DCnU Reviews, Week 1: Batgirl, Batwing, Detective Comics

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Batgirl #1
by Gail Simone, Adrian Syaf & Vincente Cifuentes

Original Rank/Assessment: 7 (Yes, with Reservations) - Yes, I wish she were still Oracle as much as the rest of you. But I will read a Gail Simone Batgirl comic staring Barbara Gordon.

Of all of the New 52 comics, this is the one that has received the most pre-publication scrutiny, with disfavor coming from fans of both the former Batgirl Stephanie Brown (or even Cassandra Cain) and of Barbara Gordon's previous incarnation as Oracle. I doubt that either of those contingents will be mollified here, as both the previous Batgirls and Gordon's Oracle career appear to have been erased in the reboot timeline squeeze. What we are left with is a comic that tries to accomplish a lot: setting of Barbara's new status quo, explaining her back story & her miraculous healing, setting up a new threat in the villain Mirror, and including plenty of action. It makes for a very cramped twenty pages, with density often appearing where clarity instead is called for. But we'll see where it goes from here.

Rating: 3 (of 5).

Batwing #1
by Judd Winick & Ben Oliver

Original Rank/Assessment: 25 (Maybe/Provisional) - 'The Batman of Africa' could be a good concept, but I'm not sure that Winick is the best choice for it.

Though previously introduced a few months ago in Batman Inc.,  Batwing is essentially a brand new character, one of the few headlining a title in the New 52. As such, Winick doesn't need to worry about cuing us in on what is and isn't continuity and can get right into introducing Batwing and his world. And it's a dangerous one, in which insurgents and revolutionaries and military dictatorships battle with little regard to the civilians caught in the crossfire. It could make for some interesting stories. But I'm unhappy with the level of graphic violence displayed in the ending, which smacks of the worst excesses of the recent DCU (i.e. beheadings and swords through the chest, with plenty of blood on display). Oliver's art is a pseudo photo-realistic style that is in vogue with many, but sacrifices storytelling clarity. I want this book to be better.

Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

Detective Comics #1
by Tony S. Daniel & Ryan Winn

Original Rank/Assessment: 34 (Maybe/Provisional) - I've been floating along with Daniel's work on Batman, but this may be a good place to drop off.

I suppose that the DCnU could have gone in a different direction with The Joker; there have been so many different interpretations over the years and this would have been the perfect excuse to try something different and unexpected. Instead, this is the same old Joker as maniacal serial killer that has been on display for the past couple of decades. A shame really, because it is getting quite old. Artwise, Daniel seems to kick it up a notch: his action scenes are mostly followable and he mixes up large and small panels to effectively control the pacing. It's better than I thought it would be, and I'll admit that the shocking ending, while unnecessarily gory, has me curious as to what will happen next. So mission accomplished, but this title is on very thin ice with me.

Rating: 3 (of 5).

DCnU Reviews, Week 1: Animal Man; Swamp Thing

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Animal Man #1
by Jeff Lemire, Travel Foreman & Dan Green

Original Rank/Assessment: 8 (Yes, with Reservations) - Every Animal Man take since Morrison's has disappointed, but I have hopes for Jeff Lemire giving it a shot.

See, now this is how you re-establish a long-running character in a new issue. Lemire doesn't completely ignore all the past iterations of Animal Man, but efficiently cues us in on what parts of Buddy Baker's past he deems important, while getting us comfortable with the character's current status quo and setting up the future conflicts. Fans of the previous Vertigo-esque versions of Animal Man will be fine, even though the spandex is back; while his recent outer space adventures are mentioned in passing but can likely be safely ignored. Some may not find Foreman & Green's art to their liking, but I find the loose and thin-lined art to be fitting. Also, note how Foreman uses negative space and the lack thereof to reflecy the different facets of Buddy's life: his scenes at home are open, while as a super-hero the panels are more crowded, and the bits in the dreamscape are mushed together and off-kilter. Then there is Lovern Kindzierski's colors, with a subtle blue & yellow palate that echo Animal Man's traditional costume colors. This is an Animal Man comic I want to read.

Rating: 3.5 (of 5).

Swamp Thing #1
by Scott Snyder & Yanick Paquette

Original Rank/Assessment:  18 (Yes, with Reservations) - Not completely sold on the reboot premise, but I like the creative team.

Just in case you missed it at the end of Brightest Day or in the 3-issue BD Aftermath, Swamp Thing and Alec Holland are now separated, and this is bad for the green. Snyder & Paquette spend most of this first issue setting this all up once again, though thankfully they are more efficient at it than the dragged-out Aftermath. This will have to be considered a work-in-progress until we see what they do with Swamp Thing now that the preliminaries are out of the way. I'm still optimistic, though still cautiously as well.

Rating: 3 (of 5).

DCnU Reviews, Week 1: Hawk & Dove; Static Shock

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Hawk & Dove #1
by Sterling Gates & Rob Liefeld

Original Rank/Assessment: 20 (Maybe/Provisional) - It'll be a race to see whether this or Batman: The Dark Knight is the first DCnU title to fall behind.

Of all the the DCnU titles, this one perhaps raised the most eyebrows when first announced. Writer Sterling Gates (of Morning Glories Supergirl fame) teaming up with critical punching bag Rob Liefeld, on Liefeld's return to the characters that marked his entry into comics way back in 1988. And it is pretty much what one would expect. All of Liefeld's artistic sensibilities are on display, from posing action shots to interesting anatomical choices. You know by now if you like it or not (and there is a non-trivial segment of the comics buying population that likes it quite a lot). Gates's story does the job, opening with an action set piece, then moving into exposition and adding in a couple of mysteries. Basically, this is exactly the comic it set out to be, and that you were probably expecting.

Rating: 2.5 (of 5)

Static Shock #1
by John Rozum, Scott McDaniel, Jonathan Glapion & Le Beau Underwood

Original Rank/Assessment: 9 (Yes, with Reservations) - One of my favorite Milestone characters. I wish Rozum were still doing Xombi, but hey, I'll take what I can get.

