Sunday, November 27, 2011

Monkey Covers

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


Ape and Man are at war on the cover of Planet of the Apes #11 (1975) by Gray Morrow.

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

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Graphic Novels on Amazon this morning. All the previous caveats apply.


1 (-). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6)
2 (+2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
3 (-1). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
4 (+25). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
5 (-2). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 5)
6 (+6). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books (1-5)
7 (-). Dilbert: 2012 Day-to-Day Calendar
8 (-2). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2
9 (-4). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
10 (-). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary
11 (+19). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle edition)
12 (+1). Batman: Noel
13 (-2). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
14 (+1). The Walking Dead, Book 1
15 (+2). The Walking Dead Volume 15 *
16 (-8). Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 2
17 (R). The Walking Dead, Book 7
18 (+8). Batman: The Killing Joke
19 (+5). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
20 (+1). Batman: Year One
21 (-1). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
22 (+1). The Walking Dead, Book 2
23 (-5). Walt Disney's Donald Duck: "Lost in the Andes"
24 (+12). Dork Diaries 1 (Kindle edition)
25 (N). Batman: The Black Mirror *
26 (-7). Habibi
27 (-). Hark! A Vagrant
28 (+4). Dork Diaries Box Set
29 (+5). Ninjago Graphic Novels #1: The Challenge of Samukai
30 (-8). The Adventures of Tintin: Tintin in America / Cigars of the Pharaoh / The Blue Lotus
31 (R). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth (Kindle)
32 (R). The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
33 (-19). Pogo: The Complete Daily & Sunday Comic Strips, Vol. 1: Through the Wild Blue Wonder *
34 (-6). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
35 (-2). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
36 (+8). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
37 (R). The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye
38 (-3). Batman: Arkham City
39 (-2). Big Nate Boredom Buster
40 (-24). Codename: Sailor V, Vol. 2
41 (-). Batman: Hush
42 (-11). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
43 (-18). V for Vendetta
44 (-6). Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 1
45 (R). Castle: Richard Castle's Deadly Storm
46 (-7). The Walking Dead, Book 3
47 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 2: Miles Behind Us
48 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 11: Fear The Hunters
49 (N). Green Lantern: War of the Green Lanterns
50 (N). The Boys Volume 9: The Big Ride


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks


Commentary:

* The Wimpy Kid book 6 is still #1 on the overall chart, and thus easily #1 on the comics chart as well. The Walking Dead Compendium slides up into the #2 slot, but #3-6 are also taken up by Wimpy Kid books. Looks like a Wimpy Kid Christmas is upon us...

* Batman: The Black Mirror is the top debut in the middle of the chart; the only other debuts are new Green Lantern & The Boys volumes, way down at the bottom.

* Dead Watch: Ten Walking Dead collections on the charts this week.

* Despite all of the hubbub, none of the DC exclusive Kindle editions make the top 50 chart (they are being counted as graphic novels; Watchmen, Sandman vol. 1 and Superman Earth One show up waaay down near the bottom of the top 100). Maye that will change after people get Kindle Fires for holiday presents, but for now Amazon is selling more physical DC comics than virtual ones.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving


(Cover to The New Archies #11 [1989] by Henry Scarpelli & Rudy Lapick.)

Don't worry, The Lodges are a part of the 1%; they prepared a second turkey.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

DCnU Capsule Reviews, Week 11

Continuing my capsule reviews of each week's DCnU books, now in their third month:


Batman #3: Thankfully the inappropriately graphic cover does not reflect the contents of the story inside, which continues to be quite good in both art and story. The only Batman comic you need right now. Rating: 3.5 (of 5).

Birds of Prey #3: A lot of pointless action going seemingly nowhere. Swierczynski shows how to write all of the interest out of a book. Rating: 2 (of 5).

Blue Beetle #3: Not really sure how they can call this the 'conclusion,' as the story doesn't end at all. Is that a mechanical gorilla with a big gun on the last page? If so, that's pretty awesome. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Captain Atom #3: So no one in the DCnU has heard of Capt. Atom before? Some pretty art applied to a pointless story. Rating: 2 (of 5).

Catwoman #3: Keeps making a bad comic worse. Ranks down there with the worst of the DCnU, which is annoying because in the case of these creators they are capable of much better. Rating: 1.5 (of 5).

