Last week, we checked out several of the designs that will be featured in DC’s relaunched universe, the DCnU. Although DC is now telling us that most of its previous history will be intact, the previews show that several of these characters are definitely getting new origins and altered pasts and nearly all of them are getting new outfits. Confusion aside, let’s check out the new fashion styles of some of these characters.

MR. TERRIFIC

In the 1940s, Terry Sloan was a prodigy and a polymath who decided to use his various skills to help others. As a costumed crime-fighter, he not only took down villains but also attempted to serve as a role model for people, advocating high standards of morality and “fair play.” Many decades later, Michael Holt, a genius and skilled combatant, followed Terry’s example and became the new Mr. Terrific. Along with his own skills, Holt relies on special technology he’s developed, such as his flying “T-Spheres” that can access databanks, act as communicators and project holograms.

Okay, is there a rule in the DCnU that you’re not cool unless you have red eyes? It seems to be happening with a lot of folks. I like that Michael Holt will still be with us in the DCnU. And, truth be told, this costume isn’t all that different. But I miss the jacket. Although Michael does take the concept of “fair play” seriously enough to get a tattoo, I’m never a fan of a design that involves bare arms but has gloves. And not crazy but the little changes they made to the mask, I dug how it looked before. (more…)

Once a week I sift through the millions of Etsy listings to find the best in geek chic for Blog@ readers. Last week I went old-school with classic Nintendo items but this week was, I guess you could say, chosen. Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps are flying into theaters this week for the first time and I can barely contain myself. Here are a bunch of unique Green Lantern items I found for you.

Every Lantern Corps has a ring but what if you had one ring…to rule them all? Check out this Sterling Silver Green Lantern Corps Ring that includes ALL the Corps’ symbols. User blackmore5253 (is that their Sector number?) can make this in sizes 6-15 for $69.99. And comic/genre fans will want to check out other items in the shop as well methinks…

Second best thing to having a Ryan Reynolds of your very own to hug and squeeze? This adorable GL Plushie is from user Googooli. It’s 10 inches long and only $6! How can you resist those pink cheeks?

For aspiring comic artists, check out this Vintage Green Lantern Recycled Comic Book Sketchbook. Made using Green Lantern Corps #211 from 1987, user crabappledesign threw in the front and back of the comic as well as a few ads to the overall design. $18

Want something a little different to show your GL pride? How about this Green Lantern Wall Art. Made from wood by user Sanchezz for $25.

And just for the sheer ridiculousness of it, a Green Lantern Lantern. User erindara will send this one to you for $75. In Brightest Day, In Blackest Night, I’ll have my Green Lantern Lantern to keep things bright!

As always, bear in mind, since Etsy is a craft website and not a commercial, mass-market dealer, items are almost always one-of-a-kind or in very limited availability. When you see something you like, buy it. It may not be there the next time you surf round. (Yes, it’s a very dangerous site for your wallet.) Also, since most items are created individually, many sellers are willing to customize something specifically to suit your needs. Just ask!

Everyone’s talking about the DCnU. If you don’t know about it (and really, where have you been?), here’s the deal: In a few months, DC is relaunching (not “rebooting”) it’s universe with 52 new titles hitting the shelves. Some characters are getting a modernized origin. Others are getting new costumes. We all have questions and very few answers at this time. But we do have some new designs to look at and discuss.

Now, keep in mind, I have not gone to the future and read these new titles coming out. So I don’t know if some of these costumes that are drastically different will be perfect for the new version of the character coming out. I can only judge these based on gut reaction and my familiarity with how the character has been presented in the past. I’m also only selecting a few of the DCnU titles to look over, otherwise we’ll be here all day.

So let’s start the action.

HAWKMAN

Here we have some of the old school flavor. Carter Hall, archaeologist, who became Hawkman with help from anti-gravity Nth metal and a cool wing harness. He also enjoys maces, katar blades, spikey gloves. Anything that would have TSA tackle you to the ground.

Wow, DCnU Carter is angry. Now, initially this seems a bit much to me. But the title is Savage Hawkman now and this look definitely carries that. We’ve been told for years that Carter is a fearsome warrior you have to sometimes hold back from tearing his enemies apart (which makes it odd to me that he was able to be leader of the Justice Society for so long, but that’s another discussion). Now he actually looks as fearsome and bloodthirsty as everyone says he is. Even the handle of his weapon is designed to mess you up. Interesting. (more…)

Just how crazy has DC Comics gone?: Crazy enough that Steve Rude would ask if he could maybe make them some awesome comic books and they said no, apparently. That’s just nutty. I can sort of see why DC would put him off for a few months, if they really want to instill a sort of uniformity to their line starting in September (there definitely doesn’t seem to be much in the way of stylistic variety in the designs and artists involved with their new 50-book slate, for example), but I can’t imagine it being a good idea to turn Rude down altogether. No original graphic novels or miniseries or Steve Rude Draws Whatever He Wants #1 one-shot? Ironically, yesterday DC  announced that Rude’s fourth choice on a list of DC characters he’d like to work on, OMAC, would be getting his own ongoing title—with DC publisher Dan DiDio co-writing it.

