Todd Klein has posted on his blog that his new signed print, Drawing the Sword, will available to order starting Saturday at noon, EST.

Drawing the Sword has text by Klein drawn from L’Morte d’Arthur, one of the seminal Arthurian texts, as well as an image by J.H. Williams of Arthur Pendragon pulling the sword from the stone.

There will only be 500 editions of this print, each costing $20 plus shipping. You can read more about the creation of this print by clicking here.

As you probably know from their coverage of the Return of Captain America, the New York Daily News has always been a comics-friendly newspaper.

But this story, while a bit more low-key, is equally cool, as a 13-year-old Brooklyn student named Hakeem Bennett has been put in a Superman book called “The Kid Who Saved Superman.”

Bennett was selected after winning an essay contest about his real-life hero, teacher Matthew Brown. Brown is visually-impaired, with tunnel vision in one eye and complete blindness in the other.

“He’s a role model to me… He helps you if you need help with anything. He’s always there,” Bennett said about his teacher. “I’m excited to show everyone the book. Now I’ve got bragging rights… I’m proud of myself. If you go to school and do good, good will come out of it.”

Yeah, my heart’s on my sleeve about this one. According to The Hollywood Reporter’s Risky Business Blog, Universal is setting up a remake of Bride of Frankenstein. I know that I’m frequently a guy that urges you to wait until the work appears to judge it, but remaking one of the greatest horror classics of all time? Remaking a sequel that actually trumped its predecessor in terms of style and effect? And doesn’t anyone else remember the misfire that was the previous remake attempt starring Jennifer Beals and Sting, “The Bride”?

Granted, Universal has really been trying to get back in the monster-business lately. They’ve got “The Wolf Man” and a “Creature from the Black Lagoon” remake in the offing. There’s even been talk of a new Frankenstein, though whether its connected to the “Bride” remake or not, we don’t know. The bright spot here is that Dirk Wittenborn of “The Illusionist” will be at the helm.

So, ultimately, I guess it IS a wait and see proposition. But honestly, does every single film need to be remade? Can’t we just let some classics stay that way? Tell me, readers . . . what great movies should NEVER be remade?

Gavok over at 4thletter! has created a hilarious couple of strips called “Darkseid Minus New Gods”:

Yes, Darkseid. You are the real thing.

Click here to see more of Gavok’s tomfoolery, but you better apologize to Jack Kirby when you’re done laughing.

Curious about the new Kate Beckinsale film, based on the Greg Rucka/Steve Lieber book by Oni Press?

Time to get more curious.

[Link via TrailerHQ]

Whoops – According to Greg Rucka himself (and pointed out below), this isn’t the trailer. At his blog, Rucka writes: “There’s a Whiteout trailer that’s apparently making the rounds at the moment. It is not the official movie trailer, but rather the teaser that WB put together for San Diego the year before last. It’s not bad, but it’s not the trailer.”

The trailer, according to Rucka, will be in front of the film Orphan.

By Bon Alimagno

Do you believe in $1.99 comics? We do! And I’ll explain the method to our madness right here next week. See you then!

Bon Alimagno is Director – Publishing & Editorial for Harris Comics, publishers of Vampirella.

“A handful of Australian artists have broken into this very competitive business, but Scott, 37, is probably the most successful so far”: The Sydney Morning Herald has a nice little profile story about Birds of Prey/Secret Six artist Nicola Scott, and her rather unusual career path getting to where she is now.

Actually, I think only certain absolute and omnibus editions really qualify as weapons: “Horn Promotes Use of Graphic Novels as Educational ‘Weapon’”

Hmm…needs more labels: Hopefully pseudonymous blogger “JekylinHyde” takes a look at a week’s worth of political cartoons on dailykos.com in this gigantic post. If nothing else, it’s a nice gathering of a ton of political cartoons in one place at one time.

Speaking of political cartoons…: Tom Spurgeon rounds up some cartoon-related news dealing with the situation in Iran at the moment at The Comics Reporter (and rightly notes that there’s much bigger stuff going on there than anything having to do with comics).

Rick Veitch draws Frank Frazetta…in a Mark Schultz comic…?: I’m  having trouble wrapping my head around it, but I did enjoy laying my eyes on it. Perhaps you will too.

Larry David for The Riddler!: In an interview with the Curb Your Enthusiasm creator, Eric Ditzian suggests to Larry David that he should pursue playing The Riddler in the next Batman movie. I’m all for it, as long as David also gets to write and direct the next Batman movie.

