The List - 10/29

Every Monday, Diamond Comics Distibutors releases their list of the upcoming new titles and merchandise for that week.

This is my pull list...

Final Crisis: Rage of the Red Lanterns #1 - $3.99 - I don't know how to classify this one. It's a spin-off from DC's Final Crisis miniseries event, but it's also a continuation of the last Green Lantern story arc "Secret Origin", but at the same time a thematic sequel to the Green Lantern event of the past year "The Sinestro Corps War" while serving as a precursor to the NEXT Green Lantern Event "Blackest Night" in 2009. Suffice to say, it's a Green Lantern book written by Geoff Johns which makes it a must buy title.

Justice League Of America #26 - $2.99 - Helmed by Dwayne Mcduffie, one of the masterminds behind the fanboyish-glee inducing Justice League Unlimited cartoon, JLA has had it's highs and lows. While the formula works characterwise (Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman all appear in the book but most of the exploits focus on fan favorites like Vixen, Firestorm and Red Tornado), the story seems to slouch along in spots. Still, it's always an entertaining read that gives some of the DCU B-Listers a chance to shine.

Teen Titans #64 - $2.99 - When Teen Titans is fun, it really shines. And while it's constantly one of my favorites, the book seems to be struggling under it's own weight for the past couple arcs. Sean McKeever has been one of the go-to writers for young superheroes for the past couple years now, but his writing as of late has really taken a turn towards the dark side. Here's hoping things can lighten up soon.

Trinity #22 - $2.99 - While not as strong as DC's first foray into weekly comics 52, Trinity proves to be a much stronger offering than last years Countdown. DC has found a winning, and downright scarily fast, team in Kurt Busiek and Mark Buckingham. It looks like DC has realized what they need to do to get their weekly comics back on track.

Spike: After The Fall #4 - $3.99 - I can't say I'm sorry to see this go. This miniseries spin-off of IDW's Angel: After The Fall series has really left me wanting. With the main series, writer Brian Lynch has come close to capturing the spirit of the Angel television show, some issues more than others. When I heard about this spin-off mini starring the (now only) vampire with a sould I was pretty jazzed, but now I'm kind of glad I'll be saving this $4 a month.

Total - $16.95 - Not too bad of a week, with a couple solid titles in Rage of the Red Lanterns and JLA.

Comic Book Era: 1 - The Golden Age

Much like any form of art (or history for that matter), comics have also undergone periods of exposure and development. In my attempt to not only entertain but also to educate I feel it's important that you the reader should know and understand these eras as well.

So where better to start than the very begining?

The Golden Age

By the 1930'2 comics had been around in some form or another, but it was one man who started the super-hero boom. Well it wasn't a man perse, but in fact it was a Superman.

In 1938 in the pages of DC's Action Comics #1, two Jewish immigrants Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, set out to tell the story of a super strong, bulletproof man who could jump over buildings and would fight injustice and tyranny.

The rest is history.

America fell in love with the stranger with superpowers from another planet and a year later, in 1939, DC unleashed their next big hit with Detective Comics #27, the first appearance of Batman by Bob Kane and Bill Finger.

A year later Kane and Finger added another character to the roster with Batman's teen sidekick Robin. After the Boy Wonder's debut sales of Detective Comics DOUBLED.

That same year a new hero debuted in autonomous Flash Comics #1 (which also featured the first appearance of Hawkman).

Also in 1940, out of the pages of All-American Comics #16 came the first of DC's Green Lanterns by Batman creator Bill Finger and cartoonist Martin Nodell. 3 months later in the same title came DC's The Atom.

Yet another year later in 1941, lightning struck again in the pages of All Star Comics #8, with the first appearance of Wonder Woman by William Moulton Marston (the inventor of the polygraph test).

Then also in 1941, everyones favorite-least favorite superhero Aquaman made his debut in More Fun Comics #73.

And it must be noted, that while it look like DC was cleaning house at this point, other comic book publishers were far from falling behind this trend. In 1940, Marvel fired their opening shot with the first appearances of Captain America (by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby), Namor the Sub-Mariner and the original Human Torch.

It also must be noted that none other than The Spirit by Will Eisner also came about in 1940.

But while other companies made their contribution it's easy to see that DC Comics really led the charge at this time, with the creation of the main cornerstones of their publishing division all being created within the span of three years of each other.

But what about "______"?

Yes, there were a slew of other characters created at this point. One of the most popular (if not the most popular) was Captain Marvel published by Fawcett Comics. It's believed that during his heyday, Captain Marvel actually OUTSOLD Superman, and because of this DC sued Fawcett claiming that Marvel infringed upon their copyright of the costumed superhero.

