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Elfbytes May '07

(Note: this is not your average cut and paste, we actually write this stuff.)

This is for product starting to ship in July.

This months Elfbyte credit goes to James, Ethan, Brock, David & Craig.

For your convenience, click links below to jump to a certain Publisher.

Independent Comics | Dark Horse Comics | DC Comics
Image Comics | Marvel Comics | Toys & Stuff

Remember to get your orders in by May 25th!

INDEPENDENT COMICS HIGHLIGHTS

ABOUT COMICS

DESTROYER DUCK TP. By Steve Gerber, Jack Kirby, & Alfredo Alcala. Destroyer Duck may look a little like Howard the Duck but he’s a heckuva lot more violent as he takes on the big business of GodCorp. Collects the entire run of Steve Gerber (the creator of Howard as well as Destroyer) and Jack ‘King’ Kirby.

ABTRACT STUDIOS

STRANGERS IN PARADISE VOLUME 19: EVER AFTER TP. By Terry Moore. This is the final Strangers trade paperback and the end of the long running series. Collects issues #83 – 90.

AMAZE INK (SLAVE LABOR GRAPHICS)

PETER THE PIRATE SQUID. Written by Roman Dirge. Illustrated by Steven Daily. Emo-goth-pirate-squid. The human race is over. We lost. Everyone (except for those pesky ninjas) knows that pirates are cool. Squids can not only grow to giant sizes but they also taste great as calamari. Put them together and you’ve got yourself a pirate squid from the mind of Roman ‘Lenore’ Dirge. Peter and his ship will show those human pirates a thing or two about buckling swashes.

ANTARCTIC PRESS

PIRATES VS NINJAS: UP THE ANTE #1. By Perry, Hartman, Bevard & Babiar. The Pirates and Ninjas fought their way through one comic book series but now it’s time to up the ante. The (glorious) Pirates and (filthy) Ninjas are still chasing after their treasures when they encounter a new faction, the (hairy) Vikings. Choose from Pirate (yay!) or Ninja (boo!) covers.

ARCHAIA STUDIO PRESS

MOUSE GUARD: WINTER 1152 #1. Written and illustrated by David Peterson. Little mice run around and stab each other with little swords. This is the first issue of a new series of Mouse Guard books. More mice with swords and cloaks only this time it’s snowing. Cause it’s winter. In 1152.

ASPEN

SOULFIRE: NEW WORLD ORDER #1. Written by J.T. Krul. Illustrated by Francisco Herrera. Cover by Michael Turner. Your strange fairy-winged bulimic heroine returns, with an actual artist this time

AVATAR PRESS

DOKTOR SLEEPLESS #1. Written by Warren Ellis. Illustrated by Ivan Rodriguez. An epic new journey from Warren Ellis begins here! If you’re a fan of Ellis’s work, especially Transmetropolitan, this new ongoing series set in a familiar near-future, is sure to be a welcome addition to your reading list... ...only not half as optimistic or nice.

BEGOTHS COMICS

THE ENIGMATIC ABC’S HC. By Stephan Varner & James Muscarello. In the footsteps of Edward Gorey comes this new hardcover alphabet book. I wonder how many characters will meet with unfortunate deaths…

CHECKER BOOK PUBLISHING GROUP

ALIEN LEGION TP’S. By Zelenetz, Cirocco, Austin & Portacio. This is a series that first debuted back in the 80’s under Marvel’s creator-owned Epic imprint. Based on the concept of the “Foreign Legion in space”, this title follows the adventures of the multi-species military unit known as Force Nomad.

DYNAMITE ENTERTAIMENT

NEW BATTLESTAR GALACTICA: SEASON ZERO #1. Written by Brandon Jerwa. Illustrated by Stephen Segovia. I’m fond of the idea of doing TV seasons as comics, but I’m not sure I’m so into the idea of them being done by people who aren’t affiliated with the show. Buffy Season 8 is good because Whedon is running it. However, this one is tempting just to see what was going on before everything went downhill for the unlucky humans on the 12 colonies.

Taking place two years before the Cylon attack that destroyed the Colonies, this six issue series serves as a prequel to the TV show. Find out what life was like on the Galactica back when things were happy and good. Well, knowing Battlestar Galactica, happy and good are relative terms.

DEVILS DUE PUBLISHING

G.I. JOE: AMERICA’S ELITE #25. Written by Mark Powers. Art by Mike Bear. Cover by Chris Lie. It’s the 25^th issue of the series and the 25^th anniversary of the modern G.I. Joe line. The World War III in DC comics just ended (again) but things are just heating up in Joe-land. Includes a wrap-around cover featuring every member ever of the G.I. Joe team.

DISNEY PRESS

THE HAUNTED MANSION VOL 1. By Various. Yes, it ties into a Disney Ride, but it has new work by Roman Dirge. Truly, it is the month for emo-goth kids.

1130 STUDIOS

HEARTBREAK TP. By Jonathan Rivera & Nick DeStefano. And the emo continues: Heartbreak tells the auto-bio stories of these two cartoonist’s search for true love. Somehow, “I’m a comics artist!” doesn’t get you as laid as “I’m a useless, un-bathed musician!”

FANTAGRAPHICS

I KILLED ADOLF HITLER GN. By Jason. You know how there’s always those time-travel stories where people go back to kill Hitler? Well, in this book, Hitler kicks the crap out of the assassin and jumps forward to our time, leaving his would-be killer stranded in the past. That Hitler, always messing with those time traveling assassins!

