FCBM2 Update

This is the last day of May, which means the last day of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month.

Except, it isn't!

I'm having too much fun giving away free comics, so I'm going to keep doing it a while longer. How long? I'm not sure...

However, I will not be accepting any new entries; only people who have entered up to now will be elligible.

Also, I'm just about out of the Goon/Star Wars comics, so when those are gone I'll have to give out something else as a bonus book.

FCBM2 Day 31.5

It's still day Thirty-one of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's second selected entry comes from Shawn Kilburn. Shawn listed his five comics as:

1. Inivincible
2. Planetary
3. The Goon
4. From Hell
5. Seaguy

For Shawn I have A Trip to Rundberg, the graphic novel of zombie mayhem by Nate Southard & Shawn Richter.

As a bonus, I'm sending Shawn a Gemstone Halloween ashcan Donald Duck comic, featuring the story "Hobblin' Goblins" by Carl Barks.

Shawn's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
111 free comics sent so far
?? days remaining

New This Week: June 1, 2006

Based on the NCRL list for this week's comics shipping from Diamond, here are a few things to look for at the local comic shop tomorrow:


The Pick of the Week is the collected Shades of Gray Comics & Stories from Century Comics. Shades of Gray was Jimmy "Amelia Rules" Gownley's first comic series. It's a slice-of-life comic about a bunch of young subrban teenagers. Some of the early issues were a bit rough, but it's impressive to see how Gownley grows as an artist and storyteller over the course of the series.

The runner-up Pick of the Week is Matt Fraction and Steve Sanders' Five Fists of Science graphic novel, which I've been waiting for for what seems like forever.


In other comics:

Adhouse have the third issue of Skyscrapers of the Midwest (I should really get around to reading the first two, as several people have told me how good it is...)

AK Entertainment debut their four series about Arab super-heroes: Aya, Jalila, Rakan, and Zein.

Alias have the trade collection of Lullaby: Wisdom Seeker.

Archaia have the third issue of Mouse Guard.

Boom! have a Hero Squared collection (the one-shot plus the mini) and the debut issue of the Hero Squared ongoing; plus the third issue of War of the Worlds: The Second Wave.

Dark Horse have the 10th and final volume of Samurai Executioner.

DC have the third Seven Soldiers collection; the debut of Crisis Aftermath: The Spectre; new issues of 52 (week 4), Action Comics (#839), JLA Classified (#21), and Lucifer (#74); the Sam Loeb tribute issue of Superman/Batman (#26); and the long-awaited Showcase Presents: The Haunted Tank!

D.E. have the 25¢ Battlestar Galactica #0.

Hyperion bring DeMatteis & Ploog's Abadazad back with two volumes, which I think are meant to be heavily illustrated prose, but I've not been quite able to figure them out based on solicitations and whatnot...

IDW collect the recent Jon Sable, Freelance: Bloodtrail mini by Mike Grell; and have the Angel Spotlight: Gunn one-shot.

Image debut Emissary, and have new issues of Age of Bronze (#23) & Gødland (#11).

Marvel have a new digest collection of Sentinel (vol. 3); and new issues of Runaways (#16) & Ultimate Spider-Man (#95).

Oni debut Sam Keith's My Inner Bimbo mini; and have new issues of Local (#5) and Queen & Country (#30).

Seven Seas have the high-concept OGN Aoi House (vol. 1).

Tokyopop have new volumes of Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad (vol. 4) and Bizenghast (vol. 2).

Viper conclude the second Middleman mini (#4).


That's a heck-uv-a-lot of comix--must be the end of the month!

FCBM2 Day 31

It's day Thirty-one of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Brandon Davis-Shannon. Brandon listed his five comics as:

1. Berlin
2. Usagi Yojimbo
3. Finder
4. From Hell
5. Love & Rockets

For Brandon I have the first three issues of Temporary, the strange and odd workplace comic by Damon Hurd & Rick Smith.

And like most of the selected entries, Brandon will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Brandon's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
109 free comics sent so far
?? days remaining

FCBM2 Day 30.5

It's still day Thirty of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's second selected entry comes from Bill LaMonaca. Bill listed his five comics as:

1. Fables
2. Y, the Last Man
3. Planetary
4. Astro City
5. She-Hulk

For Bill I have Gotham Central #6, the first chapter in the great "Half a Life" story by Greg Rucka & Michael Lark.

And like most of the selected entries, Bill will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Bill's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
105 free comics sent so far
1 day remaining?

New Library Comics: Week of May 22, 2006

Here are the comics we got in for our library collection last week:


Berardi, Giancarlo. Marvin : il caso di Marion Colman /Genova : Le Mani, 2003.

Crane, Jordan, 1973- The clouds above /Seattle, WA : Fantagraphics Books, 2005.

Dimona 2 : Israeli comix anthology. /[Tel-Aviv : Dimona Comix Group, 2003]

The Ganzfeld 4 : art his tory? /Corte Madera, CA : Published by Gingko Press in association with PictureBox Inc., 2005.

Goulart, Ron, 1933- The adventurous decade : comic strips in the thirties /Neshannock, Pa. : Hermes Press, c2005.