Along with Xombi & Icon, Static was one of my favorite of the old Milestone line. Now he is lightly integrated into the new DCU; so lightly in fact that this could easily follow right on the old Static series with no trouble at all. Virgil "Static" Hawkins has relocated to NYC with his family, and with funding/support from Hardware is continuing his super-hero ways. I'm not a fan of Static's new costume, but other than that the art is vibrant and alive in the way that you want for a comic about an electricity-based super. Let's just hope that the last-page 'shocker' is simply a ruse, because otherwise that's one aspect of the old DCU sensibility-of-late that I don't want to see in the new DC, especially Static.

Rating: 3 (of 5).

DCnU Reviews, Week 1: Men of War; O.M.A.C.; Stormwatch

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Men of War #1
by Ivan Brandon & Tom Derenick; Jonathan Vankin & Phil Winslade

Original Rank/Assessment:  39 (Probably Not) - I think I'd rather see this as a straight war comic without the super-hero-y stuff.

I'm not much of a fan of war comics; if it's not written by Garth Ennis or drawn by Joe Kubert (or features a Haunted Tank or a G.I. Robot) it doesn't hold much appeal to me. And true to form this didn't hold much appeal to me. The grandson of the classic WWII character Sgt. Rock argues with superiors and leads an ill-fated combat mission against an unknown meta-human. The story in the back-up, featuring Navy Seals, is even less inspired, though I really like the style of art that Winslade is using. It's all competently done, and I'm glad that a comic like this has a place in the New 52, but it's really just not for me.

Rating: 2.5 (of 5).

O.M.A.C. #1
by Dan Didio, Keith Giffen & Scott Koblish

Original Rank/Assessment:  27 (Maybe/Provisional) - Giffen co-writing and drawing bumps a concept I normally wouldn't care about up into the provisional category.

This was a nice surprise. A comic like this rises and falls on the execution, and Didio & Giffen pull it off nicely. On paper I shouldn't like this much; it's just a big rampage by a mostly-mindless hulk-like O.M.A.C., but Didio & Giffen effectively use the action to introduce us to all of the central concepts in the series. Giffen adds just enough Kirbyness to his art to give it an extra dose of vitality, and the colors by Hi-Fi really pop. It remains to be seen how the concept will work as an ongoing series, but for a first issue it sets the tables nicely and has me wanting more.

Rating: 3.5 (of 5).

Stormwatch #1
by Paul Cornell & Miguel Spulveda

Original Rank/Assessment:  21 (Maybe/Provisional) - Cornell has yet to let me down, but I really don't see this Wildstorm concept fitting in to the DCnU, and Martian Manhunter seems like a really odd fit.

I really need to have more faith in Cornell; I didn't think the concept would work, but he pulls it off. We learn that Stormwatch is a secret society, protecting Earth from all sorts of unseen enemies over the centuries. And in this setting,  the Martian Manhunter fits in perfectly. We only get to briefly know each of the characters, but it works as an introductory issue. It also looks like the menaces they face will be sufficiently big and out-there to warrant the group's existence. I'm in.

Rating: 3.5 (of 5).

DCnU Reviews, Week 1: Green Arrow; Justice League International

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Green Arrow #1
by J.T. Krul, Dan Jurgens & George Pérez

Original Rank/Assessment: 51 (Definitely No) - One of my least favorite writers on a character I could care less about.

I'm not much of a Green Arrow fan. I'll read the comic if there's a creator working on it that I like, but that's as far as my affection for the character goes. I've also never cared much for J.T. Krul's writing, and this comic didn't do anything to change my mind. Our DCnU Green Arrow Oliver Queen is still in his early wealthy stage, in charge of Queen Industries though having to answer to a hostile board. He's moonlighting as a super-hero with a bow. He fights a group of one-dimensional villains for some reason. A different group of interchangeable bad guys shows up at the end. It's all very rote and by-the-numbers. On the plus side, the art by Jurgens & Pérez is highly competent and nice to look at; it carries the story well, what little there is of it. But nice art isn't enough to save this from being dull.

Rating: 2 (of 5).

Justice League International #1
by Dan Jurgens, Aaron Lopresti & Matt Ryan

Original Rank/Assessment: 6 (Definitely Yes) - A return to my second-favorite JL era, with Aaron Lopresti on art, makes for a winning combination.


This one was a relative disappointment, but mainly because I had had what in hindsight appear to have been unreasonably high hopes. Jurgens handles the story competently, introducing us to the various characters, though frustratingly leaving much of their new backstory vague. This is a team thrown together by politics, so we get a bit of workplace friction and can likely expect more. (I like how Batman just joins the team on his own, without being asked.) I'd like to see a bit more humor from a comic with this book's pedigree though. Lopresti's art and storytelling are in fine form, and the coloring is appropriately bright. I'd like to see a bit more humor from a comic with this book's pedigree though. In all, this is a solid super-hero team book; it just needs an extra something to make it stand out from the pack.


Rating: 3 (of 5).

DCnU Reviews, Week 1: Action Comics

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Action Comics #1
by Grant Morrison, Rags Morales & Rick Bryant

Original Rank/Assessment: 1 (Definitely Yes) - They had me at Grant Morrison + Superman.

Of all of the New 52 relaunch titles, this is the one which had me the most excited. Grant Morrison's All-Star Superman (with Frank Quitely) is in my opinion the best super-hero comic of the past twenty years. So Morrison's new take on Superman has a lot to live up to. Thankfully, it mostly does.

It is tempting to compare Action to All-Star; where the later presented a Superman at the end of his career, Action starts the story in Superman's early days. All-Star was an ode to the silver-age Superman, while Action draws upon Superman's earliest golden-age adventures for inspiration. But I think that such comparisons at this point are a bit premature; All-Star is a completed work, while Action is just the first issue in what is meant to be the foundation of a new mythology for the Man of Steel.

True to its name, Action Comics has plenty of action. A young Clark Kent is new to Metropolis, and is committed to fighting injustice, both as a would-be hero-of-the-people and as a crusading reporter for the Daily Star. We get introduced to Kent, as well as his best friend Jimmy Olsen and Olsen's boss Lois Lane, both of whom work at the rival Daily Planet. We also get a glimpse of Lex Luthor, who is working with a homeland security-type organization to try to bring the brash young hero down.