Now read this: Check out the Level Up creative team of Gene Luen Yang and Thien Pham’s cute strip about where the arcade heroes of yesteryear are now.

“Here is a period piece for our postracial times — in the era of Ella Baker and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the most powerful adversaries of spectacular apartheid are a team of enlightened white dudes”: In The New York Times, writer and X-Men fan Ta-Nehisi Coates talks about taking in X-Men: First Class with his son, and what he noticed that his son didn’t. Meanwhile, in the New Zealand Listener, David Larsen notes some of the quite disturbing implications of the film that the creators seem to have either not noticed or glossed over. And at his blog, David Brothers talks about his viewing (I agree with a lot of what he said, particularly regarding the awesomeness of Fassbender and McAvoy) and he also notes some of the disturbing (and hopefully accidental!) X-Men = Nazis implications. Peter David really liked it, though.

Nobody will ever like the  new Teen Titans: Andrew Weiss is so confident in the rottenness of the new version of the Teen Titans DC announced this week, that he’s already inducting them into his “Nobody’s Favorites” hall of shame. I can’t disagree. I personally experienced aesthetic pain while looking at the cover image of Teen Titans #1. Of course, someone somewhere must like it, or DC never would have greenlighted it, would they? Do you like? Speak up in the comments, please. I’m genuinely curious, as I have a hard time comprehending anyone liking it.

Wow, Bryan Lee O’Malley used to suck: Check out his 1988 Transformers comic for evide—oh, he was only eight years old when he drew that? Damn, that’s actually pretty good then. (And he drew better Transformers at eight then I can at 34, the talented little punk…!)

“Batgirl’s Last Dance”: Will Brooker covers the hell out of The Brave and The Bold #33, the Cliff Chiang-drawn issue where Barbara Gordon, Zatanna and Wonder Woman do karaoke to a Beyonce song.

“The salient reason that more people aren’t reading about mainstream superheroes, of course, is not because they are…confused by backstory — it’s that they don’t happen to be particularly interested in mainstream superheroes”: Here’s NPR’s Glen Weldon on DC’s post-Flashpoint plans.

Once a week I sift through the millions of Etsy listings to find the best in geek chic for Blog@ readers. Last week I showcased some items from the X-Men. This week, in honor of the big announcements Nintendo is making at E3 I decided to look for some fashionable Nintendo related items. And yes, I’m sticking to our roots this time around. Nintendo, especially classic, does seem to encourage a lot of crafting…

So, I pretty much need this NES Zapper Desktop Lamp immediately. Partly because it reminds me of the Leg Lamp from A Christmas Story but mostly because it’s nostalgic-awesomeness AND useful! User Recycled Retro Gear can send you one for just $28 bucks in grey or orange.

This may look like just a regular, old Nintendo console but you’d be wrong. It’s a NESputer. That’s right. A computer housed in an old console. Made by user slothfish, for $850 it includes: 1.6ghz Dual-core Atom CPU, 2 GB DDR3 RAM, 750 GB Hard Drive, Nvidia ION graphics (9400gt), WiFi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth wireless connectivity, HDMI out so you can plug right into your HDTV and 8 USB ports (6 in back, 2 connected to the front controller ports). If I hadn’t just bought a new computer…If you just need a hardrive though, check out this 500gb one from user 8bitmemory for $99.99 housed in an old Legend of Zelda cartridge.

When they say geek chic, this is what they mean. Try on this Gameboy Tube Dress from user HereandThereVintage for $60. Or, if you prefer to be a little more covered up, this other Gameboy dress from user LifeIsRandom for $40

Need a much COOLER place to charge your i-whatever? Check out this Rock Dock – Nintendo Joystick – iPhone/iPod/iTouch Dock from user GeekUnique for $44.99. Or, if you need more room on your desk, go for the Nintendo Controller version for $33.99.

Oh man, oh man. Something else I need to furnish my house, a NES Controller Rug. Dimensions are 28.5 x 13 inches and user WTCrafts will send you one to step all over for $63.