Griffith, Bill, 1944- Type Z personality /Seattle : Fantagraphics Books, 2006.

Holkins, Jerry. Penny Arcade 1. Attack of the bacon robots! /Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse Books, 2006.

Liew, Sonny, 1974- Malinky robot issue 02 : bicycle /San Jose, CA : SLG Publishing, 2005.

Lutes, Jason. Berlin : city of stones /Montreal, Quebec : Drawn & Quarterly, 2004.

Moore, Alan, 1953- Top 10 : the forty-niners /La Jolla, Calif. : America's Best Comics, c2005.

Pratt, Hugo. CortoMaltese : un'aquila nella giungla /Roma : Lizard, 1997.

Reviati, Davide. Drug lion : i sogni e le stelle / Davide Reviati.Rome : Mare Nero, 2002.

Revolving hammer /Somerville, Mass. : Cyberosia, 2002.

Rius. Las glorias del tal Rius /Mexico, D.F. : Grijalbo : Random House Mondadori, 2005.

Sally, Zak. Recidivist /Minneapolis, MN : La Mano, c2005.

Sim, Dave, 1956- Jaka's story /[Kitchener, Ont.] : Aardvark-Vanaheim, c1986

Sim, Dave. Church and state /[Kitchener, Ont.] : Aardvark-Vanaheim, c1988 v. 2

Sim, Dave. High society /[Kitchener, Ontario] : Aardvark-Vanaheim, c1986

Sim, Dave. Melmoth /[Kitchener, Ont.] : Aardvark-Vanaheim, c1991

Tezuka, Osamu, 1928-1989. Buddha /New York, NY : Vertical, 2003- v.8

Writers on comics scriptwriting 2. /London : Titan, c2004.

FCBM2 Day 30

It's day Thirty of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Andrew Hartsell. Andrew listed his five comics as:

1. Planetary
2. New Avengers
3. Starman
4. Fell
5. She-Hulk

For Andrew I have Ms. Marvel #1, the New Avengers spin-off by Brian Reed, Roberto de la Torre & Jimmy Palmiotti.

And like most of the selected entries, Andrew will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Andrew's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
103 free comics sent so far
1 day remaining?

FCBM2 Day 29.5

It's still day Twenty-nine of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and I'm still giving away free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Jeff Greco. Jeff listed his five comics as:

1. The Sentry
2. Animal Man
3. Transmetropolitan
4. DC: The New Frontier
5. Nextwave

For Jeff I have Justice League Unlimited #8, featuring a story of The Question by Adam Beechen, Carlo Barberi and Walden Wong.

And like most of the selected entries, Jeff will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Jeff's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
101 free comics sent so far
2 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 29

It's day Twenty-nine of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Steven Schiff. Steven listed his five comics as:

1. Iron Man
2. X-O Manowar
3. Spider-Man
4. Xenozoic Tales
5. Robin

For Steven I have Sgt. Rock: The Prophecy #1 by Joe Kubert.

And like most of the selected entries, Steven will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Steven's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
99 free comics sent so far
2 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 28.5

It's still day Twenty-eight of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, so let's give away more free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Corey Chitwood. Corey's five comics are:

1. Kane
2. Bacchus
3. Shade the Changing Man
4. 100%
5. Love & Rockets

For Corey I have Ruule: Kiss and Tell #1 by Jeff Amano & Craig Rousseau.

And like most of the selected entries, Corey will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Corey's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
97 free comics sent so far
3 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 28

It's day Twenty-eight of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Kris Bajtelsmit. Kris's five comics are:

1. Spawn
2. Soulfire
3. Fell
4. The Losers
5. Strangers in Paradise

For Kris I have Sylvia Faust #1 by Jason Henderson & Greg Scott.

And like most of the selected entries, Kris will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Kris's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
95 free comics sent so far
3 days remaining

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover.

They're not monkeys, they're gorillas: Garrison's Gorillas! And they're spreading havoc behind enemy lines on the cover of Garrion's Gorillas #5.

(Standard disclaimer about undercover commandoes not really being monkeys applies.)

Click on the image for a larger version.

FCBM2 Day 27.5

It's still day Twenty-seven of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and I'm still giving away free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Jason Sacks. Jason listed his five comics as:

1. Hard Times
2. Savage Dragon
3. Love & Rockets
4. Rocketo
5. DMZ

For Jason I have the outer space sleezeball detectives The Sleeze Brothers in their 1991 one-shot by John Carnell & Andy Lanning.

And like most of the selected entries, Jason will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Jason's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
93 free comics sent so far
4 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 27

It's day Twenty-seven of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Paul DesCombaz. Paul listed his five comics as:

1. Fables
2. Angry Youth Comix
3. Lucifer
4. Queen and Country
5. Scott Pilgrim

For Paul I have the Negative Burn #41, an issue of the modern classic anthology comic wth work by Edvin Biukovic, Brian Bolland, Darko Macan, John McCrea, Don Simpson, Rob Walton, and many others.

And like most of the selected entries, Paul will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Paul's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Current FCBM Statistics:
62 entries
91 free comics sent so far
4 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 26.5

It's still day Twenty-six of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and I'm still sending out free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Derik A. Badman. Derik listed his five comics as:

1. King Cat Comics
2. Krazy Kat
3. anything by Lewis Trondheim
4. Buddha
5. Cerebus

For Derik I have the anthropomorphic Jazz Age comic BugTown #5 by Steve Lafler.