What we don't get is an origin story. In All-Star, Morrison covered the well-known origin of Superman in just one page. In Action, he dispenses with it entirely. This is good. If any super-hero's origin is well-known, it is Superman's. Instead we are thrown right into the action, drawn with dynamism by Morales, in an escapade that could have come right out of one of Superman's earliest stories by Siegel and Shuster in the original Action Comics.

In fact, keep your copy of the first volume of The Superman Chronicles handy, as there are and I presume will continue to be many allusions and call-backs to those formative stories of the late 1930s. Those were the days when this country was straining to climb out of the great depression, and there was still great mistrust in politicians, corporations, bankers, etc. Not a completely analogous situation to today's America, but not far off either. And thus we get a Superman for our times, a crusader who stands for truth and justice. Every generation gets the Superman it needs; and Morrison is giving us ours.

Rating: 4 (of 5).

Library of the Living Dead!

The Miller Library at McPherson College made a comic book to teach incoming students how to use the library. It has zombies. You can download it at http://blogs.mcpherson.edu/library/zombie-guide-to-the-library/

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 (+4). Sailor Moon 1 *
3 (-1). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
4 (R). Castle: Richard Castle's Deadly Storm *
5 (+8). Codename: Sailor V 1 *
6 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
7 (N). Ender's Game: Formic Wars: Burning Earth *
8 (-5). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
9 (-5). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
10 (+1). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
11 (+1). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
12 (-5). Amulet #4: The Last Council
13 (-3). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
14 (+2). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
15 (-1). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
16 (-7). Watchmen
17 (N). Feynman
18 (-). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
19 (-11). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
20 (-3). Batman: Year One
21 (-6). V for Vendetta
22 (+12). Naruto, Vol. 52: Cell Seven Reunion
23 (+6). The Walking Dead, Book 7 *
24 (-4). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 *
25 (-6). Batman: The Killing Joke
26 (+1). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
27 (-4). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
28 (N). Black Bird, Vol. 10
29 (N). Locke & Key Volume 4: Keys to the Kingdom HC
30 (+11). Big Nate Out Loud
31 (-6). Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 8: Last Gleaming
32 (+3). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary *
33 (-7). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
34 (+5). Sailor Moon 2 *
35 (-5). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
36 (-15). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
37 (+9). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
38 (N). Finder Volume 4: Prisoner in the View Finder
39 (-15). The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale
40 (-12). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
41 (N). Brightest Day Vol. 3 *
42 (+2). Batman: Hush
43 (-12). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books
44 (-1). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
45 (-3). Hark! A Vagrant *
46 (+4). The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes
47 (R). We3 Deluxe Edition
48 (N). Detective Comics (2011) #1
49 (N). No Such Thing as Ghosts (Dragonbreath)
50 (-18). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle)



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:

* Just one week until the new editions of Sailor Moon hit stores, and they sit at #2 and #5 on the chart. Will next week see a dethroning of the Wimpy Kid?

* Marvel's Castle OGN wasn't on the chart at all last week, and this week hops back on all the way up at #4. I smell a mainstream media mention sometime in the past couple of days...

* Marvel also have the top debut this week, a hardcover collection of one of their Ender's Game series. This may be the first time that Marvel have had two top ten books (and note that neither is one of their super-hero properties...)

* Amazon finally decide that Feynman is indeed a comic, so this week it 'debuts' at #17. Other debuts include new volumes of Black Bird; Locke & Key; Finder (the Yaoi, not the CSM comic); Brightest Day; and Dragonbreath.

* Yes, that's Detective Comics #1, one of the New 52 comics from DC, peeking in near the bottom of the list. No, Amazon is not selling individual comics themselves, but enough people bought this from third-party sellers on Amazon or it to make the list. Interesting, and indicating that maybe this one was under-ordered by comic shops.

New Library Comics: July 2011

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


Abrams, Lamar. Remake special / Richmond, Va. : AdHouse Books, 2011

Airfighters. no. 1 / Calumet City, Ill. : Moonstone, 2010-

Amend, Bill. Math, science, and UNIX underpants : a themed FoxTrot collection / Kansas City : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2009.

Archi & BD : la ville dessinée / Blou : Monografik éditions ; [Paris] : Cité de l'architecture & du patrimoine, [2010]

Archie : a celebration of America's favorite teenagers / San Diego, Calif. : Yoe Books : IDW Pub., c2011.

Armstrong, Jason. Ferro city nos. 1-4 / Berkeley, Calif. : Image, 2005-

Bagge, Peter. Bat Boy : the complete Weekly World News comic strips / San Diego, CA : Idea & Design Works, c2011.

Black Goliath. v.1 no.3 / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics Group, 1976

Black panther (New York, N.Y.) Black panther. v.1 no.6 / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, 1977-

Blechman, R. O. (Robert O.), 1930- The juggler of Our Lady : a medieval legend / New York : Holt, [1953]

Boer, Florian. De Urbanisten and the wondrous water square / Rotterdam : 010 Publishers, 2010.

The brave and the bold. nos. 97, 103 / Sparta, Ill. : National Comics Publications, 1955-1983.

Broome, John, 1913-1999. Showcase presents the Elongated Man. Volume one / New York : DC Comics, c2006

Byrne, John, 1950- Torch of liberty special / Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse Comics, 1995

Campbell, Ross, 1979- Shadoweyes v. 2 : Shadoweyes in love / San Jose, Calif. : SLG ; London : Diamond [distributor], c2010-

Capp, Al, 1909-1979. Al Capp's Shmoo : the complete newspaper strips / Milwaukie, OR : Dark Horse Comics, 2011.

Carlson, Bryce. WALL-E. Out there / Los Angeles, CA : Boom Kids!, 2010.

Carrillo, Tony. F minus / Kansas City [Mo.] : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2007

Casey, Joe. Marijuanaman / Berkeley, CA : Image Comics, 2011.

