You probably wouldn’t know it to look at ‘em, but those little cartoons I usually draw to kick off this column so that there’s some non-comic book cover art to post each week take time to make. I spend minutes and minutes on ‘em each Monday night. Unfortunately, my schedule contained fewer minutes than usual this week, so I didn’t make one this time. I’m sorry to derpive you all of the poorly-drawn colored-pencil-on-index-card imagery you have come to expect at the top of each week’s here-are-some-comics-coming-out-this-week column.

But I did do the writing part! So join me after the jump for an all-words, no-pictures look at some of thise week’s noteworthy releases.

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As you know, we’ve been checking in with iconic heroes (of more than one world) to see what they think about the Halloween costumes based on their likenesses. As it turns out, it was a little bit difficult to get this next meeting, but we managed to pull it off. We sat down with Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern John Stewart, and The Flash for a lively discussion.

NRAMA: Thank you again for your time.

Superman: Don’t mention it. I always have time for our friends in the press.

NRAMA: I have to admit, I wasn’t sure it would work out.

Flash: Yeah, well, we’ve had trouble with writers for a while.

GL: Wally . . .

Flash: What? Too inside?

NRAMA: Well, Flash, since it looks like you came to talk, let’s start with you.

Flash: Hit me.

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Forgetting driving your enemies before you and hearing the lamentations of their women — Moviehole has posted some casting breakdowns for the upcoming Conan film!

As far as things go, it looks like director Marcus Nispel is going the reboot route with the Cimmerian Barbarian, as seen by this partial description of Conan himself:

Conan is very smart, almost inhumanly strong, and very cunning. His entire life, from the moment of his birth, has been shaped by violence. Being the last of his tribe and having to watch his father die a cruel death, he is determined avenge his peoples slaughter by killing all those who led the attack on the Cimmerians, including the all-powerful Khalar Singh. He is prepared to die in order to accomplish his goal. What Conan did not expect, was to find a reason to live

Want more information? There are some more character information — as well as some spoilerific plot points revealed — at Moviehole, which you can see by clicking here.

Muscles, long flowing hair, a European vibe — I’m not talking about Thor, I’m talking about Fabio!

But Colleen Doran reports that the two could have very easily become synonymous, as she posted some images from a now-decommissioned animated series the European model green-lit. Considering the series’ logline — “with power comes responsibility” — sounds fairly similar to a well-known Webhead, part of me is kind of glad this thing is in development hell. What say you?

The Boy Who Lived might also be the Ultimate Party Foul.

Entertainment Weekly has reported that a Harry Potter fan in the UK named Ms. Marmite Lover has gotten her Harry Potter-themed party quashed by Warner Bros., who said that the party would be infringing on their rights.

“My living room holds under 30 people, this is hardly some cynical money spinning exercise,” Ms. Lover said. “At a maximum of £25 a head I won’t make a profit, I’ll be struggling to cover the costs of the ingredients and props I’ve shelled out on, such as dry ice and miracle berries.”

Considering that money is being spent on the now “Generic Wizard Party,” WB probably has a leg to stand on with all this. But I’m just thinking Warner Bros. didn’t want to listen to the kids and the damn music:

Comics Alliance has a particularly fascinating post up, going back to the days of yore — 1990, that is.

In those glory days of million-selling comics, House of Ideas architect Stan Lee also did some video interviews with “Comic Book Greats” — and in this case, the interview is with Rob Liefeld.

What’s so fascinating for me is to see Liefeld really at the beginning of his career. For frame of reference, in this video, Rob Liefeld is 23 — which is both cool and a bit intimidating, as that’s exactly how old I am right now. Listening to him discuss how he broke into the industry — at age 19, no less — is a good story, even as breaking into the industry is tougher than ever.

If you click the Youtube link up above, there are additional parts to this interview — watching Rob draw “Cross” — one of the early names for Cable, if I recall correctly — is additionally cool. Do you think Rob knew how popular that character would become? And listening to him talk about style, about working with editors, well, it’s definitely something you should see. Check it out, let us know what you think!

Variety has reported that Ring of Roses, the independent graphic novel by Das Petrou and John Watkiss, will be making its way to the big screen.