As a bonus, I'm sending Derik a Gemstone Halloween ashcan Donald Duck comic, featuring the story "Hobblin' Goblins" by Carl Barks. (Just to be a little different, and because I'm starting to run low on the Dark Horse books...)

Derik's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Time is running out, but you can still send in your entry for YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
61 entries
89 free comics sent so far
5 days remaining

Free Monkey Comic Online!

Tim Eldred has placed an entire 12-page story from his Grease Monkey series online: "Art Lovers". Do you like monkeys? Do you like monkeys in comics? Do you like monkeys in comics in space? Then you'll want to read Grease Monkey!

(thanks to Tegan for the link!)

FCBM2 Day 26

It's day Twenty-six of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Franco Ippolito. Franco listed his five comics as:

1. Planetary
2. Global Frequency
3. 100 Bullets
4. X-Factor
5. The Filth

For Franco I have Violent Messiahs #1, a horror-noir vigilante comic by Joshua Dysart & Tone Rodriguez.

And like all the selected entries, Franco will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Franco's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Time is running out, but you can still send in your entry for YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
61 entries
87 free comics sent so far
5 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 25.5

It's still day Twenty-Five of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and I'm still giving away free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from George Torbycz. George listed his five comics as:

1. Scott Pilgrim
2. Lucifer
3. Seven Soldiers
4. Promethius
5. Jonah Hex

For George I have the apocalyptic comic Bone Rest #1-2 by Matteo Casali & Giuseppe Camuncoli.

And like all the selected entries, George will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

George's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Time is running out, but you can still send in your entry for YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
61 entries
85 free comics sent so far
6 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 25

It's day Twenty-Five of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Michael Pellegrino. Michael's five comics are:

1. Doom Patrol
2. The Invisibles
3. Legion of Super-Heroes
4. Superman
5. X-Factor

Michael would appear to be a Grant Morrison fan, so I'll send him Sebastian O #1 by Morrison & Steve Yeowell, as well as DC Comics Presents: Mystery in Space, with an Adam Strange story by Morrison & Jerry Ordway (and a second story by Elliot S! Maggin & J. H. Williams III).

And like all the selected entries, Michael will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Michael's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Time is running out, but you can still send in your entry for YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
61 entries
82 free comics sent so far
6 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 24.5

It's still day Twenty-four of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and we're still giving away free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Kristin Fance. Kristin's five comics are:

1. New Teen Titans
2. Love & Rockets
3. The Authority
4. Club 9
5. Strangers in Paradise

I'll be sending Kristin Little White Mouse: Open Space #1 by Paul Sizer.

And like all the selected entries, Kristin will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Kristin's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Time is running out, but you can still send in your entry for YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
61 entries
79 free comics sent so far
7 days remaining

Yet Another Music Moment: Enter the Haggis

Saw the Toronto-based band Enter the Haggis play at The Ark last night. I'd never even heard of them before, but it was Take-A-Chance Free Music Tuesday (price of admission is a can of food for FoodGatherers) so we took a chance: They were fantabulous! They put on a great, energetic, fan-pleasing show, and they had the musical chops to back it up.

EtH are a celtic-rock band, kind of like Great Big Sea but they rock harder. After the show I dl'd one of their studio albums, Casualties of Retail, from iTunes; it's good, but I think they work better as a live act. They also have sample tracks in MP3 and a couple of live performances in Windows video on their Website.

So if Enter the Haggis comes to your town, it's worth a trip to see 'em.

FCBM2 Day 24

It's day Twenty-four of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Isaac Moylan. Isaac's five comics are:

1. Maus
2. Shaolin Cowboy
3. Palestine
4. Tales Designed to Thrizzle
5. Cerebus

I'll be sending Isaac Cud #7 with the twisted humor of Terry LaBan.

And like all the selected entries, Isaac will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Isaac's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

Time is running out, but you can still send in your entry for YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
61 entries
77 free comics sent so far
7 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 23.5

It's still day Twenty-three of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and I'm giving away more free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Matt Golec. Matt's five comics are:

1. Love & Rockets
2. Hellboy
3. Astro City
4. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
5. Top Ten

I'll be sending Matt WildCATs #21 by Alan Moore, Travis Charest & Troy Hubbs. That's right: Alan Moore writing WildCATs.

And like all the selected entries, Matt will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Matt's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
60 entries
75 free comics sent so far
8 days remaining

New This Week: May 24, 2006

Based on the NCRL list for this week's comics shipping from Diamond, here are a few things to look for at the local comic shop tomorrow:


The Pick of the Week is Moonstone's Buckaroo Bonzai #1, bringing one of my favorite films ever to the comic page. Please please please please let it be good...


In other comics:

A-V/Win-Mill have a new Following Cerebus (#8).

Abstract have a new Strangers in Paradise (#82).

AD Vision have a new volume of Cromartie High School (v. 6).

Antarctic habe a new issue of Ninja High School (#138), the debut of the Gold Digger: Throne of Shadows mini, and a new Gold Digger Pocket Manga (v. 8).