“Nell Brinkley is one of those women I feel like I should have learned about in college”: So says Whitney Matheson and yes, she should have learned about Nell Brinkley in college. We should all learn about Nell Brinkley in college. So if you’re currently in college, go check out The Brinkley Girls already. And if you’re out of college already, well go check it out anyway, because everyone seriously needs to see this book—Brinkley was that good.

“MySpace is not currently in a situation where they feel they can win this social networking battle”: CNN reports on MySpace’s moves to readjust their workforce in an attempt to better suit their existing market. And Marvel EIC Joe Quesada just moved his semi-nomadic “Cup O’ Joe” feature from MySpace to Comic Book Resources. Good timing on Quesada’s part, or did he single-handedly destroy MySpace’s fortunes just as he’s always destroying your childhood?!

There’ve been some downright baffling displays of sexism in the geek world lately. First, there was IGN’s boys-only contest, blowing the minds of both males and females across the globe. Then the LA Times posted a “Girls’ Guide to Comic Con” with such gems as this:

‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’

Women will be rushing the stage, offering to do star Jake Gyllenhaal’s laundry on those washboard abs that he acquired for the film, since he spends much of it fighting, shirtless or both. Jake, we don’t want to know how to quit you.

Well, not surprisingly, the internet started to light up about that one, and several of my geeky girl friends on Twitter immediately got more than a bit upset at these ridiculous stereotypes. Then one in particular, the popular Geek Girl Diva, decided to let the LA Times know what was what on her Blog, attached to popular toy site Entertainment Earth with “An Open Letter to the L.A. Times from a Geek Girl:”

Girls have been going to SDCC for YEARS. They go because they like *gasp* comics? They go because they want to hear about the latest news from Joss Whedon, or for the BSG panel, or to watch Kevin Smith talk about…heck, anything. They are Browncoats, Cosplay fans, Gamers, Geeks, Nerds, Dorks, Comic fans, movie fanatics, book lovers and for loads of other reasons.

Read on at the link above for the full well-expressed rant, and follow her on Twitter by clicking her name, cause she’s full of gems (and toy pimping) from a genuine geek girl.

The library is a great place for readers to discover comics, and it’s a great place for comics readers to check out things that they want to try without spending their hard-earned cash. I’m looking at comics that I find in the New York Public Library system.

There’s always some creative person whose work you want to experience, a filmmaker, a novelist, or a cartoonist. It’s been on my agenda for a while now, but I finally uncovered a book of Spain Rodriguez’s from the library, and it happens to be a biography of t-shirt icon Ernesto “Che” Guevara.

As a biography, Che isn’t exactly unbiased. Spain’s clear affection for the man and his accomplishments are on the forefront of every single page, with barely even a passing mention of any controversies that Che was embroiled in during his time. Readers coming to it should certainly bear that in mind – Che is a celebration of a man’s accomplishments, not a rounded biography.

In that context, it’s quite effective. Spain’s clearly done his research, and he touches on all of Che’s major life moments, with particular time spent on the Cuban revolution and Che’s time in Africa. Artistically, it’s a very strong piece, with strong likenesses and precise panel-to-panel storytelling. He’s very adept at massaging sequences out to their natural climax, and he explores many facets of Che’s accomplishments in considerable detail.

Spain Rodriguez is one of the classic artists of the comix underground movement, and Che Guevara is one of the most influential counter-culture figures of the past century.  It seems fitting that one chronicle the life of the other, and under Spain’s careful pacing and attention to detail, Che is a worthwhile, if biased, ode from one legend to another, and you can hopefully find it in your local library.

I noted that now would be an excellent time to re-read Persepolis, with the crisis in Iran, and today artist-writer-filmmaker Marjane Satrapi is in the news:

Two Iranian filmmakers on Tuesday presented a document to Green Party MPs in the European parliament claiming to show that defeated presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi had received over 19 million votes in the weekend election.

Marjane Satrapi, Iranian author and director and Mohsen Makhmalbaf, an Iranian filmmaker and Mousavi spokesman, presented a document that they claimed had come from the Iranian electoral commission.

The document said liberal cleric and former parliament speaker Mehdi Karroubi came second in the election with a total of 13.3 million votes, while president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came third with only 5.49 million votes.