FUN PUBLICATIONS INC.

TRANSFORMERS “TIMELINES” SUMMER SPECIAL ONE-SHOT. By Forest Lee & Alex Milne. Woot! It’s summertime fun for those giant robots. I’m betting that they’ll slip into their Speedos and bikinis, head down to the beach, and soak up some rays. Either that or the Autobots and Decepticons will just fight each other some more.

IDW PUBLISHING

STAR TREK: YEAR FOUR #1. Written by David Tischman. Art by Steve Conley. Cover by Conley and Joe Corroney. First there was Buffy season eight, now there’s Star Trek (Original Series!) Year Four. Their five-year mission didn’t end just because the TV show was cancelled; learn about the stories you’ve never seen before. Again, it’s a cool idea that a show continues in comics form, but I guess it’s unfair of me to demand that this be written by Gene Roddenberry?

THE COMPLETE TERRY AND THE PIRATES VOL. 1: 1934-1936. Written & Illustrated by Milton Caniff. The first volume of the celebrated story of Terry and the Pirates, considered by many to be one of the best adventure strips ever published, and an influence and inspiration to countless creators from the infancy of cartoons through the comics of today.

FALLEN ANGEL #18. Written by Peter David. Illustrated by J.K. Woodward. The conclusion to the two-part story featuring Billy Tucci’s SHI, this story promises action, adventure, and some world-threatening ancient curses. A consistently enjoyable and intelligent title, this one is worth ordering.

SCARFACE: SCARRED FOR LIFE TP. Written by John Layman. Illustrated by Dave Crosland. Watch Scarface kill someone with a colostomy bag!

KNOCKABOUT COMICS

YESTERDAY’S TOMORROWS GN. Written and illustrated by Rian Hughes. Rian Hughes is a freakin’ amazing talent and so here is a collection of his early stories, including a collaboration with Grant Morrison.

ONI PRESS

SHARKNIFE VOL 2: DOUBLE Z. Written and illustrated by Corey Lewis. Sharknife, aka Ceasar Hallelujah has fought his 100^th battle in the great Guangdong Factory and it’s time for him to level up. But at what cost? Who is the mysterious Daring Hallelujah? Who are the Scars of Planet Reximus? Discover the answers in here! I’m totally waiting for a fight between Sharknife and Scott Pilgrim.

MULTIPLE WARHEDZ #1. Written and illustrated by Brandon Graham. WolfWar 3 ended 50 years ago, and radioactive snow has been falling on Dead City for almost as long. Sexica, an organ runner, and Nikoli, her werewolf mechanic boyfriend, pack up their things and set off to leave Dead City behind them forever.

THE APOCALIPSTIX #1 of 4. Written by Ray Fawkes. Illustrated by Cameron Stewart. Part SCOTT PILGRIM, part TANK GIRL, Mandy, Megumi, & Dot were on the cusp of becoming the greatest rock band the world had ever known…until the world ended. But the Apocalipstix aren’t going to let a little thing like Armageddon stand in the way of their next gig!

STEPHEN COLBERT’S TEK JANSEN #3. By Layman, Peyer, Chantler, Massey, & Rodriguez; incentive cover by Darwyn Cooke. Solar plexus! Issue number three is finally offered after a few months were there was no sign of Tek in the Previews catalogue. Read this series and you’ll see why it’s so obvious that Tek has had hundreds of girlfriends.

RUDE DUDE PRODUCTIONS

NEXUS #99. Written by Mike Baron & Steve Rude. Illustrated by Steve Rude. The return of the classic space hero Nexus, begins here! One of the independent comic book success stories of the 1980’s, and reuniting the original creators, this is a book that will excite both new readers and old friends.

TOP SHELF PRODUCTIONS

THE INCREDIBLE CHANGE-BOTS GN. By Jeffrey Brown. Awesomebots wage their battle to destroy the evil forces of the Fantasticons! Just in time for the Transformers movie comes this parody/tribute graphic novel featuring incredible changing robots. Leaders Big-Rig and Shootertron lead their factions into battle against each other on the planet known as Earth. Part drama, part nostalgia, part comedy, part moral fable, Jeff Brown shows us the story of giant transforming robots trapped on our world fighting an ancient war.

UDON

STREET FIGHTER: SAKURA GANBARU! VOL 1. By Masahiko Nakahira. Udon translates some Japanese comics. I think they need money because producing a comic every 4-6 months does not seem to pay the bills.

VIRGIN COMICS

VOODOO CHILD #1. Created by Nicholas Cage & Weston Cage. Written by Mike Carey. Illustrated by Dean Hyrapiet. Cover by Ben Templesmith. This book was created by Nicolas Cage and his son Weston Cage. Years from now, we can look forward to comics created by his other son, Kal-El Cage. It is doubtful that any of these comics will contain bees.

DAVE STEWART’S WALK-IN VOL 1 TP. Written by Jeff Parker. Illustrated by Ashish Padlekar. This one slipped under the radar for a lot of people, but offered a lot of fun and some quality story-telling. The story focuses on a guy who wakes up in strange cities with no idea how he got there, and weeks of his life missing with no clue what he has done. It’s a humourous tale with a little bit of everything, including mobsters, cabaret dancers, and parallel dimensions. It’s definitely worth picking up.