Dark Horse have a collection of Concrete: Think Like a Mountain. This is the one where Concrete gets involved with an eco-terrorist group; I recall at the time that, while it was as well done as all Concrete series are, I wasn't sure if I liked it or not. I think it bears re-reading...

DC have the second post-re-reboot collection for Legion of Super-Heroes; the debut of Gail Simone's Secret Six mini; and new issues of 52 (week 3), American Way (#4), Birds of Prey (#94), Blue Beetle (#3), Catwoman (#55), Checkmate (#2), Hawkgirl (#52), Hellblazer (#220), JSA Classified (#12), Supergirl & the Legion (#18), and Testament (#6).

Fantagraphics have a new issue of The Comics Journal (#276).

IDW have the third bout of Spike vs. Dracula.

Lobrau have the second issue of Toupydoops.

Marvel collect the Black Widow: The Things They Say About Her mini; and have new issues of Avengers & Power Pack (#2), Daredevil (#85), Nextwave (#5), Powers (#18), She-Hulk 2 (#8), Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane (#6), Squadron Supreme (#3), X-Factor (#7), and X-Statix Presents Dead Girl (#5).

Oni have the third Scott Pilgrim volume: Scott Pilgrim and the Infintie Sadness.

Thrud being Thrud the Barbarian to American shores.

Viper debut their Vilains mini.


Lots of stuff this week. Enjoy your new comics!

FCBM2 Day 23

It's day Twenty-three of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from BW Costello. BW's five comics are:

1. Top Ten
2. Palookaville
3. Runaways
4. Seven Soldiers
5. She-Hulk

I'll be sending BW Gravity #1, with fun super-hero action by Sean McKeever & Mike Norton.

And like all the selected entries, BW will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

BW's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
59 entries
73 free comics sent so far
8 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 22.5

It's still day Twenty-two of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, and even though the Boomtown Rats don't like Mondays, we do. So let's give away more free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Zoe Holmes. Zoe's five comics are:

1. Hard Times
2. Rocketo
3. Y, the Last Man
4. Legion of Super-Heroes
5. Daredevil

So I'll be sending Zoe the future-noir comics Ferro City #1-2 by Jason Armstrong.

And like all the selected entries, Zoe will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Zoe's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
58 entries
71 free comics sent so far
9 days remaining

New Library Comics: Week of May 15, 2006

Here are the comics we got in for our library collection last week:


Attitude : the new subversive political cartoonists /New York : Nantier, Beall, Minoustchine, c2002.

Eisner, Will. The last knight : an introduction to Don Quixote by Miquel de Cervantes /New York : Nantier, Beall, Minoustchine Pub., c2000.

Giardino. Jonas Fink : l'Adolescenza /Roma : Lizard, 2001.

Giardino. Jonas Fink : l'Infanzia /Roma : Lizard, 1999.

Gross, Milt, 1895-1953. He done her wrong : the great American novel /Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics Books, c2005.

Herge, 1907-1983. Le crabe aux pinces d'or /Tournai : Casterman, c1981.

Kim, Sanho. Sword's edge, Part One, The sword and the maiden /[Southfield, Mich.] : Iron Horse Pub. Co., [c1973]

McGreal, Pat. Chiaroscuro : the private lives of Leonardo da Vinci /New York, NY : DC Comics, c2005.

Tyler, Carol. Late bloomer /Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics, 2005.

Vollmar, Rob. Bluesman : a twelve bar graphic narrative in the key of life and death /Lincoln, CA : Absence of Ink Comic Press, 2004- v.2

Wagner, Matt. Grendel : black, white & red /[Milwaukie, OR : Dark Horse Comics, 2000]

Waller, Reed. The complete "Omaha" the cat dancer /New York : Amerotica, 2005. v.2



The very interesting thing this week is Sword's edge, a translated Korean manwha that was published way back in 1973 (just down the road from here in Southfield). I had no idea that any manwha was being translated over here back then!

FCBM2 Day 22

It's day Twenty-two of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Pat Stromberg. Pat's five comics are:

1. Invincible
2. All Star Superman
3. Powers
4. Astonishing X-Men
5. Amelia Rules

As a fan of quality super-hero books and Amelia Rules, I suspect that Pat will also enjoy Electric Girl #3 by Michael Brennan.

And like all the selected entries, Pat will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Pat's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
58 entries
68 free comics sent so far
9 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 21

It's day Twenty-one of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Chadwick Seagraves. Chadwick's five comics are:

1. X-Men
2. Sandman
3. Jonah Hex
4. G.I. Joe
5. The Books of Magic

For Chadwick I have the comic that's also today's Monkey Cover: The Planet of the Apes meets Alien Nation comic Ape Nation #1 by Charles Marshall, M.C. Wyman & Terry Pallot.

And like all the selected entries, Chadwick will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Chadwick's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
56 entries
66 free comics sent so far
10 days remaining

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover.

Take one part Planet of the Apes, one part Alien Nation; mix them together, and you get Ape Nation #1, with a cover by Dave Dorman.

(Standard disclaimer about apes not really being monkeys applies.)