This trend of superheroes continued through the 40's but by the 50's, the publics favor of superheroes began to wane and instead turned more towards Westerns, Sci-Fi and Humor.

At this point DC started buying up smaller competitors and their characters, a practice they would use to aquire Quality Comics in 1956, Fawcett Comics in 1972, and Charlton Comics in 1980.

So what came next? Well that'd be The Silver Age of course, but that's for another time.

(Why so) Seriously...

I know this won't find you in time.

Your mind is already made up.

But I just have to say it:

Don't be the Joker for Halloween.

I know, I know, Dark Knight was really sweet. And yes, Heath Ledger did reach new levels of badass-ery with his portrayal of the Joker. Everyone knows this and everyone agrees with you.

And therin lies the rub: Everybody is going to be the Joker.

This isn't the first time it's happened either. A blockbuster comic book adaptation where one of the young stars passed before his time and inspired a veritable bonanza of Halloween goers?

=

But Chris, you say, I'm going to be different! My costume is going to epic! I'm going as the Joker in the Nurse costume!

Nope. Not gonna do it. Sorry bro, you and every frat guy ever have already had the same thought.

Alright, so hopefully you're starting to see things in perspective. So what should you dress up as? I dunno but here's my picks for the 3 costumes you can pull out that will keep you ahead of the curve:

Two Face

Amidst the sea of Jokers you'll be the one Batman villain to stand out. Don't go all Batman Forever though, the Tommy Lee Jones route was too over the top.

Rorschach

Beat everyone to the punch at what will be one of the biggest costumes of next Halloween. Watchmen is shaping up to be the next big comic movie release and Rorschach will be the breakaway character. Yeah, I'm calling it.

Gambit

The release of the X-Men Origins: Wolverine is still almost a year away, but after years of beggin X-Men fans will finally get a chance to see Gambit in action. So why not bust out this fan favorite before he gets his chance to shine? Besides I've never seen an awesome Gambit costume.


Honorable Mention:

Hong Kong Phooey

No he doesn't have a movie coming out and nobody has cared about this character in decades, but seriously? Why not?

Better Late or Never?

So today issue #4 of DC Comics "summer blockbuster" Final Crisis came out after more than a month of delay featuring an extra name on the cover.

Final Crisis, the brain-child of writer Grant Morrison and artist J.G. Jones was met with a thunderous "yay!" when announced and shortly after it was followed by a worried "ehhh".

Both creators are fantastic in the respective artforms. Morrison is easily on his way to becoming one of the greatest writers of our time and Jones' hyper realistic artwork is jaw-droppingly good. So why the worry? Well, comics like all things take time to create, and sometimes good comics take longer.

As soon as the creative team for FC was announced the worries of the title running late started. Dan Didio, Executive Editor at DC Comics, went on record stating that DC was doing everything they could short of chaining Jones to his art table, to make sure this miniseries would come out on time.

Fans still worried. According to interviews Jones knew he was in over his head but was approaching the project with glee and still making his best attempt.

Then in an interview after issue #1 was released Jones noted he had just recieved the script for #3. Now keeping in mind that Jones was pencilling, inking and painting two covers for each book, the fans really began to worry.

But there was a scheduled month break between issues #3 and #4 so hopefully Jones would be able to catch up then? Soon after it was announced that artist Carlos Pacheco would be joining Jones on artwork from issue #4 on.

Fans erupted.

Then on Monday when DC released their Solicitations for January 2009:

FINAL CRISIS #7
Written by Grant Morrison
Art by Doug Mahnke & Christian Alamy
Covers by J.G. Jones and Doug Mahnke
The dramatic finale to the epic, seven-part saga of the DC multiverse concludes with an apocalyptic battle for the soul of humanity that must be seen to be believed! Can the heroes of 52 Earths save the multiverse? And is the only way to save it, to change it forever?

Jones was unable to do the pencils for the final issue. The next day Jones issued a statement over at Comic Book Resources stating:

“Any problems completing the series are my own. I love Doug Mahnke’s art, and he would have probably been a better choice to draw this series in the first place.”

Jones ended his with an apology to his “three or four remaining fans” and thanked them for picking up his work.

But here's the thing, DC realized that they had a problem on their hands and did what they could to correct it, by assigning fill-in artists on the remaining issues to keep it on schedule. Their only other option would have been to leave Jones solo on the project and further delay the release.

Sadly it's a case of "damned if you do..." for DC. Because now fans are clamoring saying they knew this would happen, others complain that they want Jones on the book. How can you please everyone?

