Grease Monkey GN (Tor Books) - This was a very pleasant surprise, and is my pick of the month. Back in the '90s, Image produced one, maybe two issues of this book, a black and white space opera that focused on a mechanic for a fighter squadron. The art was great, the action was exciting, the premise was interesting... and it disappeared, presumably due to low sales. Now it's been completed and is available in trade paperback format, and I can't recommend it highly enough to fans of Star Wars, of the comic Runners or of other high-flying space opera works. Preview the entire first chapter HERE. (page 352)
Casanova #1 (Image) - Matt Fraction's Casanova is in the "Fell format" ($1.99 for 28 pages of story and art), but if I were going to make comparisons, I'd compare it more to Fraction's "Basement Tapes" collaborator Joe Casey's Godland. Godland is Casey and illustrator Tom Scioli filtering their love of Kirby into something modern and original but absolutely true to the spirit of that original genius, and based on the look and general approach, I'd guess that Casanova is the same kind of thing with Jim Steranko's psychedelic Nick Fury work inspiring it. Sci-fi secret agent sounds like a fun concept, Gabriel Ba is a phenomenal artist, and Matt Fraction is a great writer whose work has been too few and far between up to now. I'm tremendously excited about Casanova. Official website HERE. (page 137)
She-Hulk Vol. 3: Time Trials TP (Marvel) - This collects the first five issues of the second volume of She-Hulk, which features a guest appearance by a time-lost Hawkeye, a surprise return of an obscure Avenger and a number of other memorable, fun stories. If Marvel imploded tomorrow, there are only about five books I'd miss, and Dan Slott is writing two of them (this one and Thing). You can read a digital copy of She-Hulk #1 and She-Hulk #8 HERE.(page M97)
Museum of Terror Vol. 1 TPB (Dark Horse) - I love Junji Ito's horror manga, and I was starting to think, based on Viz letting Uzumaki slip out of print, that we might never see any more of it. That his brand of spooky, sometimes gory horror wasn't really what the manga fans were looking for. Thankfully, I was wrong, as Dark Horse offers up a volume of Ito's other horror work, an anthology of sorts that shows off his different concepts, including a reprint of Tomie, which I missed back when Comicsone originally reprinted it. If you like Japanese horror films like Ringu and Ju On, or for that matter if you're any kind of horror comics fan, do yourself a favor and check out the best horror comics there are... Junji Ito's horror manga. Official site HERE. (page 41)
The Amazing Joy Buzzards Vol. 2 TP (Image) - Car races, half-Yeti, evil secret agents, masked Mexican wrestlers, cats from outer space... this collection of Amazing Joy Buzzards has almost everything. In addition to the regular work of talented creators Hipp and Smith, it has guest art and stories by Jim Mahfood and Dave Crosland. It is well worth your tall comics dollars if you like your comics funny, weird and slightly flavored like '80s cartoon pop-culture. Five-page preview from volume one HERE. (page 147)
The Walking Dead Book One HC (Image) - Walking Dead stands head and shoulders above the rest of Robert Kirkman's work as my absolute favorite thing that he's doing. The only thing that comes close is Invincible, which already got the swanky hardcover treatment. So I'm thrilled to see Walking Dead getting a more affordable hardcover collection than the super-deluxe (and super-expensive) 24-issue hardcover from last year. If you haven't read this book yet, what are you waiting for? Maybe you were waiting for a cool, affordable hardcover, and if so, now's your chance! No website links for this one, it's damn hard to find actual art or samples online. (page 135)