As always, bear in mind, since Etsy is a craft website and not a commercial, mass-market dealer, items are almost always one-of-a-kind or in very limited availability. When you see something you like, buy it. It may not be there the next time you surf round. (Yes, it’s a very dangerous site for your wallet.) Also, since most items are created individually, many sellers are willing to customize something specifically to suit your needs. Just ask!

Awesome artist Simon Gane, drawing awesomely: Check out his Batman, Batgirl and, um, these other characters. (Ganked from Comics Reporter)

If First Class comes first, what comes second?: Johanna Draper Carlson raises an interesting dilemma regarding the latest based-on-a-Marvel-comic film, X-Men: First Class. If you want to read the comics it’s based on, um, what do you read? The heart of the movie is the Charles Xavier/Erik Lehnsherr relationionship, but where is that in the comics? I think spread out all over, along with Hellfire Club and Emma Frost stuff, none of which is all that much like it was the movie anyway. Everything branded “First Class” in the comics, the Jeff Parker-written stuff, is fantastic, but doesn’t have anything at all to do with the movie, beyond the fact that Beast is in both. I’d recommend Marvel’s X-Men: First Class comics, but only for people looking for fun, accessible X-Men comics, not people specifically looking for something like the movie. (Besides, none of the comic book versions of Magneto and Professor X were ever as dreamy as Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy).

DC’s direct market sales for April: Marc-Oliver Frisch’s analysis on DC’s sales from April at The Beat should be of special interest this time, given how radically DC is changing their publishing game in September. Frisch calls the planned 52 new launches “a workable enough load for the market,” given DC’s April output.  I’m sure that’s reassuring to some who see the move as a potential direct market apocalypse, but I still have some doubts. (It’s workable, but only if enough individual readers want to try to read a ton of new books; it looks like a very tempting jumping-off point, and, if anyone was ever considering moving from signles to trades, DC created the ideal time to do so—take four to six months off, then start collecting trades in spring of 2012). Speaking of, DC’s latest announcement of new titles, it seems like each and every one of those books would have a much better chance of flourishing if released over the course of a season or year, instead of in a single month.

Drawn and Quarterly to have an awesome fall: Actually, perhaps it’s more accurate to say comics fans are going to have an awesome fall.

Does DC have an Alan Moore created/recreated character hit list?: Gavok examines the evidence.

Congressman Anthony Weiner gives political cartoonist license to make dick jokes: Michael Cavna rounds up some of the most eye-catching, and Daryl Cagle has a Weinergate gallery.

This week in comics! These comics are available! Probably!

American Vampire: Survival of the Fittest #1: Joe The Barbarian artist Sean Murphy joins writer Scott Snyder for a five-issue spinoff miniseries. Set during World War II, Survival features vampire hunters Delicia Book and Cash McCogan.

Booster Gold #45: As one of the only regular DCU titles tying directly into Flashpoint, Dan Jurgens and Norm Rapumund’s book is positioned to benefit quite nicely from the big crossover event. It’s also just one of plenty of Flashpoint comics coming out this week, as four more three-issue miniseries launch: Flashpoint: Citizen Cold, Flashpoint: Deathstroke and The Curse of the Ravager, Flashpoint: Emperor Aquaman and Flashpoint: Frankenstein and the Creatures of the Unknown. That’s five books, for $15, and just this week, completists!

Captain America: American Nightmare: Excited for the upcoming Captain America movie, and looking to read about his comic adventures first? Great, Marvel’s got plenty of them to choose from. So many, in fact, that the main problem is probably figuring out where to start. Just this week, there’s the above hardcover collection, by Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek, Roger Stern, Andy Kubert and others (250-pages/$25), Captain America By Dan Jurgens Vol. 1, collecting the beginning of the Jurgens-written run from the late nineties (260/$30), Captain America: The Fighting Avenger, which collects four all-ages stories from the likes of Brian Clevinger, Paul Tobin, Jeff Parker, Gurihiu, David Baldeon and others (120/$15) and Captain America: No Escape, which collects a five-issue portion of Ed Brubaker’s run on the monthly, penciled by Butch Guice (120/$16).

Congress of the Animals: New Jim Woodring! This 100-page, $20 hardcover is Woodring’s second graphic novel, and the first to star his Frank character. Check out a preview here.

DC Comics Presents: Impulse #1: Before Geoff Johns aged him, matured him and changed his superhero identity in Flash and Teen Titans, Bart Allen went by the name Impulse and had funnier more fun adventures than one finds in the DCU of today. This $8, 95-page almost-trade includes four issues from writer Todd DeZago’s run, including art by pre-Rebirth Ethan Van Sciver, Angel Unzueta and Walter Simonson and featuring guest-stars like Batman, The Joker, Kalibak and Impulse’s archenemy, Inertia.

