait another 30 days for things to break down.
Well, that looks like its it for this month! And I don’t know about you, Craig, but I plan on getting absolutely blitzed right now. This business is tough work and junk.
In lieu of witty repartee, I will just end with an “Agreed” while it is still Monday. See you in a month!
Post your comments in the Forum!
May 5, 2010
The $40 Pull List – May 2010
May, 2010
By Craig Reade and Brandon Schatz
Happy May! As usual, I am Craig “Cracker” Reade and this is the indomitable Brandon “Bricks Without Straw” Schatz. Say hello, maggot, and then back to work!
That’s right everyone, I’m black by popular demand! Now let’s pimp slap up some deep fried $40 Pull List goodness.
April Issues
S.H.I.E.L.D. #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 04/07/10 ON TIME
Written and Illustrated by Jonathan Hickman and Dustin Weaver, Colors by Christina Strain
In 1953 New York, a young man named Leonid is taken by a pair of men in suits who claim to know who he really is. He is taken to The Immortal City – located deep beneath Rome, touted as the home of the Immortals and the “High Council of Shield.”
Leonid is told of Imhotep, the first of the Immortals, and explain that they exist to honor and emulate individuals like Imhotep who act as a shield between humanity and the unknown. Leonid is shown many notable members of the Shield over history, and some of the conflicts they faced. He agrees to join.
3 years later, his father (The Night Machine) appears from “beyond the veil,” explaining that he intends to tear the Shield down. He produces a key that opens a door to “Iter,” presumed lost for centuries. They open the door, and Leonid is sent inside and up the stairs, while his father holds off Agents “Stark and Richards.” At the top, Leonid encounters Leonardo DaVinci.
I think my thoughts about this book can almost be summerized thusly:
AHHHHHH!! AHHH!!! AHH!! AHH!! AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!
Seriously, I was freaking out when I read this comic, whether it was from the story, which I absolutely loved, or the art, which was pretty amazing. Seriously, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen something with this kind of big crazy scope in comics, and I’m really glad it’s happening.
And for the record, yeah, those were totally Tony and Reed’s parentals. Awesome.
It was a decent start. Granted, I wasn’t nearly as excited about this as you were, and I definitely think the pace was a little slow. But there is some potential here – at the very least, I am interested in seeing what comes next.
Jonah Hex #54, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 04/07/10 ON TIME
Written by Justin Gray & Jimmy Palmiotti, Art by Jordi Bernet
A gang of bank robbers clumbsily interrupts Hex’s whiskey time, and one of their number stumbles into his clutches (while the others beat a retreat). Hex drags the prisoner into town to collect the bounty, but someone steals his horse while he is in the bar. He borrows a donkey and goes of in pursuit, when the *** throws him and knocks him cold. The horse thief covers him with a blanket and steals the donkey as well.
Hex is awakened by the remaining two bank robbers (who he promptly kills), who were being chased by Star Man (see Jonah Hex #27 for that one), who arrives on Hex’s horse. Without thinking, Hex heads back to town on his horse, and is promptly arrested for allegedly killing Sherrif Kane.
Of course, it was Starman who committed the crime, only it appears he didn’t intend Hex to take the fall. He and Chula work together to slip Hex a pistol in prison, which he uses to effect an escape. Hex is finally cleared of all charges, and both gunslingers ride off into the night.
You know, it was a very interesting move, having Ted Knight appear in, uh… wait, what? This issue was about what? Oh, I must not have remembered properly because it was sort of mega boring. There was a misunderstanding, right? And in the end, Jonah is a bit battered, but he rides away, right?
Yeah, this issue was a real let-down. They could have done so much more with this story set-up… instead we just got a “Oh, look, I know those characters!” issue, instead of a good story involving those characters. Maybe this issue is just a filler before the movie?
Who knows. Here’s hoping for something awesome next month… I’m starting to lose my patience…
Demo #3 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 04/07/10 ON TIME
Written by Brian Wood, art by Becky Cloonan
Marlo is a girl with some problems. Her obsessive compulsive disorder has caused her to live her life out through a series of post-it notes that she leaves around her house and carries with her around town, to make sure that her day goes on without much consequence. Obviously, she talks about this quite a bit with her therapist. Anyway, things take an interesting turn when someone starts leaving messages for her, much in the same way she’s been doing for herself. But is this sinister? Sweet? Or a larger delusion?