Fear Agent Vol. 1: Re-Ignition TP (Image) - This book has been plagued by lateness, which is annoying. However, each issue has been really enjoyable, with gorgeous artwork from Tony Moore and roughneck sci-fi by writer Rick Remender. I'll wish for a more consistent schedule, but even as I do so, I'll be buying this trade paperback because of the EC-style sci-fi action greatness it represents. If you want a sample, there's a CBR feature, with plenty of preview art, HERE. (page 148)
Flight Vol. 3 GN (Ballantine) - Both of the previous volumes of this full-color anthology have been gorgeous to behold. There's certainly no reason to believe that the move to Ballantine is going to change that. Tremendously talented cartoonists and animators offer up short stories in comics form once again. Official site HERE. (page 245)
Out of the Picture TP (Paquet) - If Flight is a sure thing, Out of the Picture is the nearest thing to it. Like Flight, it features talented contributors creating short stories for a full-color anthology. And the art in the ad in Previews just stopped me dead and made me have to look, which is a good sign. Preview some of the artists' work HERE. (page 320)
Love The Way You Love #1 (Oni) - Several new Oni books this month, plus another no-doubt stupendous issue of Local, but the one that jumps out at me is the new romance book by former editor-in-chief Jamie Rich and artist Marc Ellerby. Rich has a unique sensibility that should be perfect for romantic comedy, and Oni has shown themselves to be good at this kind of thing with Andi Watson's Breakfast After Noon and J. Torres/Eric Kim's Love As a Foreign Language, to name only two. The official page, with five-page preview, is HERE. (page 318)
Action Philosophers Vol. 1 TP (Evil Twin Comics) - Who would have thought that stories of actual philosophers could be exciting, funny and informative? I've only read one issue of Action Philosophers, but what I read showed me that these creators are offering up the sort of fun yet educational comics that Jay Hosler did with Clan Apis and Sandwalk Adventures. And the trade is only $7! Tons of free previews HERE. (page 290)
Black Plague One-Shot (Boom!) - Joe Casey's take on supervillains, ala Empire or Wanted? Sign me up! Casey's sensibilities include a postmodern approach and a real love for old school superheroes, and pretty much every time he applies that to new characters, the results are entertaining. Here's a CBR interview with Joe Casey on Black Plague.(page 249)
Champions Classic Vol. 1 TP (Marvel) - The bizarre grouping of Black Widow, Hercules, Iceman, Angel and Ghost Rider is almost enough to get me to pick up this trade, but I don't think I want to fork over $20 for what are probably cheesy, adequately written and drawn stories by workhorses like Isabella, Mantlo, Claremont, Heck & Tuska, among others. But it's only five bucks more than a comparable Essential, and in full color, so fans of '70s cheesy Marvel, have at! (page M94)
Dark Horse trades (Dark Horse) - Dark Horse has a great crop of trade collections this month, with the latest installments of several of my favorites. That includes Concrete Vol. 6: Strange Armor (page 27), Usagi Yojimbo Vol. 20: Glimpses of Death (page 31), B.P.R.D.: The Black Flame (page 33) and Star Wars Clone Wars Vol. 9: Endgame (page 46). All of these trades are on my order list, and I especially recommend B.P.R.D., which was one of the strongest stories featuring those characters thus far, with drop-dead gorgeous artwork by Guy Davis and Dave Stewart.