Whether or not the document Satrapi presented was legitimate, this speaks to her commitment to her country and her willingness to speak out on her beliefs–characteristics that Persepolis readers will immediately recognize from the not-always-flattering self-portrait she drew in that book.

There’s something less self-indulgent about autobiography in comics–it’s often done in a defiantly unglamorous style, the writer-artist refusing to make her or himself prettier than they are, instead exaggerating their flaws, physical and emotional, with a cartoonist’s unflinching eye. Satrapi is willing to turn an equally unflinching eye on the countries she calls home, scrutinizing their flaws but retaining the love and loyalty.

People often complain about artists and other creative types getting too political, but it’s nearly impossible to be an artist and not deal in some way with the issues of the world, which often require a political stand. I don’t think it necessarily takes away from the work to know that the artist has views quite different from your own–I enjoy comics by several creators whom I know support ideals rather odious to me. More importantly, I think that the point of art is to comment on society, and if that means that artists occasionally feel compelled to speak out publicly about politics, that is not only their right, but perhaps even their responsibility.

Activision today posted a new 3D screenshot, showing Deadpool and Iron Fist battling soldiers in one of the new-to-this-game daylight outdoor locales. Peep that one here, then click through to check out an older shot of Thor and Human Torch. For the latest in Ultimate Alliance action, check out our developer walkthrough from E3 and the E3 trailer at the mothership!

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The book I’m most looking forward to this week isn’t a comic book at all, but a comic-like book about comics. Specifically, the Marvel Pets Handbook, which is one of those exhaustively researched reference books that Marvel puts out occasionally, this one apparently focusing on the various pets of the Marvel Universe, like Sentry’s Watchdog, the Runaways’ Old Lace, Thor’s goats and so on.

I assume the impetus for the book Lockjaw and The Pet Avengers, a miniseries about Lockjaw and a pack of Marvel animals questing for the Infinity Gems that I’ve really been digging. If you missed the first issue of that, there’s a second printing of it being released tomorrow.

What else is being released tomorrow?  A whole bunch of stuff. Join me after the jump for some discussion of some of that stuff.

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I guess it’s possible that readers here at the Blog@Newsarama may have gotten the impression that I’m not particularly fond of the direction that Teen Titans has taken since Geoff Johns left.

Well, that’s mostly true. With some of the biggest names in comics, and a roster of beloved characters, one would think that the title wouldn’t be such a directionless mess, but I can’t get a bearing for what anyone has been trying to do with that book since the end of Infinite Crisis. Losing Kid Flash and Superboy at the same time would likely have crippled just about any writer, but Johns had the good sense to get gone when he did it (whether this amounts to leaving a pile of dog poop in the closet of the house you just sold is its own question, I suppose). And besides, when having this kind of conversation I always have to look back at the Giffen-DeMatteis Justice League, and say, “You know what? They made lemonade. Why can’t [insert writer name here]?”

At any rate, September’s solicitations have revealed that Felicia D. Henderson, of Fringe and Gossip Girl fame, is taking on the writing chores of the book. In spite of fan speculation over at Titans Tower and Comic Bloc that she’s a “place holder” or a “Band-Aid,” the solicitations have her listed as the new “ongoing writer” of the series. (more…)

By Filip Sablik

First memories are a powerful thing. Your first kiss, your first time driving, your first R-rated movie, the first time you saw your future wife/husband, and so many, many more. For those of us that love comics, we have memories tied into our love of the medium. The first comic we read, the first time a story or piece of art moved us, our first comic convention, the first creator we met in person, and so many, many more first memories. The one I want to talk about today is my first signing event.

I spent most of my formative years in a relatively small city in southwest Virginia called Roanoke. That’s where I discovered comics and where my education in comics began. I was lucky because during the early 90s there were four to five decent comic shops all within driving distance. The most prominent was B&D Comics. B&D Comics is located at 802 Elm Avenue SW, Roanoke, VA 24016 and you can reach them at (540) 342-6642 or on the web at http://www.banddcomics.com.

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If you like what you’ve read so far (c’mon, how can you not?) totally check out more super cute comics at:www.sosuperduper.com!

It’s been a couple of months since we checked in with Terry Moore about his intensely-enjoyable new sci-fi/romance/conspiracy series Echo, and so our “creator commentary” column is covering two issues this month, both of which are fairly old now. As such, I’ll let the interview speak for itself so that we can move the narrative along and save the reviews-and-analysis for a write-up of the new trade paperback to hit tomorrow and, of course, for Terry’s commentary on #13 later this month. (more…)

Landline TV explains a lot about Megan Fox’s popularity. Because she’s CGI.