Chaykin, Howard V. Batman Catwoman. Follow the money. / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2011

Claremont, Chris, 1950- X-treme X-men vol. 6. Intifada / New York : Marvel Comics, c2001-

Claremont, Chris, 1950- X-treme X-men vol. 7. Storm : the arena / New York : Marvel Comics, c2001-

Claremont, Chris, 1950- X-treme X-men vol. 8. Prisoner of fire / New York : Marvel Comics, c2001-

Costa, Mike. Resistance / La Jolla, CA : Wildstorm, c2010

Dark Horse presents (2011) Dark Horse presents. no.1 / Milwaukie, Or. : Dark Horse Comics, Inc

DeFilippis, Nunzio. New X-Men, Academy X. Choosing sides / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, c2004.

DeMatteis, J. M. Green Lantern : Willworld / New York : DC Comics, c2011

Diantantu, Serge, 1962- Mémoire de l'esclavage : Bulambemba / Lamentin : Caraïbéditions, c2010

Drake, Arnold. Showcase presents The Doom patrol. Volume one / New York : DC Comics, c2009.

Dunn, Joe. Sarah Palin versus the world / San Antonio : Antarctic Press, 2011

Endore-Kaiser, Guy. Brevity 4 : another collection of fine comics hand selected by Guy & Rodd. / Kansas City, MO : Andrews McMeel Pub., LLC, 2009

Ennis, Garth. Thor : Vikings / New York : Marvel, c2004

Feiffer, Jules. Sick, sick, sick. / New York : McGraw-Hill, [1958]

Feiffer, Jules. The unexpurgated memoirs of Bernard Mergendeiler / New York : Random House, c1965

Feist, Raymond E. Magician apprentice. v. 1 / New York, N.Y. : Marvel ; [London : Diamond, distributor], 2007.

The Flash. no. 206 / New York, N.Y. : National Comics Publications, 1959-1985

Flash Gordon the movie / Racine, Wisconsin : Western, 1980

Fox, Gardner F. (Gardner Francis), 1911-1986. Showcase presents Adam Strange. Volume one. / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2007.

Gately, George. Heathcliff spins a yarn / New York : Tempo Books, 1983

Gorden, Greg. Torg nos. 1-4 / Westlake Village, CA : Adventure Comics, 1992-

.hack//link vols. 1-3 / Los Angeles : TokyoPop, c2010-

Hamazaki, Tatsuya. .hack//G.U.+ v. 5 / Los Angeles, Calif. : Tokyopop, 2008-

Hilburn, Scott. The argyle sweater : a cartoon collection / Kansas City, MO : Andrews McMeel Pub., c2009

Himekawa, Akira. The legend of Zelda vols. 1-10 / San Francisco : VIZ Media, 2008-

Howard the duck (New York, N.Y. : 2002) Howard the duck. nos. 1-6 / New York, NY : Marvel Comics, 2002

Howard, Jason. Sea bear and grizzly shark / Berkeley, CA : Image Comics, 2010

Hutchison, David, 1974- Mischief & Mayhem : field trip to Heck / San Antonio, Tex. : Antarctic Press, 2006

The indomitable Iron Man. / New York : Marvel Comics, p2010.

Jacobs, Jesse. Even the Giants / Richmond, Va. : Adhouse Books, 2011, c2010

Jones-Quartey, Ian. RPG world. Volume 1. Unlikely hero out for adventure / Temple City, Calif. : Keensport Entertainment, 2004.

Jones, Bruce, 1944- Hulk/Wolverine : six hours / New York : Marvel Comics, 2003.

Kanigher, Robert. Showcase presents Enemy Ace. Volume one / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2008

Kanigher, Robert. Showcase presents Metal Men. Volume one. / New York : DC Comics, c2007

Kanigher, Robert. Showcase presents the haunted tank vols. 1-2 / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2006-

Kanigher, Robert. Showcase presents Wonder Woman vols. 1-2 / New York : DC Comics, c2007-

Kawaguchi, Kaiji. Eagle, the making of an Asian-American president vols. 1-22 / San Francisco, CA : Viz Communications, c2000-

Keeler, Greg. Poetryman : five poems / Bozeman, Mont. : Bozarts Press, c1988

Kelly, Joe. Deadpool in Mission : Improbable / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, 1998.

Kleid, Neil. Ursa minors! no. 1 / San Jose, CA : Slave Labor Graphics, c2006-

Kliban, B. Cat (kat), n. ... / New York : Workman Pub. Co., 1975.

Kliban, B. Whack your porcupine, and other drawings / New York : Workman Pub. Co., 1977.

Kovalic, John. Dork Covenant / Madison, Wis. : Dork Storm Press, 2001

L33T : comics for gamers. no. 1 / Temple City, CA : Keenspot Entertainment, 2002-

The legend of Isis / La Mesa, CA : Alias Enterprises, 2005-

Leong, Sonia. Once upon a time- / [Cambridge] : Sweatdrop Studios, 2009, c2008.

Licensable Bear TM. nos. 1-4 / Thousand Oaks, CA : About Comics, c2003-

Loeb, Jeph. Hulk Vol. 6 World War Hulks / New York : Marvel, 2009-

Mami, Itou. Street fighter gaiden. Volume 1 / Thornhill, Ont. : Udon ; London : Diamond [distributor], 2010

Mariotte, Jeff. Desperadoes : banners of gold / San Diego, Calif. : IDW, 2005

Mariotte, Jeff. Desperadoes : epidemic! / La Jolla, CA : Homage Comics, 1999

Martin, Ted. Pavlov / New York, N.Y. : T. Doherty Associates, 1988, c1982.

Marz, Ron. Witchblade. [Vol. 10], Witch hunt / Orange, Calif. : Image Comics, 2006

Merritt, Cliff. Cliff Merritt's man on the move! / New York : Popular Library, c1973.

Metal Men. Metal Men v.14 no.50 / Sparta, Ill. : National Periodical Publications, 1963-1978

Miers, Doug. Criss cross. #1 / [S.l.] : Arcana Studio, 2005.