Ah, finally a good issue! Naturally, the comments pages at the end of the issue revealed this script was actually written for the first series – which doesn’t really help assure me that the next three issues will be good. Still – this is the kind of story I can get behind for this series. An excellent example of a single issue story.
This is pretty much right where I like a Demo to be, in terms of execution – though I will still argue that the previous issue was just as good. Basically, the only thing you can be assured of with this series is that every issue is going to be quite different from the last, all glimpsing briefly before moving onwards. But yeah, man, what an issue. I’m really pulling for the last half coming up here.
As am I, truth be told. Now that we have gotten a really strong issue, I am much more comfortable. I know that with single issue stories you aren’t going to get a five star book every time. It’s nice to see one going into a book, however. At this point, I think this book’s safe on the list for the rest of its run.
Wolverine: Weapon X #12, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 04/07/10 ON TIME
Written by Jason Aaron, Pencils by Ron Garney, Colors by Jason Keith
25 years in the future, we glimps a cell of rebels working against “Roxxon,” presumably a corperate entity that rules the country. We can divine rather quickly that Roxxon is going back in time targeting specific heroes – and so far, they are having success. They get ready to jump back and try to stop the Deathloks, and this time – a much older and much more wounded Logan wants to join them.
In the present, we realize that the young waitress Logan meets, who warns him of the future is the very same Miranda we see in the future, leading the fight against the Deathloks and Roxxon. Roxxon is looking for “The Savior,” a super-powered operative from the time just after Steve Rogers returns. Their next target is Captain America…. Bucky. The Deathloks track Bucky, but he holds them off long enough for Logan to arrive and even the odds. Meanwhile future Logan and Miranda make it to the machine that will allow them to jump into the past. Future Logan is killed in the attempt to make it to the machine.
You guys, I totally wonder if Wolvie can find a way out of this one. Because seriously, Marvel could totally kill him off and stuff.
Man, I’m a bit punchy this month. But seriously, I’m still really enjoying this book – and Jason Aaron, at the very least, is trying to tell some different stories with Wolverine, starting with his revenge flick Get Mystique riff, and going onto the Kung Fu/Chinatown spectacular and on from there. At least he’s switching things up a bit.
I don’t hate this arc, but I am a little let down by its stunning lack of creativity. This issue’s structure was particularly bad – I know time travel can be a difficult concept to present in a logical fashion, but Aaron seemed to be pulling the cutsey non-linear storytelling style that is all the rage. Combined with time travel, that just made this issue a mess.
Not horrible, but a huge step down from the last arc.
Hellcyon #1 (of 4), $3.50, Dark Horse Comics. Due Out 04/14/10 ON TIME
By Lucas Marrangon
Basically this series will center on a squad of rebels (Suicide Division), fighting the army sent from Earth to break an independence movement on the colony world of Halcyon. After a brief introduction, with the Earth military getting ready to disembark on the planet, we see members of them deploying around a Halcyon High School. The new president of the world asks the rebels to back down – explaining that they can’t stand up to the army, and while they will lose in the short term, their struggle will eventually bear fruit. Many students involved in the movement are outraged, and are ready to fight on their own. The military attacks… for some reason… the rebels run, and argue, and they eventually galvanize the will to fight in the end. I think.
Ummmm… yeah. What Craig said. Also… what??
Yeah, I think we’ll be talking about this one later.
Deadpool Team-Up #894, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due out 04/14/10 ON TIME
Written by Ivan Brandon, Art by Stanford Greene, Inks by Nathan Massengill, Color by John Rauch
Deadpool is hired by the widow of an “innocent bystander” killed by the Punisher in one of his raids. Remembering that Frank is supposed to be dead, Wade set’s out to find some proof of it to present to the grieving widow. While searching, Wade encounters a strange creature that seems to have the ability to call up uncomfortable memories from Wade’s childhood. The creature turns out to be called Maurice, and he leads him to a “city” called Monstertown, filled will all kinds of freaks.
In Monstertown, Wade discovers Frank Castle is indeed alive – but he has been rebuilt as a Frankenstein monster. (Frankencastle!). After the traditional hero brawl, Deadpool realizes he has been duped by the “widow,” and the two go to confront her. But she has found a new guardian in the meantime…
Is it odd that I want to complain about how jarringly lucid Deadpool was in this issue? It was like watching me talk, in a fancy get-up. Like, the insanity is there, but there’s just too much logic behind it, or something.