ZONDERVAN

MANGA BIBLE VOL 1: NAMES, GAMERS, AND THE LONG ROAD TRIP GN By Young Shin Lee, Jung Sun Hwang, and JESUS. I just like the idea of a MANGA BIBLE. It’s probably awful, and will probably be used by useless people to corrupt the minds of innocent children, but still: Manga Bible! Maybe Judas will be a transsexual ninja or something. The ark is a superdimensional fortress or something. Come to think of it, the Bible is full of weird sex and crazy violence to pass as manga.

DARK HORSE COMICS HIGHLIGHTS

ZERO KILLER #1 of 6. Written by Arvid Nelson. Illustrated by Matt Camp. In a shattered, future version of New York City, gangs prowl the alleys between the irradiated ruins of skyscrapers. Amidst this chaos, one skilled outcast known as Zero sells his considerable strength and wits to anyone who can pay.

SPEAK OF THE DEVIL #1 of 6. Written and illustrated by Gilbert Hernandez. This is the story of Val Castillo, a promising gymnast with a strange hobby. She is the neighbourhood's peeping tom, who wears a Devil mask and spies on those around her. I think most people would probably pay to have a hot young gymnast see them naked, so I don’t see what the big deal is.

GRENDEL: BEHOLD THE DEVIL #0. Written and illustrated by Matt Wagner. Matt Wagner returns to one of his greatest creations, with a 50 cent introduction to a new mini-series starring the original Grendel. Wagner and Grendel is a fantastic combination, but for that price, you simply can’t go wrong!

A best-selling novelist by day and criminal overlord by night, Hunter Rose was the most feared individual ever to wear the mantle of Grendel. Long known only through journals discovered after his death, these newly uncovered documents reveal a previously unknown chapter in the life of this legendary assassin.

THE PERRY BIBLE FELLOWSHIP: THE TRIAL OF COLONEL SWEETO AND OTHER STORIES. By Nicholas Gurewitch. A collection of the understated but hilarious Perry Bible Fellowship cartoon strips. Absurdity (and sometimes morbidity) abounds! The Perry Bible Fellowship is one of the greatest webcomics EVER.

THE PLAYBOY INTERVIEWS: THE COMEDIANS. By Stephen Randall and the editors of Playboy. So you say you only read Playboy for the articles? Here’s your chance to prove it. Featuring interviews from stalwart classics such as Groucho Marx and Don Rickles to modern stars like Chris Rock and Jerry Seinfeld.

MARTHA WASHINGTON DIES (one shot). Written by the goddamn Frank Miller. Illustrated by the goddamn Dave Gibbons. On Earth, the battle for freedom rages on. The year is 2095 and Martha Washington is a hundred years old and leading a small group of freedom fighters who will not give up the pursuit of liberty, no matter the cost. Hopefully, this is a return to pre-crazy Frank Miller.

Martha Washington has starred in a series of mini-series over the last decade or so, set in a chaotic future, as only Miller can envision. This issue reunites Miller with Dave Gibbons, with whom he has a spectacular track record.

CONAN THE PHENOMENON. Written by Paul Sammon. Cover by Frank Frazetta. An in-depth tour through the history of one of fantasy’s greatest heroes. He’s like Shaft, only white. And dressed in rags. And, you know, on horseback.

START HERE: STAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC #19. Written by John Jackson Miller. Illustrated by Harvey Tolibao. Some stupid alien is in stupid trouble and some freak with a wimpy pony tail has to help him out. Or whatever.

START HERE: STAR WARS LEGACY #14. Written by John Ostrander. Illustrated by Jan Duursema. Cover by TRAVIS CHAREST! Who cares about the story inside? New Travis Charest art!

TRANSLUCENT VOLUME 1. Written and illustrated by Kazuhiro Okamoto. Shizuka is a quiet girl with a peculiar illness. She is slowly turning invisible. James’ new girlfriend is invisible, too. She, uh, lives in Japan. You totally don’t know her.

DC COMICS HIGHLIGHTS

COUNTDOWN: Counting down until the Marvel Fans Jump on.

COUNTDOWN #43. Written by Paul Dini, Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray. Illustrated by Keith Giffen & David Lopez. HEY! It’s the Multiverse!

COUNTDOWN #42. Written by Paul Dini & Sean McKeever. Illustrated by Keith Giffen & Carlos Magno. Earth #42 is a prison in the Negative Zone, guarded by cyborg clones of Thor.

COUNTDOWN #41. Written by Paul Dini & Adam Beechen. Illustrated by Keith Giffen & Dennis Calero. You know what’s weird? Jimmy Olsen had a comic series that lasted like, a million issues, and now he’s reduced to being one of the main characters in a desperate cash grab.

COUNTDOWN #40. Written by Paul Dini & Tony Bedard. Illustrated by Keith Giffen & Manuel Garcia. You know what would’ve been awesome instead of like a second 52? If each issue of Countdown was a one shot set in its respective Multiverse or whatever.

ALL NEW ATOM #13. Written by Gail Simone. Illustrated by Mike Norton & Dan Green. The All New Atom searches for the old Atom. Yes, the search for the original Atom, Ray Palmer, continues. This arc (which began last issue) is the perfect jumping on point for new readers, and is sure to be a lot of fun.

JUMP ON HERE! ACTION COMICS #852. Written by Kurt Busiek. Illustrated by Brad Walker. “3-2-1-Action!” part 1. The Kryptonite Man on the loose! Will Jimmy Olsen finally become Superman’s partner?

SUPERMAN #665. Written by Kurt Busiek. Illustrated by Rick Leonardi. Cover by Jesus Merino. More Jimmy Olsen!

