New Books for 6/4/08

Here's whats coming out this Wednesday. Books of interest are highlighted in red. Enjoy!

ABE SAPIEN THE DROWNING #5 (OF 5)
ALL NEW ATOM #24
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #561
AMERICAN DREAM #3 (OF 5)
AMERICAN SPLENDOR SEASON TWO #3 (OF 4)
AMORY WARS II #1 (OF 5)
ASTONISHING X-MEN SKETCHBOOK
AVENGERS INVADERS #2 (OF 12)
BATMAN DEATH MASK #3 (OF 4)
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA ORIGINS #6
BOYS #19 (MR)
BRIT #6
BUDDHA STORY OF ENLIGHTENMENT #3
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #15
CABLE #4
CRIMINAL 2 #3
DARK TOWER LONG ROAD HOME #4 (OF 5)
DC SPECIAL RAVEN #4 (OF 5)
DETECTIVE COMICS #845
DEVI #20
DOCTOR WHO CLASSICS #7
FX #4 (OF 6)
GRIMM FAIRY TALES #27
HAUNT OF HORROR LOVECRAFT #1 (OF 3)
HOUSE OF MYSTERY #2
INFINITY INC #10
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #2
JONAH HEX #32
JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED #46
JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA #16
KICK ASS #3
LORDS OF AVALON SOD #5 (OF 6)
MANHUNTER #31
MARVEL ADVENTURES SPIDER-MAN #40 (OMG! THOR SPIDER-MAN)
MARVEL SPOTLIGHT SECRET INVASION
MIDNIGHTER #20
NEW BATTLESTAR GALACTICA SEASON ZERO #9
NIGHTWING #145
NOBLE CAUSES #34
NOVA #14
OMEGA UNKNOWN #9 (OF 10)
PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #20
RANN THANAGAR HOLY WAR #2 (OF 8)
RED SONJA #34
ROBIN SPOILER SPECIAL #1
SECRET INVASION #3 (OF 8)
SHONEN JUMP JULY 08
SPAWN #179
STAR TREK ASSIGNMENT EARTH #2
STAR TREK NEW FRONTIER #3
SUPERGIRL #30
TALES OF TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #46
TALL TALES OF VISHNU SHARMA PANCHATANTRA #5 (OF 5)
TANK GIRL VISIONS OF BOOGA #2
TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE RAISING CAIN #2 (OF 3)
TOR #2 (OF 6)
TRINITY #1
ULTIMATE ORIGINS #1 (OF 5)
VINYL UNDERGROUND #9
WAR THAT TIME FORGOT #2 (OF 12)
WOLVERINE DANGEROUS GAME
YOUNG X-MEN #3

GRAPHIC NOVELS

ASTERIX AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES HC
BLEACH TP VOL 23
COMPLETE JACK KIRBY VOL 04 1947B TP
CONAN BORN ON THE BATTLEFIELD HC
CRAWL SPACE TP VOL 01 XXXOMBIES
ESSENTIAL CAPTAIN MARVEL TP VOL 01
FABLES TP VOL 10 THE GOOD PRINCE
GRAPHIC LIBRARY GN EASTMAN & KODAK CAMERA
GRAPHIC LIBRARY GN FARNWORTH & TELEVISION
GRAPHIC LIBRARY GN GUTENBERG & PRINTING PRESS
HEDGE KNIGHT II SWORN SWORD PREM HC
HULK VS THE MARVEL UNIVERSE TP
INDIANA JONES OMNIBUS TP VOL 02
INFINITY INC TP VOL 01 LUTHORS MONSTERS
INVINCIBLE TP VOL 09 OUT OF THIS WORLD
LEGION OF SUPER HEROES 1050 YEARS IN THE FUTURE TP
LOBSTER JOHNSON TP VOL 01 IRON PROMETHEUS
NEW AVENGERS TP VOL 07 TRUST
ONE PIECE TP VOL 18
PATH OF THE ASSASSIN TP VOL 11
PENANCE RELENTLESS TP
POKEMON RISE OF DARKRAI GN
PREDATOR OMNIBUS TP VOL 03
SHOWCASE PRESENTS HAUNTED TANK TP VOL 02
SONIC THE HEDGEHOG ARCHIVES TP VOL 07
STAR WARS OMNIBUS DROIDS TP VOL 01
TELLOS COLOSSAL TP VOL 01
TOM STRONG TP BOOK 06
ZOMBIE SIMON GARTH TP