Mighty Thor (New York, N.Y. : 1966) The mighty Thor. v.1 no.246 / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, 1966-1996

Monstrosity. no. 1 / Damascus, MD : Slap Happy Comics, 1998

More teen power / New York : Pyramid Books, 1970

Morgan, Melanie J. Betty & Veronica double digest. Volume 151 / Manaroneck, NY : Archie Comic Publications, Inc., 2007.

Mullaney, Dean, 1954- Genius, isolated : the life and art of Alex Toth / San Diego, Calif. : IDW, 2011

Mychaels, Marat. Demonslayer / Sunnyside, NY : Avatar Press, 2002

The mystic hands of Doctor Strange / New York : Marvel Worldwide, 2010.

Nakahira, Masahiko. Street fighter alpha. 1 / Richmond Hill, Ont. : Udon, c2007.

Ogino, Shin. Mega Man ZX. Vols 1-2 / Richmond Hill, Ont. : Udon, c2010.

Ordway, Jerry. The messenger / Orange, Ca. : Image Comics, c2000

Ōsaki, Mitsuru. Onimusha : night of genesis. vols. 1-2 / Richmond Hill, Ont. : UDON Entertainment Corp., 2006.

Pak, Greg. The Incredible Hulk. [Vol. 3], World War Hulks / New York, NY : Marvel Worldwide, c2011

Palmiotti, Jimmy. Prototype / La Jolla, Calif. : Wildstorm, 2010

Perry, Fred, 1969- Maidens of Twilight nos. 1-4 / San Antonio, Tex. : Antarctic, 2009.

Peters, Mike. Grimmy, best in show / New York : Tor, 1990, c1989.

Peynet, Raymond, 1908- The lover's bedside book / New York : Grosset & Dunlap, c1964

Peynet, Raymond, 1908- The lover's weekend book / New York : Grosset & Dunlap, c1964

Peynet, Raymond, 1908- The lovers' keepsake / New York : Grosset & Dunlap, c1964.

Pfeifer, Will. Vertigo resurrected. Finals. / New York, NY : DC Comics, 2011.

Raicht, Mike. The stuff of legend v.1 The Dark bk.1 / [S.l.] : Th3rd World Studios, 2009-

Redfern, Christine, 1966- Qui est Ana Mendieta? / Montréal : Éditions du Remue-ménage, c2011

Reed, Brian, 1973- Halo : fall of reach. Boot camp / New York : Marvel Worldwide, Inc., 2011

Reklaw, Jesse, 1971- Dreamtoons / Boston : Shambhala, c2000.

Riley, John. Lost stories nos. 1-7 / Williston Park, NY : Creative Frontiers, 1997

Ryan, Johnny. Take a Joke / Seattle, WA : Fantagraphics Books, 2011

Savic, Boris. Bānimon Bk. 1. The prisoner of Tesla Mountain / Arlington, MA : Rocket North, c2007-2010

Schmidt, J. Marc. The Sixsmiths / San Jose, CA : SLG Pub., c2010.

Scooby-Doo. vol. 2 : Ruh-Roh! / New York, N.Y. : DC Comics, c2003.

Searle, Ronald, 1920- Hurrah for St. Trinian's and other lapses / London : MacDonald, 1948

Searle, Ronald, 1920- Ronald Searle's non-sexist dictionary. /London : Souvenir, 1988.

Sez who?!. v.1 no.2 / Bristol, R.I. : Dark Dimensions Publications

Sfar, Joann. Dungeon. Monstres, v. 4. Night of the ladykiller / New York : NBM, c2006-<2007>

Showcase presents Aquaman vols. 1-2 / New York : DC Comics, c2007-

Showcase presents Batman vols. 1-3 / New York : DC Comics, c2006-

Showcase presents Green Lantern. vols. 1-3 / New York : DC Comics, c2005-

Showcase presents Robin the boy wonder. Volume one. / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2008

Showcase presents Teen titans. vols. 1-2 / New York : DC Comics, c2006-

Showcase presents The Atom. Volume one. / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2007.

Showcase presents the Flash. vols. 1-2 / New York : DC Comics, c2007-

Showcase presents The house of mystery. vols. 1-2 / New York : DC Comics, c2006-

Showcase presents the house of secrets. Volume one / New York, N.Y. : DC Comics, c2008.

Showcase presents The phantom stranger vols. 1-2 / New York : DC Comics, c2006-

Showcase presents The Unknown soldier. Volume one / New York, NY : DC Comics, c2006.

Simon, Joe. Fighting American / London : Titan Books, c2011.

Solin, Gary. Mute point / Garden City, N.Y. : Doubleday, 1970.

Stein, Leslie, 1982- Eye of the majestic creature. / Seattle : Fantagraphics Books, 2011

Straczynski, J. Michael, 1954- Dream police / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics, 2005

Sumimaru, Koichi. .hack//4koma + joke champion / Los Angeles : Tokyopop, 2010

Tarzan (New York, N.Y. : 1977) Tarzan. v.1 no.2 / New York, N.Y. : Marvel Comics Group, 1977-1979

Tedesco, Ralph. Salem's daughter. Vol. 1 / Horsham, Pa. : Zenescope Entertainment, 2011

Vinicoff, Eric. Spinworld nos. 1-4 / San Jose, CA : Amaze Ink, c1997-1998.

Vip, 1916-1984. Crazy cartoons : 200 triple-x charges of high-explosive humor! / Greenwich, Conn. : Fawcett, c1956.

Waid, Mark, 1962- City of heroes / Los Angeles, CA : NCSoft : Cryptic Studios, 2005.