AMAZONS ATTACK

AMAZONS ATTACK #4. Written by Will Pfeifer. Illustrated by Pete Woods. Batman & Catwoman devise a plan to stop the Amazon invasion. Batman suggests that Catwoman wrestle each and every Amazon in a Bat-kiddie pool filled with cream corn.

OUTSIDERS #49. Written by Judd Winick & Greg Rucka. Illustrated by Matthew Clark. The White King of Checkmate calls upon the Dark Knight to help the Outsider/Checkmate strikeforce. But what does Outsiders member Grace have to do with it all?

TEEN TITANS #49. Written by Adam Beechen. Illustrated by Al Barrionuevo. Cover by Tony Daniel. Supergirl and Wonder Girl enter the fight! But are they with the Titans or Amazons? Does anyone care? Supergirl & Wonder Girl are like the Paris Hilton & Lindsey Lohan of the DC Universe.

WONDER WOMAN #11. Written by Will Pfeifer. Illustrated by Paco Diaz. I haven’t read the issue yet, but Wonder Woman will probably do something to piss off the Amazons.

DC UNIVERSE

JUMP ON HERE! BATMAN CONFIDENTIAL #7. Written by Michael Green. Illustrated by Denys Cowan. Who was the Joker before the Joker? Find out here. Which, in my opinion, is a story we don’t really need to hear. The Joker has always been the Joker. We have always been at war with Joker.

SUPERMAN: THE DEATH AND RETURN OF SUPERMAN OMNIBUS HARDCOVER. Written by various. Art by various. Cover by Dan Jurgens and Jerry Ordway. This whopping 784 page hardcover has it all! The Death of Superman, The Return of Superman, parts of World Without a Superman, and bonus materials. Not only is this book a classic read, but it’s big enough to use to beat up Superman yourself.

TANGENT COMICS VOL. 1 TP. Written by various. Art by various. Cover by Dan Jurgens and Norm Rapmund. This decade old fifth week event had been mostly overlooked until the characters’ brief return in Infinite Crisis and Ion. On Earth-97 the names may be the same as familiar DC icons but the similarities end there. The Cuban Missile Crisis destroyed Florida! The nuclear powered Atom is America’s greatest hero! The Flash is a fame-seeking teenage girl with light-based powers! The Metal Men are a unit of crack commando soldiers! This isn’t your standard parallel world.

BRAVE AND THE BOLD #5. Written by Mark Waid. Illustrated by George Perez. This series has been wonderful so far, with fun & intelligent stories filled with all kinds of great gust stars, and of course the always spectacular illustrations of George Perez. If you haven’t been picking this up, you really should see what you’re missing! It is one of the most enjoyable comics you will read, and is a sure thing not to disappoint.

JUMP ON HERE! GREEN LANTERN #21. Written by Geoff Johns. Illustrated by Ethan Van Sciver & Dave Gibbons. The story from last month’s Sinestro Corps Special (and we hope you listened to our advice and picked that one up) carries over, and the Green Lanterns will never be the same again. This is the biggest challenge they’ve ever faced, and you won’t want to miss a single panel of this exciting story.

Variant Cover by Andy Kubert. Part 1 of “The Sinestro Corps”. Buncha guys in green pajamas fight a buncha guys in yellow pajamas. It’s the most colour-coordinated violence the multiverse has ever known.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #14. Written by Dave Gibbons. Illustrated by Patrick Gleason. The Sinestro Corps’ attack continues here, and promises to shake the Green Lantern Corps to its core. This story will change the status quo for a long time to come, all the while providing readers with an epic tale they’ll be sure to enjoy.

GREEN ARROW: YEAR ONE #1 & 2 of 6. Written by Andy Diggle. Illustrated by Jock. Frivolous millionaire Oliver Queen is left for dead on a desert island. He goes crazy, and decides that criminals are a cowardly and superstitious lot, and he will dress like a Robin Hood to strike terror into their hearts. If only he had a volleyball or something to talk some sense into him. In all seriousness, this book is going to kick a lot of ass.

BLACK CANARY #1 & 2 of 4. Written by Tony Bedard Illustrated by Paulo Sequeira. Black Canary is on the run from the League of Assassins! Which I’m sure will give her lots of excuses to do the splits or kick really high or something lame like that. Your mis-proportioned superhero babes are here, fanmen.

JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA VOL 1: THE NEXT AGE HC. Written by Geoff Johns. Illustrated by Dale Eaglesham. Cover by Alex Ross. A bunch of has-beens and teenagers decide that they still want to be superheroes or something like that. Thank God for Alex Ross, who will never let comics move beyond 1967.

JUMP ON HERE! JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #11. Written by Brad Meltzer. Illustrated by Gene Ha. Cover by Michael Turner. Variant Cover by Gene Ha. Two Leaguers are buried alive! Incredible art by Gene Ha, who has to draw this issue because Grant Morrison can’t find the time to write his AUTHORITY arc! Damn you, Grant Morrison!!! Multiverse #50 can’t get no love.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS ADAM STRANGE VOL 1 TP. Written by Gardner Fox. Illustrated by Gil Kane, Mike Sekowsky, Carmine Infantino, and others. Adam Strange travels from Earth to Rann via a futuristic Zeta Beam teleportation. On Rann, he’s a science hero and has a sweet wife and cute child. Of course, he’s only ever on Rann for three days at a time. So Adam Strange has another family on Earth, who live in a trailer park. Adam Strange works very hard to cover his tracks so his two families don’t find out about each other.