DC Universe Presents #3: Midway through the Deadman story; the plot doesn't grab me much, but I'm enjoying the focus on the metaphysical situation and angst of Boston Brand. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Green Lantern Corps #3: Thankfully lacking in the graphic violence of the first two issues, but on the other hand the big battle between the GLs and the Ring Slayers isn't doing much for me. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Justice League #3: Lee's art seems weaker than usual in many places, possibly the result of the looser rush job? I enjoyed the look at the early days of the DCnU Wonder Woman, and I just noticed that Cyborg's origin is now tied-in to longtime JL foes T.O. Morrow and Prof. Ivo. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Legion of Super-Heroes #3: Portela's art is pleasant to look at, even if he occasionally fails in basic storytelling (e.g. the last page, which I had to read three times before I figured out what was going on). And I still don't care if new readers will be lost, since I'm not one of those. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Nightwing #3: An improvement again. I'm actually engaged with the story now. It would be interesting to see Nightwing stick around in Chicago for a while. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Red Hood and the Outlaws #3: Some innovative layouts from Rocafort are mostly wasted with the story, though the last three pages were actually interesting. Rating: 2 (of 5).

Supergirl #3: Continues to improve as a comic, as Supergirl gets what could be her own Lex Luthor-type enemy. (Is that 'Miss Thorn' as in 'Rose &' ?) Rating: 3 (of 5).

Wonder Woman #3: The big revelation is handled quite well, I think, and makes sense within the story of this version of Wonder Woman. In lesser hands this could have been a train wreck, but Azzarello & Chiang are top-notch. Rating: 3.5 (of 5).


Ratings compared to the second issues: 3 improved; 9 stayed the same; 1 was worse.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Graphic Novels on Amazon this afternoon. All the previous caveats apply.


1 (-). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6)
2 (-). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
3 (+2). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 5)
4 (-1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
5 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
6 (+1). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2
7 (+2). Dilbert: 2012 Day-to-Day Calendar
8 (-). Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 2
9 (+3). Big Nate Out Loud
10 (+6). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary
11 (+2). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
12 (+14). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books (1-5)
13 (-9). Batman: Noel
14 (+22). Pogo: The Complete Daily & Sunday Comic Strips, Vol. 1: Through the Wild Blue Wonder *
15 (+4). The Walking Dead, Book 1
16 (-2). Codename: Sailor V, Vol. 2
17 (-6). The Walking Dead Volume 15 *
18 (N). Walt Disney's Donald Duck: "Lost in the Andes"
19 (-4). Habibi
20 (+1). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
21 (+3). Batman: Year One
22 (R). The Adventures of Tintin: Tintin in America / Cigars of the Pharaoh / The Blue Lotus
23 (+4). The Walking Dead, Book 2
24 (-2). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
25 (-7). V for Vendetta
26 (-9). Batman: The Killing Joke
27 (+15). Hark! A Vagrant
28 (+15). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
29 (+2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
30 (+11). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle edition)
31 (-11). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
32 (+12). Dork Diaries Box Set
33 (+1). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
34 (+14). Ninjago Graphic Novels #1: The Challenge of Samukai
35 (-7). Batman: Arkham City
36 (-4). Dork Diaries 1 (Kindle edition)
37 (-12). Big Nate Boredom Buster
38 (R). Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 1
39 (-1). The Walking Dead, Book 3
40 (-7). Amulet #4: The Last Council
41 (-2). Batman: Hush
42 (-8). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
43 (+2). The Walking Dead, Book 5
44 (-15). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
45 (+4). Batman: The Long Halloween
46 (R). Dork Diaries 3 1/2 (Kindle edition)
47 (R). The Complete Peanuts Boxed Set 1979-1982 (Vol. 15-16)
48 (-18). The Walking Dead Volume 13
49 (-12). The Walking Dead, Vol. 9: Here We Remain
50 (-10). The Walking Dead, Vol. 10: What We Become


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks


Commentary:

* No one can stop The Wimpy Kid! He is #1 on the overall Amazon chart, beating out even Steve Jobs.

* Amazon has Brian Selznick's Wonderstruck at the #2 slot on their graphic novel chart, but I have decided that it is not a graphic novel. I realize that it is a fine line between that and the Wimpy Kid books (and their ilk), and that some people would count both as comics, and others would count neither. But for the purposes of these charts, those are the determinations that I am going with.

* Dead Watch: Just nine Walking Dead titles in the top 50 this week.

* The only debut this week is Walt Disney's Donald Duck: "Lost in the Andes," the first entry in Fantagraphics Complete Carl Barks Library series.

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

DCnU: Making the Cut

Since my comic store (DCBS) has been offering a package deal on all of the DCnU New 52 titles (50% off if you pre-order them all), for the first four months I've gone ahead with the package. The benefit has been that I've been able to sample all of the titles and blog reviews about them. The downside is that many of the comics aren't terribly good.

So enough is enough. Even though DCBS is continuing to offer the package deal for the fifth month, I'm no longer taking it and just selecting the titles I want to continue reading.