(more…)

I think the latest announcement makes it official: DC Comics has gone and went insane. (Quick, see if you can spot the typo in that Source blog post before they fix it!) As the main page reports, DC is relaunching both Batman and Detective Comics with new #1′s, and trading creative teams, with Greg Capullo taking over for Jock as Scott Snyder’s collaborator. I have more frightened and confused thoughts on the subject here.

And on the subject of DC relaunches: Bully, The Little Stuffed Bull proves once again why he should be in charge of the comics industry, naming his 52 tiles, which include the likes of Batgirl, Inc. starring Barbara Gordon, Stephanie Brown, and Cassandra Cain and Anyone Else You Want; Are You Happy Now? #1; Tom Spurgeon offers his own wish-list, five titles strong and, finally, Ty Templeton follows DC’s lead and launches his own 52 new versions of his Bun Toons.

Oracle no more?: While some fans are having fun with DC’s announcement, others are pretty concerned about what it means for some of the characters, including the most prominent person in a wheelchair in all of superhero comics (Professor X doesn’t count, because he’s always standing up, and also is also a mutant). Here are two posts expressing concern that Barbara Gordon will quit being the center of the DC heroes’ information and intelligence universe and one of their greatest leaders just so she can go back to her Bronze Age status quo, on DC Women Kicking Ass and Irrelevant Comics.

I want all of these: Check out Seth’s roller derby team logos. Then buy shirts of each. And give them to me. Please.

Anders Nilsen looks like this: Only hotter, I’m told.

“Just how many times can Hollywood insult Scotland?”: The Herald isn’t happy with a change X-Men: First Class made to one of its characters. Comics writer Alan Grant is quoted in the article.

So what’s Bryan Lee O’Malley up to?: Apparently, his fourth outline of a new project. He offers evidence via Twitter.

“We have a larger global footprint … than all of the major museums in the world combined”: That’s DeviantArt co-founder Angelo Sotira talking about the site in this USA Today feature.

Thomas Zahler’s weirdest commission?: The Love and Capes artist shares an unusual commission request for an image featuring both Power Girl and Ms. Marvel, and reveals a line he just wouldn’t cross. (By the way, if you haven’t ever seen it before, Zahler’s commissions page is a great way to waste time on the Internet).

Fearpoint and Flash Itself: Tim O’Neil on the latest chapters of the two big publisher’s two big series. (I think…it’s a creative piece, as far as comics reviews go).

I don’t know, would my blog post make a good rap song?: “Could My Screenplay Make a Good Graphic Novel?”

The dust from DC’s bombshell: If you missed it, and I’m not sure how you could have, here’s the USA Today article featuring the announcement itself. Here’s Tom Spurgeon’s more-cogent-than-most reaction to the news (that Spurgeon is one cogent fellow, isn’t he?). Here’s Heidi “The Beat” MacDonald’s round-up of creator and retailer tweets on the matter. Here’s Brian Hibbs’ reaction, offering the retailer’s point of view, and really focusing on those 52 titles. (Which is a strangely exact number, particularly if you’re having trouble thinking of, say, 10 DC characters capable of selling more than 20,000 books a month…or ten DC writers whose work you want to read monthly. It occurs to me as I write this that 52 is the same number of worlds in the current DCU multiverse, which may suggest there will be, like, five different Batman titles starring five different Batmans from five different earths or something, but also suggests a real randomness to this output explosion—those 52 worlds came about simply because there were 52 issues of 52, which was determined because it was a weekly series, and there are 52 weeks in a year. Huh.)  Here’s J.K. Parkin of Robot 6. Here’s Michael Cavna of The Washington Post. Here’s Flash-focused blog Speed Force taking a close look at Jim Lee’s Flash redesign (it’s boring old Barry Allen, based on the eye color). Here’s Tom Foss. Here’s Snell, who notes that the people who are announcing all these new titles which are going to be better than the old titles are the exact same people responsible for all those old titles that sold so poorly they needed rebooting. Here’s Jim Smith. Here’s Kiel Phegley, objecting to an omission in the new Justice League line-up, which seems particularly glaring given the new teams sartorial choices. And finally, here’s my own initial reaction from last night, which admittedly consisted mostly of disgust at the JLA’s matching dumb collars. I’m honestly having trouble even processing this announcement (or the reboot/redesign half of it, anyway), as it seems like a out-of-control line expansion applying the “Brand New Day” formula to not just a single franchise, but every single thing DC publishes. It just seems so…risky.

Hmm, did they ever consider just making all their comics really good…?: Here’s David Bitterbaum on four recent DC comics, three of which he liked and one of which he hated.