Oh, but hey, there’s Frankencastle, and you seriously can’t go wrong with Frankencastle.
Actually – it is odd that you want to complain about Deadpool’s lucidity. He’s not wacky-crazy all the time, and in my mind, that is the problem with the way he is usually portrayed lately. He’s normally logical… he just has a screw loose. And OCCASIONALLY he goes off the deep end. The way he is treated lately, he jumped off the deep end and never came back. That’s too insane for Wade – he wasn’t even this nuts during Kelly’s run, which is probably the silliest he has been credibly written.
But he’s more popular now – which just confirms to me that people in general have zero taste, and prefer garbage to quality. Now get off my lawn.
I think that’s just it – it’s been a loooooooong time since I read any old Deadpool – and what I read, I have nearly forgotten completely. (Maybe I should crack open those Deadpool Classic TPBs I got kicking around the ol’ homestead?) But I always liked Deadpool as a character who would enter a situation, identify the two logical ways to solve a problem, and then go for option C, because it seemed like the more awesome thing to do. That said, I’m not as big of a Deadpool afficianado, such as yourself, so whuddoo I know.
See, there is always a little of that. That is why things like the Sheep-cannon are so awesome. But the randomness really looses its flavor when it happens all the time, which is what we are getting now. It’s way cooler when the weird junk comes out of nowhere. Now you know to expect it in every situation.
Nova #36, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 04/21/10 ON TIME
Written by Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning, Art by Andrea DiVito, Colors by Brung Hang
Nova returns to Earth, to check on Project: PEGASUS, that is on lock down after the incident with the Fault for purely precautionary reasons. Nova banters with Quasar a bit, and finally reveals that he knows this “Quasar” is not who he claims to be. The two come to blows, and Nova does his best to distract Fake Quasar while Darkhawk investigates a strange energy distubance detected by Worldmind. Darkhawk discovers some kind of portal from another universe, with some kind of alien coming through it. It turns out that Fake Quasar was behind it all – and he has taken over the minds of the entire staff at PEGASUS to aid him.
Annoying flashback to 6 hours earlier – Nova on the Resolute Duty, talking with Namorita about their “plan.”
Back in the present, Nova manages to free Doctor Necker’s mind, and then goes to confront the Fake Quasar with Darkhawk, who reveals some of his plan. Darkhawk is wounded in the fight – but something happened when he tried to change back to human form. The armor disappeared, but his amulet remained fused to his chest. Nova defeats the alien making his way into their universe, and then goes of in pursuit of the fleeing Fake QUasar.
And the series ends! In a way. Seems like an odd way to come back to the plot point brought up in the Realm of Kings one shot, but whatever. I trust that Abnett and Lanning know what they are doing in this realm… though this appears to be it for this book forever, as Nova will soon be moved to the terra-based Marvel U to be a member of Ed Brubaker’s Secret Avengers.
Seriously – I am so annoyed at this title ending, I don’t even want to acknowledge it. Secret Avengers… really? I guess Nova had a good run, but it looks like Marvel’s well on its way to tossing Nova back in the refuse pile DnA pulled him out of. Really – with that awesome a set-up to a New Warriors reunion, they aren’t going to do it?
Out of the blue, this is canceled, Avengers: The Initiative is canceled, what the heck? I hate Marvel sometimes….
Well, looking at this objectively, Nova has actually been hovering around the cancellation level since around issue #18 – and appearing in an Avengers book written by Brubaker isn’t what I’d call “returning to the refuse pile”. Heck, this play could give Nova a high enough profile to sustain an ongoing for a longer period of time!
As for a New Warriors reuinon, it looks like we’re going to be dang close to it with most of the Avengers Academy staff being comprised of old New Warriors members… including SPEEDBALL. What. Up.
Power Girl #11, $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 04/21/10 ON TIME
Written by Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti, Pencils by Amanda Conner, Colors by Paul Mounts
Heh – “War on Terra…” cute!