Click on the image for a larger version.


Don't forget, Free Comic Book Month 2 is going on. There's still time to enter, but time is running short...

FCBM2 Day 20.5

It's still day Twenty of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, but I want to give away more comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Taper Wickel. Taper's five comics are:

1. X-Factor
2. Gold Digger
3. Negima
4. Yotsuba&!
5. Transmetropolitan

As a fan of manga and future sci-fi comics, Taper should like Battle Angel Alita #1 by Yukito Kishiro.

And like all the selected entries, Taper will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Taper's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
56 entries
64 free comics sent so far
11 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 20

It's day Twenty of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Dan McLaney. Dan's five comics are:

1. The Red Star
2. Sandman
3. The Invisibles
4. Fables
5. Promethea

For Dan's free comic I've decided to go with Starchild: Mythopolis #0 by James A. Owen.

And like all the selected entries, Dan will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Dan's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
55 entries
62 free comics sent so far
11 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 19

It's day Nineteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Seamus Gentz. Seamus's five comics are:

1. Fables
2. Bone
3. Runaways
4. Birds of Prey
5. Starman

As a fan of both Fables & Bone, I think that Seamus will like Rose #1 by Jeff Smith & Charles Vess.

And like all the selected entries, Seamus will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Seamus's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
55 entries
60 free comics sent so far
12 days remaining

Aquaman Trailer

The CW passed on the Aquaman pilot, but for the time being you can see the trailer for the series at ...

(EDIT: That link no longer works; but here it is on YouTube: http://youtube.com/watch?v=pv7YlUiI1-w - thanks Tegan)

(Edit 2: Now the YouTube version is gone too. It appears that Warner is cracking down...)

I have to admit I'm surprised that it didn't get picked up, although it looks like it may have been too expensive for the netlet. Still, it's got a built-in excuse for having a hunky guy with his short off all the time, which one would think would make it a hit with the network's target audience...

(link via TV Squad)

Free Scott Pilgrim

Newsarama have the entire Free Scott Pilgrim story from Oni's FCBD offering free online. FSP was one fo the best FCBD offerings this year, as it offered up a story that was a great taste of what the Scott Pilgrim OGNs are like, and was a story that wasn't essential but could be enjoyed by those who are already fans of the series. So go read it already!

FCBM2 Day 18

It's day Eighteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Kristin Munson. Kristin's five comics are:

1. Kabuki
2. StrangeHaven
3. Love & Rockets
4. Jon Sable: Freelance
5. Top Ten

For Kristin, I have The Moth #3 by Steve Rude and Gary Martin.

And like all the selected entries, Kristin will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Kristin's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
54 entries
58 free comics sent so far
13 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 17.5

It's still day Seventeen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, but I feel like giving away more comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Cynthia Chen. Cynthia's says that she likes:

1. Sandman
2. Planetary
3. Fables
4. "Other non-super-hero stuff with good writing"

For Cynthia I have the non-super-hero Strange Girl #1-3 by Rick Remender & Eric Nguyen.

And like all the selected entries, Cynthia will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Cynthia's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
54 entries
56 free comics sent so far
14 days remaining

Quick Boom! Reviews

War of the Worlds: Second Wave #2
by Michael Alan Nelson & Chee

The biggest surprise here is the lack of color; while the first issue was in color on glossy paper like the rest of Boom's offerings, this is in black & white on regualr paper. Not that I mind black and white, but the art looks as though it was originally planned to be in color. I understand that Boom! probably cannot afford to put out a full color glossy book for $3, but I think the extra dollar would be worth it. Anyway, in all other aspects this is an improvement on the first issue. As the second wave of the alien invasion begins, Miles' story of survival is juxtaposed with events from his past, specifically therapy session when he was having sleep and marital difficulties. The characters in the book show varying degrees of being both shell-shocked and blase; they recently lived through this before, and expect any day now for the invaders to once again fall victim to germs. Chee's art also shows some improvement, This comic continues to show promise. (Too bad about the boring cover though...)

Rating: 3 (of 5)



Jeremiah Harm #3
by Keith Giffen, Alan Grant, Rael Lyra & Joe Prado

Two of the alien fugitives continue their search for whatever it is they're searching for, while a third goes on a violent killing spree and Harm attempts to stop her. If senseless, wanton violence is your thing, then you might enjoy this. Me? I'm getting more and more bored with each passing issue.

Rating: 2 (of 5)



Talent #1
by Christopher Golden, Tom Sniegoski, & Paul Azaceta

As the lone survivor of doomed flight 654, Nick Dane has a lot to answer for: he appears to have memories, including skill memories, of the other passengers; the government thinks that he was invovled in causing the crash; and a secret organization thinks that he's somehow involved in their shadowy agenda. This is a good first issue, setting up the premise quickly and drawing the reader into Dane's new situation. He's something of a cipher at this point, but with all of the other passengers' memories imposing on him that may be intentional. Azaceta's art is good, and will appear to fans of Michael Lark.