The Fantom... Is Ashamed: Part 1

I really did try hard to keep up with this blog, but sometimes at the shop you have killer weeks and this was one of 'em. It was a pretty thick week, full of some really high volume books like, Final Crisis #1, All-Star Superman #11, Batman #677, Green Lantern #31, Thor #9, Marvel 1985 #1, New Avengers #41 and Giant Sized Astonishing X-Men. But every week is loaded with great books, the real problems arose with stuff like a broken AC Unit, losing the Internet for two days, and fixing a very corrupted credit card machine. But all of this madness was not for nothing, it got me thinking.

Since there are a lot of comic book bloggers out there, guys like Chris Sims, Kevin Church and the guys over at Second Printing, I thought about who there are not a lot of. Comics retailer bloggers. In fact Mike Sterling is the only one who comes to mind. So that's where I want to take this blog. There will still be reviews of stuff I'm reading (not essentially weekly reviews, but maybe a review of a good TPB or something) but it will mostly be stuff about the store and amusing minutia about comics. Oh and Thor. There will be stuff about Thor. You know what, speaking of Thor...

• This weeks issue of Thor gives us a look in on whats going on in the world of Balder the Brave, and from the looks of it, he's just as dumb as always. And even though Loki is MUCH less attractive in this issue (which is a good thing) Balder still falls for the same ole' Loki shenanigans. But it does feature Oliver Coipel on pencils again, which of course gives us this great scene:

Thor picking up Loki and Balder at a Police Station after they slayed Frost Giants on a highway road in Colorado. If you're going to use your one phone call, I guess the God of Thunder is a good one.

The good news is customers are really enjoying this title. I'm a little bit worried because there is a lot of Norse stuff being thrown around here, and to be honest that's what got this book canceled in the first place, but for now its one of the top sellers.

• In other news Final Crisis #1 came out, totally getting me excited and confused at the same time. I can also sense the skepticism in the readers. We ordered a lot of these, but its not selling anywhere near as fast as Secret Invasion #1 and I have seen a lot of people pick it up, churn the gears, and then put it down. But by far, the best thing to come out of Final Crisis was indeed the caveman showdown in the beginning, which led Employee Pat to make this astute reference:

If you need help getting the joke let me know. Part 2 tomorrow!

Happy Memorial Day Brother

This is my older brother:

Currently he is serving in the United States Army as a JAG in the 8th Military Police Brigade known as the "Watchdogs". Sadly he ships out from Hawaii to Iraq this November, and so it is with great pleasure that I dedicate this blog post to my brother Josh. The man who introduced me to comics.

While my family was visiting my brother on the beautiful island of Oahu, we of course hit the gym at the Barracks. This was one of my favorite gym experiences ever. LIKE EVER. Just training with all these Army guys in a gym that had not been updated since at least 1981. Classic. I love 'em old.

Afterwards, the Kessler men posed for this quality photo:


NICE.

So we proceed to leave the facility, but on the way out something catches my eye:

Yeah, needless to say I was stunned. But inspiration comes from everywhere and there is no one else I would rather be inspired by than Captain America. Go Army.

So thanks brudda. I owe a lot to you and today, more so than ever, I am proud of you.

The Fantom... Takes A Look

As you may recall (or may not) I mentioned in my review of the Young Avengers HC that artist Jimmy Cheung is incapable of drawing different faces. Here is the proof.

Now, I love his art, and this cover is great. I think he draws with great bravado, in a style that everyone can enjoy. But he really has to work on this face thing. Not the faces they make, because I think those are spot on, just the construction of the faces needs to be better. Because eventually, the big guys and fans are going to begin to notice his limited range. Check this out:

Same face. VERY DIFFERENT PEOPLE.

Now really, who am I to take shots at Jim Cheung? But don't you WANT to see him do something a little different with his art. Experiment a little. I mean, it would look absolutely amazing I think. He has mastered the basics better than anyone in my opinion and I would love to see that evolution.

BONUS CONTENT!

God, isn't Cap just adorable.

*ATTN: Jordan Kessler

So a package arrived for me at the store yesterday. It looked like this:

It said it was from this guy:

So I opened it:

OH...

MY...

STARS!

TOTALLY RAD!