DC's trying to do what they can. But unfortunately stuck in the middle of all this is J.G. Jones. It's clear from his statements that he's obviously depressed about the situation, because not only is he letting down fans, but the company he works for.

So what's better, getting the product you want late? Or getting a suitable fill in now?

You never forget your first...

My first comic book was Swamp Thing #105.

My aunt bought it for me since I was going through a Swamp Thing related phase. I don't remember what sparked it at all but I remember being obsessed with the character for some reason (as well as Major Disaster from the Toxic Crusaders cartoon).

It was about 1990, and I was 8 years old.

The issue was a part of the Quest For The Elementals storyarc, and in it Abby had been shot, killed and thrown into a mass grave. She was then resurrected by a then baby Tefe who created a new body for her mother.

I know I had read comic books before that but this was the first one that, but even at the time I knew it was different from anything I had ever read. It wasn't the kind of thing someone would normally hand an 8 year old, and I'm sure nobody could be blamed for buying a Mature Audiences comic for a kid whose favorite character was on the cover, especially with that big ol' DC Comics bullet on it.

Unfortunately I don't know what happened to that issue, or any of my comics from when I was younger really, but I'm doing ok for myself now.

You're being lied to...

As human beings we like to give things names.

Some people believe that to give something a name is to give it power. Personally I think it's how we take power for ourselves. It puts you at a point of authority, and whether it's a cherished pet, a car or even a college dining hall it's nice to leave some sort of mark on something.

But what's in a name? and more importantly; What does this have to do with comics?

Walk into any bookstore and look for the Comic Books section. I'll wait here....

Any luck? Well if you asked an associate for help you were probably directed towards the "Graphic Novel" section. The graphic novel (or as it's commonly called the "trade paperback") is a bound collection of previously published comic book stories, usually the length of one story arc.

Nope, no comic books here

As I mentioned in my last blog "graphic novel" is a term I hate. I find it demeaning to the art form. Why not refer to them as they are? Comic books. There is the argument that the term "comic book" refers to the actual format which comes out in issues that are periodical in nature, but do these collections need a term so proper and well, more marketable?

I'm reminded of something that Robin Williams said in an interview:

"It's interesting now that they're doing, they all kind of realize, with all the adult comic books or graphic novels for those who are trying to upscale themselves... Is that a comic book? No! It's a graphic novel! Is that porn? No! It's adult entertainment!"

The only picture of Robin Williams I could find

Sure, comics have grown up and have taken huge strides towards becoming a more mature medium, that's awesome and I love it, but do we really need to try to dress it up and give it a fancy name?

"Honey, what are you reading?"
"Oh, just this new comic book"
"I hate you. I slept with your brother"

Can't we be accepted as we are or do we really have to throw on our dad's pants to be accepted by the masses?

"Honey, what are you reading?"
"Oh, just this new GRAPHIC NOVEL"
"You're such an intellectual! Take me home to our 8x8 apartment and ravish me!"

Who Watches The Watchmen?

One of the most lauded comic books of all time is ready to make it's film debut this March (03-06-09 to be exact), but much to the chagrin of many a movie fan and comic reader the future is looking bleak for this motion picture.

Based on the 1986 book by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Watchmen served as a deconstruction of the current superhero archetypes. Watchmen has often been credited, alongside the grim and street level works of Frank Miller, as being the catalyst that started the current age of comics. And if Director Zack Snyder has his way it will do the same to the current slew of comic book based movies.

Well I'd hate to break it to you, but there's someone out there who doesn't want you to see this movie:

He worships a snake god and wears finger armor

All things considered, Alan Moore is kind of a curmudgeon. Although a skilled writer and one of the most critically and fan acclaimed writers of our time, it seems he hates movies. Especially when the movie just happens to be based on his material.

No seriously. He wears finger armor

Does his name sound familiar? If not his catalogue of work most certainly will: From Hell, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and V For Vendetta. All of these films have been based off of his best selling graphic novels (a term I hate for the most part, but we'll discuss that next time).

All of these books are not only by the same man, but they are considered by many to be some of the greatest works ever created for the format. But as for the movies? Ehhhhh...

Moore has seeked to distance himself from anything Hollywood has to do with his works hoping to keep them as two separate beings. Now if this was a smart move considering what the movies became or to be what caused the movies to be somewhat subpar, who knows? Moore has requested that his name not appear on anything based off of his works as well as signing over his option checks to the co-creators of the projects.

While there is a gaggle of fans (Moore included) out there who believe that there's no way a Watchmen movie can be filmed and still contain all the complexity of the source material, members of the media who have seen footage of the film claim it to be awe inspiring.