Jason Piette and Michael L. Cowan of Spice Factory, along with Persistent Entertainment’s Matthew Rhodes and Aaron Cruze are producing, the article notes.

The book is set in an alternate version of London, as a lawyer and a criminal uncover a secret conspiracy involving the government and bubonic plague.

Well, considering that new books are coming out tomorrow, if you HAVEN’T read Mighty Avengers #30 yet, and don’t want to be spoiled, just move along, nothing to see here.

Seriously, nothing to see here. Just keep reading. We’ll wait.

Okay, ready to have some high-falutin’ comics discussion? Then SPOILERS ON and read away…

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It’s been a good few weeks to be a fan of Bill Willingham’s storybook send-up Fables. Not only did the series finally get the Deluxe Edition treatment (well, the first ten issues did anyway), but Willingham and frequent series contributor Steve Leialoha put together the first-ever prose novel based in the Fables universe. In so doing, Fables joins a pretty short list of DC properties to be brought to prose without first getting a movie or TV deal.

The story of Fables revolves around a group of mystical, mythical characters living in a small, hidden block on New York’s Upper West Side. The Fables’ name is very descriptive of what they are—they’re characters from old fables, bedtime stories and fairy tales, immortal and living in exile from their homeworlds, which were conquered by a vicious dictator known as The Adversary. By now, regular readers of the monthlies will know that The Adversary is—well, nevermind. I won’t spoil it here. At any rate, the identity has been revealed and the Fables of Fabletown and numerous other earthly encampments have already undertaken to combat The Adversary. But for the purposes of the two books reviewed here, that identity remains shrouded in mystery, the battles unfought and, frankly, even some of the relationships that have driven the series for fifty issues largely undealt-with.

It should be said that any reader who intends to read Fables: The Deluxe Edition Volume 1 as their first introduction to the comics, ought to do so before reading Peter & Max, the novel by Willingham that was released a couple of weeks ago. While the writer explains in the foreward that you don’t have to have read any of the comics to understand the book—and it’s true—the reading of the book first will substantially dull a reader’s enjoyment of Fables: Legends in Exile and Fables: Animal Farm, the two graphic novels that compose the Deluxe Edition hardcover. In the first couple of chapters, which set the stage for Peter Piper’s forthcoming feud with his brother Max (The “Pied Piper”), the endings of both of the first two Fables stories are offhandedly referred to. And it’s probably five pages in before the first major spoiler relating to the ending of “Legends in Exile.”

At any rate, the Deluxe Edition format is one that I’ve really liked so far with James Robinson’s Starman, and while Fables doesn’t have the same visual strength (Starman almost feels like it demands a larger format), it’s nice to see certain of the “big” moments in the series in widescreen and I suspect that as the Deluxe Edition Fables collections progress, characters like the North Wind and moments like the Battle of Fabletown will be well-served by the oversized pages. It’s frankly shocking that it’s taken this long to get Willingham’s bestselling title on board, but DC’s trade strategy, particularly as it relates to Vertigo titles, is a little ineffable. I mean—reprinting and renumbering the Transmetropolitan trade paperbacks instead of giving the best-selling first pair of graphic novels an oversized hardcover treatment? Come on. That said, if you haven’t read Fables yet, the Deluxe Edition is the way to go. It’s not that much more costly than just getting the paperbacks, and this book is, I guarantee it, a keeper.

Peter & Max is an odd animal; taking characters who have had little or no interaction with the main characters of the Fables ongoing comic was probably a better choice than singling someone out for attention, and the Pipers certainly had a remarkably interesting backstory crafted for them by Mr. Willingham—but as the chapters toggled back and forth between flashback and “current day” stories of Peter and Max, I couldn’t help but feel like things were happening in the wrong place. I wanted to see a story set in the Fables universe, and instead was treated to a lot of backstory about the Homelands while Peter drove around Germany for 150 pages. The wide-eyed, energetic young man who struggles to survive in the Homelands seemed to have lost his will to live by the time the story began—and while it was later explained how he got to be that way, it didn’t feel like enough was in place to make him feel like the same guy for most of the reading.