The DCnU titles that I will continue to buy and read after issue #4 are:

  • Action Comics
  • All Star Western
  • Animal Man
  • Aquaman
  • Batgirl
  • Batman
  • Batman and Robin
  • Batwoman
  • Blue Beetle
  • DC Universe Presents
  • Demon Knights
  • Flash
  • Frankenstein, Agent of SHADE
  • Fury of Firestorm
  • Green Lantern
  • I, Vampire
  • Justice League
  • Justice League Dark
  • Justice League International
  • Legion Lost
  • Legion of Super-Heroes
  • Mister Terrific
  • O.M.A.C.
  • Static Shock
  • Stormwatch
  • Superboy
  • Supergirl
  • Superman
  • Swamp Thing
  • Teen Titans
  • Wonder Woman

So that's 31 of the 52 books I'll continue for now. Though admittedly some of them are on thin ice, I figure I'll at least wait out the first story arc on them. And of course this isn't a final cut list; if I decide later I want to read something I haven't ordered, I can always pick it up as a digital comic or wait for the trade.

(Another bonus to culling the list is that this is the lowest pre-order total I've placed in nearly three years, and my second lowest since I started using DCBS seven years ago. So thanks DC for making enough mediocre and crappy new comics to save me some $$$ !)

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Monkey Covers

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



Beast Boy goes ape on the cover of Teen Titans #96 (2011) by Nicola Scott & Doug Hazlewood.

(Standard disclaimer about boys who chance into giant gorillas not really being monkeys applies.)

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

DCnU Capsule Reviews, Week 10

Continuing my capsule reviews of each week's DCnU books, now in their third month:


Batgirl #3: I liked the interplay between Batgirl & Nightwing, though I'd like Babs to show a little more confidence, and Dick utters one of the worst lines of the week ("You're alone, Batgirl. You're all alone." Sheesh.) Rating: 3 (of 5).

Batman and Robin #3: Something about this issue finally clicked for me. Even though I have a hard time believe Batman could get hit by a car when crossing the street, the penultimate page immediately following was fantastic. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Batwoman #3: The opening sequence was fantastic, and the rest was pretty darn good too. The story is now reaching the same high standards as the art. This is the best single issue comic I've read this year. Rating: 4.5 (of 5).

Deathstroke #3: On the other hand, Deathstroke continues to be the nadir of the DCnU. The last two pages here are kind of interesting, but the rest is just dumb, hard-to-follow violence. Rating: 1.5 (of 5).

Demon Knights #3: I was kind of grooving on how Cornell gave us a calm-before-the-final-battle-storm here, until the last page beheading. Really DC? Again? It's not even shocking any more. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #3: Ponticelli continues to nail it when drawing the big monster brawls, and Lemire throws in just enough imagination to keep this from being a dumb shoot-'em-up. Rating: 3.5 (of 5).

Green Lantern #3: The flagship continues to be the best of the DCnU Green Lantern titles, even though that's not really saying much. We know Hal's not really dead at the end, but I am interested to see where the story goes next. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Grifter #3: Continues to show off Cafu's knack for drawing big explosive action scenes, but otherwise there's just not much to this. Rating: 2 (of 5).

Legion Lost #3: Except for Timber Wolf, everyone else seems to be just sitting around brooding. The plot could stand to be a bit more clear. Some nice art by Woods in places, but other times he seems lost with the script, trying to make things more dynamic than they are. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Mister Terrific #3: For the first time Gugliotta's art stabilizes and Wallace's story comes into focus. The sequence where Mr. T loses it on Brainstorm was quite visceral and affecting. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Resurrection Man #3: Not really feeling it with this one. It's not really bad, just not really grabbing me. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Suicide Squad #3: I have to admit that Mad Dog was one of the last characters I expected to see in the new DCU. Again an improvement over the previous issue; this finally felt like a Suicide Squad story. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Superboy #3: I'm generally liking the clean art by Silva, even if it is a bit too plastic some of the time. The story needs a bit more connective tissue between scene. And I burst out laughing at the ridiculousness of the last page, but not in a way that I think the creators intended. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).


Ratings compared to the second issues: 4 improved; 5 stayed the same; 4 were worse.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Graphic Novels on Amazon this morning. All the previous caveats apply.