Supergirls rock and rolling: My God I love Cliff Chiang…is he drawing all 52 of those books? Because that might work…

I’d second this, so long as there are parades involved: “Geek Pride Day”

Need a break from all that other news? It’s time for this week’s Etsy Made Me Do It! Once a week I sift through the millions of Etsy listings to find the best in geek chic for Blog@ readers and last week I helped you show your geek pride. In anticipation of the release of X-Men: First Class this week, I decided to give some love to Professor Xavier’s super team.

For all your identification needs, the X-Men retractable badge wheel. User radbadge has this one for $8. Just a heads up: This badge wheel will give away as a mutant.

We can’t all be Ice Man, hence these Superhero Cool Feet from user WhatsEatingYin. They’re to stick under your laptop to help it from overheating. The pair, for $8, includes the likeness of Wolverine, Cyclops, Storm, Nightcrawler and Colossus.

If you get thirsty waiting for the next issue of X-Men to come out, take a sip of something from this X-Men 5oz Flask Vintage Comic Book Art. You can purchase this one from user goblinhut for $15. Pretty snazzy if you ask me.

Telling the time never looked so fun. User RRUclocks created this X-Men Nintendo Desk Clock out of the classic video game from the late 80s. You can get this one for $28 or check out this Recycled Comic Book clock from goblinhut for $20.

I wouldn’t have pegged this one an X-Men item except the creator intended it that way. It’s a Steampunk X-Men necklace! User gabriellemaggidesign hand made the necklace, which can be yours for $115. Great for an X-Men cosplay in my humble opinion..

And just because I’m a sucker for this kind of stuff, I give you – Professor X Meerkat. User niftyknits writes, “Meerkat Xavier leads his trusty band of XMeerkats from his wheelchair, which is a miracle of handknitted engineering!” I should say so! $87 for this degree of difficulty, $38 for Meerkat Cyclops or Meerkat Wolverine.

As always, bear in mind, since Etsy is a craft website and not a commercial, mass-market dealer, items are almost always one-of-a-kind or in very limited availability. When you see something you like, buy it. It may not be there the next time you surf round. (Yes, it’s a very dangerous site for your wallet.) Also, since most items are created individually, many sellers are willing to customize something specifically to suit your needs. Just ask!

This is one of those wonderful times that I get to just let the post speak, or as the case may be sing for itself. If you haven’t heard nerdrock group Kirby Krackle’s Green Lantern themed song “Ring Capacity” yet, now it’s easier than ever to take in with their all-new animated video! Check out the video below, then hit the jump for information on the animator and links to more Krackle-y goodness!

(more…)

We’ve talked about Norman Osborn, the villainous Green Goblin, and those who used his mantle after him. But Osborn’s legacy of evil has grown some interesting branches. It began when Roderick Kingsley, a businessman with a lust for power, used Osborn’s old weapons and technology to become a super-villain of a different color: the Hobgoblin.

In his new guise, Kingsley became a formidable enemy of Spider-Man’s, escaping the wall-crawler and the police even when his schemes were defeated. A few times, Spider-Man caught a person whom he believed to be his mysterious new enemy only to find out that they had been framed by the real Hobgoblin to act as a red herring. When another criminal named Jason Macendale attempted to have the Hobgoblin killed, Kingsley faked the death of his costumed alter ego and retired from the life.  He convinced Macendale (and the world) that the original Hobgoblin had been journalist Ned Leeds, leading to the man’s assassination.

Macendale then stole the Hobgoblin identity to use for his own, continuing his work as a mercenary. But without Kingsley’s great strength or cunning intellect, he was not nearly the same kind of threat. His desperation to prove himself and increase his power led down different paths, including making deals with demons. Years later, Kingsley became insulted that the identity he had created had become synonymous with a “loser” and killed Macendale, taking back the role of the Hobgoblin.

Recently, Kingsley intended to make another dramatic comeback but his life took a tragic turn. Now Phil Urich, who once attempted to use the Green Goblin’s technology to act as a hero, has become a new kind of Hobgoblin, one unlike any who have come before.

Got it? Good. Let’s get on with the show then! (more…)

Once a week I sift through the millions of Etsy listings to find the best in geek chic for Blog@ readers. And this time I’m going literal. Last week I put your brains to work with science! This week it’s all about letting your geek flag fly. Why? Because someone on Facebook told me tomorrow is Geek Pride Day.

Made up holiday? Absolutely! And also, according to Wikipedia, *ahem* “It shares the same day as three other science-fiction fan ‘holidays’ – Towel Day, for fans of the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Trilogy by Douglas Adams, Star Wars Day, and the Glorious 25 May, for fans of Terry Pratchett’s Discworld.” And yes, I know May 4 is considered Star Wars Day too, May 25 is the day the original film hit theaters. Regardless, wanna let the world know what’s what? Try some of these on for size.