As you may recall, way back at the beginning of this series, the Ultra Humanite attempted to transfer his brain into Power Girl’s body. Failing that, he appears to have succeeded in taking over Terra’s body. This issue opens with the two locked in combat, with the Ultra Humanite using Terra’s powers to their most destructive potential. Power Girl surrenders – and offers her body in exchange for Terras – and the offer is declined. The Ultra Humanite presses the attack, and reveals that Power Girl has been severely injured by Satanna’s Sonic Hammer. Power Girl goes down, but gets her second wind, and takes the Ultra Humanite into orbit to knock him out.
Power Girl tracks down the monster Terra’s brain has been transplanted into, and takes her and her unconcious body into Strata to see Aurla, their Chief Physician. She transfers Terra’s brain back into her body, and clones a new body for the Ultra Humanite from the DNA in his brain – that’s right, the Ultra Humanite has his old body back. He seems to be willing to accept his fate, but we quickly learn that vengeance is still on his mind. Same goes fot Satanna – who lost an arm this issue to Power Girl. She has a brand new one, and is looking to get her own bit of revenge.
What an awesome and fun series this has been. I say “has” been, because the next issue is the last for this creative team, and I have almost no doubt that when Judd Winick comes on board… well, let’s just say I have some issues with the way his stories go. I bet Power Girl gets AIDs or something.
Actually, if history is any indication, it will be Terra that gets AIDS. This is not good news at all. I suppose we should just enjoy this book while we still can….
If there’s one thing I know about AIDs, its that if you write a song about true love, and sing it to someone as they are dying from it, they will get better. That’s actual science. But yeah, we got one more issue of this awesomeness. I hear even Vartox is coming back for one more go. So yay!
Well, if there is one character that would make an AIDS story work its Vartox. The two seem to go together very well…
Green Lantern Corps #47, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 04/28/10 ON TIME
Written by Peter J. Tomasi, Pencils by Patrick Gleason, Inks by Rebecca Buchman, Tom Nguyen, Keith Champagne & Mark Irwin, Colors by Randy Mayor
In the beginning, we see all five lions combine to form Voltron! Thundercats ho!
Or something like that. We start off with the usual “We just finished a major storyline, and here is your team posing with their power-source sparking. Really silly, but its standard, so we will go with it. In the aftermath of Blackest Night, the Corps charges their central Power Battery, Guy and Kyle chitchat about the end of the battle (for those who didn’t read the series), the Lanterns have a funeral for their dead, the bearerless Rings are sent out to find new owners, Kilowag steps down as the Drill Instructor and a replacement is assigned, Isamot donates his legs to Vath, which infuriates him (Rannians hating Thanagarians and all), and a few Lanterns go and give the Guardians a piece of their mind. As a result, the Third Law is repealed.
Man, Craig, I think you would’ve liked the Care Bear Stare that ended Blackest Night. Or some kind of reference to Rainbow Bright. Or something.
Seemed odd that this issue had such a crazy info dump in it, but whatever. I was sated by the fact that it ended up like this past week’s episode of Glee did, minus some singing. Seriously, you guys, I want all my comics to include songs and dancing.
Heh – maybe true, but since we dropped Blackest Night, little point in talking about it, you know?
The info dump wasn’t terrible – it seemed like a “jumping on” issue, and it was a good time for one. Though the less I see of Glee the better – I’ve seen it… I just don’t get the appeal. But then, that isn’t a comic (thank God…)
Maybe it’s because you don’t have the courage to believe in yourself, Craig. To be a shining star. No matter who you are.
Riiight. I do have the courage to accept that I am not faaabulous, I don’t have any desire to groom any more than I do, I don’t want to wear hot-pants, and I definitely have never felt the urge to sing and dance to “Single Ladies.”
And if its rainin’ men, I am not putting on a “raincoat” – I’m staying the heck inside!
And I am comfortable with that!
Craig, I am disappointed by your out-of-date and pejorative use of the word “fabulous”. If you’re going to use it nowadays, you have to dress it up, as in “lady fabulous” or “ghetto fabulous” or “prison rape fabulous”. You would know these things if you watched Glee.
Wait, what were we talking about??
True story – I invented the description “ghetto fabulous” in the early 90′s. And who said anything about pejorative? And I am not sure I want any part of Prison Rape Fabulous. Speaking of Rape… he hasn’t been seen in the DCU in a while…
Actually, I am not sure how we got this side-tracked. I guess it’s time to move on.