DCU: Brave New World (DC) - This is an 80 page dollar issue, in the vein of DC's Countdown to Infinite Crisis. But where Countdown was one big story that spanned the universe, this is little more than an advertising teaser, with a dozen or so pages of six new books. The characters are, for the most part, potentially interesting, especially with the right creative teams. Sadly, for my money, not one of them has the right creative team. Gail Simone is the only writer who jumps out as particularly exciting, and she's teamed on art with John Byrne, whose work I'm just not a big fan of these days. But then, I'm pretty much completely out of touch with most DC fans these days, so I don't think my apathy is going to hurt this one commercially. Previews of several pages HERE. (page 77)
The Drowners TP (Image) - I've never read any of Nabiel Kanan's work, but I've heard a ton of good things, and I like his art style. The Drowners sounds like a modern noir thriller, and that kind of thing is up my alley, so it might be time to finally sample Kanan's storytelling skills. Read yourself RAW has a profile with links if you want to get more information on Kanan. (page 148)
Eternals #1 (Marvel) - Neil Gaiman's previous project from Marvel, 1602, left me completely cold. But Eternals reminds me of what Joe Casey and Tom Scioli are doing with Godland, and if Gaiman and Romita Jr. can approach the cosmic fun of that series, then Eternals will win me over. Certainly the notion of a timeless superhero seems suited to Gaiman's writing strengths, and Romita Jr.'s art looks great as always in the previews I've seen. (page M33)
G.I. Joe: Declassified #1 (Devil's Due) - Larry Hama tells the tale of the G.I. Joe team's formation, and how they came together before the events of Marvel's series. G.I. Joe (and Hama's take on them in particular) has just enough nostalgic hooks in me to get me to take a look. (page 271)
Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Dark Horse) - Dark Horse has a ton of interesting stuff this month. This new manga caught my attention for two reasons: One is that cover, beautifully designed with interesting colors. The other is the premise, which finds five students with talents for the paranormal helping spirits move on to their final place of rest by carrying corpses around. Sounds weird and potentially interesting. (page 40)
Leading Man #1 (Oni) - Oni has only rarely dabbled in color, so they must have really seen something they liked in this concept by B. Clay Moore and Jeremy Haun. Certainly I love the visuals and the premise, about a world famous movie star who is also a globe-trotting secret agent. Hopefully this won't suffer from the lateness problems of Moore's other projects, like Hawaiian Dick, Expatriate and Battle Hymn, but hopefully it will live up to the quality of those projects. (page 318)
Lump Vol. 1 TP (Salt Peter Press) - If you were the type of kid (or are the type of adult) to stay up watching old black and white horror movies about mad scientists, you should really check out Lump. It reprints work from Chris Wisnia's delightfully odd tabloid-themed anthology Tabloia, with a story about a body that's found with too many limbs and organs, and the mystery unfolds from there. You can find more information at Wisnia's site. (page 322)
Marvel Westerns: The Two-Gun Kid (Marvel) - Like Marvel Romance, this falls into that puzzling category of "We all know this is doomed to failure, why don't you?" that Paul O'Brien illuminates in this column, but I'm glad they're publishing it anyway. It's Dan Slott writing Two-Gun Kid, which he's been doing a terrific job of in She-Hulk, with art by the dependable Eduardo Barreto. Sure to be fun, but I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for a trade on this one, She-Hulk fans. (page M46)
Old Boy Vol 1 TPB (Dark Horse) - I've had a lot of recommendations to check out this Korean crime/revenge film, but I haven't yet. I don't know if the film was based on the manga or vice-versa, but I'm even more interested in Old Boy (manga and movie) now that I've seen the premise, about a man who is stuck in prison for ten years, doesn't know why, and then finds himself out, ready to seek revenge and reclaim his life. (page 42)
Paul Jenkins' Sidekick #1 (Image) - Honestly, the various sidekick jokes just seem a little easy these days, especially when they've been pretty much done to perfection on the Tick cartoon. However... the art here is by Chris Moreno, of Dracula vs. King Arthur, and looks great in preview, and I really enjoyed Paul Jenkins' funny work on Peter Parker, Spider-Man, so I'm going to give this one a look. (page 142)
Riding Shotgun Vol. 1 (Tokyopop) - Riding Shotgun is about a pair of sloppy assassins in a world where assassination is legal, and the solicitation text seems to promise that creators Nate Bowden and Tracy Yardley will bring the funny. I haven't read (or previously heard of) their online comic Nate and Steve, but I like the general look of Riding Shotgun, and I'll be checking this out when it hits. You can get a preview of the art, characters and other info HERE. (page 334)