1 (-). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6) *
2 (+1). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
3 (-1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
4 (-). Batman: Noel
5 (+1). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 5)
6 (+5). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
7 (-2). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2
8 (+8). Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 2 *
9 (+11). Dilbert: 2012 Day-to-Day Calendar
10 (-3). The Walking Dead, Book 7
11 (+4). The Walking Dead Volume 15 *
12 (R). Big Nate Out Loud
13 (+5). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
14 (+10). Codename: Sailor V, Vol. 2 *
15 (-6). Habibi
16 (-2). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary
17 (-). Batman: The Killing Joke
18 (+9). V for Vendetta
19 (-). The Walking Dead, Book 1
20 (+1). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
21 (-9). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
22 (+4). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
23 (N). Blabber Blabber Blabber: Volume 1 of Everything
24 (-14). Batman: Year One
25 (R). Big Nate Boredom Buster
26 (R). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books (1-5)
27 (+9). The Walking Dead, Book 2
28 (-20). Batman: Arkham City
29 (-16). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
30 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 13
31 (R). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book
32 R). Dork Diaries 1 (Kindle edition)
33 (-5). Amulet #4: The Last Council
34 (+13). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
35 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 12
36 (N). Pogo: The Complete Daily & Sunday Comic Strips, Vol. 1: Through the Wild Blue Wonder *
37 (+3). The Walking Dead, Vol. 9: Here We Remain
38 (-). The Walking Dead, Book 3
39 (-6). Batman: Hush
40 (+3). The Walking Dead, Vol. 10: What We Become
41 (-10). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle edition)
42 (-20). Hark! A Vagrant
43 (R). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
44 (N). Dork Diaries Box Set
45 (-10). The Walking Dead, Book 5
46 (-1). The Walking Dead Volume 11: Fear The Hunters
47 (N). Highschool of the Dead Color Omnibus *
48 (N). Ninjago Graphic Novels #1: The Challenge of Samukai
49 (+1). Batman: The Long Halloween
50 (-1). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks


Commentary:

* Cabin Fever releases next Tuesday, and maintains its iron grip on the #1 slot on the comics chart and #3 on the overall chart. Further, there are three more Wimpy Kid books in the top ten as well.

* While Batman: Noel hold on to its #4 slot, many other Batman titles see a large decline this week, including the video game tie-in Arkham City.

* Top debut this week is Blabber Blabber Blabber, a Linda Barry collection, followed by the first volume of The Complete Pogo. Down near the bottom of the list we get the debuts of a Highschool of the Dead omnibus and Ninjago, a LEGO toys tie-in.

* Dead Watch: Thirteen Walking Dead collections on the chart this week, but many are different volumes than were on the list last week.

The 99 come to Campus

Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa, creator of the comic book The 99, will be speaking at the Michigan Theatre on December 8 as part of the prestigious Penny Stamps lecture series. Dr. Al-Mutawa and The 99 were also the subject of a recent interesting documentary on PBS.

Monday, November 07, 2011

DCnU Capsule Reviews, Week 9

Continuing my capsule reviews of each week's DCnU books, now in their third month:


Action Comics #3: Clark's dream of Krypton, wonderfully drawn by Gene Ha, is different from other Krypton's we've seen before but still feels right. And we get a good feeling of how young reporter Clark Kent operated. I like everything about this book but the overpricing (which is knocking it down half a grade). Rating: 3.5 (of 5).

Animal Man #3: Nice creepy drawings by Foreman liven up a comic that needs to pick up the pace a bit. It's nice to see a character in a horror story, in this case Ellen Baker, act sensibly, even if it looks like her actions are going to backfire. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Batwing #3: This is totally not the story to tell for a new character's opening story arc. We need to focus on Batwing, not secret super-hero conspiracies of times past. And Oliver's art is too muddled. Rating: 1.5 (of 5).

Detective Comics #3: We all knew that last month's cliffhanger was a fake-out, so its reveal here is no big surprise. This comic feels like it is treading water and drawing things out. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Green Arrow #3: Continues to be completely uninspired; the imminent creative team changes can only help matters. Rating: 2 (of 5).

Hawk & Dove #3: Hawk & Dove (with help from Deadman) fight Condor & Swan. And fight. And fight. And fight. Yawn. Rating: 2 (of 5).

Justice League International #3: Jurgens continues to establish the cast and their personalities during the ongoing action , and I juts really like Lopresti's art. Solid super-hero team book. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Men of War #3: Who are these people? What are they doing? What is going on? Why should I care? This comic lacks in the basics of being a story. Only the back-up feature (nothing great, but drawn well and comprehensible) keeps this book from ratings purgatory. Rating: 1.5 (of 5).

O.M.A.C. #3: Kevin gets arrested as a terrorist and taken to a prison run by a big-brained inmate. It's big and bold and colorful, but doesn't ask you to turn your brain completely off. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Red Lanterns #3: My interest in this book, already weak, wanes even further. This book needs more Dex-Starr to save it. Rating: 1.5 (of 5).

Static Shock #3: I have a hard time placing my finger on exactly why this comic isn't quite hitting the mark for me. I suspect it is due to the lackluster villains, or perhaps that McDaniel's art seems crowded. But my affection for the character will keep me reading for the time being in the hopes that it sorts itself out. Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Stormwatch #3: These are exactly the kinds of threats I expect a team called Stormwatch to be facing. Hopefully we will soon get a 'downtime' issue though so we can spend a little more time with the chracters. Rating: 3 (of 5).

Swamp Thing #3: Snyder's atmospheric script helps paper over any qualms about this re-retcon, but again I'd like to see the story move forward a bit faster. Ibáñez's art pages work seamlessly with Paquette's, so there's no art whiplash due to the partial fill-in (editos take note: this is how to deal with such situations!) Rating: 3 (of 5).