Invincible Iron Man #25, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 04/28/10 ON TIME
Written by Matt Fraction, Art by Salvador Larroca, Colors by FrankD’Armata
A new Armor Suit is introduced by Hammer called “Detroit Steel,” piloted by an Air Force Lieutenant named Doug Johnson. Tony starts dreaming of a new suit, and puts Pepper in charge of rebuilding his company. Potts goes to the military, but Stark intervenes, declaring that he won’t go the way of his father, and he won’t build Stark on War. The Hammers start buying up old HAMMER gear (and scraping the dots off), and Thor pops by to have a chat with Tony, and offers him a ton of cash, which he turns down. Instead, he opens a licensing market to his repulsor technology.
Right, so its no secret that I love the crap out of this book – and I think this issue is a prime example of why. Awesome ideas, great interactions, and just solid creation all around. Thank goodness we clinged to this book past the last arc (which I still enjoyed, but whatever).
Ha ha, yes, yes. Thank goodness we sat through two pretty cruddy, overly long arcs for more than a year, so that we could get to this one semi-decent issue! I am gratified that I am not looking to curb-check this issue right out of the gate, but its still on probation for me. We are off to a good start though – so I will give it credit for that much.
Late and Unreleased Titles
Choker #3, $3.99, Image Comics. Due out 04/21/10 Delayed until 05/26/10
This really isn’t any surprise to me. I thought that issue #2 would be late – and last month, I owned up to being wrong there. But this time, issue #3 has been delayed – not because of a printing error – but because they were so busy at conventions that they just didn’t have time!
Only in comics is it acceptable to sacrifice producing your product in order to promote it. Perhaps I am being too touchy, but I have never read an Image title that wasn’t late most of the time. Yeah – I am way more forgiving of late books from Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse. That’s because most of their titles actually come out as scheduled each and every single month, regardless of what conventions or side projects or World of Warcraft or special brownies happen to pop up that keep the artists from getting the work done on time. If they can’t do it, then they shouldn’t schedule it until the book is done…
There’s actually a good story about Mark Bagley to tell here. When DC was about to announce him as the principle artist on Trinity, he asked Dan Didio if it was cool if he only made the one appearance at a con to announce the move, because he wanted to focus on getting the book out. Didio, as the story goes, nearly squeed with delight and clapped his hands.
But yeah, whenever a book is late and I see a bunch of con appearances scheduled, I scratch my head. I know a lot of these are confirmed and planned and (most times) paid for by organizers months upon months in advance, but yeah. If you’re going to solicit a book, you obviously need to take a good hard look at your schedule and see if you’re going to hit those deadlines.
For the most part, I don’t fault guys doing their first Image series, and suddenly realizing that there’s a whole lot of extra stuff involved in getting a comic out that you didn’t quite account for (balloon placement edits, tweaking script for art that doesn’t quite meld together, print lead time, blah blah blah). That happens, and you learn. In that sense, I can’t really fault Ben McCool, but Mr. Templesmith? For shame. You’re making me look bad in front of the Craig, and I don’t like it.
Although seriously, your comment about Dark Horse books shipping on time made me laugh a little – especially when every book we’ve put on this list from them got axed for being late.
Now that’s not entirely accurate – Usagi Yojimbo was dropped from this list before just to make room for something new. The reason I point out Dark Horse is that while they have their share of late comics, as a company they take a much harder line on scheduling. Their main books are all on time. At Image, 4 Pilot Season books are still late. Witchblade has 4 issues that have passed their solicitation date. Spawn has 7 issues. Invincible? 3 issues late. Broken Trinity: Pandora’s Box? 4 issues late. Bomb Queen IV? Heck, that’s so late they are getting ready to resolicit it. If you look at the Dark Horse list, its pretty well just a few trades – maybe an issue or two here and there. Image makes late books a policy – why do you think it was so fitting that their 10th Anniversary book came out what, 13 years after they started?
The reason Image can get away with it is that comic fans always just shrug their shoulders and accept it, buying whatever excuse is offered and waiting patiently for the artist to finish their raid and get the book done.
Personally I find that attitude to be one of the most destructive things to comics in general. Which is why I have zero tolerance for it from Image, who have beat the concept to death and then done unspeakable things to the corpse.
Well, at Image, there’s no editorial staff driving deadlines – it’s just the creative teams chugging on their own juices. If I were going to put the blame on someone, it would be creative teams for biting off a little more than they can Chew, and never friggen learning from it. Get a book done, solicit it. Is that really so hard?