SHOWCASE PRESENTS: WONDER WOMAN VOL 1 TP. Written by Robert Kanigher. Illustrated by Ross Andru. Just in case anyone was worried that DC Comics was getting too progressive with their MINX line of graphic novels aimed at women, here they offer a collection of the earliest Wonder Woman stories, which are among the most ridiculous and heaviest stories of misogyny ever created.

JUMP ON HERE! SUPERGIRL AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #32. Written by Tony Bedard. Illustrated by Dennis Calero. “The Quest for Cosmic Boy” begins here!

VERTIGO

SENTENCES: THE LIFE OF M.F. GRIMM HC. Written by Percy Carey. Illustrated by Ronald Wimberly. Apparently, the life story of a rap star is so dark and violent and full of swear words that it had to be under the Vertigo imprint. Have they changed things since The Boys got cancelled? Who knew?

FAKER #1. Written by Mike Carey. Illustrated by Jock. This sounds like it could be a really cool new series with a little bit of something for everyone. It focuses on a group of friends in first year university, who slowly begin to realize that everything is not as it seems. Written by Mike Carey (Lucifer, Crossing Midnight), and illustrated by Jock (The Losers), it’s worth checking out.

After a giant party in their freshmen year, a group of students suddenly realize something. Nobody outside their little clique knows who their friend Nick Philo is, and all records of his existence have vanished. Someone is not who they seem to be. Someone is lying, cheating, and faking their way through life.

JUMP ON HERE! THE EXTERMINATORS #19. Written by Simon Oliver. Illustrated by Darick Robertson. Cover by Tony Moore. This is the most glorious book ever created. It’s a small team of exterminators against a relentless horde of mutated, intelligent cockroaches. Totally recommended.

JUMP ON HERE! HELLBLAZER #234. Written by Andy Diggle. Illustrated by Leonardo Manco. Cover by Lee Bermejo. “Joyride” part 1. South London’s Hunger Hill is a slum, filled with violence and misery. But when things take a supernatural turn, John Constantine finds out there’s something much worse going on.

SCALPED VOL 1: INDIAN COUNTRY TP. Written by Jason Aaron. Illustrated by R.M. Guera. Cover by Jock. Fifteen years ago, Dashiell Bad Horse ran away from the Prairie Road Indian Reservation. Now he’s come back, armed only with a pair of nunchuks and a bad attitude, to discover that things have only become worse, thanks to a new casino being run by organized crime. But is Bad Horse here to change things for the better or get a piece of the action?

WILDSTORM

START HERE! THE PROGRAMME #1 of 12. Written by Peter Milligan. Illustrated by C.P. Smith. Variant Cover by Ethan Van Sciver. A buried Soviet superhuman awakens and America might not have an answer for its might. Not actually part of the WildStorm Universe, or, as I like to call it, Earth 50, but still looks damn good with a solid creative team.

ALAN MOORE: THE COMPLETE WILDC.A.T.S. Written by Alan Moore. Illustrated by Travis Charest, Jim Lee, Ryan Benjamin, and Mat Broome. Alan Moore’s run on Wildcats gave James his favourite character: Ladytron, a spree killer trapped in a cyborg body. She stole James’ heart, and then shot it seven times.

JUMP ON HERE! MIDNIGHTER #9. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray. Illustrated by Brian Stelfreeze. Cover by Chris Sprouse. Midnighter fights strange, diseased spacemen on a satellite that’s falling to Earth.

JUMP ON HERE! WELCOME TO TRANQUILITY #8. Written by Gail Simone. Illustrated by Jason Pearson. ChrisCross, and Georges Jeanty. Three tales from the town of Tranquility, giving us a look into the past of some key characters of this great new series. A perfect place for new readers to jump on-board and see what they’ve been missing.

This is one of the best books that Earth 50 has to offer! Three short stories by three insanely talented artists. Meet the Lindo sisters before they became respected members of the Tranquility community. See the origins of the rock’n’roll undertaker, Zombie Zeke. Follow the master thief Emoticon as he tries his hand at a crime no one else will even attempt.

MINX (Apparently it's not part of the Multiverse, but still good.)

GOOD AS LILY. Written by Derek Kirk Kim. Illustrated by Jesse Hamm. Following a strange mishap on her 18^th birthday, Grace Kwon is confronted with herself at three different periods in her life. It looks like Superboy was punching some of those reality walls again. Maybe Minx is part of the Multiverse after all. THAT would sure attract the womenz!

IMAGE COMICS HIGHLIGHTS

FELL #9. Written by Warren Ellis. Illustrated by Ben Templesmith. This is a great series that is definitely worth checking out. Warren Ellis has created the perfect environment to tell his gritty tales of cop Richard Fell, and Ben Templesmith’s understated art creates the perfect mood for these “done in one” stories.

MELTODOWN: THE DEFINITIVE COLLECTION TP. Written by David Schwartz. Illustrated by Sean Wang. This trade paperback collects the sleeper mini-series from the end of last year, and tells the tale of a super-hero whose powers are slowly killing him and makes the decision to attempt to make some real change in the world before he dies. Most people missed this one, but it made alot of “best of” lists, so this collection is the perfect way for you to see what you missed the first time around.

JACK KIRBY’S SILVER STAR HC Written and illustrated by Jack Kirby. Jack Kirby’s final creation is collected, chronicling the battled between genetic supermen Silver Star and Darius Drumm!

