Amazing Spider-Man #623: Based on the “Villain Variant” of this issue, I would have guessed that this part of “The Gauntlet” storyline was introducing a new Spider-Man villain called The Lobster…
…but apparently that’s the new Vulture…? Mark Waid and Tom Peyer write this ish, Paul Azaceta pencils it.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 #33: Brad Meltzer, Georges Jeanty and Andy Owens continue their “Twilight” arc of Buffy’s never-ending eighth season-as-a-monthly-comic-series, this issue “setting the stage for Twilight’s unmasking in Buffy #34!” Who is this mysterious adversary? I don’t know, but his identity is so shocking that just a glimpse of the back of his head is causing Buffy, Willow and Xander to completely freak out on the cover!
What’s that? You’re trade-waiting the series? Well then Dark Horse has some new Buffy for you this week too, in the form of the $16, 170-page Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 Volume 6: Retreat. Previews of each here and here.
First Wave #1: Brian Azzarello and Rags Morales launch their six-part miniseries introducing readers to a pulp-inspired, super power-free DCU in which a young, pistol-packing Batman rubs shoulders with The Spirit and Doc Savage. The first issue is $4 for 40 pages, and Geoff Johns and Jim Lee would appreciate it if you read it along with them.
Girl Comics #1: Probably the most talked-about Big Two comic after each company’s big crossover event series, this unfortunately-titled oversized anthology will feature work from an astounding array of comics talent, including Colleen Coover, Devin Grayson, Lucy Knisley, Trina Robbins, Ming Doyle and G. Willow Wilson. Just look for the Amanda Conner-drawn Shunkie vs. Shellhead arm-wrestling match cover. It’s the first issue in a three-part series, and will cost you $5.
Iron Man: Demon in a Bottle: Woah woah woah Marvel—you’re going to offer a new printing of “Demon in a Bottle,” and you’re not going to use this as the cover?
What’s the point of even collecting it then…?
Justice League: Cry For Justice #7: A mere eight months after launching on July 1 of last year, DC manages to drag James Robinson and Mauro Cascioli’s miniseries—which was set before Flash: Rebirth, Blackest Night and the last half-dozen or so issue of JLoA—across the finish line, and all it took to get it out on time-ish was a change in artists (not that the online solicitation reflects the change). It’s $4 for 40 pages, but that’s counting ads and, if it’s like the earlier issues, a bunch of prose back-matter. You can download a preview at the link above.
Kevin Smith’s Green Hornet #1: Far fewer gay jokes than you’d imagine! Artists Phil Hester and Jonathan Lau help turn Kevin Smith’s repurposed screenplay into a comic series for Dynamite. It’s $4 for 24-story pages.
Sparta #1: David Lapham and Johnny Timmons launch a new six-part WildStorm series focusing on some sort of crazy American town shut-off from the rest of the world, a place where escape from is said to be impossible. But apparently Godfrey McLaine, “the greatest quarterback in Sparta’s history,” got out, as he’s now returning. Sounds interesting, and as for how it looks, well you can download a preview here.
Stooge Pile: This $15, 80-page book features the work of Canadian artist Seth Sciver. Publisher Drawn and Quarterly says it’s “filled with lumpy men and women plucked from rural Canada—thick mustaches, plaid shirts and winter caps exchanging non-sequiturs and one-liners.” Awesome, I love thick mustaches and non-sequiturs! You can download a preview here.
Stephen King’s N #1: Marvel’s latest Stephen King-branded comic is an adaptation of a short story from his Just After Sunset collection. Marc Guggenheim writes and Alex Maleev draws the $4 book.
Strange Tales: Marvel’s long awaited Marvel-superheroes-by-artists-not-primarily-known-for-doing-superheroes a la DC’s Bizarro Comics project sees release as a $30, 190-page hardcover collection. If your memory needs refreshing, the all-star contributors list includes Peter Bagge, Nicholas Bertozzi, Junko Mizuno, Johnny Ryan, Jeffrey Brown, Dash Shaw, Molly Crabtree, Nicholas Gurewitch, Paul Hornschemeir, James Kochalka, Matt Kindt and others. This collection also features Bagge’s 2002 The Megalomanical Spider-Man and Michael Kupperman’s Marvex The Super-Robot back-up from last year’s All-Select Comics 70th Anniversary Special.
March 2nd, 2010 at 4:52 pm
I’d rather read the Robinson prose matter than the actual CFJ story.
March 2nd, 2010 at 11:26 pm
Wasn’t the identity of ‘Twilight’ spoiled back in December?
March 3rd, 2010 at 1:34 am
finally the 7 issue nightmare called C4J is finally over
now the new nightmare called Rise and Fall can start
March 3rd, 2010 at 1:45 am
according to the prose in CFJ #6 this issue is 30 story pages and no prose!
March 4th, 2010 at 10:05 pm
Spidey’s had his share of ridiculous villains, but this Lobster appears to beat them all. No, I can’t judge the post-OMD books… Because I haven’t read them. But one look at The Lobster (I’m laughing my ass off just typing that name) tells me I’m not missing anything.
Oh, and that Demon In A Bottle cover art is iconic. Shame on Marvel for changing it.