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)



Cthulhu Tales #1
by many hands

With Cthulhu Tales Boom! have taken the anthology formula that has served them well with their Zombie Tales and applied it to the Lovecraft Mythos. And seeing as I'm much more predisposed to the Mythos than to zombies, it was an easy sell for me. The stories here range from the very traditional (Michael Alan Nelson & Andrew Ritchie's "The Beach") to the very much not (Casey Grey & Mark Badger's "Cthulhu Calls"). My favorite of the lot was John Rogers & Andy Kuhn's "Quality Time", a non-traditional tale that yet still rings authentic in the morally ambiguous way of the best Mythos tales. If you have any affinity for the tales of Lovecraft or his followers you'll no doubt appreciate this anthology.

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)



(Review copies of the above comics were provided by the publisher.)

FCBM2 Day 17

It's day Seventeen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Christopher Coffey. Christopher's five comics are:

1. BPRD
2. Usagi Yojimbo
3. All Star Superman
4. Corto Maltese
5. Tintin

Another wild spread, but I think that Christopher will enjoy Dungeon #6 by Joann Shar & Lewis Trondheim.

And like all the selected entries, Christopher will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Christopher's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
54 entries
52 free comics sent so far
14 days remaining

New This Week: May 17, 2006

Based on the NCRL list for this week's comics shipping from Diamond, here are a few things to look for at the local comic shop tomorrow:


The Pick of the Week is the new Fantagraphics hardcover collection of Linda Medley's Castle Waiting. I know what you're thinking: $30 is a lot of money. But dude, it's over 450 pages of quality comics entertainment. In a handsome hardcover. Do yourself a favor and get this chunk of sequential goodness.


In other comics:

Amaze Ink/Slave Labor debut their latest Disney offering: Wonderland, with art by the wonderful Sonny Liew.

Boom! Studios debut what may be their best book yet: Talent.

Dark Horse have a new issue of Conan (#28), plus the third Conan collection in hardcover.

DC have a new Y, the Last Man collection (vol. 7); the debut of Bill Willingham's Shadowpact; and new issues of 100 Bullets (#72), 52 (week 2), All Star Batman and Robin, the Boy Wonder (#4), Bite Club: VCU (#2), DMZ (#7), Majestic (#17--the final issue, I think), and Manhunter (#22).

Dork Storm have a new issue of Dork Tower (#33).

IDW have a new issue of Fallen Angel (#5).

Image Comics have a new issue of Fell (#5), and the conclusion of Bomb Queen (#4).

Marvel debut Richard Corben's Haunt of Horror: Edgar Allan Poe and Jeff Parker's Marvel Adventures Avengers; new issues of Captain America (#18) and Ultimate X-Men (#70); and have a new Captain America hardcover collection.

Seven Seas have the third volume of Amazing Agent Luna.


That just about does it. Not a huge week, so you should really consider Castle Waiting...

FCBM2 Day 16.5

It's still day Sixteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, but I feel like giving away more comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Steve Wilcox. Steve's five comics are:

1. Daredevil
2. Captain America
3. Planetary
4. Invincible
5. 100 Bullets

For Steve I have the urban crime noir comic Cloudfall #1 by Robert Kirkman & E.J. Su.

And like all the selected entries, Steve will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Steve's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
54 entries
50 free comics sent so far
15 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 16

It's day Sixteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Matt Bromley. Matt's five comics are:

1. The Walking Dead
2. The Goon
3. We3
4. All Star Superman
5. Planetary

For Matt I have Boom! Studio's Zombie-licious anthology Zombie Tales: The Dead #1.

And like all the selected entries, Matt will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Matt's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
53 entries
48 free comics sent so far
15 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 15.5

It's still day Fifteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month, but since it's also Miracle Monday, let's give away more free comics!

Today's second selected entry comes from Chris Galdieri. Chris's five comics are:

1. All Star Superman
2. Hero Squared
3. Ex Machina
4. Astro City
5. Legion of Super-Heroes

As a fan of non-conventional super-hero comics, Chris may like Common Grounds #1 by Troy Hickman, Dan Jurgens, Al Vey, & Michael Avon Oeming. And in honor of Miracle Monday, I'm sending Chris Action Comics #584, the first post-Crisis John Byrne issue, teaming up Superman with The Teen Titans.

And like all the selected entries, Chris will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Chris's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
53 entries
46 free comics sent so far
16 days remaining

Free Superman Cartoons!

Celebrate Miracle Monday by watching some of the best super-hero cartoons ever, the Max Fleischer Superman cartoons from the early 1940s. They're free on archive.org!

Miracle Monday!

Shortly before four in the afternoon on the third Monday in the month of May, the people of the city of Metropolis learned the meaning of joy. They had no explanation for this feeling, and there were gaps in their knowledge of what had gone on in their lives so far that day. It was as though they were all waking up, or at least opening their eyes, for the first time in an awfully long time. The first thing many of them saw was the red-and-blue figure of Superman drawing a line across their sky, and he became the symbol of their joy. It felt like a miracle, though none could say why.

Today is the third Monday in May, known to all true blue Superman fans as Miracle Monday. It comes from the novel Miracle Monday by Elliot S! Maggin, from which the above passage is taken. I won't spoil it for you, you'll just have to read it for yourself.