Ratings compared to the second issues: 0 improved; 8 stayed the same; 5 were worse.

Sunday, November 06, 2011

Monkey Covers

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



It goes double for Sam Simeon on the cover of Angel and the Ape #2 (1969) by Bob Oksner.

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

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

Friday, November 04, 2011

Amazon Top 50

Here are the Top 50 Graphic Novels on Amazon this morning. All the previous caveats apply.


1 (-). Cabin Fever (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 6) *
2 (+2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
3 (+2). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
4 (+38). Batman: Noel *
5 (+1). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2
6 (+1). The Ugly Truth (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 5)
7 (-5). The Walking Dead, Book 7
8 (-5). Batman: Arkham City
9 (+8). Habibi
10 (-2). Batman: Year One
11 (+2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
12 (-3). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
13 (-2). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
14 (+7). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary
15 (-3). The Walking Dead Volume 15 *
16 (+25). Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Vol. 2 *
17 (-7). Batman: The Killing Joke
18 (-). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
19 (-4). The Walking Dead, Book 1
20 (+5). Dilbert: 2012 Day-to-Day Calendar
21 (-5). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
22 (-3). Hark! A Vagrant
23 (N). Absolute Sandman Vol. 5 *
24 (R). Codename: Sailor V, Vol. 2 *
25 (N). Flashpoint
26 (-4). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
27 (-7). V for Vendetta
28 (-). Amulet #4: The Last Council
29 (N). Hellboy: House of the Living Dead *
30 (-3). Big Nate: From the Top
31 (-1). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle edition)
32 (+3). Dork Diaries 3 1/2 (Kindle edition)
33 (-19). Batman: Hush
34 (-2). Bloom County: The Complete Library Volume 5
35 (+15). The Walking Dead, Book 5
36 (-10). The Walking Dead, Book 2
37 (R). Watchmen
38 (-5). The Walking Dead, Book 3
39 (R). The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale
40 (+8). The Walking Dead, Vol. 9: Here We Remain
41 (-7). The Adventures of Tintin: Tintin in America / Cigars of the Pharaoh / The Blue Lotus
42 (N). The Adventures of Tintin: Collector's Gift Set
43 (+2). The Walking Dead, Vol. 10: What We Become
44 (R). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
45 (+2). The Walking Dead Volume 11: Fear The Hunters
46 (R). Castle: Richard Castle's Deadly Storm
47 (R). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
48 (-5). The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye
49 (R). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
50 (-26). Batman: The Long Halloween


Items with asterisks (*) are pre-order items.

N = New listing appearing on list for first time
R = Item returning to the list after having been off for 1 or more weeks


Commentary:

* Less than two weeks away from the release of Cabin Fever, and the newest Diary of a Wimpy Kid volume sits comfortably at #3 on the overall chart and safely #1 on the comics chart.

* It's an early Merry Christmas in Gotham as Batman: Noel shoots all the way up into the top five.

* Debuts this week are two big-ticket deluxe items (Sandman and Tintin), plus Flashpoint and Hellboy.

* Dead Watch: Twelve Walking Dead titles on the list this week, some up, some down. The compendium is #151 on the overall list.

Thursday, November 03, 2011

New Library Comics: September 2011

Here's a list of the comics we added to our library collection in September:



Amagi, Seimaru. Remote vols. 1-10 / Los Angeles, CA : Tokyopop, 2004.

Anderson, Brian, 1974- Dog eat Doug : it's a good thing they're cute / Kansas City, MO : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2008.

Annestay, Jean. Der Weg des Königs vols. 1-2 / Text, Jean Annestay ; Zichnung, Jacques Armand, Gilles Mezzomo. Hamburg [Germany] : Verlag Carlsen, c1992-

Archie's Americana. [Volume 1], Best of the 1940s / San Diego, Calif. : IDW ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2011.

Archie's madhouse / San Diego, Calif. : Yoe ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2011.

The Avengers : nights of wundagore. / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, c2001.

Bendis, Brian Michael. Scarlet / New York : Marvel Worldwide, Inc., 2011.

Blackjacked and pistol-whipped : a Crime does not pay primer / Milwaukie, Ore. : Dark Horse Books, 2011.

Breeden, Jennie. The devil's panties v.5 / [Fairfax, Va.] : Silent Devil Inc., 2007-

Brosgol, Vera. Anya's ghost / New York : First Second, 2011.

Brubaker, Ed. Incognito. Bad influences / New York : Marvel Worldwide, Inc., c2011.

Bunn, Cullen. The Tooth / Portland, OR : Oni Press, 2011

Caniff : a visual biography / San Diego : IDW Publishing, c2011

Capp, Al, 1909-1979. Al Capp's Li'l Abner : complete daily & Sunday comics, 1939-1940 / San Diego, CA : IDW Publishing, 2011.