THE CHEMIST. Written and illustrated by Jay Boose. Vance Larroche is a drug dealer who specializes in prescription drugs. Everyone wants him dead. Probably because his name is very, very stupid.

CAPES VOL 1 PUNCHING THE CLOCK TP. Written by Robert Kirkman. Illustrated by Mark Englert. Capes Inc. is a business that employs heroes to save New York City, and sometimes the world. Because New Yorkers are snobby like that.

TOP COW

FIRST BORN #1 of 3. Written by Ron Marz. Illustrated by Stjepan Sejic. Covers by Marc Silvestri & Stjepan Sejic. The Witchblade has a baby! I think she should name it “Craig”.

MARVEL COMICS HIGHLIGHTS

WORLD WAR HULK: HULK WILL EAT YOU!

WORLD WAR HULK #2 of 5. Written by Greg Pak. Illustrated by John Romita. Cover by David Finch. Hulk vs. the Avengers!

WORLD WAR HULK: FRONT LINE #2 of 6. Written by Paul Jenkins. Illustrated by Ramon Bachs, Shawn Martinbrough, and Chris Moreno. Cover by John Watson. A reporter with a death wish tries to interview the Hulk.

WORLD WAR HULK: X-MEN #2 of 3. Written by Christos Gage. Illustrated by Andrea Di Vito. Cover by Ed McGuinness. Hulk vs. Wolverine!

INCREDIBLE HULK #108. Written by Greg Pak. Illustrated by Carlo Pagulayan. Cover by Gary Frank. Okay, I need a nerd’s help. I understand why Angel, Hercules, and the Scorpion are allied with Hulk, but why is Namorita?

WORLD WAR HULK: GAMMA CORPS #1 & 2 of 4. Written by Frank Tieri. Illustrated by Carlos Ferreira. Cover by Stephane Roux. To stop the gamma-powered rage of the Hulk, the US army exposed a bunch of other people to gamma radiation to create a gamma-goon squad. They’re so dead. Could this be the lamest attempt to have the Hulk kill characters without killing characters? Marvel truly wants to bake it's cake and eat it too.

Not to be mistaken with the Green Lantern Corps; these guys wouldn’t be caught dead wearing any pansy ass jewellery. Written by Tieri who’s work I’ve never really enjoyed but always seems to tie into stories I am reading and thus ends up in my collection; this book featured the latest, and possibly dumbest attempt to bring down the hulk. Gamma irradiate 5 good men and order them to kill the hulk. As far as I know, to date every single person wandering around the Marvel universe radiated with gamma particle (could this sentence be any geekier?) have smashed things at one point or another. Why does no on remember that primarily “HULK SMASH”.

AVENGERS: THE INITIATIVE #4. Written by Dan Slott. Illustrated by Stefano Caselli. Cover by Jim Cheung. Hulk vs. some different Avengers! Oh Marvel your so smart.

IRREDEEMABLE ANT-MAN #10. Written by Robert Kirkman. Illustrated by Phil Hester. The Ant Man picks Hulk’s nose!

GHOST RIDER #13. Written by Daniel Way. Illustrated by Javier Saltares. Cover by Gabriele Dell’Otto. Man, I can’t believe Ghost Rider put up a fight that lasted more than one issue.

HEROES FOR HIRE #12. Written by Zeb Wells. Illustrated by Clay Mann. Cover by Takeshi Miyazawa. I also don’t see how these losers could possibly survive.

IRON MAN #20. Written by Christos Gage. Illustrated by Butch Guice. Cover by Gerald Parel. Hulk vs. Iron Man!

ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST

ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST – STAR LORD #1 of 4. Written by Keith Giffen. Illustrated by Timothy Green. Cover by Nic Klein. I don’t know who Star Lord is, but the preview art features a talking raccoon. I know it’s comics, but that’s may be a little too weird for me. I started reading the Annihilation storyline recently, it initially reeked of a weak DC rip off, but the ramifications will likely affect the Marvel Universe for a very long time. It actually was quite good so I would recommend it.

If that does encourage you to take a look, consider the following two reasons, very important facts. One this issue features Rocket Racoon, and it was coloured by a fellow Elfsar saver file Member Nathan Fairbairn.

ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST – WRAITH #1 of 4. Written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach. Illustrated by Kyle Hotz. Cover by Clint Langley. I don’t know who Wraith is, either. Jeez, and I thought Super-Skrull was scraping the bottom of the Marvel Space Barrell. I was wrong, true believer!

ANNIHILATION: CONQUEST – QUASAR #1 of 4. Written by Christos Gage. Illustrated by Mike Lilly. Cover by Matt Watson. Quasar’s a girl now! Now the sales will pick up!

NOVA #4. Written by Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning. Illustrated by Sean Chen. Cover by Adi Granov. If it takes place in space, it’s part of Annihilation Conquest.

REGULAR MARVEL, NOT AT WAR WITH THE HULK

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #543. Written by J. Michael Straczynski. Illustrated by Ron Garney. The conclusion to the “Back in Black” story-line, Spider-Man is faced with a decision that might just change everything. What form will his revenge take, and just how far will he go to achieve it?

IMMORTAL IRON FIST #8. Written by Matt Fraction. Illustrated by David Aja. This title has consistently been one of the best reads out there since it launched at the beginning of the year, and this issue begins a new story-arc that is sure to continue that trend. It’s an all out battle royale between some of the greatest kung-fu warriors ever.