Geek Bookends for any type of literature you enjoy. Especially if it’s comic books. This set from user KnobCreekMetalArts run for $19.99 and are made from solid steel.

Geek isn’t the only label to wear proudly, nerd and dork are also terms to be employed. I should know, I go by The Nerdy Bird. Anyway, this Nerd/Dork cup and saucer set are reworked English Meaken coffee cups. From user trixiedelicious for $40.

If you prefer to let people know who you are all through the day, why not try this Laser Cut Geek Necklace from user Morphologica. Also check out the Dork variation as well. Both are $29.50 and are available in several colors.

I thought this Nerd Necklace was cute and simple. Made from sterling silver, user Underoakstudios says it’s, “Better than a pocket protector and knowing knowing Data’s “Ode to Spot” by heart for establishing nerd street cred.” $40

And last but not least, for a little Geek Contemplation comes this work of wooden art. User banished made this from 3/4″ solid maple and it measures 1 5/8″ x 4 3/16″. Yours for $12, or, if you prefer, the larger Nerd sign by WilliamDohman for $42 made from recycled plywood.

As always, bear in mind, since Etsy is a craft website and not a commercial, mass-market dealer, items are almost always one-of-a-kind or in very limited availability. When you see something you like, buy it. It may not be there the next time you surf round. (Yes, it’s a very dangerous site for your wallet.) Also, since most items are created individually, many sellers are willing to customize something specifically to suit your needs. Just ask!

Action Comics #901: Artist Kenneth Rocafort joins writer Paul Cornell on Action Comics, which has returned its focus to Superman after Cornell’s Luthor-starring arc. Rocafort and Cornell will be continuing that weird “Reign of Doomsday” storyline that’s been running through various DC Comics for months now. The main page has a preview here. Meanwhile, if you missed it, DC also has a reprint of the over-sized, $6 Action Comics #900 coming out this week.

DC Comics Presents: Green Lantern: Willworld: This 2001 origial graphic novel was most notable for its amazing artwork, courtesy of the young and up-and-coming artist Seth Fisher, who unfortunately passed away in 2006. This is a hell of a showcase for his skills, as the story features a young Hal Jordan waking up on a strange world full of bizarre imagery. J.M. DeMatteis scripted. Like all of the DCCP reprints, its $8 for somewhere in the neighborhood of 100-pages.

Deep Sleeper: IDW is reprinting this follow-up graphic novel to The Coffin, by the creative team of Phil Hester and Mike Huddleston. It’s a 145-page, $22 hardcover.

Emma Frost Ultimate Collection, Mystique By Brian K. Vaughan Ultimate Collection: Two big books featuring characters featured in this summers X-Men: First Class film. The former is a 430-page, $35 trade featuring all 18 issues of the 2003-launched Emma Frost ongoing from writer Karl Bollers and a variety of artists. The latter is a 310-page, $25 trade collecting the first 13 issues of the Vaughan-written 2003 Mystique monthly.

Green Lantern #66, Green Lantern Corps #60 and Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #10: You know how DC plans to publish only one single comic book the week of August 31, Flashpoint #5? Can they really pull that off? Because that would demonstrate an extraordinary amount of control of what they publish and when, and if they can do that, why on Earth would they publish issues of all three titles participating in the “War of the Green Lanterns” crossover story on the exact same day? That seems kind of insane, doesn’t it? There’s a whole lot of Green Lantern material out this week besides those three issues, too. There’s the aforementioned DCCP reprint of Green Lantern: Willworld, the 180-page, $23 trade collection Green Lantern Corps: Revolt of the Alpha Lanterns and the 130-page, $13 trade collection Batman: The Brave and the Bold: Emerald Knight has six stories in it, two of which feature Hal Jordan and the GLC.

(more…)

What, none of Bluewater bio-comics made the list?: Here are CNN’s “top five political comic books.” Number two on the list is probably particularly relevant right now, given the news of the later part of last week.

2011 Glyph Awards Winners: I don’t always list award winners here, because there are so many awards, but then I feel like I probably should list the Glyph Awards winners, since I was one of the judges this year, but then I think maybe I shouldn’t because it’s gauche to do so given my involvment, and then I think it’s not about me so I why am I overthinking it and anyway, here’s who won what. Congratulations to all of the winners; and to all of the losers, I hope you realize I was totally susceptible to bribes, so if you didn’t win, you have no one to blame but yourself for not offering me large sums of money. (Legal disclaimer: I’m totally kidding)

Rapturetoons: In light of recent predictions that didn’t quite go off (Guys, Jesus said “of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone” right there in the gospel of Matthew!), Sequential rounded up some Rapture-related comics on the Internet, while Daryl Cagle did the same with political cartoons on the subject.