Chantler, Scott. The sign of the black rock / Tonawanda, NY : Kids Can Press, c2011.

Colan, Gene. Tales of the Batman : Gene Colan. Volume 1 / New York : DC Comics, c2011

Comic exposure / [Ann Arbor, Mich.] : Comic Club, University of Michigan, c2007.

Connell, Del. Space Family Robinson archives. Volume 1 / Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2011.

Debeurme, Ludovic. Lucille / Atlanta : Top Shelf Productions, 2011.

DeFalco, Tom. Spider girl presents Fantastic Five / New York : Marvel ; London : Diamond [distributor],. 2006.

Dumontier, Michael. Constructive abandonment / Montréal : Drawn & Quarterly, 2011.

Electric fear. / L.A., CA : 3-D Zone, 1987.

Eliopoulos, Chris. Okie Dokie Donuts : "open for business!" / Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, 2011.

Ennis, Garth. Chronicles of Wormwood / Rantoul, Ill. : Avatar Press, Inc., 2007.

Falk, Lee, 1911-1999. The Phantom, the complete newspaper dailies. Volume Three 1939-1940 / Neshannock, Pa. : Hermes Press, c2011.

Fawkes, Ray. One soul / Portland, OR : Oni Press, Inc., 2011.

Fink, Jessica. Chester 5000-XYV / Marietta, Ga. : Top Shelf ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2010.

Fixman, T. J. Ratchet & Clank / New York : DC Comics, c2011.

Flight v.8 / Orange, CA : Image Comics, c2004-

Flores, Madeleine. The girl and the gorilla / London : Blank Slate, 2011.

Forgotten fantasy, Sunday comics 1900-1915 : visions from Lyonel Feininger, Winsor McCay and many more / Palo Alto, Calif. : Sunday Press Books, c2011.

Fraction, Matt. Casanova. [Vol. 2], Gula / New York, N.Y. : Icon, c2011.

Friesen, Ray. Pirate Penguin vs. Ninja Chicken : troublems with frenemies / Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, 2011.

Gallagher, Fred (Fred M.), 1968- Megatokyo = [Megatōkyō] vols. 1-2 / Milwaukie, OR : Dark Horse Comics, 2004-

Gerber, Steve, 1947-2008. Suburban she-devils / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, c1991.

Gottfredson, Floyd. Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse. Race to Death Valley / Seattle : Fantagraphics Books, c2011-

Grant, Alan, 1949- Batman : the abduction / New York, NY : DC Comics, c1998.

Gray, Justin. Trailblazer / Berkeley, CA : Image Comics, 2011

Hernandez, Jaime. Esperanza : a love and rockets book / Seattle, WA : Fantagraphics Books, 2011

Hernandez, Mario, 1953- Citizen Rex / Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse Books, 2011.

Herriman, George, 1880-1944. Krazy & Ignatz. the "Krazy Kat" dailies / [S.l.] : Pacific Comics Club, c2004.

Holkins, Jerry. Penny arcade. 7, Be good, little puppy / New York : Del Rey : Ballantine, c2011.

Hornschemeier, Paul, 1977- Life with Mr. Dangerous : a cartoon / New York : Villard, c2011.

Into the uncharted realm / Harrisburg, PA : Renaissance Press, [2001]

Izumi, Rei. .Hack // legend of the twilight vols. 1-2 / Los Angeles : Tokyopop, 2003-

Jablonski, Carla. Defiance / New York : First Second, 2011.

Jansson, Tove. Moomin : the complete Tove Jansson comic strip. v. 6 / Montréal : Drawn & Quarterly ; New York : Distributed in the USA by Farrar, Straus and Girioux, c2006-

Jerwa, Brandon. Battlestar Galactica : Pegasus / Runnemede, NJ : Dynamite Entertainment, c2007

Jodorowsky, Alejandro. Bouncer : the one armed gunslinger / Hollywood, CA : Humanoids, 2011.

Jodorowsky, Alejandro. The incal : classic collection / Hollywood, Calif. : Humanoids, c2011.

Jones, R. A. Sinbad no. 1 / Newbury Park, CA : Adventure Comics, 1989-1990.

Katsura, Masakazu. I"s vols. 1-5 / San Francisco, CA : Viz, 2005-

Kelso, Megan, 1968- Queen of the black black / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics Books, c2011

Kindzierski, Lovern. Shame: Conception / Arundel : Renegade Arts Entertainment Ltd., 2011.

Kinutani, Yū, 1962- The ghost in the shell : stand alone complex, section 9 v.1 / New York, N.Y. : Kodansha Comics, 2011-

Kirby, Jack. The Jack Kirby omnibus : starring Green Arrow / New York : DC Comics, 2011-

Konami, Kanata, 1958- Chi's Sweet Home = Chīzu suīto hōmu v.6 / New York : Vertical, 2010-

Kudranski, Szymon. Repulse / Berkeley, CA : Image Comics, 2011

Kuroda, Kenji. Phoenix Wright, ace attorney. Volume 1 / New York : Kodansha Comics, c2011.