The second half of the book—both the part set in the present and the past—was much better than the first, which is great for those of us who hung on but leaves me wondering how many potential new fans Willingham lost in the first half of the book. The ending was brilliant, because it was one that I saw coming on page 40 or so, and then completely forgot that I’d seen coming until after it had happened. It’s exactly what I want in a climax—something natural, organic and even maybe a little predictable that takes you by surprise and pantses your expectations.

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!

Echo: Desert Run, released last week, is the third volume in what I still can’t help myself calling “Terry Moore’s new series after Strangers in Paradise.” Echo has been going on for a couple of years now and has created a pretty big footprint on the comics industry itself—but Strangers in Paradise is the kind of thing you can’t escape.
At any rate, Julie Martin’s adventures with her crazy power suit of “alloy” finally start to make a little sense in this third volume. Up until now, it’s been about characters—a group of disparate individuals tossed into a crappy situation together with no real explanation for the situation, but a lot of hints. In that way, it felt a lot like life. This volume, which comes with a lot of narrative satisfaction, is a lot less like life and a lot more like storytelling. The crazy, nameless homeless guy who’s been killing people from day (read: issue) one gets a name and a very unexpected agenda via a mental link with Julie, while huge chunks of the book are given to HeNRI’s people to explain the purpose of their organization, the suit and their internal conflict.
Meanwhile, it’s setting the stage for a lot of great character moments in the next few months of the monthly series or the next trade. Ivy’s family drama and a few clues as to what might be hidden away in Julie’s secret box set the stage for what’s next to come with them—and the addition of Pam, Julie’s sister, to their merry band of travelers (as opposed to being in the lunatic asylum where she spent the first ten issues or so) is a welcome one. Having had Dillon and Julie together, alone, on the road for so long it seemed like only a matter of time before he’d be making out with her—and given that she’s wearing bits of his last girlfriend’s exploded DNA on her breasts that’s just a little too much for me. The minute he noticed how hot Ivy was, I felt like the whole book was a lot less predetermined.
Moore’s art remains some of the strongest in the business, with expressive, often comical faces that give a real sense of humanity to the characters beneath. Echo, of course, has given him a little more opportunity to play at the extremes that most other comic creators call home lately, with things like a character being introduced, developed, hinted as a major player and then almost immediately (and graphically) blown up.
Julie’s next volume should take her into the belly of the beast, and the much-shorter shelf life Terry Moore has in store for Echo than he did for Strangers in Paradise should ensure that things start getting very crazy, dangerous and action-movie loud sooner rather than later.

So early next year, when Smallville gets their second half of Season 9 under way, there’s the little matter of an episode written by Geoff Johns and featuring key members of the Justice Society (with the one-word title of “Society”). Well, the show’s producers, in their ultimate wisdom, decided that it was too good to confine to one episode, and it’s getting a second part entitled “Legends.”

And with this two-parter, the ever-reliable Michael Ausiello of Entertainment Weekly reports that a veteran Justice LEAGUER will be in on the action: J’onn J’onzz, the Martian Manhunter! Self-professed comic book geek Phil Morris will be reprising his role as the Metropolis police detective for the first time this season.

So between Superman (Clark Kent), Green Arrow (Oliver Queen) and Det. John Jones, and Hawkman (Carter Hall), Dr. Fate (Kent Nelson) and Stargirl (Courtney Whitmore), we’re looking at the first live-action crossover between the JLA and JSA!

Red Snow
Written & Illustrated by Susumu Katsumata
Published by Drawn & Quarterly

Drawn & Quarterly’s importing of Yoshihiro Tatsumi’s “gekiga” manga to English-speaking shores has been very welcome in many quarters, particularly my home. My appreciation for comics from the East is blunted somewhat by the focus on genre-centric titles and incredibly long running serials. Tatsumi’s short stories and human gravitas really hit the mark for me, and I looked forward to D&Q’s latest gekiga “discovery,” Susumu Katsumata.

Well, Mr. Katsumata’s work isn’t quite on part with Tatsumi’s comics, though the short story collection Red Snow does have several positives. Setting all his stories in the pre-industrial Japanese countryside of his own youth, Katsumata’s comics are securely anchored in the details of rural life. Permeated with a sense of melancholy and small-town corruption, each tale beckons readers to explore the darker side of small town life.