Waid, Mark, 1962- City of heroes nos. 1-3 / Berkeley, CA : Image Comics, 2005

Waid, Mark, 1962- The unknown. [Vol. 2], The devil made flesh / Los Angeles : Boom! Studios, 2011

Walt Disney Productions presents The Black hole. / New York : Random House, c1979

Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse : 300 Mickeys / Los Angeles, CA : Boom Kids!, 2011

Warlands vols. 1-3 / Orange, CA : Image Comics, 2001-

West, James V. PAN-GEA : one-shot / San Diego, CA : Ape Entertainment, c2005

Winshluss, 1970- Pinocchio / San Francisco : Last Gasp of San Francisco 2011, c2010

Wood, Brian, 1972- Northlanders vol. 4. Plague widow / New York : DC Comics/Vertigo, c2008-

Yuki, Kaori.  Tenshi kinryō-ku vols. 1-15 / Tōkyō : Hakusensha, 1995-2001


 As always, this listing is available as an RSS Feed.

Monkey Covers

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

FX fights a giant gorilla in his very first issue, as seen on the cover of FX #1 (2008) by John Byrne.

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

DCnU Reviews, Week 0: Justice League

Back in June when the new DCU titles (aka DCnU) were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. As it turns out, my comic shop was offering a deal such that if I pre-orderd all 52 #1's, they'd be 50% off. So, I pre-ordered them all. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out, starting with:

Justice League #1
by Geoff Johns, Jim Lee & Scott Williams

Original rank/assessment: 5 (Definitely Yes). I've bought every regular JL comic since the 80s, and this big-guns approach with Johns & Lee looks to be what I'm after in a JL comic.

As it turns out, not exactly what I'm looking for after all. We're getting an original story of the new Justice League, set five years in the past. Which is fine as far as it goes, but it is starting off much too slowly. The only way we know that Flash, Aquaman and Wonder Woman will be on the team is that they appear on the cover. It's mostly a Batman and Green Lantern team-up, with the heroes first fighting, then teaming-up, while posturing as to who is tougher/more qualified. Superman zips in for a last-page reveal, and Cyborg is seen only as a pre-transformation Vic Stone. (Which would imply that Cyborg's origin story will now be tied to the Justice League, rather than to the Teen Titans...) I keep thinking that opening with a multi-part flashback origin story was perhaps not the smartest move for the DCnU's flagship title. Instead, why not have the present day team fighting a global menace, like the Justice League is supposed to do? You can always flash back to the original later. It was a perfectly fine comic, about the base level that you would expect from Johns and Lee; but I was hoping for more bang from my four bucks.

Rating: 3 (of 5).

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 (-). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
3 (-). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
4 (+2). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
5 (+2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
6 (+9). Sailor Moon 1 *
7 (+3). Amulet #4: The Last Council
8 (-4). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
9 (+7). Watchmen
10 (+4). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
11 (-2). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
12 (-4). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
13 (+8). Codename: Sailor V 1 *
14 (-3). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
15 (-3). V for Vendetta
16 (-3). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
17 (-). Batman: Year One
18 (-). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
19 (-). Batman: The Killing Joke
20 (+13). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 *
21 (+10). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
22 (-2). The Complete Peanuts Boxed Set 1979-1982 (Vol. 15-16)
23 (+5). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
24 (+20). The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale
25 (+7). Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 8: Last Gleaming
26 (+4). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
27 (-2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
28 (-2). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
29 (-6). The Walking Dead, Book 7 *
30 (-3). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
31 (R). Diary of a Wimpy Kid Box of Books
32 (+6). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle)
33 (+16). Garfield Lard of the Jungle: His 52nd Book *
34 (N). Naruto, Vol. 52: Cell Seven Reunion *
35 (+1). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary *
36 (+7). Batman: The Long Halloween
37 (-8). The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume III: Century #2 1969
38 (-16). We3 Deluxe Edition
39 (N). Sailor Moon 2 *
40 (N). Batman: Earth One *
41 (-1). Big Nate Out Loud
42 (-37). Hark! A Vagrant *
43 (R). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
44 (+4). Batman: Hush
45 (N). DC Comics: The New 52 *
46 (-22). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
47 (N). Bleach, Vol. 36 *
48 (N). Serenity Volume 2: Better Days and Other Stories *
49 (N). Codename: Sailor V 2 *
50 (-15). The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes



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:

* It's a good week to be Sailor Moon. The first volume breaks into the top ten, while Sailor V vol. 1 rises to #13. Meanwhile, the second volumes of each series—not due out until November—enter the chart at #39 & #49.

* Last week, Kate Beaton's Hark! A Vagrant leaped up into the top 5; this week is plummets all the way to #42. Obviously there was some mainstream press notice that hit at just the right time last week to give it a big bump on Friday morning.

* All of this week's debuts are down in the bottom half. Along with the two Sailor Moon properties, there are the latest volumes of Naruto and Bleach; Batman: Earth One and DC Comics: The New 52; and a new hardcover edition of Serenity: Better Days, which appears to be adding a couple of the one-shots to the mini-series.

* Pal JimO dropped me a note last week pointing out that First-Second's graphic novels are not categorized as Comics & Graphic Novels by Amazon. So for example while his and Leland Myrick's Feynman is selling quite well, it doesn't show up on Amazon's Comics rankings. Just another reminder to not read too much into these rankings.

Success Metrics for the new DCU

Tomorrow the era of the new DC Universe (DCnU) begins with the release of Justice League #1. The "New 52" (as DC are calling it) represents a bold and, as DC have more-or-less admitted, somewhat desperate publishing strategy: 52 new (or new-ish) monthly titles starting with #1 issues, available day-and-date as print and digital versions. They are hoping to attract new readers to DC Comics, or at least capture back a good number of lapsed readers. So how might the success of the DCnU be judged? Here are some possibilities:

(Note that I am considering success from the publisher's perspective in this post. For we readers, success will and should be determined by quality of the comics themselves.)

Profit. Actually, the chance of making a profit from the venture is slim at best. But that's okay, as profit isn't the main motivator for DC anyway. Oh sure they'd be happy if all of their titles were making money, but I suspect they'll be perfectly happy with simply losing less money overall, especially if some of the other metrics are met.