Lemire, Jeff. Sweet tooth v.3 : Animal armies / New York : Vertigo/DC Comics, c2010

Macherot, R. (Raymond), 1924- Sybil-Anne vs. Ratticus / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics Books, c2011.

Mackintosh, Ross. Seeds / [Venice, CA] : Com.x, c2011

Maitena, 1962- Women on the edge vols. 1-2 / New York : Riverhead Books, 2004-2005.

MariNaomi. Kiss & tell : a romantic résumé, ages 0 to 22 / New York : Harper Perennial, c2011.

Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Venus 1. / Marvel Enterprises, 2011

Matsuura, Tokihiko. Tuxedo Gin v.1 / San Francisco, CA : Viz, c2003.

Mauldin, Bill, 1921-2003. Willie & Joe : back home / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics Books ; London : Turnaround [distributor], c2011.

McCoy, Glenn. Monkey business : another cartoon collection by the Flying McCoys / Kansas City [Mo.] : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2007.

McKean, Dave. Celluloid : an erotic graphic novel / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics Books, 2011.

McKeever, Sean. Mega Morphs digest / New York : Marvel ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2005.

Millidge, Gary Spencer. Alan Moore : storyteller / New York, N.Y. : Universe, 2011.

Mills, Tarpé. Miss Fury : sensational Sundays 1944-1949 / San Diego, CA : IDW Publishing, c2011.

Milton Caniff's Steve Canyon : the complete series. Volume One / Neshannock, Penn. : Hermes Press, c2011.

Mome 22. Fall 2011. / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics, 2005-

Moore, Alan, 1953- Saga of the Swamp Thing. Book Five / New York : DC Comics, 2009-

Moore, Alan, 1953- The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen : century : 1969 / Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions ; London : Top Shelf, c2011.

Moore, Terry, 1954- Echo v.6 : the last day / Houston, Tex. : Abstract Studio, c2008-

Morgan, Jeffrey, 1954- Dean Motter's Mister X : the brides of Mister X & other stories / Milwaukie, OR : Dark Horse Books, 2011.

Morrison, Grant. Supergods : what masked vigilantes, miraculous mutants, and a sun god from Smallville can teach us about being human / New York : Spiegel & Grau, 2011.

Morrison, Grant. WE3 : the deluxe edition / New York, N.Y. : DC Comics, 2011.

O'Connor, Paul. The three musketeers no. 1 / Newbury Park, CA : Eternity Comics, 1988-

Ōba, Tsugumi. Death note. Black ed. v. 4 / San Francisco : Viz Media, 2010-

Ono, Natsume, 1977- La quinta camera = The fifth room / San Francisco, CA : VIZ Media, [2011]

Pak, Greg. Marvel nemesis. The imperfects / New York : Marvel, c2005

Peyo. The Astrosmurf : a Smurfs graphic novel / New York : Papercutz, c2011.

Pink Psycho. In the end / Los Angeles : TokyoPop, c2008.

Plunkett, Sandy, 1955- The world of a wayward comic book artist : the private sketchbooks of S. Plunkett / Athens, Ohio : Swallow Press, 2010.

Quinaz, Victor. Mr. Murder is dead : a graphic novel / Los Angeles, California : Archaia Entertainment LLC, 2011.

Rabagliati, Michel. Paul à Québec / Montréal : La Pastèque, c2009.

Rall, Ted. America gone wild : cartoons / Kansas City, Mo. : Andrews McMeel, c2006.

Raymond, Alex, 1909-1956. Rip Kirby : the first modern detective complete comic strips v.4: 1954-1956 / San Diego, Calif. : IDW, 2009.

Roman, Dave. Astronaut Academy v.1 : Zero gravity / New York : First Second, 2011-

Roy Rogers : king of the cowboys : collected daily and Sunday newspaper strips / Neshannock, Pa. : Hermes Press, c2011.

Saitō, Chiho, 1967- The world exists for me vols. 1-2 / Hamburg ; Los Angeles : Tokyopop, 2005-

Sakai, Stan. Usagi Yojimbo. [Book 25] : Fox hunt / Milwaukie, OR : Dark Horse Comics, 2011.

Sakamoto, Gajō. Tank Tankuro : prewar works, 1934-1935 / Tokyo : Presspop ; San Francisco, CA : Distributed by Last Gasp, 2011.

Sala, Richard. The hidden / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics ; London : Turnaround [distributor], 2011.

Schulz, Charles M. (Charles Monroe), 1922-2000. The complete Peanuts [v.16] 1981 to 1982 / Seattle, WA : Fantagraphics Books, c2004-

Seliktar, Galit, 1970- Farm 54 / Spain : Ponent Mon, 2011.