“We can all agree now that it was crap, right?”: Writing for Mightygodking.com, John Seavey examines the impact of Marvel’s Civil War series five years later, specifically looking at what changes the series wrought that Marvel embraced and which they ran away screaming from at first opportunity. It really does seem like a lot of the latter, and not so much of the former, huh?

And you say the sky is what color, exactly?: “‘Beetle Bailey’ set bad example”

I always enjoy reading stories like this: At Sequential Tart, Anita Olin talks about how she got into comic books. (Via The Beat)

Mike Sterling apologizes: But sometimes, when you’ve been thinking about some small aspect of a 1974 Swamp Thing comic book for years, it’s best to just put it on your blog and get it off your chest.

For decades now, fans have been reading comics featuring the X-Men. These heroes, “sworn to protect a world that hates and fears them,” have been translated to various media and have spawned many spin-off titles: New Mutants, X-Force, X-Factor, Excalibur, and others. Soon, we’ll be getting the new live-action movie X-MEN: First Class in theaters. But what about the true first class of Charles Xavier?

In the continuity of Marvel Comics, Charles Xavier was a mutant with telepathy. Unlike other superhumans who get abilities from biological alteration or fantastic outside factors, a mutant is a human being born with a genetic bonus known as the X-gene. When activated, usually during puberty, the X-gene gives this person strange traits or abilities. As more and more mutants became known to the public, many people feared that humanity was being replaced by a new race: homo superior. Many people began to lash out at mutants, out of fear and hatred. Some mutants abused their abilities for profit or simple amusement. And some mutants felt that they had been chosen by evolution to take charge of the Earth.

Xavier decided to create a school where new mutant teenagers would be able to spend time with each other and learn how to temper and hone their abilities. He also decided that these students would work as a strike force to take down those mutants who chose to be criminals and terrorists, showing the public that they were all cut from the same cloth and that they could all benefit from co-existence. In reference to the X-gene they all carried, his called his team the X-Men. His first class included: Scott Summers (Cyclops), Warren Worthington III (Angel, later called Archangel), Hank McCoy (Beast) and, the youngest, Bobby Drake (Iceman). Weeks after his class was assembled, the team was joined by Xavier’s very first student, Jean Grey (who used the codename Marvel Girl).

Each of these heroes has worn a variety of costumes over the years. But for the purposes of this column, we’ll be focusing on the outfits they wore when they were still the first class to attend Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngers in Westchester County. Let’s begin, eh?

THE ORIGINAL UNIFORMS

The original X-Men class was introduced in X-Men #1 (later on, retroactively referred to as Uncanny X-Men #1), published in 1963. They were brought to life by the magic of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Kirby had previously worked on The Fantastic Four and Challengers of the Unknown, two teams of heroic adventurers who wore jumpsuits rather than flashy superhero costumes. With the original X-Men team, the same strategy is used.

Marvel had only begun producing superhero comics again two years earlier. The Fantastic Four was a family and the Avengers team was basically a club where loners occasionally joined forces. But the X-Men was a school. All five members were teenagers who were under the leadership and instruction of Charles Xavier, whom they lovingly called Professor X. (more…)

What comics publishers talk about when they talk about selling out: I imagine most of you have heard some version of this before, but Jason Wood does a nice job of explaining what exactly it means when a publisher announces that a comic book has sold out in this piece for iFanboy. I suppose it varies from publisher to publisher, but personally when I hear one of the bigger publisher’s announce a comic book selling out, it  usually just confuses me, since comics are ordered far in advance and are unreturnable, making direct market publishing awfully close to printing-to-order. So sometimes when I read some announcements of sell-outs, I can’t help but translate them into “We messed up pretty badly” in my head. Anyway, the info Wood presents is always worth keeping in mind when parsing publisher PR.

Nice @#$%ing cover: Fantagraphics’ Flog blog shares word that Paul Hornschemeier is providing the cover for Dan Sinker’s The F***ing Epic Twitter Quest of @MayorEmanuel, a fake twitter account attributed to the notoriously foul-mouthed Obama chief-of-staff turned Chicago mayor that rapidly evolved into a fantasy novel of sorts. From what I’ve read of it, the book should be really funny, and that’s a damn fine cover image.

If so, it’s probably Circe’s doing: “Is ‘Wonder Woman’ Cursed?”