THOR #1. Written by J. Michael Straczynski. Illustrated by Oliver Coipel. He’s back!!! A lot of fans have been waiting for this for a long time now, and the team of Straczynski and Coipel look likely to deliver. This is sure to be the beginning of a big focus on the god of thunder, and looks like it will be worth picking up.

Thor is genuinely back! Not a clone, not that wussy alien prancing around in the Yukon trying to get his Canadian passport playing with US-eh-gent and not stupid Thunderstrike with his earings and leather vest. The actual Thor: God Of Thunder. With only twenty two pages and a whole lotts ‘splaining to do don’t expect the hammer to fall on too many a villain in this issue. Just be happy he’s back. Yay!

Because some of you demanded it? Now you have a brand new Thor series that you’ll buy for a few months and then quit, and then Thor will get cancelled and killed off AGAIN, and you’ll be all “How can they do this to Thor? I love Thor!” BUT YOU DON’T AND IT’S YOUR FAULT HE DISAPPEARED IN THE FIRST PLACE!

X-FACTOR #21. Written by Peter David. Illustrated by Pablo Raimondi. Peter David is doing a fantastic job with this new X-Factor series, and if you haven’t picked it up you’re missing some of the best mutant stories that have been published in quite some time. Do yourself a favour and order this one and see for yourself.

CIVIL WAR CHRONICLES. Written by Mark Millar & Paul Jenkins. Illustrated by Steve McNiven, Ramon Bachs, & Steve Lieber. Cover by Michael Turner. For those of you who are so anal retentive that you need to read Civil War in “Continuity Order”, Marvel is thoughtfully releasing these compendium editions in the proper order. This one has Civil War #1 and Frontline #1. You can stop cutting up your trade paperbacks now.

In case you’re only now emerging from under a rock pick up this comprehensive rehashing of everything that lead to the death of Captain America… Oh I guess if you just came out from under a rock you didn’t know. Sorry.

HALO: UPRISING #1. By Bendis and Alex Maleeve. The hardcover was excellent, so good in fact in spawned this awe inspiring 4 issue mini-series. Alright, technically the video game inspired this mini-series, but the important is to remember this will be really, really cool. Oh an as a public service for all you Maleev fans out there, this book is pronounced hā'lō ŭp'rī'zĭng.

Bendis is a weird choice for a Halo comic. “I’m going to shoot that thing.” “What thing?” “That, that thing right in front of us.” “You’re going to shoot that thing.” “Yes. “In front of us.” “Yes.” “With a gun?” “No, with a waffle iron, yes with a gun.” “You don’t need to get snippy.” “This is a Bendis book. Everyone’s snippy. You’re snippy. I’m snippy. That thing I’m going to shoot is snippy.” “Oy. Would you just shoot the thing already?”

CAPTAIN AMERICA #25 DIRECTORS CUT. Pay for it again. Yay!, no really, be a completist and get this issue, where Breubaker will reflect on what happened; Cap dies. Hint at things to come; someone will become Captain America, eventually when the House of Ideas is having a brain fart Steve Rogers will be resurrected, maybe by Santa as a Christmas present. And show you his script, which will detail everything you could have read accompanied by Steve Eptings pretty pictures. Yay!

If you haven’t spent huge money on getting the first print, or are somehow too cheap to get the second print, here’s your third chance to watch Captain America get shot in the neck.

NEW AVENGERS/TRANSFORMERS #1 of 4. Written by Stuart Moore. Illustrated by Tyler Kirkham. Cover by Jim Cheung. Not only will this mark only the second time in thirty years that superheroes have crossed paths with the robots in disguise, but it might be the only book featuring Steve Rogers this entire for the remainder of 2007. Oh and in case you didn’t know there is a Movie coming. It will suck. See it anyways. Tim will.

It’s time to ASSEMBLE…AND ROLL OUT! I felt my virginity grow back just typing that sentence.

SUPERVILLAIN TEAM-UP: M.O.D.O.K.’S 11 #1 of 5. Written by Fred Van Lente. Illustrated by Francis Portela. MODOK hires 11 criminals to team up with him to fuel his pathetic fantasy that he looks like George Clooney. Maybe if Clooney was a floating refrigerator that was savagely beaten with an ugly stick. The Armadillo tries to play Don Cheadle, complete with stupid fake British accent.

MARVEL ILLUSTRATED: MAN IN THE IRON MASK. This is cool and all; retelling all the great literary classics that are currently public domain; look for Pride and Prejudice next. Actually personally I’d love to see Heart of Darkness, All Quiet on the Western Front and A Christmas Carol, because of Tiny Tim.

ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR #44. By Mike Carey and Pasqual Ferry. Does any one else find it suspiciously convenient that a story entitled “Silver Surfer” featuring the “Silver Surfer” is coming out right after the movie featuring the “Silver Surfer”? I know Tim does.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #111. By Bendis and Immonen? A new era begins here, as new penciler Stuart Immonen comes onboard just in time to introduce a new villain to Ultimate Spider-Man and show us a conversation between Peter and Aunt May that has been building since the very beginning. This is an excellent place for you to start reading if you’ve not already been following this consistently enjoyable title.