Infused with an exceedingly dry, black humor (a village of women whose husbands have gone away to work keep a monk in a sack and pass him from home to home each night) and Japanese folklore (kappas abound), the tales in Red Snow are perhaps a little far removed from the experience of many Western readers. That distance may prevent Katsumata’s work from reaching the same level as Tatsumi’s work has achieved on these shores, but each story reveals intentions that reach across cultural barriers when you take time to explore it.

Katsumata’s illustration has certain limitations, with spotty anatomy and inconsistent faces, but his use of exaggeration to convey emotional qualities is very effective. The backgrounds are much more consistent than the figures, establishing each scene in a specific pre-industrial reality. Clear and structured, Katsumata’s page layouts are easy to read for even a novice comics reader.

Susumu Katsumata’s Red Snow is a solid collection of gekiga stories. The work doesn’t muster the same snap as Tatsumi’s comics, but readers interested in darkly humorous manga that explores the underbelly of rural life will likely find several gems in Katsumata’s book that justify the time spent exploring his work.

Nine Gallons

Written & Drawn by Susie Cagle

32 pages, 6.75″ x 6.75″, $5

Available at This Is What Concerns Me

We roll into the holiday season and more thought is given to those among us who are in need. Whether or not it’s the holidays or The Great Recession, there will always be those of us less fortunate. Susie Cagle’s mini-comic, Nine Gallons, invites those of us more fortunate to take a step into the world of the homeless and consider helping out.

For Susie Cagle, part of the answer is to just do something and she finds an outlet through Food Not Bombs, an international collective that protests war and serves food to the homeless. We see her on the first page, sprinting, limbs stretched out, sweat beads flying, as she runs to her first gig with the group. Once there, she’s met by a curious little man who barks, “I am Raj and you are late! Here, chop these into bits and introduce yourself.” This guy is a 20 year veteran, the de facto leader and a hard taskmaster. He is Yoda to Cagle’s Luke Skywalker.

Then there’s the rough terrain of battle, San Francisco’s Tenderloin District, an area full of sketchy characters until maybe you get to know some of them. First thing up, no one here in the TL is homeless. They’re just “camping.” Cagle asks one guy how long he’s been camping. “Seven years.”

Keep in mind too that this comic is full of life due to the combination of excellent reportage and spot on cartooning. It’s no wonder a lot of the best cartoonists are also excellent writers. It must be that inner need to get to the truth, observe and report. And Cagle does indeed report from the streets. She captures the vibe of waiting and hoping to make a difference as you offer free soup. It’s one ragtag bunch of people with soup attempting to connect with another ragtag bunch of people without soup or much of anything else.

You’ll be happy to know that Raj comes around to believing in Cagle. He even gets comfortable enough to request that maybe Cagle could make cupcakes for everyone. That she won’t do. We also learn that the city of San Francisco has not come around to addressing its homeless. As Cagle mentions, in 1988, the year that the SF chapter was founded, the city made more than 700 felony arrests of Food Not Bombs volunteers. Nowadays, the city hoses down the TL at six each evening in the hopes of scattering people somewhere else.

So, as we enter the holidaze, those of us who have the luxury of arguing the merits of one comic over another should consider ourselves lucky. And, by all means, look to Nine Gallons as a shining example of a comic used for a higher purpose. There isn’t any need to argue whether it’s too sexy or not literate. This mini-comic is really a nice guide for what you can do in the comics medium if you have integrity and a good story to tell.

Having said that, consider how each character in Nine Gallons is imbued with his or her own light. Whether it’s a volunteer or someone down on their luck, each character is distinct. Little but vital details are included: facial expression, clothing, body language, word choice. And this isn’t in some realistic style but more of a cartoony and naturalistic style which is actually more of challenge. Cagle is trying to show you how the character feels as much as how the character looks. A wonderful example is the portrait of Judy, a little old lady who knits amazing sweaters. The panel of Judy stepping up to get her routine cup of soup has a beautiful drawing of her in the background. It’s a great portrait and wonderful pause before we return to the streets.