And just so you dont think Ryan Kelly is just some sort of art fairy, I did in fact purchase these from Mr. Kelly. And let me tell you something. IT WAS A GREAT EXPERIENCE. We emailed back and forth, settled on the prices and within days I recieved my first pieces of original art*. So thanks Ryan! And a big thanks to The Devon Sanders, who even informed me that Ryan would do this.

* Art from Local #11, Published by Oni Press

A Fantom Preivew

Here's a sneak peek at the battle that will rage in the heart of New York City in Secret Invasion #3.

Man, Vision cannot catch a break.

The Fantom... REVIEWS!

Reviews For The Week Of 5/21/2008

Justice League Of America #21:
IGN just says it better:

"Justice League of America is without a doubt, hands down the most frustrating title on the stands to read month in and month out. Following the departure of writer Brad Meltzer from the title, DC announced that Dwayne McDuffie, himself a seasoned Justice League writer after four fantastic seasons helming the animated television show, would be taking over the book. They then proceeded to cripple any creative impulse McDuffie might have had by forcing one crossover after another onto the title, making Justice League of America the company's premier marketing device rather than its most entertaining and bombastic book."

It really is time for this book to take off. I love the League, and after filling virtually everybody's subscription box with this title, so does everyone else . Now I blame the animated series for this. It built an unbelievable following that carried over to the comic, but really, DC is absolutely trashing their greatest property. And that's really the problem I guess. They see it as property.


Amazing Spider-Man #559 & #560:

WARNING: POTENTIALLY GOOD AMAZING SPIDER-MAN ARC

I thought I would throw that out there since, from the beginning of Brand New Day, most of these stories have been... well... bad . This arc is one of the exceptions (and its precursor ASM #555-557), and once again restores my faith in the fun pulpiness that a Spider-Man comic should be (Be it, this is direction Marvel wants to take the character). Dan Slott admirably handles the scribing of Peter's duologue, while simultaneously introducing us to a few new "villains"; who I only put in quotes because they really are nowhere near SPIDER-MANS ROGUES GALLERY, material. But watching their confrontations, and anticipating their future ones sure is fun.


Mighty Avengers #14:
I like the Sentry.

Now hopefully I'll start to get more hits. FLAME ME. BRING IT ON.

But seriously I enjoy the trials and trivals of Bob Reynolds. I however did NOT particularly care for the Sentry mini-series, but Marvel and Bendis have done a good job directing the character into a direction where he somewhat entertaining, and dare I say...enjoyable. This issue continues to follow the excellent success of the previous Secret Invasion tie-ins, helping to fill out the panels of Secret Invasion #2 where the Sentry just up and leaves the fight screaming nonsense. And really, this is a very obvious story to tell. The Skrulls have no idea how to defeat the Sentry in a physical sense. But mentally, bingo. And who is the only one who can mentally screw with Bob. The Void.

All in all, a pretty great issue. BUT, I can understand that if you have not read the Sentry mini, you will most likely hate this.


Brothers In Arms #1:
Great game. An absolutely awesome game. The comic. Its alright.

This comic pretty much brings the characters from the game to the page, in what is, perhaps the most trampled over part of a licencing/history text book ever. There really is zero need for this book. Sure it looks alright artistically. Very accurate to WW II in both look and feeling. But we just don't need this. I just don't need a book about the greatest Airborne squad in the history of combat... again.

But I'll read on. Because Captain America would want me to. He would want me to remember and blah, blah, blah.


The End League #3:
I could not finish this. I read about 6 pages, got bored, put it down and put it back on the rack. Its just not doing it for me any more. I was initially pretty excited about this book, but between the delays and the super wordiness of the characters its just a bore.

THE FANTOM'S PICK OF THE WEEK

CAPTAIN AMERICA #38

This issue predominately features Bucky and Sam Wilson kicking the crap out of Arnim Zola-bot and his goons. In fact there is a page where Falcon drops from the sky, kicks an AIM guy in the back the head, and then flys away. All the while Bucky is tossing his shield, yelling vigorously and looking tough.

It made me want to cry.

We also get a very logical explanation of this "New Cap" and what his purpose is, which is something most of us already knew.

Yes, all of this is in what I have labeled as, THE GREATEST COMIC BOOK RUN OF MY GENERATION. And I mean that. I have never enjoyed reading a comic more than this. The pacing, the cliff hangers, the characters, the action, the romance. This book has it all and I couldn't be any more happy about it.