Yes, after almost a decade, Bagley takes his leave. This marks the end of an era. A great period where every single month, without fail, you comic’s artistic look was consistent, drawn by one man and delivered every 4 weeks. Where your favourite Spidey Villains where updated and reintroduced. Begin now a new era, one that I predict will involve missed deadlines, alternating artists and the creation of all new villains such as this issues menacing “ULTIMATE SPOT” the puppy without a leash! I predict that spidey make a see spot run quip. Boo. We miss you Bagley. To be fair Immonen is extremely talented, and his art on pages 11 -13 of marvel preview does deserve a look.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #28. By Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting. Enjoy this issue, featuring absolutely no appearances by the title character. Yay! A Civil War Initiative Tie –in.

THE CHAMPIONS (Note: this is now called THE ORDER #1). By Matt Fraction and Barry Kitson. Variant Cover by Steve McNiven. In this issue! See Marvel get sued for use of “The Champions” by some publisher no one’s heard of over a comic book that nobody read!

The Original team consisted of Hercules, Angel and Iceman. They may be back for World War Hulk, but they have nothing on the team in this book; this team was created by Tony Stark, doing his best Luthor impersonation. Written by the disgustingly talented Fraction, this book will be original and fast paced, and maybe won’t have to stop or change titles because of a Law Suit. A Civil War Initiative tie-in

THE CHAMPIONS has been renamed THE ORDER.

DAREDEVIL #99. By Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark. This issue is important because it just might be the only Marvel book taking place in regular continuity not tying in to any major arc. Unbelievable as this might sound nothing that happens in these 22 pages will have anything to do with Back in Black, The Ultimate Universe, World War Hulk, Annihilation, Civil War Initiative, Young Guns, Endangered Species or anything else. Yes you can just read Daredevil to follow this story. Amazing isn’t it?

FANTASTIC FOUR #548. BY Dwayne McDuffie and Paul Pelletier. All six current members of the FF take on all 4 members of the Frightful Four. More importantly a Civil War Initiative Tie-in. My bet is that at the end of this issue the Frightful Four will become the newest protectors of Wisconsin, just think of all that free cheese.

WOLVERINE: ORIGINS ANNUAL #1. Written by Daniel Way. Illustrated by Kaare Andrews. Since it’s only being drawn by Kaare Andrews, I can rest easy knowing that Wolverine’s sperm won’t kill any supermodels.

ICON

POWERS ENCYCLOPEDIA VOL 1. Written by Tim Daniel and Brian Michael Bendis. Illustrated by Michael Avon Oeming. Having trouble keeping up with all the weird people in Powers? Check this book out.

MARVEL GRAPHIC NOVELS

IMMORTAL IRON FIST VOL 1: THE LAST IRON FIST STORY PREMIER HC. Written by Ed Brubaker & Matt Fraction. Illustrated by David Aja & Travel Foreman. They turned Iron Fist into Man-Buffy. But Man-Buffy fights a giant robot spider, so, you know, it’s okay.

NEXTWAVE: AGENTS OF HATE VOL 2: I KICK YOUR FACE PREMIER HC. Written by Warren Ellis. Illustrated by Stuart Immonen. I KICK YOUR FACE! I KICK YOUR FACE! I KICK YOUR FACE! How can you not want to buy a book with an awesome title like that!? In case your kicking your face for missing the most under-rated, and sadly now cancelled, books of last year. Now is your chance!

THE HOOD PREMIERE HC. Marvel reaches way back to bring you this very early Brian K Vaughn and Kyle Hotz work, collected for the first time in Hard Cover. A pretty good read featuring a very young protagonist caught in the Kingpins underworld, only to rise as a powerful Super Villain.

UNCANNY X-MEN: THE RISE & FALL OF THE SHI’AR EMPIRE HC. Written by Ed Brubaker. Illustrated by Billy Tan & Clayton Henry. The X-Men going into space is a guaranteed disaster. Somehow, the powerful metaphor of alienation and persecution goes out the window when you’re surrounded by aliens who are weirder and more worthy of persecution than you are.

MARVEL VAULT MUSEUM IN A BOOK (SPIRAL) HC. By Roy Thomas and Peter Sanderson. An amazing looking collection of reproductions of classic Marvel memorabilia. In addition to the book itself you get facsimiles of pieces such as sketches from the 1940’s, the 1965 Merry Marvel Marching Society Welcome Kit, the 1976 presidential campaign Howard the Duck pin, and the menu from the (now defunct) Marvel Mania Restaurant.

SUPERMAN S-SHIELD NEON SIGN. This glowing red symbol of the Man of Steel used to be an item available to retailers only (that’s how we got the one in our window) but now for a limited time only everyone has the chance to get one!

This sucker is not cheap though and will cost you close to half a grand, but how cool would it be to put this up in your entertainment room, bar, office, studio. Or use it for a company/business and get a nice tax right off!

BACK TO THE FUTURE MINIMATES BOX SET. Great Scott! Here’s a somewhat random license to see made into a set of Minimates. Featuring Doc Brown, Marty McFly, Biff Tannen, and Lorraine Baines. Relive the 1980’s. And the 1950’s. And the 2010’s. And the 1880’s.

STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES – 40^TH ANNIVERSARY “AMOK TIME” KIRK STATUE. No self respecting Trekkie can look at this statue without that classic fight music flooding into their head. More than just a ‘Kirk Statue’, you also get Spock, McCoy, and alternate hands/weapons.

O/A DOCTOR WHO 12-INCH REMOTE-CONTROLLED BLACK DALEK. The last time we had one of these in the store it was bought up in no time at all. Now it’s being offered again so everyone can get their very own exterminating-happy universe conqueror.

Please note:
All mages of upcoming products may be prototypes and are subject to change before shipment.

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