For more information on Food Not Bombs, check out their site. And for more on what Susie Cagle is up to, check out her site.

By now you’ve heard about the fact that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were sold to Viacom/Nickelodeon earlier in the week. Among the talents that have been working with the martially artistic terrapins in recent years is Tristan Jones. Jones had been writing Tales of the TMNT, a book that received favorable notices over time by our own J. Caleb Mozzocco. We approached him for comment, and were surprised by some of the things that he had to say in the following statement.

According to Jones:

“Mirage Studios, Inc. will close on December 31, 2009 - so the current crew will become independent contractors on January 1 to get the final issues out. Mirage will continue to publish “Tales” until the May, 2010 issue - but as of now - that’s the end of the line. Peter did keep rights for Mirage to publish 18 TMNT comic books per year through the direct market, which would only be based on the current Mirage Universe stuff (eg: a continuation/conclusion to Volume 4).

While Peter did maintain the rights to do comic books, Mirage no longer has the rights to do trade paperbacks. So the “Mirage Universe” book solicited for December is canceled. What I’ve been told is that Mirage can only publish material between 32 and 48 pages long.

What could possibly happen is that say Nickelodeon/Viacom/Paramount/whoever decided to pick up the ball and run in a completely new direction with the Turtles, they’d be able to license that out to another company, and that company could potentially do anything they like, except publish anything that continues the currently established Mirage Universe, so any comics that would come from another company would be something completely new (what IDW is doing with Transformers and GI Joe is a pretty good example of the sort of thing that could be done).

Peter still owns Mirage, so there’s a chance that Mirage could continue publishing but there aren’t any solid plans for anything Turtle related yet (outside of what I just mentioned) or any new IP’s that I’m aware of.”

It would seem that the most surprising note here is the lack of trade paperbacks. That would seem like a sure signal that the new ownership is looking toward their own deal in the future. If so, where might the future comics home of the Turtles be?

As for Jones, he continues to write and can be found at http://tristanhuwjones.blogspot.com/

UPDATE: There is a statement at the current Mirage Studios home that also invokes the May, 2010 date.

If you haven’t heard the news, Peter Laird has sold all intellectual property rights to the TMNT franchise to Nickelodeon. So Nick now owns the TMNT lock, stock and barrel. Of note, Peter did retain the right to publish up to 18 TMNT comics per year should he choose to do so - thus Mirage Publishing will remain in business at least until May, 2010 . . . .

Speaking of which, I will be creating a new Mirage Studios web site for us to continue posting news and info about our comics. This site will be up and running soon and hopefully there will be a link here before any major changes take place.

I’m tempted to say “So long, and thanks for all the fish” - but we’ll still be here for a bit and we’ll definitely be around at the new Mirage site once it’s established.

Earlier this month, I mentioned that Domo is the centerpiece of a chainwide promotion at 7-Eleven, with his own Slurpee flavor in collector cups. In addition to that, there is a group of four custom Domo Qee toys in unique packaging, including a Slurpee cup, and these are sought after by Domo collectors myself and are getting harder and harder to find.

There was a Domo Qee mystery-box series released this past July, and it sold pretty well, so Dark Horse is proud to announce the arrival of the second mystery-box assortment. The first series (see image above), which offered sixteen different Domo designs, each in a small box that concealed the figure from the buyer until after purchase, was a sellout.

“This was Dark Horse’s first attempt at a mystery-box type of release,” product development head David Scroggy remarked, “and we are gratified by the response. We didn’t want to repeat ourselves, so we came up with a whole slate of brand-new designs for series two. It is an extension for those who bought into the first series, and a jumping-on point for newer fans.”

Dark Horse’s association with Domo, who is the mascot of Japanese television network NHK, began with limited-edition flocked vinyl figures. A set of these in 8-inch size was released and eventually sold out. A followup 5.5-inch series did equally as well. Next up is a new release of limited editions in 4-inch size, hitting stores this Fall.
One of the great aspects of Dark Horse’s Domo figures is the introduction of color variants, known collectors as “colorways.” Since the Domo character is brown, the Japanese property owners required some persuasion before they agreed to the changing of his appearance. I’m sure when they saw the sales figures, that definitely helped.