Shimura, Takako, 1973- Wandering son / Seattle, Wash. : Fantagraphics ; London : Turnaround [distributor], [2011]

Simon, Joe. Joe Simon : my life in comics. / London : Titan Books, 2011.

Slavin, Bill. Big city Otto 1. Elephants never forget / Toronto : Tonawanda, NY : Kids Can Press, c2011.

Stanley, John, 1914-1993. Little Lulu. [Volume 28], The prize winner and other stories / Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse Books, 2011

Stephens, Jay, 1971- Welcome to-- Oddville!. / Richmond, VA : AdHouse Books, c2011.

Struble, S. Steven. Li'l Depressed Boy. Volume one, "She is staggering" / Berkeley, CA : Image Comics, c2011.

Sumerak, Marc. Ororo : Before the storm / New York : Marvel ; [London : Diamond, distributor], 2005

Takahashi, Rumiko, 1957- Rin-ne v.6 / San Francisco, Calif. : Viz Media, c2009-

Tanaka, Meca. Omukae desu. v.1 / [La Jolla, CA : CMX, c2006]

Tardi, Jacques. Like a sniper lining up his shot / [Seattle, WA] : Fantagraphics Books, 2011, c2010.

Tezuka, Osamu, 1928-1989. Black Jack vols. 14-15 / New York : Vertical, c2008-

Thomas, Cory. Watch your head : a collection / Kansas City, Mo. : Andrews McMeel, c2008.

Time Lincoln 1 : Fate of the Union. / Antarctic Pr, 2011.

The Timejump war. nos. 1-2 / Bethel, CT : Apple Press, 1989-

Tobin, Paul, 1965- Gingerbread girl / Marietta, GA : Top Shelf Productions, 2011

Trillo, Carlos. Borderline. Volume 4 / Runnemede, N.J. : Dynamite Entertainment ; London : Diamond [distributor], c2011.

Trondheim, Lewis. Little nothings v.4 : My shadow in the distance / New York : NBM, 2008-

Van Lente, Fred. Scorpion : poison tomorrow / New York : Marvel, c2005.

Vehlmann, Fabien, 1972- Isle of 100,000 graves / Seattle, WA : Fantagraphics Books, [2011], c2010

Venditti, Robert. The homeland directive / Marietta, Ga. : Top Shelf ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2011

Wallis, Kit. Monster club : collected v. 1 / St. Albans : APComics, 2003-2004.

Walt Disney's comics and stories archives. vol.1. / Los Angeles : Boom! Studios, c2011

Watson, Andi. Paris / San Jose, Calif. : SLG, 2007.

Wheeler, Shannon. Too Much Coffee Man omnibus / Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse Books, 2011.

Wilson, Tom, 1931- Ziggy : hot off the presses / Kansas City [Mo.] : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2009.

Wilson, Tom, 1931- Ziggy / Kansas City, Mo. : Andrews McMeel, c2011.

Wohl, David. Witchblade : deluxe collected edition / Fullerton, CA : Image Comics, c1997.

Woodring, Jim. Congress of the animals / Seattle, WA : Fantagraphics Books, 2011.

Wright, Doug, 1917-1983. Doug Wright's Nipper : from the comic strip "Doug Wright's family", 1965-1966. / Montréal : Drawn & Quarterly, c2011.

Yaginuma, Kō, 1973- Twin spica v. 8 / New York : Vertical, Inc., c2010-

Yang, Gene Luen. Level up / New York : First Second/Roaring Brook Press, 2011.

Z, Christina. Witchblade. Darkness, family ties / Los Angeles, Calif. : Image Comics ; Los Angeles, Calif. : Top Cow Productions, c2001.


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Tuesday, November 01, 2011

Marvel's Continuing Faith in Powers' Shipping

I used to be annoyed at how the shipping dates of issues of Bendis & Oeming's Powers (published via Marvel's imprint for creator-owned titles, Icon) were constantly being pushed back. Now I just find it amusing.

In today's Diamond Shipping Updates, Powers #8 was pushed back to November 23, 2011. It was originally solicited for August 25, 2010, making it more than a year overdue.

Powers #6 shipped on September 29, 2010; Powers #7 shipped on March 2, 2011.

Despite this obviously erratic schedule, according to today's shipping updates Marvel have scheduled Powers #9 for November 30, 2011; Powers #10 for December 14, 2011; and Powers #11 for December 21, 2011.

Now I suppose it is possible that Bendis and Oeming have been stockpiling completed issues of Powers and we will see four issues come out in the span of five weeks. But given the title's past shipping performance, I see very little chance of that actually being the case.

Mind you, I have no problem with Bendis and Oeming taking all the time they want to produce their creator-owned comic; I'm sure their mainstream gigs pay much better. But I find it very funny that Marvel continue to solicit and adjust dates for Powers as if it were actually a monthly comic book.