Elliot S! Maggin's two Superman novels, Last Son of Krypton & Miracle Monday, are two of the best straightforward super-hero prose novels ever written. The novels came out in conjunction with the first two Superman movies back in the late 70s/early 80s, but they are not adaptations of the movies. Instead, Maggin told sweeping original stories of the pre-Crisis Superman. Probably the best part of the novels is Maggin's Lex Luthor, one of the only characterizations of the pre-Crisis bad guy that ever provided motivations that made sense to me.

The novels are long out of print, but you can read them both online at Superman Through the Ages.

New Library Comics: Week of May 8, 2006

Here are the comics we got in for our library collection last week:


Baker, Kyle. Kyle Baker, cartoonist. Volume two, Now with more Bakers. /New York : Kyle Baker Publishing, c2005.

Moore, Alan, 1953- Absolute Watchmen /New York : DC Comics, c2005.

O'Barr, J. The Crow /New York : Pocket Books, 2002, c1995.

Ren shi Taiwan li shi = A history of Taiwan in comics /Taibai shi : Xin zi ran zhu yi gu fen you xian gong si, 2004. v. 1-10.

Suzuki, Koji, 1957- The ring 0 : birthday /Milwaukie, OR : Dark Horse Manga, 2005, c2000.

FCBM2 Day 15

It's day Fifteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Nevin Steindam. Nevin's five comics are:

1. Desolation Jones
2. The Goon
3. She-Hulk
4. Seven Soldiers
5. Skyscrapers of the Midwest

For his free comic, I'm sending Nevin Scud: The Disposable Assassin #10 by Rob Schrab; I think that the violent humor will appeal to the Goon fan in him.

And like all the selected entries, Michael will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Nevin's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
53 entries
43 free comics sent so far
16 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 14

It's day Fourteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Michael Podgorski. Michael's five comics are:

1. Amazing Spider-Man
2. The Thing
3. Batman
4. Aquaman
5. Donald Duck

It's Sunday, so Michael would seem to be the perfect candidate to get the comic that was this week's monkey cover: Go-Go Gorilla and the Jungle Crew Summer Fun Special by Mike Hall, Dustin Evans, and David Hedgecock.

And like all the selected entries, Michael will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Michael's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
52 entries
41 free comics sent so far
17 days remaining

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover.

Today's cover is Go-Go Gorilla and the Jungle Crew Summer Fun Special by Jack Lawrence. Go-Go Gorilla is of course the leader of the Jungle Crew, the team of super-powered animals that protects Jungle City. Only in comics, my friends!

(Standard disclaimer about gorillas not really being monkeys applies.)

Click on the image for a larger version.


Don't forget, Free Comic Book Month 2 is going on, and there's still plenty of time to enter!

FCBM2 Day 13

It's day Thirteen of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Ted Houseman. Ted's five comics are:

1. Planetary
2. Hellboy
3. The Ultimates
4. Age of Bronze
5. The Authority

Ted would appear to be a fan of monsters & widescreen comics, so I'm sending him Giant Monster #1-2 by Steve Niles & Nat Jones.

And like all the selected entries, Ted will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Ted's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
52 entries
39 free comics sent so far
18 days remaining

Comics 2.0 - Some Thoughts

At some point this might turn into a manifesto; or a rant; or, God help us, a movement. But for right now, these are some random thoughts I'm having on what I'm calling--for the time being--Comics 2.0.

My thinking stems out of a workshop I recently attended: Library Camp. It was a loosely structured workshop about Library 2.0, a small movement within libraries building on the whole Web 2.0 thing.

Prior to participating in the workshop, I had always thought of Library 2.0 as being a group of buzzwords about technology and libraries: blogs, wikis, RSS, etc. But what I've come to discover is that Library 2.0 is more than that. It is about using technology as an enabling device to empower patrons in becoming participants in the library and its services.

So what is Comics 2.0? For an initial definition, I'd like to say that it is using network technology to start to break down the barriers between creators and readers. It's changing the one-way membrane that has been tradition comics production and soliciting not only feedback, but participation from readers.

Comics 2.0 encourages readers to become creators themselves. Comics have for many years had a low cost of entry; witness the large numbers of small- and self-publishers (successful and not) in each edition of Previews. But with the Interweb, the barrier to publishing becomes even lower. For that matter, so does the cost of producing a comic.

Webcomics then are an instance of Comics 2.0, especially those Webcomics with reader forums and the like.

Big publishers can play the Comics 2.0 game too. It's not about putting up a Website; DC's new 52 mini-site is not Comics 2.0. However, Marvel's wiki-like Marvel Universe encyclopedia, where readers are encouraged to create and edit entries, probably is.

Fan fiction probably works into Comics 2.0 somehow. It's always been discouraged by publishers, but why not encourage it in some way? There are plenty of C-list characters going unused, so why not invite readers to toy with them, perhaps even gathering the best together and publishing them.

Comics 2.0 does involves giving up a certain amount of control, which can be a scary thing for a creator or a publisher. But there are potential rewards too, as a readership that is more engaged is more loyal.

As I said, these are just some initial thoughts, and not terribly well-formed thoughts at that. But I'm hoping to get a conversation going here in the comics blogosphere--a rather Comics 2.0 thing, don't you think?

Enough of me carrying on--what do you think?