Sales. Obviously, increasing sales is one of DC's main goals. This could be measured in many ways, e.g. by increase in individual titles that are being relaunched, or the number of the 52 titles over a certain threshold. But as this is a complete line-wide revamp, perhaps the most salient number to look at will be the average sales of the entire DCU line. Courtesy of The Beat, here's a table of the line-wide averages for the DCU as of this past June's sales figures:

DC UNIVERSE
06/2006: 53,274
06/2007: 47,986
06/2008: 35,800
06/2009: 36,329
---------------
06/2010: 34,612 (- 7.6%)**
07/2010: 35,372 (+ 2.2%)
08/2010: 33,411 (- 5.5%)
09/2010: 32,042 (- 4.1%)
10/2010: 32,832 (+ 2.5%)
11/2010: 34,180 (+ 4.1%)
12/2010: 30,870 (- 9.7%)
01/2011: 24,321 (-21.2%)**
02/2011: 25,887 (+ 6.4%)**
03/2011: 26,720 (+ 3.2%)**
04/2011: 29,126 (+ 9.0%)
05/2011: 27,745 (- 4.7%)**
06/2011: 28,673 (+ 3.4%)**
----------------
6 months: - 7.1%
1 year  : -17.2%
2 years : -21.1%
5 years : -46.2%

Notice a trend? Even the two-year comparison is bad, and the five-year number is atrocious. Now part of that five-year decline can be attributed to DC pumping out even more low-selling titles; one sure way of raising the line-wide average would be to cut out all of the low-selling titles and publish fewer comics. But since DC seem determined to publish 52 monthly titles (or more, with additional mini-series coming starting in October...), getting the line-wide average as it stands a year from now up to at least where it was in 2009 would be considered a win.

Market Share. Despite DC's claims to the contrary, I believe that a market share win against their cross-town rivals at Marvel will be considered a victory. Market share is one of the things you can trumpet even when you are not actually making money. And if market share wasn't a top concern, there would be no reason to be pumping out so many new comics every month, most of which are losing money and whose only purpose seems to be taking retail shelf space away from your competitors. It seems highly likely that DC will see a market share win in September; if they can keep that going for a majority of the coming twelve months—or at least keep it more competitive than it has been in the recent past—they will consider the New 52 a success.

Digital Sales. With the day-and-date availability of digital versions of all of the DCnU titles, DC is obviously hoping to pick up new readers who are willing to pay for online comics. To date, digital sales on most comics have been a small fraction of the print sales, due to: 1) inconsistent availability; 2) the gawdawful hard-to-use old comiXology app (a new revised version was released last week, and based on my initial few minutes of testing it appears to be vastly improved); and 3) competition from cost- and DRM-free illegal scans. With all of the DCnU titles now available online on a consistent basis, they should see an upswing in the number of people buying online. The question is how big that upswing will be? I don't imagine that the number of people who are willing to pay the parity-with-print $2.99 cost for the digital comics in their first month of release will be huge; but there may be enough people willing to cough-up the month-old $1.99 price for titles to make up for any deficiencies in the sales of print.

Visibility. The real business of DC Comics, as far as their corporate overlords are concerned, is in generating characters and other intellectual property that can be exploited for profit in other media. Not just blockbuster movies like The Dark Knight, but in video games, television, licensed apparel, etc. So every time a story about the DCnU hits the comic press, or especially the mainstream press, it is a win for DC. Even if all of the other metrics we've discussed are moderate at best, the amount of publicity already generated is likely being viewed as a success.

Long Term. It will be tempting to look at the first-month sales figures for the DCnU titles and make a snap judgment about the New 52's success. But the real measure won't be apparent until at least a year, or even better two years, down the line. How many of the New 52 are still being published in 2013? Will the "cancellation floor" for the line as a whole rise? Can titles maintain their initial sales boost? Will DC be able to successfully launch new comics and properties? Answers to these kinds of questions will ultimately tell us if this big experiment has really succeeded.

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 (-). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
3 (-). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
4 (+10). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
5 (R). Hark! A Vagrant *
6 (-2). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
7 (-). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
8 (-3). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
9 (-). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
10 (+19). Amulet #4: The Last Council *
11 (-5). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
12 (+4). V for Vendetta
13 (+6). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
14 (-2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
15 (+5). Sailor Moon 1 *
16 (-3). Watchmen
17 (-6). Batman: Year One
18 (-10). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
19 (+7). Batman: The Killing Joke
20 (-10). The Complete Peanuts Boxed Set 1979-1982 (Vol. 15-16) *
21 (+10). Codename: Sailor V 1 *
22 (-4). We3 Deluxe Edition
23 (-2). The Walking Dead, Book 7 *
24 (+3). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
25 (-2). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
26 (+2). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
27 (+3). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
28 (-4). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
29 (-14). The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume III: Century #2 1969
30 (-13). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
31 (-6). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
32 (+6). Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 8: Last Gleaming
33 (+7). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 *
34 (N). Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Ultimate Collection Volume 1 *
35 (R). The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes
36 (N). Dork Diaries 3 1/2: How to Dork Your Diary *
37 (-). Big Nate: From the Top
38 (R). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle)
39 (-). The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 (Vol. 16) *
40 (R). Big Nate Out Loud
41 (R). Locke & Key Volume 1: Welcome to Lovecraft HC
42 (N). Fables: The Deluxe Edition Book Three
43 (-10). Batman: The Long Halloween
44 (-22). The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale
45 (N). Y: The Last Man, Vol. 1 (Deluxe Edition)
46 (R). Palestine
47 (R). Castle: Richard Castle's Deadly Storm *
48 (-16). Batman: Hush
49 (-8). Garfield Lard of the Jungle: His 52nd Book *
50 (N). Big Nate Boredom Buster



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:

* Two upcoming releases show strong interest this week: Kate Beaton's Hark! A Vagrant collection leaps from down off the charts all the way to #5, and the latest in Kazuo Kabishi's Amulet series hops up to the #10 spot.

* It's slightly cheaper to buy the two volumes of Maus separately in paperback than to buy the one-volume edition in hardcover, but only slightly so. Me, I'd rather have it all in one nice hardcover for just a couple of bucks more, but then I'm not a broke college student trying to stretch my book-buying dollar as far as possible.