That said, I’m much more forgiving of terrible schedules when the creative team is making nothing off their book. Not the case for Invincible and such, but a good chunk of Image books sell maybe enough to pay an artist a living wage… maybe. If they want to take some time earning cash elsewhere to eat, I’m pretty okay with that.
That’s just the thing – it’s not just the little guys struggling to get by. It’s all of Image’s main books. And 9 times out of 10, they aren’t late because they are busy with their day job. Come on B – you’ve been exposed to as many people in the industry as I have. They’re playing WOW or taking bong hits, or just slacking off. It’s pretty well a running joke in the industry. And even if they do have a day job that is preventing them from doing the work – they shouldn’t be committing to a monthly schedule they can’t keep! Do the work in advance, and then solicit it. I am not saying that the reasons you give for being forgiving aren’t good ones. The trouble is, they hardly ever apply.
That’s why I am so hard on Image. I get the initial motive – having creators own their work. But editors have a place in the industry. By not having that editorial pressure, or even finding a way to replace it, those idealistic Image creators are guaranteeing that they have 100% share of about nothing.
The List So Far
Jonah Hex #55, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
Demo #4 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 05/05/10
Deadpool Team-Up #893, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due out 05/05/10
Avengers: The Initiative #35, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
Hellcyon #2 (of 4), $3.50, Dark Horse Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
Invincible Iron Man #26, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
Wolverine: Weapon X #13, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
Choker #3, $3.99, Image Comics. Due out 04/21/10 DELAYED UNTIL 05/26/10
Power Girl #12, $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 05/26/10
Green Lantern Corps #48, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
Future issues:
S.H.I.E.L.D. #2, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/03/10
Choker #4, $3.99, Image Comics. Due out 05/19/10 DEALAYED UNTIL ?
The Chopping Block
It seems like we have reached one of those moments with the list (they come every now and again) where things come together and the list is virtually reworked. As I am in a bad mood over Nova, Avengers: The Initiative, and Power Girl I feel less forgiving than usual. Maybe multiple drops?
Since I don’t think you will accept my suggestion to cancel everything on the list and start all over, I will begin with the obvious. Is it safe to say that Hellcyon is gone?
I say thee “yay”. And seriously, I won’t accept your call to drop the whole list. But you know something, if we kept… say Demo and that last issue of Power Girl, I’d be down with whatever.
DROPPED: Hellcyon #2 (of 4), $3.50, Dark Horse Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
Hrm… an interesting offer you just made there. Of course, that would mean the end of Jonah Hex’s storied run as the last remaining title from the original $40 Pull List.
Hrm.
Well, let’s be honest here. The title might be decent for the next couple months with the movie, but in all honesty, by July it will be back to the usual roller coaster. I can miss it. Deal.
DROPPED: Jonah Hex #55, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
DROPPED: Deadpool Team-Up #893, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due out 05/05/10
DROPPED: Avengers: The Initiative #35, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
DROPPED: Invincible Iron Man #26, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
DROPPED: Wolverine: Weapon X #13, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
DROPPED: Choker #3, $3.99, Image Comics. Due out 04/21/10 DELAYED UNTIL 05/26/10
DROPPED: Green Lantern Corps #48, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
DROPPED: S.H.I.E.L.D. #2, $2.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 06/03/10
And that returns $4.30 to the pool as well – with the loss of the already-paid-for Choker, which means the next section is going to be a doozy.
New Books
I think it might be time for a quick look at where we stand now:
The List So Far:
The List So Far
Demo #4 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 05/05/10
Power Girl #12, $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 05/26/10
The Math:
$1.12 (Bank from April) + $40 (May Budget) + $4.30 (Choker #3) = $45.42
$45.42 – $5.98 (May issues) – $0.46 (tax) = $38.98 Banked for June
Well, we have a whole mess-a books to pick up this month. To be a little more specific – we have room for about 12 $2.99 books.
Well, May is definitely a good month for Marvel – and there is a ton that stand out there. There is Jason Aaron’s Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #1, Spectacular Spider-Girl #1 (there’s a strange return for you), Rescue #1 (the further adventures of Iron-potts), Brubaker’s Secret Avengers #1, or Bendis’ Avengers #1, or there are a pair of ok looking one-shots, Dazzler #1, and even weirder – Galacta: Daughter of Galactus #1. Over at DC, there is the return of Gail Simone to Birds of Prey, DC Universe Legacies #1 looks kind of interesting, and there is the new Zatana ongoing by Paul Dini. Anything else look good to you? Any stand-outs?