[Hat tip to Laura for showing me the truth]

Have Wednesday, will travel!

DC Comics has released two new pages for their upcoming weekly, Wednesday Comics, on their Source blog: Sgt. Rock by Andy and Joe Kubert, and Supergirl by Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner.

I don’t know how Jimmy and Amanda did it, but I am sold just by the Legion of Super Pets alone.

May proved to be a Crisis that wasn’t limited to the pantheon of DC Comics, as comic book sales plummeted by double-digit percentage points.

ICv2 reports that comic book sales dropped 19 percent in May from the previous year, with graphic novel sales dropping 13 percent. The overall drop totals at 18 percent. Here’s some more details:

A lack of potent #1 issues as well as the absence of Dark Avengers certainly didn’t help comic sales this May, a month in which no single title even came close to breaking the 100K barrier.  In contrast in May of 2008, which boasted seven titles over 100,000, comic sales were boosted by Final Crisis #1, Avengers/Invaders #1, Invincible Iron Man #1, and Giant Size Astonishing X-Men #1, all of which made the top ten along with 4 Secret Invasion titles and two issues of Batman RIP.  The paucity of big event titles and strong #1s, the continuing deep recession, and the financial drag of higher cover prices all worked together to help produce the steep decline in comic numbers in May.

The top three comics of May 2009 were New Avengers #53 (94,367 copies sold), Battle for the Cowl #3 (89,170 copies sold), and Wolverine #72 (87,075 copies sold).

This drop is the largest ever reported by ICv2. In addition, April 2008 and 2009 both had five weeks of shipping, whereas May had the typical four.

by Seth Robison

Even though it looks more like its rural comic book counterpart, the small village of Metropolis, Illinois shares one major feature with the fictional city that shares its name, they are both the home of DC Comics’ Man of Steel: Superman.  In this realities’ Metropolis they break out the pony rides and tilt-a-whirls not for a local food item or flower like other small towns, but for their annual Superman Celebration, held for the 31st time this past weekend.

This hybrid comic book convention and local fair has its roots in the early 1970s when locals successfully petitioned both the state government and DC Comics for their Metropolis (one of several in the United States) to be declared the “official” home of Superman, and held the first Superman Celebration in the wake of the first Superman movie in 1979.  The event features not just the classic small town Main Street full of fried food and local crafts for sale, but costume contests (for kids, adults and even dogs), a weightlifting competition and a designated Superman to pose for photos and sign autographs.  Then in 1993 over $100,000 was raised to build a fifteen-foot bronze stature of the hero that stands, in living color, in the center of Superman Square, in front of the Massac County courthouse.

The event attracts more then local comic fans and fairgoers, this year Smallville stars Justin Hartley and Phil Morris spoke to fans and signed autographs, and a local favorite, the 88 year old Noel Neil, who portrayed Lois Lane in the George Reeves version of The Adventures of Superman, was on hand to break ground on a life size statue in her honor.  However, aside from television stars, the organizers of the event paid tribute to the medium that brought them Superman by inviting writers and artists to their convention hall, an empty storefront church at the end of four blocks of attractions and vendors.

For one of them, Josh Elder (Mail Order Ninja, StarCraft: Frontline) the Superman Celebration is a homecoming.  Growing up in nearby Carmil, IL (near that is by county standards, a scant 100 miles away), Josh was a frequent attendee of the celebration and in 1999 swore an oath to himself in front of the Superman statue that he would some day write for the hero.  A feat he accomplished before the prior year’s event with an appearance by the Man of Steel in the pages of The Batman Strikes!  He remarked at how the event has grown over the years by serving a comics and genre media fan base that was otherwise not serviced in the region.

This sentiment was reiterated by fellow attending writers Gail Simone (Secret Six) and John Ostrander (Star Wars: Legacy) who praised the intimacy of the small scale event, allowing them to connect with fans in a personal way that the bustle of the larger conventions can’t provide.  The trio also hosted Q and As and writing workshops in the same cozy storefront room that held their signing tables, one that didn’t seat more than one hundred, but still produced a full session’s worth of questions.

The event runs from Thursday to Sunday the second weekend in June every year, but to the citizens of Metropolis, whose enthusiasm for the Man of Steel goes far beyond just creating a tourist destination, Superman is a part of their lives everyday.