FCBM2 Day 12

It's day Twelve of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Robert Loy. Robert says that his tastes are eclectic, and gives the following as his five comics:

1. The Silver Surfer ("the real Silver Surfer, the Jesus on a flying surfboard that Stan and Jack created")
2. Maison Ikkoku
3. Anything by Alan Moore
4. Concrete
5. She-Hulk

With a spread like that, you'd think I might be stumped. Think Again! I'll be sending Robert Tales of the Beanworld #5 by Larry Marder, which truly is "a most peculiar comic book experience."

And like all the selected entries, Robert will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Robert's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
51 entries
36 free comics sent so far
19 days remaining

FCBM2 Day 11

It's day Eleven of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Jeanne Pauline Lim. Jeanne, who says that she heard about this contest from her boyfriend, lists five comics she likes as:

1. Wonder Woman (post-Crisis)
2. Birds of Prey
3. Girls
4. PS238
5. Runaways

I'll be sending Jeanne a couple of comics that I think she'll enjoy: Amelia Rules #1 by Jimmy Gownley; and Misplaced #1 by Joshua Blaylock.

And like all the selected entries, Jeanne will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion Flip Book.

Jeanne's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
49 entries
34 free comics sent so far
20 days remaining

YACB Bulletins

ITEM! Remember: Comic creators read blogs too...

ITEM! Infinite Crisis in 30 Seconds. (via Johanna)

ITEM! Jim Woodring is blogging. Prepare now for your dose of surrealist comics wonderment. (via Heidi)

ITEM! PW Comics Week reports that Jill Thompson has signed a four-GN deal with HarperCollins. Thompson is very talented IMHO--I've enjoyed just about everything of hers that I've read--but she's always been underappreciated in the direct market (despite having won an Eisner). Hopefully HP will give her the exposure she deserves.

ITEM! More FCBM2 linkage, this time from Vincent & Shane. Thanks!

ITEM! Vincent also points out that this coming Monday--the third Monday in May--is Miracle Monday. I'll have to think of a good way to celebrate...

FCBM2 Day 10

It's day Ten of the second annual YACB Free Comic Book Month!

Today's selected entry comes from Al White. Al says that he's "fairly old school" and that the comics that he keeps an interest in are:

1. Avengers
2. Iron Man
3. Teen Titans
4. Legion of Super-Heroes

Al Says that he's looking forward to reading something new, so I'm sending him Spider-Man/Human Torch #1, with and old school meets new story by Dan Slott, Ty Templeton and Nelson.

And like all the selected entries, Al will be receiving a special Dark Horse promo-priced comic, in this case The Goon 25¢ Edition by Eric Powell.

Al's comics should be in the mail soon. Enjoy!

There's still time to send in your entry for the YACB Free Comic Book Month; details are here.

Current FCBM Statistics:
49 entries
31 free comics sent so far
21 days remaining

New This Week: May 10, 2006

Based on the NCRL list for this week's comics shipping from Diamond, here are a few things to look for at the local comic shop tomorrow:


Holy Bejeezes, there's a lot of good stuff coming out this week. There are lots of things I could pick for Pick of the Week, but I'm going with Crisis on Multiple Earths vol. 4, with JLA/JSA team-ups co-starring Captain Marvel and the rest of the Earth-S heroes; The Legion of Super-Heroes (battling Mordru!); and the Earth-Prime versions of Elliot S! Maggin, Cary Bates, and Julius Schwartz. It's super-meta-fiction at its finest!


Amaze Ink have a Patty Cake & Friends collection.

Antarctic have the 8th Ninja High School Pocket Manga.

Arcana debut Koni Waves.

Avatar debut Warren Ellis's Wolfskin.

Boom! Studios have a Cthulhu Tales anthology.

Dark Horse have the 11th volume of What's Michael.

DC begin their year-long weekly path to insanity with 52 Week 1. There are also collections for The Authority: The Magnificent Kevin & Superman/Shazam: First Thunder; and new issues of Ex Machina (#20), Fables (#49), Firestorm (#25), Jonah Hex (#7), and Superman (#652). You are reading Superman & Action, right? They get my vote for most improved 1YL titles.

DR Masters have a new volume of Iron Wok Jan (vol. 18).

First Second debut their line of high-class European imports with several volumes all at once; I haven't read any of them, and they all look potentially good, but Trondheim's Alieeen looks to be the most promising.

Graphix bring out the first volume of Raina Telgemeier's Baby-Sitters Club manga-esque GN.

IDW have one-shots for Angel (Spotlight: Illyria) and Spike (Lost and Found).

Image have the second Girls collection.

Marvel have collections for Ultimate Spider-Man (vol. 15: Silver Sable) and the Morrison/Millar/Yeowell Skrull Kill Krew; plus new issues of She-Hulk 2 (#7) and Thunderbolts (#102).

Oni have the first issue of Neal Shafer & Joe Infurnari's Borrowed Time.

Viz give you another dose of Takahashi with Ranma 1/2 vol. 34.

W.W. Norton have a collection of the long out-of-print Kings in Disguise.


So look out for your wallet when you wander into your FLCS on Wednesday (and maybe they'll have some leftover FCBD books to take away soem of the sting!)