* The upcoming new Sailor Moon editions are showing remarkable staying power for manga, moreso than any other manga in recent memory on this chart (including Naruto and One Piece).

* All of the debuts this week are in the lower part of the chart, led by a sizable collection of classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, a Dork Diaries spin-off, and deluxe editions of Fables and Y, the Last Man.

Shameless Friend Promotion: JimO's Feynman

Pal Jim Ottaviani has a new book out next week: Feynman (drawn by Leland Myrick).

Today over on John Scalzi's blog Whatever, Jim has a guest post in the Big Idea series.

Also, all week excerpts from the book are running over on Tor.com.

Monkey Covers

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

Sad Sack learns that there's a good reason for the 'Do Not Feed the Monkey' sign at the zoo on the cover of Sad Sad Sack World #25 (1970) by George Baker.

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

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 (-). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
3 (+1). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
4 (+8). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
5 (-2). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
6 (+1). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
7 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
8 (-3). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
9 (+4). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
10 (N). The Complete Peanuts Boxed Set 1979-1982 (Vol. 15-16) *
11 (-3). Batman: Year One
12 (-1). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
13 (+1). Watchmen
14 (-4). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
15 (-6). The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume III: Century #2 1969
16 (-1). V for Vendetta
17 (+3). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
18 (N). We3 Deluxe Edition *
19 (-2). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
20 (+4). Sailor Moon 1 *
21 (+26). The Walking Dead, Book 7 *
22 (+6). The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale
23 (-). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
24 (+11). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
25 (-). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
26 (-4). Batman: The Killing Joke
27 (-8). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
28 (-10). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
29 (+16). Amulet #4: The Last Council *
30 (-9). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
31 (-5). Codename: Sailor V 1 *
32 (+1). Batman: Hush
33 (-3). Batman: The Long Halloween
34 (+9). Blackest Night
35 (+7). Daytripper
36 (+8). The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
37 (+1). Big Nate: From the Top
38 (-4). Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 8: Last Gleaming
39 (N). The Complete Peanuts 1981-1982 (Vol. 16) *
40 (-24). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 *
41 (N). Garfield Lard of the Jungle: His 52nd Book *
42 (-10). The Walking Dead Volume 13
43 (N). Mega Man Gigamix Volume 2 *
44 (N). No Such Thing as Ghosts (Dragonbreath)
45 (R). The Walking Dead, Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye
46 (R). The Hobbit
47 (R). Batman: Dark Victory
48 (R). The Stonekeeper's Curse (Amulet, Book 2)
49 (R). The Stonekeeper (Amulet, Book 1)
50 (R). The Walking Dead, Book 6



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:

* Persepolis, Maus, and Understanding Comics are at #2, 3, & 4 on the chart; looks like college classes are starting soon!

* Several debuts this week, led by the latest Complete Peanuts Boxed Set at #10 and the We3 special edition at #18.

* The long-out-of-print Hobbit adaptation sneaks up onto the list again. Strange...

An Alternate DCnU

A few weeks ago I wrote a post where I detailed some alternate DCnU titles that I would have liked to have seen in the relaunch.

Well, Jon Morris has done me one better. For his new blog, DC Fifty-TOO!, Jon has asked a plethora of cartoonists to come up with their own ideas for DCnU relaunch titles, and he's posting four new titles each day from now until the real DCnU launches at the end of the month. Check it out, as it looks to be two weeks of interesting and fun!

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 (-). Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
3 (-). Dork Diaries 3 (Kindle edition)
4 (+3). Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
5 (-). The Walking Dead Volume 14: No Way Out
6 (+2). Diary of a Wimpy Kid 5: The Ugly Truth
7 (-1). Batman: The Dark Knight Returns
8 (+1). Batman: Year One
9 (-5). The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume III: Century #2 1969
10 (+1). Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
11 (+4). Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
12 (+1). Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art
13 (-3). Dork Diaries 3: Tales from a Not-So-Talented Pop Star
14 (+4). Watchmen
15 (+4). V for Vendetta
16 (+5). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 *
17 (-3). The Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book (revised and expanded edition)
18 (-2). Dork Diaries (Kindle edition)
19 (+12). Dork Diaries 2 (Kindle edition)
20 (+6). 5 Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth
21 (+3). Batman: Arkham Asylum (15th Anniversary Edition)
22 (+5). Batman: The Killing Joke
23 (-6). The Walking Dead Compendium Volume 1
24 (+1). Sailor Moon 1 *
25 (-13). Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Boxset
26 (+16). Codename: Sailor V 1 *
27 (+7). Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Lost Adventures
28 (+7). The Complete Maus: A Survivor's Tale
29 (R). The Walking Dead Volume 12
30 (-2). Batman: The Long Halloween
31 (R). Big Nate Out Loud (Kindle edition)
32 (+17). The Walking Dead Volume 13
33 (-10). Batman: Hush
34 (-14). Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight Volume 8: Last Gleaming
35 (+1). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl
36 (-7). Jericho Season 3
37 (R). Ghost World
38 (-8). Big Nate: From the Top
39 (N). Amazing Spider-Man by David Michelinie & Todd McFarlane Omnibus *
40 (-8). Big Nate Out Loud
41 (R). Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-So-Fabulous Life
42 (R). Daytripper
43 (-). Blackest Night
44 (+3). The Complete Calvin and Hobbes
45 (-8). Amulet #4: The Last Council *
46 (R). Brightest Day, Vol. 2
47 (N). The Walking Dead, Book 7 *
48 (R). Twilight: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1
49 (R). The Walking Dead, Book 2
50 (N). Blue Exorcist, Vol. 3



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:

* A relatively sedate list this week, with most book showing small increases or decreases, and only a few jumping large on the chart.

* Top debut this week is Amazing Spider-Man by David Michelinie & Todd McFarlane Omnibus at #39 (also Marvel's only book on the chart). Also debuting are the newest Walking Dead hardcover, and the manga Blue Exorcist.

Monkey Covers

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

The Fly and Fly Girl battle a monster gorilla on the cover of The Adventures of the Fly #22 (1962) by John Rosenberger.

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

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