Are any of you readers Qee collectors? I really enjoy the Simpsons Qees as well.

Hot off the heels of this weekend’s Wonder Woman Day, we at Blog@ found an interesting article from Sci Fi TV Zone, with Deborah Joy Levine. Levine, who created the Lois and Clark television show, apparently was also contacted to create a similar Wonder Woman series.

Here is a highlight from an unearthed interview from way back when:

I guess my new take is that she is a Greek history professor, a young and very bright woman having a hard time juggling her personal life with her work. In this case, of course, her real work is being an Amazon warrior. It’s, like, “I’ll save the world, come home, pop a Lean Cuisine in the oven and watch the soap I taped this afternoon.”

Obviously, the show didn’t take off — and while I dug Lois and Clark (I was seven, give me a break), part of me doesn’t feel bad about this dropped Wondy show at all. As I’ve said to my colleagues before, Wonder Woman is — repeat, is — a good enough property to tell straight, without Sex and the City trappings. And if she was going to riff on another show, wouldn’t Diana merit the West Wing meets superheroics, instead? What do you think, Rama Readers?

Despite being a proud Massachusettsian, I was busy working for the weekend and wasn’t able to hit the Boston Comic-Con this weekend, which featured comics creators ranging from Scott Wegener, Cliff Chiang, Walt Simonson, and many, many more.

But to make things a little bit better for those who weren’t able to go, Chiang has posted up some images of sketches he drew during this weekend’s Boston Con, ranging from Daredevil to Black Cat to Doctor Strange. But this one is my favorite:

Lois Lane, everybody. Talk about a beautiful image. Surprisingly, a look at the Comic Book Database shows that Chiang has never tackled the Man of Steel in an official capacity before — it’s too bad, because if this image is any indication, he’d hit that series more powerful than a locomotive.

[Hat tip to Kevin Church]

Just when you thought it was safe to go out into the comic shop…

Deadpool editor Axel Alonso has released a teaser image for the upcoming event, the Deadpool Corps! And yes, kids, they will have an oath, and they likely will be scarier than even a pack of your zombified loved ones.

According to the Deadpool Bugle, the event will come together March 2010, featuring Deadpool, Lady Deadpool, Kid Deadpool, Headpool, and Dogpool. UPDATE: Alonso has put a few more images up, including Major Deadpool, the Deadpool Kid, and a group shot with Lady Deadpool partially unmasked…

“The images are shocking, yes, but…the shock is in the act, not in the portrayal”: David Hajdu reviews Crumb’s Book of Genesis for the New York Times. If you’re not already sick of reading about the book, I’d suggest reading his review, as it’s a pretty good one.

The cartoonists were riding in a Blackhawk, relatively at ease, when suddenly the copter’s machine guns were fired”: Here’s a nice write-up of a USO-sponsored visit to the troops consisting of cartoonists Mike Peters, Tom Richmond, Jeff Bacon, Stephan Pastis, Bruce Higdon, Rick Kirkman, Chip Bok, Jeff Keane, Michael Ramirez and Garry Truedeau.

“The songs and the superheroism don’t quite gel here as well as they should. Plus, Batman should never, ever sing”: That bit of blasphemy comes from Marc Bernardin, in a post on EW’s Pop Watch blog, referring to the musical episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold, an extremely awesome episode of the extremely awesome series. Why shouldn’t Batman and his allies and foes sing? I saw no reason from watching the episdoe. And isn’t the very best Justice League Unlimited episode the one where Batman sings…?

Con war primer: If you missed a thrilling moment of last week’s escalating con wars between Reed Exhibitions and Gareb Shamus’s Wizard/Or Whatever Shamus’ Next Thing Will Be Called,  Heidi MacDonald has a nice thorough overview on the subject here at The Beat.

Twin reviews of Archie #602: The latest issue of Archie, the climax of the “…Marries Veronica” possible future story (Is this the Dark Knight Returns of Archie comics?) came  out this week, and both Rachelle Goguen and Tucker Stone have some thoughts about it.