Savage Brothers #1 (Boom!) - A post-apocalypse book centered on a pair of former salvage yard owners turned recovery experts the Savage Brothers, this one looks like it's being done in the outrageous Garth Ennis-style. The creators are Andrew Cosby and Johanna Stokes, who have written some stuff I liked for Boom! before, and if that cover by Dave Johnson is indicative of the tone and style, I think it'll be a lot of fun.(page 248)
Stonehaven Vol. 2: Subterranean Hearts GN (Stickman Graphics) - I reviewed the first volume of this series when it came out about two years ago, and quite liked it. It's a pulp detective story in a fantasy-tinged series, not unlike Fables, and is worth a look for the many fans of that book. (page 326)
Strugglers GN (Poison Press) - Tim Fish's Cavalcade of Boys is a well-written, well-drawn gay romance comic. Strugglers is an original graphic novel by Tim Fish about two girls and a guy who share an apartment together after graduating college, and the story is about them finding romance, jobs and a decent social life. In short, the struggles most of us went through after college. Good writing, good art, good premise... seems like an easy preorder. If you want to know more, here's Fish's official website. (page 320)
Sudden Gravity TPB (Dark Horse) - I've always enjoyed Greg Ruth's moody, painted artwork, whether on the "Born on the Battlefield" issues of Conan or the midwestern horror tale Freaks of the Heartland. So I'm intrigued by this graphic novel, which he is both writing and illustrating, and the premise, about a haunted hospital and a number of disturbing patients and events taking place within it, sounds especially good. Sadly, Sudden Gravity appears to be pencilled artwork rather than the lush painted style Ruth generally employs, but it still looks pretty good, as you can see by checking out the art samples HERE. (page 30)
The Transformers: Evolutions Hearts of Steel #1 (IDW) - Every time I think I'm done with the nostalgic draws of G.I. Joe and Transformers, somebody offers up something that piques my interest. IDW's Transformers: Infiltration comic has been a pretty solid little adventure read, and this new book features the highly-entertaining high concept of steampunk transformers, complete with terrific design sketches by series artist Guido Guidi. Shame that original artist Ted McKeever had to bail, but quite honestly, Guidi's smoother lines will probably be more commercially successful at any rate, especially amongst the Transformers faithful. (page 302)
Ursa Minors #1 (Amaze Ink/Slave Labor Graphics) - Soldiers in high-tech robotic bear suits defend the city from ninjas, dinosaurs and robotic movie directors. It all sounds a little too deliberately wacky, but the writer is Neil Kleid (of Ninety Candles and Brownsville), and Slave Labor has offered up some quirky gems, like Halo & Sprocket and Street Angel, before. Worth a look, at any rate. You can find a preview HERE. (page 224)
Wet Moon Vol. 2: Unseen Feet (Oni) - With all his energies focused on the excellent OEL Abandoned graphic novel for Tokyopop, I was expecting to have to wait at least another year to see the second volume of Ross Campbell's goth-y southern horror/romance book. So I was shocked and thrilled to discover that the second volume of Wet Moon will be coming out in June. Campbell is a phenomenal artist, and I really enjoyed his writing on both Abandoned and the first Wet Moon as well. Don't miss this one, whether you're a diehard goth fan or someone who usually turns their nose up at that kind of material (like me.) Wet Moon is great, and if there's any justice, Ross Campbell will eventually be a comics superstar. (page 318)
Wonder Woman #1 (DC) - I've never been a Wonder Woman fan, and at this point I've seen enough interpretations of her to guess that I never will be. But Allan Heinberg is impressing me with his work on Young Avengers, so I'll give this one a shot as well. Truthfully, it already has one strike against it, as work on this book is no doubt at least partially responsible for the delays on Young Avengers, which are hurting my enjoyment of the book. (page 91)
I'm baaaaccck! Down the Line is The Fourth Rail's monthly look at Previews, and what titles are coming out a few months, well, "down the line." I'm flying solo again, and that will hopefully mean a somewhat shorter column, and I'll also be even more ignoring the big events that everybody knows about to talk about the books that might actually need some spotlighting. That doesn't mean I'll never talk about the big events, but that's never gonna be the focus. Some months, I'll be full of snark and bitterness about the mainstream, some months I'll be "optimistic talk about what comics are good" guy. Tune in and see whether I wrote in "manic" or "depressive" mode!