Luckily for Moore he's not alone in his crusade to keep this movie out of theatres, although his ally is in it for a different reason.

Fox recently filed an injunction against Warner Bros. claiming that they actually own the distribution rights to the film and that they need to be paid in order for the film to come out. The case goes to trial just two months before the films release date, and while it loooks like Fox is fishing for a paycheck, there are those who say Fox is after something else all together.

The rights to the 1960's Batman television show.

Warner Bros. currently holds all the rights to the program and has yet to release the show on dvd. By getting the rights Fox would then hold a piece of one of America's most recognizable television shows, but also be able to pop out some dvd's and make some easy dough.

So who's watching the watchmen?

Well certainly not Alan Moore, but hopefully we'll be able to this March.

Why comics?

It's a pretty straight forward question. Why comics?

With all the different ways and mediums for people to be entertained, why comics?

Maybe it the fact that comics haven't really changed all that much since their start decades ago. Some forms of home entertainment such as music and movies come out with new ways of distribution all the time. It seems like as soon as you dedicate yourself to a format a new one lays right on the horizon. Meanwhile a comic book from today will look almost exactly like a comic book from the 40's.

There's also a complex simplicity to it. A man much smarter than me once said that comics are "words and pictures, and whats better than that?".

Coming soon to a theatre to you: something nothing like this

People have been telling stories with words for a long time, and people have been telling stories with pictures a helluva lot longer. A good comic will have the perfect harmony of writing and art, but a great comic will make each stand out even more on their own.

It wasn't until I got back into comics a few years ago that I realized that they were actually written and drawn by somebody. Moreso than that but there were people whose JOB this was. Soon I started taking note of which writers and artists I liked. Who else have they worked with? What title did they leave their mark on? It's quite similar to how movie fans will follow certain actors or directors career from film to film. Comic fans will follow writers and artists from book to book or story to story.

Speaking of, there are so many stories to tell too. Perhaps one of the biggest misconceptions out there is that: COMICS = SUPERHEROES. When someone asks you if you watch tv, they usually aren't referring to one particular genre. So why should it be the same for comics? That would be like flipping the television channels and seeing nothing but gritty court room drama on every station. It would get old REAL fast.

>
Bored yet?

The darkly religious black humor of Preacher, the tongue in cheek politcal mayhem of Transmetropolitan.

The beautiful hauntingness of The Sandman, the comedic sci-fi tragedy of Y: The Last Man.

The familiarity and fun of Fables, the cryptic revolving ambiguity of 100 Bullets.

All of the above are fantastic books and not one of them has superheroes in it. They also all disprove one of the other biggest comic misconceptions: Comics are for kids. While some comics can just be read, enjoyed and put back down, many are complex and layered stories that need to be played out over time. It's not continuity, it's depth. Also just for content sake, while there are lots of all ages friendly books out there, there's lots of stuff out there that would be rated PG-13 and up.

What's he doing to Sue Dibny?

So why comics? I think a better question would be why not comics?

Mission Statement

Hi, my name is Chris. I read comic books.

And frankly, I don't understand you people. Now before you throw your arms into the air, threaten to take your ball and go home, please hear me out. I know that some of you may get it, and I appreciate that, but to everyone else let's talk. Just you and I...

According to Box Office Mojo the latest film in the Batman franchise, The Dark Knight, has grossed $525,831,387 domestically since July. Based on an average ticket price of $10 we can assume that about 52,583,183 have seen the flick.

You like me? You really like me?

Now according to Diamond Comic Distributors sales estimations, the Batman comic has sold (about) $931,167 over the span of July to September and based on the average cover price of $3 for a comic issue thats 310,389 issues sold.

All I ever wanted was your love

52 Million vs. 300 Thousand.

Why must comic books be our cultures dirty little secret?

Stanley Leiber is the father of the modern comic book, but with his first published work he hid behind the nom de plume "Stan Lee" because he didn't want the fact that he wrote a comic ruining the chance of future jobs. After that, when meeting people he'd introduce himself as a writer, when further questioned about what he wrote he would answer "periodicals", only until after further pushing he would reveal he wrote comic books.

Neil Gaiman's Sandman series won a World Fantasy award for issue #19 "A Midsummer Nights Dream" in 1991, and right after that the rules of the Award were changed so another comic book could never win again.

You can find Superman tee shirts, bathtowels, floormats, backpacks, flatware and many other licensed goods at any big box store, but if you want a Superman comic book you have to go to a specialty retailer.

When did we get so cool but ignored?

What do you have against us?

You don't have to come in alone anymore.