Superhero comics won’t truly be mainstream until newspapers care enough to Google the correct spelling of  “Spider-Man”: That personal pet peeve aside, this Ottawa Citizen feature on Dale Eaglesham, premised on his upcoming Alpha Flight comic, is a nice spotlight of a deserving talent.

“Life After ‘Walking Dead’”: This Fear.net article, sub-titled “Five Horror Graphic Novels You Need to Read,” has a very broad definition of horror, and I’m not sure those five works would necessarily appeal to someone who liked Walking Dead (It’s not like it has much in common with Jill Thompson’s Scary Godmother comics, for example), but no one can ever go wrong with Jill Thompson, Rick Geary, Richard Sala, Thomas Ott and Lorenzo Mattotti.

“After all, if you’re going to ogle a drawing, it would be nice if it appeared to be human”: Good point, Matthew J. Brady.

IDW’s TMNT creative team is…: Comics Alliance put the word “exclusive” in brackets after their “IDW Announces ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Creative Team” headline, so I’ll link to their peice. That’s news I’ve been waiting to hear announced for quite some time now, and I’ll admit that it was pretty shocking news. There are three names attached, two of them belong to people whom I had never heard of, and the third of which is literally the last person I ever would have expected to hear as being attached to this project. Well, literally the last comics person—my grandfather is probbly the last person in general I would have expected to hear is attached to this project.

Welcome back, gang. Last week, the TV series Smallville came to a close after ten successful seasons. For the first several seasons, this was a TV show that insisted on avoiding all tights and capes. But eventually, that rule fell away as more and more superheroes showed up. Even Clark began wearing outfits that were meant to act as prototypes of the famous costume we knew he was fated to wear, a costume we knew would finally arrive in the finale.

Last week, we checked out the Smallville interpretation of several heroes who aided Clark over the course of the show. Now let’s see who else was there. And let’s take a look at the Kryptonian hero himself.

DR. FATE

In the DCU, there have been a few people to use the name Dr. Fate. The most famous was a hero who operated during the Golden Age of comics. Kent Nelson was a boy trained in the ways of magic by the mystical Lord of Order named Nabu. When Kent wore the helm of Nabu, he became a host for the mystical sorcerer and this combined being was called Dr. Fate.

In Smallville, Kent Nelson is played by Brent Strait and is a man driven out of his mind by having to wear the helm of Nabu over and over again. Apparently, he was able to see everyone’s fate but his own and this knowledge destroyed much of his grip on reality. But when he resumes his role as Dr. Fate, Nabu’s power is able to help balance his mind and restore his sense of purpose.

Technically, this isn’t a bad translation. It’s certainly accurate in getting all the basic elements there. Helmet, cape, amulet, all there. Definitely a good idea to do the belt rather than shorts over trousers. But there are a couple of details not working for me. The double-F on the belt (for “Fate”) is a bit sill for me, I’d do away with that. The muscle outlines don’t really work for me. Dr. Fate is a sorcerer, not a character who focuses on physical strength, and this comes off too much as decoration for its own sake.

And like all fashion, material is key. The outfit Dr. Fate is wearing comes off as a Halloween costume, even in the world of Smallville. Maybe if they had him in a loose blue silk tunic? I don’t know. I do know for sure, though, that I would’ve preferred a metal helmet that seemed like it might have been made centuries ago rather than a plastic one.

This costume should be given a lot of credit for trying to be as accurate as it could and it actually looks quite nice in the right lighting or with the right computer-generated filter. But just misses the mark of being cool.

And what’s with the cod piece? (more…)

Doug Moench and Russ Heath, Doug Moench and Roger Ebert: Bhob shares an old Moench/Heath strip, and the story behind it. (Via tcj.com)

Life imitates political cartoon: Michael Cavna shares a 2003 cartoon about an Arnold Schwarzenegger love child by Cam Cadrow, which now looks prescient.

Bad movie, good beer?: Bryan Munn didn’t care for the Thor film, but he drank a rather appropriate-sounding beer before taking it in. (I’m pretty positive those 3D action sequences would have made me ill if I had any beer in my stomach, although I did like the movie for the most part).

“One psychologist even changed the comic book world and influenced…the feminist movement”: Psychcentral.com profiles William Moulton Marston.

The logic of most of these reasons is completely unassailable: “Why Aquaman is the best damn superhero in comic history”

Flashpoint vs. Fear Itself: Yan Basque counts up August’s number of tie-ins for each series/event/thing. Which one wins or loses depends on whether you think a huge number of tie-ins for a big, huge series is a good thing or a bad thing.

Hey, Al Milgrom’s first name is Allen?: The veteran artist gets profiled on the occasion of the Thor movie making Marvel superheroes the main topic of pop-culture conversation for another few weeks.