Considering it’s the continuation of the storylines from Nova and Guardians of the Galaxy, I say we grab the Thanos Imperitive kick off one shot for sure. And I’d also suggest another crack at the new Vertigo dollar book: iZombie, with art by Mike Allred. But I’m open to negotiations…
I am good with both of those. I do think that Secret Avengers and Birds of Prey are absolute musts … so I am going to add those four to the list right now.
ADD:iZombie #1, $1.00, DC Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
ADD:Birds of Prey #1, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
ADD:The Thanos Imperative: Ignition #1, $3.99, Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
ADD:Secret Avengers #1, $3.99, Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
Obviously, we have room for more….
I’m seriously (SERIOUSLY!) going to toss Galacta, Daughter of Galactus at you. It’s written by Adam Warren, he of Livewires (at Marvel) and Empowered (at Dark Horse). He is crazy and I love him, and it’s a one shot. And I know for a fact that you’re either going to absolutely love the book, or despise it beyond all capable reason – which is going to be fun to see.
I’m also going to toss out Booster Gold #32 at you for two reasons: Keith Giffen and J. M. Dematteis. What say you to that
Well, Galacta was on my initial list at the beginning of this section, so I am down with that. Actually, both suggestions sound good there, so consider them on.
ADD:Booster Gold #32, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
ADD:Galacta: Daughter of Galactus, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
Instead of suggesting another pair of comics, I am going to propose something a little different. One thing I always wanted to incorperate into the list (but never did) was a trade bank. Basically we would set aside a variable amount each month to save for a future graphic novel or collection that looks interesting. For the comic reader on a budget, how else are they going to afford those books with a cover price of $5 and up?
I propose that we institute the Trade Bank with a $2.25 deposit for the September release of Kazu Kibuishi’s Amulet: Book Three.
I agree with this choice. Kazu Kibuishi makes some great comics, and this book should be super awesome. But still we’re a little short. I think I’m going to recommend we try Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine… and the DC Legacies book. Both have the all the Kuberts working on them, which should be nifty.
Seriously one of the most underused creators in comics. No idea if this is by choice or not, but we will do our share here.
ADD:, $2.25 to Trade Bank for Amulet 3: The Cloud Searchers, $10.99, Graphix. Due Out 09/10
And agreed on those two titles as well.
ADD:Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #1, $3.99, Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
ADD:DC Universe Legacies #1, $3.99, Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
Well, with room for 2 more books, how about we go with Zatanna #1 and heck, how about some nostalgia? Spectacular Spider-Girl #1?
These are things that I agree with. Though I almost expect to hate Zatanna with a firey passion. In that I sort of don’t like Paul Dini’s comics. But I’ve subjected you to enough of my things.
ADD:Zatanna #1, $2.99, Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
ADD:Spectacular Spider-Girl #1, $3.99, Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
May List
Demo #4 (of 6), $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 05/05/10
iZombie #1, $1.00, DC Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
Astonishing Spider-Man/Wolverine #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
Spectacular Spider-Girl #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/05/10
Birds of Prey #1, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
Booster Gold #32, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/12/10
Galacta: Daughter of Galactus, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
DC Universe Legacies #1, $3.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
Zatanna #1, $2.99, DC Comics. Due Out 05/19/10
The Thanos Imperative: Ignition #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
Secret Avengers #1, $3.99, Marvel Comics. Due Out 05/26/10
Power Girl #12, $2.99, DC Comics. Due out 05/26/10
Trade Bank Value – $3
Amulet 3: The Cloud Searchers, $10.99, Graphix. Due Out 09/10
The Math
$1.12 (Bank from April) + $40 (May Budget) + $4.30 (Choker #3 return) = $45.42
$45.42 – $39.89 (May issues) – $3.09 (tax) – $2.25 (Trade Bank Deposit) = $0.19 Banked for June
Well then – this was an unexpected column. May looks a heck of a lot different than I was expecting.
Dude, it’s going to be crazy balls awesome. I’m looking forward to all this newness.
Well, the massive cull has resulted in this column being late enough. Let’s dive right into the newness! See you next month.
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